Reality 26

Senses (continued)

Also by reason of the Checklist points enumerated below, the Self never connects with, never really touches the Senses.

Comparing & contrasting the Self & the Senses (a partial Checklist):

(1) Multiplicity

a) The Self is singular & indivisible Existence.

b) The Senses are multiple & divided. 

(2) Objectivity

a) The Self is non-objective, ever the Knower, of the nature of Existence–Consciousness.

b) The Senses are objective, the Known, just as the Sense objects are. 

(3) Change & Permanence

a) The Self is changeless, continuous, permanent Existence..

b) The Senses are changeful, discontinuous, & impermanent.  The Senses are lost, dulled, or altered in illness, old age, & death.  The Senses change during one's Lifetime, from infancy until the death of the body.  The Senses are changing all the time, transforming into dull & acute states, subject as they are to the 3 gunas – the qualities of Tamas (inertia), Rajas (agitation), & Sattva (~ knowledge).  Each Sense takes a turn being dominant in fades due to a change of the Sense organ, the mental attention, & similar factors.

(4) the 3 States

a) The Self, Existence is always wholly Present, in Waking, Dream. & Deep Dreamless Sleep.

b) The Senses appear only in the Waking State.  With each State of Mind they change (Waking, Dream-senses. Deep Dreamless Sleep).  Upon the Death of the Body, which is not the Self, the Senses are lost entirely. 

(5) Continuity & Conditions

a) The Self is steady, self–existent Reality, permanent, & not a function of some other thing.  The Self is steady, self–existent Reality, permanent, & not a function of some other thing.  It is Existence & not a doing or activity.  The Self is not determined by any conditions & is itself without any conditions whatsoever.  Part of the existence of Sense experience, which is the Self, is beyond the changeful appearances in the Mind.

b) Rarely are all the 5 Senses active, or experienced, simultaneously.  The Senses are just a momentary function.  The Senses are determined by conditions such as the condition of the Sense organ, & the environment.  As if a split in Consciousness – there appears separately the Object & the Sense instrument used to know the Object.  This experience & the mental attention given to or removed from the Senses is dis-continuous.  From a higher view, in one in the One Mind, all 3 changing factors [object, sense-instrument, attention] appear to be determining the 5 sense experiences. 

The Senses cannot be considered to be the Self.

The above themes & 1600 pages more are freely available as perused or downloaded PDF’s, the sole occupants of a Public Microsoft Skydrive “Public Folder” accessible through:  

www.jpstiga.com/

http://jstiga.wixsite.com/nonduality/

or directly at:

http://tinyurl.com/nnyyr58

Duplicate blogs available on:

jstiga.wordpress.com/

"There is no Creation, no Destruction, no Bondage, no longing to be freed from Bondage, no striving for Liberation, nor anyone who has attained Liberation. Know that this to be Ultimate Truth." 

 –  the "no creation" school of Gaudapada, Shankara, Ramana, Nome – Ajata Vada

for very succinct summary of the teaching & practice, see:  www.ajatavada.com/