Defining God… at some point, most of us are guilty. What begins as a seemingly noble attempt to answer one of life’s greatest mysteries, usually leads to prejudice, judgement, separation, condemnation, war, and even death. At least, history bears that record. Perhaps this is why so many sages–spanning all the great spiritual traditions of the world–tell us that defining God is an attempt at futility. Their wisdom proclaims that attempting to do so, even by name, places boundaries and limitations to an ineffable source. Thus, any attempt to define God is an act of self-deception. Why? Because defining God with our thoughts and feelings creates God in OUR image. The Old Testament calls this idolatry, which is transgression of the first commandment. 

Idolatry is a common practice among humans. It stems from belief systems based on personal thoughts and feelings. Sometimes these thoughts and feelings are bolstered from the act of literalizing spiritual-allegorical religious texts, where dogma and doctrine form the backbone of our God-notions, and more importantly, what we must do to please God. This is ultimately why Jesus resisted the Pharisee, and why the Apostle Paul abandoned them, learning that the natural man cannot receive the spiritual things of God. Make no mistake: these scriptural figures were adepts of human psychology. 

Many have read about Jesus’ encounter with the Pharisee and think, I’m glad I’m not one of those guys! But Jesus’ words to the Pharisee should give us all pause to reflect: “You think you have life in the scriptures, but they are which speak of me.” Many years ago I used to think that since I accepted Jesus’ sacrifice I was not like them. I was safe. But after many years of contemplation, I began to ask the question: Do I really understand this Jesus figure? Do I really understand the seemingly crazy parables that Jesus spoke? What did he really mean when he said to drink his blood and eat his flesh, or I must hate my own mother and father to be a true follower? Am I guilty of the same mistake of the Pharisee? Wait…am I playing the role of the Pharisee, too, without realizing it? 

I began to do what the Bible said and “Prove all things.” I dug deep into the paradoxical and seemingly contradictory nature of the scriptures, such as Moses talking face to face with God as a man does with his friend, and then not twenty chapters in the opposite direction it states, no man can see God’s face and live (WHAT!). I had more questions, like what’s all this business of “dark sayings of old” and proverbs needing “interpretations” of the “wise?” Did a donkey and a snake really talk? How could a merciful God really create a hell and then send people to it for eternity? 

I could recount the stories, but I really didn’t know what the hell they meant! But wasn’t the Bible a straightforward text that meant what it said? 

Hogwash. The Bible RARELY means what it says. What’s more, it was written that way on purpose. Jesus basically told his disciples, I speak in parables so they don’t understand. I’m surprised the scripture doesn’t record Peter (a symbol of the natural man) saying something brilliant, like…“Um…Lord, I’m not following you on that one.” 

All joking aside, the Bible is written the way it is because spiritual concepts cannot be described by literal words in the literal pages of a literal book. The stories of old speak of higher mysteries which must be experienced, not read about and practiced through formula or belief systems. And the experience comes through direct realization (more on this later). 

The Formless Ground of Being

When Moses asked to see God in Exodus chapter 33, God responded by stating that no one could see his “face,” but he would allow Moses to see his “back.” This is metaphorical of course. By “back” is meant God’s outward manifestation, or the manifestation of the material universe. But why couldn’t Moses see his “face?” Again, the answer should be obvious: how can one perceive that which is beyond manifestation? Even beyond that which is unmanifest? 

Earlier in Exodus, Moses asks God who he should say sent him to deliver the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. God tells Moses that he should say, “I AM” hath sent you. This statement infers an ineffable source, which transcends the intrinsic limiting nature of definition, whether by name or form. God’s answer is the epitome of the unnamed and formless ground of BEING. 

The Bible makes it perfectly clear that our greatest efforts could never please the unnamed and formless ground of BEING. And yet, humans get the notion that going to a place of worship, performing religious rites, reciting words from a Holy Book, clapping and singing, and listening to a man preach about nursery rhymes (while relating them to our current life struggles) somehow pleases God. Don’t misunderstand! I am not saying that these actions aren’t beneficial to the human soul. They most definitely can be. But Jesus stated that God must be worshiped in spirit and in truth, and none of those actions have anything to do with Jesus’ statement. 

