Principles and Analogies

A Selection of Principles and Analogies, Science and Technology of Consciousness, Fall 2012 (Key readings and video recordings) Use this document as a guide for your final project or essay, to help you bring out the deeper aspects of at least a few STC topics, such as: • The essential nature of pure Being • The mechanics of transcending • The complementary roles of intellectual understanding and direct experience • Qualities and properties of the unified field of all the laws of nature • The 3-in-1 reality of knower/knowing/known • The role of desire in human evolution • The sequential development of higher states of consciousness • Yogic Flying and the Maharishi Effect • Veda, the constitution of the universe •

PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES The Science of Being • Existence, or Being, is the unmanifest basis of manifest reality. • Being is like the silent depths of the ocean; the • The non-changing state of Being – the Absolute – is the basis of the changing phases surface ripples and waves are the different aspects of of life – the relative. All forms and phenomena have their basis in omnipresent Being. manifest life. • The essential nature of Being is bliss consciousness. • Without knowledge of bliss consciousness, life is like a building without a foundation, a ship without a • Physics describes creation as built up of layers, from the innermost subtle levels to rudder, a dry leaf at the mercy of the wind, without the outer levels of matters. Beneath the subtlest layer is the abstract, unmanifest field roots to anchor it. of pure Being. • A beam radiating from a light bulb diminishes in • Creation is the field of consciousness in different forms; as bliss consciousness intensity as it proceeds further from its source. radiates out, the degree of bliss diminishes. • Taking care of Being is like taking care of the sap • Activity depends on thinking; the basis of thinking is Being. to nourish the whole tree. • Cosmic means all-inclusive, “of the entire universe.” • Hydrogen and oxygen, the essential constituents of • The cycle of creation, maintenance, evolution, and dissolution is found everywhere. water, remain the same whether water is gas, liquid, Change takes place on the basis of the non-changing, ultimate constituent of creation. or solid. • TM allows the mind to experience subtle states of an impulse of thought until it • A thought, like a bubble rising in the ocean of the reaches the source of thought, the source of creative intelligence. mind, becomes bigger as it approaches the surface. • As the natural tendency of the mind is to go to fields of greater happiness, the mind • The intensity of a light increases as we come nearer is naturally drawn to experience of bliss consciousness. to its source. • Every word and thought influences the thinker and the surroundings. • A stone thrown into a pond creates waves that • Infusion of Being into the nature of the mind is facilitated by transcending alternated spread throughout the pond. with easy, natural activity. • A cloth is dyed by dipping it in color then taking it • Energy, efficiency, clarity of mind, and better health develop through TM. out and allowing the color to fade. 1 • Being is lived on the basis of direct experience, even if it cannot be described • When the root is watered, every part of the whole precisely in words. tree becomes healthier and more vital. • A food can be tasted perfectly well, but the taste may be difficult to describe in words.

The Science of Creative Intelligence (SCI) – Knowledge and Experience Reading from original MIU Catolog: • Knowledge is structured in consciousness. • SCI provides a basis for interdisciplinary study and unifies other fields of knowledge. • SCI’s theoretical aspect gives intellectual understanding of order in nature and of the creativity that underlies growth and change. • SCI’s practical aspect, Transcendental Meditation, allows the mind to experience pure creative intelligence. • Experience of pure creative intelligence corresponds with the physiological state of restful alertness. • The pure field of creative intelligence is the source and goal of all change. • Principles guiding the experience of TM can be located in other fields of study. • Qualities of creative intelligence grow through development of the seven states of consciousness defined by SCI. Analogies of Principles Guiding the Experience of TM: • Diving: a diver takes the correct angle, then lets go • Gravity: The diver effortlessly heads toward the lake, pulled by gravity • Increasing charm: A child runs toward mother; the closer he gets, the faster he goes • Comfortable ride: bicycle, car, jet – the fastest ride has the greatest comfort • Intelligence through rest Qualities of Creative Intelligence • expansive • integrative • progressive • innovative • discriminative • self-sufficient • inclusive of opposite values • self-perpetuating • invincible • self-perfecting • holistic

