Who Are You Really?

Consciousness is not multiple in the sense of separate realities, but it can be experienced on different levels. The mind (citta), comparable to an operating system, processes experience and enables action. The incarnated soul (Jīvātman) lives this experience and can either remain identified with the mind or recognize what, within it, does not fluctuate.

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What thinks… or what observes?

Summary: Consciousness is not multiple in the sense of separate realities, but it can be experienced on different levels. The mind (citta), comparable to an operating system, processes experience and enables action. The incarnated soul (Jīvātman) lives this experience and can either remain identified with the mind or recognize what, within it, does not fluctuate. This non-fluctuating dimension is the witness (Puruṣa). Spiritual life does not consist in escaping existence, but in positioning oneself correctly: not confusing oneself with what changes, while fully assuming the role of incarnation.

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One consciousness or several?

The question may seem simple: do we have a single consciousness with different levels, or several kinds of consciousness?

To answer it, we must first clarify what we are talking about. What we call consciousness actually covers distinct aspects that are not always clearly differentiated.

There is, within us, what thinks, reacts, remembers, anticipates. This field, which some traditions call citta, corresponds to the mind—which can be compared to a kind of operating system of the brain. It is linked to the functioning of the body and to everyday experience. It is moving, unstable, but necessary.

But there is also something else, more discreet, more stable: a presence that does not think, does not react, does not change with circumstances. This dimension is what the texts refer to as Puruṣa, the witness.

Between the two is the incarnated soul (Jīvātman). This incarnated soul acts as an interface between the witness and the mind. It is the one that lives the experience, acts, undergoes the consequences of its actions, and is engaged in the process of life.

The witness and what is involved

The essential point is this: the incarnated soul is involved in experience, while the witness is not.

The mind thinks, reacts, becomes agitated. The incarnated soul lives this, participates in it, identifies with it to varying degrees. But the witness does nothing. It does not oppose, does not choose, does not change.

Spiritual life does not consist in creating this witness. It is already there. It consists in discerning these differences and identifying with the right level of consciousness.

As long as we are completely caught in the mind, we identify with what changes. We believe we are our thoughts, our emotions, our roles. But it becomes possible, gradually, to no longer define ourselves only in this way.

Then, something shifts.

Being there, or staying on the surface

This shift is not constant. Understanding it intellectually is not enough for it to become stable. When it becomes stable, this shift corresponds to what is called Realization (sahaja-samādhi).

In everyday life, it is rare to remain permanently in this recognition. Constraints, responsibilities, and interactions naturally bring us back to the surface, to the mind and its necessities.

It is not possible, under ordinary conditions of life, to remain permanently in this deeper awareness. Not because it is inaccessible, but because it is not engaged in the movement of existence. Incarnation implies involvement: perceiving, acting, responding, deciding. The citta, with its functions, participates in this adjustment.

Deep awareness, even when present—as in stabilized states of meditation (dhyāna and samādhi)—does not handle these necessities. It does not organize action and does not respond to situations.

This is why life does not consist in remaining there permanently, but in not forgetting it, while allowing the mind to fulfill its role. This does not mean that deep awareness is lost; there are degrees.

One may not be in the depth of the witness without being in total confusion. The mind can be more or less clear, more or less at peace, depending on the direction one gives to one’s life.

What matters is not to remain in a particular state at all times, but to know that something else exists beyond the agitation of the mind.

Being conscious is not living in ecstasy

Deep awareness is not necessarily a spectacular experience. It does not always manifest as intense bliss.

It can be much simpler.

A certain distance, a lightness, a way of not being completely absorbed by what is happening. Like an inner space that remains free, even when circumstances demand attention.

It is not a break from life, but another way of living it.

Returning within

When this depth is lost, there is no need to complicate things. It is simply a matter of returning. Returning within does not mean escaping the world, but ceasing, for a moment, to be carried away by the flow of thoughts and emotions.

Meditation is, for this, a direct means. It does not depend on the state you are in when you begin, but on the availability you allow it.

Service is meditation in action. It consists in maintaining, at the heart of activity, a continuous attention, in connection with the Holy Name.

When attention settles, when the fluctuations of the mind calm down, what is usually covered becomes perceptible.

The resistances of the mind

This return is not always easy. The mind has its habits. It prefers movement to stillness, occupation to silence.

There can be a kind of vertigo when one approaches inner calm. A sense of emptiness, sometimes even fear. But what is afraid is not the witness. It is the mind.

In some traditions, this inertia or fear is associated with a particular tendency called tamas. It maintains a form of obscurity or avoidance. Recognizing this helps not to get lost in it.

The role of practice

These stages are not crossed by reflection alone. A right orientation, appropriate means, and a framework are often necessary to avoid remaining at the level of intention.

It may happen that the search becomes limited to the accumulation of concepts, giving an impression of understanding without leading to real transformation.

Practice—meditation, service, and Observance—prevents us from staying at the level of intention. It provides a framework in which this recognition can mature.

Techniques are not an end in themselves. They help stabilize attention, reduce dispersion, and make it possible to return more frequently to this depth.

What matters is not the accumulation of methods, but continuity.

A question of position

Ultimately, the question is not so much whether there are several consciousnesses.

It is where you stand.

On the side of what changes, or on the side of what does not change. Life continues, with its obligations, constraints, and movements. But the way of relating to it can evolve.

And it is this, gradually, that transforms the experience of life and allows the soul to realize the purpose of its incarnation.

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