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Browse published articles attributed to santosh krinsky, with full-archive search.
If we reflect for a moment that a being who does not have a highly developed abstract mental capacity, perhaps a fish or a honeybee, or even a cat or dog, is unable to truly appreciate and understand the functioning of the higher reasoning and logical capabilities that human beings consider to be their exclusive province.
A feeling, an emotion, a thought arises within us. Do we ‘manufacture’ these, or are we the recipients of them from elsewhere? If we manufacture them, how exactly do we do that? Where does the basis for that thought or feeling come from? What causative factors are there for a specific feeling or thought to come to our awareness at a specific time?
Every level of consciousness is limited by the frame within which it operates, as well as by the mechanism of its action within that frame. In its own field of action, with its own native operation, the mind can be a powerful tool and aid to the individual. Yet, when it tries to assert for itself the power to judge things and forces that are beyond its frame of reference, it becomes an obstacle to a deeper understanding.
When we live primarily on the exte al surface of our being, anchored to the physical world, the vital energy and mental status of living in the world, we try to judge everything that occurs within us by the standards of what we expect and understand from our outward existence, experience and education. We tend to put a primary focus on things that are palpable, that appear to our outer senses as real and substantial and that our mind can grasp in its ordinary way of seeing things.
We tend to associate experiences of various unusual powers as either evidence of high mental development or perhaps spiritual development. Most of what gets mooted about, however, may be seen as experiences of entering into various occult vital planes and bringing back the experience from those realms into the waking or the dream state of the individual. This does not actually require that the individual be someone with either extraordinary mental capacities or spiritual opening.
By putting emphasis on ‘headline’ spiritual experiences and attempting to hold onto them or repeat them, the seeker is potentially losing sight of the larger process that is taking place to effect the transformation of the nature. All progress represents what may be called a ‘vertical ascent’ to a higher level of conscious awareness. This may come through an experience that either takes the seeker to that higher plane for a time, or else, brings the force of that plane down into his normal awareness for a time.
When an individual takes up the spiritual path, there is considerable focus on the idea that the life of the exte al world is an ‘illusion’ and needs to be abandoned in order to achieve spiritual liberation. He sees that a focus on the exte al personality, its needs, desires, satisfactions, joys and sufferings is a distraction to his spiritual concentration. The answer is then generally to avoid the exte al focus as much as possible to allow the spiritual discipline to bear fruit.
There is considerable confusion about the “subconscient” and the “subliminal” aspects of consciousness. Essentially, the subliminal references aspects of the independent levels of consciousness that embody the subtle physical, the subtle vital and the subtle mental. These levels are independent of the individual and we only experience a limited range of these layers of consciousness based on the ability of our senses and mind to receive, organize and relate to the larger vibratory patterns.
If we reflect for a moment on the shift from one evolutionary principle of consciousness to another, we can see a shift of standpoint as well as a difference in the mechanism of operation. Those beings who are primarily based in the vital nature tend to react based on principles of fear and greed, desire, and avoidance without substantial planning or mental ideation taking place. A shift from the mental standpoint to that of the spiritual standpoint is what we would expect if there is a full manifestation of the spiritual powers of consciousness.
The mental knowledge we acquire is mostly a form of ignorance reaching out to try to acquire knowledge. In The Life Divine, Sri Aurobindo describes the various forms of knowledge. With one exception, they are set up in the paradigm of subject, object and the process of knowing, and treats the object as something separate and exte al to oneself. We acquire facts, make inferences, and draw logical conclusions to try to ascertain the truth of whatever we are trying to know.
“All evolution is in essence a heightening of the force of consciousness in the manifest being so that it may be raised into the greater intensity of what is still unmanifest, from matter into life, from life into mind, from the mind into the spirit. It is this that must be the method of our growth from a mental into a spiritual and supramental manifestation, out of a still half-animal humanity into a divine being and a divine living.
While each power of consciousness, physical, vital, mental (and others) operates in its native mode and strength in its own plane or sphere of action, it projects itself into the world we inhabit by tying itself to the foundation of the basic physical principle. This involves a ‘watering down’ of the native action of the power in question, while also creating a ‘mixing’ effect so that each level of consciousness is not only attenuated, but also forced to interact with the other principles and thereby develop a hybrid action.
