Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 8
For, as we now know by psychological observation and experiment that the subliminal mind receives and remembers all those touches of things which the surface mind ignores, so also we shall find that the subliminal soul responds to the rasa, or essence in experience, of these things which the surface desire-soul rejects by distaste and refusal or ignores by neutral unacceptance. Self-knowledge is impossible unless we go behind our surface existence, which is a mere result of selective outer experiences, an imperfect sounding-board or a hasty, incompetent and fragmentary translation of a little out of the much that we are, — unless we go behind this and send down our plummet into the subconscient and open ourself to the superconscient so as to know their relation to our surface being. For between these three things our existence moves and finds in them its totality.
EXPLANATION
We are exposed to the external contacts through our surface mind. Most of the experiences received through such contacts are ignored by our surface mind. But our subliminal mind receives and remembers all those touches of things.
Similarly, our surface desire-soul rejects by dislike or refusal or ignores by neutral indifference, the rasa or essence in experience which it comes across in its dealings in life. But our subliminal soul (psychic being) responds to them. Our surface existence is the mere result of selective outer experiences. Whatever it reveals to us is only an imperfect, a hasty and a part revelation of the little of what constitutes our total self. Because the individual in his total self contains the universe in him.
Self-knowledge is impossible unless we go behind our surface existence. We should plunge deep into the subconscient and open ourself to the superconscient. Only then can we know their relation to our surface being. Our existence moves between our surface, subconscient and superconscient. Our existence finds its totality only in all these three things and not in our surface consciousness alone.
The superconscient in us is one with the self and soul of the world and is not governed by any phenomenal diversity; it possesses therefore the truth of things and the delight of things in their plenitude. The subconscient, so called, 6* in that luminous head of itself which we call the subliminal, is, on the contrary, not a true possessor but an instrument of experience; it is not practically one with the soul and self of the world, but it is open to it through its world-experience. The subliminal soul is conscious inwardly of the rasa of things and has an equal delight in all contacts; it is conscious also of the values and standards of the surface desire-soul and receives on its own surface corresponding touches of pleasure, pain and indifference, but takes an equal delight in all. In other words, our real soul within takes joy of all its experiences, gathers from them strength, pleasure and knowledge, grows by them in its store and its plenty.
EXPLANATION
The Superconscient in us is one with the self and soul of the world (Cosmic-Self). It is not affected by diversity (multiplicity)of the phenomenal (physical) world like our surface being. Therefore, it possesses the truth of things and the delight of things in their plenitude (abundance).
On the other hand, the subconsconscient which forms the luminous covering of the subliminal is not a true possessor of experience. It is only an instrument of experience. It is not one with the soul and self of the world (Cosmic-Self). But it is open to it through world experience.
The subliminal soul takes an equal delight in all contacts and is inwardly conscious of the rasa of things. Our surface desire-soul has its own values and standards. The subliminal soul (psychic being) is conscious of them. Yet it receives on its own surface corresponding touches of pleasure, pain and indifference. Our real soul within takes joy of all its experiences and gathers from them strength, pleasure and knowledge. By accumulation of such experiences our real soul grows.
It is this real soul in us which compels the shrinking desire-mind to bear and even to seek and find a pleasure in what is painful to it, to reject what is pleasant to it, to modify or even reverse its values, to equalise things in indifference or to equalise them in joy, the joy of the variety of existence. And this it does because it is impelled by the universal to develop itself by all kinds of experience so as to grow in Nature. Otherwise, if we lived only by the surface desire-soul, we could no more change or advance than the plant or stone in whose immobility or in whose routine of existence, because life is not superficially conscious, the secret soul of things has as yet no instrument by which it can rescue the life out of the fixed and narrow gamut into which it is born. The desire-soul left to itself would circle in the same grooves for ever.
6* The real subconscious is a nether diminished consciousness close to the Inconscient; the subliminal is a consciousness larger than our surface existence. But both belong to the inner realm of our being of which our surface is unaware, so both are jumbled together in our common conception and parlance.
EXPLANATION
It is the real soul in us which gives the strength to the shrinking desire-mind to bear the pains and even to seek pleasure in it. It is our real soul which makes our desire-mind to reject what is pleasant to it and to modify or even reverse the values. It equalises both pain and pleasure into a neutral state of indifference. Or it eqaulises them in the joy of variety of existence.
This action of the real soul is impelled by the universal so that the soul takes into itself all experiences and grow in Nature. If we lived only by the surface desire-soul we could not advance more than the plant or stone. In their immobility and routine of existence (of plants and stones) the secret soul of things has not yet developed an instrument by which it can rescue the life out of the fixed and narrow gamut (scope) into which it is born. The desire soul if it is not prompted by the universal would also circle in the same grooves forever.
