Psychic Study of Man

 Awakening Our Consciousness
(Source Unknown)

Learning notes from the lecture "The Causes of Our Suffering" on 22.06.2016 at Sharing Coffee, HCMC.

We live in 2 worlds at the same time, the outer world perceived by the senses of external perceptions such as sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch and the inner world perceived with the sense of self-observation such as thoughts, ideas, emotions, longings, hopes, desires, sadness, joy, etc.

The inner constitution of human being including the Essence, the Ego and the Personality.

Ego (the psychological aggregates) is the sum of our defects or vices. It gives ugliness or darkness to life, creating conflict. Ego is the cause of all our sufferings.  Ego creates a sense of separation from others and from the Being. Ego = I = Myself. Its main attribute is evil. Ego is the opposite of our Essence. Essence is bottled up (trapped) in the Ego. The Ego imprisons our Essence.

Essence is the spark of divinity inside us. Essence contains all of our qualities or virtues such as compassion, courage, generosity, fortitude, love, discipline, kindness, good will, selfless helping, gratitude, patience, tolerance, joy for happiness of others... and every worthly virtue a human being is capable of. Essence is eternal (never dies). It gives beauty to the human being. Its main attribute is consciousness. Essence is the seed or embryo from which the Soul is born. In a new born baby, the ego has not yet developed, and thus there is much of the essence.

Consciousness is the capacity to perceive and comprehend all the phenomena, both outside and inside ourselves. Consciousness is light. Consciousness is NOT intellect, personality or intelligence. Consciousness does not develop with time, with reading, with social status, with changing beliefs. Consciousness is the characteristics of our essence. 

 Keep expanding our consciousness
(Source Unknown)

To awake our consciousness, we need to destroy the ego: the fight against evil to liberate our consciousness. How to fight it? Through doing inner work such as observing ourselves, be patient... All religions talk about the same thing in recuperating our consciousness. Meditation can give consciousness more power and help us to understand our ego (how it works, how it controls ourselves).

Ex.: Egyptian mythology, Osiris symbolized for the Essence and  Seth for the Ego. Christianity, the ego symbolizes through the seven capital sins. Fairy tales (children's consciousness is still strong). Indian legend, the fight of Krishna and Kali Yeni. Buddhism, the fight between Mara and Buddha. Odin (God of Light) vs. Loki (the Genius of Darkness). Ancient Greek, Theseus and Minotaur, Perseus and Medusa (Perseus using Athena's shield thus Medusa was petrified by her own reflection  - a profound implication on fighting against our own ego through self-reflection, self-observation).

The 7 sins vs. the 7 holy virtues

(Source: http://severalshadesofred.deviantart.com)

Personality  - the vehicle of manifestation of the Ego or the Essence. Personality formed in childhood through imitation. Thus it is important in education to children by being a good example. The personality is fully developed at around 7 years of age. Parents can and should help children not to develop the Ego, and insist in developing their virtues. It is urgent that children receive nourishment for the essence and nourishment for the personality.

The Observation of Oneself - The Awakening of Consciousness

To observe and to observe oneself are two completely different things, however, both demand attention. In observation attention is directed toward the outside, towards te external world, through the windows of the senses. In observation of oneself, the attention is directed inward, and that is why the sense of external perception are of no use. The starting point for the work upon oneself is self-observation.

The type of knowledge that transforms someone internally can never be attained through external observation. The true knowledge which can really originate a fundamental internal change within us, has irect self-observation of oneself as foundation. As we persevere with the self-observation of ourselves, the sense of inner self-observation will be progressively developing. Only like this we will really know ourselves integrally, discorvering the secret of our actions and understand those which have been called "Essence, Ego and Personality".

Consciousness can only be awakened by means of conscious works and upright efforts. The Awakened Consciousness allows us to experience reality in a direct way. 

When the psychological I has died, the Essence shines within us. The free essence bestows upon us inner beauty, from such beauty emanates perfect happiness and true love. The Essence possesses multiple senses of perfection and extraordinary natural powers. When we "die within ourselves," when we dissolve the "psychological I," we enjoy the precious senses and powers of the Essence.

An Essence is nourished with tenderness, affection without limits, love, music, flowers, beauty, harmony, etc. A personality must be nourished with a good example of our parents, with wise teaching at school, etc.

Self Realization of the Being is the purpose of existence.

Each one of us has his own divinity, his own Being, his own particular and individual Monad. The Being in each of us, the Divine that humans carry with in is the Multiplicity inside the Unity. 

"If one succedds in eliminating the "myself" (my vices, my worries, my anger, my attachments), it is clear that what follows then is:

That which does not belong to time,
That which is beyond the body,
That which is unknown to human reason,
That which is called
Happiness."

~ Samuel Aun Weor