Linear Mind, What is and How it Works
Very often, the Masters use this expression, «linear mind» when they are teaching us. But what does it mean and how does it work?
I am not going very deep, now, about the origins of this type of mind, what I intend to do in another post. In this one, I am going to the basics, to simple understanding.
The «linear mind» is our logical mind, supported by the binary logic that recognizes only two values of «truth»- «true and false»- supported by reasoning processes of induction, deduction, analogy, etc., and expressed in speaking words and concepts to define, analyse, compare, evaluate, etc, our experiences.
This mind works by creating an image or «representation» of something, and centers in that image, to create a concept of the «reality» that is defined through the image.
It is the concept of the mind as a «subject», that means, the conscience exteriorizing itself int the world to perceive it as as something separate and distinct from the subject. This mind transforms our experiences in a conceptual system of «knowledge» that we use to «explain» the world.
And sees itself always as separate from what is known and catalogued by the mind. Basically, what it does, is to put tags on everything and reduce the «things» to the characteristics contained in the concepts and its definitions, in the mental representation of anything.
And the result is that, when we use this mind, we never experience reality in a direct way, in fact, this mind believes that it is impossible to «know» reality in a direct way. The main explanation that is given, is that we always project certain intentions and meanings on what we perceive, either because of cultural influence, the functioning of our brain, or because our own sensorial means of perception do not give us «the reality as it is».
Why do the masters call it «linear»? There are several reasons. One, and most obvious, is that this mind believes in its ability to find the «first causes» of everything, since the beginning of the Universe. It believes that one single set of simple causes can explain the intricacies of our natural world: one first cause created some effect, this one in turn, was the cause of another effect, in a continuous and linear chain that can theoretically be followed for every event to explain it anytime.
But, like Master Gautama have been reinforcing, in his dictations, this theory has a tremendous flaw, because it sees each «cause» as independent or separate from other «causes», believes that an event can be explained by a single independent cause, separate from others, making it possible to find a linear process that could explain how a certain reality develops since it appears in the world. And this is phantasy, a big illusion.
Master Gautama says « there are interdependent originations», meaning, all life is one, human beings are all connected to each other, there is a global web of interactions among all life. So, there is no linear causality.
Furthermore, all self-aware beings are free beings, and this does not allow to make absolute predictions about what is going to happen.
The «linear mind» believes in a «mechanical» Nature, working like a machine, always repeating its processes, but we know that human beings have a tremendous effect, with their behaviours and their own state of consciousness, in the environment of earth.
It is understandable why human beings are so attached to this linear mind: it is a mind connected with our physical brain and its processes that work to guarantee our survival as physical beings .
This mind tries to control the world where we live, and the dangers that surround the living beings on earth. The earth became a predatory world, and we need to anticipate what is going to happen, we need to predict what can happen and, in order to do that, we create, mentally, causal connections among events, to feel safe.
Our brain programs us based in past experiences on earth, it creates perceptions, expectations, « answers ready to use», is like a multicenter of apps that make us behave according to the answers used with success in the past, to assure our physical survival. As science already knows, most of our behaviours are automatic, the brain consumes a lot of energy, so, it keeps conscious processes in a low profile.
After we began to see ourselves just like mortal human beings, and as the result of mere biological and physical evolution , this mind became the «only mind» recognized by most humans and science.
I want to clarify that the «linear mind» and the «conceptual mind» are not synonymous. Both use conceptualization but the linear mind has for its reference the “separate mind” while the creative conceptual mind has for reference the one mind or Christ mind.
It is necessary to make a «revolution» in our minds and in our identity, to transcend the linear separate mind . In the next post I will describe the alternative to this mind, the Christ mind.