The Infinite Way is a spiritual teaching founded by Joel S. Goldsmith in the mid-20th century. It emphasizes direct mystical union with God through contemplation and inner stillness rather than ritual or ceremony. The core of The Infinite Way is that God, or Infinite Being, is the only reality – and by turning within to experience this truth, one can align themselves with the peaceful and loving nature of Being.
Origins and History
Joel S. Goldsmith (1892-1964) was an American spiritual teacher and author who founded The Infinite Way movement. Born to a Jewish family in New York, he had several mystical experiences in his 20s that led him to begin his spiritual studies. He was influenced by Christian Science, New Thought, and Eastern teachings about nonduality and meditation.
In the 1930s, Goldsmith began sharing his message of The Infinite Way through lectures, books, and correspondence. He emphasized mystical prayer and meditation to achieve oneness with God, rather than outward rituals or good works. His teachings attracted many students, and he traveled widely to offer lectures and retreats. After his death, his students carried on spreading his teachings through publications, recordings, and new centers. The Infinite Way remains a small but continuing spiritual movement today.
Basic Principles and Ideas
Here are some of the core principles and ideas of The Infinite Way:
– God is Infinite Being, the one universal Reality underlying all of existence.
– This Infinite Being or God is present within us as our true Self or identity. By turning within, we can experience union with God.
– The material world is an illusion or distraction that prevents awareness of Infinite Being. Letting go attachment to the outer allows the inner truth to be revealed.
– There is no evil, sin, or separation in Reality – only the Infinite perfection of God. Apparent problems stem from believing in two powers, God and “evil.”
– Suffering comes from identifying with the body, mind, and world rather than the indwelling Spirit or Infinite Self.
– Prayer should be a silent inner communion, not an outward plea for help. True prayer is experiencing oneness with God.
– Meditation and contemplation are central practices, going beyond thoughts to reach an inner stillness where God can be known directly.
– Knowledge of truth comes through mystical intuition and illumination, not the intellect. Wisdom comes from within through revelation.
– While rules, rituals, and good works have value, they should not be mistaken for the deeper spiritual experience of union with the Infinite.
– Living from the awareness of oneness with God brings freedom, fulfillment, and blessing. Then we align our outer life with this inner Reality.
– The Infinite Way invites people to test and prove these principles in their own direct experience through practice. Its validity rests on spiritual experience, not doctrine.
Concept of God
The God of The Infinite Way is not the human-like deity of conventional religion and theology. God is Infinite Being – the universal Life, Love, Truth, and Reality that underlies all forms yet infinitely transcends them. God is unspeakable Being beyond name and form.
The Infinite is present at the heart of ourselves as our essential Self. So seeking union with God is not connecting to something or someone outside, but awakening to the Divine Presence within us, closer than breathing. This omnipresent Living Spirit is the Source of all existence.
God is the pure Principle of Life unfolding perfectly in the eternal Now. The Infinite Way emphasizes feeling and experiencing God as living Presence, a supportive and loving awareness that surrounds and fills us always. God is not confined to doctrines or images; Infinite Being is beyond concepts and constraints. God can only be known by mystical realization in consciousness.
The Illusory Nature of the Material World
The Infinite Way teaches that the world of material forms and discrete beings is not ultimately real. It is but a veil or distraction that covers the true Reality of Infinite Being that is always present:
“This world of matter is but a product of thought… There is no world of matter: there is only Spirit.” (Goldsmith)
The impermanent, ever-changing nature of the observable world indicates its lack of true substance or reality. Identifying with temporary forms keeps us chasing shadows and missing the eternal Light within.
By relinquishing belief in good and evil, lack or limitation, the appearance of duality in the outer world starts to dissolve, revealing the unbroken Wholeness and Love of Infinite Being. This is not a denial of the world, but seeing through it to perceive its spiritual Source and Identity.
The Infinite Way invites us to live FROM the awareness of Spirit rather than FOR the things of this world. Attachment and seeking keeps us trapped in illusion. The inner realization of Reality brings freedom.
Prayer and Meditation
Prayer and meditation are central to The Infinite Way. But these are understood not as practices for gaining something, but for realizing inner communion with the Divine.
