Is there real heart behind the Oneness hype?

The Oneness Temple of Amma-Bhagwan in India rises majestically above the dusty plains and poverty that surround it. Twenty times the size of the Taj Mahal, this controversial three-floor marble icon of oneness makes quite a statement in itself. And while the mantra of ‘all is one and one is all’ sounds like something from The Three Musketeers, where’s the heart behind all the oneness hype?

There is no doubt that each of us is an individual; we think our own thoughts, we move and speak at will, we are contained within our skin, and we’re reasonably self-sufficient and self-sustaining. We can even survive in isolation if we have to, thought only in certain circumstances and not for long.

But there is also no doubt that we collectively make up a larger organism, that we are designed to exist in relation to each other, that in relation to each other we do more than survive, we thrive.

We are only separate in the sense that a single cell is separate; the cell finds its highest evolution when it is part of a whole, and while there are single-cellular organisms that seem to survive independently, when you look closer, you discover that they are very dependent on other organisms and their environment.

One of the greatest lessons we must learn in life (and a topic that has preoccupied modern philosophers and psychologists, and wise sages before them) is the balance between our individuality and our relation to something greater than ourselves (whether marital, familial, tribal, national or global).

Every culture has rituals and ceremonies that cement these relationships; the Christian ceremonies of baptism, confirmation and marriage are based on ancient rituals that initiate the individual into relationships with others.

If we lose these rituals (as much of western culture has), we lose perspective on the balance between self and other, we never really ‘grow up’, and we live life swinging constantly between two extremes.

On one hand we become selfish and greedy, and lose our ability to make inclusive decisions, to share with others, to empathise, compromise and negotiate, to consider the effect that satisfying our own wants will have on the environment and our own children.

On the other hand, we completely lose our own identity and become disempowered, follow the herd, do what we’re told, mimic the fantasies we see in the movies and on TV. And when these fantasies are all about selfishness, greed, celebrity and ego, we really lose our way!

We need to reflect on the way we see ourselves and others. We need to value the lessons we learn in relation to others, no matter how hard the lesson or how antagonistic the ‘other’ may be. We need to practice empathy, to think inclusively, to frame what we do in a way that is of service to others, to recalibrate what we need in terms of what the environment can provide, to consider those who will use the planet after we are gone.

The Oneness Temple of Amma-Bhagwan and the ‘cult’ behind it may be an extreme expression of oneness (some even say it has nothing to do with oneness at all), but the true expression of oneness lies deep within each of us … and deep within the relationships we have with everyone and everything around us.