Theos-Talk Archives (February 2002 Message tt00809)

Tuesday, February 26, 2002

Re: Fantasy, Imagination -- Meditation -- Seeking for Truth

Dear Friends:


In several of our recent exchanges it has been noticed that the
question of discussion, argument, testimony, inference, etc..
have been invoked and used.

The ancient sage Patanjali seems to offer us one of the best
systems to consider and deal with these. Allow me to outline it
as simply as I can:


Patanjali calls "Yoga" CONCENTRATION; or, hindering the
modifications of the mind which he calls the "thinking
principle."

He says that this "hindering" is to be done by the REAL MAN by
using "exercise" and "dispassion." [The REAL MAN is superior to
the "mind" and uses and directs it.]

He speaks of the mind as dual: Lower (or embodied and selfish),
and Higher (or spiritual, wise and ethical). [ H P B in the KEY
TO THEOSOPHY explains this in detail.]

He uses a five-fold division of these "modifications:"

Correct Cognition
Misconception
Fancy
Sleep
Memory

Proceeding he says:

"EXERCISE" is the unrelaxed effort to keep the mind fixed on a
single subject. To be able to do this takes time, effort and
training. [The natural tendency of the mind is to wander. In the
BHAGAVAD GITA, Krishna, the Guru who is teaching Arjuna, the
pupil, says that the man who desires to meditate, should control
the wandering mind: "collect it, bring it back, and place it
upon the Spirit." ]

"DISPASSION" is overcoming all of one's desires.-- It extends to
an indifference exercised because one knows the nature of one's
SOUL (Manas-mind) as distinguished from other things.

"DISTINCT COGNITION" is a type of meditation in which 4 elements
are known and used appropriately:

1. "Argument" -- the comparing of a thing with others,
similarities and disparities.

2. "Deliberation" -- considers the origin of things and one's
self, what is the field of action, what is the nature of the more
subtle senses, what is Manas, and what is the cause of the dual
Mind. These have to be understood before proceeding further.

3. "Beatitude" -- is the deliberate use of the Discriminative
WISE mind ( Buddhi). Because Buddhi is immortal, it reviews the
results of past experience over an immense period, and its wisdom
consists in its past observation of the action of Karma as
regards, not only itself, but of all other beings. It may
therefore be referred to as the ETHICAL MIND -- which pre-views
the effect of free-willed choices. It has the power to consider
abstractions and metaphysics. In mankind it answers to the
concepts we all have of the "Intuition," and to the "Voice of
Conscience."

4. "Egoism" -- Is said to be the height of meditation, whereby
no other subject is considered but the ONE INNER SELF -- which is
to be seen as EQUALLY present in the "heart" of all creatures,
without any exceptions. This attained, the power to revert to
this consideration and to banish other thoughts from the field of
the mind is possible. [Patanjali adds: that Faith (in ones'
immortality), Power (to see and do all things), Intentness (or
concentration upon a single subject), and discernment (or a
discriminative knowledge of that which is to be learned and
known) are precedent requirements.] This does not however
include the CONSCIOUSNESS of the ABSOLUTE.

"ABSTRACT MEDITATION" is promoted by devotion to the SUPREME
SPIRIT -- which can be considered in its manifested form as
"ISHWARA" -- the HIGHER SELF -- the "spiritual person." This
is the "Krishna," or the "Christos," within each human being, as
well as latent in every form in nature and the universe. The
term "Ishwara" is used to denote that omniscience which is
universally present as a "germ" in all beings and in each human.
It is the omnipresence of Spirit. In Man it is his HIGHER SELF,
and this Higher Self is the Divine tutor, the PRECEPTOR within.
The unity of all HIGHER SELVES is symbolized by the "Central
Spiritual SUN."

On the negative side, Patanjali enumerates the obstacles that are
encountered by the devotee who seeks to make meditation his
friend and assistant. These are:

Sickness
Languor (inertia)
Doubt
Carelessness
Laziness
Addiction of objects of sense
Erroneous Perception
Failure to attain any stage of Abstraction
Instability (wavering uncertainty)

To prevent these, a single TRUTH needs to be continually dwelt
on: the ONE SPIRIT is present universally and is at the heart of
all beings. This is Universal Brotherhood. It is extended to
all being as to all humans. We are a living Whole. Each part is
important and fulfills a necessary function.

To purify one's mind, he recommends adopting benevolence,
compassion, gentleness, a giving up of any tendency or desire for
personal happiness or personal bliss, dispassion, to avoid
personal grief, to adopt all virtues, and to shun every vice as
though it were a deadly poison.

When the disciples' mind becomes steady and controlled it may
extend from the "Atomic" to the "Infinite."

Any subject (or object) considered then reveals itself in full.
The subtle nature of any selected object is seen to merge into
"primordial matter" (or Mulaprakriti -- root-matter, also
denominated Maha-Buddhi -- universal wisdom and FACT).

When WISDOM is reached there is spiritual clarity and the "eye"
of discernment activates. In such a case "Knowledge" is freed
of any error due to material limitations or karmic debts. This
kind of knowledge differs from that which is either
"argumentative" of "non-argumentative," it is not due to either
testimony or to inference. It is "direct perception." The mind
is enabled "to look directly upon ideas." Once the Real Man
attains this condition the train of "self-reproductive thought"
may be stopped. In such a case it is said that meditation
becomes "without a seed." -- because the material base
disappears, and the TRUTH is apparent.

One of the propositions made here is to assume that at the base
of meditation the motive is pure -- that the search is for TRUTH
alone. Should however, any bias, desire, or preconceived result,
be allowed to color the meditative process, the results, though
partial, will be distorted and colored by that basic bias. The
touchstone to be applied is universality in space, impersonality
in motive and punctuality in time.

I hope this may prove to be of use.

Best wishes,

Dallas

============================

-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Stubbs [mailto:stevestubbs@yahoo.com]
Sent: Monday, February 25, 2002 5:29 PM
To: theos-talk@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: Theos-World just another genuine approach

Eldon: "The question might be: What constitutes the
difference
between genuine action, and mere imagination and
fantasy.

A zen master would say that someone who expects to
attain enlightenment by dozing off reading
Theosophical magazines is an example of "mere
imagination and fantasy."

In THE THREE PILLARS OF ZEN Yasutani roshi is quoted
as saying that zazen does far more to train the mind
than reading all the books ever written. This opinion
tends to be quite general among spiritual teachers.

Eldon: "One person could be daydreaming, while
pretending to do zazen. Another could be intensely
exercising inner faculties in a way that might be
difficult to explain to the non?practitioner.

It is not difficult at all to explain, but reportedly
some monks in Japan who are in the monastery because
they are not somewhere else fit your description.

CUT