Latest / Sri Aurobindo Studies / The Journey from Ignorance to Knowledge Through an Attitude of Continuous Learning and Receptivity

Transcript

The Journey from Ignorance to Knowledge Through an Attitude of Continuous Learning and Receptivity · Sri Aurobindo Studies

• 0:00
  We live in the world without fully appreciating or
• 0:03
  understanding it. This is not something new that
• 0:07
  we are experiencing, but a statement of what we may call
• 0:12
  the human condition. The Rishis of the Rigveda face
• 0:16
  these same issues in the Hymn of Creation.
• 0:20
  Mandala 10, Sukta 129, verses 6 and seven, as translated by
• 0:27
  Nolini Kantagupta. They express their yearning for
• 0:31
  knowledge and their frustration with the seemingly impenetrable
• 0:36
  nature of the manifestation of which we are part.
• 0:40
  When they say quote. Who knows?
• 0:44
  In truth? Who would tell us here below?
• 0:49
  From where was it born? Whence this surging creation?
• 0:55
  The gods stand below this surging out abroad.
• 1:00
  Who knows then from where this took birth?
• 1:04
  That from where this creation has sprung?
• 1:07
  Does that even contain it, or does it not?
• 1:12
  He who is the Overlord in the supreme Infinity, Does he even
• 1:17
  know? Or he too knows not?
• 1:22
  End Quote. We can look upon the Earth as
• 1:26
  contained within a huge Faraday cage.
• 1:29
  For those who are not familiar with this concept, a Faraday
• 1:32
  cage creates a field that protects what is taking place
• 1:36
  inside from being affected by electromagnetic fields of
• 1:40
  various sorts that are otherwise bombarding the contents of the
• 1:44
  cage. The ionosphere is such a field
• 1:48
  that captures, deflects and diffuses large amounts of
• 1:53
  electromagnetic energy from reaching life on the Earth.
• 1:58
  Certain forces are able to penetrate and they support the
• 2:03
  existence of life on the planet, but many others are kept away
• 2:07
  from us, from our aspect. Inside this protected
• 2:11
  environment. We not only are shielded from
• 2:14
  influence by many cosmic forces, but the vibrational fields we
• 2:19
  create on the planet are contained, bounced back and
• 2:24
  thereby circulated within humanity, building the type of
• 2:28
  oneness of mental activity the tear de chardan termed the
• 2:33
  Nuosphere. The environing thought field
• 2:36
  within which all thoughts move and are picked up by those who
• 2:40
  are open and receptive to them, modified and in some cases
• 2:45
  concentrated and retransmitted to create the mental world as we
• 2:49
  experience it. To truly understand the wider
• 2:54
  purpose of the manifestation, as we look beyond at the solar
• 2:58
  system, the galaxies, the universes, and their vast powers
• 3:04
  and distances and time sequences, we need to be able to
• 3:08
  quiet the vibrational patterns that keep us tied down within
• 3:12
  this cage of consciousness and shift our awareness to a
• 3:16
  vibrational pattern that can transcend the limiting factor of
• 3:21
  the Faraday cage within which we currently reside.
• 3:27
  If we understand that there is such a deeper purpose and that
• 3:31
  the evolution of life on Earth is an expression of that deeper
• 3:34
  purpose, then we also have the opportunity to learn, to grow,
• 3:40
  to be receptive, to reflect, and thereby to prepare ourselves for
• 3:45
  the deeper realizations and revelations that await us as we
• 3:50
  develop and mature into the next phase of consciousness that is
• 3:55
  in process of being manifested on the planet.
• 3:59
  At some point we begin to experience the wonder and the
• 4:03
  complexity, and we take the opportunity to widen ourselves,
• 4:08
  to recognize our ignorance and to become receptive as a child
• 4:13
  to learn and grow, to ask questions, to undertake what is
• 4:18
  known in certain fields as the fool's journey, the journey that
• 4:23
  awakens us to the vast field within which we are living
• 4:27
  without knowledge, without control, without understanding,
• 4:32
  and to become simple, open and ready to learn.
• 4:39
  The Mother observes quote when one wants to understand the deep
• 4:45
  laws of life, wants to be ready to receive whatever message is
• 4:49
  sent by the Divine, if one wants to be able to penetrate the
• 4:53
  secrets of the manifestation. Everything, no matter what the
• 4:59
  least little circumstance in life, becomes a teacher who can
• 5:04
  teach you something, teach you how to think and act.
• 5:09
  Even the reflections of an ignorant child can help you to
• 5:13
  understand something you didn't understand before.
• 5:17
  Your attitude is so different. It is always an attitude which
• 5:21
  is awaiting a discovery, an opportunity for progress, a
• 5:26
  rectification of a wrong movement, a step ahead.
• 5:30
  And so it is like a magnet. It attracts from all around you
• 5:34
  opportunities to make this progress.
• 5:38
  The least things can teach you how to progress.
• 5:41
  As you have the consciousness and will to progress, everything
• 5:45
  becomes an opportunity, and you project this consciousness and
• 5:49
  will to progress upon all things.
• 5:54
  And not only is this useful for you, but it is useful for all
• 5:59
  those around you with whom you have a contact.
• 6:03
  End Quote. Reference Sri Orabindo and the
• 6:08
  Mother, Looking from Within, Chapter 1, Looking at Life and
• 6:12
  Circumstances, pages 12 to 13.