IS THE GOD-NATURE GROWING IN YOU?

[Ms Tercy Lonan]

108. IS THE GOD-NATURE GROWING IN YOU?
There is a perfection within the individual soul that is referred to variously by various
traditions. Isvara amsa, a part of God, some call It. Others say the Light of lights beyond all
darkness. The Old Testament says that God created man in His image; therefore, there is in man the
likeness of God; He created Adam and breathed His spirit into him. And the Islamic tradition says
that man has been created with the light of God within.
Therefore, there shines within you a spark of Divinity, something that is radiant in the midst
of the darkness of avidya or ajnana or ignorance. There, in that centre of your being there is no
darkness. There cannot be any darkness. It is always effulgent.
It is the development of that Light within you so that your whole being becomes filled with
light that is called the science of yoga. It is this which is called the spiritual process. It is this which
is called Vedanta—to realise that: “I am the Light. I am not the other things that cover the Light. I
am That which shines in the centre.”
When a kerosene hurricane lamp is lit, the lamp frame is not the light, nor is the kerosene,
nor the glass chimney, nor the wick. In the centre of all this there is that principle which makes a
lamp a lamp, without which a lamp is not a lamp. That which gives light, which banishes darkness,
that alone is light. All other factors may be necessary for that light to shine, but all of them are
useless unless the flame burns within and the light radiates.

Therefore, the Light within is central to the life of the human being. Without it life is no life.
And the more you grow into that God-nature, the more it becomes awakened, unfolded, infills you,
becomes active within you, the more you are progressing in the spiritual life, the more you are
ascending towards the ultimate experience. That is the touchstone.
What is man’s concept of the God-nature? There is a picturesque verse in Hindi which asks:
“What is the difference between the softest thing known to man and a saint?” The softest thing
known to man is butter. It is so soft, so vulnerable, that with a little heat it becomes softer still and
starts to melt. But then, the verse picturesquely says: “Softer than butter is the heart of a saintly
spiritual person, because his heart melts not when he is being afflicted with heat but when he sees
others being afflicted by heat.” When others are afflicted by heat he cannot bear it. That is the
difference.
Therefore, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that one who considers the sorrow of others as his own
sorrow, the pains of others as his own pain, the sufferings of others as his own suffering, is very dear
to the Lord. Such a person is always engaged in trying to relieve the sufferings of all beings, all
creation. It is not a deliberate act. He feels an innate identity everywhere with all things. His whole
attitude towards others is to treat others as himself.
Why is this so? Because the God-nature is active, awakened in that being. For, the ultimate
concept of God in man’s mind and heart is that God is infinite compassion, a source of mercy. He is
all-merciful. A poet says that even if an individual has done a single act of kindness, then the great
Cosmic Heart will forget about a hundred thousand errors and sins and only harbour in Its heart that
one act of kindness.
So this is God in the concept of man—an ocean of compassion and infinite mercy. And man
is made in the image of God. Therefore, compassion and mercy are inherent in us. And the more we
activate it—the more we exercise it, the more we manifest it, the more we grow in our real nature,
our God-nature—the nearer we approach His experience. Ultimately, we enter into that experience
when we become filled with the God-nature.
Thus, within man there is this potential for infinite goodness, love, kindness, compassion
and mercy precisely because inherently we are that which is the infinite, inexhaustible ocean of
these things.
Therefore, that being our essential nature, the development of that essential nature would
consequently mean growing in kindness, compassion and mercy. That is spiritual life. That is a
touchstone of spiritual progress. That is the ascent into the God-nature which is the central part of
our being, our nija svarupa. For we are part of God; we are made in His likeness; we have within us
what He is.
Thus indeed should man live on earth like a God, ever ready to run to the succour of those
who are in distress, to relieve the suffering of those who are suffering. This is the quintessence of
the simple prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. Be an angel of mercy. The compassionate are never
forgotten in human memory. Florence Nightingale is even now remembered. Father Damien is

even now remembered. All the great ones in the scriptures who exercised compassion are ever
remembered. They are immortal.
This is Divinity being manifest through the human nature upon this earth plane. That is your
grand privilege. That is your grand good fortune—to act like God, live like God and be a God on
earth, be a source of solace. Will you not exercise this supreme privilege, this supreme good fortune
and shine with Divinity? What greater grace can there be, what greater good fortune, greater honour
and privilege can there be than to live in this earth plane like a God on earth?
That indeed should be grasped, and, while on earth, we should live here as the Gods that we
are, as the parts of Divinity that we are. That indeed would be a life that is worth living. That life
would have been well lived, and we would have put God’s great gift to its highest use and made
ourselves forever blessed. This then is the task! This then is the great life, the ideal!