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GOD WISHES TO BECOME HUMAN
             For God can only love in a human heart

God needs me as much as I need Him.
Eckhart

Humans are often characterized as a species perpetually striving to transcend boundaries. Particularly in Western cultures, this endeavor is outward-facing, marked by a relentless drive to overcome external challenges through technology and science. In contrast, Eastern traditions, notably in India, have historically focused this quest inward, seeking to overcome internal barriers.
 
To become God
Both approaches, whether outward or inward, can arguably be seen as a deep-seated yearning to connect with what might be considered humanity's most profound projective creation: GOD.

God is perfect. We humans are not.

Creature comforts are inherently flawed and incomplete,
but God's comfort is whole, without any shortcomings.
Eckhart

Among all boundaries, death remains the most formidable challenge. In India, numerous tales of Yogis who, through specific meditation techniques, have extended their lifespans to almost mythic proportions are well-known. Another path pursued by Indian yogis to attain godliness involves the annihilation of both the ego and the body through self-control. In extreme cases, like in the Jain culture, it is viewed as an honor for the whole family if a young memember decides in the name of spirituality, to starve himself to death in a ritual called Sallekhana. This subtly yet potently implies that in transcending death, either by anihilating the body or prolonging its life, humans edge closer to a divine state of being.
 
In the Western world, this aspiration is evident in the escalating interest in life extension and the enhancement of life quality. A notable figure in this movement is Bryan Johnson, who is at the forefront of this trend, striving valiantly to surpass the constraints of the human condition. I offer him my best wishes in these ambitious pursuits.

To become Human

What you seek is seeking you.
Rumi

However, in this discussion, we will shift our focus to explore an entirely different approach: envisioning a scenario where God wishes to become human. This is in my view encapsulated in the narrative of the Son of God.
Jesus is God becomming man.

The question then is: What does God 'desire'? What interest could the Limitless have in the small, limited human? The Meister puts it this way:

God is foolishly in love with us,
it seems he has forgotten heaven and earth
and his happiness and deity,
his entire business seems with me alone...
Meister Eckhart

The Meister provocatively even states:

I never give God thanks for loving me,
because he cannot help it.

The Trial of Job in the Book of Job
As C.G. Jung articulates in 'Answer to Job,' the character of Job, subjected to trials by Yahweh, is portrayed as more sympathetic than the divine tester. Job, in his human fragility, 'triumphs' over God in the sense that he withstands all of God’s harrowing and seemingly cruel tests.

This scenario is particularly illustrative of Jung’s concept of individuation, the journey towards self-actualization and the integration of different facets of the self into a coherent whole. Job's ordeal represents an extreme form of this process. Through facing extraordinary suffering and moral challenges, Job refines his identity, achieving a level of self-awareness and holistic consciousness that surpasses even God’s vast and ubiquitous light, thereby contributing a unique element to the divine narrative.

Jung concludes that God, 'impressed' and perhaps 'enlightened' by Job's resilience and the depth of his individuation, then 'decides' to incarnate as a 'Human.' This pivotal episode offers a symbolic foreshadowing of the coming of the Son of Man, embodying the divine aspiration for individuation and wholeness within the human experience.

Therefore, the arrival of the Son of Man is prophesied through Job's ordeal. This story emphasizes the remarkable resilience and unyielding spirit of humankind. Faced with daunting adversities and suffering, Job upholds his faith and moral integrity, displaying a strength of character that commands divine respect and admiration.

Jung's interpretation suggests a moment of transformation for the divine: an acknowledgement of the value and complexity of human existence. Through Job's trials, God seems to gain a newfound 'understanding' of human resilience and spirit. The trials serve not merely as a test of faith, but as a profound exchange between human anguish and divine power. This reshapes the divine perspective, culminating in God's incarnation as a man in the figure of Jesus.

This narrative signifies a bridge between the boundless divine and the finite human condition, fostering a deeper and more empathetic connection between God and humanity, a theme perhaps more pronounced here than in other religious texts.
 
