Hazrat Inayat Khan now addresses a very fundamental question in connection with the journey of the soul, which is, ‘what is the purpose of the voyage?’ The previous post in the series is here.

The questions, why do souls come on earth? why has this creation taken place? what is the purpose of this manifestation? may be answered in one word: satisfaction – for the satisfaction of God. Why is God not satisfied without it? Because God is the only Being, and the nature of being is to become conscious of being. This consciousness experiences life through various channels, names and forms; and in man this consciousness of being reaches its culmination. In plain words, through man God experiences life at its highest perfection. If anyone then asks, ‘What is man’s duty, if that be the purpose?’ the answer is, that his most sacred duty is to attain to that perfect consciousness which is his Dharma, his true religion. In order to perform his duty he may have to struggle with himself, he may have to go through suffering and pain, he may have to pass many tests and trials. By making many sacrifices, and practicing renunciation, he will attain that consciousness which is God-consciousness, in which resides all perfection. 

But why must man suffer and sacrifice for God? At the end of his suffering and sacrifice he will find that though he began to do so for God, it has proved to be for himself. It is the foolishly selfish who is selfish, and the wisely selfish proves to be selfless.

Now comes the question, how this consciousness may be attained. It is to be attained by self-realization. First man must analyze himself, and find out of what he is composed. He is composed of spirit and matter. He consists in himself of the mineral, vegetable and animal worlds, the jinn and the angel; and it is his work to balance all these, knowing that he has neither been created to be as spiritual as an angel, nor to be as material as an animal. And when he strikes the happy medium he will certainly tread the path which is meant for a human being to tread, the path which leads straight to the goal. ‘Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way’ [Matthew 7:14]; narrow because any step taken on either side will lead to some other path. Balance is the keynote of spiritual attainment. In order to attain to God-consciousness the first condition is to make God a reality, so that He is no longer an imagination. No sooner is the God-ideal brought to life than the worshipper of God turns into truth. There is no greater religion than truth. Then truth no longer is the object of his seeking; then truth becomes his being, and in the light of that absolute Truth he finds all knowledge. No question remains unanswered; that continual question that arises in the heart of man, ‘why?’, then becomes non-existent, for with the rising of every ‘why?’ rises its answer. The moment a man has become the owner of a house, then he becomes acquainted with all there is in it; it is the stranger who finds it difficult to find any room in the house, not the one who lives in it; he knows about the whole house. What is rooted out in the quest of truth is ignorance; it is entirely removed from the heart, and the outlook becomes wide, as wide as the Eye of God; therein is born the divine Spirit, the spirit which is called Divinity.

To be continued…