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Reference: Course on The Bhagavad Gita
English Translation By Swami Purohit Swami
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श्रीभगवानुवाच
परंभूयःप्रवक्ष्यामिज्ञानानांज्ञानमुत्तमम्।
यज्ज्ञात्वामुनयःसर्वेपरांसिद्धिमितोगताः।।14.1।।
14.1 Lord Shri Krishna continued: Now I will reveal unto the Wisdom which is beyond knowledge, by attaining which the sages have reached Perfection.
इदंज्ञानमुपाश्रित्यममसाधर्म्यमागताः।
सर्गेऽपिनोपजायन्तेप्रलयेनव्यथन्तिच।।14.2।।
14.2 Dwelling in Wisdom and realising My Divinity, they are not born again when the universe is re-created at the beginning of every cycle, nor are they affected when it is dissolved.
ममयोनिर्महद्ब्रह्मतस्मिन्गर्भंदधाम्यहम्।
संभवःसर्वभूतानांततोभवतिभारत।।14.3।।
14.3 The eternal Cosmos is My womb, in which I plant the seed, from which all beings are born, O Prince!
सर्वयोनिषुकौन्तेयमूर्तयःसम्भवन्तियाः।
तासांब्रह्ममहद्योनिरहंबीजप्रदःपिता।।14.4।।
14.4 O illustrious son of Kunti! Through whatever wombs men are born, it is the Spirit Itself that conceives, and I am their Father.
सत्त्वंरजस्तमइतिगुणाःप्रकृतिसंभवाः।
निबध्नन्तिमहाबाहोदेहेदेहिनमव्ययम्।।14.5।।
14.5 Purity, Passion and Ignorance are the Qualities which the Law of nature bringeth forth. They fetter the free Spirit in all beings.
तत्रसत्त्वंनिर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम्।
सुखसङ्गेनबध्नातिज्ञानसङ्गेनचानघ।।14.6।।
14.6 O Sinless One! Of these, Purity, being luminous, strong and invulnerable, binds one by its yearning for happiness and illumination.
रजोरागात्मकंविद्धितृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम्।
तन्निबध्नातिकौन्तेयकर्मसङ्गेनदेहिनम्।।14.7।।
14.7 Passion, engendered by thirst for pleasure and attachment, binds the soul through its fondness for activity.
तमस्त्वज्ञानजंविद्धिमोहनंसर्वदेहिनाम्।
प्रमादालस्यनिद्राभिस्तन्निबध्नातिभारत।।14.8।।
14.8 But Ignorance, the product of darkness, stupefies the senses in all embodied beings, binding them by chains of folly, indolence and lethargy.
सत्त्वंसुखेसञ्जयतिरजःकर्मणिभारत।
ज्ञानमावृत्यतुतमःप्रमादेसञ्जयत्युत।।14.9।।
14.9 Purity brings happiness, Passion commotion, and Ignorance, which obscures wisdom, leads to a life of failure.
रजस्तमश्चाभिभूयसत्त्वंभवतिभारत।
रजःसत्त्वंतमश्चैवतमःसत्त्वंरजस्तथा।।14.10।।
14.10 O Prince! Purity prevails when Passion and Ignorance are overcome; Passion, when Purity and Ignorance are overcome; and Ignorance when it overcomes Purity and Passion.
सर्वद्वारेषुदेहेऽस्मिन्प्रकाशउपजायते।
ज्ञानंयदातदाविद्याद्विवृद्धंसत्त्वमित्युत।।14.11।।
14.11 When the light of knowledge gleams forth from all the gates of the body, then be sure that Purity prevails.
लोभःप्रवृत्तिरारम्भःकर्मणामशमःस्पृहा।
रजस्येतानिजायन्तेविवृद्धेभरतर्षभ।।14.12।।
14.12 O best of Indians! Avarice, the impulse to act and the beginning of action itself are all due to the dominance of Passion.
अप्रकाशोऽप्रवृत्तिश्चप्रमादोमोहएवच।
तमस्येतानिजायन्तेविवृद्धेकुरुनन्दन।।14.13।।
14.13 Darkness, stagnation, folly and infatuation are the result of the dominance of Ignorance, O joy of the Kuru-clan!
यदासत्त्वेप्रवृद्धेतुप्रलयंयातिदेहभृत्।
तदोत्तमविदांलोकानमलान्प्रतिपद्यते।।14.14।।
14.14 When Purity prevails, the soul on quitting the body passes on to the pure regions where live those who know the Highest.
