Sunday, March 25, 2012
There's nothing personal about ...........
Interaction with people is an inevitable part of life consequential to man being a social animal. This interaction becomes a complex interplay of emotions as it serves to establish a hierarchal structure
Very often, when this interaction results in feeling slighted, one of the convenient conclusions is " this person can never understand me "
This statement actually means - " the perceived identity that I have about the person did not connect with the perceived identity the other person had of me." It is an interaction of perceptions .The identity and ego of ourself is merely a perception and is imaginary.
The very fact that it could be slighted or elated implies that self esteem is a variable, modifiable and mutable entity. It is not fixed. We generate a daily report of self esteem much like the weather update. Anything that has a variable value can't have authenticity. While we are quick to conclude that the other person cannot understand us, do we really understand ourselves?
The identity or ego is totally speculative and construed.
Most often, interaction with others is what lends meaning to life. Finding a purpose of life in relationships. This approach, stresses the relationship as it becomes exacting and demanding. No one other than the self can lend meaning to ones existence. Using relationships as an emotional mirror to assess and evaluate ones own identity will only generate newer identities each time. Having multiple identities and assessments make it very difficult fir the people we interact with. The other person has to keep groping to determine our mood, which is not fair to him.
Surrendering the control of self esteem to another causes the wild vacillations our self esteem. Approval seeking behaviour that craves for appreciation and recognition becomes a form of self abuse. Such behaviour is at the cost of total disregard of ones own self. One need not be contemptuous or completely disregard others opinions, but neither should they become the driving force of our life.
A stoic self assessment that is not finicky and fluctuating lends a great degree of security and reassurance in any interaction or relationship. A very fluid and tentative self assessment can be the substrate for a constant sense of persecution that can destroy not only the relationship but the person as well. It is incompatible for a sustainable rewarding relationship. There has been a lot of talk regarding out of body experience, but in a more practical setting, taking an impersonal, birds eye view of the situation is more useful and realistic than making a personal, restrictive, judgemental assessment that distorts reality. The apparent improper behaviour of a person is strictly as viewed from our perceptive frame, andMisunderstandings are commonplace and can prove to be very expensive. Interactions/relationships pursued with an expectation of appreciation, or gratification of the ego are cursed from the very beginning.
Our own convictions should not preclude receptivity to the other persons opinions and views. Interaction / relationships are meant to evolve rather than assert oneself .
Deepak Ranade
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Of Memory Templates And Free Will
DEEPAK RANADE, Sep 12, 2007, 12.00am IST
Thinking seems to be a constant involuntary drone in our waking state. Thinking often is also the root of many psychosomatic ailments. The process of thinking is essentially quasi-voluntary and spiritual seekers aim to reach a state of thoughtlessness.
There is no specific centre in the brain that has been identified as the originator of thoughts. It would be absurd to conclude that thoughts arise empirically and randomly. Logically there has to be some cause-effect basis of thoughts arising.
Perception of the outer world lays the substrate for thoughts, responses and actions. Hence perception and thought initiation must have some source code which is unique for every individual. Since computers closely mimic neural networks, we could analyse their functioning to shed some light on the working of the human brain.
The computer's Read Only Memory or ROM is a preset programme which cannot be modified. ROM has the blueprint of basic operations as well as anagrams for processing data. It ope-rates and controls vital processes. The computer also has a Random Access Memory or RAM, which is a storage device for data that can be erased and modified. Every human being also comes with an inbuilt ROM programme. This is the database of all past karmas and vasanas. Vasana is unmanifest thought; it is the substrate of thought. It pre-empts all thoughts and actions.
Thoughts are constructed on the infrastructure of vasana. This data is not deletable. Every individual is born with a unique ROM that contributes not only to thought initiation, perception but also to programme the responses of the individual. This explains why each individual reacts differently to the same external stimulus. The varying reactions are therefore also a function of the operative system. Every individual is also provided with a RAM, which records all events as they take place. It serves as input for subsequent encryption into ROM. ROM is then subsequently formatted onto the hard disc of the individual in successive births.
Vasanas precede thought and thought precedes action. Action thereafter generates further vasanas and this cause and effect cycle generates karma. So we are now dealing with an operating system that has an inbuilt programme, an encryption of all previous karmas and vasanas. However, we also have free will to ignore this inbuilt programme. We could script a new programme which subsequently gets transferred to the ROM. Free will represents the ability of each one to rebel against the inbuilt programme. Science could determine the past as it may have the ability to access the ROM, but no science can predict what is going to get written in the RAM.Mind is the effecter of ROM.
