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WORLD SCRIPTURE: Traces of God's Existence
World Scripture
TRACES OF GOD'S EXISTENCE
How can human beings recognize the existence of this transcendent Reality, the
invisible God, all-pervasive Truth? Although the vast philosophical literature
dealing with proofs for God's existence is beyond the scope of this anthology,
there are certain arguments which are put forth in scripture. Although God is
invisible, He has left evidence of His reality by which people can know Him, if
they only look. These include: first, the doorway of contemplation by which
God is sensed by the inner self; second, the universality of the moral law,
which mirrors the law of nature; third, the evidence of His handiwork in the
glories of the creation; and finally, the testimony of the founders of
religion. By these means traces of Ultimate Reality can be ascertained in the
midst of this relative existence.
Who knows this truly, and who will now declare it, what paths lead together to
the gods? Only their lowest aspects of existence are seen, who exist on
supreme, mystical planes.
1. Hinduism. Rig Veda 3.54.5
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Rig Veda 3.54.5: 'Who knows this?' cf. Rig Veda 10.129, p. 130.
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Eye cannot see him, nor words reveal him;
by the senses, austerity, or works he is not known.
When the mind is cleansed by the grace of wisdom,
he is seen by contemplation--the One without parts.
2. Hinduism. Mundaka Upanishad 3.1.8
The door of the Truth is covered by a golden
disc. Open it, O Nourisher!
Remove it so that I who have been worshipping
the Truth may behold It.
O Nourisher, lone Traveler of the sky! Controller!
O Sun, offspring of Prajapati! Gather Your rays;
withdraw Your light. I would see, through Your grace,
that form of Yours which is the fairest.
He, that Person who dwells there--is I myself!
3. Hinduism. Isha Upanishad 15-16
He who looks inwardly at the self revels in the self;
He who revels in the self looks inwardly at the self.
4. Jainism. Acarangasutra 2.173
The thing that is called Tao is eluding and vague.
Vague and eluding, there is in it the form.
Eluding and vague, in it are things.
Deep and obscure, in it is the essence.
The essence is very real; in it are evidences.
From the time of old until now, its manifestations ever remain,
By which we may see the beginnings of all things.
How do I know that the beginnings of all things are so?
Through this.
5. Taoism. Tao Te Ching 21
Confucius said, "The power of spiritual forces in the universe-how active it is
everywhere! Invisible to the eyes and impalpable to the senses, it is inherent
in all things, and nothing can escape its operation."
It is the fact that there are these forces which make men in all countries fast
and purify themselves, and with solemnity of dress institute services of
sacrifice and religious worship. Like the rush of mighty waters, the presence
of unseen Powers is felt; sometimes above us, sometimes around us. In the Book
of Songs it is said,
The presence of the Spirit:
It cannot be surmised,
How may it be ignored!
Such is the evidence of things invisible that it is impossible to doubt the
spiritual nature of man.
6. Confucianism. Doctrine of the Mean 16
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Isha Upanishad 15-16: Cf. Bhagavad Gita 15.9-11, p. 219; Milarepa, p. 587; 2
Corinthians 3.18, p. 587. Acarangasutra 2.173: Cf. Chandogya Upanishad 7.25.2,
p. 530. Tao Te Ching 21: The word essence (ching) also means spirit,
intelligence, life force. 'This' in the last line can mean through intuition.
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There is, monks, a condition where there is neither the element of extension,
the element of cohesion, the element of heat, nor the element of motion, nor
the sphere of the infinity of space, nor the sphere of the infinity of
consciousness, nor the sphere of nothingness, nor the sphere of
neither-perception-nor-non-perception; neither this world, nor a world beyond,
nor sun and moon.
There, monks, I say, there is neither coming nor going nor staying nor passing
away nor arising. Without support or mobility or basis is it. This is indeed
the end of suffering.
That which is Selfless, hard it is to see;
Not easy is it to perceive the Truth.
But who has ended craving utterly
Has naught to cling to, he alone can see.
