Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 6
This, then, is the nature of the Divine Consciousness which creates in itself all things by a movement of its conscious-force and governs their development through a self-evolution by inherent knowledge-will of the truth of existence or real-idea which has formed them. The Being that is thus conscient is what we call God; and He must obviously be omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. Omnipresent, for all forms are forms of His conscious being created by its force of movement in its own extension as Space and Time; omniscient, for all things exist in His conscious being, are formed by it and possessed by it; omnipotent, for this all-possessing consciousness is also an all-possessing Force and all-informing Will.
EXPLANATION
It is the Divine Consciousness which creates all things in the Universe, Truth-consciousness is its operative principle. It creates things by movement of its conscious-force. It is the inherent knowledge-will of the truth of existence or real-idea which formed all things. It is by the self-evolution of the knowledge-will the development of things is governed.
We call the Being that is thus conscient as God. All forms are forms of His consciousness, being created by its force of movement in its own extension as Space and Time. Thus, He is omnipresent.
All things exist in His conscious being, are formed by it and possessed by it. Thus, He is omniscient.
This all-possessing consciousness is also an all-possessing Force and an all-informing Will. Here the phrase all-informing means, it is the Will that gives the character or essence to the form. Thus, He is omnipotent.
And this Will and Knowledge are not at war with each other as our will and knowledge are capable of being at war with each other, because they are not different but are one movement of the same being. Nor can they be contradicted by any other will, force or consciousness from outside or within; for there is no consciousness or force external to the One, and all energies and formations of knowledge within are not other than it, but are merely play of the one all-determining Will and the one all-harmonising Knowledge. What we see as a clash of wills and forces, because we dwell in the particular and divided and cannot see the whole, the Supermind envisages as the conspiring elements of a predetermined harmony which is always present to it because the totality of things is eternally subject to its gaze.
EXPLANATION
Our mental will and knowledge can be at war with each other. We may plan to do a task but we may not have the necessary will to do it. But, in Supermind Will and Knowledge are not in conflict with each other. Because they are not different but one movement of the same Conscious Being.
Also, they are not contradicted by any other consciousness, force or will either from outside or from within. Because there is no consciousness or force which is external to the One. All energies and formations of knowledge within are not other than the Conscious Being. They are the play of one all-determining Will and one all-harmonising Knowledge.
In this world we see a clash of wills and forces. It is because, we dwell in the particular and divided (space and time). Our mind cannot see the whole. But the Supermind sees the totality of things eternally. What we see as conflict of wills, Supermind sees as the conspiring elements of a predetermined harmony.
PARAGRAPH 7
Whatever be the poise or form its action takes, this will always be the nature of the divine Consciousness. But, its existence being absolute in itself, its power of existence is also absolute in its extension, and it is not therefore limited to one poise or one form of action. We, human beings, are phenomenally a particular form of consciousness, subject to Time and Space, and can only be, in our surface consciousness which is all we know of ourselves, one thing at a time, one formation, one poise of being, one aggregate of experience; and that one thing is for us the truth of ourselves which we acknowledge; all the rest is either not true or no longer true, because it has disappeared into the past out of our ken, or not yet true, because it is waiting in the future and not yet in our ken.
EXPLANATION
In the previous paragraph we have seen the nature of the Divine Consciousness. This nature will remain the same whatever be the poise or form taken by it. Its existence is absolute in itself. So also, its power of existence is also absolute in extension. Therefore, it is not limited to one poise or one form of action.
On the contrary, we, human beings are phenomenally (in our outward nature) a particular form of consciousness. We are subject to Time and Space. We can live only in our surface consciousness which is all we know of ourselves. Our consciousness can remain in one thing at a time, one formation, one poise of being and one whole of experience. Either we are active or we are not active. We cannot be normally both active and inactive. We cannot be both sitting and standing. But for the Supermind Consciousness it is possible to take any number of statuses and still be the same.
We acknowledge only that one thing as the truth of ourselves. We consider all the rest either not true or no longer true. Because it has disappeared into the past, out of our range of perception. Or it is not yet true because it is a likely future thing which is again out of our range of perception.
But the Divine Consciousness is not so particularised, nor so limited; it can be many things at a time and take more than one enduring poise even for all time. We find that in the principle of Supermind itself it has three such general poises or sessions of its world-founding consciousness. The first founds the inalienable unity of things, the second modifies that unity so as to support the manifestation of the Many in One and One in Many; the third further modifies it so as to support the evolution of a diversified individuality which, by the action of Ignorance, becomes in us at a lower level the illusion of the separate ego.
