Ambers ji
Thanks for sharing your personal reflections. I find they tie things together very well for me. May I elaborate on an idea you have introduced? Buddhi is not always a negative. Buddhi can refer to a discriminating intellect, a property of mind that motivates us to begin asking quesitons about the nature of the Divine in the first place. Buddhi is the source of our curiosity.
Aham buddhi -- intellect infested with ego leads us astray. Some thoughts from Reflections on Gurbani by T. Singh (Sikhism - Reflections On Gurbani)
Thus, although the man was born with Intact Consciousness ("Saabat Soorat"), however, with the expression of Vaasnaas or ego-sense, he ended up being a limited body-mind-intellect, from which arose the perceiver of objects, the feeler of emotions, and the thinker of thoughts. To put it otherwise, when we were born, our consciousness was adorned with the Intuitive "Ease" (Sahaj). But, because of the forgetfulness of our True Unconditioned Nature, we have become "dis-eased" (diseased)! The Gurbani puts it as follows:
- ਨਾਪਾਕ ਪਾਕੁ ਕਰਿ ਹਦੂਰਿ ਹਦੀਸਾ ਸਾਬਤ ਸੂਰਤਿ ਦਸਤਾਰ ਸਿਰਾ ॥: Naapaak paak kari hudoori hudeesaa saabat soorat dastaar siraa: Purify what is impure, and let the Lord's Presence be your religious tradition. Let your Intact Consciousness be the turban on your head (sggs 1084).
When we trust only our intellect -- in others words, demonstrate an unbending need for logical and empircal proofs, we are doing nothing more or less than confusing the actuality of the material world with truth. Buddhi which is discriminating intellect is neither good nor bad. However, intellect can be the greatest spinner of illusions. The great psychologists have demonstrated how that happens. Guru Ram Das spoke of "my beloved mind" which like a camel roams if it is not brought under control.
ਅੰਤਰਿ ਨਿਧਾਨੁ ਮਨ ਕਰਹਲੇ ਭ੍ਰਮਿ ਭਵਹਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਾਲਿ ॥
anthar nidhhaan man karehalae bhram bhavehi baahar bhaal ||
The treasure is deep within, O camel-like mind, but you wander around outside in doubt, searching for it. (Ang 235)
Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji:- Ang 235 -:SearchGurbani.com ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ
