No Mind

Sage Vasishtha

It is possible for the mind to assume the existence of intelligence in a stone. But the mind does not possess the least intelligence. Movement belongs to the life-force which is inert: intelligence or the power of consciousness belongs to the self which is pure and eternally omnipresent. It is the mind that fancies a relationship between these two factors: but such fancy is false and hence all knowledge that arises from this false relationship is also false. This is known as ignorance, as Maya or cosmic illusion, which gives rise to the dreadful poison known as world-appearance.

This relationship between the life-force and consciousness is imaginary; if it is not so imagined with consciousness, there can be no world-appearance! The life-force, by its association with consciousness becomes conscious and experiences the world as its object. But all this is as unreal as the experience of a ghost by a child: the movement within the infinite consciousness alone is the truth. Can this infinite consciousness be affected by any finite factor? In other words, can an inferior entity overwhelm a superior one? Hence, O Rama, in truth there is no mind or finite consciousness: when this truth is clearly understood, that which was falsely imagined as the mind comes to an end. It appeared to be because of imperfect understanding; when this misunderstanding ceases, the mind also ceases to be.