Today’s quote:
“In Jeremiah 23:24 God declares, “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” What does this mean? Is this limited to just one attribute of God, say for example, His knowledge, or just His power, or may be just His authority?
God is present in all places; however, our conception of Him must not be of Him filling space, as water fills a jug, for He has no physical or material dimensions.
It is as spirit that He is everywhere, in heaven, earth and hell. Although it surpasses the understanding of creatures such as we are, who are limited and bound to material bodies, God Himself is present everywhere in His majesty and power.
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God’s omnipresence is not potential or with just his knowledge. If I know a lot of facts about Paris, it does not mean that I am in Paris. Again, God is not present everywhere with just his authority, for if a king exercises his dominion from his palace, it does not mean that he is anywhere else.”
– http://www.tecmalta.org/tft138.htm
..and now, Kabir Day 35:
The couplet transliterated:
Saaheb teri saahibi, sub ghat rahya samaay |
Jyon mehndi ke paat mein, laali lakha na jaaye ||
Translation:
Lord, your presence, invisible and untouchable, yet is everywhere and in everything |
Just as the red dye in the ‘mehndi’ leaf cannot be seen but is there every time a leaf is crushed ||
My understanding:
The quote above, from a page I found in random browsing on the web, evoked sharp memories of the above couplet. The thought is simple but very deep at the same time.
The red dye extracted from crushed mehndi (a shrub with very thick green leaves) leaves is used by Indian girls and ladies to decorate hands and feet in enticing patterns, and is the symbolic representation of celebration. However, looking at the leaf, there is no clue of the wonderful message of joy and celebration it hides within – that can only happen when the leaves are collected, crushed, and applied in the proper fashion to the correct parts of the skin.
Similarly, God, The Power, thought, happiness, our feeling of well-being are all there inside of each one of us and all around us – waiting for us to reach out and experience the bliss within. However, we have to each make that effort to reach and find that happiness – it is not enough to just understand or even acknowledge its existence within and around us. And even the most skeptical amongst us has to agree that science has a long way to go and a lot to learn before it can quantify this feeling – look at the smile on the face of the person next to you (wait if it is not yet there – do not force it into place) and try to put the joy you feel into words!