The Four Drives

The sum total of our existential potentialities emanating from unit consciousness, interacting through motor and sensory organs in our physical stratum, interplaying through the ectoplasmic projections in our psychic stratum, and flowing one-pointedly through the psycho-spiritual approach in our spiritual stratum constitute our existential stamina (ástitvika práńinatá).

What is the origin of our existential stamina?

It is not sentiment, logic, desideratum nor actional faculty.

It is our unit consciousness (jiivátman).

The object entity finds its substantiation in the receptacle of the mindstuff.

• The mindstuff in the ego
• The in the identity or I am .

But even the “I am” feeling of the identity would be in jeopardy without the witness-ship of unit consciousness.

In order to substantiate the “I am” feeling we require the sense of “knowership”, that is “I know I am”.

First comes “I know” and then comes “I am”.

So the origin or source of our existential being is rooted in the “I” of “I know”. That supreme identity is indeed our soul as our unit consciousness.

The Limitations of the 4 Drives

1. Sentiment (Bháva Pravanatá)

To find expression, a mind adopts inter and intraectoplasmic occupations.

These occupations (love, hatred, fear, etc.) are known as propensities.

A propensity is a way of expression of mind.

On the psychic level this occupation is called expressed sentiment.

In short, sentiment is an outburst of psychic energy which may or may not be rational. As a result, at any moment sentiment may be overclouded by dogmas.

Such an undependable source cannot be the origin of our existential stamina. Furthermore, as sentiment is a purely psychic occupation it cannot be the source of our entire stamina, including the spiritual stratum.

2. Logic (Yukti Váda)

Logic stands on 3 legs:

1. Direct knowledge (pratyakśa)
2. Inference (anumán)
3. Authority (ágam)

Authority may stem from either an authoritative book or an authoritative personality.

Unfortunately, none of these 3 sources of knowledge is fully dependable.

In the case of direct knowledge (or direct perception), wrong conclusions may be drawn due to:

• the limitations of our sensory organs
• defects in our sensory organs, or
• defects in the environmental conditions.

Inference may also prove faulty in the absence of sufficient or correct data.

Authority may be misleading due to temporal or personal factors.

3. Desideratum (Lakśa)

The first point is that the desideratum must be correct.

It is very dangerous if one’s desideratum is to:

• become rich or famous, or
• go to heaven

The correct desideratum is perfection or oneness with Parama Puruśa.

But even that cannot be a stable source for our existential stamina.

If a lifeboat is being guided by a North star and the sky of our life becomes covered by clouds then even the correct desideratum is still not dependable.

Those clouds are our propensities, saḿskáras, fetters, and enemies.

4. Actional Faculty (Karmaeśaná)

Work for work’s sake has the tendency to increase one’s bondage rather than to liberate.

Action begets reaction. So when saḿskáras are increasing (whether they be good saḿskáras or bad saḿskáras – “chains of gold” or “chains of iron”) then the mind easily gets crudified.

A human being in this life may well be reborn as an animal, plant or even a rock in the next life. How then can actional faculty be accepted as the source of our existential stamina!

Nevertheless we must not discard these 4 drives because, despite their defects, they can certainly contribute to our understanding of existential stamina.

1. Sentiment when guided by Neohumanism can elevate humanity through devotion as a mission.

2. Logic when properly guided by rationality can eliminate the influence of geo-sentiments in society

When guided by intuition it can become a beacon of light in all directions.

Through psycho-spiritual practices all the clouds may be removed from the sky of our life

3. In that event the clear vision of our desideratum allows us to proceed unerringly on the path of liberation.

4. Finally, all bondages through action may be eliminated by the three-fold approach of:

• madhuvidya (ideation on Brahma)
• surrender of the vanity of actions
• detachment regarding the results of our work.

We can utilize these 4 drives properly through a proper understanding of Pramá, Pramá Rddhi and Pramá Siddhi.

October 1986, Calcutta