The Ayurvedic Concept of 'mind'.

The word Ayurveda is a compound noun made by linking the word 'ayu' (literally 'life') and the word 'Veda' (literally 'science') Thus Ayurveda is often described in layman's terms as ' the science of life'.

Ayurveda is holistic in concept and practice, seeing the human mind, body and soul as indivisible.'Life' - including simple forms of life such as bacteria and viruses, as well as more complex forms, such as animals - has been defined as 'continuity of consciousness'. This leads us to ask what exactly consciousness is in Ayurvedic terms.

Ayurveda teaches us that there are three types of mind; firstly the merely ' conscious', conscious here corresponding to 'awake' rather than 'aware'. This mind is narrow but accurate in its reactions which are instinctive in nature. The conscious mind is not capable of exceeding its programming for survival and reproduction and does not learn from experience or grow. This mind corresponds to the Ayurvedic concept of 'tamas',which could be understood as 'unthinking' or 'inertia'.

Secondly, Ayurveda conceives of the 'sub-conscious' mind, which goes beyond the survival instinct- food, water, shelter from the elements, etc – and is capable of speculative thinking, learning from experience, and is both more sophisticated and larger in scope. However, the clever subconscious mind (which includes both deliberate reasoning and emotional reactions) is not always accurate or wise. Its ability to perceive the truth may be clouded by selfishness and it sometimes sees threats where none exist, based on assumptions which are incorrect. This mind corresponds to the Ayurvedic concept of 'rajas' ('action')

Thirdly, the 'super-conscious' mind is both huge is scope and completely accurate, capable of perceiving the ultimate truth, which is that we are all one and that love is who we are. Spiritual masters like Jesus, Buddha and Krishna exemplify this mind. They perceived our true nature with such complete clarity that they became love itself. This mind corresponds with the concept of

'sattvic' ('purity' or 'balance').

Ayurveda says the peaceful mind is found in the heart region, while the busy mind is found in the head region...