Mind as a vehicle

Mind is a vehicle through which the soul interacts with the world. This is an objective engagement where the soul is in charge of level of involvement and utilization. This connection is energy intensive (Intense attention and involvement ~ intense energy expenditure).

It facilitates learning, development, survival in the world. 

Overuse of the mind in a state of low self awareness and lack of holistic understanding of worldly processes is a sign of severe involvement. It eventually blinds the soul. 

Habit is an example of repeated use of the mind through a particular process (cue/trigger/narratives, involvement, behavior, reward) for a particular favorable outcome (physiological, intellectual, emotional, mental). In a habit (for example liquor, video games, ciggerate smoking, binge watching television/movies), a specific part of mind or its pathway is repeatedly activated. A soul stuck in a self reinforcing loop of such a habitual activity has low self awareness, self regulatory ability, and limited understanding of resulting unintended consequences. 

Over time, the thin line of separation between the soul and mind-body becomes murky. It now becomes a subjective engagement ~ The mind (personality) dominates over the soul. Energy flowing from the soul through this junction is now restricted (~ a bottle neck). It impacts physical, intellectual, emotional, mental, occupational, family and social wellness. As the habit graduates into a pattern or a blindspot, it becomes second nature. Eventually, karmic particles that have settled around this connection, become strongly associated around the soul.The mind can now only draw energy from the physical body. A gap in energy demand and supply results in stress. Over time the body pays the price. It loses lustre, develops adrenal fatigue. Excessive functioning of Brain and organs damages them permanently over time. Soul is unable to continue in such a body and has to separate.

Utilizing the mind while being self aware, in a mature and responsible manner does not allow the mind to dominate. Connection is followed by disconnection. There is no habitual potentiation of a particular mind pathway. Energy flow is steady, efficient and uninterrupted. The soul utilizes the mind efficiently only when required and then allows enough time for the body and mind to relax.  There is no hurry and hence no spike or surge in activity. Persistent self awareness means there is no habitual potentiation. As a result the soul maintains its dominance and knows when and how to detach. The soul uses the mind at will as a temporary objective engagement, only when needed and withdraws in its own bliss when it's purpose is completed.

Cloud atlas

Silent, aloof, experiential, discriminatory self awareness,

Piercing through ignorance and misbelief,

Persisting through layers of sensory stimuli, emotional and mental triggers,

Unswayed in the worldly noise,

Strengthening and becoming unfazed over time,

Transforming from a rebel ray into a gentle light beam of right perception and perspective,

Watching the dawn of holistic awareness and understanding,

Lived holistic experience nourishing the soul and imparting confidence,

Until one day the soul regains it's ability to experience and remain in its in own bliss,

Incrementally settling within through an inward gaze.

Uninterrupted knowing of self and experiencing own bliss.

Self awareness

Not in the colossal noise outside,

Not while watching digital content,

Not while working round the clock,

I experience myself only when I pay attention to myself while doing these activities.

Not by being one with dual emotions,

Not in revenge or in the urge to give a commensurate reply,

Not by conflict mongering,

But in humble watchful separation from such temporary states of being,

I experience myself unfazed and unaffected.

Natural healing pathways

Unforeseen, unanticipated,

and unexpected conflicting events,

Subjective oneness, doer mindset and significant involvement,

Disrupting the routine flow of perception,

Unprepared and unsure on applicable process and navigation, 

Subliminal and proportional impact on mind, brain and organs,

An appropriate natural pathway activates,

To aid learning and conflict resolution.

Akin to a wound, 

Attention and resources directed through the pathway,

Persistent thought activity at a psyche level,

Questions and their incremental answers,

Until the gap in awareness and understanding is addressed.

Evolutionary origin of organ cells 

Determining the brain pathway.

Tissue loss followed by tissue gain

Or vice versa, depending on the nature of cells involved.

Why to what purpose?

Survival, Holistic self healing and experiential learning, 

Better prepared to face uncertainty, insecurity and fear,

Eventually discerning, realizing and understanding the boundary between the soul, mind and the world.

Settling in self awareness, detached and

Aloofly aware of the mind and its machinations,

Gradually and surely settling in own bliss.

Wake up

Unaware of multiple parallel narratives,

Mutating every moment in every direction,

Pulling the soul in endless waxing and waning cycles,

Deluding and confusing the mind beyond limit,

Generating endless and elusive desires,

Making promises that are seldom true,

Encouraging and discouraging dualities,

Enchanting and frustrating,

Hiding the true nature of reality.

Why?

To what purpose?

To awaken or to perpetuate a slumber?

When and how does this end?

