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tonightsthenight
846 Posts |
 Posted - Jul 28 2014 : 10:51:27 PM
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Hey all. Been giving the mind a lot of attention recently. Moving toward unraveling its secrets (at least some crumbs!). Its form and structure.
I'd appreciate your experiences of the mind, maybe it will inspire me.
At the moment I have become quite fixated on the idea that mind and body are one thing. Not that they do the same things, but that the body and mind are inseparable. One supports the other and the other supports it. The body becomes light like the mind and the mind densifies and reveals pieces of its structure.
Maybe the mind is just a different aspect of the body.
Not looking for advaita here. Just practical stuff. Thanks! |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jul 28 2014 : 11:19:38 PM
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I find it wise and practical to regard the mind and body as inseparable, albeit distinct.
Green and purple...inseparable from the rainbow spectrum, but distinct in their quality. A paradox. Who would have thunk it?
Incidentally, I find you wise and practical to explore these delightful paradoxes, so thank you.
Love. Unity. And, by all means... InNeR SeNsuALiTy... |
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SeySorciere
Seychelles
1571 Posts |
Posted - Jul 29 2014 : 12:50:28 AM
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Dear TNT,
Do you really feel that exploration of the mind structure and form would be of help to your spiritual growth? I don't know - lately I feel like I am constantly looking for more mind-stuff (including more "spiritual stuff" - tweaking this practice, adding this one) to play with to give myself the impression that I am making progress instead of just letting it all be. From a philosophical point of view, it is all very fascinating...
Sey |
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Anima
484 Posts |
Posted - Jul 29 2014 : 11:28:56 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
Not looking for advaita here. Just practical stuff. Thanks!
Dear TNT,
I will tell you what I exclaimed jovially, but earnestly, to a former colleague who also taught philosophy.
When the discussion came to the problems of philosophy, my eyes grew wide, and I turned toward the door, issuing very practical advice: Run for your life!
I am so lost in it all that I cannot even comment on whether it's useful or not. I suppose you will have to discover for yourself. And I mean that, because I really don't know.
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Edited by - Anima on Jul 29 2014 11:45:12 PM |
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BlueRaincoat
United Kingdom
1734 Posts |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 09:07:12 AM
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Hi everyone
I agree, it's impossible to draw a boundary between the body and the mind - which makes it difficult to even define the two concepts,let alone analyse them.
To me, the fascinating bit is that LIFE i.e. the quality of being alive, obliterates the boundaries between body and mind. For example - take a bunch of neurons from a dead body and put it under a microscope. You will see there the synaptic vesicles, the mitochondria and all the other bits and pieces that make a neuron capable to transmit an electric signal. That's body, right? It's physical, it's tangible - it's the harware. But look at this same bunch of neurons when they're alive in the body. The synaptic vesicles release the neurotransmitter, calcium ions are set in motion and stimulate the mitocondria to produce ATP etc, etc. The point I'm trying to make is that when you look at the functioning, living neurons, it becomes impossible to tell where the hardware/body ends and the software/mind begins. It's the wonder of the living world - information shapes matter, which in turn becomes a vehicle for information, and on it goes in endless cycles.
As for experiences of the mind, I too have been pondering over 'The Mind' in recent weeks. There is an idea hanging around in some spiritual circles that The Mind is an obstacle to enlightenment - that you have to tame or silence 'the monkey' before you can make progress. (Have you seen a film called 'The Silent Flute'? The monkey is the first trial Cord the Seeker has to pass)
I'm starting to think there are aspects of the mind that have to change - maybe radically change - in order for us to progress spiritually, but I think it's fair to say we have to take our minds with us on the journey to enlightenment. Cutting out bits of us - like some people think they have to cut out their sexuality - is just terribly misguided.
From observing my own mind - a beginner's observations is has to be said - I would say this: The Conscious Mind gets stressed by the impossible task of managing everything on its own. So it spins the Ego, to create the illusion that it's put some boundaries between it and the pains/hurts/hazards of the world. When it begins to get some exposure to The Self (as in meditation), the Mind relaxes (it's no longer on its own and totally overwhelmed – big relief!). So it begins to let go of the Ego and becomes content with just the role of a tool (and a pretty amazing one at that) for managing information and solving problems. That's just the conscious mind of course, because the rest of it, going deep down to interfacing with biological processes (heartbeat, breathing etc.) is yet in the shadows for me and I can only say I'm grateful it works. 
Does this in any way fit in with your experience?
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Edited by - BlueRaincoat on Jul 30 2014 5:14:41 PM |
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mil
USA
28 Posts |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 09:30:34 AM
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I am interested in this topic as well. My experience is that the mind is a filter for the body. Energy coming up from the body can be very crude and the mind will filter that energy and form it into pictures and thoughts. I believe in psychosis and other mental illnesses it can be that the mind is not able to filter the body experience for different reasons so the mind responds by allowing the crude body energy into the mind unfiltered.
Whether this information is useful for the awakening process I am sure could be debated but I find it is helpful to know if one has some sort of trauma in their background that needs to be resolved within the awakening experience.
Just my thoughts, hope it adds something to your understanding |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 6:48:11 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by BlueRaincoat
From observing my own mind - a beginner's observations is has to be said - I would say this: The Conscious Mind gets stressed by the impossible task of managing everything on its own. So it spins the Ego, to create the illusion that it's put some boundaries between it and the pains/hurts/hazards of the world. When it begins to get some exposure to The Self (as in meditation), the Mind relaxes (it's no longer on its own and totally overwhelmed – big relief!). So it begins to let go of the Ego and becomes content with just the role of a tool (and a pretty amazing one at that) for managing information and solving problems. That's just the conscious mind of course, because the rest of it, going deep down to interfacing with biological processes (heartbeat, breathing etc.) is yet in the shadows for me and I can only say I'm grateful it works.
