Q: If all is really ‘only God,’ then God must be the one murdering, raping, and committing all the atrocities we see all around. But if you say it’s not God doing it, then aren’t we back to square one, duality?
Dave: The viewpoint of Vedanta is that there is no second thing. That does not mean that there is no apparent second thing, in fact all we experience is duality if we believe we are looking “out” of a subject “at” objects. The logic of Vedanta reveals that that is not the case, and that there is no actual boundary at any “point” between you and anything. What we see as duality is how “non-duality” appears. As such, there is no second thing to act, whether an act would be deemed evil or loving.
So what actually is going on then when atrocities from the smallest to the greatest are committed? From where would malevolence arise? Vedanta says the cause is ignorance of my nature as limitless existence consciousnesses; or, the non-appreciation of my unimpeded whole and completeness. Lacking this recognition, I “become” a separate individual in an infinite universe over which I have no control, and the cycle of samsara begins. The moment I see others as “not self,” they become less important than me – even if that happens unconsciously. In that ignorance, all manner of violence becomes possible.
Yet while the ignorance principle is eternal, since where there is something that can be known it is always possible not to know it, “individual” subjective ignorance is not. It is subject to removal by self knowledge, so while it is beginning-less, it is not endless. The shift from self ignorance to self knowledge is therefore not an actual shift, but rather a recognition that self ignorance was always merely a belief. Existence, on the other hand, which is consciousness (you), cannot be removed because it is formless and limitless.
With regards to your question, this means that while all is only God, ignorance of that is not only possible but hardwired into human beings as apparent individuals. This inevitably, albeit seemingly, creates duality until ignorance is removed by knowledge. God is not ignorant, but God is also not a person with likes and dislikes, and so is “bound” by its nature to deliver the results of action impersonally.
As there are not two creations, so there must not be two creators. As that creator/creation is only God, it must be the intelligent, energetic, and material cause of itself. If you take God’s perspective, nothing is happening because there is only God. Water makes no distinction between an ocean, a raindrop, or sewage. In all forms, water remains pure and seems to take on different forms, even though it is always only water. From the perspective of ignorance only form is recognized, but from God’s perspective there is only water.
This perspective doesn’t inoculate us against the pain caused when unwanted experiences occur, no matter the cause, but it does change the subjective context in which those occur. It does this by shifting our source of satisfaction from outward to inward. After all, if there is something which is completely out of our control, what use is worry? If we are worried about what we cannot control, that worry is supported – consciously or unconsciously – by a belief that things can be other than they are. This is never true, but the one and only way to see this is to look at life from God’s perspective. This perspective, and our non-separation from God, implies that the “enlightened” viewpoint is to discover and claim its perspective as your very own.
No one chooses ignorance. It isn’t even an option. Someone without self knowledge sees only form and is not aware of the presence of water. Therefore, they are at the mercy of their compulsions towards or away from form (ideas, objects and experiences) and unwittingly subject to the entire range of behaviors from the most loving to the most abhorrent cruelty. On the other hand, someone in whom self knowledge obtains, recognizes their desires and aversions but is not compelled to act on them when they run counter to Dharma. Dharma is a priority for them, not because they are do-gooders or bound to dharmic action, but out of love for themselves and the whole – between which they make no distinction. They no longer have any compelling reason to perform adharmic action. Those who do not realize what they are, are ignorant (not unaware, but ignoring) and thus capable of all manner of atrocity until their ignorance is removed.