रजसिप्रलयंगत्वाकर्मसङ्गिषुजायते।
तथाप्रलीनस्तमसिमूढयोनिषुजायते।।14.15।।
14.15 When Passion prevails, the soul is reborn among those who love activity; when Ignorance rules, it enters the wombs of the ignorant.
कर्मणःसुकृतस्याहुःसात्त्विकंनिर्मलंफलम्।
रजसस्तुफलंदुःखमज्ञानंतमसःफलम्।।14.16।।
14.16 They say the fruit of a meritorious action is spotless and full of purity; the outcome of Passion is misery, and of Ignorance darkness.
सत्त्वात्सञ्जायतेज्ञानंरजसोलोभएवच।
प्रमादमोहौतमसोभवतोऽज्ञानमेवच।।14.17।।
14.17 Purity engenders Wisdom, Passion avarice, and Ignorance folly, infatuation and darkness.
ऊर्ध्वंगच्छन्तिसत्त्वस्थामध्येतिष्ठन्तिराजसाः।
जघन्यगुणवृत्तिस्थाअधोगच्छन्तितामसाः।।14.18।।
14.18 When Purity is in the ascendant, the man evolves; when Passion, he neither evolves nor degenerates; when Ignorance, he is lost.
नान्यंगुणेभ्यःकर्तारंयदाद्रष्टानुपश्यति।
गुणेभ्यश्चपरंवेत्तिमद्भावंसोऽधिगच्छति।।14.19।।
14.19 As soon as man understands that it is only the Qualities which act and nothing else, and perceives That which is beyond, he attains My divine nature.
गुणानेतानतीत्यत्रीन्देहीदेहसमुद्भवान्।
जन्ममृत्युजरादुःखैर्विमुक्तोऽमृतमश्नुते।।14.20।।
14.20 When the soul transcends the Qualities, which are the real cause of physical existence, then, freed from birth and death, from old age and misery, he quaffs the nectar of immortality.
अर्जुनउवाच
कैर्लिंगैस्त्रीन्गुणानेतानतीतोभवतिप्रभो।
किमाचारःकथंचैतांस्त्रीन्गुणानतिवर्तते।।14.21।।
14.21 Arjuna asked: My Lord! By what signs can he who has transcended the Qualities be recognized? How does he act? How does he live beyond them?
श्रीभगवानुवाच
प्रकाशंचप्रवृत्तिंचमोहमेवचपाण्डव।
नद्वेष्टिसम्प्रवृत्तानिननिवृत्तानिकाङ्क्षति।।14.22।।
14.22 Lord Shri Krishna replied: O Prince! He who shuns not the Quality which is present, and longs not for that which is absent;
उदासीनवदासीनोगुणैर्योनविचाल्यते।
गुणावर्तन्तइत्येवयोऽवतिष्ठतिनेङ्गते।।14.23।।
14.23 He who maintains an attitude of indifference, who is not disturbed by the Qualities, who realises that it is only they who act, and remains calm;
समदुःखसुखःस्वस्थःसमलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः।
तुल्यप्रियाप्रियोधीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः।।14.24।।
14.24 Who accepts pain and pleasure as it comes, is centred in his Self, to whom a piece of clay or stone or gold are the same, who neither likes nor dislikes, who is steadfast, indifferent alike to praise or censure;
मानापमानयोस्तुल्यस्तुल्योमित्रारिपक्षयोः।
सर्वारम्भपरित्यागीगुणातीतःसउच्यते।।14.25।।
14.25 Who looks equally upon honour and dishonour, loves friends and foes alike, abandons all initiative, such is he who transcends the Qualities.
मांचयोऽव्यभिचारेणभक्ितयोगेनसेवते।
सगुणान्समतीत्यैतान्ब्रह्मभूयायकल्पते।।14.26।।
14.26 And he who serves Me and only Me, with unfaltering devotion, shall overcome the Qualities, and become One with the Eternal.
ब्रह्मणोहिप्रतिष्ठाऽहममृतस्याव्ययस्यच।
शाश्वतस्यचधर्मस्यसुखस्यैकान्तिकस्यच।।14.27।।
14.27 For I am the Home of the Spirit, the continual Source of immortality, of eternal Righteousness and of infinite Joy.”
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This paper presents Chapter II, Section 5 from the book THE STORY OF PHILOSOPHY by WILL DURANT. The contents are from the 1933 reprint of this book by TIME INCORPORATED by arrangement with Simon and Schuster, Inc.
