The Family and the Nation by No Author

Author:No Author
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2012-05-30T00:00:00+00:00

THE ACT OF TRANSFORMATION

Is it not a matter of great surprise that though we have sown a seed and a tree has grown, it has borne no fruit? The seed of the knowledge that we sow does grow to be a big tree, but it is bereft of fruit. The fruit of knowledge is conduct. In the human brain, there is a specialized region where knowledge is processed and another region where conduct is cultivated.

While freedom of the self is very important to good health, mindfulness about the value of another’s freedom is equally important. To know that all humans are equal and all souls are equal is theoretical knowledge. To translate it into action, the practice of conduct (aachaara) is required. A little contemplation would tell us: ‘As I don’t like suffering, others too would not like it. Just as I am free to amass means of comfort, others are also free to do so. My freedom should not usurp the freedom of others. I should take care that I don’t become an impediment in the way of others trying to collect means of comfort.’ This sort of ethical conduct is an empirical aspect of the principle of equality. If we enter the periphery of a still subtler world, we will realize how we create obstacles in the path of others’ freedom. Before creating such hurdles, we should ponder the fact that we cannot harm others without harming ourselves. We cannot take away others’ freedom without our own freedom being taken away.

Theoretical doctrine and philosophy, no doubt, have their due importance. But they cannot help us attain the state wherein real transformation of our inner consciousness takes place. This requires a practical approach. Whatever man listens to and reads, affects only his conscious mind. It does not lead to his transformation. For transformation to happen, a person has to delve into the layers of the subconscious mind. Memory, feeling and emotion are all stored in the subconscious mind. Transformation is possible only when ideas and thoughts reach that level. In essence, we can say that books can take a person to the elementary stage of transformation; they cannot go beyond that. In order to take thoughts to the periphery of our subconscious mind, we need to deepen the concentration of the meditating mind to a state where thoughts disappear. A wilful and sustained effort is essential for this transformation.

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