It generates all thoughts as a function of the unique source code of ROM. Unbridled execution of ROM results in impulsive actions. But volitional control can help us overcome the diktat of ROM. With intense determination and control, it can be forbidden to enforce the encrypted script. If efforts are not taken to counter this preformed template, life travels along the uncontrolled path determined by the sum total of the past. To script a new ROM is the aim of all sadhana, discipline and meditation. Life vacillates between surrendering to the programme and endeavour to exercise the free will.
DEEPAK RANADE, Sep 12, 2007, 12.00am IST
Thinking seems to be a constant involuntary drone in our waking state. Thinking often is also the root of many psychosomatic ailments. The process of thinking is essentially quasi-voluntary and spiritual seekers aim to reach a state of thoughtlessness.
There is no specific centre in the brain that has been identified as the originator of thoughts. It would be absurd to conclude that thoughts arise empirically and randomly. Logically there has to be some cause-effect basis of thoughts arising.
Perception of the outer world lays the substrate for thoughts, responses and actions. Hence perception and thought initiation must have some source code which is unique for every individual. Since computers closely mimic neural networks, we could analyse their functioning to shed some light on the working of the human brain.
The computer's Read Only Memory or ROM is a preset programme which cannot be modified. ROM has the blueprint of basic operations as well as anagrams for processing data. It ope-rates and controls vital processes. The computer also has a Random Access Memory or RAM, which is a storage device for data that can be erased and modified. Every human being also comes with an inbuilt ROM programme. This is the database of all past karmas and vasanas. Vasana is unmanifest thought; it is the substrate of thought. It pre-empts all thoughts and actions.
Thoughts are constructed on the infrastructure of vasana. This data is not deletable. Every individual is born with a unique ROM that contributes not only to thought initiation, perception but also to programme the responses of the individual. This explains why each individual reacts differently to the same external stimulus. The varying reactions are therefore also a function of the operative system. Every individual is also provided with a RAM, which records all events as they take place. It serves as input for subsequent encryption into ROM. ROM is then subsequently formatted onto the hard disc of the individual in successive births.
Vasanas precede thought and thought precedes action. Action thereafter generates further vasanas and this cause and effect cycle generates karma. So we are now dealing with an operating system that has an inbuilt programme, an encryption of all previous karmas and vasanas. However, we also have free will to ignore this inbuilt programme. We could script a new programme which subsequently gets transferred to the ROM. Free will represents the ability of each one to rebel against the inbuilt programme. Science could determine the past as it may have the ability to access the ROM, but no science can predict what is going to get written in the RAM.Mind is the effecter of ROM.
It generates all thoughts as a function of the unique source code of ROM. Unbridled execution of ROM results in impulsive actions. But volitional control can help us overcome the diktat of ROM. With intense determination and control, it can be forbidden to enforce the encrypted script. If efforts are not taken to counter this preformed template, life travels along the uncontrolled path determined by the sum total of the past. To script a new ROM is the aim of all sadhana, discipline and meditation. Life vacillates between surrendering to the programme and endeavour to exercise the free will.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Consciousness becoming conscious of consciousness
Consciousness becoming conscious
The first line of Dnaneshwari., a commentary on Bhagwad Geeta by Saint philosopher Dnaneshwara contains the word " swasamvedyaa" and " aatmaroopa." They are very eloquent and profoundly express the ultimate truth about creation and it's purpose.
" Swasamvedyaa" contains two parts- "Swa" and "Samvedyaa"
Swa means the self. The "Swa" in the term does not treat the " self" as a subject .
It indicates the totipotent, attributeless (tatva) , the unmanifest formless essence. It is a state of beingness, formless beyond any spatio-temporal grid. A "singularity"' with the potential to manifest . A quantum superposition.
"Samvedyaa "is a complex word that has shades of awareness ,sensitivity and compassion. Our understanding of this manifest world is based on a Cartesian duality . It is based on a subject object duality, and so our understanding of the word "consiousness" is the verb that links a subject to the object. I (the subject) am conscious of something (the object).
This term expresses consciousness as a qualia, between the subject and object. It would be incomplete to merely say "I am conscious" without a reference to an object.
" Swasamvedya" is the unmanifest essence becoming conscious of itself. Consciousness becoming conscious of itself. The quantum superposition collapsing as creation by emergence of an observer.The "big bang" becomes a manifestation rather than creation. The emergence of a witness. The unmanifest becoming manifest to become aware of itself. It is not a chronological event in space-time.Time and space are co-ordinates fabricated by the formless essence. The words eternal and immortal are relevant only in the construct of this spatio temporal frame of reference that is necessary for manifestation of a form. The form is a transient impermanent (anitya) expression of the eternal formless ( nitya ,nirgun , niraakaar )That could perhaps explain why scholars like Einstein interpreted time as a fourth dimension. Space time are perceptive threads to weave the fabric of creation.
