by Arun Wakhlu
Nine ways to find the unified field of existence—nine ways to discover God
Before we look at the 9 Doorways, a little about Doors and Ways. A door is a way into a room or into an open space. When we go through a door, we do not stop at the door. The door is not a place we stay at. It is simply a means towards something. It is a way to a new view.
So when I say 'Doorways to God', what I am sharing are devices to help us discover, see, and be, the Oneness we also call God. The devices are simple processes that awaken us to the Self as we truly are. It is said that there are as many doorways to God as there are people in this existence. Each person's way is unique. You can choose the one that most suits your body-mind-spirit.
Let us see what will happen when you awaken to who you really are. You will be the whole, which is Love. All your thoughts, words and actions will arise from this space of understanding, and they will naturally and easily be in harmony with the flow of life. Sri Aurobindo has said: "All problems in life are problems of harmony." Everything can be solved if we harmonize. What does this mean? It means bringing things together so that they balance out, so they meld into oneness, to vibrate together, dissolving boundaries, to heal or become Whole.
The 9 Doorways are devices to bring healing, harmony, peace and love back into our lives. So check out these doorways. See which one you are comfortable with. But stay in the space where the doorway leads; do not get stuck at the door!
1: I am nothing
We are conditioned from birth to believe that we are somebody, or something. We think we are this body, we identify with our mind, our roles, cultures, religions, nationalities and a hundred other things, such as 'I am shy' or 'I am disorganized' or 'I am an Indian'. The truth is, you are nothing…No-thing. You are pure emptiness. Silent. Peaceful. Unbounded. No-thingness.
This is the most powerful nothingness in the Universe. It is pure 'Creative Intelligence' to use a phrase popularized by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Whatever notion, image or idea you have of yourself, say of it: "I am not this".
Finally, say: "I am nothing." When you and I are no one, then we are one.
2: I am everything
Expand the boundaries of who you are, to include everything. This body is in me. This chair I see is in me. The mountain over there is in me. The clouds and trees and birds are in me. Saturn and Jupiter and the sun are in me. The galaxies and stars and the entire universe are in me. In the infinite sweep of my Self, I hold all-I am an infinite 'hold-all' that holds the past, present, and future. I hold all that was, all that is, all that will be. In my infinite womb, I, Mother of all, hold everything. I Am All. I Am Everything.
3: I am love
My essence is Love, the mystery that holds the whole universe together. Through this essence, I am the stuff that underlies everything, connects everything, joining us all in one mysterious dance. I see that I am, that I am You, and we are one. I see the energy that gives life to the tree, and the birds as my own. I am connected and attached to everything that exists. I am a space of understanding and courageous action. I am the source of deep caring because I am connected. This connection is Love.
4: This is my doorway
Whatever is present here and now is my Door. Wherever my foot falls, is the way. This, here now, is my Door Way. The rustle of leaves outside my window, the distant cry of the nightingale, people talking below on the road, the tinkle of bangles, the sniffle of the nose, an opening door. All this is God. This paper, this pen moving on paper, the sound of the door chime, that splash of water-All this is God at play, God at work, God dancing here and now.
5: I am eternal
Everything that changes is not I. Everything that moves is not I. I am the screen on which these changing images are projected. I am the underlying Awareness that sees all change, movement, and transition in space and time. I am that which existed before this body-mind was born, and which will remain after this body-mind has returned to its elements. I will remain long after the water that makes up this body has returned to the biosphere, long after these thoughts and memories have re-merged with the No sphere. I am the eternal, unchanging Being that watches all changes, sees all and remains as I am-pure, eternal, unbounded and changeless.
6: Working totally
Working totally is working from a space of joy. It is doing things in the here and now for the sheer joy of it. It is working from an inner awareness that I am not the 'doer', but that the work is 'happening' through me. It means working with a total energetic presence in this moment. Working totally is working with an integration between what I love doing and what needs to be done in this moment. It is a sharing of my gifts in the service of others. As we share our gifts from this space of love, and connect with others in compassionate service, we become One. We lose a sense of the past and the future and are in a state of FLOW-Fullness and Loving Overflowing in Work. This flow is God at work!
