The Relative & the Absolute Truth

What I call spirituality is that which is concerned with the ultimate truth or absolute truth. This truth is universal, never changes and can be directly perceived/experienced at all times and places. It cannot be learnt or accumulated as it is always already present and known. I use various capitalised words synonymously to describe it, e.g. God, Truth, Love, Wholeness, Love, the Universe. Its perception does not require special equipment and does not depend even on the body, mind or senses. It cannot be described and defies and transcends all concepts. Absolute truth cannot even be divided into the absolute and relative, the division being merely a conceptual one.

In contrast to this, worldly knowledge can be called relative knowledge or relative truth. This includes scientific knowledge, knowledge of skills such as a sports game or knowing facts such as how tall Mount Everest is. This knowledge is relative because it does not stand alone and is only true in relation to something else. For example, the height of Mount Everest depends on various factors such as defining the point from which height is measured and the unit of measurement. The height will also change over time as the mountain topography changes. In fact one of the cardinal features of relative knowledge is that it changes over time depending on specifics relating to time and place. Relative knowledge can also be accumulated and developed over time. Lastly, it requires the body-mind-senses to reveal/discover it.

So to summarise we have two concepts, the relative and the absolute. The relative is concerned with those things which change. We can lump all things that change together and call it the world. This world includes the world outside us, as well as our inner world of thoughts, feelings, emotions and psychic perceptions. The absolute is that which remains the same no matter what, i.e. the Spirit, and is always and already known by everyone whether they know it or not.

Strictly speaking, this division in relative and absolute itself is arbitrary, but because we have turned away from Spirit, this division is provisionally made so our mistake can be corrected. Once corrected, concepts of relative and absolute disappear, and all that remains is this, the unnameable. But until that point, the concepts are useful teaching aids pointing one in the right direction like the proverbial finger that points at the moon: don’t worship the finger otherwise you will miss the moon in all its heavenly glory. The flip side is that once you have seen the moon, you don’t need the finger any more. Teachings are always conceptual and are to be thrown away eventually.

This means, according to my definitions above, that talking about and working with emotions, feelings and thought processes is still in the domain of the relative world and so is not spiritual. I would even go as far as to say as that someone who is only interested in these things remains a materialist caught in the clutches of the ego. We must place our attention beyond the body, senses and mind (including any psychic powers) and discover what transcends and permeates everything.

Now, before I get accused of being a nihilist, let me make it clear that I am not saying that we shouldn’t do worldly things. Politics, medicine, health, social work, psychotherapy, psychic work, art, music, etc., all have their place and worth. But there is something more. I call this Spirit, but you can use any word that resonates with you. Or you can use no word at all. Only through transcending the world which is the same as discovering your true nature – that which you already are – can you claim your Natural State which is one of Peace, Happiness, Oneness and Love and also beyond all of these.