In a state of formless awareness eternity has as much meaning as thickness has to a two dimensional shadow and immortality makes as much sense as a child of an infertile couple.
The " nothingness" or "shoonyavaad" refers to this unmanifest state where there is no subject object dichotomy. Who is going to be aware of what ? It literally means "No Thing", or devoid of subject and object.
For our understanding in a Cartesian space time frame, nothing denotes the absence of content in a containing entity.Nothing becomes a subject and containing entity the object.
This state of nothingness has no negative connotation but merely dissolution of subject object in formless consciousness. The perceiver of nothingness remains, with nothing to perceive. Satchitananda is the trinity of beingness, consciousness and bliss that defines Brahma. The state of bliss reaffirms a state of causeless happiness, that again transcends the subject object paradigm. Causality abounds in the spatio temporal distortion which breaks the symmetry of oneness into subject and object. Awareness, compassion and bliss ,in the self,of the self,by the self and for the self, best denotes the democratic matrix of monarchal unity. " Swasamvedyaa therefore represents blissful compassionate awareness that is entirely in the realm of non-duality, or Adwaita, that chooses to manifest as plurality. Experience of bliss , compassion and an impersonal awareness in the manifest duality are glimpses of the unmanifest unity.
Realisation is a state wherein consciousness becomes aware of it's own nature . Aatmaroopa. The elimination of this spatio-temporal parallax, induced by itself to experience itself.
Dr. Deepak M. Ranade ( the author is a consultant neurosurgeon- deepakranade@hotmail.com)
The first line of Dnaneshwari., a commentary on Bhagwad Geeta by Saint philosopher Dnaneshwara contains the word " swasamvedyaa" and " aatmaroopa." They are very eloquent and profoundly express the ultimate truth about creation and it's purpose.
" Swasamvedyaa" contains two parts- "Swa" and "Samvedyaa"
Swa means the self. The "Swa" in the term does not treat the " self" as a subject .
It indicates the totipotent, attributeless (tatva) , the unmanifest formless essence. It is a state of beingness, formless beyond any spatio-temporal grid. A "singularity"' with the potential to manifest . A quantum superposition.
"Samvedyaa "is a complex word that has shades of awareness ,sensitivity and compassion. Our understanding of this manifest world is based on a Cartesian duality . It is based on a subject object duality, and so our understanding of the word "consiousness" is the verb that links a subject to the object. I (the subject) am conscious of something (the object).
This term expresses consciousness as a qualia, between the subject and object. It would be incomplete to merely say "I am conscious" without a reference to an object.
" Swasamvedya" is the unmanifest essence becoming conscious of itself. Consciousness becoming conscious of itself. The quantum superposition collapsing as creation by emergence of an observer.The "big bang" becomes a manifestation rather than creation. The emergence of a witness. The unmanifest becoming manifest to become aware of itself. It is not a chronological event in space-time.Time and space are co-ordinates fabricated by the formless essence. The words eternal and immortal are relevant only in the construct of this spatio temporal frame of reference that is necessary for manifestation of a form. The form is a transient impermanent (anitya) expression of the eternal formless ( nitya ,nirgun , niraakaar )That could perhaps explain why scholars like Einstein interpreted time as a fourth dimension. Space time are perceptive threads to weave the fabric of creation.
In a state of formless awareness eternity has as much meaning as thickness has to a two dimensional shadow and immortality makes as much sense as a child of an infertile couple.
The " nothingness" or "shoonyavaad" refers to this unmanifest state where there is no subject object dichotomy. Who is going to be aware of what ? It literally means "No Thing", or devoid of subject and object.
For our understanding in a Cartesian space time frame, nothing denotes the absence of content in a containing entity.Nothing becomes a subject and containing entity the object.
This state of nothingness has no negative connotation but merely dissolution of subject object in formless consciousness. The perceiver of nothingness remains, with nothing to perceive. Satchitananda is the trinity of beingness, consciousness and bliss that defines Brahma. The state of bliss reaffirms a state of causeless happiness, that again transcends the subject object paradigm. Causality abounds in the spatio temporal distortion which breaks the symmetry of oneness into subject and object. Awareness, compassion and bliss ,in the self,of the self,by the self and for the self, best denotes the democratic matrix of monarchal unity. " Swasamvedyaa therefore represents blissful compassionate awareness that is entirely in the realm of non-duality, or Adwaita, that chooses to manifest as plurality. Experience of bliss , compassion and an impersonal awareness in the manifest duality are glimpses of the unmanifest unity.
