Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 14
This ignorance is farther deepened for man by his self-identification with the body. To us mind seems to be determined by the body, because it is preoccupied with that and devoted to the physical workings which it uses for its conscious superficial action in this gross material world. Employing constantly that operation of the brain and nerves which it has developed in the course of its own development in the body, it is too absorbed in observing what this physical machinery gives to it to get back from it to its own pure workings; those are to it mostly subconscious. Still we can conceive a life mind or life being which has got beyond the evolutionary necessity of this absorption and is able to see and even experience itself assuming body after body and not created separately in each body and ending with it; for it is only the physical impress of mind on matter, only the corporeal mentality that is so created, not the whole mental
being.
EXPLANATION
We are always identified with our body. This further contributes to the ignorance of mind. Mind is always preoccupied with the body. Mind uses the bodily functions for its conscious superficial action in this physical world. Therefore, it appears to us that mind is determined by the body. All the time we are concerned with what the physical senses tell us, with the physical world and with our own physical life and body.
The mind employs constantly the operation of the brain and nerves developed by it along with its own development in the body. The mind is preoccupied with what this body can do or give back for its (mind’s) pure workings. Such workings relate to its subconscious state.
Still, we can conceive of a life mind (vital mind) or life being. This life mind or life being does not end with the death of the body. It can see and even experience itself assuming body after body. It is not created separately in each body and ending with it. What ends with the body is the physical mark of the mind on matter (body). What is created with each body is the corporeal (associated with body) mentality. Only the physical or corporeal mind is identified with the body and not the whole mental being.
This corporeal mentality is merely our surface of mind, merely the front which it presents to physical experience. Behind, even in our terrestrial being, there is this other, subconscious or subliminal to us, which knows itself as more than the body and is capable of a less materialised action. To this we owe immediately most of the larger, deeper and more forceful dynamic action of our surface mind; this, when we become conscious of it or of its impress on us, is our first idea or our first realisation of a soul or inner being, Purusha.*3
*3 Perceived as the life being or vital being, pranamaya purusha.
EXPLANATION
What is this corporeal (linked with body) mentality? It is merely our surface mind. The surface mind which is in the front undergoes all physical experience. In our physical being, behind our surface mind there exists subconscious or subliminal part. This part knows itself as more than the body. It is capable of less materialised or subtle action. This part is responsible for our larger, deeper and more forceful dynamic action of our surface mind.
When we become conscious of this subliminal part or its influence on us, it marks our first realisation of a soul or inner being, Purusha.
PARAGRAPH 15
But this life mentality also, though it may get free from the error of body, does not make us free from the whole error of mind; it is still subject to the original act of ignorance by which the individualised soul regards everything from its own standpoint and can see the truth of things only as they present themselves to it from outside or else as they rise up to its view from its separate temporal and spatial consciousness, forms and results of past and present experience. It is not conscious of its other selves except by the outward indications they give of their existence, indications of communicated thought, speech, action, result of actions, or subtler indications—not felt directly by the physical being—of vital impact and relation.
EXPLANATION
The life mentality may get free from the error of body. But it is still not free from the error of the mind. It is still subject to original act of ignorance: the individualised soul regarding everything from its own standpoint of view; sees only the apparent truth as they are presented to it; or the truths come into its view from its own temporal (relating to particular time) and spatial (relating to particular space) consciousness.
It is not conscious of its other selves unless they are given by outward indications or through outward communications of their existence like thought, speech, actions, vital impact.
Equally is it ignorant of itself; for it knows of its self only through a movement in Time and a succession of lives in which it has used its variously embodied energies. As our physical instrumental mind has the illusion of the body, so this subconscious dynamic mind has the illusion of life. In that it is absorbed and concentrated, by that it is limited, with that it identifies its being. Here we do not yet get back to the meeting-place of mind and supermind and the point at which they originally separated.
EXPLANATION
Equally the life mentality is ignorant of itself. It knows itself only through a movement in Time and a succession of lives. As our physical mind has the illusion of body, so the subconscious dynamic mind has the illusion of life. In that it is concentrated and by that it is limited and with that it is identified. Here also the meeting-place of mind and supermind has not been reached; so also, the point at which mind separated from supermind.
PARAGRAPH 16
But there is still another clearer reflective mentality behind the dynamic and vital which is capable of escaping from this absorption in life and views itself as assuming life and body in order to image out in active relations of energy that which it perceives in will and thought. It is the source of the pure thinker in us; it is that which knows mentality in itself and sees the world not in terms of life and body but of mind; it is that *4 which, when we get back to it, we sometimes mistake for the pure spirit as we mistake the dynamic mind for the soul.
*4 The mental being, manomaya purusa.
EXPLANATION
Behind this dynamic and vital mind there is a pure mind. It is the clearer and reflective mentality. It is capable of escaping from the absorption into life. Whatever it perceives in will and thought it images out in active relations of energy. It views itself as assuming life and body for this purpose.
It is the source of the pure thinker in us. It sees the world in terms of the mind and not in terms of life and body. It is the mental being, the manomaya purusha. We sometimes mistake this manaomaya purusha for the pure spirit as we mistake the dynamic mind (subconscious/subliminal) for the soul.
This higher mind is able to perceive and deal with other souls as other forms of its pure self; it is capable of sensing them by pure mental impact and communication and no longer only by vital and nervous impact and physical indication; it conceives too a mental figure of unity, and in its activity and its will it can create and possess more directly—not only indirectly as in the ordinary physical life—and in other minds and lives as well as its own.
EXPLANATION
This higher mind (pure mind) deals with other souls as other forms of its pure self. It senses them and communicates with them purely by mental impacts. The contact is no more by means of vital and nervous impact and physical indication.
It conceives a mental figure of unity. It can create and possess not only indirectly as in the ordinary physical life (through body) but also more directly in its activity and in its will. This it does as its own and in other minds and lives as well.
But still even this pure mentality does not escape from the original error of mind. For it is still its separate mental self which it makes the judge, witness and centre of the universe and through it alone strives to arrive at its own higher self and reality; all others are “others” grouped to it around itself: when it wills to be free, it has to draw back from life and mind in order to disappear into the real unity. For there is still the veil created by Avidya between the mental and supramental action; an image of the Truth gets through, not the Truth itself.
EXPLANATION
But still this pure mind is not free from the original error of mind. Because it is still its separate mental self. This mental self acts as the judge, witness and centre of the universe. It strives to arrive at its own higher self and reality through its own self only. It views all others as “others” grouped to it around itself.
It has to draw back from the life and mind when it wills to be free and to disappear into the real unity. In other words unless the pure mind separates itself from body, mind and life it cannot feel the unity. Because there is still the veil created by Avidya between the mental and Supramental action. Only the image of the Truth reaches the pure mind and not the real Truth.
(The mind lost in the physical, identified totally with the physical, is the physical mind. As we grow we become aware that behind this mind limited by the body, there is a larger, a more vibrant mind and that is the vital or the dynamic mind which does not depend upon the physical faculties. It has its own grasp, its own subliminal opening and this dynamic mind is larger than the physical mind.
Still higher is the purer and the higher mind. It is not involved either in the physical mind or in the life, body but it moves in the mental dimension and as it rises higher, as it releases itself from the lower involvement it reflects higher and still higher ideas till it is able to reflect the Real-Idea. The ignorance in which the mind is wrapped is spread over these gradations of mind – Shri M.P.Pandit – Talks on The Life Divine, p. 119)