God 'longs' to become human, to experience life through our perspectives, to rejoice in existence alongside and within us.

What do I mean by 'God'?
Let me elucidate my understanding of 'God' by referencing the wisdom of Meister Eckhart:

"Heaven is pure and undisturbed clarity; unaffected by time and space;
nothing bodily resides there, and it exists completely outside of time.
Its revolutions occur with incredible speed; its course itself is timeless,
yet from it, time emerges. Nothing hinders the soul from recognizing God
as much as time and space do, for time and space are always fragmented, but God is one. Thus, if the soul is to recognize God, it must do so
outside of time and beyond space, for God is neither this
nor that like the many things that exist there, but God is one."
Meister Eckhart

God is the incomprehensible, primordial foundation transcending space-time. Consciousness acts as a conduit between this unfathomable, locationless primordial ground and space-time beings. When this higher-dimensional enigma manifests in our lower dimension, it transforms into the collective infinity of unlimited infinities. Here, a singular timeless 'now' metamorphoses into 'infinity.'

"God is creating the whole world now this instant."
Meister Eckhart

In the realm of God, there is no infinity. Infinity is space-time's impossible attempt to reach the in this sense divine zero through numbers.

"The happenings of a thousand years ago, days spent millenniums since,
are in eternity no further off than is this moment I am passing now;
the day to come a thousand years ahead or in as many years as you can
count, is no more distant in eternity than this very instant I am in."
Meister Ekchart

Consequently, consciousness manifests in time and space as a lattice of points, each point serving as a portal to a new fractal dimension within an immense cosmic hologram. From this perspective, God is perceived as an omnipresent, all-encompassing singularity, a unity that surpasses the fragmented reality of time and space. This reality, shaped by the same primordial foundation, continually unfolds into our existence in the very 'now' of its emergence. In essence, the divine presence is not separate from our reality but intimately woven into its very fabric, constantly revealing itself in the timeless 'now'.

The Primordial Pan-Consciousness versus the Concentrated Light of Man
Before Job's arrival, what was the nature of God? A primordial, non-self-aware pan-consciousness that both created and suffused time and space. This all-pervading consciousness is what I identify as God, who, at that 'time,' lacked self-awareness.

This omnipresent pan-consciousness, though everywhere, did not possess self-awareness. The true journey began with the emergence of humans, endowed with the rare capacity for meta-awareness – the awareness of being aware. Inspired by Meister Eckhart, I interpret this as the first instance of consciousness reflecting back upon itself. To be blessed is to be cognizant of God:

"I am certain
as I live that nothing is so close to me as God.
God is nearer to me than I am to my own self;
my life depends upon God's being near me,
present in me.
 
So is he also in a stone, a log of wood,
only they do not know it.

If the wood knew of God and realized his nearness
like the highest of the angels does,
then the log would be as blessed as the chief of all angels."
Meister Eckhart

In this context, the Son of God symbolizes the omnipresent light of God, focused and intensified within the narrow confines of the human brain. According to Meister Eckhart, the highest part of the soul and God’s essence are unified in this aspect:

"To gauge the soul we must gauge it with God, 
for the Ground of God and the Ground of the soul 
are one and the same...The highest part
of the soul stands above time 
and know nothing of time."
Meister Eckhart

In this vein, a human being can be seen as a copied reflection of God, yet, paradoxically, this reflection surpasses the original in a specific sense: God achieves a higher level of Himself through His Son.

Hence, a human being can be viewed as a reflection of God, yet, paradoxically, this reflection surpasses the original in a certain respect: through His Son, God attains a higher level of Himself.

The phenomenon I refer to here is Ouroboros consciousness. Only human consciousness can become aware of itself, and it is precisely in this self-reflection that God 'desires' to see Himself.
 
In this narrative, the copy transcends the original. Just as Job was greater than God, so is Christ greater, and so too can we be, when we come to enter the spiralling realm of self-awareness within a human brain. So there is no need to escape the simulation. The 'matrix' is a much more evolved place to be.
 
