Who is, Where is, What is?: Cultural Differences in Our Sense of What's Divine

What is divinity? Who am I to define what is divine for anyone other than myself? We can only give the context of divinity to something with our own attention of what divine is, upon it. These are the thoughts that dizzied my mind after trying to induce a 'translation-by-gesture' for a word I didn't yet learn, while living in Thailand. That word was 'god'.*

...That is, the idea of 'god', not one specific proper noun type figure...

I was tutoring a group of teenage girls in conversational English. Their English was not bad for their age and never having been immersed in it. My Thai, on the other hand was an embarrassment, when considering the fact that I was supposed to be the teacher. They were respectful and understanding as most of Thai culture seemed to be, at least to my face. 

One afternoon as the rain threw itself at the windows, we worked on a poetry activity where each girl created a line to add in order to make a complete (and ridiculous) poem. Somehow the topic of god came up, as often does in good poetry. The word wasn't spoken yet, but the idea was there in our minds as we struggled with the language barrier, with such a complex topic. 

What happened next as we exchanged languages for the words to pinpoint that all encompassing being (as some like to call it), will stay in my memory forever as one of those subtle, powerful things that no one even notices has any effect on you. I, the American said something like "You know… 'god'….Sorry, I'm not sure of the word in Thai"  while I pointed up to the sky to gesture what I've learned most person's interpretation to be, and I guess location, of this God character. 

One student, Pooki sensibly whipped out her iPhone and translated faster than you can say 'Adam and Eve', then said "Ohhhhhhh…prrrahjowww!" while she motioned all around her. 

She gestured not above or away but to everyone in the room, her friends, myself, herself and waved her fingers through the surrounding air as if it were made of some silky, touchable light while she said the word for 'god' in Thai. She shook her head excitedly in comprehension…."Prahjao, yes, God".  The other four girls recognized her motions as god too. Oh Pooki, you've touched my heart forever, and so simply you did it without even knowing. 

Moments like this are what I live for - the faint, untouchable realizations of truth in our differing perceptions. Wisdom can be caught in the shifting of awareness. 

Simply, all this young lady pointed out to me was the difference in Western religion's view of God's presence vs. a Buddhist's one, which is something I guess I already knew rationally. But the expression made it clear in my body and bones, made me ponder longer than words do. How might our culture be different if this one small detail were altered? I don't mean what if our dominant religious groups were completely different, for I'm pretty sure at the heart of all of the world's religions lies the same chamber of knowledge, if we look closely. 

Rather, what if we Westerners were taught, spiritually, to regard god or divinity as literally all around us, inside of us, a part of everyone we see? Some might argue - hey, that is how we view it! Is it really though, for most? Maybe it's something you realized later with thoughtful examination. But I remember as a child born to Catholicism, in my most formative years spent in Catholic school, being taught that God is not only a 'He' but He is up there, separate from everything I could see, hear, touch, and relate to. 

What if God was that dead squirrel on the road, or inside of that half eaten sandwich you threw away today, or the next breath you take?  Maybe nothing would change. Or maybe some confusion would be lifted in our lives, so that more conviction could truly be felt. Because I remember feeling this thing at a young age, even though I couldn't put a name to it, and I bet others could too if they think back far and deeply enough to that purer version of themselves. I remember this 'god sense' all around me in so much that I saw, in small experiences like a homeless man's eyes, the smell of a hospital, or the way my brother's shirt crinkled when he moved.

I haven't experienced many Eastern cultures, in fact only one. But I can say that at least in Thailand where Buddhism is the main religion and it seems that this divine presence is perceived as pervasive, connected, and within everything, that their sense of community is strong. Compassion comes as a reflex. I realize a lot of kindness also stems from Buddhist's thoughts on karma, how it pervades everything we do. Karma is really just another way to say cause and effect, another way to give the power of our beliefs to the world around us and within us, as opposed to something outside of it all.

Of course, I can't speak about every person in a culture, only my experiences and I believe that I was lucky. People are people everywhere with their flaws and wrong doings and traditionalist intolerances; religious glitches happen globally, I know. All I'm saying is - I wonder. What if there just happened to occur this one tiny shift in spiritual perception for a whole society? What would be important then?

*side note - I hope you understand my confusion about when and when it's not necessary to capitalize god, as the context of the idea and the figure is always changing and murky in my mind. I guess that makes for a whole nother topic.