I have written about spirituality in several articles and have tried to explain that the prime purpose of our existence is to realize the wholeness of existence. One wonders whether there is any instrument which could help us in our search for that elusive wholeness. Unfortunately, no such instrument exists because the concept of universality or wholeness is beyond the realm of worldly instruments. I have indicated earlier how it is impossible for a character in a dream to know that he is nothing but the person sleeping on a bed. Before we get disappointed regarding lack of an instrument, let me introduce you to something that will partially serve as an instrument and that is the Intellect.
When we think of the plant kingdom, the animal kingdom and the humans, the thing in common is that all have a physical body. Whereas the plant kingdom may have some rudimentary emotions, the animal kingdom has more emotions and the humans have the best ability to express and feel emotions through the instrument called the mind. Now, what is it that we as humans possess that animals or plants do not have. What is it that enables us to differentiate between right and wrong? Whereas a hungry tiger will not have any qualms about killing a baby deer, what is it that prevents us from doing some such act? At the same time, whereas a pet dog being taken in a bullock cart will not feel any jealousy seeing another dog being taken in a BMW, what is it that makes us jealous the moment we are in a Corolla and see our colleague driving a BMW? Whereas a rose plant that grows in USA or in UK or in India will not even know it is an American, a Britisher or an Indian, what is it that makes us feel that we are Americans, British or Indian? This unique capability that only we as humans have is through an instrument called the Intellect. This is not the same as intelligence. A person with phenomenal intelligence can have zero intellect and vice-verse.
When we try and analyze who we are, we are basically composed of three bodies:
a. Gross body which comprises the physical outer layer and the critical inner functions like breathing, digestion etc.
b. A subtle body which comprises the mind which has emotions and an intellect which conceptualizes
c. A causal body which consists of the various desires we accumulate and are the reasons for our cycle of birth and death.
To understand the role of the intellect, let us try to understand the cycle of action. Will I suddenly get up one fine morning and rush to see a friend? Never! Behind the action of rushing out, there must be a desire to see the friend. Desire is an emotion in the mind which directs the body to do the action of rushing out. But what creates the desire? Desire is always preceded by a thought. The thought that I have could be of some pleasant moment with the friend followed by a thought of loneliness. Please note that the concept of a friend, concept of loneliness arise or are created in the intellect. What creates the thought in the intellect. It is that storehouse of desires or the vasanas. To summarize,
Vasanas>Thoughts in intellect>Emotions in mind>Action of the body.
Now every action causes a reaction and the reaction is what is stored in the vasana. So to complete the above cycle, we have the following perpetual cycle.
Vasanas>Thoughts in intellect>Emotions in mind>Action of the body>Vasana
We are what is called as Jiva or an entity which has forgotten that we are whole or Brahman and this is caused by the intellect which causes me , the ever supreme Brahman to think I am separate. Notice the use of the word, think. When we wake up in the morning the first thought is that I exist and then all other thoughts arise. When we were in deep sleep, we were one with Brahman without even knowing it. But the moment we wake up, the intellect creates our separate identity. It is as though the "evil" ego has usurped the "Brahman" in our identity. If we reflect on what I have said so far, it is the intellect that causes us to identify with our ego and it is the tool we have to disengage ourselves from the ego. Once we are free of ego, we are the Brahman. I hope people remember the famous equation:
Man -Ego = God.
The intellect is the only instrument in the human entity that is capable of conceptualizing and reasoning. The intellect has the option to guide the ego that it is nothing but the true Brahman. Take the example of a man in a chariot driven by horses and managed by a charioteer. The horses are like our senses and unless the horses are held by a reign they will go wherever they see grass. Similarly, without the leash of a mind, we will be drawn wherever the senses pull us. But then someone should hold the leash and prevent the horses from straying and derailing the cart. That is the charioteer. Similarly, the intellect plays the role of the charioteer which holds the mind and controls the senses so that the cart is on track. The charioteer has the option of letting the leash loose and let the cart go wherever the horses go and be destroyed or he can control the horses through the leash and guide the cart to its destination. In exactly same way, the intellect has the ability to either be totally influenced by the mind and senses and let us go astray or it can control the mind and senses and lead us to our destination, which is Brahman.
