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Although each "minstrel of God," as Saint Francis termed the mystic poets,
forges his own language from the depth of his personal encounter with a perceived
aspect of the Godhead, we find a general concordance between the different
mystic writers, both Eastern and Western, in respect to their use of such
symbols. The focus on love as a basis of most mystical experiences, for example,
has led to the establishment of words such as "Bridegroom" and "Beloved"
as fundamentals of mystical literature. The unique power of this literature,
however, stems from the emphasis it places on firsthand experience of God
and it is in this context that Sri Chinmoy's range and freshness of symbolic
expression may be best appreciated, for he has not adopted wholesale the
traditional words for God but has uncovered them anew in the depths of his
own being, has improved them and amended them according to his personal understanding
and woven them into his poetry in such a manner as to reveal an infinitude
of hitherto hidden meanings and correspondences. As a poet and as a lover
of God, Sri Chinmoy's aim is not simply to record his experiences. Rather,
his constant effort is to transmit the Divine-human encounter in a creative
way and so make this experience the province not only of the mystic but of
every man.

This chapter presents a survey of Sri Chinmoy's words for God. Because of
the nature of the subject, it is neither evaluative nor analytical. Were
I a mystic, I could discuss the accuracy with which such symbols convey the
mystic vision. As it is, these pages investigate the degree to which Sri
Chinmoy's poems act as an inlet for the ordinary reader to that unspeakable
meeting between man and God.

One of the most frequent modes in which God is apprehended is that of a human
being. Swedenborg writes: "In all the Heavens there is no other Idea of God
than that of a Man" and Blake follows with his annotation: "Man can have
no idea of anything greater than Man, as a cup cannot contain more than its
capaciousness.[2]" We think of God as a human being because the idea is easily
accessible to our understanding, that form is closer to us and more endearing
than God's vastness and immensity. By representing God in different human
roles, the mystic is able to explore the diverse social ties which these
roles imply.