PARAGRAPH 9
In the view of old philosophies pleasure and pain are inseparable like intellectual truth and falsehood and power and incapacity and birth and death; therefore the only possible escape from them would be a total indifference, a blank response to the excitations of the world-self. But a subtler psychological knowledge shows us that this view which is based on the surface facts of existence only, does not really exhaust the possibilities of the problem. It is possible by bringing the real soul to the surface to replace the egoistic standards of pleasure and pain by an equal, an all-embracing personal-impersonal delight. The lover of Nature does this when he takes joy in all the things of Nature universally without admitting repulsion or fear or mere liking and disliking, perceiving beauty in that which seems to others mean and insignificant, bare and savage, terrible and repellent. The artist and the poet do it when they seek the rasa of the universal from the aesthetic emotion or from the physical line or from the mental form of beauty or from the inner sense and power alike of that from which the ordinary man turns away and of that to which he is attached by a sense of pleasure. The seeker of knowledge, the God-lover who finds the object of his love everywhere, the spiritual man, the intellectual, the sensuous, the aesthetic all do this in their own fashion and must do it if they would find embracingly the Knowledge, the Beauty, the Joy or the Divinity which they seek.
EXPLANATION
The old Indian philosophies take the view that the dualities of the world like pleasure and pain are inseparable like truth and falsehood, power and incapacity, birth and death. According to them where there is pleasure, pain is bound to accompany like obverse and reverse sides of a coin. They have advocated total indifference or blank response to both pleasant or unpleasant world contacts as the only way of escape. While they are right in their own way Sri Aurobindo says, there is a better solution.
He says this view is based on the surface facts of existence only. It does not exhaust the possibilities of the problem. Sri Aurobindo says we can bring the real soul to the surface; we can replace the egoistic standards of pleasure and pain by an equal, an all-embracing personal-impersonal (absence of ego) delight.
Who takes such delight in his worldly contacts without like or dislike? Sri Aurobindo says, the lover of Nature does this when he takes joy in all the things in Nature without repulsion or fear, liking or disliking. He sees beauty in all things which to others seem insignificant, savage, terrible and repellent.
The artist and poet seek the rasa of the universal from the aesthetic emotion (tragedies in stories and plays) or from the physical line (composition of a picture) or from the mental form of beauty (poetic images). He takes joy from the inner sense and power (not through our outward sensory perceptions) from which ordinary man either turns away or is attached by a sense of pleasure.
The God-lover finds the object of his love everywhere. Because he sees God everywhere – the good, the bad, the ugly. The spiritual man, the intellectual, the sensuous, the aesthetic all find the equal rasa of things in their own fashion. Only by doing that they would find in all the Knowledge, the Beauty, the Joy or the Divinity they seek.
It is only in the parts where the little ego is usually too strong for us, it is only in our emotional or physical joy and suffering, our pleasure and pain of life, before which the desire-soul in us is utterly weak and cowardly, that the application of the divine principle becomes supremely difficult and seems to many impossible or even monstrous and repellent. Here the ignorance of the ego shrinks from the principle of impersonality which it yet applies without too much difficulty in Science, in Art and even in a certain kind of imperfect spiritual living because there the rule of impersonality does not attack those desires cherished by the surface soul and those values of desire fixed by the surface mind in which our outward life is most vitally interested. In the freer and higher movements there is demanded of us only a limited and specialised equality and impersonality proper to a particular field of consciousness and activity while the egoistic basis of our practical life remains to us; in the lower movements the whole foundation of our life has to be changed in order to make room for impersonality, and this the desire-soul finds impossible.
EXPLANATION
Why we are not able to apply this divine principle in all our contacts with the world? Sri Aurobindo says we have in us parts where our little ego is too strong for us. When we say we are sad, depressed and joyful it our ego that really produces these reactions. The desire-soul in us is very weak and cowardly before our emotional or physical joy and suffering, our pleasure and pain of life. In all such cases, taking the rasa or equal delight in all things becomes supremely difficult. It may appear to some as impossible or even as monstrous and repellent. Here the ignorance of the ego shrinks from the principle of impersonality.
We do not have much difficulty in taking an impersonal attitude in the fields of Science, Art or in a certain kind of imperfect spiritual living. Because, the desires cherished by our surface soul and the values of desire fixed by the surface mind in which our outward life is vitally interested are not attacked by the rule of impersonality.
In the freer or higher movements (like in the pursuit of Science and Arts) we are required to maintain only a limited and specialised equality and impersonality. We maintain this impersonality proper to a particular field of consciousness and activity while the egoistic basis of our practical life remains to us. On the other hand, in the lower movements (while meeting the pain, pleasure, grief etc.) the whole foundation of our life has to be changed to maintain an attitude of impersonality. Our desire soul finds this impossible.