Dr. V.K.Maheshwari, M.A. (Socio, Phil) B.Sc. M. Ed, Ph.D
Former Principal, K.L.D.A.V.(P.G) College, Roorkee, India
It is inexcusable that we who think in the Western frame of thought should be as ignorant as we are of the frame of thought of the East. Year after year we have spent our time,thinking exclusively in the thought forms of our own Western culture, in practicing or examining the tradition of our own religion, and in evolving our own Western theories of the mind. Few of us have spent even one day of our lives learning about the thought forms that control the minds of millions of our fellow men who adhere to the basic religion of Hinduism. Since in modem days we can no longer deny that all mankind lives in One World, such ignorance of our Eastern cousin’s mind is as dangerous as it is inexcusable.
GORDON W. ALLPORT
Often Western thinkers consider Hindu philosophy and psychology something mysterious; consequently, they almost neglect to mention it in their historic treatment “of these branches of knowledge. It is our conviction that this is due to the Western scholars’ lack of knowledge of the Hindu schools of thought. Unfortunately, the word yoga almost invariably arouses curiosity and suspicion in the West. We have tried to dispel the confused notions of Western readers. Hindu psy- chology and the systems of yoga are neither mysterious, suspicious, nor amusing. They are based on thorough scientific methods of observation and experiment.
Previously, the psychology of the classical schools in the West was concerned chiefly with the study of the mind in its successive states of awareness. The older psychologists described the functionings of the mind, observed how it behaved, and then tried to discover the laws that governed its activities. However, these studies were always limited to the conscious plane. We seldom find any reference to the study o£ other mental aspects. Even the great psychologists seemed unaware of the activities of the hidden states of mind known as, the subconscious or unconscious. Psychologists from different schools of thought studied the conscious elements only, ignoring the subconscious and superconscious states of mind. From their observations, many of them came to the conclusion that consciousness and soul had no existence separate from physical brain matter and that they were really only products of brain matter. Materialistic thinkers completely ignored the fact that there could be a separate existence of mind or consciousness, to say nothing of a separate existence of the soul, although few had expounded psychophysical parallelism.
Factually the mind usually functions in ordinary persons through the nervous system and brain cells, just as electricity functions and is manifested through wires and electrical apparatus. Yet one cannot conclude that the electricity and the wires are identical. Similarly, the mind in its functionings, conscious or otherwise, cannot be identified with the instruments through which it works or has expression.
The trend of modern science, however, is in a direction different from that taken by the materialists of the last century. Some of the modern scientists, unlike their predecessors, are not dogmatic in their views. We do not wish to imply that the psychologists of the older schools of thought were the only ones to put forth their ideas as ultimate solutions. Physicists, chemists, and general scientists were also dogmatic and tenacious in their opinions.
Today it is a pleasure to find that some of the greatest thinkers, some of the most notable psychologists, are taking a liberal stand. They do not limit themselves to one aspect of a subject but are ready to regard it from other points of view, always keeping themselves open to conviction. Many of them are willing to concede that the mind may continue to exist after the dissolution of the body and brain. Dr. William Brown, one of the outstanding psychologists and psychiatrists of Europe, is much inclined to accept the theory of the post- existence of the mind. The evidence which he himself has gathered, and which was obtained for him from authoritative sources upon which he could depend, has convinced him that there is a strong possibility of the continued existence of the mind after the death of the physical body. He says: It would not be easy to define the scope of psychical research, but we may perhaps state as its most characteristic problem. . . in the cases of extrasensory perceptions and superconsciousness which are cited, that the mind can function without the help of the nervous system as an instrument of perception. How far the embodied mind can get into communication with disembodied minds, the minds of those who have already died, the minds that are to be presumed, either on the authority of religion or on the basis of fact to be still existing elsewhere than in visible human form on this planet.
Professor Eddington says in his discussion of science and mysticism: We have seen that the cyclic scheme of physics presupposes a background outside the scope of its investigations. In this back- ground we must find first, our own personality, and then perhaps a greater personality. The idea of a universal Mind or Logos would be, I think, a fairly plausible inference from the present state of scientific theory, at least it is in harmony with it.
The opinions of Professor Gordon Allport, Sir Oliver Lodge, Dr. Alexis Carrel, and Dr G Stromberg, does not discard certain mental experiences which have no sense element in them, but he suggests that they be subjected to scientific investigation: Such frank statements coming from psychologists and other scientist clearly show a definite tendency to differ from and even to refute the theories of the materialists of the last century.