The paragraphs of the original material (in black) are accompanied by brief comments (in color) based on the present understanding. Feedback on these comments is appreciated.
The heading below is linked to the original materials.
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His metaphysics grew out of his biology. Everything in the world is moved by an inner urge to become something greater than it is. Everything is both the form or reality which has grown out of something which was its matter or raw material; and it may in its turn be the matter out of which still higher forms will grow. So the man is the form of which the child was the matter; the child is the form and its embryo the matter; the embryo the form, the ovum the matter; and so back till we reach in a vague way the conception of matter without form at all. But such a formless matter would be no-thing, for every thing has a form. Matter, in its widest sense, is the possibility of form; form is the actuality, the finished reality, of matter. Matter obstructs, form constructs. Form is not merely the shape but the shaping force, an inner necessity and impulse which moulds mere material to a specific figure and purpose; it is the realization of a potential capacity of matter; it is the sum of the powers residing in anything to do, to be, or to become. Nature is the conquest of matter by form, the constant progression and victory of life.*
[*Half of our readers will be pleased, and the other halt amused, to learn that among Aristotle’s favorite examples of matter and form are woman and man; the male is the active, formative principle; the female is passive clay, waiting to be formed. Female offspring are the result of the failure of form to dominate matter.]
In my opinion, the substance of this universe contains its own inner impulse. As the substance evolve so does its inner impulse. The two cannot be separated as Aristotle tries to do. The inner impulse cannot exist without substance, and no substance can be without inner impulse. The forms of substance are energy and matter; in fact, energy condenses into matter.
Everything in the world moves naturally to a specific fulfillment. Of the varied causes which determine an event, the final cause, which determines the purpose, is the most decisive and important. The mistakes and futilities of nature are due to the inertia of matter resisting the forming force of purpose—hence the abortions. and monsters that mar the panorama of life. Development is not haphazard or accidental (else how could we explain the almost universal appearance and transmission of useful organs?); everything is guided in a certain direction from within, by its nature and structure and entelechy*; the egg of the hen is internally designed or destined to become not a duck but a chick; the acorn becomes not a willow but an oak. This does not mean for Aristotle that there is an external providence designing earthly structures and events; rather the design is internal, and arises from the type and function of the thing. “Divine Providence coincides completely for Aristotle with the operation of natural causes.”
[*Entelecheia—having (echo) its purpose (telol) within (entol); one of those magnificent Aristotelian terms which gather up into themselves a whole philosophy.]
In my opinion, the impulse, purpose and the goal comes from within. It is part of the nature of the thing. The struggle is due to trial and error, which is a natural part of evolution. The more something is formed, the more inertia it has. Activity and inertia must be in balance with the impulse and goal.
Yet there is a God, though not perhaps the simple and human god conceived by the forgivable anthropomorphism of the adolescent mind. Aristotle approaches the problem from the old puzzle about motion—how, he asks, does motion begin? He will not accept the possibility that motion is as beginning-less as he conceives matter to be: matter may be eternal, because it is merely the everlasting possibility of future forms; but when and how did that vast process of motion and formation begin which at last filled the wide universe with an infinity of shapes? Surely motion has a source, says Aristotle; and if we are not to plunge drearily into an infinite regress, putting back our problem step by step endlessly, we must posit a prime mover unmoved (primum mobile immotum), a being incorporeal, indivisible, spaceless, sexless, passionless, changeless, perfect and eternal. God does not create, but he moves, the world; and he moves it not as a mechanical force but as the total motive of all operations in the world; “God moves the world as the beloved object moves the lover.” He is the final cause of nature, the drive and purpose of things, the form of the world; the principle of its life, the sum of its vital processes and powers, the inherent goal of its growth, the energizing entelechy of the whole. He is pure energy; the Scholastic Actus Purus—activity per se; perhaps the mystic “Force” of modem physics and philosophy. He is not so much a person as a magnetic power.
In my opinion, impulse is as eternal as energy. It is impulse that condenses into motion while energy condenses into matter. Motion is related to the density of energy-matter and it is relative in nature. The “prime mover unmoved” is really a static viewpoint from which all motion can be observed without any distortion. Man has fixation on beingness but that fixation doesn’t have to be there.
Yet, with his usual inconsistency, Aristotle represents God as self-conscious spirit. A rather mysterious spirit; for Aristotle’s God never does anything; he has no desires, no will, no purpose; he is activity so pure that he never acts. He is absolutely perfect; therefore he cannot desire anything; therefore he does nothing. His only occupation is to contemplate the essence of things; and since he himself is the essence of all things, the form of all forms, his sole employment is the contemplation of himself. Poor Aristotelian GodI—he is a roi fainéant, a do-nothing king; “the king reigns, but he does not rule.” No wonder the British like Aristotle; his God is obviously copied from their king.
Interestingly enough, the God of Aristotle is not very different from the God of The Bhagavad Gita, the great Hindu epic. It is a very deep concept.
Or from Aristotle himself. Our philosopher so loved contemplation that he sacrificed to it his conception of divinity. His God is of the quiet Aristotelian type, nothing romantic, withdrawn to his ivory tower from the strife and stain of things; all the world away from the philosopher-kings of Plato, or from the stern flesh-and-blood reality of Yahveh, or the gentle and solicitous fatherhood of the Christian God.
Aristotle’s God is really the principle of the STATIC viewpoint from which all motion may be observed without any distortion.
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Reference: Hubbard 1950: Dianetics TMSMH
These are some comments on the chapter “The Reactive Mind” from DIANETICS: THE MODERN SCIENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH.
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It is observed that when a person is unconscious he is not aware of his surroundings, and when he returns to consciousness he cannot recall the events from that period of unconsciousness. Therefore, it has long been assumed that nothing gets recorded in the mind during the periods of unconsciousness, such as, those caused by anesthesia, drugs, injury or shock.
Hubbard discovered that the mind not only records data during the periods of unconsciousness, but such data acts like hypnotic commands later in that person’s life. More exactly, this data containing painful emotion and physical pain is recorded below the level of “consciousness”. It is called engram. It gets triggered when something similar appears in the environment.
The engram makes a person act according to its recording. Such action is “rational” in the context of the recording, but it is irrational in the broader context, which the person is unable to see.
These engrams define the contents of the reactive mind. The whole effort in Dianetics is to discharge this content.
Hubbard concludes,
“1. The mind records on some level continuously during the entire life of the organism.”
The mind does not record, but it breaks down the incoming perceptions into data elements and assimilates them with rest of the data in a mental matrix. Only engrams exist as recordings because they do not break down and get assimilated with other data.
“2. All recordings of the lifetime are available.”
Only recordings are engrams, and they are not available as memories. All assimilated perceptions are available as memories.
“3. ‘Unconsciousness,’ in which the mind is oblivious of its surroundings, is possible only in death and does not exist as total amnesia in life.”
The mind disintegrates upon death. Neither consciousness nor unconsciousness remains after death.
“4. All mental and physical derangements of a psychic nature come about from moments of ‘unconsciousness’.”
All perceptions are assimilated with other data. Therefore, they can be differentiated and understood in a wider context. Engrams are not assimilated, Therefore, they cannot be so differentiated outside their specific narrow context.
“Unconsciousness” is the single source of aberration simply because no differentiation and understanding exists in “unconsciousness”.
“5. Such moments can be reached and drained of charge with the result of returning the mind to optimum operating condition.”
Hubbard says,
“There is no such action as ‘mental conditioning’ except on a conscious training level (where it exists only with the consent of the person).”
A person holding fixed ideas, prejudices or biases is “mentally conditioned.” He is fixated on the narrow context of his ideas and is broadly “unconscious.” This is the case with all “mental conditioning,” including training patterns.
“Mental conditioning,” which is “rational” in a narrow context only, also generates errors in thinking and behavior in a wider context.
Hypnotic suggestion comes across rational within a narrow context, and it appears normal to the person. Later, the suggestion always occurs to the person fixing his attention on that narrow context. Different people may act differently upon that suggestion, but they see their actions as rational. However, other people, viewing those actions in a broader context, see them as irrational.
A hypnotic suggestion makes a person act irrationally, while he thinks he is acting rationally.
Engrams are “hypnotic suggestions” that are almost hard wired into the body-mind system. Originally, simple engrams provided the organism with an ability to react fast under certain situations so the organism could survive. Engram that include language are a lot more complicated and they have a lot more power to aberrate the person. Homonymic words are supposed to be interpreted in terms of their context. But the context of the engram being fixed, the homonymic words lead to the strangest behavior.
Language gives engrams a lot more power to aberrate.
