THE "STANDARD MODEL" OF THE EGO

Seven Rings, Ten Topics

 

According to the text accompanying Chart in Divine Theme  the false self of the ordinary gross-conscious human  being can be represented as a series of layers or sheathes or ""koshas" around  a core. That core is the soul itself, known as the atma, the soul or atma within the greater structure of the false self (with its various rings or koshas) is called the jivatma. When one moves outward from "soul" as the core, the first innermost concentric ring one comes to is consciousness. Consciousness itself has six layers, represented in Chart 2 as the next six concentric rings  (red and black) between "consciousness" and the outermost circumference: (i) the seat of individuality; (ii) sanskaras (or unexpressed desires); (iii) intellect; (iv) mental body (desires  felt); (v) subtle body (desires expressed  partially); and (vi) gross body (desires expressed  fully).

From these layers and their various combinations we can derive ten topics:
A. The soul or atma (the center or core)
B. Consciousness or chit (as the innermost concentric ring)
C. The seat of individuality as the first layer of consciousness (in the list above)
D. Sanskaras as the second layer (ii)
E. The ego as a combination of the first two layers (ii)
F. Chaitanya as the third layer (iii)
G. Mental body or manas as the fourth layer (iv)
H. The "mind" or antahkarana ("inner organ'') as a combination of the first four layers (i, ii, iii, and iv)
I. The subtle body or sukshma sharir as the fifth layer
J. The gross body or sthula sharir as the sixth and outermost layer (vi)

Class 8a "The Ego, Part 1."
Exploration 1. "The Cosmological Setting of the Ego"
Powerpoint: For Powerpoints, go to the Briarcliffe siminar on the ego, G24_Briarcliffe.
Otherwise, go to the Denver seminar on the ego, 4H23_Denver.
(Pwr Ego Pt1#) = Ego_6Sess_Explor1_Briar2015_5E05
(Pwr Ego#)= Ego_Denver_4G09]
(Pwr GSCharts #) = God Speaks charts =
GodSpeaks_Charts&Images_1st&2ndEds_4G15Section One. The Cosmological Setting of the Ego

I. Introduction to the Topic of the Ego
II. The Ego in Context of the Divine Theme
III. The Ego in Relation to Sanskaras
IV. The Ego and the Three Bodies

PART ONE - INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC OF THE EGO

I. The importance of the Ego in human life and the Baba world

A. Negative: people don't like someone who is "egotistical"
B. In the Baba world: the ego is what prevents us from Realizing God. The ego has to be annihilated

II. Relation between ego and other themes
-the ego and individuality
-the ego and the mind?
-divine ego?

III. The structure of this section, Part 4 of the study program (Pwr Basic Materials)
A. I've tried to focus on material which would be less known. People are more familiar with the Discourses. We will get to that in the last session, but first I'll introduce some new material.

B. The five sections and their distribution over the four meetings

1. The Cosmological Setting of the Ego
2. The Standard Model of the Ego
3. Ten Topics
4. Al-Insan al-kamil: the ego and the human individuality
5. The ego and its elimination is discussed in the Discourses

C. Analysis of the structure:

1. This opening part, general intro
2. Sections two and three are really part of the same thing. This is the core of the seminar
3. Section four looks at the ego in its relation to the human individuality.
4. Section five studies the treatment in the Discourses.
-the first discourses looks at the ego in itself
-the second discourse looks at the ego in relation to the outside
-the third discourse attends to the annihilation of the ego

 

PART TWO - The Ego in Context of the Divine Theme
(Pwr Ego Pt 1 # 6-7)

I. The three constituents of an event: (Pwr Ego Pt 1 # 8-11)

(i) Actants;
(ii) architecture;
(iii) narrative

II. Introduction to the Divine Theme and its Parts

A. This is the narrative, (iii) above
B. Analysis of the Divine Theme
-five parts: creation, evolution, reincarnation, involution, Realization
-the relation to consciousness
-the role of sanskaras

III. The role of the ego

A. It is the actant that goes through all of this
B. The role of the ego in evolution (read from the discourses) (Pwr  Ego Pt 1 #12)

In the pre-human stage consciousness has experiences, but these experiences are no explicitly brought into relation with the central ‘I’. The dog is angry, but he does not continue to fee, “I am angry”. Even in his case we find that he learns through some experiences and thus bases the action of one experience on another, but this action is a result of a semi-mechanical tension of connected imprints or sanskaras. It is different from the intelligent synthesis of experiences which the development of I-consciousness makes possible. The first step in submitting the working of isolated impressions to intelligent regulation consists in bringing them all into relation with the centre of consciousness which appears as the explicit limited ego.  The consolidation of the ego-consciousness is most clear and defined from the beginning of human consciousness.

C. The role of the ego in reincarnation
-it continues, passing through the cycle of the opposites
D. The role of the Ego in involution
-it gets progressively diminished

IV. Relation to reincarnation: one life or many?

A. Reincarnation brings out the idea that one passes through many lives. This refers to the life of the gross body
B. But the ego is born once and dies once.
C. Relation to the Christian and Islamic visions and the Hindu-Buddhist visions. D. Read Baba's quote on this (from the end of the new Life?)

PART THREE - The Ego in Relation to Sanskaras

I. Importance of sanskaras in Meher Baba's teaching
-the inseparable link between sanskaras and the ego
-but what exactly is the relation?
II. The ego as a nucleus for sanskaras
III. Sanskaras in the evolution and reincarnation of the ego
-natural versus unnatural sanskaras
IV. The methods of eliminating sanskaras in involution
-jnan, karma, and bhakti
-ball of string
-when sanskaras are eliminated, the ego vanishes.

PART FOUR -  THE EGO AND THE THREE BODIES

I. A brief instruction to the three spheres and three bodies (God Speaks chart 1 (Pwr Ego Ptl #16)

A. Knowledge power and bliss form the basis for the mental subtle and gross
B. The spheres and the bodies represent the macrocosm and the microcosm
C. The bodies individually

1. Mental body; thoughts feelings and desires
2. Subtle body:
-body of energy
-the nadis, kundalini
-Deshmukh's description of it:

It is important to understand how the Universal Body
of the Masters stands in relation to other bodies. The gross body is a sort of reflection of the subtle body. It is the exact counterpart of the subtle body or we might say that the subtle is a sort of gaseous impression of the gross. Such impression is in a very fine form in the mental body or the mind.  The mental body is like a brilliant spark '0lhen the souls, who have attained the supra-mental Truth come back, they assume the Universal Mind, which has as its medium the Universal Body. Krishna showed this Universal Body to Arjuna. The Universal Body, sometimes called Mahakmma Sharira, is thinner than every other thing. It includes and embraces all the existing bodies and pervades the Universe.

it forms a r p, and the gross body is in image of this
3. Gross body -most of us identify ourselves with this and think that we are this body

II. Relation between the ego and the three bodies?

-it is generally understood to have a relation to the mental body
-the Hindu idea of antahkarana

Powerpoint: For Powerpoints, go to the Briarecliffe seminar on the ego, G24_Briarcliffe.
Otherwise, go to the Denver seminar on the ego, 4H23_Denver.
(Pwr  Ego Pt2#) = Ego_6Sess_Explor2_Briar2015_5G24
(Pwr Ego#)= Ego_Denver_4G09
(Pwr  DTBook #)=Divine Theme_Charts&Text
(Pwr GS_Ptl #)=God Speaks chapter 1= Chl_StatesOfConsciousness
(Pwr  GS_P2 #) = GS_Pt2_Initia1Urge&Evolution) (Pwr How#) = HowitAllHappened
(Pwr IICharts #) = Infinite Intelligence Charts = Inflntel_Charts&ImagesAll_Jpegs_4E
(Pwr  Disc_Sansk = Disc_Voll_6-9_Sanskaras
(Pwr Disc_Maya+Aids #)=Disc_Vol3_10MayaPtl-IV+Aids

On the Board: (Pwr Ego Pt2#1)

The Standard Model of the Ego in Meher Baba's Philosophical Account

I. The soul or atma (the center or core)
II. Consciousness or Chit as the innermost circle) III. The seat of individuality as the first layer
IV. Sanskaras as the second layer
V. The ego as a combination of the first two layers
VI. Chaitanya as the third layer
VII. Mental body or manas as the fourth layer
VIII. The "mind" or antahkarana ("inner organ") as a combination of the first four layers
IX. The subtle body or sukshma sharir  as the fifth layer
X. The gross body or sthula sharir

 

SECTION ONE. THE SOUL OR ATMA (THE CENTER OR CORE)

I. The soul as the all-pervading Reality: Vedantic backgrounds in avaita (Pwr Ego Pt3 #2)

A. The Upanishads articular "tat tvam asi," "aham brahmasmi": the soul is one with
brahman, the Realtiy
B. Sankaracharya regularized it
C. This is the distinctive contribution of Hindu Vedantism, that distinguishes it from
the other religions of the world.
D. Meher Baba embraced this aspect of Vedanta.

II. Meher Baba on the soul as the Original Ocean

 A. Divine Theme, pp. 2 and 3 (Pwr  DTBook #14-15) (Pwr  Ego Pt 3 #3)

God, the Oversoul, alone is real. Nothing exists but God. The different souls are in the Oversoul and one with it. The processes of evolution, reincarnation and realisation are all necessary in order to enable the soul to gain self-consciousness. In the process of winding sanskaras become instrumental for the evolution of consciousness though they also give sanskaric bindings and in the process of unwinding sanskaric attachments are annihilated, though the consciousness which has been gained is fully retained.

Before the world of forms and duality came into existence, there was nothing but God, i.e., an indivisible and boundless ocean of Power, Knowledge and Bliss. But this ocean was unconscious of itself.  Picture to yourself this ocean as absolutely still and calm, unconscious of its Power, Knowledge and Bliss and unconscious that it is the ocean. The billions of drops which are in the ocean do not have any consciousness; they do not know that they are drops or that they are in the ocean or that they are a part of the ocean. This represents the original state of reality.

B. Major quotations from God Speaks

1. 1. GS, page 1: (GS_Pt1 #) (Pwr  Ego Pt3#5)

ALL souls  (atmas) were, are and will be in the Over-Soul
(Paramatma).
Souls (atmas) are all One.
All souls are infinite and eternal. They are formless.
All souls are One; there is no difference  in souls  or in their being and existence as souls.

2. GS, p. 6: (GS_Ptl #11-12)  (Pwr  Ego Pt 3#6-7)

Atma in Reality ls Paramatma

In order to clarify the relationship of “atma-Paramatma” we compare Paramatma with an infinite ocean, a limitless ocean, and the atma as a drop in this ocean. The atma i s never out of this limitless ocean (Paramtma).

The atma can never be out of Paramatma because Paramatma is infinite
and unlimited. How can the atma come out of, or have a place beyond, the limitlessness of the limitless? Therefore the atma is in Paramatma.
After establishing the primary fact that the atma is in Paramatma we go a step further and say that atma is Paramatma. How?

