Many years ago I was reading a Hindu scripture late at night. The Hindu Vedas are some of the most ancient scriptures in the world if not the most ancient. The translator mentioned that in his lifetime of study he had discovered four great truths that reoccur throughout the Vedas.
I instantly sat up in bed. I love when people share their summary statements about complicated topics. The translator said, in his long career of translating the Hindu Vedas from Sanskrit into English he had found four great truths:
“All is one,”
“I am that,”
“This too is God,”
And “All is intelligence.”
“ALL IS ONE”
While we cannot understand an infinite universe, we can remember we are part of something infinitely larger than ourselves. When our own lives seem small and pointless, it can be helpful to remember that our lives are just a pinpricks in much vaster story. For us to live a self centered lives would be like the internal organs deciding to become free agents. Sometimes our lives only make sense if we give them on behalf of a larger context.
“I AM THAT”
Life can be a futile search for a savior or teacher if we do not realize that we are embodied expressions of WHATEVER is true or sacred. Jesus said we are the light of the world. The true teacher always leads us to our own hearts and minds. This saying means instead of trying to find someone to tell us what to do, or trying to get to a heaven somewhere else, we need to let our light shine here and now.
“THIS, TOO, IS GOD”
I don’t remember the exact wording for this insight. Hinduism is very rich when it comes to words for the sacred. A non-theist might translate it, “This, too, is reality.” I suspect this saying is intended to help us confront interruptions, accidents and other unpleasant moments. This insight is a reminder that the parts of life we don’t like can be as essential as the parts we do.
“ALL IS INTELLIGENCE”
This last insight surprised me. I don’t believe the universe thinks, but it does seem to have an underlying mathematical grid. The laws of physics, the periodic chart, DNA are all expressions of what appears to be a non conscious intelligence that holds reality together. Everything changes, but the universe transforms by consistent patterns. For that reason, we can observe the patterns of reality and find wisdom all around us.
Let me just share in closing, that I do not read religious texts for factual truths or moralistic rules of conduct. World religion are a mixture of profound insights and staggering nonsense. When I read religious wisdom literature from around the world I am hoping for my own version of the 4 great Vedic truths: I want to have a wider context for living, I want to feel my “roots” into reality more deeply, I want to be more present even to experiences I don’t like, and I want to observe the reoccurring patterns of nature thus making reality itself my teacher.