January 25, 2021

The Word, or the Supreme Word, vānī, is a concept found not only in non-dual Tantra but also in the Christian tradition. In both views, there are complimentary understandings and some overlap.

In Tantra, the Void is permeated by primal power in the form of vibration. This pure foundational power coalesces into sound, which becomes identified as letters, forms words and then language. Complexity deepens as this consolidation happens and we also become more and more removed from the fundamental vibrational force through the contracting process. Language is a way we connect and it is necessary for levels of communication and at the same time, it moves us into the mental world where concept is substituted for direct experience. For example, when something moves us, our response is often wordless. Once we attempt to language our experience, we fall short to some extent. This is the way that the limited state of language interferes with the pure power of the wordless connection to the vibration that moves us.

We can consider the Word as the divine Intelligence that is implicit in the cosmos - ordering it and giving it meaning. It is the formation of object from the chaos, the deep structure of reality. The over-arching Intelligence forms the comprehensive underlying pattern to reality; it is the substrate from which all form is created. Once formed, each entity has a unique “being-ness,” a way of acting in relationship to other objects. The Supreme Word then is all the states derived from the verb “to be.” Being is our nature and returning to it is at the core of spiritual practice.

Within the divine Intelligence, then, is the essential urge to create form from chaos. In Sanskrit, this drive toward creation is the expression of the fundamental will of the Divine, iccha shakti. It is this urge to bring to life that pushes plants to emerge on rock faces that seem devoid of even the most basic nourishment. Even in the most inhospitable conditions, this will is alive.