Realisation is a state wherein consciousness becomes aware of it's own nature . Aatmaroopa. The elimination of this spatio-temporal parallax, induced by itself to experience itself.
Dr. Deepak M. Ranade ( the author is a consultant neurosurgeon- deepakranade@hotmail.com)
Don't take interactions personally
Don't take it personally
Interaction with people is an inevitable part of life. It's the fallout of man being a social animal. This interaction becomes a complex interplay of emotions and ego as it serves to establish a heirarchal pattern that social structure mandates.
Arguments,misunderstandings, humiliation are unavoidable outcomes of this " Brownian movement "of ' Egocules",
This unpleasant interaction results due to - " the perceived identity that I have about the person did not connect with the perceived identity the other person had of me." Interaction is of perceptions .The identity and ego of ourself is entirely perceptive and imaginary.
The very fact that it could be slighted or elated implies that ego is a variable, modifiable and mutable entity. It is not fixed. The identity or ego is totally speculative and a dynamic variable. We generate a daily report of self esteem much like the weather update. Anything variable can't be authentic and absolute. While we are quick to conclude that the other person cannot understand us, do we really understand ourselves? The self that we commonly assume ourselves to be is a database of memories with a conviction of having a unique discrete identity .. This unique identity is a composite of the impression we have of ourselves and the impression we feel others have about us. The former is a complex of the id and the ego whilst the latter reflects the superego. Interaction with others nurtures the superego, lends a meaning, to the script of life. It simultaneously generates a hierarchal coefficient, starves for recognition and desires to dominate. It's assertiveness stresses relationships as it becomes exacting and demanding in an attempt to establish it's position in social hierarchy. Looking for a meaning for ones own existence in relation to others. Ironically,none, other than the self can lend meaning to ones existence. Using relationships as an emotional mirror to assess and evaluate ones own identity will only generate a chaotic plurality of identities and a waxing and waning self assessment. Stress arises out of our efforts to build and maintain the image we want others to have of ourselves.
This reaction based self-esteem is susseptible to wild vacillations . It triggers approval seeking behaviour that is directed towards appreciation and recognition. This sort of behavious is a form of self abuse. Putting others evalution ahead of what we truely want for ourselves . One need not be contemptuous or completely disregard others opinions, but neither should they become the driving force of our life.
A stoic self assessment that is not finicky and fluctuating lends a great degree of security and reassurance in any interaction or relationship. A non-leaning interaction, between two erect individuals only can support the beautiful edifice of a meaningful relationship. Leaning on one another to a point can never support the superstructure of a sustainable relatioship. A very fluid and tentative self assessment is the substrate for a sense of persecution that can destroy not only the relationship but the person as well. It is incompatible for a sustainable rewarding relationship. There has been a lot of talk regarding out of body experience, but in a more practical setting, taking an impersonal, third person view of the situation is more useful and realistic than making a personal, restrictive, assessment that distorts reality. Misunderstandings then become commonplace and can prove to be very expensive. Interactions/relationships pursued solely with expectation or gratification of the ego are cursed from the very beginning. Every relationship has rights ad resposibilities as two sides of the coin. Asserting only the former works to the detriment of any interaction.
Relationships are meant to aid the search for our true self, and merely an accessory for survival. They must help evolve the self rather than assert oneself .
Deepak Ranade
Interaction with people is an inevitable part of life. It's the fallout of man being a social animal. This interaction becomes a complex interplay of emotions and ego as it serves to establish a heirarchal pattern that social structure mandates.
Arguments,misunderstandings, humiliation are unavoidable outcomes of this " Brownian movement "of ' Egocules",
This unpleasant interaction results due to - " the perceived identity that I have about the person did not connect with the perceived identity the other person had of me." Interaction is of perceptions .The identity and ego of ourself is entirely perceptive and imaginary.
The very fact that it could be slighted or elated implies that ego is a variable, modifiable and mutable entity. It is not fixed. The identity or ego is totally speculative and a dynamic variable. We generate a daily report of self esteem much like the weather update. Anything variable can't be authentic and absolute. While we are quick to conclude that the other person cannot understand us, do we really understand ourselves? The self that we commonly assume ourselves to be is a database of memories with a conviction of having a unique discrete identity .. This unique identity is a composite of the impression we have of ourselves and the impression we feel others have about us. The former is a complex of the id and the ego whilst the latter reflects the superego. Interaction with others nurtures the superego, lends a meaning, to the script of life. It simultaneously generates a hierarchal coefficient, starves for recognition and desires to dominate. It's assertiveness stresses relationships as it becomes exacting and demanding in an attempt to establish it's position in social hierarchy. Looking for a meaning for ones own existence in relation to others. Ironically,none, other than the self can lend meaning to ones existence. Using relationships as an emotional mirror to assess and evaluate ones own identity will only generate a chaotic plurality of identities and a waxing and waning self assessment. Stress arises out of our efforts to build and maintain the image we want others to have of ourselves.
