To my understanding and after searching through data available, every religion accepts and adheres to the concept of a supreme entity, addressed to as ‘God’. Transcending geographic and cultural boundaries, the unanimous impression of such an entity is found to be the same absolute, enormous, and incomprehensible element in charge of the entire existence. Such a concept is interestingly similar to all the various religions, most of which independently claim to be unique in their belief and declare to possess the solitary means to attain that entity. Logically, imagining how such a concept emerged from various corners of the world, one can infer if they choose to be open-minded, that we are all dealing with the same absoluteness.
How did human being come up with such a concept, to begin with? More importantly, how did he experience the need or the urge to submit to such a concept? Obviously, he must have had a compelling reason to create such a power in his imagination to explain all that he could not have explained, to protect himself from elements which he could not do without. Observing all the happenings around him, which punctually and precisely recur way beyond a point to be casually ignored, it must have been rudimentary education to deduct and establish the presence of power and call it the controlling factor. From such an education he may have deduced a phenomenon, which he felt comfortable to be in possession of the mastery over every element and every happening around him.
Such a person with an original concept would have had the influence to pass on such an impression to others in his surroundings with so much conviction that many if not most accepted the idea. Similar acceptance might have happened among tribes and communities around the globe, which perhaps gradually and eventually evolved into a similar global belief of divine acceptance. Individuals with such leadership traits and convincing abilities and possessing phenomenal intellects and wisdom were gradually revered as ones with heavenly persona. As much as they were convinced and could, in turn, convince their followers of the presence of a superhuman entity pervading everything that happens around us, such conviction and acceptance gradually evolved into the much higher magnitude and stature that we began to revere as God.
Is it how a human being reaches the thought about God? How does an individual independently feel compelled to accept such a need or necessity? Or is it only a gradual process of growing up influenced by ongoing habits and exposure to surroundings? If one were to be isolated from the belief imposed on us as children if one were to be freed from the fear and/or the concept of such an identity, how would one react? If all the indoctrination through books and recitals, idols and practices were to be removed and let the individual come up with their own inference, how would he react? If one were allowed to come up with one’s own conclusion about concrete existence of such power from his totally honest and reliable experience, how would most react; like his response of experience after eating or reading a book or watching a movie? Can we call such an experience of taste or visual impression or emotional impact as a reality? A book or food or an event exists and can be emotionally experienced.
Such an experience can be recorded as memory and can periodically be extracted, reproduced and be felt on re-exposure. Can we claim that similar experience happens after exposure to the phenomenon from visiting God, chanting about Him or observing the various penances? Perhaps not; perhaps it is an almost indescribable entity of experience of the mind, of the soul from rendezvous with God. Such divine experience cannot be equated with the mundane exposures with routine encounters. Since we are implying the God concept, the divine experience needs to be attributed to the enormity of its functions – the ultimate meaning which is attributed to all that we perceive and sense. Such an ‘Ultimate Experience’ has to be way beyond that of a small encounter with a book or food or performance since those who believe in such a ‘beyond the life experience’ should be holding up divinity way higher than any other casual, routine occurrence.
Assuming that we highlight certain celestial events like a change of seasons, day and night, comets, eclipses or even black holes and galactic encounters at a ‘higher’ level of handling, can we honor such to the enormous concept that is God? 231 Perhaps so; perhaps with certain clarification. Tracking such brilliant ability of an authority that can precisely preside over all the ‘happenings’ that we can perceive and beyond, like the cyclical lives of all the flora and fauna along with the celestial performances, to assign the responsibility of manipulating every detail of the master control will be way beyond our comprehensive assessment. For most who accept the concept of God as the ultimate entity are content and comfortable with such a concept without further inquiries and scrutiny. Such a secure faith of the superpower has been molded and ingrained into the conscious and subconscious acceptance of most of the believers.
Dr. Venugopal Menon's 'Thoughts of a Lifetime' 