Oneness (concept)
Oneness is a spiritual term referring to the 'experience' of the absence of identity boundaries, and, according to some traditions, the realization of the awareness of the absolute
interconnectedness of all matter and thought in
space-time, or one's ultimate identity with
God (see
Tat Tvam Asi). Its meaning may be synonymous to that of
nonduality, though some claim that non-duality implies 'not one' and 'not two', i.e. non-duality is analogous to the
Hindu formula of
negation and to
Neti Neti, used in describing the
absolute.
Oneness may also be known as
Cosmic Consciousness; this term was popularized in a book by the same name by
Richard M. Bucke. A functional
psychological explanation has also been proposed as follows: the unification of
consciousness with the
subconsciousness to yield a supraconsciousness. Though some maintain that oneness necessarily transcends all consciousness
per se.
Some feel that the human experiencing of Oneness expresses itself in the unity of thought and reality. They describe an experience of thought creating reality which feels like
Omnipotence. However as the consciousness grows to encompass all, the ego becomes relatively insignificant. In its culmination, the
seeker passes through
ego death. This coincides with several teachings of different cultures:
*
Hinduism speaks of the Dance of
Kali on the dead body of
Shiva.
* Jesus says: to enter the
Kingdom of Heaven one has to be reborn in the Water and Spirit (see also
Ergot and
John 3:5 [
1])
For others, Oneness, the characteristic of being
one, is a term used to characterize God in contrast to
Catholics who believe that the
godhead is of a
triune nature comprised of 3 distinct, but not separate, identities (see
Trinity).
Alternatively,
Oneness is the
metaphysical claim of
monism — that the multiplicity of beings is only apparent and that at some deeper metaphysical level all beings are really one entity or being.
*
Acosmism*
Collective unconscious*
Nirvana*
Zen*
Tao*
Entheogen*
Enlightenment*
Brahman*
Oneness Pentecostal*
Richard M. Bucke,
Cosmic Consciousness. ISBN 0140193375
*
Oneness and Free Will in Judaism