For example, let us imagine an unlimited ocean. Let us also imagine that we separate or take out one iota of ocean from the limitless expanse of this unlimited ocean. It follows then that this iota of ocean, while in the limitless ocean, before separation is ocean itself, and is not there in the shoreless ocean as an iota of the ocean, because every iota of ocean then not limited by the limitations of a drop, is unlimited ocean.
It is only when an iota of ocean is separated from the unlimited ocean, or is taken out of the unlimited ocean as a drop, that this iota of ocean obtains its separate existence as a drop of the shoreless ocean, and that this iota of ocean begins to be looked upon as a drop of the unlimited ocean.
In other words, the infinite, unlimited and limitless ocean itself is now looked upon as merely a drop of that infinite, unlimited and limitless ocean. And in comparison to that infinite, unlimited and limitless ocean this iota of ocean, or this drop of the iota of ocean, is most finite and most limited with infinite limitations. That is, the infinitely free iota finds itself infinitely bound.
S i m i l a r l y, the atma, which we have compared with a drop of the infinite ocean, obtains a seeming separate existence, though in reality it can never be out of the limitlessness of the limitless, infinite Paramatma which we have compared with the infinite, unlimited and limitless ocean.
But just as the iota of ocean acquires its limitation as a drop through being in the form of a bubble on the surface of the ocean, and the bubble bestows upon the iota of ocean an apparently separative existence from the infinite ocean, likewise the atma, which is in Paramatma and is Paramatma, apparently experiences separative existence from the infinite Paramatma through the limitations of a bubble (of ignorance) with which the atma shrouds itself. No sooner does the bubble of ignorance burst, than the atma not only finds itself in Paramatma but experiences itself as Paramatma. Through this limitation, formed by the bubble of ignorance, self-created by the atma, the atma apparently inherits a separative existence from Paramatma. And because of this self-created separativeness from infinite Paramatma, the atma, which is itself infinite, unlimited and limitless, apparently experiences itself as most finite with infinite limitations.

III. Maya and the Standing of the world in this vision
A. The unreality of the world through Maya making everything appear to be nothing and nothing everything
B. the drop-soul is apparent individuality that is in reality one with God
IV. Representations of the soul
A. Infinite Intelligence, Crossing Lines (Pwr Ego Pt3#8)
B. Divine Theme, chart 2 (Pwr DTBook #2)
V. The non-agency of the soul: the soul does nothing!
-read "Maya, Part 2," in Discourses, vol2, pp. 152-54  (Pwr Disc_Maya+Aids #6- 7)
-then if the soul does nothing, then who does?
-soul is, as it were, the glow. All the machinery of the false self starts to move when that light shines.

 

SECTION TWO - CONSCIOUSNESS  OR CHIT AS THE INNERMOST CIRCLE

I. Vedanta and Sat-Chit-Anand (Pwr Ego Pt3 #9)

Vedanta and consciousness:

Consciousness is seen as the subject, and "Aham Brahmasmi."
Consciousness, to Shankara, is identical with Atma

Hinduism vs. Islam (Pwr Ego Pt3 #10)

Hinduism characteristically conceives of God in terms of the subjective pole, whereas Islam does so through the objective pole thus, in Islam, God is "He," whereas in Hinduism, "I am God"

 

Sat-Chit-Anand as such

Sat-Chit-Anand (Existence-Consciousness-Bliss) as an ancient trinity originating
as far back as the Upanishads

The Upanishads and Vedanta conceive the Self-which is Atma or Reality-as
Chit or Consciousness.

In Meher Baba's books, Sat-Chit-Anand is sometimes glossed as "Knowledge­ Power-Bliss"; but it does not actually mean that.

II. Being and Consciousness as a primary duality in the conceptualization of God

God as Being: God is, that is God is the object

anything to which we ascribe being, "is."
That is, it is as an object of our consciousness.
conceived objectively, God becomes being.

God as Consciousness: I am He, God as the subject

when I look within, into myself, what do I find there?
any specific identification or attribution is merely temporary.
the most abiding thing is consciousness.
thus in the subjective pole, God is consciousness.

Chit as the subject as "I." There is an ineluctable connection between consciousness as "1."

Baba's account of the ego as Hindu psychology

thus in identifying the self in terms of consciousness, Baba is following the
Hindu account

III. Is "Consciousness" the same as "Self' in Meher Baba's darshana?

There are pros and cons

pro: Baba's cosmological account is a story of consciousness. Infinite Intelligence is a consciousness account. If we do not accept the identification of God with consciousness, we seem to have a primary duality.
on: yet His narrative seems to be based on disparities between the conscious and the unconsciousness.
synthesis: there must be some term in the domain of consciousness that is
conscious-and-unconscious, just as there is being-and-nonbeing

This is a huge issue. It seems to me to be the fundamental challenge to the non­
dualism of Meher Baba's darshana.

Consciousness and its layers

In Vedanta and Samkhya

these traditions speak of koshas, sheathes (Pwr Ego Pt3#s 11 & 12)
we already say the five sheathes of Vedanta

In Meher Baba's cosmological account

Divine Theme makes it clear that we have consciousness and six layers, in the case of the gross-conscious individual

The layer concept.

this conceives of the self in terms of the fundamental dichotomy of inner and outer
yet consciousness has to go all the way to the outer layer

 

SECTION THREE. THE SEAT OF INDIVIDUALITY  AS THE FIRST LAYER INTRO: what is the seat of individuality?

I'm not aware where it ever gets referred to again in Meher Baba's  literature. Yet is it is very fundamental.

The Ocean-drop metaphor

Divine Theme, and God Speaks part 1 (Pwr GS_P1 #13, p7 bottom): a separation imagined where the is none

What is the implication of the word "seat"?

A station established
The seat of false individuality or the ego

Contrariety

Its discussion in Part 2 of God Speaks (Pwr GS_P2 #1 p. 9), where the first identification with form produced the experience of contrariety The experience of contrariety follows immediately from the seat of individuality. From contrariety follow the opposites. Infinite Intelligence and the series of opposites are the immediate consequence.

Individuality's persistence

Individuality, evidently, persists to the End and beyond: the experience of God­ Realization is individual. (Otherwise, when one soul experiences God-Realization, the universe would vanish.)
The Sadguru has the Divine Ego. The Majzub experiences God individually.
In such cases, does the "seat" persist?
What is the seat?
The seat as the symbol of individuality

 

SECTION FOUR - SANSKARAS AS THE SECOND LAYER INTRO:

Review of Chart 2 in DT (Pwr DTBook #2)

-The first layer was the seat of individuality, and the second layer is sanskaras
-these are "unexpressed desires," which is to say, desires in latency, desires in the fine state. The sanskaras are not manifested.
This is where unmanifested sanskaras are located.

I. The Nature and Origination of Sanskaras

A. What are sanskaras? A metaphysical definition: Shankara's  Brahmasutrabhasya
and the idea of adhyasa (Pwr Ego Pt3#s  13 & 14)
-"The apparent presentation, to consciousness, by way of memory, of something previously observed in some other thing."
-The superimposition of one thing on another. From adhi = above, over + the
verbal root as to throw, cast.
-famous analogy of the serpent falsely seen in a coil of rope: bhas

B. The origination of sanskaras

1. The whim and the first word
-Discourses, lahar ("Formation and Function of Sanskaras," vol. 1, p. 48)
(Pwr Ego Pt3# 15)
-Infinite Intelligence, Desire as the Word, the first desire (p. 236) (Pwr Ego
Pt3# 17)

2. Their role in evolution ("The Formation and Function of Sanskaras" (1. 45-57)
-they originate in experience and become the basis for experience
-evolution of forms and the winding of sanskaras

II. The Sanskara Complex (Infinite Intelligence)

A. Sanskaras as the root cause: p. 248, last para: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 18)
"Summing up, then: the false thinking of the Infinite Mind, the unlimited Mind's limit, the existence of false egoism, the Mind's thinking the imagination (realizing the universe)-all of this is due to sanskaras. As are the sanskaras, so is the subtle body; and as is the subtle body, so is the gross body. In the same way, sanskaras determine experience. Thus, as are the sanskaras, so are the experiences of the universe."

B. The cycle from latency to expression. Description of the chain: latent sanskaras manifesting as desire precipitate in action. Actions bring upabhog, enjoyment. This leads to death; the subtle body changes riip, and this leads to the creation of a new body.  Thus the cycle of reincarnation (S11 pp. 232-33). (show  powerpoint slide: latency to wake  = Pwr  Ego Pt3# 19)

C. "Reading the book of nature" (p. 253): a noteworthy statement.

III. Taxonomies of Sanskaras:  (Pwr Ego Pt3#  21)

A. Categories (in terms of their origination): natural and unnatural sanskaras

1. We can define their difference in terms of their origination: evolution versus after evolution
2. We can define their difficulty in terms of the difficulty of their removal: natural
are difficult, non-natural and comparatively easier
3. Different shapes: spiral versus sine waves
4. Do we have any description of their qualitative difference?
-suggestion: the nature of the motive

B. Original coiled vs. later sine wave shapes (Pwr  Ego Pt3# 22&23)

1. Show image from the Tiffin Lecture of Nov. 29, Naosherwan's papers
2. Show the generation of the sine wave in the double-helix

C. The three Types of Sanskaras with Respect to Sphere and Manifestation: Gross, subtle, and mental (Disc I. pp. 55-56) (Pwr  Ego Pt3# 24 &25)

1. The Francis Brabazon material and question.

(a) My article reads: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 26)

In several scattered jottings Francis appears to be musing on sanskaras and their major types. Are what we call subtle sanskaras merely gross sanskaras thinned out sufficiently, or are gross and subtle sanskaras qualitatively different from each other? The same question arises, of course, regarding subtle and mental sanskaras. A note dated July 24 seems to give an answer. Throughout the course of evolution, we learn, sanskaras get thicker and thicker, and in the human form, they reach their thickest. When at last (through the long cycle of reincarnation) gross sanskaras have thinned out and vanished, all at once subtle sanskaras appear. At first these subtle sanskaras teem thickly like the gross sanskaras previously did, but gradually, they too get weeded out. When finally they have been killed off and disappear, then mental sanskaras emerge into view. All of this, evidently, was explained by Baba. One infers from it that gross, subtle, and mental sanskaras differ from each other not only quantitatively but in kind.

2. Correlation with three states: as latency, desire, and action (Infinite Intelligence)

(a) These are states of impressions, not different types of impressions. In their mental state, subtle state, and gross state. (Pwr Ego Pt3# 19&20)

(b) Discuss the similarities and differences between these three states of sanskaras with the three types of sanskaras (gross, subtle, mental).

D. Relations with past and futurity: Pandit Rajmani Tigunait in From Death to Birth
lists three types of karmas (Pwr Ego Pt3# 27):

1. Sanchita: dormant sanskaras. Like arrows in the quiver.
2. Prarabdha: active karma (Baba speaks of these in the discourse on the circle).
Like arrows in flight.
3. Kriyamana: potential karma. Analogy: like arrows that have not yet been made.

IV. Methods of Eliminating the Ego

A: The five methods of Eliminating Sanskaras (Discourses vol. 1, pp. 58-88).
(Pwr Ego Pt3# 28)

1. Listing of the Five (pp. 59-60) and the analogy of the stick and the string

a. Cessation of new sanskaras (comparable to stopping winding)

b. The wearing out of old sanskaras (comparable to wearing out the string at the place where it is)

c. The unwinding of past sanskaras (comparable to unwinding the sanskaras)

d. The dispersion and exhaustion of some sanskaras (comparable ...?)

e. The wiping out of sanskaras (comparable to cutting the string with scissors)

 

2. Techniques explained in the Discourses

a. Cessation, wearing out, and unwinding: first discourse ...

renunciation: (1) cessation
solitude and fasting
penance: produces (3) unwinding
withholding desires from fulfillment: produces (2) wearing out and (3)
unwinding
neti neti

b. Dispersion and exhaustion: second discourse

meditation
selfless service
Love

c. Wiping out: third discourse

thru intervention of Sadguru
intellectual vs. literal obedience

B. By means of the three yogas (Pwr Ego Pt3# 29)

By karma yoga
By jnan yoga
By Bhakti yoga

V. The Master and Sanskaras: Prarabdha, yogayoga, and vidyani sanskaras ("The Circle," vol. 3, pp. 38-43) (Pwr Ego Pt3# 30)

Definitions:

Prarabdha = regular sanskaras, the produce the destiny of the soul

Vidyani sanskaras =the sanskaras of the Avatar until realization, or the sanskaras of his circle members.

