Along with the story of His resurrection from death, the story of Jesus' walking on water is the least believed of all the stories about him. A search far and wide for someone who believes this story on its face almost always will be fruitless. Almost no one believes it.

In fact, the story of Jesus' walking on water is almost universally taken for a primal representation of all in religious tales that is allegedly pious but actually untrue. And the question is: why should we take as pious what is not true?

Walking on water, yet! Why indeed?!

Think back to all the dissembling sermons you have heard -- embarrassed, patronizing clerics trying to excuse the credulity of our forebears: honored but petulant children. Contemptuous pundits is the reality, of course.

Again, think of all the C. S. Lewis-type, arrogant, sweet reasonableness you have heard -- arguing that the essential preposterousness of the scene masks a true rationality which is its essence. The arguer doesn't believe a word of it, of course. Their intent is to impress with their cleverness.

Walking on water, yet!

Think back to all the orators you have heard -- demanding fanatical belief in the story, on its face, as evidence of induction into the company of the elect. Of course, both orators and auditors are just putting on a performance. They don't believe it either. Their interest is in foreplay, a respectable come-on.

Walking on water, yet! The story strikes a chord. It pulls a resonating string in the human soul. Occasion for dissembling, remonstrating and posturing, the story is most often taken for nonsense having some hidden but unimportant meaning.

Now, probably you expect me to lean forward at this point and say with an earnest smile, 'But it's true.'

Well, think about it. It is true.

Water is the fourth of five Elemental Principles: Ether, Air, Fire, Water, Earth. Accurate anthropology begins with understanding these Principles and seeing their order of emanation.

An aspirant once asked, 'Is creation just illusion?' The answer was, 'No. Taking it as creation is the illusion.'

The Absolute cannot be described because it has no qualities by means of which it can be described. When the Absolute in this sense is meant, It is called Brahman. When the Absolute is described, It is described as 'One without a second.' When the Absolute in this sense is meant, It is called Atma.

God is Atma enveloped in qualities.

A perturbation of ego in the Nameless, Formless, Quality-less Absolute produced qualities. These qualities aggregated as a Person, the Cosmic Person.

From a perturbation of ego in the Nameless, Formless, Quality-less Absolute, the Cosmic Person (God) is 'born,' Self-made from Self for Self, to Self.

God said, 'I am One. I will to be many.'

From Atma emanates the Inner Principle of Duality: Male and Female, Cosmos and Effort, Structure and Power, Positive and Negative. This is an inner principle -- a latency, not a patency -- and it is singular, not plural. Plurality is always illusion.

Next, the Elemental Principle Ether emanates from the Inner Principle of Duality. Then that of Air from Ether, Fire from Air, Water from Fire and Earth from Water.

The structure is integral as a system of emanations.

In addition, there are three logical types:

Atma

Inner Principle of Duality

Elemental Principles

And this: these logical types are the primal qualities,

Non-Dualism (Calm)

Qualified Non-Dualism (Activity)

Dualism (Inertia)

And this: Ether is an Elemental Principle, of the logical type, Dualism, not Spirit, of the logical type, Non-Dualism. This sentence is a reprimand to 'New Age'-ers, Self-Realization-Fellowship-ers, Theosophists, Transcendentalists, Freemasons, Chinese, Platonists, witches and most Alchemists.

The five Elemental Principles are responsible for the five subtleties (Sound, Touch, Sight, Taste, Smell) and for the five senses of action (Hearing, Feeling, Seeing, Tasting, Smelling). Ether is responsible for Sound and Hearing. Air is responsible for Touch and Feeling. Fire is responsible for Sight and Seeing. Water is responsible for Taste and Tasting. Earth is responsible for Smell and Smelling.

The simplicity of the system (actual anthropology) may be grasped from an examination of its order of subtleties. Subtlety is a measure of the number of qualities a thing has. A thing which has few qualities is subtle. A thing which has many qualities is gross. Subtlety is not a measure of weight. It is a measure of the number of qualities.

So let us examine the system by examining its order of subtleties.

Ether is the most subtle Elemental Principle. It has the least number of qualities, for, it is heard but not felt, seen, tasted or smelled.

Air is the next most subtle Elemental. It is heard and felt but not seen, tasted or smelled.

Fire is next. It is heard, felt and seen but not tasted or smelled.