Painful emotion and physical pain characterizes the engram. Pain is a measure of the misalignment in perception. It makes the perception difficult to break down and assimilate in the mental matrix. The shock of accidents, the anesthetics used for operations, the pain of injuries and the deliriums of illness are the principal sources of engrams. Once an engram gets activated by a similar experience it get its hooks into the circuits of the mental matrix and aberrates them.
Aberration starts and spreads through the body-mind system as engrams gets hooked up into the mental matrix.
Engrams may be categorized as follows:
Contra-survival engram — contains apparent or actual antagonism to the organism.
Pro-survival engram (Sympathy engram) — a sympathetic address to an artificially unconscious subject.
Painful emotion engram — caused by the shock of sudden loss such as the death of a loved one.
The most dangerous category is the “sympathy engram” as it pretends to support the person’s survival. This is the mechanism used in hypnotism. This engram may be installed when sympathy is shown to a sick person.
A sick person should be tended to efficiently with compassion, but without verbal sympathy.
“Unconsciousness” is related to the body, and “unawareness” is related to the mind, but the common denominator of both is inability to differentiate. Under this condition the mind associates different things as being identical to each other. Thus, under the influence of the engram, the body-mind system operates on much simpler, rugged principles.
Pain knocks out the ability to differentiate and keeps the engram out of sight and moored below the level of “consciousness.” The pain also drives the actions of the engram. If the command of the engram is resisted, the pain overwhelms the organism.
Engram retains its power as long as it stays below awareness. Engrams are not really deleted; they are resolved by bringing them up to awareness and assimilating them in the mental matrix. No engram has any constructive value until it is assimilated.
Engrams do not become part of the experience until they are assimilated.
Hubbard says,
“It is not very complicated to understand what these engrams do. They are simply moments of physical pain strong enough to throw part or all the analytical machinery out of circuit; they are antagonism to the survival of the organism or pretended sympathy to the organism’s survival. That is the entire definition… The engram is the single and sole source of aberration and psycho-somatic illness.”
Any material that has not been fully assimilated in the mental matrix functions like an engram to greater or lesser degree.
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The next ten axioms of Dianetics are also presented here. These axioms were put together by Hubbard to demonstrate the preciseness of Dianetics. Revisions are proposed based on consistency with Buddhism.
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DN AXIOM 61: An organism is rejected by THETA to the degree that it fails in its goals.
DN AXIOM 61 (proposed): An organism becomes extinct to the degree it fails to evolve or support evolution.
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DN AXIOM 62: Higher organisms can exist only in the degree that they are supported by the lower organisms.
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DN AXIOM 63: The usefulness of an organism is determined by the alignment of its efforts toward survival.
DN AXIOM 63 (proposed): The usefulness of an organism is determined by the alignment of its efforts toward evolution.
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DN AXIOM 64: The mind perceives and stores all data of the environment and aligns or fails to align these according to the time they were perceived.
DEFINITION: A conclusion is the THETA FACSIMILES of a group of combined data.
DEFINITION: A datum is a THETA FACSIMILE of physical action.
All perceptions received in the mind are assimilated in a mental matrix. Any perception that cannot be assimilated stays as a recording waiting to be assimilated. Conclusions are the signals emanating from the mental matrix.
DN AXIOM 64 (proposed): The perceptions arriving at the mind are either assimilated in the mental matrix, or they remain as a recordings yet to be assimilated. The signals emanating from the mental matrix act as conclusions.
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DN AXIOM 65: The process of thought is the perception of the present and the comparison of it to the perceptions and conclusions of the past in order to direct action in the immediate or distant future.
COROLLARY: The attempt of thought is to perceive realities of the past and present in order to predict or postulate realities of the future.
The present is whenever a perception is assimilated in the mental matrix and a signal is emanated as the conclusion. The mental matrix consists of all perceptions assimilated up to that point. They have certain time indexes, but all assimilated perceptions are in the present. We are simply looking at input and output. The process of thought is mainly the assimilation of perceptions. There are many perceptions waiting to be assimilated. These are anomalies waiting to be resolved.
DN AXIOM 65 (proposed): The process of thought is the resolution of anomalies and assimilation of perceptions. The assimilated mental matrix processes the thought instantly.
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DN AXIOM 66: The process by which life effects its conquest of the material universe consists in the conversion of the potential effort of matter and energy in space and through time to effect with it the conversion of further matter and energy in space and through time.
DN AXIOM 66 (proposed): The process by which universe evolves consists in the conversion of the potential effort of matter and energy to effect further conversion of matter and energy. Life is a part of this process.