7: Letting go
Let go and let God be. This is complete inward surrender to Life, while still acting with enthusiasm and energy in whatever life brings up to be done. It is born of a deep understanding that God's ways are loving and evolutionary. Remember that all that happens will strengthen what has to be strengthened, and destroy what has to be destroyed. Letting go is remembering that all that happens is a part of a large interconnected web of events and processes designed to unfold Love and Understanding. Surrendering does not mean surrendering action. It means surrendering a sense of the 'doer'. It is surrendering the limited 'I'. It is realizing that everything depends upon where we choose to draw this arbitrary boundary called 'I', choosing to let go of the process of defining and to surrender to the mystery of Being.
Letting go is also a letting go of judgment, of comparisons with past memories and future dreams. It means just being with what is, and doing whatever needs to be done now. It is trusting Mother Nature. Trusting that all rivers will take me to the ocean. Joyously giving in to the flow and knowing that God is Love, and that love will never let itself down!
8: I am whole
There is nothing in this existence which is not I. Everything is contained in me. The totality of life is I. I am whole. Nothing is outside me. All is inside. In fact, there is no inside or outside, because all is One. And I am that One. There is no other. This dance called life, this marvelous unfolding called existence, is all I in its totality. I am beyond all opposites, beyond all judgment, beyond all duality, for I am whole. I am the day and the night, happiness and sadness, the calm and the storm, turbulence and peace, moral and immoral. I am all. In me is contained everything. I am full. I am abundant and infinitely resourceful-for all is contained in the whole, which is the Source.
9: I am
Just remember I AM. While eating, remember I AM, watching the body-mind eating. While reading, remember I AM, watching the body-mind reading this piece. No matter what you are doing, remember I AM, which cannot be seen, touched, felt, heard or imagined but which witnesses all this and remains the same always. When the mind is sad, remain the I AM, which is like the sky watching a cloud of sadness go by. When the body-mind is joyful, remember the I AM, which watches the bliss. Finally, remember the intrinsic freedom of I AM. It is vast, limitless and unconditional peace, "the peace that passeth understanding".
So when I say 'Doorways to God', what I am sharing are devices to help us discover, see, and be, the Oneness we also call God. The devices are simple processes that awaken us to the Self as we truly are. It is said that there are as many doorways to God as there are people in this existence. Each person's way is unique. You can choose the one that most suits your body-mind-spirit.
Let us see what will happen when you awaken to who you really are. You will be the whole, which is Love. All your thoughts, words and actions will arise from this space of understanding, and they will naturally and easily be in harmony with the flow of life. Sri Aurobindo has said: "All problems in life are problems of harmony." Everything can be solved if we harmonize. What does this mean? It means bringing things together so that they balance out, so they meld into oneness, to vibrate together, dissolving boundaries, to heal or become Whole.
The 9 Doorways are devices to bring healing, harmony, peace and love back into our lives. So check out these doorways. See which one you are comfortable with. But stay in the space where the doorway leads; do not get stuck at the door!
1: I am nothing
We are conditioned from birth to believe that we are somebody, or something. We think we are this body, we identify with our mind, our roles, cultures, religions, nationalities and a hundred other things, such as 'I am shy' or 'I am disorganized' or 'I am an Indian'. The truth is, you are nothing…No-thing. You are pure emptiness. Silent. Peaceful. Unbounded. No-thingness.
This is the most powerful nothingness in the Universe. It is pure 'Creative Intelligence' to use a phrase popularized by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Whatever notion, image or idea you have of yourself, say of it: "I am not this".
Finally, say: "I am nothing." When you and I are no one, then we are one.
2: I am everything
Expand the boundaries of who you are, to include everything. This body is in me. This chair I see is in me. The mountain over there is in me. The clouds and trees and birds are in me. Saturn and Jupiter and the sun are in me. The galaxies and stars and the entire universe are in me. In the infinite sweep of my Self, I hold all-I am an infinite 'hold-all' that holds the past, present, and future. I hold all that was, all that is, all that will be. In my infinite womb, I, Mother of all, hold everything. I Am All. I Am Everything.