2 16 SCI principles of the Science of Creative Intelligence (MSAE) The principles of SCI are the laws of nature that uphold growth and progress of everyone and everything. They are everywhere, guiding the progress and evolution of the ant and the elephant, the cell and the planets. These 16 principles are a subset of innumerable principles of SCI, selected for Consciousness-Based education at Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment. PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES • The nature of life is to grow • When we look around, we see everything growing and evolving – plants, animals, people, societies, ecosystems • Order is present everywhere • An apple tree only produces apples, not mangoes • The laws of nature that give rise to the universe are unchanging and consistent throughout time and space • Life is found in layers • The hollowness of a banyan seed is the unmanifest basis for the expression of the entire tree • Outer depends on inner • Water the root to enjoy the fruit • When mother is at home, the child feels safe and plays with greater creativity and freedom • A tall building rquires a deep foundation • Seek the highest first • Capture the fort to command the whole territory • Befriend the president to gain greater influence • Rest & activity are the steps of progress • Pull the arrow back on the bow to shoot it forward • When we walk, one foot stays stationary while the other moves ahead • Enjoy greater efficiency and accomplish more • A state-of-the-art computer is cappabel of calculations far exceeding earlier models (or: Do less and accomplish more) • Nature operates according to the law of least action • Every action has a reaction • A stone tossed into a pond creates ripples that affect the whole pond • One happy person can influence others to be happier

3 PRINCIPLES (continued) ANALOGIES • Purification leads to progress • A snow plough clears its own path as it moves forward • A glass of muddy water gives a muddy reflection of the sun; removing the mud improves the reflection • Purify the blood to remove a boil and prevent future boils • The field of all possibilities is the source of all • Access to the treasury or bank gives us maximum effectiveness in the market solutions • Thought leads to action, action leads to • When we have the thought that we would like an apple, we get up and get it, then we achievement, and achievement leads to fulfillment eat it and enjoy the fulfillment • Knowledge is gained from inside and outside • We gain kowledge of a strawberry by learning about it, but also by tasting it and experiencing it for ourselves • Knowledge is structured in consciousness • Different-colored glasses change our experience of the world • If we have a diamond but don’t know its worth, we may feel its weight and discard it • A string perceived as a snake creates distress; when the truth dawns, the fear disappears • When we are tired and dull, our experience is limited; when rested and fresh, we have greater intelligence and enjoyment • Harmony exists in diversity • An orchestra unifies many different notes, rhythms, and instruments into a harmonious symphony • The same colorless sap upholds the root, stem, leaves, thorns, and petals of a rose • The whole is contained in every part • The seed contains the whole tree • The DNA in each cell contains the genetic information of the entire body • The whole is more than the sum of its parts • A house is more than a collection of bricks

4 PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES Video: Experience, the Practical Basis of SCI (SCI Lesson 1) • The natural tendency of life is to evolve and progress to more and more. • Use full potential of wealth by going • The quest of SCI is: How can we live in abundance and fulfillment? to the treasury first, then the market; know the bank so wealth can be used. • Satisfaction comes from fulfillment of desires; every step of fulfillment raises the standard of desiring towards the ultimate goal. • We walk through steps of rest and activity. • The basis of failures, disappointments, and suffering is inability of the mind to accomplish its aspirations, due to lack of full use of creative intelligence. • We gain knowledge of a strawberry by tasting it. • The infinite reservoir of creative intelligence at the source of thought can be open to experience. • Rest and activity are the basis of progress; action rests on rest. • Experience is the practical basis of knowledge. Transcendental Consciousness - Video: Transcending, the Nature of the Experience • Transcendental Consciousness is an abstract experience, unlike experience through the senses; it • experience of TC is like putting on the is natural to think “maybe, maybe not; probably I have experienced it” best glasses – sharpness of vision • “Clear” and “unclear” has different meanings for different people. increases, but we don’t see the glasses. • Even a glimpse is rewarding. • With growth of experience, the abstraction of TC becomes more concrete. Cosmic Consciousness – Reading: Bhagavad-Gita, Ch. 4, v. 38 • Balanced alternation of meditation and activity results in pure consciousness being infused into • A cloth is dipped in dye then put in the active mind. sunlight to fade the color; when this • Each state of consciousness has a corresponding state of the nervous system. process is repeated many times, the cloth becomes colorfast. • Through gradual and systematic culture of the nervous system, the state of physiology corresponding to TC comes to co-exist with the physiology of waking, dreaming, and sleep states Video: SCI and Seven States of Consciousness (SCI Lesson 23) • Waking, dreaming, and sleeping are the three relative states. • One can experience the rose without • 4th state: Transcendental Consciousness (TC) – restful alertness. Pure, unbounded awareness. losing inner unboundedness.