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DN AXIOM 67: THETA contains its own THETA UNIVERSE effort which translates into MEST effort.
DN AXIOM 67 (proposed): The signals from the mental matrix translates into physical efforts of the body.
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DN AXIOM 68: The single arbitrary in any organism is time.
DN AXIOM 68 (proposed): The arbitrariness consists of the postulates made to align data.
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DN AXIOM 69: Physical universe perceptions and efforts are received by an organism as force waves, convert by facsimile into THETA and are thus stored.
DEFINITION: Randomity is the misalignment through the internal or external efforts by other forms of life or the material universe of the efforts of an organism, and is imposed on the physical organism by counter-efforts in the environment.
The physical universe is perceived through the sense organs. These perceptions break down and get assimilated in the mental matrix and are thus stored. The misalignment existing in these perceptions requires resolution before they can be assimilated. Pain and efforts provide measures of misalignment. The source of this misalignment is the existing state of the physical universe and the life in it.
DN AXIOM 69 (proposed): The perceptions break down and get assimilated in the mental matrix and are thus stored. Pain and efforts provide the measure of misalignment to be resolved.
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DN AXIOM 70: Any cycle of any life organism is from static to motion to static.
DN AXIOM 70 (proposed): The life organism takes birth, lives and ultimately dies. Its goal is to attain the static viewpoint and evolve.
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The primary goal of the life organisms is to accelerate the evolution of the universe. This is accomplished by resolving all the misalignment extant in the universe. For this, the life organism must attain the static viewpoint first. An organism becomes extinct to the degree it fails to evolve or support evolution.
Reference: Hubbard 1950: Dianetics TMSMH
These are some comments on the chapter “The Analytical Mind and the Standard Memory Banks” from DIANETICS: THE MODERN SCIENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH.
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The mind computes in a wide range—from analytically computing with full differentiation to simply reacting to a stimuli. The resulting signals then influence the activity within the body. Hubbard presents these different functions as the analytical mind, the reactive mind, and the somatic mind respectively.
The “monitor,” or the “person,” is actually the body-mind system operating as a single unit. It refers to itself as the “I”. Later, in Scientology, Hubbard assigned to it the symbol “thetan.”
The “I” is the body-mind system operating as a single unit.
The mind computes by freely associating all relevant data in the desired direction. When there are gaps in data it uses assumptions and projections to maintain consistency, continuity and harmony.
The mind is as analytical as the data is finely differentiated.
Hubbard’s ideas of different “memory banks” can be replaced more logically by a mental matrix of data elements. The data elements are produced when the incoming perceptions are finely differentiated. These data elements are then assimilated in the mental matrix such that all duplications are purged, and all possible associations among data elements are established. The mind appears to have an infinite capacity for differentiating and assimilating perceptions.
The mental matrix provides the most efficient system of data storage in real time.
The body perceives, and the mind differentiates and assimilates the perceptions, even when the “I” is unconscious. The capture of data is thus perfect. It is limited only when the sense organs are defective as with blindness or deafness.
It is rare that the data is missing in the mental matrix.
The mind produces memories, visualizations and computations by establishing association among the data elements. The primary source of error in “rational” computation comes under the headings of insufficient differentiation and incorrect associations.
We have rationality when the associations among data elements are harmonious, continuous and consistent.
At a deeper level, the mind is wired into the body to regulate the mechanical functions of living, such as, the heart beat, the endocrines, selective blood flow, muscles, urine, excreta, etc. These functions may, therefore, be influenced through the mind, or modified through training patterns. Such training patterns may be annulled or updated consciously.
Training patterns are considered rational even when they are very close to being stimulus-response.
Rationality depends on free association among data elements as determined by the dynamics of a situation. When there are fixations (fixed ideas, bias, prejudice, etc.) the free associations are limited, and the ability to differentiate suffers.
Rationality depends on the ability of the mind to associate data freely. Any fixations lead to “conditioning,” that can interfere with rationality.
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The next ten axioms of Dianetics are also presented here. These axioms were put together by Hubbard to demonstrate the preciseness of Dianetics. Revisions are proposed based on consistency with Buddhism.
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DN AXIOM 51: The mind can confuse position in space with position in time. (Counter-efforts producing action phrases.)
DN AXIOM 51 (proposed): The mind can confuse a datum valid only in a limited context as being valid in all contexts.