Yogayoga sanskaras = in the universal mind, that serve as channels for a
Master's work

 

 

SECTION FIVE. THE EGO AS A COMBINATION OF THE FIRST TWO LAYERS

I. Close study of DT Chart 2 vs. GS Chart X

A. DT shows the combination of "seat of individuality" and "sanskaras (unexpressed desires) the "unexpressed desires" implies latency, the fine state

B. In GS, this is much harder to make out.

C. A formal definition of the ego, the clearest in Meher Baba's literature. This is the subject of our workshop; here we are getting a definition of it!

II. Background of Indian psychology

A. Ahamkara and hunpana:

"ahamkara" is "I do." The sense of I-ness
"hunpana" means "I-ness"

 

B. Chit is consciousness, and this is ineluctably tied to "I." When the sense of "I" is mixed with latent desires, the "I" is false. "I" need not be false. Thus there is a Divine Ego of the Shivatma
C. Indian psychology does not break down "ahamkara" into constituents: this is
something that Baba adds to the traditional account. "Seat of individuality" and "sanskaras," as far as I know, do not take part in the classic Vedantic model, though sanskaras do figure in the Buddhist account
D. Antakarana: "the inner organ
-the Vedantic account does describe the ahamkara as one constituent in the antakarana, which is the larger false self.
-this appears to have been adopted by Meher Baba
-the antakaran is the false self without the subtle and gross body

 

 

III. Meher Baba's "ego" and "mind"

A. These two together comprise the "antakarana," which Baba calls "mind." Our English vocabulary is inadequate here. (Am I correct in correlating the Vedantic vocab and Baba's  account?)
B. The "ego" gives the sense of "I-ness" as distinguished from others. It is the
dropness colored by desires unexpressed. The mind is the mechanism of it all.

 

 

IV. The capacity of the ego to identify with and "become" other things

Read from "Reincarnation and Karma," pp. 83 3-84  (Pwr Ego Pt3# 31-32)

The soul, which in reality is one and undifferentiated, is apparently individualised through the limitations of the mental body which is the seat of the ego-mind. The ego-mind is formed by the accumulated impressions of past experiences and actions; and it is formation and continuation of ego-mind this ego-mind which constitutes the kernel of the existence of the reincarnating individual. The ego-mind, as a reservoir of latent impressions, is the state of the mental body. The ego-mind, becoming spirit and experiencing activated and manifested impressions, is the state of the subtle body. The ego-mind, as descended in the gross sphere for creative action, is the state of a physical incarnation. Thus the ego mind, which is seated in the mental body, is the entity which has all the phases of continued existence as a separate individual.

Is perhaps the ego the chameleon?

SECTION SIX - CHAITANYA  AS THE THIRD LAYER

1. The third layer is "Chaitanya

A. The source of this word "Chaitanya"

1. The word does not appear on the chart

2. What we find there are instinct, intellect, inspiration, illumination

3. I take the word from Infinite Intelligence: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 33)

IN THE FORMS OF INANMATE THINGS (jad vastu), the Chaitanya (for thinking) is most finite or almost nil; and so the Infinite Intelligence in stone form is in the most finite mind state. In vegetable form the Chaitanya is manifested to a very low degree or in its beginning aspect. In animal form (janvaro no akar man) the Chaitanya is more developed and advanced; and the Infinite lntelligence in the animal form is accordingly in the less-finite mind state. At this stage in its evolution, Chaitanya has become instinct. In the human form, thinking is most developed, in fact infinite; and so Chaitanya in the human form can be said to be in the reason state. But here, though Chaitanya is most developed, because of sanskaras it is made us of falsely for experiencing the universe (or the imagination) instead of for experiencing itself. Its false use is thus the cause of Chaitanya’s becoming reason in human form. If only this infinite Chaitanya in the human form could be made use of really, that is, if Chaitanya could be made void of sanskaras and used for Self-thinking instead of for thinking the imagination or universe, then it would be transformed into inspiration.

B. Definition of Chaitanya:

1. In the Supplement to II, p. 480: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 34)

This subtle relationship between Chaitanya and consciousness-"thinking" in "Infinite Intelligence-one might explain like this: consciousness (or thinking) is inherent to the soul, a fundamental attribute within its very nature. It is the Soul, the Atma, the Intelligence, individualized as the drop, that actually experiences and realizes all that is experienced and realized. The mind, by contrast, experiences nothing; the Atma merely uses it as an instrument or repository for the gathering and spending of sanskaras that are result of past and the cause of future experience. The mind in any given state of development, as illumined by the thinking of the Infinite Intelligence (or consciousness of the soul), might be characterized as the jiv; and that illumination could be called the "Chaitanya." Chaitanya, in other words, is not the pure Light itself, but rather, the illumination that is produced when that Light through the medium of a specific mind falls on a certain scene. One could liken Chaitanya to the glow that a flashlight produces, a glow proceeding from an illuminating source and bringing a circle of objects into visibility. Chaitanya might best be translated as "awareness," a concept that is built on and presupposes "consciousness" but that encompasses within its orb a surrounding environment of things that this awareness is aware of.

2. Chaitanya vs. consciousness: consciousness is pure and uncolored. Chaitanya is consciousness with the distinctive coloration of that phase. It is consciousness with the distinctive colors of its scene, the quality of the movement of consciousness in that setting

 

SECTION SEVEN MENTAL BODY OR MANAS AS THE FOURTH LAYER

 

I. Definition manas: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 39)

A. That aspect of mind that engages input from the outside. It is the hall of mirrors.
Takes sensory input and organizes it into conceptions

B. Connected with the indriyas
Manas is the level of the mind concerned with managing and conceptualizing input from the five senses. In Indian psychology, manas itself is regarded as the sixth sense.
The indriya-s are the five senses. Mind can attend to the stimulation of the sense, or not: this it is distinct from them, and in some sense governs over them.
Is manas the same thing ifMeher Baba's "mental body"? That is a matter that
needs to be researched.

II. An account of the genesis of the sense, based on Meher Baba and Vedanta

A. Pd1n and akash in Meher Baba's account (Pwr Ego Pt3# 40-41)

1. Originally they divide.
2. They meet and clash.
3. This produces the four elements.

B. Samkyya and its 25 tattvas: (Pwr Ego Pt3# 38)

 

SECTION EIGHT - THE "MIND" ARTAHKARANA ("INNER ORGAN") AS A COMBINATION OF THE FIRST FOUR LAYERS

I. The Structure of the False Self in Vedanta and the Classic Indian "Darshanas"
antahkararana ("the inner organ), comprised of- (Pwr Ego Pt3# 43)

A. chit ("consciousness")
B. buddhi ("intellect")
C. ahankar ("egoism")
D. manas ("mind")

II. The relationship between these four

A. Hierarchically ordered, from the mental to the gross
B. There is a clear rationale

III. Meher Baba's embrace and modification of these scheme

A. Meher Baba has changed the order: ahankara is higher than buddhi
B. Fundamentally "mind" in the larger sense is this
C. We need a term for this. I suggest we take "antahkarana"

 

SECTION NINE - THE SUBTLE BODY OR SOKSHMA  SHARTR AS THE FIFTH LAYER

 I. The subtle body in Meher Baba's cosmological account

A. Meher Baba's metaphysical description of the subtle body

1. One of the three bodies, mental, subtle and gross.
2. These three bodies are correlated to Knowledge, Power, and Bliss. The subtle body is correlated to Power. (Pwr Ego Pt3# 44)
3. Relationship between the three bodies:
-mental body is the karan sharir, causal body. Evidently the subtle body manifests seeds in the mental
-according to Infinite Intelligence, the subtle body forms a r p, and the gross body is the likeness of this

B. Some descriptions in the literature:

1. Deshmukh, Sparks of the Truth (Pwr Ego Pt3# 45)

 It is important to understand how  the Universal Body of the Masters
stands in relation to other bodies. The gross body is a sort of reflection of the subtle body. It is the exact counterpart of the subtle body. Or we might say that the subtle is a sort of gaseous impression of the gross. Such impression is in a very fine form in the mental body or the mind.

The mental body is like a brilliant  spark. When the souls, who have
attained the supramental Truth, come back, they assume the Universal Mind, which has as its medium the Universal Body. Krishna showed this Universal Body to Arjuna. The  Universal Body, sometimes called Mahakarana Sharira, is thinner than every other thing. It includes and embraces all the existing bodies and pervades the Universe.

2. "How It All Happened" and description of the early planes (read EMW, pp. 182-
84) (Pwr Ego Pt3# 46-48)

The prince in the first plane finds his gross body disconnected and set apart, and through his subtle body (which is like the gross body in every shape and detail, except that it is smoke like, vapory and transparent) attains the subtle experience. Into his subtle ears are poured forth streams of sweet, melodious, enchanting, thrilling and exquisite sound rhythms and beautiful tunes, the likes of which he never dreamt of. His subtle nose smells such a sweet, refreshing scent that he feels rejuvenated completely. His subtle eyes see different luminous ultra-colors and innumerable small circles of steady light with his Master's figure looming large in the circles.He now finds his gross body attached back to him and so returns to gross consciousness. But the tremendous impressions of the subtle experiences had such an effect on him as to leave him in a dazed condition.

In the second plane as in the first plane, the prince sees his gross body lying aloof and has more subtle experiences through his subtle body. He sees the innumerable, small circles of steady light becoming one limitless mass of shattered light. He experiences his subtle body traversing through the shattered mass of light, which he feels near him and with him during his travel. He thus feels inexpressible thrills of ecstasy during this sojourn. At times, he finds his subtle body merged in light. He sees millions of spirits without a dense body — vapory, smoke-like, transparent forms — moving about very rapidly and making signs to each other. He then sees these spirits dancing. This dancing of the spirits is so weird, so wonderful, and so fantastic that he is completely dumbfounded and enthralled. He now attains full knowledge from within himself of all that happens in the world. Through his subtle senses, he now exists and sees all the world affairs whenever he likes. From one corner of the world, he knows what is happening in the other corner of the world during the traversing in his subtle body through the subtle world.

Eventually he feels his gross body attached to him again, and so comes down to normal consciousness among other gross-minded people. Now, the deep impressions of the second plane have given him such powers as to be able to read the mind of anyone he likes if the person is nearby.

In the third plane, he again finds his gross body set apart and his subtle body so engulfed in the shattered mass of light and he finds himself to be a part of that light. The ecstasy is more intensified than it was in the second plane. He now sees millions of mental bodies of other advanced souls in the form of vapory seeds, and with his subtle body tries to make signs to them and to understand their signs. He feels inexpressible thrills all through his subtle senses. n time, he again finds his gross body attached to him and comes down to gross consciousness. The supernatural impressions of the third plane have given him such powers as to be able to perform miracles of healing with touch or thought or sight, and of reading the mind of any person irrespective of the distance in the world, and also the minds of other souls on the subtle plane.

In the fourth plane, the prince again finds his gross body disconnected and sees with his subtle eyes the unlimited mass of shattered light as one whole undivided ocean of steady light. He finds his subtle body traversing on the surface of the ocean of light. He sees other innumerable subtle bodies of other souls and also holds direct communication with the mental-bodied souls. The ecstasy is now tremendously more intensified.

When his gross body is reattached to him, he comes down to the level of other gross-conscious souls, but the super subtle-impressions of the fourth plane have now given him such supernatural powers as to enable him to raise the dead, give sight to the blind and also create temporary gross forms.

