“God emptied to the limit is man, and man emptied to the limit is God.” ~Alan Watts
If we envision God as infinite, unbounded, and all-encompassing, the process of "emptying" God to the limit means reducing that infinite nature to something finite, tangible, and human. Emptying God to the limit means every individual is a unique, finite focus of the infinite divine.
Man emptied to the limit speaks to the human journey towards enlightenment, spiritual awakening, and self-actualization. By emptying ourselves of ego, desire, fear, and the illusion of separateness, we achieve a state where the self merges with the divine. This "emptying" of self leads to unity with all things.
The distinctions we make between human and divine are mere constructs. By emptying ourselves of these constructs, we see the interconnectedness of all things. Elevated above the battlefield, we awaken, perceiving reality through the big picture of the soul rather than through the small picture of the ego.
As Voltaire said, “Man is God asleep, and God is man awake.”
Written by Gary Z McGee