THE SEEKER’S GUIDE
WHAT DO WE CALL THE ABSOLUTE?
There is one sky in which we all breathe.
There is one sun by which we all see.
There is one earth on which we all walk.
Similarly, there is one Supreme Being by whose grace we all live.
Like the sky, the sun, and the earth, this Supreme Being is experienced in different ways in different places at different times by different people.
This Supreme Being is whom renunciants call Brahman, yogis call Paramatma, and Vaisnavas call Bhagavan. This Supreme Being is whom Shaivites call Shiva and Vaisnavas call Visnu. This Supreme Being is whom Christians call God, Muslims call Allah, Sufis call Hu, Bahai’s call Baha, and Rastafarians call Jah. This Supreme Being is whom the Sioux call the Great Spirit, whom Lao Tzu calls the Tao that cannot be named, and whom the Buddhists allude to when they speak of emptiness. This Supreme Being is whom Aristotle calls the Unmoved Mover and whom Hegel calls the Absolute. The material energy of this Supreme Being is what scientists theorise about and artists appreciate creatively.
This Supreme Being is the centre of existence and the focal point in the life of all beings.
As descriptions of a mountain reveal both the features of the mountain and the varying distances, angles, instruments, capabilities, and interests with which the mountain was observed, so the various names of the Supreme Being reveal the various qualities, activities, and forms of the Supreme Being as well as the capacity, qualification, and focus of those who express those particular names.
If a description that comprehensively describes the qualities and highlights the essence of its subject is the best possible description, then the name of the Supreme Being which comprehensively describes the qualities of the Supreme Being and conveys the essence of the Supreme Being’s nature is the perfect name.
This name is Krishna.
The syllable Krish means to attract, and the syllable na means to satisfy. So, Krishna means attraction and satisfaction combined to the infinite: “He who attracts and satisfies all”.
Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the eternal, spiritual embodiment of divine ecstasy, the cause of all causes, and the origin of all that be. He is an eternal, ever youthful, and all-loving person eager to give and receive love with every living being.
For those who have left behind doubt, fear, and awe and experienced in their hearts the infinitely sweet, beautiful, and loving nature of both the Supreme Being and the cosmos over which He eternally presides, no other name feels sufficient to express the intensity of humility, joy, and desire to lovingly reciprocate with Him than the name Krishna.
This is summit of spiritual culture: the experience of Reality the Beautiful.
And it’s free and readily open to all.
So, pray to the Supreme as Krishna, chant the Holy Name of Krishna, and embrace Krishna’s grace in your heart of hearts.
Hare Krishna!