In the fifth plane, the prince finds both his gross and subtle bodies set aside and his mental (seed-like, vapory) body as the medium of his experiences. In the four lower planes, he sets aside his gross body and experiences his subtle body traversing in the light. In the fifth higher plane, he sets aside both his gross and subtle bodies, experiencing everything through his mental body. He now finds his mental body traversing the ocean of light and living on the same level as the mental-plane spirits. He not only has direct communication with them, but also feels attached to and linked with them. The ecstasy is immensely intensified and he finds in his mental-existence a regular flow of divine happiness.

Once again, he resumes both his gross and subtle bodies, and the lasting impressions of the fifth plane have given him such powers as to be able to know all the affairs and thoughts of the gross, subtle and mental worlds. But he does not use his powers, as he did when coming out the fourth plane.

Finally the prince and his wife die

 

 II. Raj and Kundalini yoga

A. The nadis of the sukshma sharir (Pwr Ego Pt3# 49-50)
The three nadis: Ida (left, lunar, pale color, yin, feminine, cooling, negative polarity, from right testicle to left nostril), pingala (right, solar, yang, male, red, positive polarity, open right nostril), sushumna (central)

1. The principal three

a. Ida - starting from the left nostril, moving to the crown of the head and descending to the base of the spine. In its course it conveys lunar energy and is therefore called Chandra nadi. Its function is cooling (tamas), inertia.
b. Pingala- (=tawny or reddish) starting at the right nostril moving to the
crown and down the spine to the base. As the solar energy flows through it, it is also called Surya nadi. Its function is burning (rajas), action.
c. Susumna- from the base of the spine to the crown of the head, up the centre
of the spine. Its function is Agni, Fire (sattva), illumination.

2. The 72,000 nadis

B. The Five Pranas (Pwr Ego Pt3# 51-53)
Prana, in its capacity of the life force in breath, takes five separate forms. These five vital forces (pancha prana) breathe life into your body:

1. Prana (up-breathing) is inward and downward motion. Seated in the heart (anahata chakra), it governs respiration, swallowing, and movements of the gullet. Prana resides in the eyes and ears, operates in the heart and lungs, and moves in and out of your nose.
2. Apana (down-breathing) is downward and outward motion. Seated in the anus (muladhara chakra) it governs excretion and the kidneys, bladder, genitals, colon and rectum. It is responsible for flatulence, ejaculation, conception,
childbirth, defecation and urination. It regulates the sense of smell, makes the body stable, and its range of influence is from the navel to the rectum.
3. Samana (on-breathing) is horizontal motion. Seated in the navel (manipura chakra), it maintains digestive fire and regulates stomach, liver, pancreas and intestine. Its realm of activity extends from the heart to the navel. Samana
carries the grosser product of food to Apana for excretion, and brings the subtler
material to the extremities. The word samana means "equaliser". The ancient scripture Yoga Sutras says "By conquering the vital force called Samana, effulgence is acquired." By developing Samana Vayu (current, impulse, vital air), all parts of your body are properly nourished, and the energy supplied by food is evenly distributed. By controlling Samana, you gain charisma and a powerful aura. It is said in the scriptures that "seven lights" proceed from Samana.
4. Udana (out-breathing) is upward and outward motion. Seated in the throat above the larynx (vishudda chakra), it regulates falling asleep, controls all automatic functions in the head and maintains body heat. Udana is responsible for speech, music and humming. At the time of death Udana separates the astral body from the physical body. By controlling Udana, levitation can occur. Udana is responsible for "kundalini" rising up your spine.
5. Vyana (back-breathing) is circular motion, a combination of Prana and Apana, by which these two are held. All-pervading and moving through all the nadis, it controls the circulatory, lymphatic and nervous systems, directs voluntary and involuntary movements of muscles, joints, tendons and fascia, and keeps the body upright through unconscious reflexes. Vyana is responsible for blood.

C. The Kundalini (Pwr Ego Pt3# 54-55)

1. Muladhara: The Root Chakra

Muladhara or root chakra is symbolized by a lotus with four petals and the color red. This center is located at the base of the spine in the coccygeal region. It is said to relate to the gonads and the adrenal medulla, responsible for the fight-or-flight response when survival is under threat. Muladhara is related to instinct, security, survival and also to basic human potentiality. Physically, Muladhara governs sexuality, mentally it governs stability, emotionally it governs sensuality, and spiritually it governs a sense of  security. [37]
Muladhara has a relation to the sense of smell. [38]
This chakra is where the three main nadis separate and begin their upward movement. Dormant Kundalini rests here, wrapped three and a half times around the black Svayambhu linga, the lowest of three obstructions to her full rising (also known as knots or granthis). [39] It is the seat of the red bindu, the female drop (which in Tibetan vajrayana is located at the navel chakra).
The seed syllable is Lam

2. Svadhisthana: The Sacral Chakra

Svadhisthana, Svadisthana or adhishthana is symbolized by a white lotus within which is a crescent moon, with six vermillion, or orange petals. The seed mantra is Vam, and the presiding deity is Brahma, with the Shakti being Rakini
(or Chakini ). The animal associated is the crocodile of Varuna.
The Sacral Chakra is located in the sacrum (hence the name) and is considered to correspond to the testes or the ovaries that produce the various sex hormones involved in the reproductive cycle. Svadhisthana is also considered to be related to, more generally, the genitourinary system and the adrenals. The key issues involving Swadisthana are relationships, violence, addictions, basic emotional needs, and pleasure. Physically, Svadhisthana governs reproduction, mentally it governs creativity, emotionally it governs joy, and spiritually it governs enthusiasm. [36]

3. Manipura: The Solar Plexus Chakra

Manipura or manipuraka is symbolized by a downward pointing triangle with ten petals, along with the color yellow. The seed syllable is Ram, and the presiding deity is Braddha Rudra, with Lakini as the Shakti. Manipura is related to the metabolic and digestive systems. Manipura is believed to correspond to Islets of Langerhans, [34] which are groups of cells in the pancreas, as well as the outer adrenal glands and the adrenal cortex. These play a valuable role in digestion, the conversion of food matter into energy for the body. The colour that corresponds to Manipura is yellow. Key issues governed by Manipura are issues of personal power, fear, anxiety, opinion-formation, introversion, and transition from simple or base emotions to complex. Physically, Manipura governs digestion, mentally it governs personal power, emotionally it governs expansiveness, and spiritually, all matters of growth.

4. Anahata: The Heart Chakra

Anahata, or Anahata-puri, or padma-sundara is symbolised by a circular flower with twelve green petals. (See also heartmind.) Within it is a yantra of two intersecting triangles, forming a hexagram, symbolising a union of the male and female. The seed mantra is Yam, the presiding deity is Ishana Rudra Shiva, and the Shakti is Kakini. Anahata is related to the thymus, located in the chest. The thymus is an element of the immune system as well as being part of the endocrine system. It is the site of maturation of the T cells responsible for fending off disease and may be adversely affected by stress. Anahata is related to the colours green or pink. Key issues involving Anahata involve complex emotions, compassion, tenderness, unconditional love, equilibrium, rejection and well-being. Physically Anahata governs circulation, emotionally it governs unconditional love for the self and others, mentally it governs passion, and spiritually it governs devotion.
In Tibetan Buddhism, this centre is extremely important, as being the home of the indestructible red/white drop, which carries our consciousness to our next lives. It is described as being white, circular, with eight downward pointing petals, and the seed syllable Hum inside. During mantra recitation in the lower tantras, a flame is imagined inside of the heart, from which the mantra rings out. Within the higher tantras, this chakra is very important for realising the Clear Light.

5. Visuddha: The Throat Chakra

Vishuddha (also Vishuddhi) is depicted as a silver crescent within a white circle, with 16 light or pale blue, or turquoise petals. The seed mantra is Ham, and the residing deity is Panchavaktra shiva, with 5 heads and 4 arms, and the Shakti is Shakini.

Visuddha may be understood as relating to communication and growth through expression. This chakra is paralleled to the thyroid, a gland that is also in the throat and which produces thyroid hormone, responsible for growth and maturation. Physically, Vishuddha governs communication, emotionally it governs independence, mentally it governs fluent thought, and spiritually, it governs a sense of security.

In Tibetan buddhism, this chakra is red, with 16 upward pointing petals. It
plays an important role in Dream Yoga, the art of lucid dreaming.

6. Ajna: The Brow Chakra

Ajna is symbolized by a lotus with two petals, and corresponds to the colors violet, indigo or deep blue. It is at this point that the two side nadis Ida and Pingala are said to terminate and merge with the central channel Sushumna, signifying the end of duality. The seed syllable for this chakra is the syllable OM, and the presiding deity is Ardhanarishvara, who is a half male, half female Shiva/Shakti. The Shakti goddess of Ajna is called Hakini.

Ajna (along with Bindu), is known as the third eye chakra and is linked to the pineal gland which may inform a model of its envisioning. The pineal gland is a light sensitive gland that produces the hormone melatonin which regulates sleep and waking up. Ajna 's key issues involve balancing the higher and lower selves and trusting inner guidance. Ajna 's inner aspect relates to the access of intuition. Mentally, Ajna deals with visual consciousness. Emotionally, Ajna deals with clarity on an intuitive level. [31]  (Note: some believe that the pineal and pituitary glands should be exchanged in their relationship to the Crown and Brow chakras, based on the description in Arthur Avalon's book on kundalini called Serpent Power or empirical research.)

In Tibetan Buddhism, this point is actually the end of the central channel, since the central channel rises up from the sexual organ to the crown of the head, and then curves over the head and down to the third eye. While the central channel finishes here, the two side channels continue down to the two nostrils.

7. Sahasrara: The Crown Chakra

Sahasrara, which means 1000 petaled lotus, is generally considered to be the chakra of pure consciousness, within which there is neither object nor subject. When the female kundalini Shakti energy rises to this point, it unites with the male Shiva energy, and a state of liberating samadhi is attained. Symbolized by a lotus with one thousand multicoloured petals, it is located either at the crown of the head, or above the crown of the head. Sahasrara is represented by the colour white and it involves such issues as inner wisdom and the death of the body.
Its role may be envisioned somewhat similarly to that of the pituitary gland,
which secretes hormones to communicate to the rest of the endocrine system and also connects to the central nervous system via the hypothalamus. According to author Gary Osborn, the thalamus is thought to have a key role in
the physical basis of consciousness and is the 'Bridal Chamber' mentioned in the
Gnostic scriptures. Sahasrara's inner aspect deals with the release of karma, physical action with meditation, mental action with universal consciousness and unity, and emotional action with "beingness".
In Tibetan buddhism, the point at the crown of the head is represented by a white circle, with 32 downward pointing petals. It is of primary importance in the performance of phowa, or consciousness projection after death, in order to obtain rebirth in a Pure Land. Within this chakra is contained the White drop, or Bodhicitta, which is the essence of masculine energy.

 

SECTION TEN. THE GROSS BODY OR STHUL  SHARIR

I. Baba says little about it except that it is one of the three bodies, mental, subtle, and gross.
II. Correlation with the three Divine Natures: Knowledge Power, and Bliss. The gross body "typifies" happiness. Thus it emblematizes bliss.
III. Much more can be said on subtle physiology. But we will go into this in the next
section (on the insan-e-kamil).
or sukshma sharir as the fifth layer
A. The gross body or sthula sharir as the sixth and outermost layer (vi)

Class 8b. "The Ego, Part 1."

