A Medium for Establishing Communion With God

Idols are not the idle fancies of sculptors, but are shining channels through which the heart
of the devotee is attracted to God and flows towards Him. Though apparently the image is
worshipped, the devotee feels the presence of the Lord in it and pours out his devotion unto it. It is
the appalling ignorance of the modern sensual man that clouds his vision and prevents him from
seeing Divinity in the lovely and enchanting idols of His forms.
The wonderful scientific advances of this century ought to convince one of the glory of idol
worship. How are the songsters and orators confined to a small boxlike thing called a radio or a
T.V.? The latter are merely lifeless, mechanical structures which would break into a thousand
pieces if thrown violently; and yet, if you know how to handle it, you can hear through it the music
and see through it the pictures occurring several thousands of miles away. Even as you catch the
sound-waves of people all over the globe through the radio and T.V., it is possible to commune with
the all-pervading Lord through the medium of an idol. The divinity of the all-pervading God is
vibrant in every atom of creation. There is not a speck of space where He is not. Why do you then
say that He is not in the idols?
There are many who would glibly say: “Oh, God is an all-pervading formless Being. How
can He be confined to this idol!” Are these people ever conscious of His omnipresence? Do they
always see Him and Him alone in everything? No. It is their ego that prevents them from bowing to
the idols of God and with that motive they put this lame excuse forward.
Empty vessels make much sound. A practical man who does meditation and worship, who
is full of knowledge and real devotion, always keeps silent. He influences and teaches others
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HINDU FASTS & FESTIVALS
through silence. He alone knows whether an idol is necessary in the beginning of concentration or
not.
However intellectual one may be, one cannot concentrate without the help of some symbol.
An intellectual or a learned person may say on account of his pride and vanity: “I do not like an idol.
I do not wish to concentrate on a form.” He cannot concentrate on the formless One. He thinks that
people will laugh at him when they come to know that he is meditating on an idol. He never does
any meditation on the formless One. He simply talks and argues and poses. He wastes his life in
unnecessary discussions only. An ounce of practice is better than tons of theories.
Intellect is a hindrance in the vast majority of intellectual persons. They say that the
existence of Brahman is guess-work, the superconscious state is a bluff and Self-realisation is an
imagination of the Vedantins. Deluded souls! They are steeped in ignorance. They are carded away
by their secular knowledge which is mere husk when compared to the knowledge of the Self. There
is no hope of salvation for such people. First, their wrong impressions should be flushed by good
impressions through Satsang. Then only will they realise their mistakes. May the Lord bestow on
them clear understanding and thirsting for real knowledge!