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DN AXIOM 52: An organism proceeding toward survival is directed by the mind of that organism in the accomplishment of survival effort.
DN AXIOM 52 (proposed): An organism proceeding toward evolution is directed by its mind to do so.
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DN AXIOM 53: An organism proceeding toward succumb is directed by the mind of that organism in the accomplishment of death.
DN AXIOM 53 (proposed): An organism unable to evolve is directed by the mind in the accomplishment of death.
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DN AXIOM 54: Survival of an organism is accomplished by the overcoming of efforts opposing its survival. (Note: Corollary for other dynamics.)
DN AXIOM 54 (proposed): Evolution of an organism is accomplished by the overcoming of efforts opposing its survival.
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DN AXIOM 55: Survival effort for an organism includes the dynamic thrust by that organism for the survival of itself, its procreation, its group, its subspecies, its species, all life organisms, material universe, the life static and, possibly, a Supreme Being. (Note: List of dynamics.)
In the list of dynamics, Supreme Being is the ultimate goal of evolution, and life static is the static viewpoint from which all motion can be viewed without alteration. Attainment of a static viewpoint is the immediate goal that makes the ultimate goal possible. Rest of the dynamics provide different dimensions of evolution.
DN AXIOM 55 (proposed): An organism evolves along with its various dynamics.
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DN AXIOM 56: The cycle of an organism, a group of organisms or a species is inception, growth, re-creation, decay and death.
DN AXIOM 56 (proposed): The cycle of inception, growth, re-creation, decay and death applies on all dynamics.
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DN AXIOM 57: The effort of an organism is directed toward the control of the environment for all the dynamics.
DN AXIOM 57 (proposed): The effort of the organism is directed toward the evolution of the environment for all its dynamics.
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DN AXIOM 58: Control of an environment is accomplished by the support of pro-survival factors along any dynamic.
DN AXIOM 58 (proposed): Evolutionary efforts along any dynamic also contribute to the evolution of the environment.
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DN AXIOM 59: Any type of higher organism is accomplished by the evolution of viruses and cells into forms capable of better efforts to control or live in an environment.
DN AXIOM 59 (proposed): Evolution to higher organisms includes evolution of the environment for compatibility.
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DN AXIOM 60: The usefulness of an organism is determined by its ability to control the environment or to support organisms which control the environment.
DN AXIOM 60 (proposed): An organism is as useful as it is able to synchronize with the environment and other organisms in it.
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An organism evolves by overcoming counter-efforts in its environment to itself and its dynamics. That results in the evolution of the environment as well. Thus, the organism and its environment evolve in sync with each other.
Reference: Hubbard 1950: Dianetics TMSMH
These are some comments on the chapter “Summary” from DIANETICS: THE MODERN SCIENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH.
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Dianetics needs an update after seventy years. To do so, we need to move from a human-centric approach to a universal one. The universe has been evolving all along; man is part of that evolution.
Therefore, we need to revise the dynamic principle of existence from survival to evolution.
The goal of man, therefore, is not necessarily to seek immortally. From a universal approach, the goal of man becomes the broadening the viewpoint to be able to understand the whole universe as it truly is.
Therefore, we need to revise the goal of man from immorality to a STATIC viewpoint from which all MOTION can be viewed as-is.
This requires expanding the viewpoint from self to a universal viewpoint that encompasses the family, the society, the race, mankind, all life, matter and energy.
The update of above fundamental postulates, in alignment with Buddhism, brings many changes to the subject of Dianetics.
The cycle of birth and death is natural in the course of evolution. A life organism must die in order to evolve into a higher form. The natural process of death due to old age need not be painful. Upon death, the body disintegrates into organic molecules. The molecules come together to form the next iteration of the BODY. The mind also disintegrate into frozen patterns that reside in the organic molecules. These impressions also come together to form the mental matrix in the next iteration of the MIND. The “spirit” is the innate impulse of energy. It animates the next iteration of the BODY-MIND SYSTEM as it did the previous one. Any individuality is part of the body-mind system. It evolves as the body and mind evolves.
The individual is not immortal. The individuality evolves as the body-mind system evolves. The only eternal element is the subtle energy that energizes the body-mind system.
The urges of man are expressed as the dynamics of self, family, society, race, and mankind. These dynamics evolve from the innate impulse of energy that we see in the properties of matter and in the life activities of all different organisms, such as, plants, insects and animals.
The dynamics align naturally in man as he puts his attention on evolution.