God is in Itself Cold and Vast
Even when the primordial ground has manifested itself into a numerical infinity of infinities, it remains in essence 'cold' and mathematically impersonal. From this viewpoint, God's pan-consciousness regards us similarly to how we might observe an ant. This divine presence operates under a 'will' that is indifferent to individual predicaments: If one were to leap from a skyscraper, they would be destroyed by the laws of gravity, and this occurrence would transpire without any semblance of divine remorse or intervention.

In this interpretation, God, as an overarching, all-encompassing entity, is not invested in the minutiae of individual lives. Instead, God's essence is woven into the fabric of the universe's fundamental laws and principles. Thus, the 'coldness' of God refers to an absence of personal engagement with the individual aspects of the universe, adhering strictly to the unyielding laws that govern all existence.
 
I have encountered individuals who have claimed that if I truly understood what enlightenment entailed, I would flee in terror. I am fairly certain that I would refuse the state they describe. From my perspective, this so-called enlightenment appears less human and more akin to a dissociative state, akin to losing one's identity in the same manner a cosmic black hole engulfs a star.

When an unprepared individual encounters the fractal, infinite consciousness within themselves, their delicate and precious human essence, akin to a flickering flame, can be easily snuffed out.

The aftermath of such an encounter is not enlightenment but an empty, depersonalized form of infinity. This state lacks the warmth and richness of human experience, leaving behind only a void where the vibrant tapestry of individual identity and consciousness once resided.
 
A person came to me and shared that in a profound state of depression, they had delved into their sorrow, becoming completely engulfed by it. On the other side of this sorrow was an infinite space filled with rainbows. However, being there felt cold. He couldn't find himsef anywhere and experienced an unsettling loss of identity. (Happily, this story ends with the person returning and becoming more whole.)
 
Another individual recounted how, during a two-day drinking binge, he was offered an LSD trip. For the following 14 days, he lay in bed, unable to do anything but exist in a vast void. After a month, he could echo the great sage Nisargadatta: 'There is joy, but there is no one who is joyful.' More often, anxiety and depression clouded the infinite sky within him. He could speak like a sage but were in a distressing state, devoid of his core personality. Two months later, those who knew him superficially noticed nothing unusual, but internally, his core essence had vanished. (This case story also has a happy ending.)

One of my friends, a psychiatrist, once told me: 'You have no idea how many Jesuses and Buddhas I have treated.'  (Personally, I believe that quite a few people who currently give satsangs or teach meditation belong to this category.)

One might argue that these versions of enlightenment, characterized by their impersonal nature, are precisely what is revered in Eastern traditions, where man achieves godliness in a state of utmost detachment. In my own experiences, I have met masters from this school of thought who hail dissociation and depersonalization as the epitome of true enlightenment.

Yet, the narrative shifts entirely when God becomes human. In this transformation, the essence of humanness—embodied in Love, Humility, and Humor—takes center stage. This shift emphasizes a different aspect of divinity, one that is deeply entwined with the human experience and values the richness of our human emotions and connections. In this perspective, enlightenment is not about transcending humanity but embracing and refining the qualities that make us fundamentally human.

Mr. Love, Humility, and Humor.

Bhaharadwaj bid us farewell at his doorstep. We had a wonderful meeting with him. He extended his hands in blessing towards us and said several times with great love: 'May God bless you!' Then, with a mischievous glance towards the sky, he added: 'May He bless me too!'

This small episode stands for me as the perfect embodiment of love, humility, and humor. The wise man's humor even had a delightful extra gift: humor in the form of self-irony!

The Small, Fragile, Imperfect, and Valuable Human
The reason God desires to be Human, to be 'born' as the Son of Man, is that we, in all our fragility, self-importance, and imperfection, carry something incredibly valuable within us. Each one of us bears a small spark of love. Our concentrated little light is in reality the Prometheus torch that can ignite God's infinite lattice. Our small light of life can actually illuminate the entire infinity, much like a single matchstick can ignite an entire forest.