Then Water, which is heard, felt, seen and tasted but not smelled.

Finally, Earth is the least subtle, the most gross Elemental Principle. It has the most number of qualities, for, it is heard, felt, seen, tasted and smelled.

All five Elementals are patent in Earth, making it the most gross. Four Elementals are patent in Water. Three are patent in Fire. Two are patent in Air. And only one Elemental is patent in Ether, namely, Itself. Ether, therefore, is the most subtle Elemental Principle. It contains all the others latently but only Itself patently.

For this reason, Ether is highly regarded in spiritual discipline. It is the Pranava, OM. But Ether is always an Elemental, from the realm of Dualism. It is not a non-dualistic principle, and so the reprimand, above, is necessary for and should be accepted by those whose foot it fits.

The Universe is combinations and permutations of the five Elemental Principles. These define atomic particles. (Isn't 'atomic particles' an amusing redundancy?)

The phenomenon responsible for the Universe's etymology is that called emanation. Pythagoreans, Neo-Platonists, German Idealists and Paul Tillich are correct regarding this particular.

The phenomenon responsible for the Universe's operation is that called polymerization. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and, by implication, R. Buckminster Fuller are correct regarding this particular.

Jesus possessed certain powers that are associated with Divinity. He had these (1) as reward for yogic attainment during previous births (yoga means 'unity') and (2) as equipment assigned for use during the Career on which He was sent -- the present birth.

Walking on water is not necessarily an extraordinary phenomenon. An ant may be awed by a bird's flight and a fish's swim, but will this be realistic? Should the ant call the bird a miracle-worker or the fish a wonderment? Certainly not. These evaluations would result from parochial perspective. They do not reflect the truth.

Bird and fish are at home in their contexts as ant is in its. The contexts are incomparable. To evaluate one by the perspective of another is not a sensible thing to do. In fact, it is foolish.

Just so, ordinary humanity cannot evaluate Divine powers because it has no standard of reference for doing so. Should its own perspective be accounted worthy of the task? Who would say so?

A point of view is useful and, if integritous, praise-worthy within its own terms. Beyond its own terms, a point of view is surd. This is why there should be no insistence on a point of view.

Is there a point of view which encompasses integrally all others? Yes, there is, and it should be sought because it is the Pearl of Great Price, the Philosopher's Stone, the one thing which, when known, all else is known. But even the overview is not insisted upon by those who have it, or better, are it.

Could Jesus walk on water? Who's to say? Did Jesus walk on water? Did He not?

Jesus had powers that are associated with Divinity.

Is anything impossible for God? Did Jesus have the quality of omnipotence? Can a person have powers associated with Divinity but not have the quality of omnipotence?

Jesus had powers that are associated with Divinity. He had these (1) as reward for yogic attainment during previous births (yoga means 'unity') and (2) as equipment assigned for use during the Career on which He was sent -- the present birth.

Jesus possessed certain powers that are associated with Divinity. He had command of the Elemental, Water, of the subtlety, Taste, and of the sense of action, Tasting. He was not jerked about by His palate. He had control of His appetite. He did not worship His belly. He was Lord of the basis of Life, which is, Food.

Jesus took birth at Beth-Lehem, which means, House of Bread, or, Place of Food. Food is Grace. In Sanskrit, the word for Grace is a compound, Annugraha, which means Home-maker (graha) by virtue of gifting Food (anna). Annugraha means Bethlehem. Jesus is Grace.

Graham means Home-maker. Celtic is derived from Sanskrit.

Jesus commanded Grace. What He desired had to occur because He was free of attachment to the belly. His impartiality was the power He possessed that enabled Him to call worlds into being. His lack of tendention was the force that drew people to Him and convinced them that He was Divine. He was not a slave nor even an acolyte of appetite.

Jesus conquered want. He was Lord of Food, Lord of Life. He controlled the floodgates of Grace, the distribution of Food. His power was in a not having. He did not have attachment to the pangs of hunger. He was not burned by the fire of appetite. He conquered want.

All of His life, Jesus was very poor.

This is the inner meaning of Jesus' coming to His followers over water. His action meant:

'I am Grace.

I am Food.

I am Who you need.

I control your Destiny.

I can help you ....

Trust me ....'

Adwaitha Hermitage
April 1992