My daughter asked me a question if the book of Job was accurate.
Let me relate the story of Job briefly. Job was an extremely pious and pure person. He had a wife and 7 sons and 3 daughters. Job constantly asked Gods forgiveness for the transgressions of his children. Satan then goes to destroy his family and possessions. Job continues to remain loyal to God and constantly reaffirms his innocence and purity. His friends wanted Job to confess his sins. Job insisted on his innocence.
Later 3 of his friends came over to comfort him. But they were in fact misguided and misleading him. Finally, Elihu appears (literal meaning God am I) and after a long interchange between ELihu and Job, finally the ice between Job and God is broken and God appears before Job and grants him back his lost prosperity and has more children and lives for another 140 years.
There is a deeper spiritual meaning to the whole story. This can be given at an intellectual and at a Yogic level.
First the intellectual interpretation. What did Job do wrong?
1) Job was very “good”. Being pious is being very Sattvic. Just like Yudhisthir was very pious and Sattvic. The cardinal mistake we make is in thinking that being Sattvic is getting very close to God. God wants our love – first and foremost. Doing the right things are very subjective and right karma confounds even the great Saints. The truth is God is above all duality of Good and Evil. All Good and all evil ultimately arises from God. Without Gods permission, Satan cannot exist.
2) His three friends tried to convince him to confess his sins and he maintained he had comitted no sins. Moreover, he constantly prayed and pleaded his innocence. This shows that he had not fully surrendered to Gods will. A person fully surrendered to God, does not fight for right or wrong, merely surrenders to Gods will and only wants God. Like Ramkrishna Paramhansa said, “Mother, I dont care for your rights or wrongs, I only want thee” Or like Shankaracharya said, “Mother, There is no other sinner like me and there is no other person like you who forgives sins. Knowing this, Mother, do whatever you please. I only want you” This is also what Elihu tried to tell Job. Do not please your case for God and do not try to convince God of your superior moral concepts. After all morality is cultual.
Now for the Yogic definition.
Job here refers to the ego of being pure. The ten children represents the 5 indriyas (5 gyanendriyas and 5 karmendriyas). Slaying of the 10 children means taking the prana away from the body and centralizing them in the Sushumna. The 3 friends are the 3 gunas – sattwa, rajas and tamas. They constantly mislead and take us on the wrong route. Elihu refers to the holy Ghost. (hun is part of or very similar to hun of the sohum technique or Hungso technique) Elihu means God is he (very similar to the words Tatvamasi or sohum) It is only through the holy Ghost, can the silence with God be broken and finally one is able to communicate with God directly. “Elihu” does not fully appear till the 5 motor and sensory system is “slayed” and till we learn to stop listening or being guided by the chatter of the intellect drived by the 3 gunas.
The final conclusion is as follows
1) God is above the dualities of good and evil. Cling to neither and do not insist on your “righteousness” otherwise you will be put through trials till we learn to Surrender to God and only want God. God has the right to judge. We do not. Judge not lest you be judged. When we say we are right or good, we are judging ourselves.
2) The holy Ghost or Elihu is the way. Focus more and more deeply on the Sohum technique till the ice with God is broken.
Bhavin