This is part VII of our series on understanding our physical body. The mind has two components. One is knowledge and another is ignorance. When you are associating with worldly pleasures, you derive worldly knowledge, but you are ignorant about Brahman. That is why it has been repeatedly said to control the mind. This universe, our relatives, our likes and dislikes and anything associated with this universe appears to our mind as real. In fact our mind fails to understand that all these are perishable and develops attachment. This illusion is created by maya. Unless we win over maya, it is not possible to know the Brahman. We have already discussed under mind that mind gets impressions. Only when these impressions are destroyed, it is possible to realise the Supreme Self or Brahman. In an individual it is called mind and in the cosmos it is called mahat. We have seen earlier that mahat means supreme intelligence. Mind is a component of space and time. This space and time is called as citta akasha in Sanskrit. When space and time unites, we see the reality. When we separate them, we see only illusion. Let us take an example. You drive a car. You drive at a speed of 100 KMs per hour. In other words, you take one hour to cross 100 KMs. This is a case where space and time unites. In one hour time you have travelled a space of 100 KMs. So this is real. In the second case, you are ready with your car and you also know a place which is 100 KMs away, but not commenced your journey. Your travel has not commenced therefore it is not real. A thing that is not real is illusion or maya. Therefore space and time have to act in unison to understand the truth. Here by truth we mean the Brahman.

Citta akasha is space and time. Therefore something exists in citta akasha. From citta akasha one has to move towards cid akasha, the pure consciousness of the Brahman. We talk about subject and object only when we are awake. In our dream state also our mind works on subject and object. But in deep sleep there is no subject and object. There is nothing but void during our deep sleep. During our deep sleep our mind cease to function. There is no space and time. This can be explained by a simple example. In a class room the professor will be discussing on a boring subject. When you are not attracted either to a subject or to an object, your mind tends to think about something else that is of great attraction to you. When you are not listening to the professor, your mind travels elsewhere. Your sense organ is totally shut off from your class room. Your ears are blocked. They can’t carry any inputs to your mind. Without any inputs your mind ceases to think about your class room. In the same way, if you block all your sense organs and prevent any inputs to your mind, your mind will be void and this void is Brahman. This is because Brahman has no second. In void nothing exists except void. Our mind is capable of creation and destruction, capable of creating bondage and attachment as well as liberation. Therefore our mind is capable of doing both positive and negative things. The mind once enjoyed worldly pleasures will at a later date become disgusted with such enjoyments . At what point of time this transformation takes place depends upon one’s karmas. This series may be boring. This is mainly because of the complexity of the subject involved. A number of Upanishads talk about these subjects. Volumes and volumes have been written on mind and body. These two play a very important role in self realization. Without understanding the basics, it is not fair on our part to proceed further. This will tantamount to appearing for a degree examination without ever attending a school. To understand this philosophy of sheaths or coverings or koshas, repeated reading is necessary. I want to emphasize on this because, when we take up kundalini meditation and self realization, the words and phrases used so far will be repeated again and again. Explaining and interpreting these words and phrases every time will take us away from the subject of discussion. This I am sharing with you out of my own experience.