DEVELOPING A LONGING FOR GOD

[Ms Tercy Lonan]

32. DEVELOPING A LONGING FOR GOD
Worshipful homage unto the omnipresent Divine from whom we are never apart, in whom
we dwell and who dwells within us as the very life of our life, the eye of our eye, the ear of our ear,
the breath of our breath, the prana of our prana, the mind of our mind, the very heart of our heart,
the innermost essence of our being!
“Eko devah sarvabhuteshu gudhah...” “Isvarah sarvabhutanam hriddese’rjuna
tishthati...”—The Supreme Spirit is hidden in all beings. The Lord, Isvara, dwells in the hearts of
all beings, O Arjuna. Thus, variously, the scriptures again and again bring to our attention this truth,
this fact, that we are never apart from, we are never in any way remote, distant or disconnected
from, the Being whom we are seeking, the Being whom we refer to as the parama lakshya, highest
goal, of human existence.

When we say parama, highest or supreme, we always think of it as something beyond,
something distant or remote, something that requires a long journey to reach. We always think in
terms of a long process, but they point out to us that it is an inner journey. We do not have to cover
distances. We only have to remove obstacles—formidable obstacles within ourselves—the greatest
obstacle being ourselves. And, metaphysically speaking, the lesser obstacles are certain factors
within our own personality that are contrary to the Divine Reality, which, therefore, veil It. They
stand in the way, they obscure It; they obstruct our perception of It, our experience of It.
Also, the inveterate tendency of our psychological self is to always move away from the
inner centre and move outside to external objects, propelled by the desire for the possession and
enjoyment of external things. It is the tendency of the mind to imagine that happiness, peace and the
fulfilment of our lives lies in striving for, possessing and experiencing external things, and thus it
moves outward in the wrong direction due to this wrong notion. Therefore, the most familiar, the
most intimate appears to be remote. Not that it is, but we make it so.
To alter these outgoing tendencies—this deluded thinking of the mind that our happiness is
in worldly possessions, contacts, and experiences—becomes an indispensable part of our sadhana.
And it is an extraordinary quality of this delusion that it doesn’t allow the deluded being to perceive
that he is deluded. On the contrary, he will argue and fight and try to convince others that he is
perfectly clear, rational and logical.
So, all the world is in the grip of this delusion that does not permit them to know their
delusion; on the contrary, makes them convinced that they are right and that those who do not think
like them are deluded. Thus it is that this bhranti, this delusion, being created by maya makes the
being move in a direction contrary to his ultimate goal which is within. It is through satsanga and
svadhyaya that this delusion is removed and ignorance is replaced by right understanding and
knowledge. That marks the turning of our direction towards God.
We must come to the conviction, the continuous, unalterable conviction that God is present
right here, nearest to me as my innermost being. God lives within me; we are never apart. And the
next conviction is to know that this Being is the only source of true happiness, peace and
satisfaction. There is no other source.
The third conviction is that this Being, who is ultimately the only source of true happiness,
is, therefore, the highest value in life. There is nothing greater, nothing more valuable, nothing more
important.
If we make seeking Him our most important task in life, if we develop for Him a great
longing, a great desire and an overwhelming yearning: “In this life, before I pass away, I must attain
God, I must experience that Supreme Being, I must,” if our whole being becomes filled with this
urge, then there is absolutely no doubt, it is absolutely certain, that in this very life, in and through
this very body, God will be experienced. There is no room for doubt or despair.
No matter how deluded the world outside may be, no matter how chaotic and absurd, no
matter how outrageously human society in this world may be acting, it does not matter if your
interior is all right. And it is in the firm conviction of God’s existence and in His most intimate and

nearest presence, plus a great conviction that He is the one and only supreme value, the one and only
thing worth attaining that you develop within you a great longing to attain and experience God; in
fact you become of the nature of God.
Then you may be absolutely certain that nothing can deprive you of that experience. It may
be a question of a little sooner or later, but the experience is certain. There is no doubt about it.
Let us, therefore, adore the Supreme by acknowledging His immediate, indwelling
presence and by telling Him: “Thou art my all in all. Thou art everything for me. Thy attainment is
my life’s only desire.”