consciousness, energy, form.........
consciousness, energy, form.........
Well going back to the original question, we agree that: everything that exists IS God, (call it God's thoughts if you want). Then, if God has always existed and everything that exists IS God... then ALL that exists has always existed along with God.
Well,...this gets into the deeper metaphysical question whether God the Infinite existed before the inception of a finite creation, and as you know, this is the classical traditional orthodox
theist position, that 'God' is the Creator of all, but has always existed as a 'Being' prior to space-time-creation.... so ever maintains an eternal priority of Being before any finite material creation. The Infinite ever IS.....while finite forms and expressions arise from within the context of infinity.
Indeed, we assume God IS, and Alone is absolute, infinite, eternal, ultimate, supreme, etc. - yet there has come
into being the
movement of creation (the evolution of life in-form-ation) as a creative expression of That Which IS. In such movements and their relations is the whole field of creation, and its various inter-actions....all arising within the Infinite. Space and time are but relative measurements and forms engaging the senses. As long as there is anything to 'relate', all perception and even knowledge is 'relative', dependent upon something else to exist or function.
The essence of pure awareness itself however, if it is the light of the Absolute Being....is pure radiance which is beyond any relation, yet includes the play of relationships in its totality of expression.
Then the question on how the Universe was created is senseless, because the Universe is God and it was uncreated: Everything that exists must therefore be uncreated. (Which contradicts the Bible and the myth of creation, but the Bible contradicts itself all the time, so I'm not getting into that).
As touched on above,.....we would ask if its still possible that an uncreated reality can still be the origin or source of a finite, limited, progressive, evolving CREATION. My view includes the context of non-duality and the apparent duality of the visible world as a totality, so that the infinite can co-exist and inter-act simultaneously with the finite, as well as eternity with time. Its a wonderful mystery, a paradox.
I have always found it puzzling when the laws of Nature are mentioned in a discussion about God. Are the laws of Nature above God's will?. Is it that not even God can break those laws?
From a non-dualistic view, there is no separation between 'God' and 'Nature', unless we make a distinction. In any case,...the laws of nature would not go against or contradict God's law, who is nature's maker and source. If we consider the constitution of God, then His very
nature and will are wholly true to his Being and the character thereof.
I have heard this argument a couple of times: Evil is the human nature. But wasn't it God who designed human nature along with all Nature and its laws?.
If we consider God as Infinite Good, wholly pure and divine...then man must create his own explanations for the evil experienced by man (i.e. The Fall, disobedience, pride, selfishness....) and lay the blame of 'sin' on man, or some deceiver or evil entity such as satan, Lucifer, the devil, etc.
Or is it that "Nature and her universal laws of birth, death, rebirth" are God's Nature. As well as Evil and Good are God's dual nature and dual will (because God CAN always control his own nature at WILL).
These are questions I still ponder, and research
Which makes me feel uneasy about this God. I can forgive anyone for having an evil "nature" but not for having an evil "will". Nature (such as instincts) are sometimes uncontrollable, but having an evil "will" is rather scary.
Yes, for having an evil will....shows there is motive, the very intention to inflict evil for its own sake, for its own sick pleasure or cruelty. However, I think we could be splitting hairs over an evil 'nature' and/or 'will',....since if one has an evil nature, they likely will express that evil thru the faculty of their soul, which includes 'will'. You don't know a person is evil, until he ACTS that evil out, intending it.
See our former discussion on evil
here. (it includes links to 2 threads on 'evil').
Same thoughts, now remove intelligence, conciousness and will from that source of everything, add physical properties like energy and movement and you have Materialism.
Yes, I don't agree with an extreme view of gross materialism, since you cannot separate the reality of consciousness, energy or spirit from matter, neither does creation arise and interact without intelligence. It just so happens that materialism cannot exist on its own, as some independent entity apart from consciousness. There are some convincing proponents of the primacy of consciousness in the field today, and it is self-evident even beyond any theory or its supports,...that consciousness is the fundamental reality.
pj
