Infinite Is God And Infinite Are His Expressions

The great sages and seers have tried to express the truth of God in varied ways. Some say He is personal, others say He is impersonal. Some say He is with form, others say He is without form. Some say He is endowed with divine attributes, others say He is attributeless.

Sri Ramakrishna, in the light of his own mystic experiences, resolved, in his simple way, all such contradictions. ‘Infinite is God and infinite are His expressions. He who lives continuously in the consciousness of God, and in this alone, knows Him in His true being. He knows Him as impersonal no less than as personal.’

Brahman, Absolute Existence, Knowledge, and Bliss, may be compared to an ocean, without beginning or end. As through intense cold, some portions of the water of the ocean freeze into ice, and the formless water appears to have form, so through intense love of the devotee the formless, Infinite Existence manifests Himself before him as having form and personality. But forms and aspects disappear before the man who reaches the highest Samadhi, who attains the height of non dualistic philosophy, the Vedanta.

Swami Prabhavananda

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A Zen Story

A priest was in charge of the garden within a famous Zen temple. He had been given the job because he loved the flowers, shrubs, and trees. Next to the temple there was another, smaller temple where there lived a very old Zen master.

One day, when the priest was expecting some special guests, he took extra care in tending to the garden. He pulled the weeds, trimmed the shrubs, combed the moss, and spent a long time meticulously raking up and carefully arranging all the dry autumn leaves. As he worked, the old master watched him with interest from across the wall that separated the temples.

When he had finished, the priest stood back to admire his work. "Isn't it beautiful," he called out to the old master. "Yes," replied the old man, "but there is something missing. Help me over this wall and I'll put it right for you."

After hesitating, the priest lifted the old fellow over and set him down. Slowly, the master walked to the tree near the center of the garden, grabbed it by the trunk, and shook it. Leaves showered down all over the garden. "There," said the old man, "you can put me back now."

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Nature is more perfect than anything man can create. To disrupt that beauty for the sake of making something beautiful is an absurdity.

Let nature take its course. It's not perfect but is beautiful all in itself.

We should try to see things as they really are, including their imperfections. THAT'S beauty.