3: I am love
My essence is Love, the mystery that holds the whole universe together. Through this essence, I am the stuff that underlies everything, connects everything, joining us all in one mysterious dance. I see that I am, that I am You, and we are one. I see the energy that gives life to the tree, and the birds as my own. I am connected and attached to everything that exists. I am a space of understanding and courageous action. I am the source of deep caring because I am connected. This connection is Love.
4: This is my doorway
Whatever is present here and now is my Door. Wherever my foot falls, is the way. This, here now, is my Door Way. The rustle of leaves outside my window, the distant cry of the nightingale, people talking below on the road, the tinkle of bangles, the sniffle of the nose, an opening door. All this is God. This paper, this pen moving on paper, the sound of the door chime, that splash of water-All this is God at play, God at work, God dancing here and now.
5: I am eternal
Everything that changes is not I. Everything that moves is not I. I am the screen on which these changing images are projected. I am the underlying Awareness that sees all change, movement, and transition in space and time. I am that which existed before this body-mind was born, and which will remain after this body-mind has returned to its elements. I will remain long after the water that makes up this body has returned to the biosphere, long after these thoughts and memories have re-merged with the No sphere. I am the eternal, unchanging Being that watches all changes, sees all and remains as I am-pure, eternal, unbounded and changeless.
6: Working totally
Working totally is working from a space of joy. It is doing things in the here and now for the sheer joy of it. It is working from an inner awareness that I am not the 'doer', but that the work is 'happening' through me. It means working with a total energetic presence in this moment. Working totally is working with an integration between what I love doing and what needs to be done in this moment. It is a sharing of my gifts in the service of others. As we share our gifts from this space of love, and connect with others in compassionate service, we become One. We lose a sense of the past and the future and are in a state of FLOW-Fullness and Loving Overflowing in Work. This flow is God at work!
7: Letting go
Let go and let God be. This is complete inward surrender to Life, while still acting with enthusiasm and energy in whatever life brings up to be done. It is born of a deep understanding that God's ways are loving and evolutionary. Remember that all that happens will strengthen what has to be strengthened, and destroy what has to be destroyed. Letting go is remembering that all that happens is a part of a large interconnected web of events and processes designed to unfold Love and Understanding. Surrendering does not mean surrendering action. It means surrendering a sense of the 'doer'. It is surrendering the limited 'I'. It is realizing that everything depends upon where we choose to draw this arbitrary boundary called 'I', choosing to let go of the process of defining and to surrender to the mystery of Being.
Letting go is also a letting go of judgment, of comparisons with past memories and future dreams. It means just being with what is, and doing whatever needs to be done now. It is trusting Mother Nature. Trusting that all rivers will take me to the ocean. Joyously giving in to the flow and knowing that God is Love, and that love will never let itself down!
8: I am whole
There is nothing in this existence which is not I. Everything is contained in me. The totality of life is I. I am whole. Nothing is outside me. All is inside. In fact, there is no inside or outside, because all is One. And I am that One. There is no other. This dance called life, this marvelous unfolding called existence, is all I in its totality. I am beyond all opposites, beyond all judgment, beyond all duality, for I am whole. I am the day and the night, happiness and sadness, the calm and the storm, turbulence and peace, moral and immoral. I am all. In me is contained everything. I am full. I am abundant and infinitely resourceful-for all is contained in the whole, which is the Source.
9: I am
Just remember I AM. While eating, remember I AM, watching the body-mind eating. While reading, remember I AM, watching the body-mind reading this piece. No matter what you are doing, remember I AM, which cannot be seen, touched, felt, heard or imagined but which witnesses all this and remains the same always. When the mind is sad, remain the I AM, which is like the sky watching a cloud of sadness go by. When the body-mind is joyful, remember the I AM, which watches the bliss. Finally, remember the intrinsic freedom of I AM. It is vast, limitless and unconditional peace, "the peace that passeth understanding".