Topic 2. "The Standard Model of the Ego in Meher  Baba's Philosophical Account"

Powerpoint: For Powerpoints, go to the Briarecliffe seminar on the ego,
5G24_Briarcliffe. Otherwise, go to the Denver seminar on the ego, 4H23_Denver. (Pwr  DTBook #)=Divine Theme_Charts&Text
(Pwr  Ego Pt2#) = Ego_6Sess_Explor2_Briar2015_5G24 [(Pwr Ego#)= Ego_Denver_4009]
(Pwr  GSCharts #) = GodSpeaks_Charts&Images_1st&2ndEds_ (Pwr IICharts #) = Infinite Intelligence Charts =Inflntel_Charts&ImagesAll_Jpegs_4E14
(Pwr  IIText  #) = Inflntel_TextPages_4H23 (Pwr TL#9) = TL#9_4H11
(Pwr How #)  = HowltAllHappened

On the Board:

The Standard Model of the Ego in Meher Baba's Philosophical Account

I. Historical Antecedents in Vedanta and Samkhya
II. The development of the model from the 1920s thru the 1940s
III. The structure of the ego from a synchronic standpoint: The gross-conscious human individuality
IV. The structure of the ego from a diachronic standpoint: The evolution of the ego from stone through advanced soul

Terms: Vedanta; buddhi, manas, ahankar, = chit= antahkarana; the "standard model"

 

PART ONE - HISTORICAL ANTECEDENTS IN VEDANTA AND SAMKHYA

(Pwr Ego #10 Pt 2)

I. Introduction of the early classical India schools of philosophy-the six darshanas
-Vedanta, Samkhya, Yoga, Mimamsa, Vaisesike, Nyaya

II. On the koshas

A. Derivation: this is a model from Vedanta and Samkhya, early Indian psychology from the classic darshanas

B. Elements: In Advaita Vedanta (Pwr Ego Pt2#11)

1. buddhi is one of four constituents-along with
2. manas (or "mind"),
3. ahankar ("egoism), and
4. chit ("consciousness")-

C. These collectively make up the antahkarana or "inner organ." Samkhya admits only three of these - buddhi, manas, and ahankar -as constituents of the inner
organ but shares the same general approach.

D. The five sheaths (pancha-kosas) are alluded to in the fourteen verse of the Atmabodha. From gross to fine they are: (Pwr Ego Pt2#12-13)

a. Annamaya kosha. food-apparent-sheath. (Earth element.) This is the sheath
of the physical self, named from the fact that it is nourished by food. Living through this layer man identifies himself with a mass of skin, flesh, fat, bones, and filth, while the man of discrimination knows
his own self, the only reality that there is, as distinct from the body.

b. Pranamaya kosha, air-apparent-sheath. Pranamaya means composed of prana, the vital principle, the force that vitalizes and holds together the body and the mind. It pervades the whole organism, its one physical manifestation is the breath. As long as this vital principle exists in the organisms, life continues. Coupled with the five organs of action it forms the vital sheath. In the Vivekachudamani it is a modification of vayu or air it enters into and comes out of the body. Pranamaya means composed of prana, the vital principle, the force that vitalizes and holds together the body and the mind. It pervades the whole organism, its one physical manifestation is the breath. As long as this vital principle exists in the organisms, life continues. Coupled with the five organs of action it forms the vital sheath. In the Vivekachudamani it is a modification ofvayu or air, it enters into and comes out of the body.

c. Manomaya kosha mind stuff-apparent-sheath. (Fire element? -Ward's guess.)  Manomaya means composed of manas or mind. The mind (manas) along with the five sensory organs is said to constitute the manomaya kosa. The manomaya kosa, or "mind-sheath" is said more truly to approximate to personhood than annamaya kosa and pranamaya kosha. It is the cause of diversity, of I and mine. Sankara likens it to clouds that are brought in by the wind and again driven away by the same agency. Similarly, man's bondage is caused by the mind, and liberation, too, is caused by that alone.

d. Vijnanamaya kosha, wisdom-apparent-sheath  (Vijnana). (Air element?­ Ward's guess.) Vijnanamaya means composed of vijnana, or intellect, the faculty which discriminates, determines or wills. Chattampi Swamikal defines vijnanamaya as the combination of intellect and the five sense organs. It is the sheath composed of more intellection, associated with the organs of perception. Sankara holds that the buddhi, with its modifications and the organs ofknowledge, form the cause of man's transmigration. This knowledge sheath, which seems to be followed by a reflection of the power of the cit, is a modification of prakrti. It is endowed with the function of knowledge and identifies itself with the body, organs etc.

This knowledge sheath cannot be the supreme self for the following reasons:

•    It is subject to change.
•    It is insentient.
•    It is a limited thing.
•    It is not constantly present.

e. Anandamaya kosha, bliss-apparent-sheath (Ananda). (Akasha element.) Anandamaya means composed of ananda, or bliss. In the Upanishads the sheath is known also as the causal body. In deep sleep, when the mind and senses cease functioning, it still stands between the finite world and the self. Anandamaya, or that which is composed of Supreme bliss, is regarded as the innermost of all. The bliss sheath normally has its fullest play during deep sleep: while in the dreaming and wakeful states, it has only a partial manifestation. The blissful sheath (anandamaya kosha) is a reflection of the Atman which is truth, beauty, bliss absolute. The following entry is for the utility of Hindu aspirants who are familiar with Panchakosha:

Just as each of the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, ether) appear in corresponding subtlety among each of the five senses, so too the intellect cognizes ever subtler causes and effects at play through each of the five sheaths. For example, the annamayakosha, the coarsest sheath, is based in the earth element, which is guarded by Ganesha, while the very subtlest sheath, Anandamaya, is based in the quanta/ether element, and is guarded by a black disc of utter darkness over the sun, which can be removed only by Ganesha.

Awareness of that reflection of atman/self within the most subtle sheath, Anandamayakosha,  however, is but the foundation for discerning that
which the elements, energies, senses, and kosha serve. To that end, one reexamines the components of the five koshas in daily devotional meditation after recitation of twenty-one OM, viz, one OM per each of the five elements, the five pranas, the five indriyas, and the five kosa, equaling twenty OM, then a twenty-first OM is offered for the ineffable, such that a spiritual discernment of ever-increasing subtlety arises in the purified intellect, alaya nirvijnana, the womb of the tathagata, wherein silence ensues and clarity blossoms.

 

PART TWO - THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MODEL FROM THE 1920S THRU THE 1940S

INTRODUCTION: Meher Baba's major development in the model of the ego took place between the 1920s and the 1940s. Not major structural development in His account occurred after that.

I. Infinite Intelligence (Pwr Ego Pt2#16-17)-study Figures 7 and 8 (Pwr Ego Pt2#16-
17) -read associated commentary (II p. 79, pdf)

II. Tiffin Lectures (Pwr Ego Pt2#18-20)

A. TL#9: on raj yoga Samadhi, etc.
-read from TL pp. 78-80 (Pwr Ego Pt2#18-19) about the layers of the false self
-read from the lecture about the Majzub and the raj yoga, TL pp. 81-83 (Pwr Ego

Pt2#18-20)
-study Figure (Pwr Ego Pt2 #20)

III. The 1940s [this is a placeholder; in the workshop, go quickly to the next section] A. Two major sources: the Discourses, and Divine Theme

B. The Divine Theme provides what I call the "standard model." The Discourses give the psychological account. These are both discussed further in what follows.

 

PART THREE - THE STANDARD MODEL. THE STRUCTURE OF THE EGO FROM A SYNCHRONIC STANDPOINT: THE GROSS-CONSCIOUS HUMAN INDIVIDUALITY   (Pwr DTBook #)

INTRO: The standard model= Representation of the Ego in the Divine Theme

I. Historical Background (Pwr DTBook, intro)

A. History ofthe Meherabad Gathering: 14-18 May 1943, 125 men called to
Meherabad. Full-day meditation on the charts. In the earlier months, Rano had drawn the charts.
-In Lord Meher on May 15 1943, it says: Then Baba handed out circular of
typed instructions. They involved: (1) keep in the background that God alone is real. (2) Infuse into others the idea that the goal of life is to realize God in his true, infinite aspect. (3) Think of yourself less and make others happy. (4)
Don't complain of your lot, etc.

B. Published later in 1943 by Adi

C. It is intended as a meditation on a chart.

D. Take a look at the two charts we have handed out.

 

II. Presentation of the Divine Theme

 

A. Three general parts: (1) the general introduction; (2) introduction to chart I; (3)
introduction to Chart II (Pwr DTBook: scroll through  slides to show entire
book)

B. Some characteristic themes:

1. General introduction:

-God as Oversoul (p. 1 2); ocean (p. 3 2) (Pwr DTBook #13 & 15)
-winding and unwinding of sanskaras
-"life of one drop-soul through its different stages" (p. 4  2) (Pwr DTBook
#9): this is just like God Speaks
-(pp. 4-5) (Pwr DTBook #16-17) evolution: increase in consciousness, and the twist
-reincarnation (p. 5-7) (Pwr DTBook#17-19)
-"process of ascent" (p. 7) (Pwr DTBook #19)
-soul as a drop in the Oversoul (pp. 7-8, two paras) (Pwr DTBook #19-20)

2. Chart I (pp. 9-12)
3. Chart II (pp. 12-16)  (Pwr DTBook #24-28)-read it out

III. Chart I

-relation between soul and "world":  cf. Master Chart in Infinite Intelligence. This is thinking the imagination.
-winding and unwinding
-sanskaras red circle, human shape = consciousness
-Master's soul: this appears again in Ten States of God in God Speaks
-Master's Soul in contact with all souls: cf. our version of Master Chart in Inflnt

PART FOUR - THE STRUCTURE OF THE EGO FROM A DIACHRONIC STANDPOINT: THE EVOLUTION OF THE EGO FROM STONE THROUGH ADVANCED SOUL

I. General Theme: psychology, and psychology in evolution
II. Close study

A. Evolution
-Increasing number of circles in evolution (study them
-this means emerging into manifestation; in fact mental body exists from the beginning
-from Early Messages, p. 175 (Pwr Ego Pt2#20) = (Pwr How #21)

The last vegetable forms contain finite Chaitanya, finite consciousness, soul, and energy. They also contain life sparks which are themselves made up of Chaitanya, energy, and the gross essence of vegetables. These life sparks are so minute in their form that they are visible only to the eye of spiritual insight. If millions and billions of these sparks muster together they would hardly form one-millionth part of a pin point. If thousands of such millionth parts were combined, they would collectively constitue the very first gross form of lie, which is called ‘bhanchua.”  Bhanchua has special importance as the first manifestation of gross life from the subtle. Nonetheless, even though it has emerged into the gross sphere, bhanchua is hardly perceptible through scientific instruments.

B. Reincarnation
Go  over the circles closely (Pwr DTBook #5-6)
C. Involution
D. God-realized Person

 

Segment Four, Second Exploration.
"The Standard Model of the Ego in Meher Baba's Philosophy"
Some Questions for Discussion

 

1. What we are calling the "standard model of the ego" could be characterized as a structural model. How so? The model represents the ego in terms of sheathes or koshas. How are these sheathes organized? What is on the inside and what is one the outside? What are some of the Indic-language names for constituent elements in the ego? (Examples: buddhi  and manas.) How do we render these concepts in English?

2. Compare Meher Baba's presentation of the ego of the ordinary, gross-conscious person
in Divine Theme, Chart 2 with some of the earlier representations of the false self in Infinite Intelligence and Tiffin Lectures. What do you find in common, and what has changed?

3. "Synchronic" means at a given point of time, and "diachronic" means through time.
Chart 2 in Divine Theme depicts the ego both diachronically (that is, in ins evolutionary and involutionary development) and synchronically (in its structure at every stage). Explain the chart with reference to these two terms.

Segment Four, Third Exploration "The Ego in its Circles and Layers: Ten Topics"
Some Questions for Discussion

1. The soul, at the core of each individuality in Chart 2, is one with the Oversoul. How would you describe the relationship between this core (marked "S" in the diagram) with the rings that surround it? What is the meaning of the two-headed arrow that runs from the core to a ring at or near the exterior?

