He knows more than any mortal friend ever can. He is never unavailable, never jealous, never myopic — He will always guide his friends well, writes Ajit Kumar Bishnoi
What do we seek in companyIJ The word company is defined as the fact of being with somebody else and not being alone. God, being omnipresent, gives us His presence. No one can even come close; everyone has his or her limitations. One’s company should be complementary like a husband-wife relationship. No one can be more complementary than God, who is omnipotent. One’s company should be a good person. God has all the good qualities. Where will you find such a personIJ Our company should be supportive; no one can be more supportive than the omnipotent God. We will prefer our company to be well informed; God, being omniscient, fits the bill perfectly.
We should be able to pass time well in His company. All time spent in the company of God brings unimaginable benefits.
We prefer jovial persons. Our company should preferably be healthy; God does not suffer from any material imperfections. Good company should leave us alone when we so desire; God, being invisible, fits this requirement, though we will never want that once we experience God’s company.
God is much more than what has been stated above — He is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient, which nobody other than God can be. let me start with God’s quality of being omnipresent. He is always available to us; He never abandons us if we so wish that. No one is permanently linked with us except God; others leave us either due to death or due to other reasons. God accompanies us wherever we go if we meet His conditions. (Geeta 6.7) No one else can do this; everyone has limitations. God remains with us life after life.
Next I am taking God’s quality of being omnipotent. He can protect like no other can. This does not mean that God makes our material bodies eternal. No, he doesn’t. What He does is to protect us as long as we are destined to live in the present body by helping us in getting cured, etc. This is like giving us shelter; we are secure if we are linked with God. God empowers us by giving us specific abilities, as He helps in becoming creative. He gives us sufficient energy to be able to do our duties.
God helps in bouncing back after an unpleasant experience, we all face reverses due to mistakes made by us. He gives us mental strength to tolerate the three kinds of sufferings we will have to face. These are as given by ourselves, by others and by natural forces. He ensures that we become peaceful. As a matter of fact, peace comes from God only; no one else can give peace. (2.66) God helps us to overcome ‘maya’ — harmful material attractions. He gets us help when we desperately need it. God gives us the power of toleration, because the material world is naturally painful. He does miracles for us, if so warranted. He even goes to the extent of managing our lives if we are surrendered to Him. God helps us to sleep well. He assumes the leadership of our families, when requested to do so. And, finally, God liberates us from the painful cycle of birth and death when we qualify for it.
Now let me take up God’s quality of being omniscient. Obviously, He can guide perfectly because He knows everything. He can help us in controlling our foolish emotions, which damage badly; God gives us the right intelligence for accomplishing this. God encourages us to be good. This happens automatically because in the company of God, who is all-goodness, there cannot be any other result. One makes spiritual progress, which ultimately leads to liberation. God warns us of likely pitfalls, which saves us from grave dangers. God helps us to see the big picture, which helps us to make the right decisions. We can get God’s company by doing tapasya in the prescribed manner, as detailed in our scriptures. However, the initial linking is not that difficult; we just have to be aware of God, ie have God consciousness.
Bishnoi is a spiritual writer and can be reached at spiritual@ajitbishnoi.com