SOUL
The Physical and the Non Physical
Is there more to me than I see in the mirror? To see how there is more
to me than an assembly of physical organs, we have first to define the
Living and the Non-Living, not merely in the biological senses, but in
a deeper, spiritual context.
THE LIVING - is that which has AWARENESSS of its own EXISTENCE and
also that which is able to create its own thoughts. These thoughts
form the basis of feelings and emotions and only 'I the living' am
capable of these.
The living is also that which has the ability to JUDGE: Right from
Wrong, Truth from False Hood, Reality from Illusion. I the living also
have unique personality, which is totally incomparable to that of any
other being. Individual uniqueness exists because every living being
is carrying the full record of all its past experiences, which
determines the personality. We observe that of another.
The living is also that MEMORY. On the basis of this unique quality, a
person can establish a relationship. As I remember meeting others, the
relationship grows.
The Living is also that which DESIRES. These may be limited materials
ones, which tend to lead one soul into mental degeneration, or desires
of the highest, altruistic, spiritual kind, that led the soul back to
its original state of excellence. These desires form the motivation of
all actions.
THE NON-LIVING - if I relate the qualities of the Living to those of
the Non-Living, I can see the vast differences between 'I the Living
Being', and all material objects around me. Similarly, let me apply
these criteria of the living to my own physical body
Thinking of the body as a separate instrument, is there any part of
it, which is experiencing, judging, or deciding? I can see that none
of the physical organs, such as my hands or feet, eyes or ears, or
even my head, have these faculties. There is something apart from
these organs that does these things.
Let us take an example: -
Whatever action I perform, although I will use various instruments, I
am totally separate from them. For instance if I use a knife with my
hands to chop some tomatoes, throughout the operation the knife makes
no decision.
If I lose concentration, and cut my fingers with the knife, neither my
fingers nor the knife became emotionally disturbed - they were purely
instruments.
It is easy for me to see the knife as an instrument. But I'm so
attached to these hands, that It is very difficult to dissociate
myself from them, and realize that they too are only instruments, and
really nothing more than this.
I have had this pair of hands for as long as I have had this body, and
I knowthey are the only one pair I will get. So not only personal
attachment to my hands, but to the whole of my physical body, is
something so deep, so intense, that I have totally forgotten my real
identity.
THE MISTAKE - Ever since the moment when I came into the physical
body, I have been labeled and put into compartments according to my
physical classifications. It has been instilled into my conscious that
'you are a boy' or 'you are a girl', so that I grew up absolutely
committed to this idea. And in fact if someone were to question this
today, to question the identity of being a man or a woman, a person
would probably consider it a great insult. But is that what I am? An I
be accurately labeled 'young' or 'old', 'man' or 'woman', 'fair' or
'dark'? Is there a real indication of who I am simply through this?
Yet this is the mistake we have been making not only have others made
this mistake about me, putting me into a bodily compartment, but I
have also been guilty of this same error. Not only I have put others
into compartments, but I have done this to myself. I have totally
identified myself with the body, and I have cut out all other
possibilities my consciousness has become quite restricted by the
color, the age, the nationality, the religion, the culture, into which
the BODY has been born.
The Rediscovery of "I"
I am the living, I am not physical. I know I am not because I can
experience things beyond physical limitations. My body cannot go back
to childhood, but I can. Within a second, my mind can race back to
days of my youth. It can even race forward to the days of my probable
old age. Past or future, both are equally easy for me to travel in. I
travel through the three aspects of time without any hesitation at
all. I am able to travel across an distance in a split-second, as my
thoughts carry me across to America, to Australia, to India. Where
there is a pull of, my thoughts will take me there. And all this while
my body has been seated in one specific place. So my body is physical,
I am not physical, I am metaphysical, unhindered by the physical
limitations of time or distance.
Just as I grew up with natural instincts such as eating, breathing
etc. related to survival in a physical body, I also grew up with my
own personality which, has been mentioned, is absolutely exclusive to
me. My own subtle characteristics are quite different even those of my
physical parents, and so I must have gained this in an existence even
before this one.
Also, I am definitely invisible. A mirror will show me only my bodily
features: the shape of my face, the color of my eyes. But all these
exterior things tell me very little about my real self. I, the being
within this physical frame, am invisible. Now I can see all these
things: that I am metaphysical, eternal, invisible.
FORM - what am I? When I dissociate myself from my physical costume,
and search for my true identity, there is a strange detachment from
the body, but also uncertainty, because I don't as yet fully now who I
really am, and I'm leaving behind territory which was familiar. So let
me go one step further, and think of myself in a non-physical form: a
tiny point of light, a minute dot of invisible luminous energy. Can
this really be true? Such a strange thought to have=85 for so long I
have thought of myself as a female, Or male, and now I am thinking of
myself as a tiny dot, as light.