This reaction based self-esteem is susseptible to wild vacillations . It triggers approval seeking behaviour that is directed towards appreciation and recognition. This sort of behavious is a form of self abuse. Putting others evalution ahead of what we truely want for ourselves . One need not be contemptuous or completely disregard others opinions, but neither should they become the driving force of our life.
A stoic self assessment that is not finicky and fluctuating lends a great degree of security and reassurance in any interaction or relationship. A non-leaning interaction, between two erect individuals only can support the beautiful edifice of a meaningful relationship. Leaning on one another to a point can never support the superstructure of a sustainable relatioship. A very fluid and tentative self assessment is the substrate for a sense of persecution that can destroy not only the relationship but the person as well. It is incompatible for a sustainable rewarding relationship. There has been a lot of talk regarding out of body experience, but in a more practical setting, taking an impersonal, third person view of the situation is more useful and realistic than making a personal, restrictive, assessment that distorts reality. Misunderstandings then become commonplace and can prove to be very expensive. Interactions/relationships pursued solely with expectation or gratification of the ego are cursed from the very beginning. Every relationship has rights ad resposibilities as two sides of the coin. Asserting only the former works to the detriment of any interaction.
Relationships are meant to aid the search for our true self, and merely an accessory for survival. They must help evolve the self rather than assert oneself .
Deepak Ranade
Thursday, February 2, 2012
A Remarkable Philosophy
This is the philosophy of Mr. Henry Bartell Zachary.
He was the son of an Italian immigrant and went on to become a billionaire with diverse businesses, a philanthropist and established a hugely successful business venture.
Thought of sharing this very touching philosophy that encapsulated what it takes to become successful and above all a shade of humility and compassion that pitchforks a brazen capitalistic attitude into the realm of divinity.
MY PHILOSOPHY
“I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon if I can. I seek opportunity – not security. I will refuse to be a kept citizen, to be humbled and dulled by having my state and nation look after me. I want to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed - never to be numbered among those weak and timid souls who have known neither victory nor defeat. I know that happiness can come only from the inside through hard constructive work and sincere positive thinking. I know that the so called pleasures of the moment should not be confused with a state of happiness. I know that I can get a measure of inner satisfaction from any job if I intelligently plan and courageously execute it. I know that, if I put forth every iota of strength that I possess – physical, mental, spiritual – towards the accomplishment of a worth while task, ere I fall exhausted by the wayside, the Unseen Hand will reach out and pull me through. Yes, I want to live dangerously, plan my procedures on the basis of calculated risk, to resolve the problems of everyday living into a measure of inner peace. I know if I know to do all this, I will know how to live and, If I know how to live, I will know how to die.”
HENRY BARTELL ZACHRY
Sep. 27 1901 – Sep. 5
He was the son of an Italian immigrant and went on to become a billionaire with diverse businesses, a philanthropist and established a hugely successful business venture.
Thought of sharing this very touching philosophy that encapsulated what it takes to become successful and above all a shade of humility and compassion that pitchforks a brazen capitalistic attitude into the realm of divinity.
MY PHILOSOPHY
“I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon if I can. I seek opportunity – not security. I will refuse to be a kept citizen, to be humbled and dulled by having my state and nation look after me. I want to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed - never to be numbered among those weak and timid souls who have known neither victory nor defeat. I know that happiness can come only from the inside through hard constructive work and sincere positive thinking. I know that the so called pleasures of the moment should not be confused with a state of happiness. I know that I can get a measure of inner satisfaction from any job if I intelligently plan and courageously execute it. I know that, if I put forth every iota of strength that I possess – physical, mental, spiritual – towards the accomplishment of a worth while task, ere I fall exhausted by the wayside, the Unseen Hand will reach out and pull me through. Yes, I want to live dangerously, plan my procedures on the basis of calculated risk, to resolve the problems of everyday living into a measure of inner peace. I know if I know to do all this, I will know how to live and, If I know how to live, I will know how to die.”
HENRY BARTELL ZACHRY
Sep. 27 1901 – Sep. 5
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Learning to unlearn
Learning is as much a process of deprogramming as much as acquiring or acquainting with something new.
