Soul as an image of God

Soul as an image of God:

The soul which is within us is described as the image of God. For any object to have its image, there must be a medium to act as a mirror. Some say that the body is such a medium. If that is so, when the body is destroyed, the soul also should be destroyed just as the image is destroyed when the mirror is destroyed. If the soul also is destroyed how does Krishna preach the imperishability of the soul? This doubt is cleared here.

The soul has two covers outer and inner. The outer cover is the body and that does not act as the medium for casting the image. It is the inner cover which is made of the same substance as the soul itself namely of pure intelligence and bliss that acts as the medium or the mirror. This inner cover being of the nature of the soul itself, is permanent and imperishable. Hence the soul which is God’s image is considered as eternal and imperishable.


How does the soul stand in relation to God? For this let us examine the object-image relationship a little more in detail. The shadow and the photograph are examples of our image. Only if we move our image moves, not otherwise.

Unless there is activity in us there cannot be any activity in our image. Just as the image resembles us and at the same time is wholly dependent on us, so also the soul resembles God and is totally dependent on Him.

Without God’s activity and will, there can be no independent activity of the soul. The substance of God is pure knowledge and bliss. So is that of the soul. The similarity ends here and there is a gulf of difference between the two thereafter.

God is infinite and the soul is finite. Even if we are fair, our shadow is dark. We should not stretch the analogy of the object and the image too far.

It is the duty of every aspirant to discover the true nature of his soul. He should realise that he is only a shadow of God and thus is totally dependent on Him. Out of his ignorance and egoism he should not indulge in any immoral or irreligious act.

He should discover and realise that the soul is not the mere body, not the mind, not even the natural instinct but something much higher, permanent, eternal and of a nature similar to God, and rejoice in the knowledge of his personality as endowed with greatness and dignity.

At the same time the knowledge that he is totally dependent on God for each and everything should make him humble enough to surrender to His Supreme Will. The twin aspects are included in the conception of the soul as an image of God.

We cannot improve our image in the mirror by decorating the mirror. Instead, if we decorate ourselves, our reflection in the mirror or our image in the photograph will improve. Similarly, for our spiritual enrichment there is no point in decorating our body. It is as futile as decorating the mirror.

We should, instead, decorate and worship the supreme God as full of infinite auspicious qualities. The more we do so, the more will we discover the unique dignity and beauty of our own personality. If we want to beautify ourselves we should turn our devoted attention to God. This idea has been effectively expressed in the Bhagavatha.

Arjuna’s doubts regarding the indestructibility of the soul, the perishability of the body and the efficacy of non-attachment to worldly things have been cleared to a great extent. The Lord expresses the same in the words:

nasato vidyate bhavo nabhavo vidyate satah |
ubhayor api drsto 'ntas tv anayos tattva-darsibhih ||II-16

(The body which is born is not eternal; the soul which is unborn does not perish)