Thursday, October 24, 2013

11.3 The Mind Is The Self

The third opinion says that the mind is the self. According to them, the mind which obtains knowledge through the senses in the waking state is the self. Even in dream, when the senses are absent, the mind remains and provides knowledge of the dream. Therefore the mind alone is the self, the foundation of knowledge.
 
But this mind is a chameleon. It takes on so many forms from morning to evening, but the consciousness of the "I" remains one only. I was ignorant, now I have knowledge, but the underlying I was the same! Therefore the mind cannot be the self. Doubts and fancies, emotions, transformations come to the mind, whether we identify with them or not, that freedom is up to us. Even in the absence of the mind in deep sleep, the knowledge of its absence remains. Therefore the mind cannot be the self, the foundation of knowledge.

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