Learning something new, must be preceded by a process of deprogramming that eliminates pre-existing paradigms and misconceptions. Learning physiologically is a process of conditioning. It involves recruitment of neural networks or pathways, which after sufficient time and repetitions get established. Thereafter, conditioning works at a quasi involuntary level. A classic example is that of driving. Initially as a novice, every action is deliberate, premeditated and one has to very consciously focus on the activity. Later on as the reflexes get strengthened, the same activity becomes very effortless and gradually moves to a sub-conscious level. And soon we can engage in a conversation or even grab a bite whilst driving. Many of our belief systems and thought processes post conditioning work below the consciousness horizon. Once the template is set, these anagrams become an integral part of the individuals perceptive and thought processes. We scarcely realize that these deeply etched programs serve as major deterrents from learning anything new. That partly explains why adults need a longer while to learn a new skill like computers or a new language whereas kids seem to take to this new skill like a fish takes to water. That is because the kids hard disc is unformatted and can imbibe a new concept faster and better than an adult who first has to undo some hardwired programs. These established neural networks increase the resistance to accepting fresh thoughts and ideas. On deeper introspection we would realize, that most of our belief systems are just a legacy of our environment and upbringing. Religion, culture, behavioral patterns are a few such examples. This indoctrination happens subconsciously but has far reaching consequences.
Along with the passage of time, all such recorded programs spin a cocoon around the individual. Impermeable to newer thought process. All intolerance to new ideas is consequential to this rigid unyielding cocoon.
All revolutionary inventions have become possible only when the concerned person broke open this cocoon of conformist thought process. The person had to delearn conventional wisdom to make way for newer wisdom. Religion has always beckoned mankind along the ages. It still remains one of the most profound influences on our lives. Religion programs the thought processes and sooner than we realize, we align ourselves to one of the many ‘isms’. But the basis of all religion is to attain Godhood, or self-realisation or ‘swaroop saakshaatkar’ Various sects and religions have over the years programmed their followers along different lines. These regulatory protocols are ideally the means to the end but unfortunately have become the end themselves. The extreme obsession with form precludes any tryst with the formless. All spiritual pursuits are adulterated with preformed notions and are the scourge of liberation. It would be paradoxical to confine the omniscient omnipresent being to the narrow bandwidth of our perceptive focus . As a learned sage said, Liberation is not of the individual but from the individual. From the shackles of our thought processes. Self-realisation as a concept, is again a construct of our thought. But self-realisation transcends thought. Till there is thought, there is an entity that is thinking, and this separate entity that asserts its separateness is bondage. The finite can never perceive the infinite. It can only become infinite. And once that happens, who or what remains to perceive ?. It cannot be engineered, because all attempts made by the doer only underlines his separateness, which defeats the very purpose. Somewhat akin to the monkey, with its hand trapped in a cookie jar. Trying to get its hand out of the narrow neck of a bottle whilst holding the cookie. All efforts are in vain until the monkey releases the cookie and extricates its hand. This cookie of our belief systems and conditioning that we all hold on for dear life surely has to be relinquished. This delearning of all pre-existing programs and concepts is a precondition to self awareness.
Dr Deepak Ranade
(The author is a consultant Neurosurgeon and may be contacted at drdeepakranade@gmail.com)
posted by Dr. Deepak Ranade @ 1:16 AM 2 comments
2 Comments:
At September 18, 2009 9:40 PM , dipti said...
sir, i am very much influenced n moralised by ur articles published in speaking tree. i want too read book having compilation of ur writings. kindly post the name of ur book. i,ll be highly oobliged. regards, dipti.
At May 8, 2010 9:05 AM , prakasam said...
You would not believe, my eyes seeks Deepak Ranade in the speaking tree column daily.
One of the best scientific and spiritual blend.
Sir,can u open a forum to discuss more lively. I have lot of spirtual questions,for which it may be the solution center.
It serves to the spiritual community as well....
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home
Learning is as much a process of deprogramming as much as acquiring or acquainting with something new.
Learning something new, must be preceded by a process of deprogramming that eliminates pre-existing paradigms and misconceptions. Learning physiologically is a process of conditioning. It involves recruitment of neural networks or pathways, which after sufficient time and repetitions get established. Thereafter, conditioning works at a quasi involuntary level. A classic example is that of driving. Initially as a novice, every action is deliberate, premeditated and one has to very consciously focus on the activity. Later on as the reflexes get strengthened, the same activity becomes very effortless and gradually moves to a sub-conscious level. And soon we can engage in a conversation or even grab a bite whilst driving. Many of our belief systems and thought processes post conditioning work below the consciousness horizon. Once the template is set, these anagrams become an integral part of the individuals perceptive and thought processes. We scarcely realize that these deeply etched programs serve as major deterrents from learning anything new. That partly explains why adults need a longer while to learn a new skill like computers or a new language whereas kids seem to take to this new skill like a fish takes to water. That is because the kids hard disc is unformatted and can imbibe a new concept faster and better than an adult who first has to undo some hardwired programs. These established neural networks increase the resistance to accepting fresh thoughts and ideas. On deeper introspection we would realize, that most of our belief systems are just a legacy of our environment and upbringing. Religion, culture, behavioral patterns are a few such examples. This indoctrination happens subconsciously but has far reaching consequences.
