Consciousness/Being
From Absolute Self to Non-Self
Consciousness begins as Absolute Consciousness, pure "I" or infinite Subject,
which is the essential nature of the Absolute Reality. All manifestation
then is a movement from that Infinite consciousness or Self to It's own
Objects of Consciousness. Once Consciousness is caught up with it's
Objects then Multiplicity arises, through the identification of the One
Consciousness with each of it's infinite objects. There is a sequence
of manifestation, which begins at an transcendent and ineffable level of
the Manifest Absolute, and progresses through the Manifest Absolute to
the wortld of Prakriti or Maya with it's multiplicity of seperate entities
and seperate centres of consciousness. This is explained in Kashmir
Shaivism and in the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo. Just as Neoplatonism
and Kabbalah provide a terminology
for the Vertical spectrum of being, so Kashmir
Shaivism gives us a rich vocabuary for the consciousness-aconscious spectrum
of being. Other esoteric
eastern philosophies
such as Samkhya and Advaita
Vedanta are unable to reconcile the polarity of Subject and Object
and hence devolve into dualism
or acosmism respectively.
The following stages can be defined here
From Unmanifest Absolute to Manifest Absolute (Maha-Shakti)
From Manifest Absolute to bipolar Godhead ("Pure Tattwas")
Being bipolar Godhead to mala-encased self (purusha/vijnanakala)
From vijnanakala to reincarnating prakritic being (sakala)
Consciousness-Being in Conjunction with other Parameters of Reality
Cosmos
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page history
page uploaded 15 July 1998
page revised 8 November 1998
and on 20 December 1999