Images of the soul

Where is God to be found? Most scriptures answer, "within." God is not remote and inaccessible, but closer than we can possibly imagine. God lives in us. The body is like a temple which houses an eternal spirit. Humanity is the meeting place of the Immortal and the mortal, of Consciousness and matter. The soul is God witihin us.
In the Hebrew book of Genesis, God says, "Let us make man in our image." The Hebrew word translated "man" denotes an archetypal human being, not a male body, and the Hebrew translated "in our image" suggests an image or picture projected by light. The essence of human nature, the soul, is a light projected from the Light of God. It is consciousness arising from the Supreme Consciousness.

Beloved is man, for he was created in
the image of God. But it was by a
special love that it was made known
to him that he was created in the
image of God.

Judaism: Abot 3.18

If we keep unperverted the human
heart which is like heaven and
received from earth - that is God.

Shinto: Revelation to Emperor Seiwa

Above the doorway into the ancient pagan sanctuary of Apollo were written the words "Know Your Self." Self-knowledge was the supreme goal of the mystery religions. Through their sacred rites, the ancients sought knosledge of the soul and union with God. Mystery initiation rituals were a profound secret that was never openly divulge. We know from the Egyptian sage Plotinus (205 - 270 C.E.), however, that an initiate moved beyond the statues and representations of the gods and, in the inner sanctuary, directly experienced a transcendental vision.
Plotinus pictures the soul as a circle with God as the still center. The aim of the initiate is to live in perfect harmony with this center and so become a god himself. Just as two circles which share the same center point become indistinguishable, the initiate experiences the Self as identical with God. In this knowledge of oneness there is no duality, so there is no separation between God and soul. God is no longer other, but one's very Self.

We don't converse any mere representation,
but with Godhead itself.

Ancient Mystery Religions: Plotinus X , Mystical Union

The Zen Buddhist master Hashida writes, "To study the way of the Buddha is to study your own self. To study your self is to forget yourself." This statement captures the paradox found in many scriptures. The essential Self is divine and eternal, but through identifying itself with a mortal body and personality, it ceases to be aware of its true nature. The personal ego-self obscures the true Self. This is the cause of human suffering. Our word 'personality' comes from the Greek term 'persona' meaning "mask." The personality is a mask worn by the true Self. It is who we think we are. But it is only an idea, an illusion. To find what we actually are, we must see beyond the mask of what we take ourselves to be. To know the One, we must trascend the ego which creates our sense of separateness from God.

Where egoism exist,
You are not experienced.
Where You are, there is no ego.
Learned people,
expound in your mind
this inexpressible proposition.

Sikhism: Adi Granth, Maru-ki-var M.1


I have been crucified with Christ;
it is no longer I who live,
but Christ who lives in me.