There is, monks, an unborn, a not-become, a not-made, a not-compounded. If,
monks, there were not this unborn, not-become, not-made, not-compounded, there
would not here be an escape from the born, the become, the made, the
compounded. But because there is an unborn, a not-become, a not-made, a
not-compounded, therefore there is an escape from the born, the become, the
made, the compounded.
7. Buddhism. Udana 80, Pataligama
We shall show then Our signs on the horizons and within themselves until it
becomes clear to them that it is the Truth.
8. Islam. Qur'an 41.53
For what can be known about God is plain to [all], because God has showed it to
them. Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely, His
eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have
been made. So they are without excuse.
9. Christianity. Bible, Romans 1.19-20
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Doctrine of the Mean 16: This also refers to evidences of a spiritual world;
cf. 2 Corinthians 12.2-4, p. 322. Udana 80: The Buddha only describes this
condition negatively; he refuses to speculate on the nature of Being itself.
Cf. Diamond Sutra 29, p. 121; 21, p. 800; Majihima Nikaya i.426-31, pp. 808f.
But elsewhere he calls this unborn condition Nirvana; cf. Sutta Nipata 758, p.
124; Anguttara Nikaya v.322, p. 136. Mahayana Buddhism gives it a positive
definition and calls it Suchness; cf. Lankavatara Sutra 83, p. 80; Perfection
of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines 31.1, p. 81.
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The Book of Songs says,
The hawk soars to the heavens above;
Fishes dive to the depths below.
That is to say, there is no place in the highest heavens above nor in the
deepest waters below where the moral law is not to be found.
10. Confucianism. Doctrine of the Mean 12
Known by the name of Protectress
is the Goddess girt by Eternal Law;
by her beauty are these trees green
and have put on their green garlands.
11. Hinduism. Atharva Veda 10.8.31
The deeds which I shall do and those which I have done ere now,
And the things which are precious to the eye, through Good Mind,
The light of the sun, the sparkling dawn of the days,
All this is for your praise, O Wise Lord, as righteousness!
12. Zoroastrianism. Avesta, Yasna 50.10
The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims His handiwork.
Day to day pours forth speech,
and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
neither is their voice heard;
Yet their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
13. Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Psalm 19.1-4
It is God who splits the grain and the date-stone. He brings forth the living
from the dead; He brings forth the dead too from the living.
So that then is God; then how are you perverted? He splits the sky into dawn,
and has made the night for a repose, and the sun and moon for a reckoning.
That is the ordaining of the All-mighty, the All-knowing. It is He who has
appointed for you the stars, that by them you might be guided in the shadows of
land and sea.
We have distinguished the signs for a people who know.
It is He who produced you from one living soul, and then a lodging place, and
then a repository.
We have distinguished the signs for a people who understand. It is He who sent
down out of heaven water, and thereby We have brought forth the shoot of every
plant. And then We have brought forth the green leaf of it, bringing forth
from it close-compounded grain, and out of the palm tree, from the spathe of
it, dates thick-clustered, ready to the hand, and gardens of vines, olives,
pomegranates, like each to each, and each unlike to each. Look upon their
fruits when they fructify and ripen!
Surely, in all this are signs for a people who do believe.
14. Islam. Qur'an 6.95-99
And of His signs is that He created you from the dust; now behold you are human
beings, ranging widely.
And of His signs is that He created for you, of yourselves, spouses that you
might find repose in them, and He has planted love and kindness in your hearts.
Surely there are signs in this for people who reflect.
And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth and the variety
of your tongues and hues, surely there are signs in this for people who have
knowledge. And of His signs is your slumber by night and day, and your seeking
of His bounty.
Surely there are signs in this for people who hear. The lightning which He
shows you for fear and hope is yet another of His signs; He sends down water
from the sky, thereby reviving the earth after it is dead.
Surely in this there are signs for people who understand. And of His signs is
that space and the earth stand firm by His command; then when He calls you,
suddenly, from the earth you shall emerge.