It is interesting to note that psychology itself is no longer limited to the study of the conscious mental plane, and careful analyses of the activities of the subconscious state are being made. This alone is a wonderful achievement and a great advance in the field of mental science. Of course, mechanistic psychologists who reject not only the subconscious but also the conscious states. “Even these thinkers by their denials show that these mental states cannot be ignored and that there are certain phenomena which must be satisfactorily explained somehow if we. are to understand the human personality.
Anyone can study or observe certain psychological states and processes that are going on in the conscious plane, but it requires penetrating analytical intelligence, intuitive insight, clarity of vision, and the utmost patience to try to grasp the functionings of the hidden states of the subconscious aspect of the mind. Often one has only inference upon ‘which to depend. People behave in certain ways; they have certain re- actions. From observation of their conduct and study of their habits the psychoanalyst tries to discover the root from which their actions spring-the motivating cause of their behavior. This is to be found within the subconscious mind.
Nowadays, most of the dynamic psychologists of the West except, of course, the behaviorists and others of similar type-believe that mental behavior and many of his conscious activities are really determined by the subconscious mind. For instance, if you have any kind of fear they will not leave you alone until they have discovered the underlying cause.. The, want to know why you have that fear and what is your subconscious state that produces it.
Psychoanalysis has made amazing strides in this modem age. The experiments performed and the evidence gathered are really surprising. In their attempts to obtain a clear understanding of the activities that are going on beneath the surface of the conscious plane, psychologists are making definite and deliberate experiments upon the hidden mind. They are analyzing carefully the different psychological states and mental functionings.
According to Psychoanalysists, the greater portion of the mind is actually submerged, unknown to every one of us. Hindus agree ‘with them in this respect. The mind can be compared to an iceberg.. Although only a small portion is visible above the ,water, nevertheless the submerged part of it exists and is a power to be reckoned with. From the surface of the ,water one cannot easily gauge the size of the iceberg, yet it may be powerful enough to destroy a huge ship such as the ill-fated “Titanic.” Similarly, the submerged mind, the subconscious state, is a potent factor and powerful enough to determine even conscious tendencies. Often we do not realize what influences are hidden there. A man may not be aware of the forces that lie beneath the surface of his mind, nor can these forces be suspected by an untrained observer. Hindu psychologists call these hidden mental forces samskaras.
Modern psychology has developed another aspect of the study of the mind that is a unique contribution to the Western world, especially to medical science. The greater number of our diseases are now believed to be functional and caused by maladjustment, conflict, frustration, or lack of mental balance with consequent disorder of the nervous system. This may be a surprise to many persons. How can Raja Yoga by Swami Vivekananda.. and the Yoga aphorisms of Patanjali are recommended for further study of the HIndu point of view. How can the mind and nerves affect the body in such a way as to cause organic disease? When the nerves do not function properly, elements appear in certain organs. Psychologists tell us that many of the so-called organic diseases had their beginning where the organs could not function properly owing to mental maladjustments, conflict, a consequential lack of balance in the nervous system. We all know that the nervous system plays a vital and most important part in our lives. It is closely connected with the mind and is easily affected by the slightest mental disorder. Therefore, mental troubles which are reflected in the nervous system can be shown as the real cause of many functional diseases. Also many cases of insanity, neuroses and psychoses, can be traced to mental dissatisfaction and agitation, frustration and conflict.
The motivating forces behind man’s activities are being seriously studied by modern psychologists, but there are points of difference between the Eastern and Western schools of thought. The Hindu psychologists agree that man has various urges and instincts, but they do not accept the theory of Freud and Adler that either the sex urge or the will to power is the most predominant instinct or that it is the fundamental truth of man’s nature.. In this connection, the ideas. of Dr. William Brown resemble those of the Hindu psychologists because he holds that neither sex nor the will to power is enough to explain human behavior and action.
Dr. Brown also comments, in Science and Personality, that although Freud and Adler tried to discover on predominant instinct in man, they have failed. Freud later seemed to change from his theory of one basic urge of x (pleasure) to a theory of two basic urges–life instinct” and “death instinct,” or sex urge and suicide urge. He evidently concluded that these two are not mutualy exelusive urges in man; they intermingle in human behavior. Accordlng to him and some of his followers, such as Dr. Karl A. Menninger, author of Man Against Himself, life is a struggle between these two forces.