Along with the passage of time, all such recorded programs spin a cocoon around the individual. Impermeable to newer thought process. All intolerance to new ideas is consequential to this rigid unyielding cocoon.
All revolutionary inventions have become possible only when the concerned person broke open this cocoon of conformist thought process. The person had to delearn conventional wisdom to make way for newer wisdom. Religion has always beckoned mankind along the ages. It still remains one of the most profound influences on our lives. Religion programs the thought processes and sooner than we realize, we align ourselves to one of the many ‘isms’. But the basis of all religion is to attain Godhood, or self-realisation or ‘swaroop saakshaatkar’ Various sects and religions have over the years programmed their followers along different lines. These regulatory protocols are ideally the means to the end but unfortunately have become the end themselves. The extreme obsession with form precludes any tryst with the formless. All spiritual pursuits are adulterated with preformed notions and are the scourge of liberation. It would be paradoxical to confine the omniscient omnipresent being to the narrow bandwidth of our perceptive focus . As a learned sage said, Liberation is not of the individual but from the individual. From the shackles of our thought processes. Self-realisation as a concept, is again a construct of our thought. But self-realisation transcends thought. Till there is thought, there is an entity that is thinking, and this separate entity that asserts its separateness is bondage. The finite can never perceive the infinite. It can only become infinite. And once that happens, who or what remains to perceive ?. It cannot be engineered, because all attempts made by the doer only underlines his separateness, which defeats the very purpose. Somewhat akin to the monkey, with its hand trapped in a cookie jar. Trying to get its hand out of the narrow neck of a bottle whilst holding the cookie. All efforts are in vain until the monkey releases the cookie and extricates its hand. This cookie of our belief systems and conditioning that we all hold on for dear life surely has to be relinquished. This delearning of all pre-existing programs and concepts is a precondition to self awareness.
Dr Deepak Ranade
(The author is a consultant Neurosurgeon and may be contacted at drdeepakranade@gmail.com)
posted by Dr. Deepak Ranade @ 1:16 AM 2 comments
2 Comments:
At September 18, 2009 9:40 PM , dipti said...
sir, i am very much influenced n moralised by ur articles published in speaking tree. i want too read book having compilation of ur writings. kindly post the name of ur book. i,ll be highly oobliged. regards, dipti.
At May 8, 2010 9:05 AM , prakasam said...
You would not believe, my eyes seeks Deepak Ranade in the speaking tree column daily.
One of the best scientific and spiritual blend.
Sir,can u open a forum to discuss more lively. I have lot of spirtual questions,for which it may be the solution center.
It serves to the spiritual community as well....
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home
This is the first article that was featured in speaking tree.
Search For The Centre Of Consciousness
The brain's neurons are differentiated to execute specific functions. All sensory perceptions reach nerve centres that are specific for a particular sensory modality. However, all attempts to localise the centre for consciousness have failed..In an experiment, an electrode was implanted in the brain adjacent to the pleasure centre of a caged mouse. When a lever was pressed, a small current would be released which would stimulate the locus of neurons and the mouse experienced a sensation of pleasure. When the mouse realised that pressing the lever was the cause of the wonderful sensation, he endeavoured to keep pressing the lever tirelessly till he died of exhaustion.
Happiness is therefore just a matter of neurotransmitters stimulating specific areas resulting in momentary gratification a chemical reaction in the brain.
Duality is a warp in perception. In reality these partitions do not exist. They are just notional values assigned by the perceptive apparatus. They are actually variations in the intensity of only one modality. The experiment where light is made to pass through two slits to determine if light is a wave or particle form, pronounced that light simultaneously exists as wave and particle. This presented the scientific community with a paradoxical conclusion hard to fathom, a daunting task for the perceptive apparatus which is limited to comprehending only one of two possibilities.
