Chapter XXV : The Knot of Matter – Para 1 to 2

Study Notes

     I cannot travel to the Truth of the luminous Lord by force or by the duality. . .. Who are they that protect the foundation of the falsehood? Who are the guardians of the unreal word?
                                                                                                                        Rig Veda.5.12.2,4
EXPLANATION
     Here below is the world in Ignorance with its roots deep in Inconscient. All the imperfections of life here arise from the downward pulls of the Nescience at the base of this material existence. As an extreme result of this stamp of inconscience there is Falsehood which totally deforms the situation. It is impossible to find one’s way to the luminous Truth above through this maze of crooked pathways and blind alleys on one’s own strength or force of will. There is a pervasive sense and action of division in this world.
     There are powerful beings who have a vested interest in the continuance of the reign of Falsehood and they take all steps to guard the foundations and operations of this agent of deformation. There are those who constantly mislead the seekers of truth by speaking to them and suggesting to their minds glittering options of deviation.
     The paths that lead to the sovereign Truth and Light are forged from above. They are revealed to the eye that is one-pointed and the heart that is surrendered in childlike trust to the Master of the Journey, the Divine Flame.

     Then existence was not nor non-existence, the mid-world was not nor the Ether nor what is beyond. What covered all? Where was it? in whose refuge? what was that ocean dense and deep? Death was not nor immortality nor the knowledge of day and night. That One lived without breath by his self-law, there was nothing else nor aught beyond it. In the beginning Darkness was hidden by darkness, all this was an ocean of inconscience. When universal being was concealed by fragmentation, then by the greatness of its energy That One was born. That moved at first as desire within, which was the primal seed of mind. The seers of Truth discovered the building of being in nonbeing by will in the heart and by the thought; their ray was extended horizontally; but what was there below, what was there above? There were Casters of the seed, there were Greatnesses; there was self-law below, there was Will above.
                                                                                                                   Rig Veda. X, 129.1-5.
EXPLANATION
     The beginning of this universe could not be described either as existence or as non-existence. The material world was not there, the realm of air was not there, the extension of Ether was not there either. Questions arise: what was it then pervaded all this space? Supported by whom?
     It was some ocean, an infinite extension that was dense and profound. What was that? Then there was no phenomenon of death nor was there immortality. There were no alternations of light and obscurity, day and night.
     There was only some Existent who did not need to respire, but who lived by the truth of his own law of being. He was One without-a-second.
     It was all an impenetrable Darkness everywhere, an ocean of inconscience, consciousness immersed itself to the point of non-existent. Out of this emerged the formation of Matter infinitesimally fragmented. The universal being, the One concealed by the fragmented appearance of Matter manifested by the force of its own Power as rudiments of consciousness. This formation of consciousness took the appearance of desire. There was a will to aggregate and appropriate and that became the seed of mind. It was the mind that fashioned the finites out of the infinite.
     The Rishis saw the Truth in their vision and discovered that under the veil of non-being, non-existence a mighty Being, Existence was being shaped. They could know that there were puissant Powers casting the seeds of creation, there were Glories overseeing and underlying all formations. Below there was a self-effectuating Law of Becoming, above there was a creative Will of the One Being.
     Thus the knot of Matter is deep in the original inconscient. It is the mask of the Hooded Worker who is shaping an emergent Being out of non-being, Consciousness out of inconscience, Bliss out of nescience. The knot of Matter is in fact a special convolution of Consciousness. It will resolve itself automatically with the unveiling of Consciousness in the substance of Matter.
     (Source: Shri M.P.Pandit, Legends in the Life Divine, p.78)

     (Introduction: Sri Aurobindo discusses the following questions in this chapter: What is wrong with the Matter? Why this material world acts as a stumbling block to the attainment of divine consciousness? Why most of the spiritual traditions considered matter as something holding up the spiritual progress and advocated rejection of this world?)

PARAGRAPH 1
     IF THEN the conclusion at which we have arrived is correct, —and there is no other possible on the data upon which we are working, —the sharp division which practical experience and long habit of mind have created between Spirit and Matter has no longer any fundamental reality. The world is a differentiated unity, a manifold oneness, not a constant attempt at compromise between eternal dissonances, not an everlasting struggle between irreconcilable opposites. An inalienable oneness generating infinite variety is its foundation and beginning; a constant reconciliation behind apparent division and struggle combining all possible disparates for vast ends in a secret Consciousness and Will which is ever one and master of all its own complex action, appears to be its real character in the middle; we must assume therefore that a fulfilment of the emerging Will and Consciousness and a triumphant harmony must be its conclusion. Substance is the form of itself on which it works, and of that substance if Matter is one end, Spirit is the other. The two are one: Spirit is the soul and reality of that which we sense as Matter; Matter is a form and body of that which we realise as Spirit.

