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I am that I am (Hebrew: אהיה אשר אהיה, pronounced Ehyeh asher ehyeh) is the sole response God used in the Bible when Moses asked for his name (Exodus 3:14). It is one of the most famous verses in the Old Testament. Hayah means "existed" or "was" in Hebrew; "ehyeh" is the first person singular present/future form. Ehyeh asher ehyeh is generally interpreted to mean I am that I am (King James Bible and others). The word Ehyeh is used in many other places in the Old Testament. The Tetragrammaton itself may derive from the same verbal root. Theologists have many different explanations for the meaning behind this phrase.
Many theologians explain that I am that I am is better translated to I be that I be. Ancient Hebrew does not have a past, present, or future tense. Instead, it has an imperfect tense and perfect tense with no actual determined time. Perfect tense is something that is completed, or will be definitely completed. Imperfect is something that has been completed, might be completed or might be completed in the future (there is no definite). Ehyeh is in the imperfect tense, and can be understood as God saying that he is "in the process of being God", a reference saying that his work is not yet complete, and might never be complete.
Kabbalists have long deemed that the Torah (Old Testament of the Bible) contains esoteric information. The response given by God is considered significant by many Kabbalists because it is seen as proof in the divine nature of God's name, a central idea in Kabbalah (and to a lesser degree Judaism in general). One Kabbalist interpretation is that the response given to Moses means "I am my name", perhaps signifying that the power of God may actually be in his very name.
Some religious groups believe that this phrase or at least the "I am" part of the phrase is an actual name of God, or to lesser degree the sole name of God. It can be found in many lists where other common names of God are shown.
In the Buddhist tradition, the essence or Beingness of God is described as "Om Tat Sat" meaning "I am That"
A very similar rendition to the Torah's "I am that I am". Indeed Torah text bears no punctuation or capitalization, apart from sentence endings. So the phrase " I am that I am" may be rendered more coherent if you consider the addition of a comma making the phrase, "I am That, I am"
This not only states that the ineffable nature of God is "That", It also introduces the phrase "I Am", into a more coherent context.
In Eastern, that is Hindu and Buddhist thought, the use of the statement "I am" precedes any announcement or intent of manifestation. For example, "I am healthy" may be used by an ill person as a mantra to manifest or to affirm good health.
"I am" is regarded as an affirmation to the Universe. So that rather than asking God for something that you do not have, one is affirming that one already has it. In other words, one is affirming the positive thought rather than reinforcing the opposite and negative thought.
Therefore Gods reply to Moses, "I am That" is an enormously powerful statement.
It is immediately followed by an even more powerful statement, and indeed the shortest sentence in the English language, namely, "I am".
The complete sentence therefore, "I am That, I am", is perhaps the most powerful statement known to man, and is, of itself a root mantra. A root mantra being the most powerful of mantras from which all other mantras or affirmations must of necessity, proceed.
This would be completely in keeping with the Kabbalist point of view that the Old Testament contains esoteric information, and contains proof of the Divine nature of Deity.
It also supports the Kabbalists contention that it signifies that the power of God may actually be in his very name.
Another contention of Kabbalists is that the Hebrew word "Eyeh" is in the imperfect tense, signifying that Gods work is a work in progress and therefore is not complete.
The eternal state of "Thatness" perfectly encompasses the idea that whatever represents "That" in present time, i.e. in the moment of NOW is what God is. It allows for perpetual redefinition and inclusion of all things in a state of change. This is completely in accordance with the universe being in a state of "Becoming" as defined in the 20th Century by Niels Bohr, Einstein and Quantum physics. Namely that all things are a "Potentiality" and that nothing at the sub atomic level is in a solid state of fixed existence.
"I am That, I am" therefore perfectly explains God's Beingness.
Around 500 years before the birth of Jesus Christ, the Buddha lived in India and he instructed his devotees to go forth and spread his teachings. This is the first known act of proselytizing, an act that was later adopted by the Christian followers of Jesus.
There was much commerce between Israel and the areas today known as Kashmir, Afghanistan and the Indus region (Hindu i.e. India).
Indeed it is known that King Solomon traded with areas of India along the Arabian Sea now known as Cochin. The present Jews of Cochin claim their ancestry to ancient Jewish seafarers.
Existing Buddhist scrolls also document commerce and trade routes between Israel and Kashmir, Nepal and the Indus Valley.
Many of the writings of the Essenes, a sect of Jewish mystics, who are best known for their monastery discovered at Qumran near the Dead Sea in Israel, and for their writings, commonly known as the Dead Sea Scrolls, reflect many ideas that are remarkably in alignment with Buddhist concepts and principles than with Jewish thought of the time, including their monastic lifestyle that was more Buddhist in nature than Jewish. Jesus is considered by many to have been an Essene, or at least to have studied Essene philosophy.
Many of the Essene writings closely paraphrase the teachings of the Buddha, as indeed so do many of the sayings attributed to Jesus.
The idea that God is THAT, meaning all things and yet no one thing in particular, is in keeping with Buddhist, Essene and Christian thought. Namely, that we are all brothers and sisters and that only Unconditional Love towards all things expresses Divine right order. That is to say the Oness of All, which is God, cannot be separated.Famous rap artist Eminem uses this phrase as a basis for his hit single, The Way I Am, from The Marshall Mathers LP (2000).
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