Chelaram was returning home from a friend’s place one night. It was a cold winter night and he shivered as he made his way through mud-covered street towards his home. The whole village seemed asleep as not a single soul was in sight. A dog barked in distance. Chelaram got alarmed. He was once bitten badly by a dog at his wife’s native place. His mother-in-law had the habit of feeding stray dogs and he had unknowingly walked amidst them. He never actually liked his mother-in-law. He had a deep suspicion that she always tried to annoy him by deliberately doing things that he did not like. He had tried to talk to his wife about it on a number of occasions but to no avail. Though, he knew that it was not completely her fault. Not many people knew that she was deaf in one ear. He had taken her to the city twice in last three months for check ups but the doctors could not find the real cause of her problem. He had also noticed that doctors in the city were not as polite and articulate as the traditional healers in his native village. His grand father himself was a healer and in most cases he could diagnose patients just by holding their wrists. It was amazing how many secrets the human body held within it. His brother had gone to University to study medical science but quit in just six months. The young people these days just did not have the patience and penchant for knowledge. “What has become of this world”, he sighed as he reached his house, “how are my children going to survive?” His wife opened the door and asked him, “what took you so long, do you know what time is it?” He looked at her and thought, “The whole world is in peril and this poor soul is worried about me coming home late.”

If you still cannot make any sense of this story, read again. It is a classic example of how one thought triggers another and takes the mind on a faraway ride. A thought that started with the dog’s bark travelled through three generations and many territories in just a few minutes and in the end had nothing to do either with the dog or his bark. And it does not stop there. The thoughts keep going relentlessly, even in the sleep, 24/7. Chelaram is not alone. Almost everybody around him is engaged in some thought process or the other. Most of times, we are not even aware of what we are thinking about. It has become an automatic process. Some people would argue that the thoughts can be focused and concentrated on something, say at the time of reading of book or even meditating. Though, it can only be possible to “focus” or “concentrate” all the thoughts when we first have the knowledge of how many thoughts are there in the first place. If we just let the thinking mind wander in the dream world and then grab a handful of thoughts to concentrate on something it will only be a partial concentration. Similarly in meditation, without first “knowing” the origin, existence and extent of thoughts, we cannot claim to be in meditation. It is most likely that what we think as “meditation” is actually another thought process. If “I” is the thinker and constantly “thinking”, how can “I” itself go in the meditative state? It surely has to engage in another thought process and create an impression of meditation. We have relatively reasonable knowledge about our physical bodies, at least their internal and external structures – what functions each organ has and what the body is composed of. Can we say the same about the thoughts or the mind? Clinical psychology recognizes the existence of ego in form of an “illusory” identity which is in conflict with itself most of the times. Even today, there is not enough explanation or understanding of the “human nature”. The problem lies in viewing mind and brain as the same entities. The bigger problem lies in the fact that those who are attempting to find the answers about the human nature are actually looking for logical answers. They might call a set process of study “scientific” study but actual scientific process is not different from the spiritual process.

Einstein once said, “Everything is determined, the beginning as well as the end, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect, as well as for the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper.”1 This is not a scientific statement but a spiritual statement from a scientist. George Gurdjieff said on personality, “Personality in man is what is "not his own" . . . what come from outside, what he has learned, or reflects, all traces of exterior impressions left in the memory.” 1 Even for an experiment’s sake, if we can for once view the physical body and the brain on one side and the thinking mind or ego on the other, we might find a new direction in understanding the human nature. It amazes me how easily people accept the notion of “Body” and “Soul” as two separate entities, without actual knowledge or self-realisation, but resist when it comes to brain and mind. The point is not to accept or reject the existence of either the brain or the mind. The point is to “discover” and “know” the truth ourselves. Not by logic or conjecture because that will be only from the thinking mind. The need is to start from a clean slate and begin with saying “I do not know. Let’s find out”. How do we make that start? How do we clean the slate? The task is very subtle. It has to go to the basics. If I have to wipe something off, I must first find out what I am wiping and from where. Otherwise, it will again become only a thought-based exercise. The mind will go in an imagination of “doing” something when actually no “doing” has taken place. Albert Einstein also said, “We should take care not to make the intellect our God; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality.” 1 Intellect cannot bring about self-realisation, only a “thought” or concept of self-realisation.

We have become so steadfast in our “views” and “opinions” that we try to answer every question from what we “believe” in. While on one hand, we do recognise the spiritual wisdom and teachings of masters such as Buddha, Meister Eckhart, Gurdjieff, Saint Augustine, Ibn Arabi, Rumi, Ramana Maharishi and J. Krishnamurti and many others, we are not willing to implement their teachings and methods in our lives on the other. At intellectual level, the recognition is there but no hint of practice. Instead, the mind wanders in logical interpretation of terms such as energy, consciousness, soul, spirit etcetera. The mysticism of unknown stimulates the mind and the thinking intensifies. Thinking is like intoxication. The dreams and imaginations provide a safe and rich sanctuary where anything is possible. Once on one of the public forums on the internet, I wrote that there is no such thing as a soul – not in the way people think about it. The idea was to bring attention to the faulty, dualist premise of viewing “soul” as a “real” entity separate from the body. You can imagine the flurry of backlash that ensued with the moderator even threatening to delete the thread. I can almost guarantee that all those who responded only “believed” in the concept of soul and believed so strongly that they got offended. If they “knew” they were souls and if that was true, their responses would have been just the opposite. That is the whole point. Starting from a clean slate. Starting a journey of “knowing” rather than “thinking”. If there is soul, that knowledge will be revealed to you by the nature itself. If there is consciousness, it will come forth in the process of self-realisation. Then, there will be no argument.