The human mind is engaged in resolving anomalies (inconsistencies, discontinuities and disharmonies). It breaks the incoming perceptions into perceptual elements. These perceptual elements get assimilated into a mental matrix. Thinking occurs as the perceptual elements freely associate themselves in the desired direction. The finer are the perceptual elements, the more analytical is the mind. The perceptions of painful shocks and disorientations are difficult to reduce and assimilate. They fuse themselves with other perceptual elements of the mental matrix. The greater is the fusion of perceptual elements, the more reactive is the mind.
Intelligence is the ability of the mind to perceive, pose and resolve anomalies. Alignment of dynamics determines the persistency of the organism in it course of evolution. Both intelligence and the alignment of dynamics get inhibited by the fusion of perceptual elements; this is the core of aberration. Aberrations are special type of anomalies because they reduce the ability of the mind to resolve anomalies.
All aberrations arise from the reactivity of the mind, which is caused by the fusing of perceptual elements in the mental matrix due to painful shocks and disorientations.
The somatic mind translates the signals from the mind to the body. Reactive signals generate aberrated behavior and psychosomatic illnesses in the body. A training pattern is not an aberration because it is not reactive; it can be changed at will. A habit, on the other hand, is reactive; it is difficult to overcome. Aberrations result in irrational computations and activities. Not all destructive activities are necessarily irrational.
The mind is capable of resolving its aberrations and the anomalies in the environment.
As the aberrations are resolved the viewpoint expands. The person moves on the tone scale from apathy to violent effort to mediocre success to overall success and happiness.
Happiness is the joy that comes from resolving aberrations and anomalies.
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The next ten axioms of Dianetics are also presented here. These axioms were put together by Hubbard to demonstrate the preciseness of Dianetics. Revisions are proposed based on consistency with Buddhism.
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DN AXIOM 41: The cell and virus are the primary building blocks of life organisms.
DN AXIOM 41 (proposed): The innate impulse of energy evolves into “life” when the configurations of virus and cell are reached.
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DN AXIOM 42: The virus and cell are matter and energy animated and motivated in space and time by THETA.
DN AXIOM 42 (proposed): The virus and cell then become the building blocks of life organisms.
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DN AXIOM 43: THETA mobilizes the virus and cell in colonial aggregations to increase potential motion and accomplish effort.
DN AXIOM 43 (proposed): The virus and cell aggregate into colonies to increase potential motion and accomplish effort.
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DN AXIOM 44: The goal of viruses and cells is survival in space through time.
DN AXIOM 44 (proposed): The goal of viruses and cells is to evolve into higher level organisms.
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DN AXIOM 45: The total mission of higher organisms, viruses and cells is the same as that of the virus and cell.
DN AXIOM 45 (proposed): The mission at any level of organism is to evolve to a higher level.
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DN AXIOM 46: Colonial aggregations of viruses and cells can be imbued with more THETA than they inherently contained.
Life energy joins any group, whether a group of organisms or group of cells composing an organism. Here we have personal entity, individuation, etc.
The innate impulse of energy evolves from inanimate properties of minerals through viruses and cells to animated organisms. Aggregation of animated organisms into colonies that are acting together as a smoothly functioning organization is a step forward in terms of evolution.
DN AXIOM 46 (proposed): Colonial aggregations of viruses and cells acquire greater abilities.
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DN AXIOM 47: Effort can be accomplished by LAMBDA only through the coordination of its parts toward goals.
DN AXIOM 47 (proposed): Living organisms put out greater effort toward evolution through the coordination of their parts.
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DN AXIOM 48: An organism is equipped to be governed and controlled by a mind.
DN AXIOM 48 (proposed): With evolution the control of an organism get centralized in a mind.
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DN AXIOM 49: The purpose of the mind is to pose and resolve problems relating to survival and to direct the effort of the organism according to these solutions.
DN AXIOM 49 (proposed): The purpose of the mind is to keep all perceptions well assimilated so that incoming anomalies can be quickly resolved.
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DN AXIOM 50: All problems are posed and resolved through estimations of effort.
DN AXIOM 50 (proposed): All problems are posed and resolved through assimilation of perceptions.
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As energy evolves, its inherent impulse evolves too. It evolves into the “life” of the life organisms. “Life” is the coordinated motion of energy forms from the lowest to highest configurations. The center of such coordination of motion appears as the mind. The purpose of the mind becomes the assimilation of all perceptions, and thus, the resolution of anomalies that interfere with that assimilation.
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