The view of the Hindu psychologists is just the opposite. They come to the conclusion that there is an urge for eternal happiness and eternal existence in the human mind. The search after , bliss is the real motive behind man’s activities- both- conscious and unconscious, as Spinoza affirmed. The tendency to destruction, or the suicide urge, is not the basic and inherent quality of man; hatred, war, and other destructive activities are rather due the perverted application and erroneous understanding of this urge for happiness. Hindu psychologists do not agree with the view that man has a basic destructive tendency. Suicide, war, and all other such destructive tendencies are not expressions of the normal mind .It seems that Freud and other psychoanalysts make unnecessary and uncalled-for generalizations from the study of pathological cases. It is also equally illogical and superficial to trace the death or destructive urge even in religious self-abnegation and sacrifice. An unbiased understanding of the true spirit of religious culture will convince us that Freudian conclusions of this sort are thoroughly unjustified.
Dr. William McDougall also differs from the Freudian and Adlerian schools in his interpretation of the motivating force behind man’s activities. He cannot accept either die sex impulse or the will to power as the whole urge, although he definitely believes that the conscious and subconscious activities of man are purposeful In other words, he concludes that there is a purpose behind all consciousness. He seek a “master urge” to explain the purpose of man’s different instinctive functionings, but unfortunately, he does not give the definite or specific nature of that master urge.
Gestalt psychology, of which Dr. Wolfgang Kohler is the most prominent exponent, is seeking a totality” of conscious experience. According to this school, the conscious self is a unity and not a combination or sum total of separate instincts and perceptions.
We can safely say that there is a general tendency among modem psychiatrists to think that all conscious and subconscious activities of men’s minds function purposively and that they are controlled by a unifying principle. There must be a purpose or a reason for the behavior of a man. On the other hand, those of the behaviorist school claim that man is practically machine and that consciousness itself is only an illusion. These thinkers criticize not only Freud and Jung for their study of the unconscious state of mind but all who believe in the existence of the consciousness of man, not to speak of the existence of God. To a behaviorist God is only an iIlusion created by the ‘laziness of mankind.” To quote John B. Watson: In the larger group God or Jehovah takes the place of the famn, father. Thus even the modern child from the beginning is confronted by the dictated of medicine men-be they the father, the soothsayer of the village, the God, or Jehovah. Having been brought up in this attitude towards authority, he never questions the concepts imposed upon him.
Behaviorists will tell us to study a man’s physical make-up if we would understand his behavior. Of course, the psycho- analysts, as well as the Hindu psychologists, admit that there is a great change in the physical state when there is a change in the mind and vice versa. When the mind is affected, there will be a change in the body. But there are still many questions which the behaviorists have yet to answer adequately or satisfactorily. They cannot fully explain many of the cases of psychosis and neurosis by tracing the causes in the structure of the nerves and nerve centers, although it is true that some of the dementia praeco and other cases are cured by insulin, other drugs, and shock treatment. However, in spite of the physiological experiments of these schools, their conclusions are incomplete, for they do not explain the extra- sensory perceptions and superconscious states of mind.
The mechanistic schools have exaggerated their claims for their view of the mechanical nature of the mind. According John B. Watson, mind is a complex mechanism like a modern lino- type, or some other complicated printing machine, which does alI the work of a number of men. But we …do not find any real explanation of human behavior under extremely complicated and unknown environments and situations The mechanical view does not give initiative and dynamic re- sourcefulness to the mechanical mind. In the observation of human behavior we fail to find any purposive ingenuity of the unfathomable mind which can be converted into mere functions of material cells or nerve cells. Mechanistic behaviorism cannot explain the various higher mental faculties or human functions, such as love and sympathy, not to speak of the higher values and spiritual qualities which operate in elevated stages of human society.