God unexpectedly and uninvitedly knocks on an unknown door hidden somewhere in our heart. But we are often too busy with our meditative practices or external tasks to take this subtle knocking seriously.

In our ritualized and purposeful search for spiritual experiences, we might actually make it harder for God's wish to be fulfilled.
When two people are searching for each other in a big city, it's best if one of them stands still.

The Humanized Infinity
The genuine meeting between God and Man is a union where infinity is humanized. From being a mathematically cold infinity, it now becomes a warm and living entity.

God's exit is his entrance.
He broke in to let us out.
Eckhart

In this way, it is not so much God who enlightens man. Rather, it is Man who enlightens God. God's lattice, the universe's holographic and fractal infinity, is illuminated with human warmth in this encounter.

The Son of Man
Although I don't hold much regard for the institutions of the Church, I must, somewhat against my will, conclude that no religious scripture comes closer to this truth than the New Testament. However, I interpret the Christ myth through the lens that led the great mystic Meister Eckhart to be condemned by the Inquisition. He said:

'What is true about Jesus Christ is true about
every good and God-devoted person.'

This means that YOU, dear reader, possess in your heart the way, the truth, and the life.

The dynamic yet fragile love of the Son and Daughter of Man is the fruit of an encounter between God and Man, where the love that each individual felt for everything dear to them has now fertilized the entire infinity. So now, the same individual feels a deep and living empathy for EVERYTHING. In this state, Infinity loves itself and with itself through Man.

'If the doors of perception were cleansed,
everything would appear to man as it is, infinite.'
William Blake

THE GRAND TRANSLATOR
 It is a very simple psychological mechanism that determines whether something seems real or not. For those who love following the British royal wedding on TV, the royal world is real. For others who are not interested in the regal spectacle, it is mere fantasy. It is our heart that determines what is real. Where our heart is, there is 'reality.' What our heart loves becomes real. If the Heart forms a bond with the body, the senses, and the physical world, then the world in time and space is real.

The Heart Grants Reality
The Heart gives reality to what it loves. Thus, seeing the world as an illusion is the same as saying one is not attached to it.

The crucial question now is: What does the heart love? I personally love the story of the Son of Man.

How I discovered the Grand Translator
Let me share a story with you. About ten years ago, I found myself in an unexpected situation one morning in a hotel in a foreign country, just before checking out and catching a train to the capital city. By a series of highly improbable coincidences, which is a story in itself, I mistakenly ingested 10 doses of LSD with my morning coffee.

Merely minutes after hastily drinking my coffee, as I was rushing to check out, I realized that an extraordinary experience was imminent. It felt as though a freight train from another dimension had collided with me, and my window of opportunity to act rationally in this world was rapidly narrowing. I managed to get to the hotel reception in the nick of time and extended my stay for another day. During this process, I felt like I was entering my Visa card PIN in several parallel universes simultaneously.

Nature is ruthless, brutal, unforgiving, and beautiful
in ways incompatible with our tidy human minds.
Statement made by AI GPT-3

In the elevator to my room, my body seemed unoccupied by what I had known as 'myself' just moments earlier. Yet, this entity, whatever it was, knew my room number. The next thing I remember is lying on my bed, gazing into infinity with countless eyes.

In that state, there was no room for fear, for there was no 'one' there to feel it. The ego had dissolved under the potent influence of the LSD, without even a moment to muster any resistance. It was like death had swung its scythe so swiftly and unexpectedly that there was no time left for any negotiation.
 
The subsequent five hours are both difficult to remember and to describe. When there is no distinct observer, only the observed folding into itself, how can one articulate or recall anything meaningful? What I experienced was akin to an immense clockwork, governed solely by an infinite interplay of mathematical algorithms and geometry. This clockwork constantly transformed, taking on ever-new shapes marked by colorful fractals and kaleidoscopic visions. These patterns were felt in every cell of a body as vast as the algorithms coursing through it.