15. Islam. Qur'an 30.20-25
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Atharva Veda 10.8.31: Cf. Rig Veda 10.85.1, p. 150. On beauty as an attribute
of God, cf. Rig Veda 5.82.5-7, p. 138. Yasna 50.10: Zarathustra is equating
the beauty of nature and the revelation of God through his prophet--natural
revelation and special revelation--as testifying equally to the glory of God.
Psalm 19.1-4: There are slight differences in versification among the various
Christian and Jewish Bibles. This anthology has adopted the versification of
English-language Protestant Christian Bibles. Qur'an 6.95-99 and 30.20-25: It
is a cardinal doctrine of Islam that God's signs are to be found everywhere.
Recognizing God as the source of these bounties, humans should be thankful; cf.
Qur'an 16.10-18, p. 141; 55.5-30, pp. 128f. In the opening verse, 'splits the
grain...' refers to sprouting and new life. Verse 22 grounds the equality of
the races in their common source as God's creatures; cf. Qur'an 35.27-28, p.
282.
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For each and every form He is the Model;
it is His form that is to be seen everywhere;
Indra moves multiform by His creative charm;
The bay steeds yoked to His car are a thousand.
16. Hinduism. Rig Veda 6.47.18
All things are made to bear record of Me, both things which are temporal and
things which are spiritual; things which are in the heavens above, and things
which are on the earth, and things which are in the earth, and things which are
under the earth, both above and beneath: all things bear record of Me.
17. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Pearl of Great Price,
Moses 6.63
Praise be God, Who knows the secrets of all things and proofs of Whose
existence shine in various phases of nature. No physical eye has and will ever
see Him. But those who have not seen Him physically cannot deny His existence,
yet the minds of those who have accepted His existence cannot grasp the real
essence of Divine Nature. His place is so high that nothing can be imagined
higher. He is so near to us that nothing can be nearer. The eminence of His
position has not placed Him any further away from His creatures, and His
nearness has not brought them on a par with Him. He has not permitted the
human mind to grasp the essence of His Being, yet He has not prevented them
from realizing His presence. Various aspects of the universe force even
atheists to accept Him [as its Grand Architect], yet He is so far above the
conceptions of those who refuse His existence, and also of those who imagine
His attributes in various expressions of nature.
18. Islam (Shiite). Nahjul Balagha, Khutba 54
No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he
has made him known.
19. Christianity. Bible, John 1.18
When Abraham saw the sun issuing in the morning from the east, he was first
moved to think that that was God, and said, "This is the King that created me,"
and worshipped it the whole day. In the evening when the sun went down and the
moon commenced to shine, he said, "Verily this rules over the orb which I
worshipped the whole day, since the latter is darkened before it and does not
shine any more." So he served the moon all that night. In the morning when he
saw the darkness depart and the east grow light, he said, "Of a surety there is
a King who rules over all these orbs and orders them."
20. Judaism. Zohar, Genesis 86a
So also did We show Abraham the power and the laws of the heavens and the
earth, that he might have certitude. When the night covered him over, he saw a
star; he said, "This is my Lord." But when it set, he said, "I love not those
that set." When he saw the moon rising in splendor, he said, "This is my
Lord," but when the moon set, he said, "Unless my Lord guide me, I shall surely
be among those who go astray." When he saw the sun rising in splendor, he
said, "This is my Lord; this is the greatest of all," but when the sun set, he
said, "O my people! I am indeed free from your [error] of ascribing partners to
God. For me, I have set my face firmly and truly towards Him Who created the
heavens and the earth, and never shall I ascribe partners to God."
21. Islam. Qur'an 6.75-79
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John 1.18: For Christianity, the book of nature and a person's own spiritual
experience give only partial knowledge of Ultimate Reality. Only through the
special revelation of God in Jesus Christ is the fullness of God's nature made
manifest in the world. Cf. John 14.6, p. 629, and comparable passages; Lotus
Sutra 2, p. 154. Zohar, Genesis 86a: Cf. Genesis Rabbah 39.1, p. 593.
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