Inner Being and the Self-Realisation

Is not our lack of wideness because the inner being is seized by inertia and ego?

Yes, I suppose so.

A complete silence makes realisation of the Self more possible — but that can be had on the Higher Mind level far below Overmind.

I can understand that the psychic development and the conquest of ego would have been easier if I had lived in the inner being rather than in the higher. But how would the widening of the consciousness have been easier? Is not the higher being wide and infinite in itself?

Do you realise it as wide and infinite? When you are there do you feel spread through infinity? Do you feel all the universe within you, yourself one with the self of all beings? Do you feel the one cosmic Force acting everywhere? Do you feel your mind one with the cosmic mind? your life one with the cosmic life? your matter one with the cosmic Matter? separative ego unreal? the body no longer a limitation? What is the use of merely arguing that the higher being is wide and infinite? Do these realisations come when you are in the higher being and if not why not? The inner being easily opens to all these realisations, the outer does not. So unless your inner being becomes conscious of itself, the mere ascent gives only height or some vague sense of other planes, not these concrete realisations.

At times my experience is as if my mind, life and body have shifted away from me or from their old lodging.

It means only that the consciousness has gone above.

Until yesterday, whenever I felt myself above, my station was just above the head. But now I find myself about afoot higher than the head.

“Above” the head means higher than the head. You meant that you were on the top of the head?

At times, the whole of my consciousness feels like a single block situated below the head. It then rises up, as a wooden block rises up from beneath the sea. After the ascent it experiences itself as moving there as a part of the higher consciousness. Then it experiences positively — not merely feels — that it truly is the Self. It experiences all this with such an intensity that I can’t refuse to believe it.

That is the ascent of the lower consciousness to meet the Above consciousness. Such ascent usually prepares the lower parts to receive the descent from above.

This morning, during the meditation, I felt concretely that I am stationed above the head; it is from that centre that I do my inner sadhana, aspire, will or bring down things.

That is the proper station of the consciousness.

When there, I feel myself made up more of solid peace, silence, force, than of bones, flesh or skin.

You are there the Self or Purusha, spiritual in consciousness and the spiritual consciousness is made of peace, force, silence and in its greater intensities of light and ananda also.

Above the head I see a plane of infinite and eternal Peace. The Mother is the Queen of this world. From there I feel an unceasing flow coming down towards me. It first touches my higher being and passes through it without any resistance. But on its way downwards the flow narrows to a small current which passes through the Brahmic hole. How do you find this description?

That is quite correct. In many however it descends in a mass through the whole head and not in a current through the Brahmic hole.

That is the usual movement of the descent. But at times I experience that the plane of Peace and Silence, and my higher and inner consciousness are as if packed together, one and inseparable.

This is felt in the consciousness only or through the whole body? Or does it ever extend through space, space becoming identical with your own consciousness?

Some suggestions say, “You remain on the higher station satisfied with its peace and silence and do practically nothing for the parts below.” Is it correct?

Not altogether, but the higher peace and silence has to come down fully and not merely remain above — so the other contents of the higher consciousness may have a chance of descending too and stabilising themselves.

In the integral Yoga what is the place of the capacity for rising above?

Both ascent and descent are necessary.

That capacity does not seem to be so easy to acquire for those who do not shut themselves up in a room.

It is not necessary to be shut up in order to have it. Many go up but cannot stay there. Some open into the wideness before they undertake a higher ascent. You have risen above but you have not yet opened into the Brahman consciousness where one begins to lose the ego.

What is the Brahman Consciousness and where is it spread out?

In the wideness of the Self and of the universal Divine Consciousness — these two together are the Brahman consciousness.

I have asked so many questions about dwelling on the higher planes. I want to know now if you want me to come down from the above-station into the inner being.

No. That is not the point.

I have said that the higher station must be accompanied by the action on the inner being. You have to stabilise peace everywhere, to separate from the outer disturbances, to establish such a condition that it would be possible for the Force to descend and work on the outer to get rid of the persistent difficulties there.

Some of the outer parts of my being feel it is no use being stationed on the higher plane. It has brought no change in the nature.

Do they think they will get changed quicker by not living in the higher consciousness at all?

Nobody said that you should not take the higher being as a first station. The question was about enforcing the peace of the higher being on the lower parts down to the physical so as (1) to create that separateness which could prevent the inner being affected by the superficial disturbance and resistance, (2) to make it easier for the force and other powers of the higher being to descend.

Now I find that I have stayed too long above and did not work enough for the inner development, not to speak of the outer.

It is a thing that can be done for a time so as to strengthen the capacity for remaining above — but if the lower consciousness is left to itself there can be no transformation. The higher position has to be used for bringing down the higher forces below.

From the higher station shall I start working on the inner being?

It may be better to let the general pressure proceed as it has been doing.

What is this general pressure?

The pressure of the Force.