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To begin with, the outward world seems to be infinite and inexhaustible, but if we pursue it far enough we inevitably come to the conclusion that it is consciousness itself that is infinite and inexhaustible. The outward journey wears itself out, and then the inward one beckons. If you try saying this to a sceptic, you run into the same objection: ‘Go stand in traffic. When a bus hits you, you’re dead. End of story.’ Materialists keep insisting that the physical world comes first and that no amount of tricky mental gymnastics can get around that fact. Even sympathetic listeners and committed seekers cling to materialism – perhaps secretly, perhaps guiltily, but mostly, I think, because the full story has yet to sink in. In his gentle but uncompromising way, Spira insists upon telling the full story and beyond that, making it an immediate personal experience.
Vedanta’s promise can be stated in a single maxim: ‘Know that one thing, by knowing which, all else is known.’
He has one thing to say because there is only one thing to know: It’s all consciousness. Because consciousness is creating everything, here and now, and because its creation is endlessly fascinating, he finds beautiful ways to express one thing, often poetically, always compassionately. With a diamond in his hand, he wants to show us every facet.
INTRODUCTION THE HARD PROBLEM OF CONSCIOUSNESS
Our world culture is founded upon the assumption that reality consists of two essential ingredients: mind and matter. In this duality, matter is considered the primary element, giving rise to the prevailing materialistic paradigm in which it is believed that mind, or consciousness – the knowing element of mind – is derived from matter. How consciousness is supposedly derived from matter – a question known as the ‘hard problem of consciousness’ – remains a mystery, and is indeed one of the most vexing questions in science and philosophy today. Strangely, the fact that there is no evidence for this phenomenon is not deemed significant enough to dissuade most scientists and philosophers from their conviction that consciousness is a derivative of matter, although more and more are beginning to question it.
Some contemporary philosophers go further than believing consciousness to be an epiphenomenon, or secondary function, of the brain. In an extraordinary and convoluted act of reasoning they deny the very existence of consciousness, claiming it to be an illusion created by chemical activity in the brain. In doing so, they deny the primary and most substantial element of experience – consciousness itself – and assert the existence of a substance – matter – which has never been found. In fact, it is not possible to find this substance on the terms in which it is conceived, because our knowledge of matter, and indeed all knowledge and experience, is itself an appearance within consciousness, the very medium whose existence these philosophers deny. Such an argument is tantamount to believing that an email creates the screen upon which it appears or, even worse, that the email exists in its own right, independent of the screen, whose very existence is denied.
However, I hope that The Nature of Consciousness will show clearly that the materialist paradigm is a philosophy of despair and conflict and, as such, the root cause of the unhappiness felt by individuals and the hostilities between communities and nations. Far from being abstract and philosophical, its implications touch each one of us directly and intimately, for almost everything we think, feel and do is profoundly and, for the most part, subliminally influenced by the prevailing paradigm in which we have been raised and now live.
Most revolutions seek to modify the existing state of affairs to a greater or lesser degree but leave the fundamental paradigm upon which they are predicated intact. In The Nature of Consciousness another kind of revolution is suggested, one that strikes at the basic assumption upon which our knowledge of ourselves, others and the world is based.
It is the revolution to which Max Planck, developer of quantum theory, referred
when he said, ‘I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness.’†
AI Summary
The Nature of Consciousness by Rupert Spira presents key insights from the Advaita Vedanta 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.