Sept. 2, 2024
The Inevitable Emergence of New Powers of Consciousness Is Difficult for the Mind of Man to Envision
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YouTube reference: Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Powers Within, Chapter I Latent Powers, pp.3-4 This episode is also available as a blog post at https://sriaurobindostudies.wordpress.com/2024/08/28/the-inevitable-emergence-of-new-powers-of-consciousness-is-difficult-for-the-mind-of-man-to-envision/
Video presentations, interviews and podcast episodes are all available on the YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@santoshkrinsky871
More information about Sri Aurobindo can be found at www.aurobindo.net
The US editions and links to e-book editions of Sri Aurobindo’s writings can be found at Lotus Press www.lotuspress.com
1
00:00:01,960 --> 00:00:06,440
We live in a time of incredible
feats of technological progress.
2
00:00:07,400 --> 00:00:11,880
Digital technologies, quantum
computing, wireless transmission
3
00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:17,240
of energy, solar power, airplane
flights, Space Flight, landing
4
00:00:17,240 --> 00:00:21,160
on the moon, instant
communications of audio and
5
00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:25,960
video content worldwide are
things we tend to take for
6
00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:29,560
granted.
Just 50 or 100 years ago,
7
00:00:29,560 --> 00:00:33,000
however, many of these
technological wonders were
8
00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:37,240
considered to be fanciful or the
stuff of science fiction.
9
00:00:38,320 --> 00:00:42,600
These technologies are evidence
of the power of imagination and
10
00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:46,760
the power of persistent
organization of mental force to
11
00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:50,040
understand and harness the
powers of nature.
12
00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,600
We can observe that there is an
ascending power of consciousness
13
00:00:54,600 --> 00:00:59,320
as we move up the evolutionary
scale, such that the power of
14
00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:03,880
the logical reasoning, intellect
and power such as imagination,
15
00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:08,880
intuition, creative vision have
developed within mankind to a
16
00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:13,800
markedly higher degree than
anything we can witness in the
17
00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:18,200
plant or animal Kingdom.
We can also observe that certain
18
00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:22,280
phenomena that have historically
been limited to a very rare
19
00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:27,000
group of individuals, such as
clairaudience, clairvoyance,
20
00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:32,600
intuition, creativity, spiritual
and psychic powers of vision,
21
00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:36,600
understanding and action, are
becoming somewhat more
22
00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:41,600
widespread and at the same time
are slowly gaining more
23
00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:45,160
acceptance in the scientific and
intellectual community.
24
00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:50,000
Institutes have set up studies
to and confirm that certain
25
00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:55,080
powers are indeed both real and
able to be developed, which
26
00:01:55,080 --> 00:01:58,960
heretofore were treated with
considerable skepticism.
27
00:02:00,360 --> 00:02:03,320
While there is still a
considerable amount of doubt and
28
00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:07,680
confusion with regard to some of
these powers, in many cases due
29
00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:12,560
to misunderstandings perpetuated
in the popular media or due to a
30
00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:16,120
considerable amount of fraud
surrounding some of these powers
31
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:20,360
being active in specific
individuals, there is no doubt
32
00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:25,000
and increasing awareness of both
the reality and the potential
33
00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,840
benefits of developing these
powers.
34
00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:32,400
Medical science in particular
has begun to recognize that the
35
00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:36,120
power of thought can be
harnessed to control computer
36
00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:39,280
input.
Prosthetic limbs can be
37
00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:44,240
controlled by thought as well.
Many people are now beginning to
38
00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:47,080
understand that even the
dramatic development of
39
00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:52,000
technology in our external lives
is the result of the unleashing
40
00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,160
of powers that have developed
within.
41
00:02:55,000 --> 00:03:00,200
Nikola Tesla and Albert Einstein
both testified to the fact that
42
00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:04,360
their creativity and insights
were not based solely in the
43
00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:08,800
accepted logical stepwise
process of the intellect, but
44
00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:13,400
relied instead on creative
vision and inspiration.
45
00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:18,360
They, among others, are
recognizing that the evolution
46
00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:23,440
of consciousness is not
completed and that naturally new
47
00:03:23,440 --> 00:03:27,320
powers will manifest as this
process continues.
48
00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:32,120
Just as 100 years ago people
could not imagine the
49
00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:36,800
possibility of humanity
traveling to the moon landing
50
00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:40,400
and returning other than in
fanciful science fiction
51
00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:44,760
stories, so also we must note
that developing powers of
52
00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:49,200
consciousness are not easily
imagined by the vast mass of
53
00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:53,920
humanity that can only see and
accept what is manifest right
54
00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:57,800
before their eyes.
Few are those who can envision
55
00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:02,680
the actual trajectory of the
development of consciousness and
56
00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:06,280
thereby see where this
development is taking us in the
57
00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:10,080
future.
Sri Aurobindo writes quote.
58
00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:15,440
An evolution of innate and
latent but as yet unevolved
59
00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:19,480
powers of consciousness is not
considered admissible by the
60
00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:24,080
modern mind, because these
exceed our present formulation
61
00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:28,840
of nature, and to our ignorant
preconceptions, founded on a
62
00:04:28,840 --> 00:04:33,760
limited experience, they seem to
belong to the supernatural, to
63
00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:37,880
the miraculous and occult.
