Living a deeper life
Part 5: Transcendence and immanence: the call beyond and the discovery within
In the greater freedom that I now have, I want to focus on the most important goals. What do I really want to achieve? I acknowledge that this is so much easier when I feel I have achieved my worldly goals. But what now are the existential goals that I wish to attain before death. If my consciousness is to cease, I want to be someone who contained within that consciousness – even if only in transitory form – the ultimate in what it is possible for the human mind to contain.
I am aware of the very valid point that perhaps it was in the gaining of those worldly goals that I experienced the most precious and ultimate experiences. I think it is the problem of the transcendent. When one becomes aware of the transcendent dimension of life, there is always the thought that, no matter how wonderful the experience that you are immanently engaged in, there is something even more “behind” that experience. This may or may not be true. If we are also aware of the immanence of God within the everyday experiences of life, then we are in no way “missing out” on the depth of life by “merely” attending to the immediate tasks before us. Yet our transcendent moments open a window for us into a new world of exhilarating depth and fullness. Whatever the truths of the immanence of God’s love, it is also true that we are often engaged in superficial, trivial or partial living that is barely aware of the full wonder of life. Therefore, I ask myself: “Is there a deeper, fuller life that can be lived?”.
There is also the question of whether we have just one quality of awareness, that may be either directed towards deep or shallow objectives. So, perhaps, there is no such thing as a “deeper awareness”, it is simply the case that when we become aware of deeper things, our awareness records and responds to that depth. However, perhaps it is also possible to develop a deeper awareness that becomes our general way of being, such that when we attend to things that are “routine” we can nevertheless experience them in a deeper, more fulfilling and vibrant way. It is this question of the possibility of deeper awareness – that could theoretically be entered into and never left – that we are considering.
So, what are the existential goals that a spiritual person should be devoting themselves to? Having become aware of the reality of God who, regardless of our previous thoughts about transcendence and immanence, deeper and shallower experiences, is always more than we can take in, how may we fill ourselves with all the depth of God of which we are capable? What shall we do and how shall we act?
Spiritual Devotion 