There are further levels of consciousness beyond the intuition. The next superior level, as Sri Aurobindo has defined it, is that of the ‘overmind’. The overmind involves at least a partial shift of standpoint as it sees and understands the greater oneness and unity and factors that knowledge into its action. It is, however, primarily focused on effectuation of the spiritual knowledge into the limited and much less flexible framework provided by the mind-life-body complex.
We tend to look on ourselves as being of a specific nature and having a specific personality. We see main lines of understanding, of reaction, and of action and look upon these as ‘who we are’. If we take a closer look, however, we soon begin to see that we are not as simple and homogeneous as it first seemed. A multitude of different forces, energies, levels of consciousness all find their place in the human individual and make us much more complex and difficult to categorize than we believe.
Consider that we remove ourselves from active participation in the exte al world and its activities for some 30% of our lifetimes while we are asleep. Sleep provides the physical body-life-mind complex with the opportunity to undertake basic ‘maintenance’, repair the body, soothe the life energies and refresh the brain function. What happens to our consciousness during sleep?
Modern-day Western psychological researchers are finding that certain portions of the brain are related to higher cognitive functions, logic, reasoning, extrapolation, imagination, projection, analysis and classification while some parts are in charge of the purely mechanical control of things like bodily functions, some are repositories of memory, some are receptors of impulses from the various senses, some control motor functions and other parts are involved in language capabilities, artistic ability, music ability, etc.
There are occasions when an individual experiences something that is so powerful, so intense, that it causes him to trust the experience. Spiritual experiences in particular can have a force that overwhelms the normal mental standpoint of the individual and impose themselves upon the seeker in a way that goes far beyond the normal action-reaction processes of the mind-life-body complex. It is easy in such an instance to believe that such a powerful experience represents a truth that cannot be denied.
It is impossible for the mental consciousness to imagine what the state of Samadhi actually is. If we try to sit for meditation, we find all kinds of perceptions, feelings, nervous impulses, random thoughts and emotions flitting across our minds. We can observe an almost endless stream of inner subtle reactions and mental commentary that has been called by some our “monkey mind”.
Humanity is facing an existential crisis. Scientists report that changes brought about by human civilisation have created the conditions that are causing what is now being called the sixth planetary die-off of species. The land, water and air are all being polluted. Toxic chemicals are poisoning the planet. Climate change is wreaking havoc with the entire planetary environment. The ocean is seeing its food chain decimated. Essential species required for food production, such as honeybees, are dying off in record numbers, threatening the world’s food supply.
When an individual begins to recognise the existence of his soul, and seeks for a way to come into contact with it, and begin to thereby understand the purpose and significance of his life in the larger creation, the first question that comes to mind is ‘how do I do that?’
It is practically a universal experience among religious and spiritual seekers, and even among people who are simply developing some kind of an inner life, that they have an aspiration, a desire to consecrate themselves to some goal, principle or idea, and yet, they struggle with opposing predilections that cause them extreme distress. Some religious devotees, for instance, take on a vow of celibacy as part of their commitment to the religion they follow.
We reflect on the evolution of consciousness, how Life evolves out of Matter and Mind evolves out of Life in Matter. Nothing can evolve that has not been previously involved, just as a tree can develop out of an acorn, because the genetic coding is 'involved' in that seed and under the proper conditions, it carries out the involved instruction set. This leads to the idea that in order for these levels of consciousness to 'involve' into Matter, they must exist somewhere independently.
As long as we remain rooted in the awareness of mind-life-body, we see the world and our existence as a fragmented collection of separate objects, beings and forces and we act as if we are separate and distinct from everything else. The spiritual transformation of consciousness involves a shift of standpoint to that of oneness, where we can see and experience the unity of the entire creation, and can act from the deeper intention of that unified existence.
Just as the electro-magnetic spectrum has ranges below those that we can consciously receive and translate, as well as ranges above those we can utilize, so also consciousness has ranges below and above our limits. The ranges below our limits are called subconscient and inconscient. Those above are called superconscient.
There is a conservative bias in earthly existence that seeks to preserve established ways of life as a means of providing an element of stability. This principle helps to avoid the chaotic implications of unrestricted change, thereby providing a basis and a certain amount of certainty. This conservative bias is enshrined in the functional methodology of each being, as well as in the very formation of physical matter and the relation of the elements of matter to one another at the atomic level.
There are many times when people suddenly get a true ‘sense’ or a ‘feeling’ about something that is not directly perceptible to their senses. Sometimes one will feel that someone is watching or following, although the person cannot be seen or heard. There is some inner sense, with a wider and more subtle range than the physical sense organs, that can pick up these impressions.