Resonates with me. |
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Anima
484 Posts |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 8:56:53 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by BlueRaincoat
I'm starting to think there are aspects of the mind that have to change - maybe radically change - in order for us to progress spiritually, but I think it's fair to say we have to take our minds with us on the journey to enlightenment. Cutting out bits of us - like some people think they have to cut out their sexuality - is just terribly misguided.
Embrace |
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tonightsthenight
846 Posts |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 11:43:46 PM
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Great comments guys.
Blue rain coat, beautiful post. I was in a workshop today and it came to me how the body is an outgrowth of the mind. It is the minds cloak of temporal materiality. Truly a vehicle of the mind because it springs forth from mind.
And as you say, the mind is universal and we cannot make it go away. And why would we? It is incredibly useful. There are different components of the mind: discrimination, intellect, emotion, that which becomes attached. The ego comes from perceptions of seperateness which itself comes from a misconception that we are individuals, or that material reality is all there is. When it is only a patina covering an infinite storehouse of light.
Bodhi they are distinct, but at a certain point I've noticed that the interconnectedness runs so deep I cannot distinguish them. The vasanas of the mind are the same as the body.
Did you know that its been found that sometimes mental awareness comes after an action? So our hand moves before the thought to move it comes.
The body can become so light. I am becoming more interested in physical yoga and yoga systems. They bring so much lightness to the body and density to the mind and breath.
The movement of breath is wondrous and infinitely detailed. Yet the breath is only the actions of the respiratory muscles. We are simply moving air with muscles. But the breath is the bridge between the conscious and the unconscious, and between the mind and the body. It is ethereal and physical at the same time and it reflects the holy winds that move within the body.
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jul 31 2014 : 01:58:56 AM
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| Sounds like you are really manifesting/realizing the sutra "Akasha - Lightness of Air". |
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Dogboy
USA
2294 Posts |
Posted - Jul 31 2014 : 06:19:28 AM
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quote:
Did you know that its been found that sometimes mental awareness comes after an action? So our hand moves before the thought to move it comes.
The body can become so light. I am becoming more interested in physical yoga and yoga systems. They bring so much lightness to the body and density to the mind and breath.
Testify! |
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BlueRaincoat
United Kingdom
1734 Posts |
Posted - Jul 31 2014 : 08:24:37 AM
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It's nice to see this thread getting a bit of a buzz.
Thank you for your your kind comment tonightsthenight. Glad you found my post useful.
quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
Did you know that its been found that sometimes mental awareness comes after an action? So our hand moves before the thought to move it comes.
Well, yes, awareness is a feature of the conscious mind, isn't it? And the conscious mind is only a tiny fraction of the whole - lots of things must happen without it having a clue. I sometimes picture the conscious mind as the chief executive of a huge corporation. The guy couldn't possibly know what's happening on the factory floor most of the time. If he were to run the place entirely by himself the business would shut down in less than 5 minutes and yet the chief exec has to appear to be in control of the whole thing. That is an illusion the conscious mind often falls pray to. |
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tonightsthenight
846 Posts |
Posted - Jul 31 2014 : 4:57:09 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Bodhi Tree
Sounds like you are really manifesting/realizing the sutra "Akasha - Lightness of Air".
Yes, since about eight months. When I first saw (like darsan "saw") akasha I knew what it was instantly even though I'd never experienced it before. In DM or pranayama the body became light itself (not light like from the sun yet luminous and etheric) and eternity and time would become one. Besides moments here and there its never been so real as it was then.
This is actually quite essential to my understanding of mind. I see the body now as the mind expanding into physical reality (literally, as the senses are like tendrils reaching out), which is more of a temporary piece of art than a concrete thing. This elemental body provides a field on which we may experience our choices as real, even though there is no such thing as a real physical reality because akasha is fluid and has no, or very little, density.
Blue rain coat (reminds of that leonard cohen song ) I agree. Everything is happening now. We can't possibly know all that is happening in our tiny awareness.
That's a trap I'm falling into lately. Because in practice so much is available, in daily life I constantly want everything to happen at once, as if time would roll up into eternity. Of course everything does not happen at once but subconsciously that is what I will to be and it comes out as resistance to time. Can't fight the tides, so I need to find a way to slow down and accept the limitations we all find ourselves in. |
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Dogboy
USA
2294 Posts |
Posted - Jul 31 2014 : 7:54:48 PM
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quote:
I see the body now as the mind expanding into physical reality (literally, as the senses are like tendrils reaching out), which is more of a temporary piece of art than a concrete thing. This elemental body provides a field on which we may experience our choices as real, even though there is no such thing as a real physical reality because akasha is fluid and has no, or very little, density.
Nicely put ! |
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BlueRaincoat
United Kingdom
1734 Posts |
Posted - Aug 01 2014 : 08:04:28 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
[br
In DM or pranayama the body became light itself (not light like from the sun yet luminous and etheric) and eternity and time would become one.
How beautiful! If I wasn't already very keen on progress, this would totally inspire me to keep up my yoga practice.
quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
[br
Blue rain coat (reminds of that leonard cohen song)
You got it! - that's where I got the idea from I am completely in love with his poetry.
quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
[br
Because in practice so much is available, in daily life I constantly want everything to happen at once, as if time would roll up into eternity. Of course everything does not happen at once but subconsciously that is what I will to be and it comes out as resistance to time. Can't fight the tides, so I need to find a way to slow down and accept the limitations we all find ourselves in.
There might be a mighty piece of divine wisdom behind the reason why everything does not happen at once in daily life. And when you understand it you will stop fighting the tides. Perhaps this is the next piece of wisdom waiting for you around the corner. Who knows? |
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The Mind (and the body)