2. The first ring, consciousness, is, according to the text of Divine Theme, that of which
the rings outside of it are layers. What does this mean? is consciousness, indeed, the Reality, identical with the core or soul (which is Atma, identical with Paramatma)? Or does a distinction need to be drawn?

3. What is the "seat of individuality"? note that the "seat" is not necessarily the same as "individuality" itself. Why is the "seat" interior to the other layers of the false self, such as sanskaras?

4. The layer of"sanskaras" is characterized as "unexpressed desires." Explain. Does this
refer to desires in latency? How do you account for the place of desires in the sequence consciousness - seat of individuality - sanskaras - intellect - mental body? What is the relationship between sanskaras and memory (note that memory does not receive discussion or representation in this model)? Is there a relationship between sanskaras and what Vedanta calls chitta?

5. This diagram characterizes the "ego" as a combination of two rings, the "seat of individuality" and "sanskaras." Explain. Can we take this as a formal definition of "ego" by Meher Baba? Does this definition work when we bring it to other texts and passages in His literary oeuvre, such as His three discourses on the subject?

6. The term "Chaitanya" does not appear in Divine Theme; it has been taken from Infinite
Intelligence and Tiffin Lectures, where it clearly applies to this faculty within the false self. Consider "intellect" within the diachronic, evolutionary sequence as depicted in Chart 2: instinct- intellect- inspiration- illumination. Explain. How would you definite Chaitanya itself, if it can assume all these different modes? What precisely is "intellect"?

7. While one might have understood "mental body" to mean the mind in its entirely, that is to say, another term for the false self, in this diagram it refers to one of the outer faculties of mind. What is the mental body? What does it do? What is its relation to intellect, and ego, and the senses (called indriya-s in the Indic languages)? Can we take it as an English translation of manas?

8. The "mind" is Chart 2 is represented as a combination of two layers, the "intellect" and
the "mental body." Explain. We have now seen two terms that designate pairs of rings, "mind" (for intellect and mentally body) and "ego" (for sanskaras and seat of individuality). Can we take these as reliable definitions to be applied throughout Meher Baba's oeuvre? Is there some sense in which these could be take as corresponding to "mind" and "heart"? Keep this question in mind for our discussion in Session 13

9. What is the relation between the subtle body and the gross body? Though Meher Baba
has rarely described the subtle body, in several places He characterizes it as smoke­ like, vapory, and gaseous. What does the subtle body look like? Could we rightly regard it as the site of the kundali? Raj and kundalini yoga speak of72,000 nadis or subtle canals within the sukshma sharir. Is this the same as the subtle body in Meher Baba's usage?

10. Raj yoga speaks of five pranas: prana, apana, samana, udana, and vyana. Explain and define.

11. If the trio-nature of God as Knowledge, Power, and Bliss is indeed homologous with the three bodies (mental-subtle-gross), then the gross body is the body corresponding to God's nature as Bliss. Could this possible be true? Explain.

12. Meher Baba has said that man is made in the image of God. Our most immediate
impression of "man" is the gross form. Are there ways in which the physical form of the human mirrors the divine? (This question leas us on to the Four Exploration.)

 

SECTION FOUR. THE STRUCTURE OF THE DIVINE INDIVIDUALITY OF THE SADGURU

(Pwr  DTBook #)

Study Chart II in Divine Theme. Point out that the representation of the Sadguru is identical to that in "Ten States of God"

 

SECTION FIVE. THE ENIGMA OF THE UNIVERSAL BODY AND UNIVERSAL MIND

I. Individual and universal (microcosm and macrocosm)

Cultural background: the issues of "universals" from the time of Plato and Aristotle
(Pwr  Ego #10)

A. Definitions: the "individual" is associated with thinking and the "universal" with imagination
B. Correlations with "thinking and imagination": individual is the body of the thinking, and universal is the body of imagination (explicit statement of this S2:p15 top) (Pwr Ego #1)
C. Universals: S7:ff118-10 lists universals for stone, vegetable, animal, human

1. Categorization of medieval philosophers vis a vis universals:
Depending on which of these items (universal features of singular things, their universal concepts, or their universal names) they regarded as the primary, really existing universals, it is customary to classify medieval authors as being realists, conceptualists, or nominalists, respectively. The realists are supposed to be those who assert the existence of real universals in and/or before particular things, the conceptualists those who allow universals only, or primarily, as concepts of the mind, whereas nominalists would be those who would acknowledge only, or primarily, universal words.

II. Infinite Intelligence on the correspondence of the individual and the universal

(Pwr Ego#12)

The advancement of the Universal Infinite Thinking through its subtle and gross forms is a universal advancement. Thus the progress is from universal subtle and gross stone form to universal subtle and gross vegetable form, to universal subtle and gross animal form, to universal subtle and gross human form.

As is the universal, so is the individual. All the innumerable individual stone forms, subtle and gross, are drops of the universal stone form ocean; and so with the various forms of evolution. Thus one universal subtle and gross stone form is (as it were) the ocean, and the innumerable individual subtle  and gross stone forms are (as it were) the drops; one universal subtle and gross vegetable form is the ocean, and the innumerable individual subtle and gross vegetables forms are the drop; one universal subtle and gross animal form is the ocean; and the innumerable individual subtle and gross animal forms are the drops; one universal subtle and gross human form is the ocean, and the innumerable individual subtle and gross human forms are the drops.

III. The Implications and Ramifications of this for the Sadguru's universal body

A. Bhagavad Gita and visva swarup
B. Cells of a body compared to the individual creation-preservation-destruction process.

 

Segment Four, Fifth Exploration.
"The Ego in Discourses: A Psychological Approach"
Some Questions for Discussion

 

1.  Meher Baba's three discourses on the ego were composed for publication in the Meher Baba Journal, a monthly periodical intended for Westerners as well as Easterners. Do you see a more Western-or perhaps we should say global-orientation in these essays, as compared with what we found in the "standard model"? Is the representation of the ego in the "standard model" indeed compatible with the discussion in three discourses?
2. The ego arises in the journey of the soul to fulfill a need. What is this need? At what stage, and why, does the ego become an impediment rather than a valuable asset?
3. According to the discourse "The Ego as the Centre of Conflict," what role does false
    valuation play in the life of the ego? How is this to be overcome?
4. In the second discourse "The Ego as an Affirmation of Separateness," Baba differentiates between the "explicit' and the "implicit ego." Explain this difference. How does the implicit ego intrude upon the conscious life of the explicit ego? How is this problem to be dealt with?
5.  In the third discourse "The Forms of the Ego and their Dissolution," Baba explains
how the ego sustains its existence through the apparently contradictory yet ultimately complementary modalities of the "superiority complex" and the "inferiority complex." Explain this relationship. How is the aspirant's surrendrance to the Master to be differentiated from a inferiority complex? What role does the Master play in the reintegration of what had been ego-life?

 

 

Talk 5. "Good and Evil"

 

Readings:
Discourses, vol. 1, "Good and Evil," pp. 89-97
Discourses, vol. 1, "Maya, Part I. False Values," pp. 142-48

Powerpoints:
(Pwr Prt5_TruthValues #)
(Pwr Disc_Maya+Aids #) = Disc_Vol3_1OMayaPtl-IV+Aids
(Pwr Disc_GoodEvii #) = Disc_Vol1_10_GoodAndEvil

Outline: Introduction

I. Metaphysical Backgrounds
II. The problem of Good and Evil: the Absolutist and the Nihilistic Positions
III. A review of the Discourse on Good and Evil
IV. Some Case Studies

INTRODUCTION: Formulating a balanced understanding or the role of ethics (a) within our community life as Baba lovers, and (b) in relation to the highest truth

 

SECTION ONE. Metaphysical Backgrounds

I. Levels of reality in Eastern spiritual tradition

A. The Two Truths doctrine in Nagarjuna

1. The distinction between the two truths (satyadvayavibhaga) was fully
developed by Nagarjuna (c. 150- c. 250 CE) and the Madhyamika school. The Madhyamikas distinguish between lokasamvritisatya, "world speech truth" c.q. "relative truth" c.q. "truth that keeps the ultimate truth concealed," and paramarthika satya, ultimate truth. Lokasamvritisatya can be further divided in tathyasamvrti or lokasamvrti, and mithyasamvrti or alokasamvrti, "true
samvrti" and "false samvrti."Tathyasamvrti or "true samvrti" refers to "things"
which concretely exist and can be perceived as such by the senses, while
mithyasamvrti or "false samvrti" refers to false cognitions.
2. In Buddhist context, samvriti or samvriti-satya (Sanskrit) refers to the conventional (sarhvriti), as opposed to absolute, truth or reality (satya). Knowledge is considered as split into three levels: The first being the illusory (called samvriti, parikalpita or pratibhasika according to different schools of thought), considered false compared to the empirical (samvriti, paratantra or vyavaharika), in turn trumped by the transcendental
(paramartha or paramarthika). Compare: paramartha. Sanskrit: sarrzvrti. 3. The Buddhist doctrine of the two truths (Wylie: bden pa gnyis) differentiates between two levels of satya (Sanskrit), meaning truth or "really existing" in Buddhist discourse: relative or commonsensical truth or real, and absolute or ultimate truth or real.
4. Relative or commonsense truth (Sanskrit samvrtisatya, Pali sammuti sacca,
Tibetan kunrdzob bdenpa), which describes our daily experience of a concrete world, and Ultimate truth (Sanskrit, paramarthasatya, Pali paramattha sacca, Tibetan: dondam bdenpa), which describes the ultimate reality as sunyata, empty of concrete and inherent characteristics. The Sanskrit term for relative, "sarrzvrti", also implies nuanced concepts such as false, hidden, concealed, or obstructed. The conventional truth may be  interpreted as "obscurative truth" or "that which obscures the true nature" as a result. It is constituted by the appearances of mistaken awareness. Conventional truth would be the appearance that includes a duality of apprehender and apprehended, and objects perceived within that. Ultimate truths, are phenomena free from the duality of apprehender and
apprehended.

B. Levels of reality in later Buddhism

Trisvabhava, (Sanskrit: "three forms of existence") in Buddhism, the states of the real existence that appear to a person according to his stage of understanding. Together with the doctrine of storehouse consciousness (alaya­ vijnana), it constitutes the basic theory of the Vijnanavada ("Consciousness­ affirming") school of Buddhist thought. The trisvabhava theory was first taught in the Prajnaparamita ("Perfection of Wisdom") sutras, a group of Mahayana texts composed between the 1st century BCE and the 3rd century CE,  and was elaborated upon by the Vijnanavada school.

The three forms of existence are:
1. Parikalpita-svabhava  ("the form produced from conceptual construction"), generally accepted as true by common understanding or by convention of the unenlightened.
2. Paratantra-svabhava  ("the form arising under certain conditions"), the real form of phenomenal existence free from verbal expression; the world of dependent origination (pratitya-samutpada).
3. Parinishpanna-svabhava ("the form perfectly attained"), the ultimate truth of transcendental emptiness (shunyata).

C. Three levels of reality in Vedanta: (i) paramarthika satta and vyavaharika satta.

1. Definitions: (Pwr  Prt5_TruthValues  #2)

a. paramarthika satta-the ultimate  reality which is non-dual
b. vyavaharika satta-empirical  reality
c. pratibhasika satta-the world of illusory existence

2. Its pertinence to this question:

a. At the highest level of reality, there is no good and evil
b. At the empirical level, good and evil have to be dealt with

II. Truth in Values: "Maya.  Part 1. False Values." (Pwr Disc_Maya+Aids #1-4)

A. Review of the argument of the discourse

1. Definition  of falsehood:  "Falsehood consists  in taking the true as being false or the false as being true, i.e. , in considering something  to be something  than what in itself it really is" (pp. 142--43)
2. Two kinds of knowledge: intellectual judgments about facts, and judgments of
valuation  (p. 143  2)
3. Three kinds of false valuation:  (i) taking as importantwhat is unimportant, (ii) taking as unimportant what is important,  and (iii) giving to a thing an importance other than the importance  which it really has (p. 143-44).  Baba gives examples of all three of these (pp. 144--48)

B. At the core, the essence of false valuation lies because of the influence of desire (p. 144  3).
This is the connection with good and evil! This dichotomy is based on desire and the desire to escape from desire.

