Of Human Thought And Bondage

Feb 9, 2005, 12.00am IST
ANIL K RAJVANSHI.

It is said that one of the first yogic sadhnas that Aurobindo Ghosh did under his guru Lele was to understand the nature of thought packets. By stilling his mind or emptying it of thought waves he could see the thought packets coming from external sources and by actively intervening as they came he could get rid of their effects on his mind. It was as if he could create a filter system similar to that used by the present e-mail programmes to get rid of spam. A similar process was described by Swami Vivekananda who said that when he concentrated on a person or an object, he could see the thought packets connected with them as writings on the blackboard or sky.


The brain is not only a receiver; it is also a transmitter of thought packets. With practice of Sanyam or Yoga we can tune our brains to receive knowledge and thought packets at will and to send them to others. This sending and receiving of thought pac-kets is governed by the strength of concentration. With deep concentration the thought packets can go to great distances via higher dimensions. The distance travelled by mundane thoughts is much less. Sanyam also allows us to get universal knowledge.


How can we perceive thought packets actively? Patanjali says that once the mind is completely calmed, that is, devoid of any thought waves, then it becomes like a pure crystal which takes on the colour from the object which is nearest to it. This calming of the mind by removal or suppression of thought waves should be done carefully under the guidance of a guru because in the absence of a strong will power and wisdom, the empty mind can be controlled by dangerous thoughts.

Human emotions are a product of both the internal working of our brain and external stimulus. Thought packets are a major external input and can make the mind work in a certain manner. When we think about a certain event or a person the internal memory is reinforced by external thought packets. In quite a number of cases our thinking about someone or an event may be triggered by external thought packets received. It stirs memories which sometimes makes us act in a certain manner.

To avoid getting perturbed by external thoughts we need a mechanism to stop them. Though all of us to a lesser or greater degree have the ability to receive thought packets, only evolved people like yogis and highly sensitive people can perceive their source to stop them. This active perception of the sources of thought is called the ability to read somebody's mind.

A simpler process is to think deeply about certain things. Thinking deeply helps in occupying the brain and is like creating a shield for the mind so that it is not affected by external thoughts. This is also the genesis of Karma Yoga where one keeps on doing work without any desire for reward. This helps the mind to focus fully on the work and there is little opportunity for it to be perturbed by any other external influence.

This externality of thought is the genesis of human bonding. The people with whom we have close emotional bonds send their thought packets more frequently. Somehow our brain develops neural pathways which are more conducive to getting these thought packets easily. It develops a mechanism by which it immediately recognises their thought signatures. These packets then make us act in a certain way and are the cause of karma or the human web of love.