But for above to happen, the intellect has to be sharpened. Barring the rare spiritual master in whom the intellect is strong by itself, for most of us, the intellect needs to be trained and sharpened. The intellect needs to be able to help us identify the real which is Brahman and the unreal, which is this material world. It should help us be on the right path which is to attain Brahman and guide us away from the seemingly nice path of worldly objects which just cause us to be in this endless cycle of births and deaths. To strengthen the intellect, there is a recommended process:
1. Learn : Study the scriptures to understand the fundamentals of what the supreme truth is.
2. Reinforce : Reinforce the fundamentals by discussing with like minded people.
3. Reflect : Reflect upon what is being learnt and ask questions to one self and get answers by step 1 and step 2.
4. Internalize: Internalize the concepts so that they become part of oneself
As the discerning intellect grows, slowly our concept of ourselves around the material world of objects, emotions and concepts slowly starts ebbing and a sense of internal peace keeps growing. IF through regular practice, a student continues on the path, slowly attachment to the world of objects and emotions drop off and there is only that final boundary of attachment to the intellect that has to be broken. It seems strange here that the very instrument that brought a seeker so close can also cause him to lose everything and descend back to the depths from where he had risen. But giving up the intellect early can also cause the seeker to slip. There is that precise moment when a seeker has to give up the final attachment with the intellect and take that leap into the realm of Brahman. Just as a pole vaulter at a precise moment has to discard the pole that brought him high up, a seeker has to discard that intellectual pole to reach the heights of Brahman.
As readers may be aware, 3 of my books on spirituality are available on Amazon.com.
I invite readers of my blog to try any of the books and give me feedback so that I can make changes in the next edition.
1. My Humble Understanding Of Spirituality
My Humble Understanding Of Spirituality
2. Attain Infinite Bliss
Attain Infinite Bliss - A Spiritual Guide
3. The Spirit Of Spirituality
The Spirit Of Spirituality
When we think of the plant kingdom, the animal kingdom and the humans, the thing in common is that all have a physical body. Whereas the plant kingdom may have some rudimentary emotions, the animal kingdom has more emotions and the humans have the best ability to express and feel emotions through the instrument called the mind. Now, what is it that we as humans possess that animals or plants do not have. What is it that enables us to differentiate between right and wrong? Whereas a hungry tiger will not have any qualms about killing a baby deer, what is it that prevents us from doing some such act? At the same time, whereas a pet dog being taken in a bullock cart will not feel any jealousy seeing another dog being taken in a BMW, what is it that makes us jealous the moment we are in a Corolla and see our colleague driving a BMW? Whereas a rose plant that grows in USA or in UK or in India will not even know it is an American, a Britisher or an Indian, what is it that makes us feel that we are Americans, British or Indian? This unique capability that only we as humans have is through an instrument called the Intellect. This is not the same as intelligence. A person with phenomenal intelligence can have zero intellect and vice-verse.
When we try and analyze who we are, we are basically composed of three bodies:
a. Gross body which comprises the physical outer layer and the critical inner functions like breathing, digestion etc.
b. A subtle body which comprises the mind which has emotions and an intellect which conceptualizes
c. A causal body which consists of the various desires we accumulate and are the reasons for our cycle of birth and death.
To understand the role of the intellect, let us try to understand the cycle of action. Will I suddenly get up one fine morning and rush to see a friend? Never! Behind the action of rushing out, there must be a desire to see the friend. Desire is an emotion in the mind which directs the body to do the action of rushing out. But what creates the desire? Desire is always preceded by a thought. The thought that I have could be of some pleasant moment with the friend followed by a thought of loneliness. Please note that the concept of a friend, concept of loneliness arise or are created in the intellect. What creates the thought in the intellect. It is that storehouse of desires or the vasanas. To summarize,
Vasanas>Thoughts in intellect>Emotions in mind>Action of the body.
