India’s unique privilege is that deep within that ancient culture lies a precious memory of Shiva, the dimensionless Source from which a pure, renewing light of truth emerges.
Other cultures are sustained through powerful religious teachings, but Bharat alone remembers Shivratri, or Shiv Jayanti, the time when the Supreme Soul comes to dispel a darkness of ignorance afflicting the world.
As a Westerner steeped in the scientific world view, focusing strongly on external, physical realities, the idea of God entering this realm to end our sorrows seemed far-fetched when I first heard about it 40 years ago. In today’s economically developed world, many have lost sight of the dimension of soul, and so do not appreciate the nature and value of the Supreme.
I was already approaching mid-life when I learned that the sorrows I was experiencing came about because of over-identifying with the physical aspects of existence; I had forgotten completely the reality of the soul, as an indestructible being of consciousness more fundamental than matter.
The people we love, the possessions that support us and the positions we may hold are all fine in themselves. It is when we define ourselves through them that we lose our truth. We become blind to the beauty of the inner being.
This is a great sickness, because when scenes change, as they must, the fear and suffering involved distance us from our natural states of love, peace, and joy.
Awareness of the spiritual self diminishes, and negative tendencies grow. Increasingly, our actions reflect a needy state of being, rather than the generosity of spirit that I now know to be our true and original nature.
The Bhagavad Gita tells us that when irreligiousness and unrighteousness reach a peak, it is Shiva’s coming that makes it possible for us all to make good this loss. We originate in a home beyond time and space, where we are with God. God’s role is to show us how to reclaim our original consciousness, in preparation for returning home. From that divine dimension, we come again into the world of time and space, with our ability to live in peace and happiness renewed.
In my case, here in England, I met Rajyogis from India who had made Shiva so much a part of their own lives that they were able to share the experience of the Creator with others. This triggered the start of a process of self-realisation. It gradually bypassed blocks in my intellect so thoroughly that I too began to feel God’s presence in my life.
One day, I felt an inner voice say: ‘With me, you can fulfil your longing to love.’
Everything of eternal value lies within the soul. When we understand this, and encounter the living energy of God’s truth, a spiritual blueprint becomes available to us that gradually draws out our original state of being. It is as though we are receiving an inheritance from the Supreme. Over time, with patience and determination, our original fullness of spirit is restored.
This process is now under way globally. Human consciousness is being renewed in preparation for a return to a world of perfect beings, the deities. This is how God creates heaven – not out of nothing, but by restoring the elevated consciousness with which our journey through time began.
It is a slippery journey. Tendencies developed and deepened over many lifetimes come to challenge us. But by turning our attention repeatedly towards the One, we draw divine love and wisdom into ourselves, and negativity finishes.
Our actions and relationships start to reflect our original qualities, of peace, love and joy, instead of sadness and neediness. As we see that happening, it becomes clear that the night is truly ending, and we understand why Shiva is remembered as the Benefactor of All.
Neville Hodgkinson is a
UK-based author and journalist, and a long-time student of Rajyoga.