Consciousness And Superconsciousness
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
This is the first chapter of samadi pada. These teachings will let you let go of your daily cosmic stream of consciousness.
- Now to explain yoga.
- Yoga is the cessation (nirodha) of the fluctuations of mind (chitta vritti).
- Then consciousness takes on its true nature.
- At other times consciousness is identified with the modes of mind.
- There are five such modes which can either be painful or not painful.
- The modes are right knowledge, wrong knowledge, imagination, dreamless sleep and memory.
- The sources of right knowledge are by direct perception, or by logical analysis, or from the testimony of authorities.
- Wrong knowledge is a false interpretation not corresponding with the actual nature of the object.
- Imagination is the ideas which arise from knowledge conveyed by words.
- Dreamless sleep is the mode of mind during the natural absence of a conscious object.
- Memory is the calling up of an object from past experience.
- The control of these modes is achieved by practice (abhyasa) and nonattachment (vairagya).
- Practice is concentrated effort to keep the mind steady.
- It becomes firmly grounded when carried out for a long time without interruptions and with earnest attention.
- Nonattachment is the consciousness of being free from desires for worldly things either experienced or heard about.
- The highest nonattachment comes from the knowledge of the Soul (Purusha) which brings victory over the three modes of material nature (gunas—Tamas, Rajas and Sattva).
- The first level of superconsciousness (samprajnata samadhi) is attained progressively in four stages. These are by questioning, by discrimination, by the experience of supreme bliss, and finally by the realization of the unity of the universe with consciousness.
- In the higher level (asamprajnata samadhi) there is an absence of all modes of mind and only subconscious impressions (samsaras) are retained in the mind. This comes from the constant practice of the highest type of nonattachment.
- Its inferior form is attained by those who are beyond consciousness of the body but become merged in Nature (prakritilayanam).
- For others this samadhi is attained by total trust, great energy, recollection, regular practice of meditation, and discriminative knowledge.
- This samadhi is soon achieved by those who practice intensively.
- Even these will gain superior results depending on whether they do mild, moderate, or extremely intensive practice.
- Perfection is also attained by devotion to the Lord (Ishvara pranidhanad).
- Ishvara is a special Purusha untouched by afflictions, actions and their results, or unconscious tendencies.
- In Ishvara the seed of knowledge is developed to its utmost limit.
- Being beyond time Ishvara is the Master of masters.
- The word expressing Ishvara is Aum (or OM).
- One should constantly repeat and listen attentively to Aum while meditating on its meaning. The obstacles, or mental distractions, are sickness, laziness, doubt, lack of attention and enthusiasm, lack of energy, sensuality, false perception, and failure to attain or maintain concentration.
- The symptoms of a distracted mind are grief, anxiety, trembling, and irregular breathing.
- To overcome these symptoms one should meditate on one particular truth (ekatattva).
- By cultivating feelings of friendship toward the happy, compassion toward the unhappy, joy toward the virtuous, and indifference toward the wicked, the mind becomes purified and calm.
- Also the mind becomes calm by regulating the expulsion and retention of the breath (pranayama).
- Or the mind becomes controlled and stable through the changes produced by extraordinary sense perceptions.
- Or by meditating on the shining Inner Light (jyotismatee) which is beyond all suffering.
- Or by meditating on one who has attained desirelessness.
- Or by meditating on the subconscious knowledge gained from dreams or dreamless sleep.
- Or by meditating on anything which particularly appeals. By such meditations the yogi gains mastery over all from the atomic to the infinite.
- The yogi whose mind retains only one object of concentration becomes identified with either the knowable object, the method of knowing, or the knower, as pure crystal becomes coloured by objects placed nearby.
- The first stage of this mode of concentration is when the name, meaning, and knowledge of an object are intermingled. This is called superconsciousness "with questioning" (savitarka samadhi).
- The second stage, superconsciousness "beyond questioning" (nirvitarka samadhi), is attained when memory is so controlled that the object of concentration is known directly without interference from memories of it.
- Two higher stages of superconsciousness where the object of concentration is a subtle element (suksam visayam) are explained in a similar way. These are superconsciousness "with meditation" (savichara samadhi) and superconsciousness "beyond meditation" (nirvichara samadhi).
- The province of the subtle elements extends up to the very essence of Nature (prakriti). [See Book I:16.]
- All these stages of superconsciousness are called samadhis "with seed."
- With the pure flow of consciousness in nirvichara samadhi comes a spiritual clarity.
- And in this stage discriminative knowledge becomes identical with natural law.
- Because this discriminative knowledge is specific and complete, it differs in essence from knowledge gained from scriptures or by logical analysis.
- The mental impression arising from nirvichara samadhi prevents all other impressions.
- With the control even of that impression all impressions cease and that samadhi is called "without seed" (nirvikalpa samadhi).