What if I told you that, maybe, just maybe, worshiping God in spirit and truth means the abandonment of our lower nature, the ego and personality (with all those personal thoughts and feelings), to God, so that it can be transformed by God. Remember, the Apostle Paul tells us that this aspect of our soul is at enmity with God. If there is a part of you that is at enmity with God, do you really think any of your effort by it could ever please?  

So how, as humans with very flawed and biased personal thoughts and feelings, do we relate to the ineffable ground of BEING? How do we connect with this I AM, beyond the limitations of our personal ego? 

I believe the answer can be simple, but our lower nature fights to make it complicated. We humans have this affinity towards making all things complicated by turning them into a religious formula. And understandably so. Why? Because our lower nature, the part that is at enmity with God, is so mentally and emotionally confused! And it’s brilliant at keeping us so confused. In fact, it’s so brilliant that it can actually trick us into believing that we can do the right things to please the ineffable ground of BEING, even though we tell ourselves (in the name of being Biblical correct) that we are unworthy sinners. Isn’t that ironic?

The simple truth is that all of us have these strong subconscious emotional / mental prejudices, biases, and beliefs that more often times than not get in the way, and we don’t even fully consciously comprehend them. The Apostle Paul states in Romans 7:15, as translated from the NIV: “I do not know what I do. For what I want to do, I do not, but what I hate I do.”

Within us all is this never ending plague of our lower nature. And the process of transcending this endless cycle is something I have written about before, but never so in depth as I am about to do below from a spiritual-psychological perspective. 

The Process of Allowing God to Fix our Broken Parts

The process of transcendence is described in many stories throughout the Bible, but one verse in particular cuts to the heart of the matter. Psalms 46:10: “Be still and know that I am God.”

What does it mean to “be still?” And how does that put us in touch with the ground of BEING, or the I AM presence?

Esoteric study teaches that the human soul has two natures (I am simplifying for the purpose of this article). We have a higher nature, and we have a lower nature. The lower nature is corrupt, but the higher nature is incorruptible. The Apostle Paul’s “Christ in you” is this incorruptible higher nature within you. The first chapter of the Gospel of John very plainly tells us that all things were made through Christ. This means that everything was created through Christ. Christ is in all of creation! It is the reason the New Testament writer could claim that Christ was crucified since the foundation of the world. This doesn’t just mean Christ was an idea in God’s mind from the beginning of time. It means that the entire universe has Christ in it, as the foundation of its existence. Esoteric study reveals this event as involution, or the divine sacrifice. This Christ also redeems all of creation and it is described in esoteric literature as evolution, or the long process of energizing the qualities that make up our lower nature. John eloquently states, this Logos or Christ is the light of mankind. It is the redeemer of the lower nature.  So while The Apostle Paul’s “Christ in you” is this incorruptible, the corrupt one is…well, basically your lower nature. To be fair, it’s not the REAL you, but the YOU that your mind and emotions has tricked you into believing about yourself. Was that last part Confusing? Let’s keep going. 

Psalms 46:10 speaks to the complex physical-mental-emotional construct of the human soul. We’ll refer to this construct as “mind.” When the mind is in the process of becoming stilled, less energy is given to thoughts and emotions. As a result, more room is given to the pure light of awareness, which stems from the ineffable ground of BEING, symbolically manifested in us as Christ. This pure light of awareness shines into the soul, simultaneously raising its vibration frequency. Positive thoughts and emotions have a higher vibration frequency than negative thoughts and emotions. The ultimate goal of stilling the mind is not to become thoughtless or emotionless, but to increase the vibration frequency of our thoughts and emotions, which allows them to transcend the personal ego. Collectively, higher thoughts and emotions feel and understand the bigger picture of reality, which lead to unity, contentment, and peace, whereas negative thoughts and emotions are based in fear, or separation, which support the ego through our lower natures. In esoteric literature, this idea of the devil is described as also being part of your lower nature. Remember, Jesus told Peter (a symbol of the natural man, or lower nature), “Get thee behind me Satan.” It was as if Jesus was saying, Peter, you’re lower nature needs to stop being in control as the driver. Get in the back seat of the car and let me drive! 

Satan is symbolic for the illusion that separates us from God, and until our lower nature takes a back seat to the redeeming aspect of the Christ nature, we do what we wish not to do, from the higher nature’s perspective. 

To be Still – Is this Scripture Really Speaking about Meditation, or something else?

This is a good question. I am going to try and show you how being still is really this process of letting Christ take control through meditation.  

