X is for (Radical) eXistence
God doesn't exist. God is Existence itself (and so are you).
In many spiritual traditions, there is a practice in which a selected scriptural passage becomes the theme for the week. At Radical Spirituality, we do the same thing, but in a radical way.
Each Sunday, I offer The ABC’s of Radical Spirituality, a single, simple word distilled from the common principles of all the world’s faith and wisdom teachings that serves as the exploration for the week. They are the roots of Radical Spirituality. And because I am that person, the words are in alphabetical order. We start with A and go to Z.
It’s a simple practice to get to the roots of what matters on our spiritual path. The best part is that you will get out of it what you put into it. If you just keep the word on a sticky-note on your computer, it will still work it’s magic. But to dig deeper, delve in, dive in, and see what you find.
X is for (Radical) eXistence
“You are just a pop-up on this planet.” - Sadhguru
This is. I am. You are. Existence. At the end of the day, Existence is what it is all about, and at its deepest root, every spiritual tradition is talking about Existence. Existence is the miracle: the simple fact that anything exists is reason enough for awe, celebration and joy. Trees exist. Tangerines and turtles exist. Wow! Hallelujah!
In truth, if there is nothing else that matters to you, your existence alone should bring you to your knees. Not only is your existence an incomprehensible feat, but there also comes a point when everything ceases to exist (at least in its current form)…including you. Right here, right now you exist. Praise God.
Etymologically, Existence comes from the Latin, exsistere, or “to come into being.” Notice that this is a verb. To come into being implies an action which points to the deepest spiritual understanding of God being the process of Existence itself. From nothing comes something, and in all traditions, that something was created by, or arose from, the process of creation, or God/Dao/Source. God creates: God brings things into being.
More precisely, God is the process of creation itself. God is not a thing that creates, but the process by which creation – Existence - happens. In the Bible, the name God gives itself is YHWH, which is a form of the verb, “to be,” which is often translated as “I am,” or “I will be what I will be.” In other words, “I am Existence.” Daoists think of the Dao similarly: the Dao, from which all things arise, is the process of all processes, the ever-evolving, ever-changing movement of transformation which is and will be.
As my teacher used to say, “You do not exist. You are existence. Go grock on that.”
This week, I invite you to consider Existence itself. Do you exist or are you Existence?
Deeper Roots
One of my very favorite head-scratchers is the question, “Does God exist?” Reams of paper and hours of philosophy and theology debates have failed to answer this question adequately, largely because it’s the wrong question. The question isn’t if God exists, but what is existence in the first place?
In Quantum physics, it is understood that no Thing exists. Rather, what appears solid is really sub-atomic quanta constantly popping in and out of existence. All things are potentials or probabilities, and “reality” is really just the result of interactions and processes. Everything that exists is just a pop-up: here and gone.
Biologically, we know that our bodies are also infinitely complex webs of electrical and chemical interactions and transformations that create Life. What you think of as you is an impossibly complex set of relationships and processes between viruses, bacteria, cells, chemicals, and electrical impulses. And when those processes are no longer working, we die (which is just another process of transformation).
So, it appears that we don’t exist distinct from the processes that create us. Some of us call that process God. That means this logical equation is true: if we are not separate from the processes of existence and God is the process of existence, we are not separate from God, and thus, we are Existence itself. As Deepak Chopra says, “The greatest mystery of existence is existence itself.”
God is a mystery. Life is a mystery. You are a mystery. Mystery of all mysteries, the source of all Existence.
Go grock on that.
Reflection Questions
What does Existence mean to me?
How do I experience my existence?
How do I experience the existence of others?
How do I experience the existence of the Divine/Sacred/God/Source?
Suggested Practice
For this week, consider the miracle of Existence. Look at your hands. Look at your children. Look at the trees, flowers, sky. Allow yourself to see the mystery behind all of it.
As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being. – Carl Jung