The mother of all conspiracy theories

There is a "conspiracy theory" that goes much deeper than anything the most fanatic conspiracist could conceive, and surprisingly enough, this one is true, at least according to the Vedas.

Conspiracy theories often sound attractive because they offer a view of facts of situations that defy our understanding of reality. Suddenly, the good is bad, the bad is good and the gray is yellow. Our lives are controlled by secret groups, our freedoms are illusory, and the decisions we thought were the result of a conscious process are just the result of clever manipulation. In most cases, of course, conspiracy theories are just the result of creative interpretation, they have a dose of truth, spiced with a lot of fantasy. There is however a "conspiracy theory" that goes much deeper than anything the most fanatic conspiracist could conceive, and surprisingly enough, this one is true, at least according to the Vedas.

What if I said that you are not really you? That your very concept of identity, down to the smallest detail, is the result of an illusion by which we have been fooled for not just years or centuries but for trillions of years, even before the beginning of time itself?

The whole modern society is geared in the direction of finding happiness and satisfaction. Some try to find it through economic development, others through relationships, and others by just focusing on the simple pleasures of life, such as living in contact with nature. In all three cases, the pleasure they seek is based on the idea of finding happiness through the satisfaction of the senses: eating good food, seeing aesthetic things, having a comfortable car, etc. This physical pleasure culminates in romantic relationships and sex, which is the culmination of the satisfaction of the senses.

If we think about it, however, we can understand that the pleasure of the senses we look for is just the result of electrical signals coming from the brain. The senses are more or less like sensors that react to certain objects, and the signals produced by them are sent to the brain, where they are processed and interpreted as pleasure. These signals can be falsified through the use of psychotropic substances, and that's a path many take to find more pleasure, even if self-destructive. By this, we can easily understand we are not the senses or the gross body. I have a body, just like I may have a car, but I'm different from it.

Coming to this conclusion, many think they are the mind, composed of feelings, desires, memory, etc. At first, we may think we are the brain, but once we understand the concept of reincarnation, we see that our essence transmigrates from one body to another, and thus we are not the brain but something subtler, a subtle mind that goes from one body to another.

Feelings, however, can be subdued by intelligence. We may desperately love a person, for example, and the mind may tell us that we need him or her at all costs, but if the intelligence tells us it is not a good idea, for whatever reason, we may choose to resist the feeling. The intelligence is thus superior to the mind. Armed with this conclusion, many conclude they are the intellect, something still subtler than the mind, which is able to control it.

There is, however, something still higher, which is my concept of identity, or ego. Intelligence operates under the purview of this concept, and thus, the ego is superior to intelligence. Practitioners of different spiritual paths are capable of surpassing the ego and attaining a level where one connects with consciousness itself, the state of nirvana, or liberation.

The Vedas, however, go still further. They explain that the very consciousness we have now, which is covered by the ego, intelligence, mind, senses, and physical body, is still not who we really are.

The Srimad Bhagavatam describes in detail the process of creation of the material world as a kind of alternate reality for the souls who choose to forget their eternal spiritual nature and try to find satisfaction in the temporary. Just as with any simulation or virtual reality, the material world is created with a basis on reality, but it is illusory in nature.

In the teachings of Lord Kapila, in the last chapters of the third canto, it is described that to enter this simulation, the consciousness of the soul is first reflected into matter, and then covered by the three modes of material nature (goodness, passion and ignorance), just as the light of the sun reflected in colored water inside a pot.

This reflected consciousness is then covered by the false ego, which covers our original identity and makes us accept different temporary material identities, as we move from one body to the other. Under the influence of the false ego, we may think we are a man, a woman, a demigod, or even a horse, and this concept of identity changes from one life to the other.

The influence of the material modes also propels us in the direction of material action, making us active. To be able to perform material actions, we receive five additional layers: the intellect, which helps us to make plans on how to manipulate matter to fulfill our plans, the mind, which serves as a reservoir for all kinds of feelings and desires, senses that allow us to interact with the material world, and finally, a gross body, that serves as a vehicle.

All the previous coverings, including the senses, form what is called the sūkṣma-śarīra, or the subtle body. This subtle body goes from one physical body to the other, moved by the subtle vital airs (prāṇa). The subtle senses are connected to the mind, and when we enter into a gross body, they interact with the brain, which in turn serves as an interface to the nerves and other components that control the body. What we see when we look into a mirror is thus just the last of a long sequence of coverings that cover our real self. Not only do we live in a simulated reality, but our very concept of identity, down to the very core is imposed upon us!

In short, these are the coverings we currently have:

Sthūla-śarīra: The gross body composed of bones, muscles, nerves, etc. centered in the brain.

Sūkṣma-śarīra: The subtle body that floats inside the heart and is moved by the vital airs from one body to the other. It is composed of five components:

Indriya: The subtle senses that interface with the brain. The electrical signals the brain receives from the nerves are channeled to the mind through the senses.

Manaḥ: The mind, which serves as a reservoir for feelings and desires, and interprets the signals from the senses as pain or pleasure. All the different needs and desires we struggle with in life are part of the mind. In other words, these are not really "our desires" but something that is imposed on us by this external force. The mind is not part of our real self, but an external, mechanical entity (much like a computer) that is programmed to accept and reject things, feel, and desire.

