Impersonal or Personal?

Many seekers who turn to the East come under the influence of the impersonalist school of thought taught by many Indian teachers. I on the other hand am of the personalist school of thought having passed through the impersonal approach previously. Rather than seeking to annihilate the ego/self, I seek to purify the ego/self/spirit soul from the false identification with the body and materially conditioned consciousness by reawakening its spiritual identity as an eternal part and parcel of God who is both personal and impersonal in nature.

This spirit soul reincarnates from life to life until it becomes self-realized and re-establishes its eternal loving relationship with God. This is a personal relationship in which the individual soul and God are both one and different as lover and beloved. Rather than seeking to merge the individual soul with the Supreme as a drop of water merges with the ocean which is nihilistic, the individual soul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead engage in eternal loving pastimes which are much more appealing to me.

I have been in control of my many lives as an independent, free agent able to make personal choices. In addition, the providence of God has been at work in my life guiding me to make the right choices which lead to liberation. The choice is mine however. I am and I will always be. The many changes of body are like changes of clothes or buying a new car until I reach the eternal spiritual abode where my pure spiritual nature will be revealed.

Rather than merging in impersonal oneness, it is more of a merging with a lover in a passionate embrace in which the two become one and yet remain two, inconceivably simultaneously one and different. It is a oneness of quality, relationship, purpose and love.

The false ego has to give up control and surrender to the love and will of God trusting in God’s goodness to guide us in life and death. We can live this eternal life here and now. We still live within the illusory dream of this material world. Yet, we can be conscious dreamers. We know who and who’s we are. We act out of love and service rather than self centered ego. I am talking about, the transmutation of matter into spirit, time into eternity. The question is do you want to awaken to impersonal nothingness or personal variegated ness based on loving relationships that are eternal?

Peace and love,

Steve

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