"The Future of God" by Deepak Chopra is one of the most uplifting books I have ever read. It's a book about the essence of everything, at least everything that "matters" (no pun intended) - life, belief, wisdom, source (Spirit). I love that it discusses some of the most controversial topics with such openness and ease, and in doing so, it does not coerce the reader one way or another. It gently guides you on the path to "finding your own light", as the Buddha advised. I think everyone should read it. To the skeptic, it teaches you to be open to infinite possibilities. To the believer, it teaches you to seek more than blind faith, and not to trust the five senses, but to go beyond them. For there is a beyond. There is something that only "experiencing" can reveal.
About life, Deepak says, "Human experience would be fatal without moments of inspiration. In exchange for such moments, when love, beauty, and the possibility of reaching higher reality become vividly true, we endure a great deal of tedium, routine, mundane work, and suffering". I think this truly sums up what Life can mean, once you start to see more than meets the eye.
About wisdom, Deepak says, "Wisdom sees what can't be seen with the naked eye". And again, "Most of the time wisdom startles us because it is so contrary to reason and common sense". I can't imagine someone reading this, and not becoming curious. And when you begin to seek, that's when you begin to see. Magic is everywhere, we just need to "re-attune" ourselves to it! And Deepak's words are so encouraging when he says, "Your present self, in its unawakened state, isn't your enemy or a cripple or a failure. It is Buddha waiting to realize itself"!
About God, he says, "God is not an idea. God is consciousness". How many times have we been told, even as children, that God is everywhere? How many times have we read in the Bible that our bodies are the "temples of the Holy Spirit"? Deepak uses this allegory to explain it further - "The air in a party balloon would be surprised to hear that there is no difference between it and the Earth's atmosphere. Until the balloon is popped, a thin membrane keeps it from knowing who it really is"! The essence is within us all, but how many of us nurture the Spirit the way we do our physical bodies? And yet, Spirit is eternal, whereas the body is only temporary. But most of us have this backwards, or just refuse to see beyond the illusion of this physical, material, temporal world.
Believing is surrender, freedom, childlike trust. As Deepak puts it, "Providence will uphold you when you are totally aligned with God, as nature upholds all simpler life-forms". It's the kind of trust that Jesus spoke about - "faith, like a grain of mustard seed". And that is grace, or being in a state of grace.
The power lies within each of us, but few will realize it's full potential.
