The Masterpiece is You

Are you caught up in the illusion, that you are a Human Being occasionally having a Spiritual experience? That belief is an illusion. The actual truth, is…

You are a Spirit Being,
Having a Human Experience

Maybe you’ve heard this statement before. I certainly hope you have. It’s true, you know. Now, let me ask you, how many beings are mentioned in that statement? Only 1. And it’s a Spirit.
Wait, what about your body? What about your mind? How about the world around you? All those things are real. Aren’t they?

No, they are not.

They are projections, like a scene playing out on the big screen in front of you at the theater; except, you’re in the movie.
When you go to the movies, do you often feel the characters are too fat, too short, too dumb? No, they’re characters in a movie. They are exactly the way they are supposed to be.
In YOUR movie, do you see you as too anything, or not enough something? Do you see YOU, as anything other than a Masterpiece?

There once was a sculptor who lived in small village. He was a poor fellow with few friends, and no family. He made his living chiselling out the gods of his day, from granite, onyx, and jade. He often labored on a piece for weeks, only making enough money to feed himself, for half that time. Yet, it was his passion, his love, his joy. In his heart, he was a sculptor.

It came about one day, while working on an exceptionally beautiful and expensive piece, that he asked himself the question “Why am I sculpting this shape, this god?” He thought for a moment, and quickly realized, he had no answer. He set his tools down and began to think.

“Why am I here”, he thought? Yes, I have skills and talents. But, how am I using them? I want to create something magnificent, something amazing. What could I sculpt that would be completely perfect? Something that when the world saw it, they would be awestruck?
As he sat on the hard-wooden floor of his one room home, surrounded by the products of his work, he fell asleep. As he dreamt, he saw people. First, it was neighbors and friends. He saw them clearly, vividly, for who they really are, beyond their fears and doubts. What could this mean, he pondered, while in the dream.

The scene changed to the village hall. Everyone was there. Somehow, he could see everyone in the room, everyone’s eyes. And he was overwhelmed with their beauty. Around each person was a glow, a shining light. Their many individual colors melded together forming a sea of white light, which hovered over them.

As quickly as the village hall had appeared, it faded away to a new vision. Our sculptor saw a sea of people, hundreds, maybe thousands. More than he could count. There was something in the air. It made the hair on his arms stand on edge. It was something he did not understand. It was something powerful. As he viewed the ocean of eyes, he knew he was connected. They were all, including him, one being.

When he awoke the next morning, he ran to purchase a new piece of marble. It required every bit of money he had. Giving no thought to the cost, he knew what he must create.
He began to work. Day one, day two, three… ten… twenty…

The neighbors worried. The friends came calling. Potential clients had work for him.

He sent them away. He was busy.
… thirty … forty days …

“What are you doing?” they asked. “How are you surviving?”

He didn’t hear them. He was focused. He could see the result. It was in the stone. It had been there all along, from before he purchased it. He knew that it would be magnificent. He worked on.
… sixty … eighty ….

On the ninetieth day, at first light, he stood at the center of his village, and announced, “Its Ready.” He would show his Masterpiece that evening. He covered the piece with a black cloth, and it was carefully moved to the village hall. That evening, he walked up on the stage and proudly revealed his work. The room fell silent, as people took in the sight. It was magnificent. They were awestruck!

People from near by villages started coming to see this magnificent masterpiece. Soon everyone was talking about him and his work. An offer was made to move this amazing item to the city for a huge showing. Our sculptor would be famous.

On that magical day, he looked out at the people attending the showing. He saw a sea of people, an ocean of eyes. As he pulled away the cloth covering his magnificent work, a silence came over the crowd as they gazed in wonder.

In the crowd was a small child. Upon seeing the magnificent sculpture, yelled out, “What is it?” Hearing the child’s question, our sculptor asked that the child be brought forward. When the child was in front of him on the stage, he knelt on one knee. Looking the child straight in the eye, he said, “What is your question?” The child replied, “What is it?” He paused a moment, smiled and said

“My dear child, this magnificent masterpiece, is YOU.”

This article originally appeared in the Summer 2019 issue of CHOICES Magazine