Monday, December 1, 2014

Discovering the Self - Selflessly

Spirituality deals largely with understanding the true nature of the 'Self'.
Is the Self just a belief, an a priori conviction, or an illusion?  Does the Self  depend on reaffirmation from others to perceive its own self or is it self referential? 
Our emotions and beliefs and ideals are constantly evolving. — Anaïs Nin put it perfectly: “I am a series of moods and sensations. I play a thousand roles… My real self is unknown.”  The psychologist Susan Blackmore hypothesises that the self is a collection of what she calls ‘memes’ - units of cultural information such as ideas, beliefs and habits. At birth the 'self' doesn't exist but as we are exposed to environmental influences, the self is ‘constructed’ out of the memes we absorb.
          Biologically, most cells in our bodies are completely replaced every seven years. What then is that constant formless entity of the "Self" in a  dynamically  changing  body form? How do we retain or hold the “self” with a steadfast firmness?
Neurologically, the Medial Prefrontal Cortex (MPFC) plays an important role in developing and sustaining the "Self". It represents  and reflects  on our own self-beliefs, but also plays  a crucial role in thinking about how we are seen by others. The medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) appears to play a prominent role in two fundamental aspects of social cognition  -  self-referential processing and perspective taking. It crucially takes stock of itself and all that it observes simultaneously. The software that generates an identity as well as the conviction of this delusion being the true self. 
Could the 'self'  be a quantum phenomenon? This strange 'out of of the box' quantum  concept  helped resolve the schizophrenic duality of light. Light simultaneously behaves like a particle and a wave. The self could be a simultaneous projection of "Consciousness" as both- an observing  subjective individual and the observed objective  universe. 
The 'Self' is being observed by an 'awareness' which  is also observing the  'Non-self' universe. A Self centric universe that is in line with the Biocentrism theory proposed by Robert Lanza. The observed universe created and observed by the "Self". The ocean of consciousness in which the wave of the self arises and submerges.
'Aham Brahmaasami ' a fundamental Upanishadic Truth suggests that "I" am the universe. 
This statement alludes to the consciousness that manifests as the 'Self' and the universe. It points to the state of an unresolved dichotomy. The original form of consciousness that is in quantum superposition. Quantum superposition is a fundamental principle of quantum mechanics which  states  that a physical system—such as an electron—exists partly in all its theoretically possible states simultaneously; but when measured or observed, it gives a result corresponding to only one of the possible configurations. The "Self" may be one of the possible configurations when consciousness splits itself to observe itself and begin this play of "Life". Self  realisation is when the "Self" realises that it is a transient spatio- temporal construct of consciousness, and the identity, merely a binomial nomenclature for convenience. The momentarily discrete wave realising that it is neither the wave, nor the ocean but a formless abstraction - water. 
The true 'Self' is never the transience of the wave but the eternity of the water in the ocean. 

Dr. Deepak M. Ranade

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Excellent post, I feel like i am enlightened...

Rajesh Bhutkar said...

Respected Sir,
Very informative posts that help change the old perspective of looking at life. I heard your name when I met Hon. Dr. Bhatkar Sir very recently. I am also having interest in the same subject matter of eternal existence of all of us as Chaitanya which plays its vital role in the quantum behavior of the mind. I am delighted to see the quantum mechanical perspective that you represented in your posts. As an amateur, I have been reading quantum mechanics and theories therein to interlink with our Holy Spiritual Scriptures. This field of science is really fascinating.
Thank You,
With Warm Regards,
Yours Sincerely,
Rajesh Bhutkar
9689931458

Manipal Hospitals said...

This is very useful information. Nice blog about Neurology.