For they surpassed the known
64
00:04:37,880 --> 00:04:42,400
action of material energy, which
is now ordinarily accepted as
65
00:04:42,400 --> 00:04:45,680
the sole cause and mode of
things and the sole
66
00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:47,880
instrumentation of the world
force.
67
00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:53,520
A human working of marvels by
the conscious being discovering
68
00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:56,920
and developing an
instrumentation of material
69
00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:01,960
forces overpassing anything that
Nature has herself organized, is
70
00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:06,920
accepted as a natural fact and
an almost unlimited prospect of
71
00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:11,800
our existence.
An awakening, a discovery and
72
00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:16,320
instrumentation of powers of
consciousness and of spiritual,
73
00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:19,960
mental, and life forces
overpassing anything that nature
74
00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:24,000
or man has yet organized, is not
admitted as possible.
75
00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:28,160
But there would be nothing
supernatural or miraculous in
76
00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:33,560
such an evolution, except in so
far as it would be a supernature
77
00:05:33,840 --> 00:05:39,320
or superior nature to that of
animal or plant or material
78
00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:43,720
objects.
Our mind and its powers, our use
79
00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:48,720
of reason, our mental intuition
and insight, speech,
80
00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:53,680
possibilities of philosophical,
scientific, aesthetic discovery
81
00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:57,600
of the truths and potencies of
being, and a control of its
82
00:05:57,600 --> 00:06:01,440
forces, are an evolution that
has taken place.
83
00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:06,520
Yet it would seem impossible if
we took our stand on the limited
84
00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:11,200
animal consciousness and its
capacities, for there is nothing
85
00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,040
there to warrant so prodigious a
progression.
86
00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:18,560
But still there are vague
initial manifestations,
87
00:06:19,160 --> 00:06:24,720
rudimentary elements or arrested
possibilities in the animal, to
88
00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:28,440
which our reason and
intelligence, with their or
89
00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:33,080
extraordinary developments,
stand as an unimaginable journey
90
00:06:33,080 --> 00:06:36,480
from a poor and unpromising
point of departure.
91
00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:41,840
The rudiments of spiritual power
belong to Gnostic supernature,
92
00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:48,360
are similarly there even in our
ordinary composition, but only
93
00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:50,600
occasionally and sparsely
active.
94
00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:56,960
It is not irrational to suppose
that at this much higher stage
95
00:06:56,960 --> 00:07:01,800
of the evolution, a similar but
greater progression starting
96
00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:05,640
from these rudimentary
beginnings might lead to another
97
00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:08,960
immense development and
departure.
98
00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:14,400
End Quote.
Reference Srioro Bindu and the
99
00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:17,520
Mother Powers within Chapter
One.
100
00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:20,760
Latent Powers, pages 3:00 to
4:00.
00:00:01,960 --> 00:00:06,440
We live in a time of incredible
feats of technological progress.
2
00:00:07,400 --> 00:00:11,880
Digital technologies, quantum
computing, wireless transmission
3
00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:17,240
of energy, solar power, airplane
flights, Space Flight, landing
4
00:00:17,240 --> 00:00:21,160
on the moon, instant
communications of audio and
5
00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:25,960
video content worldwide are
things we tend to take for
6
00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:29,560
granted.
Just 50 or 100 years ago,
7
00:00:29,560 --> 00:00:33,000
however, many of these
technological wonders were
8
00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:37,240
considered to be fanciful or the
stuff of science fiction.
9
00:00:38,320 --> 00:00:42,600
These technologies are evidence
of the power of imagination and
10
00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:46,760
the power of persistent
organization of mental force to
11
00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:50,040
understand and harness the
powers of nature.
12
00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,600
We can observe that there is an
ascending power of consciousness
13
00:00:54,600 --> 00:00:59,320
as we move up the evolutionary
scale, such that the power of
14
00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:03,880
the logical reasoning, intellect
and power such as imagination,
15
00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:08,880
intuition, creative vision have
developed within mankind to a
16
00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:13,800
markedly higher degree than
anything we can witness in the
17
00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:18,200
plant or animal Kingdom.
We can also observe that certain
18
00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:22,280
phenomena that have historically
been limited to a very rare
19
00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:27,000
group of individuals, such as
clairaudience, clairvoyance,
20
00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:32,600
intuition, creativity, spiritual
and psychic powers of vision,
21
00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:36,600
understanding and action, are
becoming somewhat more
22
00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:41,600
widespread and at the same time
are slowly gaining more
23
00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:45,160
acceptance in the scientific and
intellectual community.
24
00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:50,000
Institutes have set up studies
to and confirm that certain
25
00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:55,080
powers are indeed both real and
able to be developed, which
26
00:01:55,080 --> 00:01:58,960
heretofore were treated with
considerable skepticism.
