In this Weekly Wisdom, Gurudev shares what the seven layers of our existence are and how they function in the world.
We have seven layers or seven aspects of our existence.
Body, breath, and mind
First is our body, second is our breath, third is our mind.
It is the mind that experiences sound through the ears and sight through the eyes. The mind experiences the world outside through all five senses.
My words are falling on your ears. Your mind is elsewhere, and then you won’t hear what I’m saying. That function of our consciousness, which we perceive, is what we call the mind.
Intellect
And then there’s another aspect of consciousness: the intellect, which agrees or disagrees. You say yes or no. That’s intellect.
Memory
The fifth one is memory. If I ask you what you had for breakfast on the 31st of May, would you be able to tell me? You’d ask, “Why the 31st of May? I don’t remember what we had last week.”
We remember that which is essential. You remember when you got married, your birthday, your spouse’s birthday. So, we remember certain things but not certain other things.
Memory is often reeling around that which is negative.
If you observe the nature of our mind, it usually clings to the negative. If you were given ten compliments and one insult, what would you hold onto? You’ve had ten days of good times and one hour of argument. The one hour would stand up.
But have you noticed that’s not the same for the kids? Kids may cry, but then they start smiling. Have you seen this?
It’s the most beautiful sight to see. A child is crying, the tears are still on their cheek, and they start smiling. We’ve all come to this planet as bundles of joy, a bubbling enthusiasm of love. Not one person has come to this world as a bad guy.
Anywhere, from Japan to Mongolia to Argentina to all over, we’ve all been children of joy, love, and beauty. But somewhere in the journey of life, we’ve forgotten that.
Ego
Then, we have ego. Ego means I’m somebody. I’m different. I’m this. I’m that. This fence is what we put between us and others. Identity is taking a big toll on the world. Have you noticed that? We hold onto identity.
We have several identities. First and foremost, we are part of one organism, one life force. The second identity is that we’re human beings, and the third is whether we're male or female. Fourth, we belong to this or that religion, this or that country, this or that language.
When we forget our basic identity as human beings and part of one universal spirit, we get into trouble.
One who doesn’t belong to me, I keep a distance from them and feel threatened by them. This is ego.
Self
There’s something beyond ego. That’s the referral point of all changes in our lives.
Do you agree with me that everything is changing around you, or some things are? Your body, thoughts, emotions, circumstances, and situations are changing.
You recognize the change because something isn’t changing. If nothing wasn’t changing, then you couldn’t even know the change. So something in us isn’t changing. That’s your higher Self.
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Editor’s note:
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