Let me examine this further=85.
As you think deeply about this, you will become aware of yourself as a
subtle energy, minute, yet full of power, so small it cannot be broken
down any further. EXPERIENCE - Let me experience with this=85.
Yes, it is a dot that is eternal, unique, unhindered by time and
space. A point that has no geometrical dimensions. The dot -
invisible. Just with this concept of my deepest identity, and
experience myself a point of light, located directly at the center of
my forehead. I have this incredible sensation of this lightness, of
freedom, of peace, of subtle power, because I am now aware that all
this is within the point.
POSITION - where am I located?
I the soul am located in the center of the forehead near the organs of
the control for the body, and near the organs of communication with
the physical world, since it is from here that I can exercise total
control.
PERFORMANCE - the brain is an instrument operating by means of
electrical impulses. I, the soul, make a decision and the decision
reaches the brain instantly. It is translated into activity via the
entire body system. Stimuli come in through my senses, and reach the
brain. From the brain, impulses reach "the soul". Thus from outside, I
am stimulated into further thought, and possibly further action. The
intellect makes this decision. I the soul am the controller, and the
brain is the control room through which I operate.
THE THIRD-EYE - this is also where the third eye of wisdom has been
shown, Which was once thought to have existed physically. However it
is nothing physical, because wisdom is not related to any particular
part of the body. It is the soul that seeks wisdom, and the soul that
retains wisdom. So when we speak, in spiritual terms, of the 'opening
of the third eye', we are referring to the awakening consciousness, a
new awareness, or a soul consciousness.
People only stumble around at night when they cannot see. The eyes
deceive the mind, and the intellect can only make a wrong decision
when its knowledge is incomplete. Knowledge is like daylight, it opens
the third eye, and the dark immediately becomes light. With my third
eye open, I can see what I should be doing. Up to now, I have been
using these two physical eyes, which can only see physical dimensions,
and nothing further. With my third eye I can see beyond the physical,
and, being able to see, I can now become the complete master of
myself.
Driver and Vehicle
It will sound obvious to say "only when a driver is fully conscious,
can he use his vehicle accurately to take him to his destination". But
if we now look at ourselves using this analogy, we can see clearly
just what an enormous difference there is between being 'in control'
and being asleep at the wheel.
The driver of a car can go anywhere, as long as he remembers what is
he doing. If he is travelling along the road and suddenly looses
concentration, allowing the mind to drift off even for a moment, he
will plunge straight off the road. Accidents happen when people forget
what they are doing. In exactly the same way, if someone looses their
self-control, even for a moment, there is an accident (an outburst of
great anger for instance) which causes sorrows for the self and
sorrows for anyone else involved. Even onlookers who simply saw the
accident are very upset by the damage done to the occupants of the
vehicle. So, awareness of and harmony between both the soul (the
driver) and the body (its vehicle) is essential. Just as the driver
must be aware of his vehicle and in harmony with it, the soul must be
in total control of its body. And yet I have gone to sleep, I have not
been aware, and so there have been many, many accidents. I have caused
myself, and those around me, so much grief. But now with awareness,
the driver wakes up, assumes control once more and begins to use his
vehicle in the correct way. UNDER CONTROL - in the conscious of "I,
the soul", I can now see the benefits of using my senses to pick out
the good from the bad, the useful from the useless, and translate it
all into positive actions, which helps others and elevate my own
conscious as well. Being aware of myself, I became the master of my
physical senses. It is so strange to realize that I have been using so
little control over my senses, that my eyes and ears are pulling my
mind in different directions for years, making me literate into a
slave of there every whim. It really is the situation of the cart
before the horse, putting the body before the soul. Knowledge is
power, and wit this knowledge, I can re-establish my true state of
sovereignty over the physical body.
How the Soul Works
Having seen, and experienced, the effect of forgetting who I am, let
us examine what is happening inside the pin-point of light, this spark
of conscious, that is the soul. Each soul has three separate
faculties. As they are described, you will be able to see not only how
so many accidents have come about through lack off understanding but
also the method of gaining control once more. Although we can give
each faculty a different name, it is actually the same energy
functioning on three different levels - these are: the mind, the
intelligence, and the impressions.
THE MIND - through the mind, one IMAGINES, THINKS, and FORMS IDEAS.
