Ques#7-Where and when then does a man truly affect or is affected by an atom beyond his body?
The answer can be had from the number of times in your life you are actively, physically conscious of your body. Barring those moments, all other that you are active, you affect and are affected by ‘atoms’ beyond your body.
Considering the issue in a rather more detached manner, we can conjure a semi-dichotomous situation between the ‘man’ and the ‘body’ (the classic Bhagwadgita trip – vasansi jeerdani yatha vihay…sanyati navaani dehi). The dichotomy is only partial because the ‘man’ or the consciousness inhabits the body and is dependent on it for existence-they are different and yet the same .The sameness is what gives the perception of ownership of the ‘body’-a concept which in the long run makes no difference.
I am not seeking a mystic discourse .We must realize that the consciousness is not the body-that the ‘man’ is not the ‘body’ .Once this is established ,the question can be approached in a much more direct manner.
The answer lies in clearly stating what is the meaning of affected? If we mean ‘atoms’ in the ordinary sense of the word , then the answer is obvious-our life processes causing our body to interact with the environment blahblahblah…
If the ‘atom’ is something more, the evolution of the physical world, the course of fate, everything else (You’ll have to be a little more specific here!), then the answer would be-at every instant .All the things that we decide to do and not to do are decisions of a conscious mind which shape the world. Speaking in a technical manner-If all men be the state variables of this vast, unbelievably complex system (Yes I am studying a lot of mathematics these daysJ), then the state (a word which, interestingly in this context, means ‘condition’) of the world is determined by our outputs (i.e. decisions and actions).
What happens in this world is not determined by the sum-total of individual actions of the ‘man’. It is determined by the decision of the mind, the conscious. One mind may decide to carry out the task of building a beautiful building. Other minds may independently, or under the influence of the first mind, decide to build more such buildings. Eventually their country could become the country with the most beautiful buildings in the world. All these people could also drive a construction boom which leads their country’s economy northwards.
For more crap along these lines, read One by Richard Bach.
I think by now it is obvious by now that each of our decisions affect the ‘atoms’ in the world around us.
The body is also very important in the sense that it is ultimate tool for carrying out the instructions of the mind AND it is the conduit for all information which allows us to make any rational decision. A mind which does not receive any information to process is no mind at all. This brings us to a very important and fundamental aspect of the question under consideration. We have already seen all kinds of influences a person can have on his/her environment. The reverse is not less emphatically true.
Imagine a person who has never had any sensory perception at all-absolutely none. In that case, can there be a conception of self for that person? With no data to feed on, the mind is dead. When I see a tree, the important thing is not that I see a natural resource or beauty or anything else of that sort. The most important part of the sighting is-I see ME! I am aware of myself as a sentient being and then I am aware of things that are distinct from me and I am capable of making the distinction.
So man, too, is influenced by his environment. He owes his consciousness to it.
The answer can be had from the number of times in your life you are actively, physically conscious of your body. Barring those moments, all other that you are active, you affect and are affected by ‘atoms’ beyond your body.
Considering the issue in a rather more detached manner, we can conjure a semi-dichotomous situation between the ‘man’ and the ‘body’ (the classic Bhagwadgita trip – vasansi jeerdani yatha vihay…sanyati navaani dehi). The dichotomy is only partial because the ‘man’ or the consciousness inhabits the body and is dependent on it for existence-they are different and yet the same .The sameness is what gives the perception of ownership of the ‘body’-a concept which in the long run makes no difference.
I am not seeking a mystic discourse .We must realize that the consciousness is not the body-that the ‘man’ is not the ‘body’ .Once this is established ,the question can be approached in a much more direct manner.
The answer lies in clearly stating what is the meaning of affected? If we mean ‘atoms’ in the ordinary sense of the word , then the answer is obvious-our life processes causing our body to interact with the environment blahblahblah…
If the ‘atom’ is something more, the evolution of the physical world, the course of fate, everything else (You’ll have to be a little more specific here!), then the answer would be-at every instant .All the things that we decide to do and not to do are decisions of a conscious mind which shape the world. Speaking in a technical manner-If all men be the state variables of this vast, unbelievably complex system (Yes I am studying a lot of mathematics these daysJ), then the state (a word which, interestingly in this context, means ‘condition’) of the world is determined by our outputs (i.e. decisions and actions).
What happens in this world is not determined by the sum-total of individual actions of the ‘man’. It is determined by the decision of the mind, the conscious. One mind may decide to carry out the task of building a beautiful building. Other minds may independently, or under the influence of the first mind, decide to build more such buildings. Eventually their country could become the country with the most beautiful buildings in the world. All these people could also drive a construction boom which leads their country’s economy northwards.
For more crap along these lines, read One by Richard Bach.
I think by now it is obvious by now that each of our decisions affect the ‘atoms’ in the world around us.
The body is also very important in the sense that it is ultimate tool for carrying out the instructions of the mind AND it is the conduit for all information which allows us to make any rational decision. A mind which does not receive any information to process is no mind at all. This brings us to a very important and fundamental aspect of the question under consideration. We have already seen all kinds of influences a person can have on his/her environment. The reverse is not less emphatically true.
Imagine a person who has never had any sensory perception at all-absolutely none. In that case, can there be a conception of self for that person? With no data to feed on, the mind is dead. When I see a tree, the important thing is not that I see a natural resource or beauty or anything else of that sort. The most important part of the sighting is-I see ME! I am aware of myself as a sentient being and then I am aware of things that are distinct from me and I am capable of making the distinction.
So man, too, is influenced by his environment. He owes his consciousness to it.
No comments:
Post a Comment