Famous French philosopher Henri Louis Bergson wrote, “In short, intelligence, considered in what seems to be its original feature, is the faculty of manufacturing artificial objects, especially tools to make tools, and of indefinitely urging the manufacture.” 1 Seldom have we realised that we spend most of the times of our lives in satisfying artificial desires. The proof is in the never-ending cycle of desires and wants irrespective of the material achievements. True satisfaction and happiness is rarely found. The mind gives an impression that if something is gained or obtained, it will become happy. However, that happiness remains elusive no matter how many things are gained or obtained. Then the philosophical thoughts kick in - “What is the purpose of my life?” “What is the reason of our existence?” “What is God?” Inherently, the human life is striving for happiness and to find the answer to its existence and meaning. However, the answers are being sought in logic and thought-based convictions. When one thinks, “What is the purpose of my life?” no answers come from the mind, for the thoughts cannot reach the natural realm of the human existence. If a spiritual master was to say, “Give up your ego and come to me with a clean slate,” the mind resists. The ego has reigned over us for so long and the ego-based “identity” has become so strong that it is not just ready to give itself up. Instead, the mind settles with word-based “information” and creates an illusion of “knowledge”. If you ask a true spiritual master a question about life, existence and universe, they will not give you an answer. They will give you a method - a method to practice and discover the answer by yourself.

There are few who want to take the path of truth and self-discovery. There are many who want a “quick” enlightenment. An enlightenment that does not ask them to change anything but rather just endorses what they have always believed in their minds. An enlightenment that is achieved through “higher” thoughts or “divine thoughts”. We have become very cleaver with words and terminologies. We first create the words ourselves and then try to use them to find the answers that are not bound by the words. Since the thinking mind is not capable of knowing the truth, it tries to create description of things and events. While the physical brain mainly stores memories (wordless memories in form of pictures), the thinking mind associates words and word-based meaning to those memories. It gives an impression that the brain is thinking but in reality it is a thinking mind that “recalls” the events triggered by the use of words. However, the mind can only recall “static” pictures. You can sit and try to remember an incident, or experience” but only the memory of that event will appear in your imagination in form of snapshots. That incident and the experience were live and dynamic but the mind being artificial, cannot make you “re-live” that same incident or experience again. You know that you were in love once. You have a distinct memory of that “feeling” and that “experience” but no matter what you do you cannot “live” that same feeling once again – no matter how deeply you think. The result is that the mind always remains “unsatisfied”. It keeps creating desires, emotions, dreams, inspirations, hopes, faith, beliefs and many other thought-based elements that do stimulate your thought process but never actually bring about a spiritual experience. It keeps engaged in one conjecture and logic to the other but never touches the realms of natural reality. It is almost impossible to put spiritual wisdom and insight in the words because there are no words for them. It is said that when the self-realisation dawned on Buddha, he became silent. He remained silent for four continuous days and the demi-gods and angles (Note: they are another topic of discussion in themselves that I intend to tackle in the next issue) had to appear and request him to speak and share his experience with the world.

It should also be clear at this point that renouncing or eliminating the mind will not automatically create enlightenment. Most people tend to “adopt” spiritual views and start developing their own stances and positions. They start “viewing” the world through spiritual perspective which is no different then those who have any other perspective. It is very easy to get caught in the spiritual terminology without actually experiencing anything. It has to be understood that to hold an “opposite” or “different” view of the world does not lead to enlightenment and is not spiritual in the real essence. In words of Sosan, the third Zen patriarch, “If mind makes no discrimination, the ten thousand things are as they are, of single essence. To know the mystery of this one-essence is to be released from all entanglements. When all things are seen equally, the timeless essence is revealed. No comparisons or analogies are possible in this causeless, relation-less state.” 2 The key is in attaining self-realisation and witnessing the true human nature in a neural state. It will not be possible for the thinking mind because the mind goes in comparisons, justifications and judgements. The need is to reach out to the true essence of the human life. There are a large number of people who find some comfort in activities such as animal protection, helping the poor, working for a cause, environmental protection and conservation etcetera. From social point of view, their work and intentions are of benefit to the society in general. However, from spiritual point of view, it is another entanglement that may provide mental satisfaction but becomes an obstacle in enlightenment because its rests on the notion of “right” and “wrong”. It is very hard to come out of this view as the perceived value preposition and social obligation in the “good” causes is a strong attraction. For those who seek the complete truth, the path is through thought-less self-realisation.

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