Page 10 - NAMAH-Jul-2017

Namah Vol. 25, Issue 2, 15th July 2017

in terms of ‘Consciousness’. Besides, any higher plane of consciousness
does not reject the preceding planes but
Actually, it is Consciousness that is the incorporates, upgrades and transmutes
great underlying fact of existence, which them. Thus Life does not reject Matter but the
formulates different planes at different quality of Matter inherent in living systems
levels of a graded universe. Consciousness is vastly different from that in inorganic
is essentially the same throughout but variable matter. Likewise, Mind does not reject ‘Life
in status, condition and operation. When involved in Matter’ but uplifts it so that the
mystics use the term ‘consciousness’, they life of the highly mentalised human being is
refer to the essence of the ‘Being’ but Sri qualitatively superior to the life of an animal
Aurobindo explains that the same is also with a rudimentary mind. Again, the essence
the essence of ‘Becoming’. Only, when the of the Omnipresent Reality, which is present
same consciousness that is self-absorbed in in each plane and form of consciousness also
the Being becomes the basis of all that is self- progressively unfolds its potentials as the
expressed in the Becoming, it has to have evolutionary nisus traverses the hierarchies
certain unique characteristics. These are: of consciousness. That is why the same essence
of Reality is termed differently at different
a. The ‘manifestation’ of different planes of planes of consciousness — in Matter it is
existence follows an ‘evolutionary’ spiral in the the True Physical Being (Annomay Purussa)
matrix of consciousness itself. The evolutionary while at the plane of Life, it is the True Vital
nisus starts from the ‘Inconscience’ and progresses Being (Pranomay Purussa) and at the plane of
towards the ‘Super-conscience’. Evolution Mind it is the True Mental Being (Manomay
however cannot proceed from nothing. It is Purussa). It is the same in different poises —
possible only because in the Inconscience is the ‘sameness’ or ‘oneness’ is indisputable but
hid the potential of the Superconscience, just the capacity of unfolding of potentials gives
as in the seed is hid the potential of the tree. a meaning to the ‘difference’ too.

b. The manifestation of different and diverse d. The consequence of ‘Oneness’ expressed
planes and poises of consciousness shows that uniquely in different planes of the manifest-
consciousness is pluri-dimensional in nature. ation permits the ‘lowest’ to be ‘transmuted’
“Brahman expresses Itself in many successive in terms of the highest and the highest to be
forms of consciousness, successive in their ‘manifested’ in terms of the lowest. In other
relation even if co-existent in being or coeval words, if the ‘individual’ can ‘universalise’
in Time, …(2).” Consciousness is not only oneself and climb to the ‘transcendence’,
manifested in different planes (Matter, Life, the ‘Transcendence’ can also manifest in the
Mind) but also in different poises: Individual, ‘universal’ and the ‘individual’:
Universal, and Transcendent.
e. “For the World-Transcendent embraces the
c. The different planes, forms and poises of universe, is one with it and does not exclude it,
Consciousness are not discreet and scattered even as the universe embraces the individual,
but all can be represented in each and the One is one with him and does not exclude him. The
Omnipresent Reality can be represented in all. individual is a centre of the whole universal

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