Map of a Human Being
The Body
Hunger, Disease, Aging, Death (Mind)
These are the consequences of taking a physical form, exacerbated by living in the mind, as defined here. By switching to a more soul/heart-based life, their influence can be reduced.
Discussion:
(Extracted from: Divine Luminous Wisdom That Dispels the Darkness, page 205, Fellowship Press)
“I am speaking of the disease of hypnotic torpor, which appears in birth... (it) creates numberless thoughts and characteristics. All these create innumerable projections of hypnotic fascination. They, in turn, cause the degradation of Wisdom. This degraded state of Wisdom causes endless desires. Desires cause several births. These births create various physical forms. These forms create various diseases. These diseases cause numberless mind-monkeys. They, in turn, create forests, which cannot be crossed by flying over or cutting through them. In these forests are cruel animals (qualities) which prey on one another. These animals create the diseases of hunger, disease, old age, and death. These four create the power of the four hundred billion hypnotic fascinations projected by Illusion (maya).” More at: (Google books)
9 Openings (Mind)
The 9 openings referred to on the Map are: two eyes, two nostrils, two ears, one mouth and the two below the waist. They are essential for our physical life. But they also feed the mind and can spin our lives around. They are like nine planets of influence. Before living consciously they feed all the mind’s tendencies, but in the transformed human being they serve wisdom. Then we become attuned to the inner eye, ear, tongue and nostril; aiding us in discerning truth from falsehood, reality from illusion.
Discussion:
These 9 must be guarded and managed. Depending on our parents' awareness of this, we will usually absorb their skill level at first. In other words we absorb their karma. Absorbing this karma is just as dangerous as a genetically inherited disease. The one saving grace is that karma can be stopped or changed. Many people don’t even see the need to change their karma, it is the pain they are familiar with. Changing karma can even sometimes distance us from relatives and friends, that makes it doubly difficult to do. Changing oneself is one of the hardest things to do in life, so it is better achieved a little at a time, so that the mind does not go into revolt and sabotage us. We only need to watch afternoon cable TV shows to see those who are almost completely controlled by these 9 openings. They are the ones who believe in the world around them as the only reality. Although we are in the world and must do our necessary duties: to the world, the soul and to the people, we should not believe in it. The people-made world, not nature, we see about us today, wherever we live, is just one version of what it could look like. The society we have built is just one version, often forced by the most influential people. In a world run by the truly wise, there would be much more compassion, more unity, less hurried and more in tune with nature and God’s will.
9 Openings (Soul)
Serenity comes to those who have contained these and the reclaimed energy that results can be used for their wise intentions.
“The inner eyes gaze upon God, the inner ears hear the sounds of God, the inner nostrils savor the fragrance of God, the inner tongue tastes the beauty of divine knowledge, giving it a voice while conversing with God.” (BM)
Discussion:
Imagine the energy these openings use up? Now imagine if we had transcended the mundane kinds of desires. If we stop using our energy for the mind section we might get the awareness that the soul-life provides. We might even discover a greater fulfillment than what we had hoped to get from the mind activities. At least we would have spare energy to pursue some other worldly goals like continuing education and spiritual education. Who knows, we might even start helping others, volunteer at a non-profit organization or start our own! Some do this already. By consciously placing a wisdom filter in front of these openings we will reduce their influence on our mind, limiting the mind’s strength.
5 Elements (Mind)
The five elements of earth, fire, water, air and ether have no direct correlation with the table of elements. This is the broad stroke of the mystics, all physical form in the universe is composed of them. The sakti (energy plus perception, not necessarily accurate perception) that arises from them helps form the mind. We look through sakti at sakti, and sakti reflects back at us. Many of us believe this to be reality, but it is only the manifestation, often misinterpreted, on display.
Discussion:
Do we ever stop to think that everything is really made of the same stuff? Whether it is an ipod, a car, a building or our own body - it is all made of various mixtures of the same stuff. Let us call it mud! Only the scientist really needs to get into the finest detail. So what is all the fascination with the look of ‘high-tech’ products? What designers do is create a mesmerizing external sakti to fascinate the dog of desire into wanting the thing. I can appreciate what designers do, I also design, I live in the world. But once you get this, it takes the slavery we have to objects out of our daily lives. We like freedom don’t we? Then let us become freer and less beguiled. We need to buy a car, but with this awareness, instead of buying the fascinating looking car, we might make a better decision based on practical need.
That is an external awareness we can apply from contemplating this. But our life is also encapsulated in these 5 elements. How do their characteristics influence us? What if we discovered that thinking is the elements arguing with each other? Because, according to Bawa Muhayaddeen, this is so. Does anyone acknowledge that all the thoughts they have are self-willed? I haven’t even got time to produce all those thoughts. So where do they arise from? Brain synapses you say? What is a brain synapse? Isn’t it made of mud? Isn’t the mud made of energy? Am I not surrounded by this stuff? Can we distinguish all this in our consciousness? Perhaps if we slow it down by concentrating our efforts in the soul-life, which is not contingent on mud, we might get a clear view of it all.
