Source Text
There is pain and risk in asking real questions. Intellectualization is risk-free.
Atmamun is a process of transcending the mind altogether. What the mind really is. What gives rise to it. What excites it. What its patterns are. And how it controls our lives. And control is the correct word. All of us are controlled by the mind. Although most people in the world do not realize this. They believe that the decisions that they make are the result of their own conscious logic and reasoning. They believe that their “personality” is an intrinsic part of their fundamental nature. They believe that they are in control of their own lives. This is an illusion. Please understand this: Man’s greatest dilemma is that he lives in a prison and he believes that he is free.
No. For it is his mind that likes one thing and dislikes another. You see, the mind cannot live within a state of like or within a state of dislike. It must have both! This is part of the scaffolding upon which it rests. Indeed, the very fact that a preference exists means that mind is doing the “preferring.”
Please understand this: When you have likes and dislikes, you have a desire for one thing and an aversion for another.
He has a thought that is generated by his mind. The thought may be true or untrue, logical or illogical, pleasant or unpleasant. This thought produces an emotion within him. It makes him feel a certain way. He then expresses this feeling in the form of a particular reaction or a behavior. That behavior produces a certain tangible consequence. This consequence then produces another thought. And this thought another emotion. Which leads to another feeling. And another behavior. With another consequence.
KG: Anyone that you go to for help with such problems will attempt to “improve” your condition by attempting to change the mind and alleviate the effect. They will attempt to help you “deal with” the problems created by your mind. But you cannot “deal with” cancer. You must find a way to become completely free of it.
KG: Imagine that you are fighting a war. And that you have found a way to spy on your enemy so that you can see his every move. Wouldn’t this allow you to escape him? Q: Yes.
KG: So what would be the solution to this latter problem? Q: To cut the leash. KG: Precisely. The dog running around doesn’t bother you because you know that you are not the dog. The mind running around does bother you because you are tied to it by a leash.
Q: What’s the leash that ties me to the mind? KG: The belief that you are your mind!
The mind can go anywhere it wishes. You need not go With It. The mind can entertain any thoughts that it wishes. They have nothing to do with you. For you are not the mind.
AI Summary
Atmamun by Kapil Gupta presents key insights from the contemplative tradition. The 10 passages above capture the essential teachings.
Core Themes:
- [To be expanded]
Key Passages: Highlights 1, 3, and 10 are particularly representative.
This entry was generated from Readwise highlights. Expand with additional context as appropriate.