Prayer is not a means of requesting or informing God, but the inner act of recognizing God’s living Presence:
“True prayer is…the inner awareness of the Presence of God within… Prayer is the realization that we are not approaching God, but that He is within us.” (Goldsmith)
Rather than asking, finite prayer celebrates the infinite Good that is already here:
“Prayer is the conscious awareness of the presence of God within, around, and through man.” (Goldsmith)
Similarly, meditation in this teaching is not a technique, but receptivity to the Divine Reality at the core of being:
“Meditation is the high art of listening to God… The listening attitude is what brings about an inner communion with God.” (Goldsmith)
Through quiet, receptive meditation, we move beyond the mind’s chatter into inner stillness, where the ever-present voice of Truth may be heard.
Healing
The Infinite Way presents spiritual healing not as a special power, but the natural expression of recognizing God as the only Presence and Power. Disease and distress stem from accepting or fearing some power apart from God. By remembering the allness of God, attaching to worldly powers dissolves and the appearance of problems evaporates in the light of Reality.
Healing in this teaching is miraculous because it arises suddenly when the illusion of material senses gives way to spiritual understanding. No matter how deeply ingrained or long-standing it may appear, disease and lack cannot stand when seen in the context of our oneness with Infinite Life and Love:
“In moments when we experience the breakthrough of Truth into our thought and consciousness, we bear witness to the nothingness of material sense and the allness of God.” (Goldsmith)
Rather than asking God for healing, The Infinite Way invites resting in the realization that we are already whole, because God constitutes our being:
“God constitutes individual being; therefore, individual being is a law and order unto itself.” (Goldsmith)
Living From the Inner Reality
More than creeds, rituals, or even good works, The Infinite Way emphasizes the need for a daily lived awareness of God’s presence within, which then naturally flows outward into loving service. This “mystical practice” cultivates an inner attunement to the Voice for Truth and responds to outer events from this center of wisdom and love.
“We must never live merely a good human life; we must learn to live from the Christ center of our being.” (Goldsmith)
Living from the inner Reality ushers in an entirely new basis for outer experiences – no longer determined by past beliefs and conditioning, but open to inspiration and grace unfolding new possibilities aligned with our oneness with Infinite Life.
This “transition” from material sense to spiritual understanding renews everything we think, say, and do. But it is a gentle process of spiritual awakening, not forced change. Our inner transformation naturally blossoms outward to bless all relationships.
Freedom and Fulfillment
The Infinite Way offers freedom – from fear, lack, limitation and suffering – by revealing their root in misidentification with the temporary material realm. By reorienting our sense of identity to the spiritual Self, united with Infinite Being, we are liberated from the bonds of mortal existence and abide in eternal Life and fulfillment.
This freedom is not license to act without care or consequence – that is still the outer realm of effect. Rather freedom comes from surrendering the burden of demands – of ourselves, others, worldly pressures – and resting in the nurturing space of the Present Moment, fulfilled by Love.
Here we bring the openness and innocence of childlike wonder to each experience, not judging but appreciating every moment as a glimpse of Infinite Beauty and Grace. This freedom in spirit uplifts and transforms every action.
Emphasis on Direct Experience
The Infinite Way is not a system of worship, symbols, or words. Its validity rests entirely on the individual’s direct inner experience of the Presence of God. No teaching or scripture holds authority until proven true in awareness:
“Too much study of the letter of truth without the spirit bears only the fruit of pride.” (Goldsmith)
The same is true of spiritual teachers:
“Do not personalize this message into a worship of me… My function is to be a stepping stone on your pathway into God.” (Goldsmith)
The Infinite Way continually points away from dependence on any outward authority, inviting the individual to test and validate its principles in their own living awareness. Spiritual rebirth comes not from adhering to doctrine or ritual, but awakening from within.
Universalism and Inclusiveness
The Infinite Way embraces the universal truth at the heart of all paths. There is no claim to possess the exclusive way. The principles of Reality and God’s availability to all are fundamental tenets:
“The Infinite Way is based on the revelation of oneness… Oneness means that when you know the truth it will benefit not only you; it will benefit anybody who will follow the same path to that truth.” (Goldsmith)
This teaching transcends theological and cultural constraints to uncover the common ground of direct spiritual experience shared across traditions. The universal mystic path culminates in awakening to the nondual union of self and Absolute that lies beyond conventions and labels.
In honoring the truth and light in all genuine faiths, The Infinite Way cultivates interspiritual understanding. The purpose is to clarify the experience of God’s living Presence accessible within all.