On the other hand, the purposivists or hormic psychologists, like Professor McDougall, want to avoid some of the limitations of behaviorism and functionalism by endowing consciousness with purposive faculties. The driving forces are innate in the mind in the form of instincts and urges. Man strives to overcome difficulties and to be master of the situation. Purposivists can better explain complicated human nature although they also fall short of total understanding of human experiences. The same can be said of Gestaltsts. We may safely say that the major trend in American psychology is in the motor aspect of mind. Professor William James can be regarded as the founder of the action psychology” , although Bain and Darwin were the fore- runners. According to James “all consciousness is motor.” Heleterberg and Dewey became the great exponents of the school of thought which emphasized activity, achievement, and conduct. The pragmatism of James was greedily taken up by Dewey and others in the field of psychology. As a resuIt we find that the development of mind is measured by its outer expressions and achievements in the objective sense. The quality of intelligence is determined by the measurement of ability in action. Consequently, the subjective elemente of mind is ignored. In fact, meditation and inner understanding are generally neglected. Professor Gordon Allport said: “The genius of western psychology lies in its stress upon action or, in slightly dated terminology, upon the motor phase of reflex arc.” Again he said: “We seldom record, for example, an individual’s unique and subjective pattern of thought life.” This tendency of American psychology is easily understood when we consider the major trends of American life and its outlook. The hedonistic outlook on life naturally affects all spheres of activity in a nation. We shall see later that Hindu psychology has quite a different emphasis, as. it flourished in a nation where the subjective elements of mind and unique inner mental states playa great part. In fact, spiritual idealism is the most dominant factor in Hindu national life. In his evaluation of western psychology Professor All port is most accurate. According to the Hindu psychological schools, the greatest expression of mind lies in its total illumination, which is achieved, as we shall see, by the subjective methods of concentration and meditation and consequent mental integration. The mind must be synthesized in order for a person to achieve real success.
Greatness of mind can be judged not by its ability in action but rather by its integration and unification. Hindu psychologists recognize four states of consciousness. To use the terminology of some of them, one can say that they believe in the sleeping, dreaming, awakened states, and the superconscious(.susupti, swapna, jagrat and turiya). The sleeping and dreaming states are included in the subconscious. So, according to Western terminology, this amounts to three states–subconscious, conscious, and superconsious. The study of the superconscious is either ignored or con sidered pathological by most Western psychologists, although Professor William Jarris studies the manifestations of it in his book, Varieties of Religious Experiences, and Dr. Miiller-Freienfels gives hints of mental telepathy and other such unusual mental phenomena in his treatment o fpara_ psychology in Evolution of Modern Psychology. It is also encouraging to note that Professor Rhine of Duke University has made a careful study of what he calls “extrasensory perceptions” in his book, New Frontiers of the Mind, to see if he can reach a scientific explanation of certain mental per- ceptions that are received independently of the sense organs and nervous system.
Although telepathy and clairvoyance seem to be expressions of extrasensory powers, they are not to be confused with the superconscious state or samadhi. In fact, the exercise of these extraordinary powers is considered as an obstacle to the attainment of superconscious realization. This is em- phasized in the Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali and the Teachings of Sri Ramakrishna. However, Patanjali (the father of Hindu psychology) and others recognize these perceptions and even give the methods by which one can develop them although they discourage the use of them if one would attain to true spirituality. Sometimes telepathy, clairvoyance, and other similar powers are manifested in persons without any conscious effort on their part; sometimes they are manifested in the course of the true practice of yoga and the right type of concentration and meditation; but they are powers in the ,worldly sense, and the real seeker after truth is ‘warned not to let;’ them draw him from his goal. In Hindu psychology and other such systems a thorough study has been made of the various stages of superconscious ,realization and other extrasensory perceptions through Raja Yoga practices as given in the Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali. Certain types of lower extrasensory perceptions are discussed in books on Hath Yoga; but ,we do not propose to describe Hatha Yoga, as it is meant primarily for the control of physical laws.
. It is of fundamental importance to note that there are distinct differences between the experimental and inferential methods of the Western psychologists and the subjective and intuitive yoga practices (mental science or psychology) of the Hindus. The purely objective method cannot be adequately applied to the study of the mind. The psychologist has to interpret the normal and abnormal outer expressions in order to understand the inner states and urges of the mind. He inevitably colors the interpretations by his pre- conceived notions. Apart from that, a particular expression may have different causes. There is a popular saying that a fool laughs three times over a joke. He laughs first when he sees others laughing; again he laughs when he understands it; and then he laughs thinking what a fool he “.as not to understand the joke in the first place. As laughter was created by three different causes, so an external expression can be caused by different inner emotions and urges. ConsequentIy the interpretive method can hardly give convincing understanding of the inner nature of the mind, as neuroses and psychoses may be created in various persons by Superonscious experience, subconscious and conscious urges and mental conditions. Therefore, the Hindus have devoted themselves thoroughly to the subjective methods of psychology which- give a clear ,and conclusive understanding of the total mind.