III. Metaphysical Foundation for the dichotomy of good and evil: The opposites (for a fuller discussion,  see Class 13 in Meheranas  2013on Tawhid)

A. Unity and duality and the problem  of tawhid

1. The basic problem:  if God is one, where do two come from?
2. Maya: Elsewhere Baba has developed this theme with reference to the idea of
Maya or the principle of illusion.
3. Tawhid inheres in the nature of the relationship between the Nothing and the
Everything, which Baba brings into the story in Part 8, the opening

a. The Everything s and the Nothing is not. Thus oneness isn't vitiated.
b. Creation is an elaboration of the Nothing
c. Terms: the Everything, the Nothing, nothingness, and the everything.

B. Maya and the reversal (Pwr  Prt5_TruthValues #4-5)

1. Maya: what is Maya?
-as falseness  (in "false  thinking")
-as that which causes one to see what is Real as false and what is false as Real; that causes Nothing to seem to be Everything and Everything to seem to be Nothing

2. The crossing lines of thinking and imagination give the theoretics of this [S10].
This is another manifestation of Maya

C. Treatment of the Everything and the Nothing  in God Speaks

1. The major discussion is in the opening of Part 8
2. Later books using this idea

a. The Everything and the Nothing (1963)
b. Bhau's The Nothing and the Everything

3. Major definitions (based on GS pp. 76-81) (Pwr Prt5_TruthValues #3)
Everything = the infinite Reality of God
Nothing= absolute nonexistence, inherent and include in the Everything of
God. One is fully conscious of it in the Nirvana state.
Nothingness= the manifestation of the Nothing, through the Om Point, as the infinite creation
[false everything = the creation which appears to be everything but is really
nothingness]

D. Formulations of the Same Idea in the 1920s

1. In God's Hand and Illuminationism (Pwr Prt5_TruthValues #6-8)

a. In IGH, Baba presented this same basic idea, but using the language of illuminationism: Light and Darkness
b. Four key terms: Natural Light, Natural Darkness, unnatural darkness,
unnatural light

2. Infinite Intelligence on Thinking and Imagination

a. Show Chart 11, "The Crossing Lines of Thinking and Imagination,"

b. Point out that this basically means the same thing as Everything and
Nothing. They seem different since II characterizes the dichotomy in terms
of conscious activity, whereas the Everything-Nothing terminology reifies;
but it adds up to the same thing.

E. Opposites Based on the Divine Attributes

1. The fundamental characteristic of this kind of opposite is that one is the Real and the other is the illusion. The question in Baba's metaphysics that this topic speaks to: how the many can emerge out of One.

a. These are the opposites thru which Maya comes into being.
b. Relation between the opposites: one represents the Real and the other the false
c. It is as if the Everything and the Nothing is being played out with respect to every opposite
d. They are linked by a common attribute.
e. The primary duality seems to be getting played out in its shadow form in the opposites

2. Contrariety in GS part 2
-this as the original experience
-the crossing lines produce this contrariety: Everything seems to be Nothing, and Nothing seems to be Everything.

3.  The opposites (JL Series 5) (Pwr Prt5_TruthValues #

-opposite pairs arise from a single root attribute

 

Light (Prakash) is	Darkness (Andbakar) is
Intelligence	Imagination
Knowledge (kalnen, ‘to know’	Ignorance
Everything	Nothing
The Infinite (Khuuda, God)	The most finite (jag, ‘world’)
Paramatma (Oversoul)	universe

SECTION TWO. THE PROBLEM OF GOOD AND EVIL: THE ABSOLUTIST AND THE NIHILISTIC POSITIONS

I. The negation of the dichotomy of good and evil: pros and cons

A. Pros: the case for the rejection of the good-evil dichotomy

1. Common memes in the Baba world
-God is beyond good and evil
-"don't judge": the critique of judgmentalism.  But the dichotomy of good and evil is the basis for judgment and condemnation

2. Examples:
-a Christian fundamentalist who condemns sin, or a ISIS radical who beheads heathen. Such judgements seem monstrous and support the case against moral judgements generally.
-Valmiki who killed 99 people and after killing the 1ooth gets God­realization. This illustrates how the performance of evil can lead to liberation

B. Con: the case against abandoning the dichotomy of good and evil

1. Are we really prepared for the consequences of rejecting the idea of good and evil? Some examples:
-a rapist and a murderer: are we really unwilling to oppose such action?
-let's take politically correct sins: discriminating against a back? We're not willing to criticize that, or oppose it?

2. People often say that they are rejecting good and evil and judgementalism when in fact they are merely substituting one moral conception for another.
-I often find this is the rejection of fundamentalism. People condemn
fundamentalists for their moralism. Yet those rejecting fundamentalists condemn them on moral grounds as well.
-oftentimes the sixties generation rejected sexual mores. Yet we are fully prepared to condemn people who act against our sixties moralities. Condemning corporations, or condemning discrimination
-thus rejecting good and evil is often just a cover for replacing one moral system with another

3. Heaven and hell illustrate the fact of good and evil
-evil action lead to hell and good action leads to heaven. This goes to prove empirically that good and evil are realities.
-they are not just standards voluntarily adopted or rejected. They have a reality beyond one's subjective will.

4. The idea of justice presupposes good and evil as a moral dichotomy
-the idea of justice is based on a correlation oftwo dichotomies, the good-evil dichotomy and the happiness-suffering dichotomy. Justice implies that
good produces happiness and evil produces suffering.
-cosmic justice implies that such a correlation occurs in reality
-the law of karma is a law of cosmic justice
-this implies a reality to the good-evil dichotomy

C. Some fundamental themes

1. The issue of nihilism in the abandonment of good and evil
2. What is true tolerance?
-is it a rejection of the dichotomy of good and evil? Or is it a maintenance of a moral framework while recognizing a transcendent dimension?

III. Case of the Ten Commandments: do these comprise moral absolutes?
-We will return to this later. For the present, just read them out. (Pwr

Prt5_TruthValues #10-12)
-are these moral absolutes?

IV. Levels of truth: a necessary distinction

A. Recalling the Vedantic distinction between paramarthika satta and vyavaharika satta: absolute truth versus empirical truth

B. Application: on the level of absolute truth, there is no good and evil. But on the level of empirical reality, good and evil play a necessary, though provisional, role. Can we agree on this?

 

 

SECTION THREE
A REVIEW OF THE DISCOURSE ON GOOD AND EVIL

 (Pwr Disc_GoodEvil #1-5)

Reading: "Good and Evil," in Discourses, vol. 1, pp. 89-97

I. Major opening themes (pp. 89-90)

A. The role of the opposites
-good and evil is spiritually the most significant dichotomy
B. Relationship of this dichotomy to desire: "It is based upon man's desire to be free from the limitation of desire."

II. Definition of good and evil (p. 90 2)

A. Definition: "Those experiences and actions which increase the fetters of desire are bad, and those experiences and actions which tend to emancipate the mind from limiting desires are good."
B. Analysis:

1. Both good and evil exist in relation to desire: [the division between good and evil] "It is based upon man's desire to be free from the limitation of all desires."
2. Study this: is good the emancipation from desire itself, or is it action based upon the desire for such emancipation?

III. An interjection: conventional good versus personal good

A. Baba does not go into conventionalized codes of good and evil versus primate ideas of this, but this distinction is surely relevant.
B. Some examples:
-Baba tells us that repeating his name is good, while the world would not affirm this.
-in Anglo-Saxon England vengeance was a duty, whereas now vengeance is seen
as an evil
C. The interplay between personal ethics and conventionalized ethics

1. It is not possible personally to be altogether free from the conventionalized ethics of an age
2. A personal code of ethics can be better attuned to spiritual reality
-example of Rumi who carried a jug of wine through town because he was ordered to do so by Shams

D. Argument for the existence of a true ethics:

1. Heaven and hell
2. The law of karma
3. But such true ethics must be situational. There must be change between one age and another

IV. The evolutionary perspective (pp. 90-91)

A. Because of man's evolutionary heritage, most sanskaras from the past are bad. This creates a mandate for the performance of good sanskaras to balance the bad of the past

V. The balancing of Good and Bad

A. False self can live in good as well as bad (pp. 92-93)
B. Good need to overlap bad (p. 93 2)
C. Ego transfers to the good (p. 93-94). Prison of the good (p. 95  2)
D. The experience of good and the experience of evil (pp. 95-96)
E. Analogies for overlapping sanskaras-eliminating good with bad is like getting rid of grease with dust (p. 96)

VI. Realization is freedom from both good and bad

 

SECTION FOUR. GENERAL COMMENTARY

 

I. Perspective on the discourse: it is looking at good and evil not so much from a metaphysical as from a practical perspective, that of a spiritual aspirant who is trying to work through this dichotomy
II. The higher evolution of ethics: identification of the "good" with the Beloved's pleasure

A. Return to the definition: serving the Beloved's pleasure brings about emancipation from thralldom to desire -which is the definition of the good

 

Class 11. "The Ego, Part 4"

Exploration. "The Ego in Discourses: A Psychological Approach"

Powerpoint:
(Pwr Ego#)= Ego_Denver_4H21
(Pwr DiscEgo) = Vol2_7_Parts1 thru III_Ego
Visuals:

On the Board:

Treatment of the Ego in Discourses

I. Pragmatic Guidance to the Dissolution of the Ego in Discourses
II. Part 1: "The Ego as the Center of Conflict"
III. Part 2: "The Ego as an Affirmation of Separateness"
IV. "The Forms of the Ego and their Dissolution"
V. General Discussion

 

SECTION ONE
PRAGMATIC GUIDANCE TO THE DISSOLUTION OF THE EGO IN DISCOURSES

I. Comparison of the nature of the enterprises: the structural analysis in Divine Theme vs. the pragmatic guidance to seekers in Discourses

A. Historical coincidence:

1. Divine Theme resulted from a meeting at Meherabad in May 1943
2. "The Nature of the Ego and Its Termination" was published in Aug, Sept, and
Oct 1940, that is, vol. II nos. 10-12

B. Yet the approaches are completely different.
C. Divine Theme culminates twenty years of structural analysis following the Indian koshas model.
-a kind of scientific study, an anatomy
-not addressed to ordinary seekers
D. The enterprise in Discourses

1. An astonishing alteration of viewpoint!
2. What has been left out:
-No allusion whatsoever to sheathes and koshas.
-No attempt to relate the ego as such to the greater structure of the mind or the false self.
-Very little mention of sanskaras
-almost no technical vocabulary, except a few Western psychological terms
(such as inferiority complex and unconscious)
3. Reflection of the Western perspective: an awareness of psychology, subjective introspection
4. Direct address to the ordinary, universal seeker
5. From the standpoint of the ordinary seeker, practical guidance on how to dissolve the ego.
-an understanding of its origins and what it is
-its forms
-how to get rid of it

II. Question: is the root concept of the ego the same as in Divine Theme?

A. Caveat:  Baba's terms sometime change over time B. Yet I feel that He has kept the same basic definition C. Basic definitions

1. Divine Theme: seat of individuality + sanskaras
2. Discourses: assertion of separateness
3. The ego as unlimited reactivity
-it can identify with and become everything
4. The ego as the locos of Maya on the individual scale

D. Some key definitions:

1. Second discourse, first page, p. 66 (Pwr DISCEGO  #5):

The ego is an affirmation of separateness. It takes many forms. It may take the form of a continued self-conscious memory expressing itself in recollections like, “I did this and I did that; I felt this and I felt that; I thought this and I thought that.” Ego is an affirmation of separateness It also takes the form of ego-centred hopes for the future expressing themselves through plans like, “I shall do this and I shall do that; I shall feel this and I shall feel that; I shall think this and I shall think that.” Or again in the present, the ego manifests itself in a strong feeling of being someone in particular and asserts its distinctness and separateness from all the other centres of consciousness. While provisionally serving a useful purpose as a centre of consciousness, the ego, as an affirmation of separateness, constitutes the chief hindrance to spiritual emancipation and enlightenment of consciousness.

