Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 12
For these are achievements of the spiritual mind in man; they are movements of that mind passing beyond itself, but on its own plane, into the splendours of the Spirit. Mind, even at its highest stages far beyond our present mentality, acts yet in its nature by division; it takes the aspects of the Eternal and treats each aspect as if it were the whole truth of the Eternal Being and can find in each its own perfect fulfilment. Even it erects them into opposites and creates a whole range of these opposites, the Silence of the Divine and the divine Dynamis, the immobile Brahman aloof from existence, without qualities, and the active Brahman with qualities, Lord of existence, Being and Becoming, the Divine Person and an impersonal pure Existence; it can then cut itself away from the one and plunge itself into the other as the sole abiding Truth of existence.
EXPLANATION
Sri Aurobindo says the achievements arising out of psychic realisations are really achievements of the spiritual mind (spiritual planes of consciousness or ideal planes of consciousness) in man. They are movements of that mind on its own plane (Higher Mind, Illumined Mind, Intuitive Mind, Over Mind) passing beyond itself into the splendours of the Spirit. Here the Mind may even reach at its highest stages far beyond our present mentality. Yet, in its nature, it acts by division.
It takes the aspects of the Eternal Being in parts and treats each part as a whole. It finds its own perfect fulfilment in parts. It creates opposites among the parts: Silent vs. Dynamic aspect of the Divine; Immobile Brahman aloof from existence without qualities Vs active Brahman with qualities (Saguna Brahman Vs. Nirguna Brahman); Lord of existence, Being Vs. Becoming; the Divine Person (Personal Divine- Ishwara, Purushothama consciousness) Vs. Impersonal states of consciousness.
In this process of division into opposites it cuts itself away from one aspect and merges with the other as the only Truth of existence.
(Even when the psychic realisation is there, the mind does not give up its innate nature; it is divisive, it compartmentalises everything, that is why even many saints swear by their own realisation and look askance at those of others. They will not admit that what they got is only one possible experience; they feel that what they realised is the sole truth. A saint who has realised the Divine in the personal aspect of the Lord will always tend to look down upon those who regard the Divine as Peace, Silence, Bliss or Power. He will hold that they are states of the Person, the Divine Person. Similarly, the one who has realised unity with the Divine in its impersonal aspect will say that the personal in only a form, a projection of the impersonal Divine. This is the handicap of a realisation that does not go beyond the mind, even though it is a spiritual mind. Even a spiritual mind continues to be a mind and the characteristic of this mind is to cut up things, to look at things piece meal, this way and that way and not look as a whole. This divisive nature of the mind has to be exceeded and the ego to be dissolved – Shri M.P.Pandit – Talks on The Life Divine, p. 152)
It can regard the Person as the sole Reality or the Impersonal as alone true; it can regard the Lover as only a means of expression of eternal Love or love as only the self-expression of the Lover; it can see beings as only personal powers of an impersonal Existence or impersonal existence as only a state of the one Being, the Infinite Person. Its spiritual achievement, its road of passage towards the supreme aim will follow these dividing lines. But beyond this movement of spiritual Mind is the higher experience of the supermind Truth-Consciousness; there these opposites disappear and these partialities are relinquished in the rich totality of a supreme and integral realisation of eternal Being. It is this that is the aim we have conceived, the consummation of our existence here by an ascent to the supramental Truth-Consciousness and its descent into our nature. The psychic transformation after rising into the spiritual change has then to be completed, integralised, exceeded and uplifted by a supramental transformation which lifts it to the summit of the ascending endeavour.
EXPLANATION
Such a Mind can regard the Personal Divine as the sole reality or the Impersonal Divine alone as the true reality; it can regard the Lover (the Divine) as only a means of expression of eternal Love or love as the only means of expression of the Lover; It sees beings as only personal powers of an Impersonal Existence or the impersonal existence as only a state of the one Being, the Infinite Person.
The spiritual Mind in its passage towards the Divine realisations will follow these dividing lines. But beyond this movement there is the higher experience of the supermind Truth-Consciousness. In this higher consciousness all the opposites disappear. We find there the rich totality of a supreme and integral realisation of eternal Being. In this totality all partialities experienced by the spiritual mind are relinquished (given up).