EXPLANATION
     We had arrived at the conclusion in the previous chapter that Matter is nothing else than Sachchidananda. We do not have any other facts that contradict this truth. The sharp division between the Spirit and Matter is created by our practical experience in our day-to-day life and our long habit of mind. It has no longer any fundamental reality.
     The world is One which is differentiated in its various aspects. Here differentiation means, the fundamentally same substance appearing in its varied aspects. For example, water appearing as dew, snow, ice, steam, vapour etc., It is different from division. It is oneness appearing as many. It is not a compromise between eternal discords (dualities). It is not an everlasting struggle between Matter and Spirit. An inseparable oneness generating infinite variety is the foundation and beginning of this world. We have seen this fact in the third status of Supermind from which the Universe was created.
     There is apparent division and struggle in this world. Yet, there is a constant reconciliation combining all possible different things for vast ends in a secret Consciousness and Will. This constant reconciliation appears to be its real character in the middle (We have seen in the previous chapter that in the Divine Mind there is a corresponding movement of unity for each movement of division at the level of Mind).
     Therefore, a fulfilment of the emerging Will and Consciousness and a victorious harmony (between the Spirit and the Matter) must be its end. The Secret consciousness works in the substance which is the form of itself. It is the substance of the supreme Being which constitutes this whole manifestation. Matter is the one end of that substance and Spirit is the other end. The two are one.
     Spirit is the soul and reality of that we sense as Matter. Matter is a form and body of that we realise as Spirit.

PARAGRAPH 2
     Certainly, there is a vast practical difference and on that difference the whole indivisible series and ever-ascending degrees of the world-existence are founded. Substance, we have said, is conscious existence presenting itself to the sense as object so that, on the basis of whatever sense-relation is established, the work of world-formation and cosmic progression may proceed. But there need not be only one basis, only one fundamental principle of relation immutably created between sense and substance; on the contrary, there is an ascending and developing series.

EXPLANATION
     There is a practical difference (not essential difference) between Spirit and Matter on which the world-existence is founded. In our day-to-day life we do not deal with Matter as if it is the form of Spirit. The world existence arises from Matter and ends in Spirit. In between there are series of stages which are indivisible. Because essentially it is Oneness that is appearing as Many. The world-existence is ever-ascending from the stage of gross Matter to subtler forms.
     We know that substance (substance is generic word covering from the highest level down to the lowest level of gross matter) is conscious existence (Sat) presenting itself as object to the senses. There is established a sense-relation. Based on this sense-relation the work of world-formation and cosmic progression proceeds. We deal with the outside world only through our senses and we make progress in this world based on our sensory perception.
Sri Aurobindo says our sensory relation with the substance need not be the only one unchanging fundamental principle. On the contrary, there is an ascending and developing series of relations. As the substance changes from gross matter to subtler forms the relation also changes. The substance of sense relation is not the only one.

     We are aware of another substance in which pure mind works as its natural medium and which is far subtler, more flexible, more plastic than anything that our physical sense can conceive of as Matter. We can speak of a substance of mind because we become aware of a subtler medium in which forms arise and action takes place; we can speak also of a substance of pure dynamic life energy other than the subtlest forms of material substance and its physically sensible force-currents.

EXPLANATION
     Our pure mind (mind which works independent of the senses) works in substance which is far subtler, more flexible, more plastic than our physical senses can conceive of as Matter. In our mind we are aware of a subtler medium in which we create forms, conceive ideas and plan actions. All our thought processes happen in a subtle plane. Our pure dynamic life energy (Life-force or prana shakti) is a substance which is different from the subtlest forms of material substance and its physically sensible force-currents (like mechanical force, wind-force etc)

Spirit itself is pure substance of being presenting itself as an object no longer to physical, vital or mental sense, but to a light of a pure spiritual perceptive knowledge in which the subject becomes its own object, that is to say, in which the Timeless and Spaceless is aware of itself in a pure spiritually self-conceptive self-extension as the basis and primal material of all existence. Beyond this foundation is the disappearance of all conscious differentiation between subject and object in an absolute identity, and there we can no longer speak of Substance.

EXPLANATION
     While Matter is gross substance Spirit is pure substance. It does not present itself as an object to our physical, vital and mental senses. We perceive Spirit by a light of a pure spiritual perceptive knowledge. Here the subject becomes its own object. Brahman is Timeless and Spaceless. It is aware of itself in its self-extension which is the basis and primal material of all existence. Beyond this foundation all conscious differentiation between subject and object disappears. There is one absolute identity. There we cannot call anything as Substance.