III. Organization of the three discourses

A. review of all three
B. Part 1: "The Ego as the Center of Conflict":
-This fundamentally looks at the ego within itself, as embodying disunity internally.
C. Part 2: "The Ego as an Affirmation of Separateness"
-This looks as the ego as against others, the ego looking outwards, as the principle of disunity in that arena
D. Part 3: "The Forms of the Ego and their Dissolution"

1. Two topics:

(a) Inferiority and superiority complexes
(b) Surrender to the Master as the road to dissolution

 

SECTION TWO. PART 1: "THE EGO AS THE CENTER OF CONFLICT"

I. Preview

A. Its fundamental orientation is to see the principle of disunity reflected internally within the ego, making it the seat of conflicts
B. The discourse has two basic movements:
Movement 1, introductory: the ego in evolution and its arising as a necessary evil
Movement 2, the heart of the discourse: How conflicts arise in the ego and how to deal with them

II. Review of the Argument

A. Origin of the ego and the need it serves (p. 56 top thru 58  2)

-the difference between the prehumen ego and the explicit ego of human form
(great first para!)
-the ego provides a principle of integration (p. 56 last thru p. 57)
-The need which the ego serves, compared to the ballast of a ship (p. 57  2)
-a necessary evil (p. 58  2)

B. Falseness of the ego (p. 58 2 thru p. 59  1)

-the illusion of dividing the totality of life into internal and external life
-ego becomes seat of conflicts

C. Valuation (p. 59 2 thru p. 60  2)

-the ego tries to solve conflicts thru false valuation, always choosing the unimportant and neglecting the important (p. 59 

2)
-conflicts can be solved thru true valuation (p. 60  1)

D. The matter of choice (p. 60 3 thru p. 62  2)

-the need for intelligent choice based on real and permanent values
(p. 60 3 thru p. 61)
-fidelity to choice (p. 61  2)
-true valuation in all things: (p. 62  2)
: ordinary as well as "serious" (three quarters of our life is made up of ordinary things) : conflicts need to be brought  to the surface of consciousness

E. Hidden conflicts (pp. 62 3 thru 63) (read the whole para!)
F. The idea as motive power (p. 63  2). There needs to be a motivational force behind these intelligence choices. Modem psychology has not yet discovered how to awaken inspiration.
G. Disintegration of the ego-centre thru right valuation

 

III. Passages

A. p. 56, first :

In the pre-human stage consciousness has experiences, but these experiences are no explicitly brought into relation with the central ‘I’. The dog is angry, but he does not continue to fee, “I am angry”. Even in his case we find that he learns through some experiences and thus bases the action of one experience on another, but this action is a result of a semi-mechanical tension of connected imprints or sanskaras. It is different from the intelligent synthesis of experiences which the development of I-consciousness makes possible. The first step in submitting the working of isolated impressions to intelligent regulation consists in bringing them all into relation with the centre of consciousness which appears as the explicit limited ego.  The consolidation of the ego-consciousness is most clear and defined from the beginning of human consciousness.

1. p 58

It is of the essence of the ego that it should feel separate from the rest of life by contrasting itself with other forms of life. Thus, though inwardly trying to complete and integrate individual experience, the ego also creates an artificial division between external and internal life in the very attempt to feel and secure its own existence.

1. page 62  3

 

The sure sign of a real hidden conflict is the sense that the whole of one’s heart is not in the thought or action which happens to be dominant at the moment. There is a vague feeling of a narrowing down or a radical restriction of life. On such occasion an attempt should be made to analyse the mental state through deep introspection, for such analysis brings to light the hidden conflicts concerning the matter.

On the need for an ideal:

 

The most important requirement for the satisfactory resolution of conflict is motive power or inspiration, which can only come from a burning longing for some comprehensive ideal. Analysis in itself may aid choice, but choice will remain a barren and ineffective intellectual preference unless it is vitalised by zeal for some ideal appealing to the deepest and most significant strata of human personality. Modern psychology has done much to reveal the sources of conflict, but it has yet to discover methods of awakening inspiration or supplying the mind with something which makes life worth living. This indeed is the creative task facing the saviours of humanity.

IV. Major themes

A. On the provisional role which the ego plays and its necessity in evolution. (Also, on the difference between instincts and intelligence)
B. On disunity projecting within as conflict
C. The key to the assault on the ego lies in valuation and choice. This is the main focus of the discourse
D. Thus it is very pragmatic and affirms the effective power of the free will
E. The emphasis is on discriminative power together with inspiration.

 

SECTION THREE. PART 2
"THE EGO AS AN AFFIRMATION OF SEPARATENESS"

I. Preview

A. This is an analysis of the ego's self-affirmation in separateness with respect to the outside
B. The discourse generally looks at "internal" strategies by which the ego affirms
separateness. Desires, guerilla tactics, etc. Yet all of this is the ego vis a vis the outside.
C. It deals with desires, and what is conscious and unconscious

II. Review of the Argument

A. Basic definition (p. 65): the ego as an affirmation of separateness (Pwr Discego
#5)

B. Ego feeding on feelings (pP. 66 top thru 68)

-feelings of craving, hate, anger, fear, and jealousy feed the division between "I" and "you"
-jealousy as an especially poignant case (pp. 66 thru 67) [:note: lust does not get mentioned]
-love is the inclusive attitude that bridges the artificial gulf between I and you
 (Pp.72 thru 68)

C. The ego is made of desires and implemented by desires (p. 68)

D. Subconscious and conscious dimensions (pp. 68  thru 70)

-limited ego of explicit consciousness is like the visible part of an iceberg, one seventh (pp. 68 -- 68)
-the ego is innately heterogeneous, and for this reason, not all of it can become
expressed and on the surface at the same time (p. 69)
-explicit ego and implicit ego: explicit ego constitutes a barrier keeping contents from implicit ego from arising (pp 69 – 70)
-intensified conflict means of attaining unassailable harmony: the contents of
implicit ego have to be brought to the surface and dealt with intelligently (p.70)
: here the previous discourse, with its discussion of right valuation and decisions, would come to bear. this present discourse does not go into the matter.  

E. How to deal with contents of implicit ego after they have been brought into explicit consciousness (pp. 70- 73)

-one the contents has been dredged up into consciousness, dealing with it is tricky, because the ego lives through the opposites of experience (pp. 70 - 71)
-ego is hydra-headed. Pride is directly indicative of the ego. Pride can feed on anything. Since most social codes prohibit direct assertions of egoism, ego
feeds on slander, which accomplishes the same goal (of comparison) indirectly.
(pp. 71 - 72)
-Tricks of the ego: it attacked, the ego can seek refuge in spirituality. And thus arises the spiritual ego. (p72)
-guerilla warfare: the ego's methods are so deceptive that it becomes almost
impossible to oust it (pp 72. - 73)

F. Master is the last resort (pp. 73 -74). Dealing with the ego is so impossible that at last the aspirate gives the matter over to the master. But this last resort method provides to be the most effective.

III. Passages

A. (p. 65): the ego as an affirmation of separateness

THE ego is an affirmation of separateness. It takes many forms. It may take the form of a continued self-conscious memory expressing itself in recollections like, “I did this and I did that; I felt this and I felt that; I thought this and I thought that.” Ego is an affirmation of separateness It also takes the form of ego-centred hopes for the future expressing themselves through plans like, “I shall do this and I shall do that; I shall feel this and I shall feel that; I shall think this and I shall think that.” Or again in the present, the ego manifests itself in a strong feeling of being someone in particular and asserts its distinctness and separateness from all the other centres of consciousness. While provisionally serving a useful purpose as a centre of consciousness, the ego, as an affirmation of separateness, constitutes the chief hindrance to spiritual emancipation and enlightenment of consciousness.

IV. Major Themes

A. The major theme is on how the ego affirms separateness
B. The major division in the discourse is between the conscious aspect and unconscious aspect.

1. The conscious aspect involves feelings of separateness that the ego feeds on
2. The division between explicit and implicit ego, the conscious and the subconscious, makes all thus much more difficult.
3. The last part involves dealing with subconscious content of the implicit ego
when it starts to emerge into the picture

C. Note: the discourse does not talk about lust. Is egoism at a higher level, a mental level?
D. This discourse, like the last, gets to inner conflict; but now it does so entirely from the standpoint of the conscious and unconscious ego. It doesn't talk about right valuation.
E. The discourse arrives in the last para at the Master.

SECTION FOUR. PART 3: "THE FORMS OF THE EGO AND THEIR DISSOLUTION"

I. Preview

A. This discourse has two sections:

1. The forms of the ego, with superiority and inferiority complexes
2. The method of surrendrance to the Master

B. This discourse arrives at the Master, as most of the discourses do

II. Review of the Argument

A. "Mine" and possessions are what the ego subsists on (p. 75)
: mundane possessions include power, fame, wealth, ability, attainments and accomplishments
B. Inferiority and superiority complexes (pp 76 -78)

-Forms of the ego: against the implied background of duality, comparison and contrast cannot forever be stilled (p76)
-Idea of equality: a temporary fleeting balance between these two, and as such,
a negative assertion of the ego (p. 76)
-Two complexes: superiority and inferiority (p. 77l)
-Superiority complex: ego is confronted with the spectacle of its worthlessness, so it clings to worth by possessions (p. 77)
-Inferiority complex: it is never wholehearted, since there is a lurking jealousy or hatred  (pp. 77 - 78)

C. Surrender to the Master (pp. 78 - 80)

-surrender is different from the inferiority complex (pp. 78 - 79)
-Intervention by the master: the Master both encourages and prunes ego
(p79)
-Adjustment to the Master involves dissolution of the complexes through mutual tension:  (pp. 79 - 80)

D. Analogy of the Driver (pp 80 - 81)

E. Integration around a nucleus (pp.81 - 84l)

-Ego attempts integration around a false idea: (pp. 81- 82)
-Master becomes new nucleus of integration: (pp. 82 - 83)
-Union with the Master is realization of the Truth: (pp. 83- 84)

 F. Review of evolution: (p84)

III. Passages

IV. Major Themes

A. Mundane possessions include power, fame, wealth, ability, attainments and accomplishments: all of these, again, relate to the higher aspects of the false self
B. Inferiority and superiority complexes: these ideas are directly from Western psychology
C. A major digression on the subject of equality! One of the few treatments of this major political concept in Meher Baba's writings.

 

SECTION FIVE. GENERAL DISCUSSION I. Some Topics Left Out

A. The heart and the Head (Discourses)
B. Thoughts, feelings, and desires (God Speaks)

II. Discussion: the two major topics and their integration

 

DIVINE THEMEs

 

Links Below!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Archive Library links

Video Libraries
Meher Baba Radio Hour - The Oral History Channel
Meher Baba Television Hour - The Video History Channel
Meherwan Jessawala Video Libraries
Ward Parks Media Libraries
The Night Watchman Series - Bhau Kalchuri
The Sahavas Years
Espandiar Vasali
Transcriptional Renderings
Filis Frederick's Audio Libary