The body has its own consciousness and much of its operation takes place without active mental intervention. However, there is also a serious interaction that takes place so that the mental power can influence, guide, train, direct and otherwise gain at least some control over certain aspects of the body consciousness. Physical training, whether in sports, military training or playing a musical instrument, typing, singing, dancing, art or sculpture, or development of other motor skills, represents one such area of mental intervention.
Whether we describe it as a ‘shift of standpoint’ or a ‘reversal of consciousness’, it is an essential turning point in the development of a spiritual life that the individual adjust both his focus and his interpretation of the life experience to conform, not with the outer view on the surface which is immersed in family, enjoyment, work, and organization of the outer life, but with an inner view that sees the deeper purpose of life and the oneness of the entire creation that develops according to the designs of the Divine rather than from some standpoint of satisfaction of the individual ego-
The wisdom seekers of past ages essentially set forth one overriding dictum “Know Thyself”. Simple enough! We then, however, begin to understand the difficulties involved. Sri Ramana Maharshi poignantly asks us to inquire ‘who am I”? Who, indeed…. For those who live primarily in the exte al surface being, we are an amalgam of the thoughts, feelings, emotions, sensations, instincts, habits and trained responses that make up that surface personality and that all together help us for the ego-consciousness with which we identify.
For the individual living on the surface of his being, interacting with the exte al world, responding to impulsions, pressures, forces and the objects of desire, his inner experience is essentially a reaction to these exte al pressures and an attempt to meet the desires that arise and somehow enjoy one’s life. When he succeeds in obtaining some object of desire, he experiences a short-lived sense of happiness or joy. When things do not work out as he hopes, he may go through experiences of anger, frustration, or depression.
When we take up the question of how to go about changing human nature, we are confronted with the difficulty of that attempt. Instincts, habits, trained responses, ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’ all conspire to maintain the status quo. When we attempt to make any change, we run up against the opposition of this status quo within ourselves, and the fact that the vital being can influence the mind to justify whatever it wants to do, even if those things are diametrically opposed to the evolutionary attempt.
As the seeker proceeds in the path of yoga, it is important that he not misinterpret or misunderstand what he experiences or what the source of the experience may be. Most people confuse the terms Self, Spirit, and soul so that they really cannot appreciate the difference aspects or significances. The traditional paths of yoga frequently set as the goal a liberation from the exte al nature through realization of the Self or Spirit, above, free, independent, unattached to the world and what it has to offer.
When we think about what qualities within ourselves are aids to achieving conscious contact with the psychic being, the soul, we would likely not name ‘enthusiasm’ as one of them. The Mother, however, makes the case for this quality. Those things that motivate us to learn, to expand our capacities, to go beyond our current limits, to reach for something greater and higher than what we are now, are the key to the kind of evolutionary progress that we are attempting to achieve. The motivating force may work in the mind, in the emotions, in the vital level or even on the physical plane.
In the Taittiriya Upanishad, the seeker discovers, through intensive tapasya that there are multiple layers, or sheaths, of consciousness that make up the human being. His seeking first discovers the material body, or ‘food sheath’. As he continues he recognises the vital body, or ‘prana sheath’. Next he learns about the mind, or ‘mental sheath’. He continues to discover the ‘causal sheath’ and eventually the ‘bliss sheath’. Each one was successively more subtle than the prior one, and each one was more directly capable of causing the actions of the being.
We are frequently not aware of the state of boredom and its various manifestations within us. We do recognise periods when we feel at a loss and want to do or experience something or distract our minds and we recognise these times as boredom. What we do not necessarily recognise however are the times when we seem busy and active, but actually are trying to compensate for the feeling of boredom. Modern society has habituated us to be always in motion, to be “doing” something, experiencing something, or simply keeping our minds occupied.
There are certain beings that occupy specific positions in the hierarchy of consciousness, who inhabit specific planes with a specific define role in the creation. These are essentially ‘static’ beings as they do not ‘evolve’. It is commonly held that, on the contrary, the evolutionary principle is embedded in the earth consciousness. Those beings that aspire to evolve and develop, not remain ‘static’ take birth on the earth.
All consciousness operates on a continuum with each plane representing certain vibrational spectra that are perceptible to those able to receive and process the vibrations of that plane. We know from research with various beings such as insects and animals of various sorts that they have different ranges that they can perceive and respond to, which may partially overlap with ours, but which may also encompass ranges higher, and lower than what we can deal with as human beings.