Science is based on reductionism. Science teaches one to classify, make subgroups, and analyse all events as cause and effect. It programmes the brain to fragment, not assimilate. But observations in quantum physics show that subatomic particles behave in a way incomprehensible to classical Newtonian concepts.Similarly, dark and light, pleasure and pain, cannot have an either/or existence. It is our perception that triggers this dichotomy Events or people get classified by the intellect, which analyses the event, compares the event with its database or memory and delivers a threat or no-threat verdict. This makes the subject interact with the environment. This interaction is primordial in nature, in-built for survival. The categorisation of reality into subgroups such as pleasant or unpleasant, endeavouring only pleasant situations to prevail, causes unhappiness.Medically when there is a threat perception, there is a rise in heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar, which keeps the individual in a state of combat with typical responses: fight, fright or flight. If the threat perception apparatus keeps getting stimulated too frequently then the body instead of shifting gears, often compensates by raising these parameters permanently. This causes high incidence of hypertension and diabetes where stress is a definitive cause. In the enlightened state, what changes is not the environment but the perception of the environment. Consciousness is just awareness. It is non-judgmental, with no reaction. There is no classification. It is just a witness. When perception eliminates all fragmentation, one becomes conscious, aware. Then we no longer get exhausted like the mouse did, trying to manipulate the pleasure-giving lever.
Dr.Deepak Ranade The writer is a neurosurgeon, is setting up Centre for Consciousness Studies. E-mail: drdeepakranade@gmail.com
SPEAKING TREE--TIMES OF INDIA
posted by Dr. Deepak Ranade @ 1:06 AM 1 comments
1 Comments:
At August 13, 2009 4:39 AM , Nilesh said...
Superb one!!
Good explanation you have given by taking a scientific examples.
As per my thinking, "Live a life by being just an observer". Thanafter, our real nature(SAT-CHIT-ANAND) will gradually manifested.
Am i true?
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home
Search For The Centre Of Consciousness
The brain's neurons are differentiated to execute specific functions. All sensory perceptions reach nerve centres that are specific for a particular sensory modality. However, all attempts to localise the centre for consciousness have failed..In an experiment, an electrode was implanted in the brain adjacent to the pleasure centre of a caged mouse. When a lever was pressed, a small current would be released which would stimulate the locus of neurons and the mouse experienced a sensation of pleasure. When the mouse realised that pressing the lever was the cause of the wonderful sensation, he endeavoured to keep pressing the lever tirelessly till he died of exhaustion.
Happiness is therefore just a matter of neurotransmitters stimulating specific areas resulting in momentary gratification a chemical reaction in the brain.
Duality is a warp in perception. In reality these partitions do not exist. They are just notional values assigned by the perceptive apparatus. They are actually variations in the intensity of only one modality. The experiment where light is made to pass through two slits to determine if light is a wave or particle form, pronounced that light simultaneously exists as wave and particle. This presented the scientific community with a paradoxical conclusion hard to fathom, a daunting task for the perceptive apparatus which is limited to comprehending only one of two possibilities.
Science is based on reductionism. Science teaches one to classify, make subgroups, and analyse all events as cause and effect. It programmes the brain to fragment, not assimilate. But observations in quantum physics show that subatomic particles behave in a way incomprehensible to classical Newtonian concepts.Similarly, dark and light, pleasure and pain, cannot have an either/or existence. It is our perception that triggers this dichotomy Events or people get classified by the intellect, which analyses the event, compares the event with its database or memory and delivers a threat or no-threat verdict. This makes the subject interact with the environment. This interaction is primordial in nature, in-built for survival. The categorisation of reality into subgroups such as pleasant or unpleasant, endeavouring only pleasant situations to prevail, causes unhappiness.Medically when there is a threat perception, there is a rise in heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar, which keeps the individual in a state of combat with typical responses: fight, fright or flight. If the threat perception apparatus keeps getting stimulated too frequently then the body instead of shifting gears, often compensates by raising these parameters permanently. This causes high incidence of hypertension and diabetes where stress is a definitive cause. In the enlightened state, what changes is not the environment but the perception of the environment. Consciousness is just awareness. It is non-judgmental, with no reaction. There is no classification. It is just a witness. When perception eliminates all fragmentation, one becomes conscious, aware. Then we no longer get exhausted like the mouse did, trying to manipulate the pleasure-giving lever.
Dr.Deepak Ranade The writer is a neurosurgeon, is setting up Centre for Consciousness Studies. E-mail: drdeepakranade@gmail.com
SPEAKING TREE--TIMES OF INDIA
posted by Dr. Deepak Ranade @ 1:06 AM 1 comments
1 Comments:
At August 13, 2009 4:39 AM , Nilesh said...
Superb one!!
Good explanation you have given by taking a scientific examples.
As per my thinking, "Live a life by being just an observer". Thanafter, our real nature(SAT-CHIT-ANAND) will gradually manifested.
Am i true?
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)