I believe Psalms 42:10 speaks to man exploring his inner being to know God, as opposed to discovering God on the outside of his or her being. Why? Neuroscience and Quantum mechanics has proven that when we interpret reality through the senses, we get a very distorted view. The human brain “interprets” the outside world, sometimes even adding additional imagery to make sense of the incomplete picture garnered from the senses. This is why five witnesses to the same event will always disagree on the details. To complicate the matter further, our personal thoughts and feelings provide a certain bias to the event, often causing us to contradict ourselves and others as we try to relay what our senses witnessed. However, when we focus our awareness within, withdrawing from the senses, through meditation (inward reflection), we are seeking to dissociate ourselves not only from interpreting through our physical senses, but from our personal thoughts and feelings as well. In a sense, we are aiming to become more objective. Part of the goal of meditation is to become an observer of our thoughts and feelings, devoid of attachment to them. 

In a sense, we can say that meditation is the process of abandoning our lower nature to God. This method has a profound impact on getting to know ourselves better. As we aim to become an unbiased witness of everything that makes us who we think we are, we come to understand that our personal thoughts and feelings are products of conditioning. We also get the strange realization that the true self is more than the body, thoughts, and emotions. This realization also speaks to the fact that our awareness, beyond body, thought and emotion, has the ability to infinitely expand and connect with a greater understanding of reality (It’s the same idea of Abraham getting called out from the land of the Chaldeans with a promise of something greater). 

Does this awareness, and the distinct feeling of expansion of that awareness, help us to identify with the ineffable ground of BEING? I believe it does, but to explain why, we have to contemplate more on how meditation works. I will try to explain to you why it is the true meaning of the tithe in scripture, why it reflects what Jesus said about the kingdom of God being within you, and how it relates to Jesus’ idea of worshiping God in spirit and truth. 

The Act of Meditating

While the Bible tells us how important the overall practice of meditation is, it doesn’t provide a direct formula for how to do it. There is a good reason for this: everyone has different vibration-emotional / mental thought patterns and frequencies. In some people, negative emotional-mental thought patterns are so strong that meditation means nothing to them. It doesn’t mean they can’t ever meditate, it just means they have more work to do before they CAN. 

Pure meditation is beyond any formula, because the mind doesn’t actually fall into a meditative state until it is stilled. So when most people began what they think might be “trying to meditate,” it doesn’t work for them because their negative mental-emotional energies (habitual patterns) are so strong that no amount of sitting still seems to do them any good. And then they give up in frustration. In fact, a person with strong habitual negative emotional thought patterns usually try to “resist” these thoughts and emotions that arise. Resisting them only strengthens them. So how does one get around this conundrum when they have the conviction to do so, or at least the conviction to try?

I believe at this sort of crossroad, we must learn the art of concentration first. This is not a formula for meditation because true meditation is beyond concentration. But some people need to do some prep work on the mind, which allows the strong negative emotional and mental energy patterns that arise from their subconscious to dissipate naturally. The art of concentration preps the mind properly so that it eventually CAN fall into its natural state of peace and contentment, which is true meditation. 

Some people teach that concentration is the first step in a process of learning meditation. In a sense this makes meditation a formula, and if that is the way you like to see it, great, but I like to think of it as the prep work BEFORE meditation. I say this because true meditation is effortless, but sometimes, it takes effort to get to this effortless state of mind (faith AND works). The daily activity of concentrating slowly but surely allows the mind to become more focused. A more focused mind is able to reject the myriads of emotional / mental subconscious patterns that are constantly fighting to be at the forefront of your awareness. The Bible states a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. Of course this man or woman is! However, a focused mind doesn’t allow negative emotional-thought patterns to surface and remain long, because a focused mind observes them as they arise and then is able to quickly reject them. Eventually, they lose their energetic hold over us. 

