Beloved Students:

Once again, I greet you in the process of our Source unfolding at the physical level. May each of you see the beauty of our Source as you open to another Spring (in the Northern Hemisphere), and you celebrate the passage into Autumn (in the Southern Hemisphere). May each one of you find a blessing arising in the seasonal changes before you, and may you experience profound connection with each other, physical distance notwithstanding. Who can say? Do the distances actually exist, or are they only another facet of the grand illusion of separation?

Perhaps a good point for us to ponder this month has to do with how the mind perceives and interprets the proposition of illusion and reality (hence the question above). Indeed, how does the mind work with the raw material of perception in the first place? While the physical components involved with sense perception have been described by many, – including anatomists, biologists, neurobiologists, physicians, researchers and educators – the real mystery lies not in the exchange of biochemical components and bioelectric charges but in the act of ascribing meaning which arises in response to the continuous stimulation to the nervous system. In truth, one cannot really account for the occurrence of reason, nor the activity of cognition purely as the result of the continual running of those bioelectric charges and chemical components. There is something else present in these two (and other) functions of mind that cannot be reduced to merely physical processes.

The presence of “mind” is more than a chemical or bioelectrical event. While certainly the chemistry and the bioelectric condition must be present to allow connection of the mind to the body, clearly mind must not be solely dependent on either of these biological events. While “mind” is demonstrated through these biological events, it cannot be said to be strictly dependent on them. If this were true, there could be no plane-to-plane communication, since one of the beings in such communication does not have a physical body, nor does he/she/it function as the result of physical (i.e., biochemical and/or bioelectric) events. Yet, clearly this kind of communication goes on quite regularly. Mind does extend beyond the body, and while the brain does serve as a point of anchoring mind to a body, it (brain) is neither the generator nor the container of mind.

It is self-evident to most that it is within the domain of mind that one touches illusion and/or reality. Most spiritual teachers of Eastern traditions are quick to point out that the mind is both the vehicle for attaining liberation, and the reason such attainment is blocked. When you consider what it is to be a self, you may have an interesting time figuring out just what it is you are talking about when you use such words as self, I, me, you, etc. To some, the designation of “I” refers to the physical body. To others, it refers to what they believe is “their” mind. Some will say that “I” refers to their brain; but in truth, the brain dies since it is a part of the physical body, and that which is perceived as “I” continues, albeit in another form. The interesting thing is that nearly everyone is convinced they are in possession of an “I” but none can say exactly what that is, nor where it can be found.

We could say that the designation of “I” is a notion, which means something not tangible, although it may still be experienced. Thus, we must ask: where does one have the experience of the “I”? Most would say the experience is “in” something called “the mind.” Of course, it must here be pointed out that while all of this may be accepted as “truth,” we still have not actually pinpointed either the mind or the self. Perhaps we should also consider the relative logic (or lack thereof) in attributing so much importance to either one, since neither can be pinpointed in the continuum of time and space, and neither has any substantive reality.

We also must acknowledge, however, that something is arising in the experience of “self,” and something is present in the perceptive process of “mind.” Likewise, while most can accept that something (perhaps something profound) is going on in the process we call “awareness,” the process itself is quite difficult to define. Nor, interestingly enough, can it be pinpointed in the continuum of time and space. While most would not doubt that it (awareness) is continually arising in the events of life, one would be hard pressed to actually demonstrate that s/he actually understands it.

One might rightly conjecture that the rather significant limitations of defining such notions as self, I, mind and awareness simply speak to the true nature of each. While there is no doubt (for most) that these do arise and are continually experienced by humans, it can also be seen that each is “empty” of concrete reality. It may seem strange to assert that while the body can be pinpointed in the time/space continuum, the “I” cannot. Yet this does, in fact, turn out to be the case.

Many of you would agree that you are not your body. Rather, you merely dwell “in” your body. You might even argue that the part that “dwells in” the body is some kind of consciousness; and while thus arguing, you might even say that the body in and of itself is “conscious” as well. We could also posit that you are not your mind. Just as in a succeeding life you will not have the same body as you have now, likewise you will not have the same mind. Both participate in awareness, but neither can strictly be said to be “you.”

At this point, we should perhaps also make a case for saying that the “field” in which you experience could also be said to be “aware.” Perhaps what you think of as “your awareness” is simply borrowed from the “field of awareness” in which you experience. Perhaps the perceptions you draw from that field, which feel like “your” individual (or “personal”) perceptions, are also simply drawn from the field in which your experiences take place. This “field” is also unable to be pinpointed in the continuum of space and time, since it is both local and non-local, continually self-arising and yet amazingly impermanent. As you may have noted, when you “charge” the field with the intensity of your emotional expressions, the relative density of that “field” changes (or appears to do so).

“Within” what you call your “mind,” there appear to arise multiple creative forces, each giving its own interpretation of what is going on in the moment, and what may be required of you in various felt experiences. In truth, of course, you cannot prove that these exist, although you do experience them. These internal “voices of perception” arise in the form of mental projections issued forth from karmic imprints, and reinforce beliefs set in place through past experiencing. Now if you think pinning down the mind is a difficult task, try locating a belief in time and space!

While these functions of mind are intriguing – even necessary – you might begin to wonder if they even exist at all in the way they are commonly perceived. In truth, if you are going to use the mind and its capacities (both thinking and feeling capacities) as a vehicle for liberation, you will likely need to understand how it can both bring forth, and block, your enlightenment. With all those internal voices creating so much noise, how will you discover the voice of the Higher Self (which does not partake in the karmic projections of ego mind)? Clearly, unless you have some means for “reality checking” the process of mind, you are likely to fall into the one curious trap or another projected by ego mind. Most people simply believe whatever their apparent minds appear to be telling them. Are you willing to run the risk?

Please join me this month in listening to Minding the Mind, a teleconference lecture I gave on February 4 of this year. It is my sincere hope that each of you will come to appreciate the creative power of the mind, even though it cannot be specifically pinpointed with reference to time and space; even though your experiences are held within time and space.

Have fun with your exploration of mind, knowing there will come a time when that which you now experience as your mind will cease to be – at least as you now know it. Enjoy the journey, and celebrate the opportunity to be all that you can be in the course of your very precious life!

Your Loving Teacher,
Djwhal Khul