*Chapter 5 - The Fourth Dimension*
*Day 19*
Sense objects are the external most. On the inward journey, from the sense objects, the first step is to become aware of the senses.
Usually we are lost in the sense objects. This is our experience. When the mind experiences a sight, you are merged with the sight.
You are watching a movie and there is tragedy in the movie and you are crying as though you have become a part of that movie.
Everybody goes through this. This is spending your energy. Now, the mind, when it has to retrieve itself back it has to take a step backward from the scenery to the senses.
When you are lost that's why people ask you, "Are you in your senses"? It means are you in the scenery or you have you become aware of your senses.
It's only when you are with your senses that your intellect is active and alive. Consciousness has four inner functions : one functions as intellect second is the mind, third is memory and the fourth is identity.
The identity aspect of consciousness is called ego, they are not separate. The one Consciousness functions in four ways.
This is called the four inner functions of consciousness : identity, memory, intelligence, and experience. In the experience, the senses are with the sense objects.
Ears are merged in the music, eyes are set in the scenery, skin in touch, tongue tastes and nose smells, of course fragrance.
So, when the five senses engage in the sense objects, that's when the mind experiences and when you are lost in experiences, and the intelligence takes a back seat.
It should, because that is not its job there. You should merge when you are singing, you should simply sing. You should listen when you are listening to music.
You should be with the music. If the intellect is going "wawawa" then you are unable to enjoy that. But then, how to bring a balance because the experience is always spending the energy in experiencing the sense object.
Whenever you experience anything say you are looking at something for some time, you get tired after sometime. When you are listening to something after sometime you get tired.
The sense of touch has a limitation. The five elements are connected with these five senses : light with the sight, space with sound, air with touch and water with taste.
When the saliva in your mouth dries, you cannot taste anything. It's the water element in your mouth that makes you experience that taste. Earth element is connected with smell.
If there are no fragrant particles, you cannot smell. Water doesn't smell, but if there are some earth particles, the earth element in the water element then you can experience the fragrance.
The world is made up of five elements that is why it is called 'Prapancha.' The whole universe is made up of these five elements in many different permutations and combination.
The five senses are made to experience that and experience is spending energy. You can spend only when you have something. It's so fortunate that God created something called sleep.
Nature puts you to sleep every night and in those 8 hours of sleep, you gain energy and the rest of the 16 hours you spend it.
You can recharge your battery everyday by sleeping. But sleep is not enough to recharge. For a baby that is enough. A baby sleeps then it is awake and is happy because it is aligned with nature.
As we have moved so far away from our nature we need meditation. So the inward journey is from the sense organs to the senses. Come to your senses.
When you come to your senses what happens? Your intellect becomes more alive and active. Now whatever you experience: you judge, discriminate, understand and analyse.
Then the third is memory. After you have analysed, that filters into your memory and then beyond that it is identity. I am somebody. You identify yourself with particular memories.
The universe is filled with memories. But we identify only with certain memories that make an individual different from the universal consciousness.
When you go beyond the "I", the self identity, then you find everybody's experience is your experience. That is the being, that is self, that is the spirit.