Western thinkers may be inclined to question the validity of psychological study in India, as they may find that Hindu psychology is not experimental in “”the sense of the Western schools of experimental psychology. Nevertheless, it’” can never be said that Hindu psychology is not empirical, for it is based on the study of the experience of the mind. Brentano and a number of others of his school did not ascribe much value to modern experimental psychology, although empirical psychology was considered by them to be extremely valuable because they were interested in the nature of the mind. Professor Boring evidently does not esteem Brentano highly as a psychologist, as he considers him and his followers to be philosophers ,whose major interest was in the understanding of the whole. Such historians and other may find it difficult to appreciate the contributions of Hindu psychology, and they may dismiss the whole system as a philosophical treatise or as mystical literature. It would “be unfair to come to such a conclusion, as Hindu psychology gives definite methods not only for knowing the nature of the mind but also for developing its powers.
We should clearly understand what is meant by the subjective and intuitive method of Hindu psychology. It, does not mean philosophizing about the nature of the mind or having a conceptual knowledge thereof, but rather training the total mind of the individual, including thought, emotion, and ,will. It does not depend on the interpretive method, as interpretation of the outer expressions of the mind may not always be reliable. Hindu psychologists firmly believe that psychological facts and development can be verified and developed through personal mental growth.
Hindu psychologists, although subjective and intuitive, are scientific as weIl as practical and dynamic. Psychology in the west is not regarded as dynamic by many outstanding psychologists. It is our opinion that Hindu psychology is more dynamic, as it trains the individual mind to manifest all its latent powers, that through systematic psychological practices the dynamic powers of mind evolve and make an individual mind powerful enough to be of service to others in integrating their emotions and other mental processes.
Hindu psychologists are primarily interested in the study and development of the total mind rather than in the different functions considered separately. The experimental psychologists of the West are interested in the particular phases of mental activity. Some of them go to an extreme in their specialization when they study only nerve reactions and think that they will be able to comprehend the mind itself while they study merely the instruments of the mind. It is interesting to note ,what Professor Hocking rightly says in his evaluation of Western psychology: “But the extant science or sciences of mind have presented us not the mind itself, but substitutes for mind, . .-Near.minds, we may call them.”and again he says: “The several Near-minds of the scientific psychology have their worth and their actuality; but they have life only as organs of mind.” It ,will not be out of place to remember here that Hindus accept the existence of mind apart from and independent of the nerves. Brehtano and the Gestaltists are no doubt interested to a great extent in the total experience1 of the mind but they do not see to go far enough to cover the whole range of mental experiences, as ‘ have said already, for they never consider the superconscious. The psychologists of the unconscious-Freud, Adler, Jung, and others-also fall short, as we have seen. We make bold to say that the Western psychologists are mostly concerned with the different phases of mental functioning by taking them separately and individually in their experimental methods, while Hindu psychologists are primarily interested in the study of the total mind, as they feel that the different functions–consciousness, unconsciousness, super- consciousness, cognition, volition, and conation cannot be really separated. Moreover, they are interrelated.
As we know, any thought creates an emotional reaction resulting in activity. A thought or a concept creates an emotion within, such as attraction or repulsion, pleasure or displeasure, love or hatred. ‘We are also aware of our emotions;as such, a thought and emotion cannot be isolated and observed separately. Emotional urges make the mind active. It is almost impossible to observe activity of the mind (function of will) as separate from either thought or emotion. Nor can we observe a thought as separate from emotion or activity of the mind. Neither can emotions be isolated from the knowledge content of the mind and its dynamic expression, however subtle they may be. Thought, emotion, and will are inseparably connected. That is the reason Hindu psychologists study these functions together when they try to develop and integrate the mind. Then again, they consider that the fullest development of mind can be achieved only when it reaches the superconscious. A student of psychology also has knoweldge of the contents of the unconscious (.sama.rkaras) in the process of the development of the superconscious. In fact, a study of the unconscious when isolated from conscious training the mind is extremely unsafe. So according to Hindu psychologists, one cannot really study and know one state of mind properly without total integration of the mind.
