Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 7
From the data we have now before us we can see that the difficulties which arise from the imperfect poise of Consciousness and Force in man in his present status of mind and life are principally three. First, he is aware only of a small part of his own being: his surface mentality, his surface life, his surface physical being is all that he knows and he does not know even all of that; below is the occult surge of his subconscious and his subliminal mind, his subconscious and his subliminal life-impulses, his subconscious corporeality, all that large part of himself which he does not know and cannot govern, but which rather knows and governs him.
EXPLANATION
There is imperfect poise of Consciousness and Force in man in his present status of mind and life. Therefore, there are principally three difficulties that arise in man.
First, man is only aware of a small part of himself. He is aware of only his surface life, surface mentality and his surface physical part. In fact, he does not know even all of that.
Below his surface-self there is an occult powerful upward movement of his subconscious and subliminal mind; his subconscious and subliminal life-impulses; his subconscious bodily functions. These constitute a large part of himself which he does not know and cannot govern. Rather, this subliminal and subconscious part knows him and governs him.
For, existence and consciousness and force being one, we can only have some real power over so much of our existence as we are identified with by self-awareness; the rest must be governed by its own consciousness which is subliminal to our surface mind and life and body. And yet, the two being one movement and not two separate movements, the larger and more potent part of ourselves must govern and determine in the mass the smaller and less powerful; therefore we are governed by the subconscient and subliminal even in our conscious existence and in our very self-mastery and self-direction we are only instruments of what seems to us the Inconscient within us.
EXPLANATION
Existence and consciousness and force are one. We can have real power over so much of our existence as we can identify with it by our self-awareness. The more we are conscious of it, the more control we can have. That part of our existence we are not conscious of, must be governed by its own consciousness which are subliminal to our surface body, mind and life.
Our surface and subconscious selves are not separate Existence but parts of one movement. The larger and more powerful part of ourselves must govern and determine the smaller and less powerful parts. Therefore, we are governed by the subconscient and subliminal even in our conscious existence. Man has acquired some self-mastery and self-direction only as instruments of what seems Inconscient within us.
PARAGRAPH 8
This is what the old wisdom meant when it said that man imagines himself to be the doer of the work by his free will, but in reality Nature determines all his works and even the wise are compelled to follow their own Nature. But since Nature is the creative force of consciousness of the Being within us who is masked by His own inverse movement and apparent denial of Himself, they called that inverse creative movement of His consciousness the Maya or Illusion-Power of the Lord and said that all existences are turned as upon a machine through His Maya by the Lord seated within the heart of all existences.
EXPLANATION
Man imagines that he is the doer of his works by his free will. But in reality, it is the Nature that determines all his work. Nature is the creative force of consciousness of the Being within us. He is masked by the inverse movement (consciousness becoming inconscient) of Sachchidananda Himself. There is apparent denial of Sachchidananda Himself (as evil, pain and suffering found in the world). The old wisdom called that inverse creative movement the Maya or Illusion-Power of the Lord. They said that all existences are turned as upon a machine through His Maya by the Lord seated within the heart of all existences (Sri Aurobindo refers here the Gita).
It is evident then that only by man so far exceeding mind as to become one in self-awareness with the Lord can he become master of his own being. And since this is not possible in the inconscience or in the subconscient itself, since profit cannot come by plunging down into our depths back towards the Inconscient, it can only be by going inward where the Lord is seated and by ascending into that which is still superconscient to us, into the Supermind, that this unity can be wholly established. For there in the higher and divine Maya is the conscious knowledge, in its law and truth, of that which works in the subconscient by the lower Maya under the conditions of the Denial which seeks to become the Affirmation. For this lower Nature works out what is willed and known in that higher Nature.
EXPLANATION
In that case, how can man become master of his movements from being a slave of his Nature? For that man has to exceed his mind. He has to become one in self-awareness with the Lord seated within.
This is not possible in the inconscience or in the subconscient itself. Because nothing beneficial can come about by plunging back towards the Inconscient. The unity with the Lord can be established only by going within us; or by ascending towards the Supermind which is superconscient to us. In Supermind there is higher or divine Maya. In divine Maya, in its law and truth there is conscious knowledge of that works in the subconscient. What works in the subconscient is by the lower Maya. In lower Maya there are conditions of the Denial (Sachchidananda denying Himself by incapacity, limitation and death). What works in the subconscient seeks to become Affirmation. This lower Nature works out what is willed and known in the higher nature.