Once the mind learns how to focus through disciplined concentration (which can take years for some – the Israelite journey through the wilderness), something amazing begins to happen. True meditation begins. The mental / emotional chatter becomes still, like a completely calm lake or pond, and higher vibration energies begin to manifest in the physical, emotional-mental make up of the lower ego. It is the same idea of Jesus calming the storm upon the sea (the sea being symbolic of our emotional nature). It is also the process of transcending the lower ego, and transforming the mind. It is a very high form of taking up our cross daily, and the waking conscious is infused with something that I like to call the meta-conscious, the higher self, the Christ. You will know it when you are actually experiencing it, and I don’t see a need to put it into words because I really don’t think words have the accurate ability to describe this state of awareness. But I will say that this state is only the beginning, and your daily meditation will morph into higher mental and emotional awareness (clarity of reality) through time. This is that infinite expansion of awareness that I spoke about earlier, and is what Jesus meant when he states you shall do greater works than I. Jesus also stated that his father’s mansion had many rooms, and he would prepare a place for you. The many rooms are symbolic of the many higher states of awareness that can be experienced. Remember, we are the temple made without hands. Earlier I alluded to the fact that even scriptural tithing is really this process of meditation. Tithes are to be brought into the storehouse. We, our bodies, are the temple, tabernacle, storehouse, and the church. When we bring a tithe, we are effectively giving God our time through inner reflection. Tithing is to “be still.” Biblical tithing has nothing to do with money. 

Why does daily meditation provide more clarity, peace, and contentment in daily activities of life? It is because it erodes the negative mental-emotional patterns of energy that your current awareness has learned, through habit, to give its attention to. The intrinsic power of a highly focused mind naturally dissipates negatively charged mental and emotional energy. It has been said, sow a new habit, and reap a new character. There’s nothing super spiritual about it. It’s just a psychological fact of life. 

The Bible doesn’t directly address any kind of formula for meditation because the writers of this great knowledge understood that no formula would necessarily be correct for any one individual. And how could it be if we are all at different stages of conscious development? 

But one thing we can all agree on: The Psalmist tells us to be STILL. It is not speaking just to the physical activity of life. How could it be? It is speaking to the entire being, and the mind encompasses the entire being. The lower mind is your thought and emotional process. So yes, it means to become still physically, but also mentally and emotionally. But more importantly, it means stilling the negative emotional-thought patterns of habit, and this process naturally transforms the mind into a more positive state. Sowing good habits reaps positive rewards. 

The results of meditation, as it relates to inner reflection, should be clear. The end result of meditation is not to just withdraw from the outer world for the sake of clarity through accessing our higher nature, but to also bring more awareness back to the outer world from the inner world. The aim of meditation is not just about abandoning our lower natures, but allowing Christ to redeem it so we can live more abundantly with a conscious awareness that stems from the ineffable BEINGNESS that we are already one with. But yes, we do have to withdraw from our daily lives in order to internalize the reality of it, and to bring it back to its correct outward expression. As humans, we profane the outward creation when the inner creation is not ruled by the higher nature, or the Christ within as Paul puts it. 

So the Psalmist tells us to be still to know God, and Jesus says the kingdom of God is within us. God is pure BEING. But aren’t we that too, only wearing a mask as we live life day to day. This profound realization enables us to more fully realize that the same that is within us is within others as well. And this is why Jesus said the second commandment IS LIKE UNTO THE FIRST. Love your neighbor as yourself. 

The Exodus from Egypt and Joshua Made the Sun Stand Still

This is what the entire dark saying and parable of the Israelite journey is about (Psalm 78:2). Coming out of Egypt and from under the task master of Pharaoh means coming out of metal-emotional bondage of the lower passions and desires, or habitual negative mental-emotional patterns we have all inherited through this journey we call life. These subconscious imprints effectively rule over us, day in and day out. This is unconsciously living! But it is the I AM nature at the core of our being that is able to deliver us. Moses is the middle-man, our moral nature, that begins this process of delivery because deep down inside we feel this bondage we are in. And that’s why the scriptural writer states, “The law engenderath us to bondage.” Moses is the giver of the law, and the law of God is you reap what you sow. This universal law of reaping and sowing (karma) is the process God uses to wake us up to the possibility that there is more to life, to come to the Christ nature. 