An equation for me has no meaning
unless it expresses a thought of God
Ramanujan

In this vast ocean of endlessly morphing interactions of infinite, nameless forms, there was synesthetic sensing, observing, and self-awareness without doubt, will, second thoughts, reflections, or hesitation. A thousand-stringed orchestra of sound-color-feelings played with an inhuman certainty, even though every note from this psychedelic ensemble—from the deepest sub-sonic bass pipes controlled by foot to the highest frequencies—was entirely new and never before played. It was simultaneously extraordinarily beautiful and inhuman. This concert was me yet not for me, simultaneously being a part of me but indifferent to my existence or any other living entity, treating everything as an insignificant byproduct of clashing mathematical algorithms interacting with each other like soldiers indifferent to their own survival.

If I had been present as myself, the relentless grinding of the space-time wheels would have been a source of terror. But I wasn't there, and the machine itself was certainly indifferent to its own acts of creation and destruction.

Around 5 to 8 hours later, as judged by the fact that it wasn't yet dark, a call from my bladder brought just enough of 'me' back to life to navigate to the bathroom, much like the rest of the divine machinery was functioning automatically.

Returning to the bed after this small physical action, a faint sense of self re-emerged, just enough for me to decide to listen to some beautifully modulated music. This task proved challenging, but eventually, I managed to play one of my playlists. It was my extensive collection of Rachmaninoff's works. (Was this a mere coincidence? Today, I think not.)

Rachmaninoff's complex and late-romantic compositions awakened within me a little 2-year-old child, a child that 'innerstood' every note in the music. This little child felt defenseless, frightened, and insecure, as if it had fallen into a river of sounds, teetering on the brink of annihilation with each new twist of Rachmaninoff's incredible finger-magic.

As I sit here now, a mature adult sipping morning coffee on my sofa, I write to articulate what the child within experienced but could not verbalize at the time. Rachmaninoff’s compositions, standing on a razor's edge, pushed rhythms, harmonies, and melodies to the brink of self-destruction, a characteristic often heard in classical music of and following his era. Yet, Rachmaninoff, still an old romantic at heart, adhered to the ideals of Kalos, Kai, Agathos—truth, beauty, and goodness. Thus, his wild musical escapades always found salvation at the last second in beautiful cadenzas, leading to new exhilarating orchestral journeys.

The child within was just trying to keep its head above water in this tumultuous river of Rachmaninoff's creation. Slowly, it began to realize that it was being saved again and again. A budding sense of trust emerged, gradually transforming into tears of gratitude. This feeling of safety amidst the storm grew stronger and more profound. I believe the child wept for hours. And then, suddenly, it happened. The heart opened up.
 
The Heart is the Grand Translator
By 'the heart,' I refer to something within the entire chest area that encompasses the lungs as well. The previously mentioned impersonal, algorithmic infinity of infinities was still operating at full capacity, but now a fundamental shift had occurred.
 
This force entered my body through the chest area, and there, the same cold clockwork was transformed into a fireworks display of human emotions. There were cascades of the most exquisite feelings in every color of the rainbow and beyond—fragile yet immensely powerful. During this transformation, the child aged and gained wisdom, understanding why God loves humanity and desires to live, translated into human form, within a living, vulnerable heart.
 
The heart, then, is the Grand Translator. It functions like a stargate, a portal where every fragment of the frozen god of algorithms can find warmth at the fireplace.
 
Through the human heart, God translates Himself into human form.
Here the infinite becomes intimate.

Therefore, the fragmented and fragile human heart is the greatest entity in the universe. The greater the suffering this heart has endured, the greater its mature capacity to experience extreme states of love in as many ways as there are particles in the universe. The more we have suffered, the more God longs to enter our chest, to sing and dance in the cracks and scars we have all, more or less, accumulated in His honor. This is why Meister Eckhart posits that next to God, there is nothing more noble than human suffering.
 






  
 

Gunnar Mühlmann