We aim at the achievement of this higher consciousness (Supramental), fulfilment of our life by ascent to the supramental Truth-Consciousness and its descent into our nature. This means, the psychic transformation after rising into spiritual mind has to be completed. This has to be integralised, exceeded and uplifted by a supramental transformation. This is the summit of the ascent of life.
PARAGRAPH 13
Even as between the other divided and opposed terms of manifested Being, so also a supramental consciousness-energy could alone establish a perfect harmony between these two terms — apparently opposite only because of the Ignorance — of spirit status and world dynamism in our embodied existence. In the Ignorance Nature centres the order of her psychological movements, not around the secret spiritual self, but around its substitute, the ego-principle: a certain ego-centrism is the basis on which we bind together our experiences and relations in the midst of the complex contacts, contradictions, dualities, incoherences of the world in which we live; this ego-centrism is our rock of safety against the cosmic and the infinite, our defence.
EXPLANATION
We have seen that psychic transformation must rise into spiritual change and then must be integralised by a supramental transformation. This is the inevitable necessity because only a supramental consciousness-energy could alone establish a perfect harmony between spirit status and world dynamism (spirit and the material world) in our physical life. Because of our ignorance they appear to us as opposites. In the manifestation of Being (The Divine in its Becoming) in the world we know that things appear to be divided and the opposites of Sachchidananda. Reconciliation is possible only at the supramental level.
Ideally, Nature (our body, mind and life) should arrange the order of her psychological movements centring around the secret spiritual self (psychic being). Since Nature is in the Ignorance, she centres everything around the ego-principle, substituting it for spiritual self.
We live in a world of complex contacts, contradictions, dualities and incoherences. In the midst of all these, we bind together our experiences and relations on the basis of a certain ego-centrism. This ego-centrism is the rock of safety against the cosmic and the infinite. It is our defence. Only through his ego, man individualises himself.
But in our spiritual change we have to forego this defence; ego has to vanish, the person finds itself dissolved into a vast impersonality, and in this impersonality there is at first no key to an ordered dynamism of action. A very usual result is that one is divided into two parts of being, the spiritual within, the natural without; in one there is the divine realisation seated in a perfect inner freedom, but the natural part goes on with the old action of Nature, continues by a mechanical movement of past energies her already transmitted impulse. Even, if there is an entire dissolution of the limited person and the old ego-centric order, the outer nature may become the field of an apparent incoherence, although all within is luminous with the Self. Thus we become outwardly inert and inactive, moved by circumstance or forces but not self-mobile,9* even though the consciousness is enlightened within, or as a child though within is a plenary self-knowledge,10* or as one inconsequent in thought and impulse though within is an utter calm and serenity,11* or as the wild and disordered soul though inwardly there is the purity and poise of the Spirit.12*
9* jadavat.
10* balavat.
11* unmattavat.
12* pisacavat.
EXPLANATION
In a spiritual change ego has to go. The person dissolves into vast impersonality. In the state of impersonality there is no clue as to how one can actively participate in his outward life in an orderly manner. Therefore, a very usual result is that the person becomes divided into two parts of being. There is an inner spiritual self and an outer nature self. There is an inner divine realisation seated in a perfect inner freedom. At the same time, the natural part (outer life) goes on with the old action of Nature. It is still under her impulse, carrying on the mechanical movement of past energies. Here there is an entire dissolution of the limited person and the old ego-centric order; all within him is luminous (full of light) with the Self. Yet his outer nature becomes the field of an apparent incoherence (lack of clarity).
Here Sri Aurobindo talks of four such states. One becomes outwardly inert and inactive (jadavat). Though he has an enlightened consciousness within, he is only moved by the circumstance or forces but not active on his own. Or one may act as a child (balavat) though he has an absolute self-knowledge within. Or one may be inconsequent (without logical connection) in thought and impulse (unmatavat) though he may possess an utter calm and serenity within. Or one may be a wild and disordered soul (pisacavat) though inwardly there is the purity and poise of the Spirit.