Our thoughts are created in the mind. The thought process is the basis
of all EMOTIONS, DESIRES and SENSATIONS. It is through this faculty
that, in an instant, thoughts can reach anywhere, or relive a past
experience and produce happiness or sadness. The mind is a subtle
organ, which should not be confused with the heart, which is merely a
physical organ that maintains blood circulation. Through Raja Yoga =85
The Mind Is Controlled THE INTELLECT - the intellect is then used to
ASSESS thoughts. This is the Faculty that understands. Our capacity to
understand is perhaps the single most crucial ability of all. With the
deepening and broadening of the intellect, clear understanding of
anything is possible. =85the Intellect is developed and elevated In
addition to understanding, the intellect REASONS, MEMORIES,
DISCRIMINATES and TAKES DECISION. As with all faculties of the soul,
it is subtle and spiritual, not physical, so it should not be confused
with the brain. The brain is merely the physical focus of the nervous
system and acts as the control of the soul. Through this physical
control panel, "I, the soul" am able to regulate the functions of the
different organs of my body. "I, the soul" am able to alter the pulse
and respiration of my body, simply by reacting to an external
situation, which I decide makes me overjoyed or very upset. So my
intellect is not part of physical brain, but the subtle faculty of
judgement and understanding of "I, the soul"
THE IMPRESSION - any action that has been performed leaves an
impression on the soul. We will refer to impressions as: "SANSKARAS",
which is the precise Hindi word used. HABITS, TENDENCIES, EMOTIONAL
TENDENCIES, TEMPERAMENTS, PERSONALITY TRAITS are all SANSKARAS
imprinted on the soul through each action it has performed. All the
thoughts that occur in my mind are the direct results of my SANSKARAS.
So my most fundamental features as a soul, my personality, is
determined by these SANSKARAS. Each action I do either creates a
SANSKARA (this is how a habit begins), or re-enforces an old one if
the action is a repetition. This enables us to understand that the
SANSKARAS contain the COMPLETE RECORD of all my mental and physical
actions i.e. all my experiences up to this moment. Any thought that
arises in my head will be due to the influence of one more than one
SANSKARAS. This makes it clear that I, and I alone, am alone
responsible for my own thoughts, although we tend to deny this
responsibility and blame external situations instead. If an action is
repeated often, it becomes a deep SANSKAR. Rather in the same way that
the more one digs a hole the deeper it gets and the more difficult it
will be to erase all trace of it. Old habits die hard for this. =85.and,
with Raja Yoga , the SANSKARAS are purified and become sovereign.
THE EFFECT OF SANSKARAS ON THE MIND AND INTELLECT - Imagine yourself
as the detached observer of a car accident. A number of people will
arrive on the scene, but although it is the same sight for each
person, their different SANKARAS will produce quite different
reactions to the chaos. For example, one person is examining the
injured and I can see that he is a doctor. One is calmly questioning
the onlookers and I can see that he is a policeman. Someone else is
unhurriedly looking at the damaged vehicles, while another person is
completely overwhelmed with emotions. The unhurried one is a mechanic
and I can see that the other probably has a relationship with one of
the injured. The stimulus is the same, but their reaction are totally
different. Different SANSKARAS lead to different reactions. Equally, I
know from past experiences that my own state of mind control my
thoughts. For instance, one day many things go wrong, and yet a great
deal of inner strength enables me to remain calm and peaceful. On the
other day I may lack the stability and the slightest word out of place
can annoy me. It wasn't the fault of the person who spoke, but my own
state of being that created the reaction.
Where We Find Ourselves Today
Gradually, as impure SANSKARAS were formed and were allowed to
reinforce themselves through repetitions, this instinctive voice gave
way to the powerful influence of my physical senses.
The strong pull of these senses spurred my emotions to such a state
that I overruled the decisions of my own intellect.
Consequently, when a similar situation now occurs, the weakened
conscience has even less influence, and in due course it stops
speaking altogether. As the conscience was ignored, ignorance
inevitably followed.
And so we find ourselves often uncertain of separating right from
wrong. We may even deny the very existence of right and wrong. The
distinction between selfish and unselfish action has become clouded in
the intellect, so that a state of a morality prevails.
As action become progressively degraded, the search of happiness and
fulfillment was only possible on a similarly degraded level. Without
the knowledge of "I, the soul", body - consciousness became deeply
ingrained as SANSKARAS and the soul has been forced to look for
happiness on a material level. Unable to find contentment from within
the self, the soul has turned all its attention to pleasure derived
from material sources and found himself in a void of inadequate,
transitory experiences. In such a vulnerable position, the soul
mentally grasps at any source of comfort. The level of motivation
inevitably degrades into sense-gratification, which traps the soul
into seeking greater pleasure to offset greater dissatisfaction.
This internal conflict has become a familiar scene throughout the
world. The more we have turned our attention away from our true
selves, the more we have become entangled in sorrow and frustration.
The mind has become a slave to the senses, so that I am presently
unable to comfort it.
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WHO AND WHAT IS SUPREME SOUL [ GOD ] AND ITS FUNCTION I WILL EXPLAIN
LATER
Om shanti
Ravi m Pillay
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