When a particular power of consciousness is intended to participate in the evolution in the exte al world, it utilizes the physical body as the foundation or anchor of its action. This fixes its action in the world, while at the same time, imposes limits on the power due to the watering-down effect of having to leave its native, subtler world of unrestricted freedom within its own sphere, and acting within the limits imposed by material nature.
Ideally we want some kind of a pill we can take, some kind of an instant solution, some magic formula that will instantly resolve some difficulty we face when a subconsicent formation has been triggered. We react without any advance warning when this occurs. it is also the source of many deep-seated psychological responses, whether in terms of our emotional response, our physical response, or any habitual patterns we have developed over time. This also includes things such as addictive behaviour, ’emotional eating’, and various forms of co-dependent relationships.
When we generally consider the idea of intuition, we look at some ‘gut feeling’ we may have, or some quick certainty we have about a certain situation and call that ‘intuition’.
In order to distinguish standpoint and nexus of attention, we refer to the Divine Being as either Transcendent, i.e. exceeding the entire manifested universe and containing both the manifest and unmanifest aspects; Universal, i.e. the consciousness that maintains awareness of the universal creation; or Individual, i.e. the consciousness that represents each individual being’s nexus within the universal creation. These are not ‘separate and distinct’ from one another, as they are all aspects of the same consciousness, just seen from different perspectives.
In the Mahabharata, a story is related that illustrates the inability of anyone to judge an action by the outer form it takes or the result that eventuates. The birth of Bhishma is related in the Adi Parva. Prince Shantanu fell in love with a beautiful woman he met and asked her to marry him. She agreed on the condition that he never question any of her acts. She gave birth successively to a number of sons, and immediately took them to the River Ganga and drowned them, one after another. This went on for a number of times.
When we are fixed in the exte al personality we take our cues about our role in life from our family, our friends, the social and economic environment and, with that framing, our particular interests and aptitudes. As a child we may want to emulate people in uniforms and thus, may want to be a pilot, or a service technician, or any of a number of ‘uniformed’ professions. As we mature, we begin to hear advice about what education we should receive and what career path we should follow. Much of this revolves around income potential and status.
The mental, vital and physical levels of consciousness are fundamentally limited by their basis in division and fragmentation. They see and categorize their understanding in a way that emphasizes the separateness of the forces at work and the consequences. This makes it impossible to understand the action of Karma in any comprehensive way, as such an understanding requires an integrating vision that can both see the parts and the whole of which they are elements.
We see a growing movement around the world of people leaving the religion into which they were born, and starting down a spiritual path of inner growth. A driving factor behind this change is the perception among these people that the religion has either lost any life-force that it may have had in the past, or else, it has become so rigid that it acts as a means of control rather than as a means of liberation. What has happened to religion? If we examine the roots of religion we find that it is founded, first and foremost, as a response to a lived experience.
In our mental view of the world, we see everything separated and fragmented, and we identify separate objects, beings and forces as interacting with one another. We can intellectually conceive of the concept that all these separate entities and forces are part of a coordinated and combined universe that contains and supports them all. Yet in our day to day view, we see and act upon the differences and not the oneness that is implied.
Virtually everybody, at some point in their lives, has the experience of entering a room or a gathering of some sort and feeling the movement of some vital force rising up within them. It could be a room filled with the energy of greed, or sexual tension or anger.
In his epic poem Savitri: a Legend and a Symbol, Sri Aurobindo writes: “Heavy unchanged weighs still the imperfect world; The splendid youth of Time has passed and failed; Heavy and long are the years our labour counts, And still the seals are firm upon man’s soul And weary is the ancient Mother’s heart.” (pp. 344-345)
As the spiritual seeker develops the sadhana over time, eventually he is confronted with lights, voices, and energies that come to him. It is not sufficient for him to simply accept that whatever comes is to be seen as valid and supportive of his spiritual aspiration. Spiritual discrimination, the ability to distinguish between the pure and the impure, the higher and the lower, the light and the dark forces is essential.
It is a constant complaint that we have to take on boring, distasteful, mechanical or otherwise unpleasant jobs in order to survive. Then we create a bifurcation in our minds between “work time” and “personal time” or “sadhana” (if we happen to be practicing any form of yoga). We thus spend a large portion of our lives having separated our lives into the duality of what we “have to do” to survive, versus what our real aspiration or calling is.