J. Krishnamurti said, “Truth is a pathless land.” I take this to mean the spiritual journey is never complete. It is a continuous process from which one never graduates despite their age. One must be in a constant state of growth, revising what one knows to be true in order to acquire wisdom.
The spiritual experience of humanity is very much a personal one but cannot exist without the social component. Meditation and prayer are often key tools utilized by the individual to achieve a spiritual purpose such as exploration of the inner self or supplication to a divine being. Many of us pray and meditate alone. Yet, we are all here on this planet together. At different points, we must interact with others. It serves folly to be isolated to lifting prayer to a divine being or connect with self but lack connection with those living the human experience with us. With that in mind, I ask the question.
What is divinity?
There are many definitions of it. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as the quality or state of being divine. Whereas the etymology of the word divine is simply ‘godly’. This leads me to my next question.
Can humans be divine?
We often judge the godliness or holiness of others based on their devoutness or alignment to a certain religion or belief system and the cultural practices associated with it such as the clothes one may wear or how often one attends their respective temple. It even now appears that food choices are becoming the new method to divide humans in the First World. We then judge others through our own ideological lens rather than self-examining and seeking common ground.
The Danger of Self Righteousness
Humanity is finding more and more ways to detach itself from one another. One of the most profound ways we do this is through inflexible and intolerant behavior born of ideological alliance and self-righteousness. For example, it is a fruitless tree to call oneself a Christian yet live a life devoid of compassion for all of humanity. It is also, in my opinion a destructive mindset to have tremendous fervor for saving animals and the environment yet lack that same vigor for human rights. This is one of the problems of ideology – it blinds you to understanding the viewpoint of others and accepting new knowledge that may contradict your current position. It leaves you bereft of the potential to grow. You are effectively halted, stunted. That leads us back to the original question.
Can humans be divine?
Well, that depends. Belief in the divine alone is wasted without human action and interaction. The divine can be achieved by allowing divinity to live through the self. This begins in the mind, with your thoughts being led not by fear, but by clarity. Divinity can then manifest through acts of compassion and the recognition of the connectedness of all beings on this planet and to a greater extent the universe.
Therefore, I assert that divinity is not so much about the belief in a mystical force in the sky, but rather how the quality of your thoughts influences your behavior.
Ronaldo Gilley 