5 PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES …continued: Video: SCI and Seven States of Consciousness (SCI Lesson 23) • 5th state: Cosmic Consciousness (CC) – established when TC co-exists permanently and • A wide angle lense comprehends a spontaneously with the three relative states: the inner unbounded Self co-exists with the boundaries of greater horizon, not only non-self (a dual state). Pure bliss 24 hours a day. Witnessing. horizontally but vertically. • In CC, we see only the surface value of the object; then perception – guided by the heart – penetrates • Knowledge is different in different more deeply into the finer values as we grow toward the next state:• 6th state: Refined Cosmic states of consciousness. Consciousness, Glorified Cosmic Consciousness, or God Consciousness (GC) – established when the • The colorless sap is at the surface finest relative value of the object is open to perception. of the petal as well as at the tip of • 7th state: Unity Consciousness (UC) – established when the unmanifest value of the object is realized; the root. everything perceived in terms of the Self. • Petal remains petal, leaf remains In Unity, knower and object of knowledge are unified, infinite; knowledge is complete, supreme. The leaf – but the colorless sap zooms Absolute is at much at the surface as the depth of things Unity dominates thinking and behavior; forth in awareness. diversity becomes secondary. That which was previously transcendental becomes dominant. Selected readings compiled by Craig Pearson In all cultures throughout human history, there are writings by great men and women who have described clear experiences of the three higher states of consciousness – CC, GC, and UC. Other key points on the practice of TM • Concentration and control are opposed to evolution. • The river of life is flowing – • A normally functioning nervous system spontaneously maintains TC. trying to tie up the boat of the mind is opposed to this flow. • Yoga means union. The eight limbs (ashtanga) of Yoga have been misinterpreted as eight steps. • The eight limbs of Yoga grow • The eight limbs – corresponding to environment, behavior, body, breath, senses, mind, intellect, Self simultaneously, like the limbs of the – are unified by experience of Transcendental Consciousness (Samadhi). body; not eight steps. • Why does the Absolute manifest? There is no fun in loneliness. • TM gives “eight steps in one lift” – direct experience of TC. • Praising the bank without drawing from its wealth doesn’t reach the goal.

6 PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES Nature of Desire – Video: Desire and Evolution. • “As you sow, so shall you reap”: a • The cycle of desire–action–achievement is the process of evolution. huge, automatic computer computes the effects of our actions. • TM is the skill of resting and skill of living. • Befriend the general manager who • Support of nature is the most important factor in fulfillment of desires. can organize anything for us in his • Success demands right thought, and action in accord with evolution. factory. • The nature of the mind is to go to fields of greater happiness. • Support of nature is like a father who • All activity aims at reaching the goal of unboundedness. buys the son a coat even before the old coat is torn. • Accomplish more with less effort • Story of young man in Germany starting to laugh at work after learning TM – but more efficient. Reading: Bhagavad-Gita, 2, 50 and 2, 70 • “Bondage” means being bound by the cycle of action–impression–desire, and is born of the • Being, like an ocean, accepts any weakness of the actor (the mind). stream of desire and satisfies it, yet the • Action creates a strong impression on a weak mind. status of the ocean remains unaffected • Action cannot make a strong impression on a mind established in bliss consciousness (CC) – this is the established intellect. • It is not possible for a living man to be without desires. • The state of Being is the natural state of detachment, or non-attachment; cultivating an attitude of detachment is unnatural and damaging to life. Physics and Unified Field Theory Mathematics proves that at the level of the quantum fields, no object can be precisely located in time and space. Any item (table, person, electron...) is only ‘mostly’ in the specific location that we can see and measure with a ruler, but is also ‘a little bit’ locatd everywhere else in the universe. Thus, modern science has glimpsed the ancient, Vedic wisdom that unity is the ultimate reality of life.

7 PRINCIPLES ANALOGIES Principles of Maharishi Vedic Science – based on Inauguration of MVU reading and video • String theory describes the unified field and the • Knowledge is the relationship of knower (Rishi), process of knowing (Devata), and mass of particles in terms of vibrations, likened to known (Chhandas). the vibrations of a violin string producing more or • When we experience pure consciousness, consciousness is aware of itself alone – this less excited states of sound. is “self-referral” consciousness. • DNA transforms itself into proteins through RNA. • The 3-in-1 structure of knowledge is Samhita (togetherness) of Rishi, Devata, and • A plane is connected to ground through the radio; Chhandas. The interactions between three and one create infinite dynamism. (Also a kite to boy through the string. explained as pure awareness knowing itself as infinity and point – converging/expanding with infinite dynamism.) • Infinite dynamism means infinite vibrations – the sounds of Veda and the Vedic Literature.Veda is “a clear script of the self-interacting dynamics of consciousness,” the whisper or hum of the unified field to itself. • These interactions of consciousness transform sequentially into matter. • Consciousness expresses itself at different stages, becoming matter; impurity arises if connection with the Self is lost. Ayur-Veda deals with this impurity. • Life is most successful when mind and body are connected to the Self. Video: The Whole Vedic Literature is the Sequentially Emerging Totality of the Self • Atma – the Self – contains infinite silence and infinite dynamism. • The total creativity of nature is in the sequence of sounds and gaps of the Veda. • The sounds of the alphabet are the reverberations of the Self (swa – Self; ra – reverberation). • The first vowel is “A,” the sound of unified wholeness, the flow of silence. • Each word (sound) of Veda dives into the unmanifest gap, and the next word emerges. • The sequentially developing flow of Vedic texts comes from infinite silence in the gap. • Our awareness opens to unmanifest, infinite creativity in the gap.