Most of the western psychologists seem to give extreme , emphasis to the motor aspect of the mind. In other words, their chief interest is to know the activity, the motor consequences of mental life, in order to find out how the mind acts and reacts from the motor point of view. On the other hand, Hindu psychologists try to understand and strengthen the whole mind. Therefore, they are especially interested in the development of character and personality, which can be achieved only by integration of the mind. We appreciate some of the Western psychologists like Professor Allport and who are interested in. the total personality of man. It should be mentioned that we do not minimize the importance of a great number of psychologists in India who taught psychological principles before the time of Patanjali (about 150 B.C.). Applied psychology was taught in the Upanishads, the Bhagavad-Gita, and the Sankhya system.
The Buddhists also gave many definite and practical ideas of applied psychology for the unification and strengthening of the mind, as well as definite instructions for the total enlightenment of the mind. In fact, Patanjali gives a systematic treatise on yoga, though many of his concepts are based on Sankhya thought.
Hindus have developed their psychology mainly in the course of religious unfoldment. The Western psychoanalysts like Charcot, Janet, Freud, Adler, Jung, and others-began their research in the abnormal states of the mind. The physiological psychologists are more interested in the study of the nerve reactions and functionings of the nervous system than in the mind itself. Professor Hocking of Harvard University aptly calls this a study of the “near-mind.” It should be remembered that it is extremely unsafe, to say the least, to generalize the findings from the study of the abnormal mind and apply them ,to fairly normal minds. Freud and others make superficial remarks about the religious tendencies of man in term of sex, and they try to find the “death” or destrctive” tendencies even in normal and supernormal minds. Actually, the supernormal minds function” in a manner quite different from normal and abnormal cases. This is the reason that the unfortunate generalizations of many of the psychotherapeutists regarding spiritual experiences are extremely inaccurate and unscientific. They are far from the truth.
The science of psychology was developed mainly by the Hindus as they studied the methods by ,which they reached the highest religious experience-the superconscious state or samadhi. It is the only method of understanding and controlling the mind in order that a higher consciousness may be reached. According to the Yoga aphorisms of Patanjali, the mind becomes thoroughly illumined and can transcend even the limiitation of the nervous system when it is controled and unified in the course of concentration and deep meditation. The mind can immediately and directly reach another plane, the superconscious state, in ,which it experiences reality. This is explained by Swami Vivekananda in Raja Yoga:There is a still higher plane upon which the mind can work. It can go beyond consciousness. Just as unconscious work is- beneath consciousness, so there is another work which is above consciousness, and which is not accompanied with the feeling of egotism. The feeling of egoism is only on’ the middle plane. By the effects, by the result; of’ the work, we know that which is below, and that which is above. When a man goes into deep sleep he enters a plane beneath consciousness. He works the body all the time he breathes, ‘he moves the body, perhaps, in his sleep, without any accompanying feeling of ego; he is unconscious, and when he returns from his sleep he is the same man who went into it. The sum total of the knowledge which he had before he went into the sleep remains the same; it does not increase at all. No enlightenment does come. But when a man goes into samadhi, if he goes into it a fool, he comes out a sage.
Religious ideals and expressions are essential to the fulfilment and culmination of consciousness in this super- sensuous state. To Hindus, religion is not a barrier to psychological development and understanding; it is the very basis for the total illumination of the mind.
According to Hindu psychologists, when the mind is subjected to the discipline of yoga practices the fine nerve tissues of the body undergo a consequent transformation. The physical and mental forces of man are refined and unified, resulting in emotional balance, development of, adamantine will, and physical poise. A man who has experienced samadhi or superconscious realization understands the “whole mind- conscious. subconscious, and superconscious. He also reaches a stage ‘where the mind functions independently of the nervous system.
In fact, the whole mind appears like a mirror in which he can see the truth revealed. Again, this unified mind that has been subjected to discipline through the practices of ,concentration, meditation, and other processes, becomes a center of power. When a man is master of his own mental forces, he will be able to understand and influence the minds of others. He is well established in poise and creates quite an atmosphere of peace. When anyone enters the presence of such a person, he consciously or unconsciously absorbs the peaceful atmosphere and derives poise and benefit from the contact. A man of superconscious realization can be compared to a luminous substance which radiates light. It not only illumines itself but also objects within its radius. Simi- larly, a man with a unified mind emanates wisdom and strength to others.