EXPLANATION
Contrary to our mental consciousness the Divine Consciousness is not so particularised and limited. It can be many things at a time. It can take more than one enduring poise for all time.
We find in the principle of Supermind itself three general poises of its world-founding consciousness. The first one establishes the inalienable (inseparable) unity of things. The second poise modifies that unity so as to support the manifestation of the Many in One and One in Many (All are in Brahman; Brahman is in All). The third poise further modifies it so as to support the evolution of a diversified individuality. By the action of our ignorance (Avidya) this individuality becomes in us at a lower level the illusion of the separate ego.
PARAGRAPH 8
We have seen what is the nature of this first and primary poise of the Supermind which founds the inalienable unity of things. It is not the pure unitarian consciousness; for that is a timeless and spaceless concentration of Sachchidananda in itself, in which Conscious Force does not cast itself out into any kind of extension and, if it contains the universe at all, contains it in eternal potentiality and not in temporal actuality. This, on the contrary, is an equal self-extension of Sachchidananda all-comprehending, all-possessing, all-constituting. But this all is one, not many; there is no individualisation.
EXPLANATION
The first and primary poise of the Supermind establishes the inalienable unity of things. What is the nature of its unitarian (Oneness) consciousness? It is not the pure unitarian consciousness that relates to a timeless and spaceless concentration of Sachchidananda. That is the state of Sachchidananda in which the Conscious Force does not throw itself out in extension. It is a concentration which contains in itself potentially the universe but not in actual terms in Time.
On the contrary, the Supermind in its first poise is an equal self-extension of Sachchidananda. It is all-comprehending, all-possessing and all-constituting. Here it is the One which is all, not many. There is no individualisation.
(If we can take an analogy, think of the sculptor who is possessed by an intuition, an idea. He does not know what to do and there is a kind of agony in him. There is a great pressure building up within him, but he doesn’t know why, though he knows that something is to be born or take shape. He has this comprehensive consciousness, but no details, so he feels the agony of the birth to come. This has been described by many poets and artists. He knows something is to be born, and within that something he sees several choices. Suppose he has four or five choices in front of him and each image presses him with an inspiration. Out of these multiple possibilities of creation, he chooses one of them – Ananda Reddy- Deliberations on The Life Divine, vol III- p. 99)
It is when the reflection of this Supermind falls upon our stilled and purified self that we lose all sense of individuality; for there is no concentration of consciousness there to support an individual development. All is developed in unity and as one; all is held by this Divine Consciousness as forms of its existence, not as in any degree separate existences. Somewhat as the thoughts and images that occur in our mind are not separate existences to us, but forms taken by our consciousness, so are all names and forms to this primary Supermind. It is the pure divine ideation and formation in the Infinite, —only an ideation and formation that is organised not as an unreal play of mental thought, but as a real play of conscious being. The divine soul in this poise would make no difference between Conscious-Soul and Force- Soul, for all force would be action of consciousness, nor between Matter and Spirit since all mould would be simply form of Spirit.
EXPLANATION
In this first poise of Supermind we lose all sense of individuality when its reflection falls upon our stilled and purified self. When our mind is quiet, receptive and silent it has this experience that there is one truth, one unit. Here, there is no concentration of consciousness to support an individual development. All is developed in unity as one. All is held as One and not as separate. All is held by the Divine Consciousness as forms of its existence and not as separate existences.
It is like the thoughts and images that occur in our mind; they are not separate existences to us, but forms taken by our consciousness. Likewise, all names and forms are not separate existences to this first poise of Supermind.
It is the pure divine ideation (process of forming ideas) and formation in the infinite. It is not like the unreal play of our mental thought. It is organised as a real play of conscious being. The divine soul in this poise makes no difference between the Conscious-Soul (Purusha) and Force-Soul (Prakriti). Here all force is action of consciousness. Here there is no difference between Matter and Spirit. Because all is moulded in the form of Spirit.
(When our mind is quiet, receptive, and silent, and reflects this first status of Supermind it has this experience that there is one truth, one unit, but in its haste, it rules out other possibilities, it fixes on this and nothing else. This is at the bottom of the philosophies like Monism or Advaita, which say that there is one Brahman, the One is true, the many is not true. This is wrong, illegitimate inference from a central fact of experience – Shri M.P.Pandit – Talks on the Life Divine – p.104)