THE MIND
The mind is the most powerful and precious instrument to knowledge. Only a perfect mind can unravel the mystery of life.
The mind is not only the instrument of thoughts. It is a real treasure that can work mighty miracles, if carefully controlled. This self control is indispensable if man is to succeed in his spiritual quest. With the mind fully controlled, man discovers a clearer understanding of things. This physical existence is only a relative reality, subject to his mental awareness. An altered mental outlook will reveal a corresponding reality.
Our limited consciousness prevents our realizing our divinity. To reach beyond consciousness one has to gain control over the mind. To go beyond limited understanding and unravel the all-pervasive consciousness is to realise our perfection. As man’s mental perceptions get finer and finer his understanding of the true reality will improve to gradually unveil to him the One Reality behind all things. The purpose of meditation is to bring the mind by constant practice to dwell specifically on that One Reality, God.
From time immemorial Indian seers have discovered that to control the mind, man has to meditate. He has to turn within his own self, using his mind as instrument to control his inner power. This inner power lies dormant in man. It is known as the kundalini. It is man’s vital life force. It is the power behind intuition, behind inspiration. It is the power of concentration and contemplation.
A finer part of the body, the mind is intimately linked with the body. The mind acts upon the body as the body reacts upon the mind. If the body is sick the mind becomes sick too. If the body is strong the mind is healthy and strong. When one is emotionally disturbed the mind is disturbed. When the mind is disturbed the body is disturbed. In the majority of humans the mind, being little evolved, is to a great extent under the control of the body.
The subconscious, conscious and superconscious are the three states of the mind. They are the three states in which knowledge exists. Merged together they constitute man’s intelligence. Man knows only one part of the three states of his intelligence. In his ignorance, he neither knows the subconscious nor the superconscious. Only knowledge of all three states will make the human perfect.
The subconscious, conscious and superconscious are the three grades of manifestation in living beings: the subconscious which is instinctive, mechanical and usually flawless; the conscious which is awareness, limited knowledge and frequently flawed; and the superconscious which is pure inspiration, intuition and invariably flawless. The first grade pertains to the animal kingdom. The second grade belongs to the human and the third grade applies to Divinity.
The three grades are indicative of the three stages of evolution in man: from the under developed or undeveloped to the average or intelligent man and thence to the highest, enlightened being. The yogis alone, as perfected beings, possess the superconscious. At all times and in all civilisations the superconscious is the source of all spiritual or religious knowledge. The object of meditation is to unveil the superconscious state. Through the different yoga disciplines or through ‘shaktipat’ (initiation through a guru’s grace) the kundalini is aroused. Only an awakened kundalini makes meditation succeed.
Furthermore, the subconscious, conscious and superconscious may be likened to the three ‘gunas’, the three qualities of life: ‘tamas’ (subconscious) which is instinctive, limited, perverted and passive, the ‘rajas’ (conscious) which is active, limited and distorted; and the ‘sattva’ (superconscious) which is pure, discriminative and expanding. They also match with the three intervals in time: past (subconscious), present (conscious) and future or eternity (superconscious).
The sun, sunrise and sunset wonderfully compare with the three states of the mind – sun (superconscious), the source, Being; sunrise (conscious), activity, awareness; sunset (subconscious), inactivity, dullness or sleep. The earth’s revolution causes the illusion of sunrise and sunset, while the true reality is the sun. The true reality is the superconscious. The human body creates the illusion of subconscious and conscious.
At their highest level they are ‘sat’ (subconscious), existence manifest and unmanifest, ‘chit’ (conscious), knowledge and ‘ananda’ (superconscious), freedom, bliss. The mind is intelligence. Consciousness is only a part of this intelligence. Intelligence is a combination of all three states, subconscious, conscious and superconscious.
The subconscious state is the store house of man’s past experiences. It manifests itself as instinct, as in animals. Instinct seldom fails. Infallible but very limited. It works marvellously in animals and is more reliable than reason. A goat or a cow instinctively distinguishes a poisonous plant from an edible one and avoids immediately. However, as soon as there is a disorder in their natural environment they get completely bewildered and helpless and may even become extinct.
The conscious state is a higher state of awareness or knowledge but quite erring. It proceeds by trial and error. Blunders may occur; nevertheless there is wider scope for reason. Reason is higher than instinct, but instinct is more reliable than reason. Likelihood of mistakes is greater in reasoning than in instinct.
The superconscious state is a still higher state of the mind. This highest state of the mind belongs to yogis or self-realised beings who have had the privilege to discover and cultivate it. It is infallible and of unlimited scope. It is the highest state the human can attain.
The Higher or Cosmic Intelligence is the real cause of the phenomenal existence and manifests Itself in manifold ways, including the subconscious, conscious and superconscious; the three states in which knowledge exists.