The story of Joshua shows more about this process. We’ll look at one detailed part. Joshua commanded the sun to stand still. The sun, a symbol for the higher self (Christ), stands still at the zenith of the sky (in the midst of heaven). This symbolizes the higher self ruling over the lower self, which is the moon, that Joshua also commanded to stand still. This symbolic act of stillness speaks to the nature of our entire being, the higher and lower self, the sun and the moon. The sun standing still in the midst of heaven symbolizes our entire being as it should be: the higher self, the Christ, is to be in control at its zenith, and when that happens, the FIVE kings that the Lord gave over to Joshua in battle, (the FIVE senses) are sealed in the cave. The cave is another symbol of the lower nature, that which is at enmity with God. Meditation is withdrawal from the senses and allows us to become aware that we are more than the body, thoughts, and emotions. And when we realize that we are more than the body, thoughts, and emotions, we are well on our way to consciously control them. And when the lower nature is brought under control by the higher nature, our vibration frequency is raised. This is what it means that Joshua and the Israelites conquered their enemies. 

The sun standing still “in the midst of heaven” has another important symbolic meaning. Heaven signifies spirit. The earth signifies matter (the world of senses). In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Spirit infuses matter with life, qualities, and motion. God also said let there be light. The higher self is that light. It is simply the pure light of awareness. Being still (meditating) allows the mind and body to bask in awareness, or the light, which is also Christ. John 1: 3 states: “ …and that light (Christ, or pure awareness) was the light of men!

Final Thoughts on Meditation, the Bible, and the Lower Nature, and Creation

There have been various spiritual texts that define the world of our lower nature as Maya and illusion. The Bible refers to it as the matrix, which means womb. Why? Because the world as perceived through the senses after birth is ever changing. It is the world of the flesh, the senses, emotion and thought. It is the nature of reality that we experience on a day to day basis, and it’s illusory because of this eternal change. But the pure light of awareness is unchanging. 

God states that every first-born male that is born from the matrix to be dedicated unto him. God shall redeem that first-born male, because “male” is symbolic of spirit which infuses form (matter, flesh) with life, qualities, or motion, whereas first-born signifies the logos, or Christ in matter. The Gospel of John states that the logos (Christ) became flesh. Every human, beyond their lower nature, has the potential of this Christ nature in the flesh, because every human has the higher nature as part of his or her soul. Remember, 1 John 4:2-4 states that Christ comes in the flesh, and greater is He that is WITHIN YOU than he who is in the world (matrix). The one who realizes the Christ within, their HOPE OF GLORY, symbolically becomes a son of God. And that is what God meant when every first-born male was to be dedicated to him in the Old Testament. Everyone who realizes the Christ within realizes the reality within them that is permanent, and it is the pure light of awareness. 

The person who meditates in the pure light of awareness brings peace, contentment, and clarity of thought and the higher emotions back into the world of illusion. He or she is not thrown into mental and emotional turmoil when the change, or illusory nature of life in the flesh becomes adversity, because he or she knows that everything works together for the good of those that love God. He or she stands as a rock in the midst of adversity, and their core is unaffected because of their faith. There are still giants in the Promised Land, which Joshua within you will still have to confront, but you will have the power to command the sun to stand still so that you defeat these giants. Meditation develops this process of faith. 

A side note for all the science buffs. The idea of the triune God has its origins in the esoteric knowledge before the Bible was written. It was incorporated into the Greek-written New Testament, through symbolism in allegorical stories.  

Energy, consciousness, and matter. 

Energy = Omnipotence = Father.  

Consciousness = Omniscence = Son

Matter = Omnipresence = Mother

Now for one last final thought. In thinking back to the beginning of this article, could the act of idolatry, creating a God through our own personal thoughts and feelings, biases, opinions and beliefs, really be interpreted as:

To believe in a god outside of us?! When God told Moses to tell the Israelites, tell them I AM sent you, is the scripture speaking to the ineffable ground source of BEING that is already within? And does inward reflection give us this ability to raise awareness, and experience this idea we call God? 

I’ll leave it to you to decide, but keep in mind the profound positive effects that meditation has on the physical, mental, and emotional well being of the individual that has been verified by scientists at Harvard. I have heard many Christians say that meditation (in the Eastern sense) is evil and nowhere in the Bible. I’ll respect those beliefs because not only was I once there, but also because everyone is at their own place of spiritual understanding and development, and has the God-given right to their own opinion. But at least do some introspection and investigate whether this is an opinion and belief system you have inherited from others, or whether it is something you know from experience. The Bible does say…prove all things. 

I have also heard some Christians say that through personal experience meditation was evil because they experienced demonic activity, etc. But could those experiences be possible manifestations of the negative fearful emotional thought patterns within your subconscious that are just arising, and also need to be let go of? Hmm…something to also consider. 

Blessings.