27
00:02:00,360 --> 00:02:03,320
While there is still a
considerable amount of doubt and
28
00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:07,680
confusion with regard to some of
these powers, in many cases due
29
00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:12,560
to misunderstandings perpetuated
in the popular media or due to a
30
00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:16,120
considerable amount of fraud
surrounding some of these powers
31
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:20,360
being active in specific
individuals, there is no doubt
32
00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:25,000
and increasing awareness of both
the reality and the potential
33
00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,840
benefits of developing these
powers.
34
00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:32,400
Medical science in particular
has begun to recognize that the
35
00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:36,120
power of thought can be
harnessed to control computer
36
00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:39,280
input.
Prosthetic limbs can be
37
00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:44,240
controlled by thought as well.
Many people are now beginning to
38
00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:47,080
understand that even the
dramatic development of
39
00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:52,000
technology in our external lives
is the result of the unleashing
40
00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,160
of powers that have developed
within.
41
00:02:55,000 --> 00:03:00,200
Nikola Tesla and Albert Einstein
both testified to the fact that
42
00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:04,360
their creativity and insights
were not based solely in the
43
00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:08,800
accepted logical stepwise
process of the intellect, but
44
00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:13,400
relied instead on creative
vision and inspiration.
45
00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:18,360
They, among others, are
recognizing that the evolution
46
00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:23,440
of consciousness is not
completed and that naturally new
47
00:03:23,440 --> 00:03:27,320
powers will manifest as this
process continues.
48
00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:32,120
Just as 100 years ago people
could not imagine the
49
00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:36,800
possibility of humanity
traveling to the moon landing
50
00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:40,400
and returning other than in
fanciful science fiction
51
00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:44,760
stories, so also we must note
that developing powers of
52
00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:49,200
consciousness are not easily
imagined by the vast mass of
53
00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:53,920
humanity that can only see and
accept what is manifest right
54
00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:57,800
before their eyes.
Few are those who can envision
55
00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:02,680
the actual trajectory of the
development of consciousness and
56
00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:06,280
thereby see where this
development is taking us in the
57
00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:10,080
future.
Sri Aurobindo writes quote.
58
00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:15,440
An evolution of innate and
latent but as yet unevolved
59
00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:19,480
powers of consciousness is not
considered admissible by the
60
00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:24,080
modern mind, because these
exceed our present formulation
61
00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:28,840
of nature, and to our ignorant
preconceptions, founded on a
62
00:04:28,840 --> 00:04:33,760
limited experience, they seem to
belong to the supernatural, to
63
00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:37,880
the miraculous and occult.
For they surpassed the known
64
00:04:37,880 --> 00:04:42,400
action of material energy, which
is now ordinarily accepted as
65
00:04:42,400 --> 00:04:45,680
the sole cause and mode of
things and the sole
66
00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:47,880
instrumentation of the world
force.
67
00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:53,520
A human working of marvels by
the conscious being discovering
68
00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:56,920
and developing an
instrumentation of material
69
00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:01,960
forces overpassing anything that
Nature has herself organized, is
70
00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:06,920
accepted as a natural fact and
an almost unlimited prospect of
71
00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:11,800
our existence.
An awakening, a discovery and
72
00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:16,320
instrumentation of powers of
consciousness and of spiritual,
73
00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:19,960
mental, and life forces
overpassing anything that nature
74
00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:24,000
or man has yet organized, is not
admitted as possible.
75
00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:28,160
But there would be nothing
supernatural or miraculous in
76
00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:33,560
such an evolution, except in so
far as it would be a supernature
77
00:05:33,840 --> 00:05:39,320
or superior nature to that of
animal or plant or material
78
00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:43,720
objects.
Our mind and its powers, our use
79
00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:48,720
of reason, our mental intuition
and insight, speech,
80
00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:53,680
possibilities of philosophical,
scientific, aesthetic discovery
81
00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:57,600
of the truths and potencies of
being, and a control of its
82
00:05:57,600 --> 00:06:01,440
forces, are an evolution that
has taken place.
83
00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:06,520
Yet it would seem impossible if
we took our stand on the limited
84
00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:11,200
animal consciousness and its
capacities, for there is nothing
85
00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,040
there to warrant so prodigious a
progression.
86
00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:18,560
But still there are vague
initial manifestations,
87
00:06:19,160 --> 00:06:24,720
rudimentary elements or arrested
possibilities in the animal, to
88
00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:28,440
which our reason and
intelligence, with their or
89
00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:33,080
extraordinary developments,
stand as an unimaginable journey
90
00:06:33,080 --> 00:06:36,480
from a poor and unpromising
point of departure.
91
00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:41,840
The rudiments of spiritual power
belong to Gnostic supernature,
92
00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:48,360
are similarly there even in our
ordinary composition, but only
93
00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:50,600
occasionally and sparsely
active.
94
00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:56,960
It is not irrational to suppose
that at this much higher stage
95
00:06:56,960 --> 00:07:01,800
of the evolution, a similar but
greater progression starting
96
00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:05,640
from these rudimentary
beginnings might lead to another
97
00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:08,960
immense development and
departure.
98
00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:14,400
End Quote.
Reference Srioro Bindu and the
99
00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:17,520
Mother Powers within Chapter
One.
100
00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:20,760
Latent Powers, pages 3:00 to
4:00.