Does it ever end?

When do I really experience myself?

Away from or while being in the crowd?

Will the psychological games ever stop?

Persistent questions,

Elusive answers,

Will Neo wake up and get the opportunity to take the red pill?

Lifelong learning

Becoming aware of habits, patterns, biases and blind spots,

Unlearning them in an incremental manner,

Enlightening corners of the mind,

Learning to respond and participate wholeheartedly, 

Collaborating unconditionally, 

Effortlessly and comfortably navigating through trials and tribulations, 

Unperturbed by any life event and associated insecurity, uncertainty and fear,

No choice, no preference,

Celebrating friendship and unconditional love, 

Experiencing one's own bliss,

And the joy of the journey. 

Maverick

Backbenchers,

Outliers,

Outcasts,

Resilient,

Neutral,

Reveling in struggle and strife,

Comfortable in the shadows but fine to bask in the Sun 

Silent observers shunning gross arguments, 

Preferring solo journeys but fine with groups,

Refraining involvement where possible,

Encouraging, mentoring and motivating in when needed,

Patiently watching, 

Developing subtle awareness,

Building self confidence,

On end-to-end journeys,

Existing calmly away from the crowd,

Celebrating life quietly.

Freedom and bliss

No intellectual pursuit. 

No elusive goals, 

No competition,

No urge for control,

No preferences,

No resistance,

No compromises,

No heartbreaks,

No desires,

No debt,

No dependency,

No expectations,

No conditioning,

No biases,

No need to malign the self for the sake of a few moments of fleeting happiness.

Where intellectual pursuit ends,

Where physical and emotional intimacy no longer holds sway,

Where a deeper connection with the self is what matters,

Where one voluntarily unsubscribes from the prevailing narrative,

A stateless state where one is truly happy,

Long and deep joyful breaths,

Living each moment and celebrating the true nature of being, 

Realizing the true nature of bliss, 

Reveling in the moment in one's own divinity,

No questions,

No seeking,

Potent silence,

Plain vanilla being, breathing, observing, knowing,

Relaxed self awareness and experience.

Freedom and bliss.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep

- By Robert Frost

Source: Poetry foundation

Question and answer

A question has come from within. Corresponding holistic answer will come in its entirety through appropriate contextual understanding, awareness and lived experience. No external dependency can fully help in achieving this holistic answer. Any external dependency can to the best offer a temporary respite. For example, a traveller seeking shade from a tree. One has to directly experience peak summer heat and associated impact on body, mind and spirit. Only then will one be able to fully appreciate the value of shade provided by a tree on the path. Similarly, a child fascinated by a burning flame and unaware of the associated hazard. Any amount of preventive explanation by an adult will not have the desired effect. The child has to directly experience fire to know fire. There is no shortcut to know fire, hence direct experience is the only sure way. Self-reliance is the only means. Every road starts and ends at self-experience.

People who subscribe to partial information from external sources like books, rituals, websites, or by joining groups with the hope of uncovering spiritual truth are doing themselves and each other  tremendous injustice. They believe that banding together, forming a group or a tribe will assist them to achieve the elusive truth. Unfortunately, they are repeatedly proven wrong because that is not the path. They are knocking at the wrong door. They have a fear lurking deep within which is stopping them to explore and seek the truth on their own. This type of self-limiting mindset and collective group thinking results in beliefs, habits, patterns and blind spots which ultimately leads to their downfall. 

Just as a lion walks alone, the soul walks alone on its journey to fully realize itself. Once it reaches there, one can say that one has reached home. The truth is already within us. It manifests only when one is ready after direct experience.

पात्र और अनुग्रह

पात्र को पता नहीं कि वह पात्र है। 

वह सुपात्र और कुपात्र के भेद में फंसकर घूम रहा है।

वह ढूंढ रहा है कि मेहर (प्रभु/गुरु अनुग्रह, grace) कहां से होगी, कैसे होगी, कौन करेगा, कब होगी?

जिस दिन वह जान लगा कि खुद ही पात्र है, उस दिन खुद पर खुद ने ही मेहर (grace) कर दी। 

उस दिन, उस पल से, वहाँ से, यात्रा की असली शुरुआत होगी। तब तक तो सिर्फ जगह पर ही गोल-गोल घूम रहा है। परेशान हो रहा है।

The truth is within us

Truth has power. And if we all gravitate toward similar ideas, maybe we do so because those ideas are true...written deep within us. And when we hear the truth, even if we don't understand it, we feel that truth resonate within us...vibrating with our unconscious wisdom. Perhaps the truth is not learned by us, but rather, the truth is re-called...re-membered...-re-cognized...as that which is already inside us.