Buddhi: The intellect that controls the activities of the mind, and allows us to understand the world and cultivate knowledge. Just like the mind, material intelligence is also an external entity that is connected to us just to help us interact with the physical world. Nowadays the workings of intelligence are studied in the field of AI, and, in fact, the operation of the intelligence is not very different from a modern AI; it just captures and mixes information, creating plans and ideas. The intelligence can however be purified by transcendental knowledge, received from scriptures such as the Bhagavad-Gita and the Srimad Bhagavatam, as well as self-realized souls. This spiritual knowledge "reprograms" the material intelligence, and makes it work in a way that can help us find the way out of the material existence.

Ahaṅkāra: False ego, our very concept of identity in this material world. It is called "false" ego because it is different from the true ego, our eternal spiritual identity, which is currently forgotten.

Cit: The material consciousness that is the reflection of our original spiritual consciousness. Even when we come all the way here, peeling off all the other coverings, that's still not what we really are.

Our real identity is defined in the Srimad Bhagavatam and in the teachings of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu as Prema, or love of Godhead. The soul is an eternal separated part of Krishna, and this combination of similarity and individuality creates not only a strong bond but an eternal, transcendental relationship between the two. This transcendental love is the very essence of the soul, which eternally increases. This love is not something we have, but something we are, our very essence. Somehow, it was forgotten, and thus we entered into this illusory life in this temporary world, based on the morbid seek for the satisfaction of mind and senses, which are just external coverings imposed upon us.

The process of re-establishing or reconnecting with this original consciousness is called Bhakti, which is translated by Srila Prabhupada as Krishna Consciousness. This is our real identity, our true ego, that needs to be recovered.

The stages of practice in Krishna consciousness, start with Śraddhā (faith), which appears when we come into contact with devotees and understand they have something sublime. Śraddhā is the conclusion they have something superior to what we have and that we should follow the same path. From this conscious decision, everything starts.

The next stage is Sādhu-Saṅga, the association with saintly persons who are practicing the spiritual process. As the saying goes "Tell me with whom you associate, and I will tell you who you are." By associating with materialistic people we learn how to be a materialist, and by associating with saintly people we learn how to be a saint. All the following stages are the result of associating with self-realized souls. This association may be personal, or even indirect, by reading books, listening to lectures, etc. The main point is that we learn from them and are inspired by their example.

From there, we start the third part of the process, which is Bhajana-Kriyā, engagement in devotional practices. Instead of being a mere spectator, we practice ourselves, by following the example of the great and we gradually become like them. This includes chanting the holy names, worshiping, following regulative principles, hearing and reading scriptures, teaching others, associating with saintly people, etc.

This practice leads us to the stage of Anartha-Nivṛtti, the cleansing of unwanted things, when we work to purify the desires of the mind, replacing the contaminated material desires that are stored there with pure desires connected with our eternal relationship with Krishna and our blissful identity as spirit souls. As these impurities are cleansed, we feel lighter and more sure of what we are doing and more conscious of the path ahead.

Eventually, we attain the stage of Niṣṭhā, which can be translated as firmness or steadiness. With the desires of the mind purified and the intelligence fixed on the path of self-realization, we become steady in our spiritual practice and our advancement accelerates. At this stage, we finally find a way to get to our final destination quickly. We may stay for many lives struggling in the beginning stages of the process, but as soon as we attain the stage of Niṣṭhā, our progress becomes quick and the path clear.

An example that can be given is that is not very dificult to travel from Germany to the United States, as long as one knows the proper process. One may struggle for years trying to walk all the way to Portugal and from there trying to swim across the ocean, but as soon as one understands he just has to walk to the airport and from there take a plane, the trip becomes extraordinarily short.

After achieving Niṣṭhā, we quickly progress to the stage of Ruci (taste). At this stage, we acquire a genuine taste and enthusiasm for devotional practices, such as chanting, hearing, and associating with devotees. In the previous stages, this enthusiasm may come and go, but in the stage of Ruci, it becomes permanent.

From this eagerness to practice comes Āsakti, a deep attachment to Krishna and His service. In this stage, devotional service becomes a natural and constant activity and we naturally remember Krishna in all our activities. Everything we do becomes an expression of love.

As this intensifies, we come to the stage of Bhāva, which is the appearance of the first rays of love of Godhead. In the stage of Bhava, we finally reconnect with our original love for Krishna and start seeing ourselves as who we really are. In this stage, we start seeing reality, understanding the transitory nature of this world, and seeing the eternal, blissful reality that exists behind it. It changes not only the way we see the world but the way we see other living entities. Suddenly, we don't pay much attention to their external forms but can see their very essence as transcendental souls. As a result, we develop love and compassion for all, without distinction. At this stage, we don't see a distinction between friends and enemies, pleasant and unpleasant

The stage of Bhāva culminates with Prema, pure love of Godhead, which is the ultimate perfection of our original spiritual identity. In this level, our original spiritual identity is not only fully awakened, but fully perfected, and we become ready to not only return to our original position in the spiritual sky but become fully aware of Krishna's transcendental qualities and pastimes, fully realizing our eternal personal relationship with Him, including our original form and spiritual identity.