The world as we know it today came after centuries of human life, aspiration, growth, and development. We owe this progress to the blossoming of our intellect—the relentless thinker within us, constantly pushing the boundaries of knowledge and achievement.
The Intellect is the fifth yogi principle. It is the conscious part of the mind, the part I am using to write this text right now. It allows me to reason, think, and analyze. This part plays a central role in my ability to form a conception of the self, of the "I," and helps me make sense of the world around me.
Before this conscious part of our mind unfolded, we had emotions but no reason; desires but no rationalized will. Then, from achievement to achievement, the intellect begins to receive more light from the next higher principle, the spiritual mind.
Simple consciousness evolved into self-consciousness—a pivotal moment when the "I" within us awakened to its own existence. Previously, we were alive but not conscious of ourselves.
And this awakening of the intellect does not necessarily make us better human beings, in the sense of being "good." On one hand, an unfolding capacity to reason will guide us to higher thoughts. But on the other hand, some people are so attached to the material side of things that the awakened intellect gives them increased powers to gratify their low desires and inclinations.
A tiger that attacks its prey is just following its instincts and nature. A human that reasons, plans ahead, and then goes to shoot children in a school is using their intellect to display even more bestiality than the tiger.
The paradox is that the higher the degree of intellect unfolded in you, the greater the depths of low passions, appetites, and desires possible for you. So, you gotta be careful.
The Yogis teach that you have many obstacles to overcome, many challenges to face, many struggles to endure, and many experiences to live until you reach "spiritual adulthood." The progress goes on and on.
Let your higher nature be on guard and refuse to be drawn back into the animal instincts that have been passed through. Keep your gaze upward and forward. There will be setbacks, but such obstacles are soon overcome, and you'll continue the journey. The instinctive mind will pull your intellect down, but the spiritual mind will guide it up. There is no going backward on your path, only progress. As slow as it may seem, each of us is moving steadily forward.
This is a series of emails describing the composition of us humans. I will briefly write about the general nature of each of these seven principles. At the end of this email series, I will send a downloadable PDF file so that you can have them handy and continue studying them to gain a complete understanding of yourself.
Previous posts in this series:
