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The Final Summary The latest text from Maitreya Ishwara. (Maitreya, a former sannyasin, lives in New Zealand and guides a commune there. His website is at www.ishwara.com) The core of all religions and systems of transformation is similar. Advaita understands the unity of existence and its source through the medium of consciousness. Divine consciousness is the unifying undercurrent that permeates and animates the multiplicity of existence. Jesus is a beautiful man with a message that God is love. His method for transformation is surrender: Thy Will Be Done. These four words are enough for transformation to occur, if they are applied to every moment of life. Islamic and Sufi surrender to the will of God is not very different to that of Christians and Jews. Surrender unites the theistic religions with a common core of agreement. Once we have a shared understanding that the will of God is whatever happens, we can also agree to accept reality as His testament. Reality as the will of God is the only workable basis for any durable consensus on divi ne will. Without this agreement, divine will is vulnerable to misinterpretation by priests and other vested interests with their tainted history of myopic chauvinism. Surrender to the will of God is fundamental to theistic religions. Unfortunately they have also invented the devil to sabotage God's work. This allows them to divide and reject the parts of reality they don't like as the work of the devil or of bad egos. The fact that God would no longer be omnipotent if the devil or any ego were out of His direct control seems to have escaped their comprehension. God is omnipotent. Every detail of every perversion and abomination is His full responsibility. God is the only power there is and His will is always done. Once this is fully understood we have the basis for agreement on the only point that really matters: Conscious surrender and acceptance of life as God. Many Buddhists and meditators live this understanding without any belief in God. The application of tathata, or suchness, is acceptance of each moment of life. No belief is needed only trust in the perfection of Now. Most new-age groups believe in personal responsibility for their spiritual growth and the state of the world. This ego burden is tempered by beliefs such as 'existence takes care' and by intensive training in acceptance of whatever life brings. The difficulty is that these beliefs are contradictory. Usually, they will eventually accept reality and limit the extent of their personal responsibility. This pragmatic approach saves them from much of their unnecessary burden. When they understand the set-up and leave the ultimate responsibility to Source, their ego burden dramatically starts to dissolve. To be free of their premature and unverified belief, 'I am That' believers need shift only to the more experiential and instantly verifiable, ' am this moment of life'. Each moment consciously encountered opens the secret door to the subtle mysteries of higher awareness. No belief is needed, just the ability to see the point and the capacity to stay with one's experience, rather than clinging to an unverified belief about truth. The common factor for all groups and religions is the conscious recognition that 'things are like this now'. This includes all creative expression and the desire to make things better. Allowing the energy of Now to move you brings relief from your neurotic mind, and can even be more efficient in getting the essentials of life completed. For spiritual growth, the energy of the moment is all you need to follow. This energy pulls you into discipline, effort and let-go at exactly the right time. And things only ever change when it is time. India's misunderstanding of Krishna's law of destiny has culminated in the apathy and degeneration that plague India today. The application of God's new vision is fully dynamic and has nothing at all to do with Indian lethargy. Personal responsibility is a crucial foundation for mature spirituality, and for a harmonious, creative society. Practically, you act as if you are responsible for living in harmony with your neighbours, and for keeping your agreements and being the best that you can be. When difficulties arise they are settled by dialoguing and sharing consciously until consensus is reached. Spiritually, you understand that ultimately nothing is in your hands. By consciously allowing the energy of the moment to guide you - with the understanding that it is a gift from Source - you will always be connected to life as God. Everything is a play of Source. Remember this and take yourself a little less seriously. You are perfect as you are right now for the needs of the present moment. Your evolution in consciousness is happening according to your divine destiny, whether you agree with this or not. Every soul is programmed for some negativity, conflict and ignorance. But your limitations are transitory and are destined to be transcended when the right moment comes. The journey of evolution of each soul is long and slow. This allows Source to savour your gradual release from suffering as you slowly grow in consciousness. Viewed from the cosmic perspective of God, everything is perfect. He creates everything exactly as He wants it. There are no mistakes ever; you are perfect right now according to your present stage of development, even if you have the impression that you are a little stuck. Conscious surrender to the sacrament of each divine moment connects you directly to Source without any need for belief in God. This direct divine connection is the way of rapid growth. Teachers are always needed to help you understand the set-up, and to give vital energetic support and guidance for going in. Teachers are indispensable to highlight the subtle traps of your ego. However surrender is always to life as God, not to your teacher. Soon all teachers will apply the understanding shared in this message from Source as the unifying context for their individual approach. Unity is rooted in diversity and pluralism; it is a fragrant tree of divine consciousness with infinite branches and leaves, all coexisting and evolving harmoniously within God's vision, the new dawn of consciousness. Maitreya Ishwara (July, 2002)