— Dan BrownThe Lost Symbol

Most rebels are eventually broken

Misfits,

Untamed,

Chastised,

Ridiculed,

Ostracised,

Hidden,

Forgotten,

Conveniently disregarded under varied pretexts.

Not willing to comply,

Neither willing to give up,

Preferring dignity over toeing the line,

Preferring mutual self respect over dominance as a way of life,

Preferring talent and experience over equations,

Dented self respect,

Most rebels are eventually broken,

Some remain defiant while lying vulnerable on the ground,

Not willing to give up their freedom,

Not willing to appeal to or please any authority other than one's own,

Cognizant of the fragility of life,

Driven and motivated by their understanding of dynamics of life,

Self aware and having realized their true self worth,

They rise from the dust like a phoenix,

Once again to fly into the horizon in their true majesty.

Towards the ultimate quest of settling deeply within and never having to return.

Inspired by Bateson N. 'Tears at the bus stop', Small arcs of larger circles. Triarchy press. 2024.

Calling of an untrodden path

Falling prey to habits, patterns, blind spots,

And defaulting to an oft trodden path.

Subscribing to rosy narratives,

And conveniently accepting status quo.

Preferring navigation in secure waters,

Arriving at the same destination as before.

Delivering limited or no value addition,

Promises that are too good to be true,

Subtle deviations lurk underneath,

Delayed unintended consequences hidden from sight.

A persistent calling encourages me to - 

Embrace choicelessness,

Swim against the current,

Walk the untrodden path,

Embark on an experiential adventure.

Seeker is the sought 1

Unaware of the bliss within, the soul searches for it outside. It pursues various routes presuming they will lead to the bliss. This searching continues from birth to death and is carried forward to the next life cycle. On the road one meets happiness in small doses followed by long duration of misery. It takes a long time for the soul to realise the futility of the exercise. A seekers journey begins when this realisation dawns. The feeling of incompleteness within, a feeling that something is amiss, something is off are common early triggers.

Silence works where words fail

Words merely point towards the truth,

They depend on the speakers and listeners ability to understand,

They are diluted by the speakers ability to deliver and listeners ability to receive,

Perspectives and perception limit it's intended reach and impact. 

Silence is subtle and receptive,

Has unconditional acceptance of the self and others.

Possesses unmatched and unrelenting strength,

Delivers the message where other modes fail.

A prerequisite for a genuine relationship,

Is essential for achieving the soul,

Silence reaches where words cannot,

Silence delivers where words fail.

Path to the unknown opens through the known (Breath awareness)

Knowing the path and walking the path,

Two drastically different things - information and experience.

Breath awareness helps pay attention to the steps as they unfold and facilitate discernment. It takes a life time to move from knowing breath awareness to understanding and implementing it correctly. The consequences of not being with the breath are profoundly traumatic. One enters the rabbit hole intact but may not emerge unscathed in the absence of breath awareness. The path to the unknown opens through the known.

Market norms vs Social norms (What I learnt from Amazing Decisions by Dan Ariely)

 

Market norms vs Social norms (What I learnt from Amazing Decisions by Dan Ariely)

Reference: Dan Ariely, Amazing decisions

	Market norms	Social norms
Exchange between	Market partners	Friends, relatives
Goal	Return on investment	Building and maintaining relationships
Expectation	exactly what you pay for	May or May not materialize. In kind of and not immediate. Expect delays
Guided by	Cost benefit analysis	Emotions, love
Type	Logical, transactional	Emotional, perspectives
Exchange	Money	Favors, gestures, reciprocation
Driven by	Head	Heart
Values	Self reliance, efficiency	Mutual support

Towards lasting freedom

Becoming aware of each breath,

Gradually slowing down, 

Realizing what is important. 

Separating the useful from the mundane.

Entering the rabbits tunnel, 

Losing track, going right back in or forgetting all about it.

Failing succeeding and trying again. 

Remembering forgetting and then remembering again. 

Excruciatingly slow, frustratingly painful,

demanding faith, patience, persistence and

Gradually getting the knack of it.

Separating the breath from the mind and its thoughts,

Separating the breath from blind and often irrational desires,

Effortfully redirecting attention from the ongoing narrative, 

Overcoming the repeated use of the deviated path,

Moving on the right path,

Gradually seeing it shorten,

Experiencing it get subtle,

Redirecting attention inwards,

Settling in, 

Unstable state leading to detached outward gaze,

Strengthening inward gaze,

No need for any further excursion.

Eternal freedom and bliss.