What is the mind, consciousness and its purpose?
By: Subraj Matharu
Tags: Consciousness, Life, Mental Health, Brain, Mind

This post allows you to understand what the mind is, where its located and its purpose. Upon doing this you will see how important and connected everything is. Having this knowledge helps make sense of the different levels of thinking. It also helps see how they all relate to nature. You also learn what consciousness is and how to recognise it.

What is the mind and where is it located? Does it take place in the body and brain? Or is it life as a whole?

What is the mind?

The mind is the intelligence that holds all aspects of your brain, body and awareness. It is also a living, sentient being that wishes to express and learn.

Openness and the space of creation manifest through the mind. The human body and brain act as vehicles where you can fulfil this intention.

Like any living being, the mind seeks growth, learning and progression. Change is a constant part of this journey which is why the brain always has new ideas, insights and thoughts. These changes take place due to your environment, genes, conditioning and memory.

In general, you can see how the mind reflects this way in life, where there is continuous variation.

Your life situation also affects how you think and feel. It also has an impact on the actions you take. To a great degree, the confines of the brain and body do not limit any of this activity. The reason is that the minds nature is to be aware, and consciousness does not have a limit.

The mind does not limit to exist in the head. It goes beyond the border of your skin.

Where is the mind located?

It’s easy to think that the brain is the single place where the mind exists. By and large, because its the primary organ that generates thought. Despite this, your mind’s location does not limit to the head and brain. In truth, it takes place throughout your organs, cells and entire body. To highlight this, think about how much knowledge each cell in the body has.

One DNA strand alone has enough information that can fill thousands of books. On the whole, DNA affects how you look, your behaviour, and physical makeup. You can use thought to change some of these factors, but it is the cells that store the blueprints. With all things considered, this means that the brain alone does not determine who you are.

The human body consists of billions of cells, and each one has the intelligence to carry out its function. Imagine how much information and memory the body stores?

Your cells contain all the knowledge for you to live. Each second, the cells in the brain and body take part in trillions of actions. Each one of them has the potential to affect how you act, move and think.

Without doubt, life exists within and around you. It is far beyond what thinking could ever fathom.

The intellect does not have any boundary, like the open, empty nature of space. Therefore, you cannot restrict the location of the mind to one point.

One strand of DNA contains a huge amount of data. The combined information in your genetics is more than the brain can ever grasp.

What is the purpose of the mind?

The purpose of the mind is to manage information to function as a living being. In short, this applies to each form in the cosmos. All objects have a valid place in existence for that reason.

Even the simplest atom or cell has to store and manage information. For atoms to form structures, they interact and bind with others. They also share details so that they can adapt and create systems for all life to exist.

Take the case of producing, finding and eating food. All these actions are vital functions of nature and make part of an ecosystem that connects all life. For example, the food chain shows how energy in the form of information moves from one form to another.

Every food chain begins with plants. The sun plays the leading role in nourishing each one in a process called photosynthesis. The plants provide food for various animals. In turn, both these animals and plants provide food for humans.

Given these points, notice how the body, and nature, work with each other. The process of life providing food as well as consuming and recycling is all one. Observe how plants, animals, your feelings and life connect for this act to take place.

In essence, nature is a reflection of the mind at work on a larger scale than the brain alone.

The beginning of most food chains starts with energy from the sun providing nourishment for the plants.

What is the conscious mind?

A conscious mind refers to when you are alert and aware of what exists or occurs.

In other words, it means to know something. Before learning or acting upon anything, you have to first take heed of the facts. Gathering information this way forms the basis of what action you choose to take. When the task is complete, the brain stores it as a memory which becomes knowledge. All of this happens when you are aware of the mind and environment.

The conscious mind is the part of the brain that knows what’s happening. Once you learn to use this, there is a connection with the intelligence of life. Henceforth, you become awake and wise to how the mind works. Having this ability allows for balance and freedom of choice in all areas of life.

No type of thinking can pull you around without direction in this state. Instead, you can make decisions based on more profound wisdom. Being open to this allows for the proper use of knowledge in an attentive manner.

The intelligence of life is always on, for the most part, due to it always adapting and moving. Or to rephrase it, life is alive and aware all the time.

When you are aware of something in your mind, you are privy to its presence. Therefore, it cannot take over your attention.

What are the unconscious mind and thought?

In contrast to being conscious, there is a state of unconsciousness. In such a case, you are not aware of something happening. It could be regarding thoughts in the mind or functions in the body.

At first, this seems like it contradicts the fact that life is always being conscious. The energy of life still animates the bodies systems. In most cases, you do not always have to be aware of them. As an illustration, look at how blood circulation works in the body. Does it need much of your help or contribution by way of thinking?

These unconscious systems in the body are not a problem. They encompass the mind on a larger scale due to its connection with all life. In doing so, they are conscious as they perform their tasks with intellect.

In addition to the body’s systems, your brain thinks thousands of thoughts each day. Many of which you are not aware of. With that in mind, thinking is also a function of the body you are often unaware of.

If you are not aware of how the mind operates, thoughts can gather in your space. It’s then easy to lose sight of the broader knowledge at work, both in and around you.

Life is always sentient, and to access its wisdom, you have to grow in awareness, then align with it. If you do not do this, thinking and thoughts can become unconscious. When this happens, you fall into a sleep-like state where the brain rules every action. It feels like the thought aspect of your mind is separate from everything.

If the mind is in such a condition, it makes decisions from memories rather than wisdom. In summary, this is unconscious thinking which can reflect in all areas of your life.

Making decisions from memory alone rather than with wisdom can cause conflict and stress.

Why should you understand the mind?

Understanding the mind, and its nature allows you to see the way it operates. In time, you see how it works on the level of the brain as well as the bigger picture. Creation is a form of one life, and nothing is separate from each other.

The main thing that prevents you from knowing the truth about life is losing yourself in thought. Or to put it another way, when your mind becomes unconscious. The moment you bring awareness into this state, a balance begins to take place.

Once you understand the mind, it’s possible to be more aware of it. Your mind becomes more open as a result. After a short while, you sense a connection with the same mind that created the cosmos.

Other terms for this are the one universal life or supreme consciousness. In conclusion, it makes up the brain, body, and all that exists, including you.