8 A few of Maharishi’s Vedic Technologies of Consciousness Maharishi Ayurveda: Ayu – life. Veda – knowledge: knowledge of life, of health, Swastha. swa – Self; stha – established. • Self-pulse assessment, Nadi Vigyan, is a technique of reading the pulse to assess the levels of balance in the process which transforms consciousness into physiology. • In the pulse we feel the three doshas, Vata/Pitta/Kapha. They are an expression of the self-referral dynamics of consciousness: Vata— movement—corresponds to Rishi; Pitta—metabolism—corresponds to Devata; Kapha—structure—corresponds to Chhandas. Maharishi Sthapatya Veda: Vedic architecture; knowledge of building in accord with natural law. Stha – established. Maharishi Gandharva Veda: Musical note – Swara: swa – Self; ra – reverberation. So, musical notes are reverberations of the Self. • Music is known to have a powerful effect on the physiology. Physics states that matter is made of vibrations. The Vedic Literature states that matter is made of the self-referral vibrations of consciousness. The laws of nature “vibrate” the universe into existence. • The purpose of Vedic music is to make audible the vibrations of nature, and create balance in the physiology and environment through resonance with natural law. Gandharva Veda is called “the eternal rhythms and melodies of nature.” Vedic Recitation: Reading of the Vedic Literature. Veda is pure knowledge, and the purpose of Vedic recitation is to enliven natural law. This means that the sounds of Veda ARE the laws of nature themselves. Therefore, at MUM, reading the Vedic literature or listening to Vedic recitation is primarily for the value of sound itself. Intellectual analysis of the meaning of the texts is secondary. Reading: Maharishi on Modern Science and Vedic Science • Vedic Science is the science of Veda – pure knowledge and infinite organizing power. • Modern science gives knowledge of that which is perceived, the object: Vedic Science incorporates knowledge of the knower and process of knowing. Vedic Science gives knowledge of the subjectivity at the basis of objectivity. • Knowledge of the unified field discovered recently by modern physics has always been available in the Veda and Vedic Literature. TM-Sidhi program, Maharishi Effect • The TM-Sidhi program trains the mind to think and act from the unified field, so thought is supported by total natural law. • Individual consciousness is the unit of collective consciousness; government is the mirror of collective consciousness. • Super radiance: the power of individual coherence is squared with group practice of Yogic Flying. • Group practice by the square root of 1% of a population enlivens constructive tendencies; destructive tendencies become latent.

9 Forty branches of Veda and Vedic Literature • Maharishi identifies a specific quality of intelligence for each of the 40 branches of Veda and Vedic Literature and has organized this literature into an integrated structure. • Each branch of the Vedic Literature corresponds to Rishi, Devata, or Chhandas. • The structure and function of Veda and Vedic Literature is precisely related to the structure and function of the human physiology – the 40 qualities of intelligence are expressed in the corresponding area of the body. Unified Field Charts • Unified field charts relate parts of knowledge to the wholeness of knowledge, and the wholeness of knowledge to our own inner Self. • This process structures holistic thinking in the awareness, and fosters evolution to higher states of consciousness. • Vertically, the discipline is always organized from subtlest to most concrete. • Horizontally, most disciplines are organized by Knower, Process of Knowing, and Known (exceptions: physics ad physiology). • The ‘TM cone’ emerges from the unified field, showing transcendental consciousness as the source of thought. • The unified field of all the laws of nature is shown at the bottom of the chart, as the basis of both objective understanding and subjective experience. • Maharishi Vedic Science has many other names for the unified field, such as: The Unified Field of Natural Law The Gap The Field of All Possibilities and Source of All Solutions The Absolute The Source of Thought The Infinite Reservoir of Creative Intelligence Pure Being The Home of All Knowledge The Field of Coexistence of Opposites The Self The Constitution of the Universe The Togetherness of Infinity and Point Unbounded Awareness The Unmanifest Blueprint of Creation The Coexistence of Pure Silence and Infinite Dynamism Pure Bliss-Consciousness The Field of Infinite Harmony The Integration of Purusha and Prakriti Self-Referral Consciousness Total Knowledge The Togetherness of Knower/Knowing/Known Transcendental Consciousness Veda The Samhita of Rishi/Devata/Chhandas The Simplest Form of Awareness Wholeness on the Move One Unbounded Ocean of Consciousness in Motion