Now every action causes a reaction and the reaction is what is stored in the vasana. So to complete the above cycle, we have the following perpetual cycle.
Vasanas>Thoughts in intellect>Emotions in mind>Action of the body>Vasana
We are what is called as Jiva or an entity which has forgotten that we are whole or Brahman and this is caused by the intellect which causes me , the ever supreme Brahman to think I am separate. Notice the use of the word, think. When we wake up in the morning the first thought is that I exist and then all other thoughts arise. When we were in deep sleep, we were one with Brahman without even knowing it. But the moment we wake up, the intellect creates our separate identity. It is as though the "evil" ego has usurped the "Brahman" in our identity. If we reflect on what I have said so far, it is the intellect that causes us to identify with our ego and it is the tool we have to disengage ourselves from the ego. Once we are free of ego, we are the Brahman. I hope people remember the famous equation:
Man -Ego = God.
The intellect is the only instrument in the human entity that is capable of conceptualizing and reasoning. The intellect has the option to guide the ego that it is nothing but the true Brahman. Take the example of a man in a chariot driven by horses and managed by a charioteer. The horses are like our senses and unless the horses are held by a reign they will go wherever they see grass. Similarly, without the leash of a mind, we will be drawn wherever the senses pull us. But then someone should hold the leash and prevent the horses from straying and derailing the cart. That is the charioteer. Similarly, the intellect plays the role of the charioteer which holds the mind and controls the senses so that the cart is on track. The charioteer has the option of letting the leash loose and let the cart go wherever the horses go and be destroyed or he can control the horses through the leash and guide the cart to its destination. In exactly same way, the intellect has the ability to either be totally influenced by the mind and senses and let us go astray or it can control the mind and senses and lead us to our destination, which is Brahman.
But for above to happen, the intellect has to be sharpened. Barring the rare spiritual master in whom the intellect is strong by itself, for most of us, the intellect needs to be trained and sharpened. The intellect needs to be able to help us identify the real which is Brahman and the unreal, which is this material world. It should help us be on the right path which is to attain Brahman and guide us away from the seemingly nice path of worldly objects which just cause us to be in this endless cycle of births and deaths. To strengthen the intellect, there is a recommended process:
1. Learn : Study the scriptures to understand the fundamentals of what the supreme truth is.
2. Reinforce : Reinforce the fundamentals by discussing with like minded people.
3. Reflect : Reflect upon what is being learnt and ask questions to one self and get answers by step 1 and step 2.
4. Internalize: Internalize the concepts so that they become part of oneself
As the discerning intellect grows, slowly our concept of ourselves around the material world of objects, emotions and concepts slowly starts ebbing and a sense of internal peace keeps growing. IF through regular practice, a student continues on the path, slowly attachment to the world of objects and emotions drop off and there is only that final boundary of attachment to the intellect that has to be broken. It seems strange here that the very instrument that brought a seeker so close can also cause him to lose everything and descend back to the depths from where he had risen. But giving up the intellect early can also cause the seeker to slip. There is that precise moment when a seeker has to give up the final attachment with the intellect and take that leap into the realm of Brahman. Just as a pole vaulter at a precise moment has to discard the pole that brought him high up, a seeker has to discard that intellectual pole to reach the heights of Brahman.
As readers may be aware, 3 of my books on spirituality are available on Amazon.com.
I invite readers of my blog to try any of the books and give me feedback so that I can make changes in the next edition.
1. My Humble Understanding Of Spirituality
My Humble Understanding Of Spirituality
2. Attain Infinite Bliss
Attain Infinite Bliss - A Spiritual Guide
3. The Spirit Of Spirituality
The Spirit Of Spirituality
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