The Illusion-Power of the divine knowledge in the world which creates appearances is governed by the Truth-Power of the same knowledge which knows the truth behind the appearances and keeps ready for us the Affirmation towards which they are working. The partial and apparent Man here will find there the perfect and real Man capable of an entirely self-aware being by his full unity with that Self-existent who is the omniscient lord of His own cosmic evolution and procession.
EXPLANATION
The world we live in is the place of false appearances. What creates this false appearance is the Illusion-Power of the divine knowledge. This Illusion-Power is governed by the Truth-Power (Truth-Consciousness) of the same knowledge. It knows the truth behind the appearances. The Truth-Power keeps ready for us the Affirmation (of Sachchidananda). In Lower Maya of this world there is denial of Sachchidananda. In the Divine Maya (Supermind) there is affirmation of Sachchidananda.
What we find in this world is the partial and apparent Man. In the Supermind we find the perfect and real Man. He would be capable of an entirely self-aware being by his full unity with the Divine- Self. He is none else than the omniscient lord of His own cosmic evolution and procession.
PARAGRAPH 9
The second difficulty is that man is separated in his mind, his life, his body from the universal and therefore, even as he does not know himself, is equally and even more incapable of knowing his fellow-creatures. He forms by inferences, theories, observations and a certain imperfect capacity of sympathy a rough mental construction about them; but this is not knowledge. Knowledge can only come by conscious identity, for that is the only true knowledge,—existence aware of itself. We know what we are so far as we are consciously aware of ourself, the rest is hidden; so also we can come really to know that with which we become one in our consciousness, but only so far as we can become one with it. If the means of knowledge are indirect and imperfect, the knowledge attained will also be indirect and imperfect. It will enable us to work out with a certain precarious clumsiness but still perfectly enough from our mental standpoint certain limited practical aims, necessities, conveniences, a certain imperfect and insecure harmony of our relations with that which we know; but only by a conscious unity with it can we arrive at a perfect relation.
EXPLANATION
The second difficulty is that we live as separate individuals from the Universal. We are separated in our body, mind and life from others. Therefore, we neither know ourselves fully nor know our fellow human beings fully. How do we know others? By our inferences, theories, observations and an imperfect capacity of sympathy we form a rough mental construction about others. But what we know about them is not real knowledge.
True knowledge can come only by conscious identity. Whatever we are consciously aware of ourself, only that much we know. We do not know the rest. Similarly, if we want really to know something we must become one with it in our consciousness. This is the direct means of getting knowledge.
If we get knowledge through indirect means (by our superficial sensory perception) such knowledge will be indirect and imperfect. Yet such knowledge may be useful for our limited practical necessities and conveniences. It may bring an imperfect and insecure harmony of our relations with that which we know. We can arrive at a perfect relation with others only by a conscious unity.
Therefore we must arrive at a conscious unity with our fellow-beings and not merely at the sympathy created by love or the understanding created by mental knowledge, which will always be the knowledge of their superficial existence and therefore imperfect in itself and subject to denial and frustration by the uprush of the unknown and unmastered from the subconscient or the subliminal in them and us. But this conscious oneness can only be established by entering into that in which we are one with them, the universal; and the fullness of the universal exists consciently only in that which is superconscient to us, in the Supermind: for here in our normal being the greater part of it is subconscient and therefore in this normal poise of mind, life and body it cannot be possessed. The lower conscious nature is bound down to ego in all its activities, chained triply to the stake of differentiated individuality. The Supermind alone commands unity in diversity.
EXPLANATION
Our sympathy created by love or understanding created by mental knowledge with others is not enough. Such mental knowledge will always be a superficial knowledge of their existence. Therefore, it will be imperfect in itself. Such knowledge will be subject to denial and frustration from the unmastered and unknown reactions from the subconscient and subliminal parts in them and us.
We must arrive at a conscious unity with our fellow human beings. Real unity is the unity of souls. It can be established only by entering into that which we are one with them, that is the universal. In the universal consciousness all of us are united.
The fullness of the universal exists consciently only in Supermind which is superconscient to us. As long as we are in our normal consciousness, the greater part of our being remains in subconscient. Therefore, in the normal poise of our body, life and mind the fullness of the universal cannot be possessed. Our lower conscious nature is bound by ego in all its activities. It is chained triply (by our divided body, mind and life) to the post of differentiated individuality. Only the Supermind alone commands unity in diversity.