Neo-Vedanta, as articulated by Swami Vivekananda, understands God primarily as Brahman, the ultimate, formless, attributeless reality that underlies all existence. This Brahman is the one, indivisible, all-pervading principle and the highest philosophical conception of the divine. In this view, God is not ultimately a separate person standing over against the universe, but the non-dual ground of being itself. This Absolute is pure consciousness, beyond all limiting names and forms, and represents the deepest truth to which spiritual inquiry points.

At the same time, Neo-Vedanta fully acknowledges the legitimacy of a personal God, Īśvara, or saguna Brahman, as a manifestation of that same Absolute for the sake of devotion and moral life. The personal Lord, with qualities such as mercy and love, is understood as Brahman seen through the lens of māyā, yet not ultimately separate from the impersonal ground. Various deities and religious images of God are treated as culturally shaped expressions of this one Reality, allowing diverse devotional paths to be honored without abandoning non-dual insight. Thus, the personal and impersonal aspects of God are held together rather than set in opposition.

A central feature of this vision is the affirmation of universal divinity: the same Brahman that is the Absolute is also the inner Self, or Ātman, of every being. The deepest identity of the individual is therefore not other than the divine, and spiritual realization consists in awakening to this unity. Because the divine essence pervades all, God is at once transcendent and immanent—beyond the world and yet present within every creature and every moment of experience. This understanding naturally supports a broad religious inclusivism, seeing the many religions as distinct paths converging upon the same summit of realization.

From this standpoint, the search for God is not confined to metaphysical speculation but takes on a profoundly practical character. Serving humanity, especially the suffering and marginalized, becomes a direct mode of worship, since to serve the living is to serve the God who dwells in them. Ethical living, compassionate action, and disciplined spiritual practice are treated as concrete means of verifying and embodying the truths of Neo-Vedanta. God, in this framework, is not merely an article of belief but a reality to be experienced, realized, and expressed through a life of inner transformation and outer service.