Our Limited Sight vs. the Limitless Lord Divine!

The present age is the age of science. It's an era where blind faith, blind beliefs, imaginations and unsubstantiated convictions have no place! Everything is tested, verified, and proved.

Taking recourse to such arguments, some atheists deny the existence of God. But, a wise saying goes thus– 'little knowledge is a dangerous thing'. These atheists relied upon just one aspect of science, ignoring the other facets. Whereas, the fact is that 'Science' itself accepts many things and creatures whose existence cannot be comprehended through the sensory organs of the human beings. For example, the air that we breathe in contains thousands of bacteria/micro-organisms. But, we are unable to see them with the naked eyes. Our eyes are unable to reach out and locate the distant planets and stars twinkling far away from us. These eyes cannot see the x-rays, ultraviolet rays and the infra-red rays. We are just able to perceive a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum.

In a nutshell, we are able to see only 0.00000000000035% (3.5 X 10-13) part of the cosmos. Imagine, out of the gigantic figure of the combined population of these 2 million earths, you are able to see only 42 individuals– that's what makes the 3.5 X 10-13 part! And, this is what we are able to see on this Planet Earth! Strange, isn't it? We are so proud of our eyes but, just look at the limitation of their vision! How minimal is their power! As compared to the magnitude of the cosmos, the power of the eyes is almost non-existent!

That apart, the small world which these eyes perceive– are these able to see even that much to the point of perfection or in totality? If it were so, the words like 'mirage or illusion' would not have found place in the dictionary.

Just stand at one end of the rail-track and stretch your vision towards its far end. It will appear as if the two parallel tracks meet each other. But does it actually happen? In that case, the outcome would have been only accidents! From the beginning of the journey till the end of it, the railway tracks are laid parallel. Stand on the shore of the sea and look as far as the eyes can survey. You will visualise that the sea and the sky meet at one place. But is there any such place on the Earth where the sea and the sky meet?

Why then trust these eyes so much? Why then make them the witness to prove the existence of God? When these eyes are unable to perceive even the little fraction of this cosmos around them correctly and fully, how can then we expect them to have the capacity to see the Creator of the cosmos?

The Sages, the Realised Souls, have tendered for our benefit their profound, philosophical observations in this regard. Just read the following verse from Kenopanishad very carefully–

Yachchakshusha na pashyati

yena chakshoonshi pashyati,

Tadeva brahma tvam viddhi

nedam yadidamupaasate.

Meaning thereby, 'that' which cannot be seen by these eyes, instead 'that' which makes these eyes see the things around, 'that' alone is Brahman. The sum and substance is that these eyes are mere instruments. These don't possess the power of their own, that enables them to see. It is with the power of the Divine that the eyes get the intrinsic strength to see. A bulb cannot give light on its own. Only when the electricity passes through it, it is enabled to provide light. No vehicle can move on its own. Only when it gets the energy from the external sources, it provides the locomotion. Similarly, our eyes and for that matter all other sense organs are functionless on their own. The divine power of God alone provides energy for their activation.

So, do all these factual assertions lead to the conclusion that God is simply the subject of discussions and blind acceptance? Does that mean that it is impossible to experience and know (realise) Him? No, not at all! If it were so, Swami Vivekananda would not have declared aloud from the open platform that 'Religion is the realisation of God', i.e., the essence of religion is to have face to face meeting with God.

Our sages have repeatedly proclaimed that God cannot be seen or experienced through these external eyes or with the aid of any other sensory organ. For experiencing Him, the subtle apparatus is needed. As per the spiritual terminology that subtle instrument is known as “Divine Eye” or “Third Eye.”
Our scriptures reveal that–

Esha sarveshu bhooteshu

goodhotmaa na prakaashate

Drashyate tvagrayayaa buddhayaa

sookshmayaa sookshmadarshi bhihi

Meaning thereby, even though the Supreme Lord exists in all beings, yet He is not visible to all due to the curtain of Maya. Only they who have explored the subtle divine principles and possess the subtlest and the finest 'apparatus' known as Divine Eye are able to experience Him.

But how can we acquire this subtle apparatus, i.e., Divine Eye? Since this is not an external instrument, it is not possible to get it from the external sources. Only a Perfect Master (Poorna Guru) can bestow it upon the inquisitive aspirant.

In the sixth part of the fourteenth section of the Chhandogyopanishad, this truth has been explained in perfectly clear terms. When Shvetketu questioned his father as to how to see God, his father replied–

Yathaasomya purusham gandhaarebhyobhinaddhaakshamaaneeya...

O' the benevolent one! Assume that someone from Gandhaar (a country) is blindfolded and is left alone in a deserted place with no human beings around. Now, that individual cries out for help. In such a situation, if someone were to untie his knots, remove the blindfold and give him proper information about the direction of Gandhaar, then? Without doubt, he will be able to reach his destination. Similarly, when one meets a True Guru, with his (Guru's) guidance, he is able to move in the direction of meeting the Divine Lord. One's bondage in the secular world lasts until he is fortunate to meet his Guru, who can remove the veil tied to his eyes, or to say, who can bless him with the Divine Eye. Because, thereafter, it is certain that he realises the Supreme God within himself.

In essence, being unable to experience the Supreme Lord with the external eyes, do not negate His existence. By raising the voice against God, do not stand in the queue of the atheists. Instead, seek refuge of a Poorna Guru (a Perfect Master) who can open your Divine Eye and can make you experience God within you. Only then, you will be justifying your conviction of being scientific in your approach. Not otherwise!