Spiritual realities are eternal, beyond time, wherever they are found. The Judeo-Christian Bible is firmly grounded within history, and the characters within scripture are generation upon generation moving toward a fuller understanding of these eternal realities. Grounded as they are in history, the eternal perspective is not often out in the open, and is usually only hinted at. Each generation seems caught in its own present truth and human experience, holding onto a surface level of spiritual understanding, often rejecting the new insights of those who would take them one step deeper...
Though I have a Christian background, and have made most of my spiritual discovery through the Bible, the study of world religions is a personal interest of mine. Insights perceived by those outside our own traditions are very often valid. Christ is the light that enlightens every person everywhere. Many spiritual realities hidden deep and often unseen within the Christian scriptures are often discussed openly, plain for all to see within other religions, and other cultures. For this reason, rather than restricting study only to the Bible, it is often easier to present and then apprehend some insights using the language of other traditions. Truth is truth whatever the language...
Coming from a Christ centered perspective I see Christ in all things. When I read about the Hindu concept of the Atman I think about the Christ who lightens every person, (John 1:1,9). I can see the eternal Christ as the divine spark in everyone. When I read of the Hindu understanding of the Brahman I am reminded of the universal, cosmic and spiritual body of Christ, (Colossians 3:11, Ephesians 1:10). The Christ within, the eternal divine spark within all people, is one and the same Spirit as the cosmic universal Christ. As it is written, Christ is all, and in all. Christ is all there is. Realizing this is the essence of "enlightenment ”...
In Hinduism this realization of oneness and interconnectedness is often discovered during the various practices of yoga. Various types of yoga provide various paths to perfect union with the divine. There are 4 common styles of yoga: meditation, study, work and love. Individual circumstances and personality type will often determine the most suitable yoga to practice. There is a tolerant recognition in Hinduism that different sorts of people need and are most comfortable with different spiritual paths toward enlightenment...
In a similar way, the Buddhist notion of skillful means is the idea that enlightenment can come in a variety of ways. Mahayana Buddhism, for example, invites many philosophical and practical approaches toward enlightenment and the discovery of cosmic unity. Some people need to hear a message, others need the connection of a community, and others still need only silence and emptiness, while some focus on the divine nature to see the deeper reality. For Zen Buddhists enlightenment comes as a flash of insight and the sudden realization that nothing is separate from oneself. There is the Buddha (or Christ) nature within and also the Cosmic Buddha. Everything is a part of everything else, and all people and things exist together. I have even heard of some coming to this realization from the study of physics, chemistry, and science.
For me, Christ is the way, but since Christ is all there is, I find truth everywhere I look. I am glad to see the graciousness of God in revealing these realities to people everywhere.
Indeed, we all are able to see beyond a limited human cultural viewpoint, the eyes of our understanding being enlightened to the eternal or divine perspective. We all have the mind of Christ.
Whatever the language, Christ is all and in all. The cosmic Christ is the Christ within. Whether Christian, Buddhist, Hindu or not each moment is and can be an experience of completeness. With enlightened eyes we behold with wisdom and compassion, the completed and ultimate unity. We are all interconnected and one.
God is all, Christ is all, and We are all… One.
Celebrating our Oneness,
In Christ, URfriend,
Dean Johnson
Christ is all, and in all, that God may be all in all.
See The Whole Article
