All consciousness operates on a continuum with each plane representing certain vibrational spectra that are perceptible to those able to receive and process the vibrations of that plane. We know from research with various beings such as insects and animals of various sorts that they have different ranges that they can perceive and respond to, which may partially overlap with ours, but which may also encompass ranges higher, and lower than what we can deal with as human beings.
What we generally fail to realize, based on our own limited range of interaction with the spectrum of consciousness, is how very limited our range is, and how far beyond our imagination the spectrum extends above and below the human range. In fact, if we look at the consciousness of all living beings on planet earth, we could say that they are all, more or less, in a similar frame of vibratory response, so that, if we observe from a distance we could see that the consciousness of the ant, and the consciousness of the human being, in the ultimate scale of consciousness are very close to one another!
In the Taittiriya Upanishad, for instance, there is the famous chapter that is sometimes called the “calculus of bliss” and it measures the level of bliss that can be experienced by the most favored human individual, intelligent, prosperous, happy in his relationships. This is the lowest tier in the ‘calculus’ which proceeds with each succeeding level being “a hundred and a hundred times” the prior level. We can understand that Ananda is part of the 3-fold ultimate status of consciousness, Sat-Chit-Ananda, Existence-Consciousness-Bliss, so this ‘calculus’ is every bit as applicable to consciousness as to bliss. Who can, from the human viewpoint, even remotely imagine the consciousness of beings that exist at levels far beyond our own experience and capacity?
Similarly, there are levels of consciousness far below those that we can experience, even if we acknowledge the ability to tap into the subconscious levels to some degree. The consciousness at the deepest, densest, darkest levels cannot be appreciated by us with our human awareness, and we thus fail to appreciate how much closer we are to the consciousness of what we consider to be purely material than levels that go infinitely below that level. Just as we cannot experience what takes place when Matter falls into a black hole in space, because all of the energy is captured and held without escape, so we also cannot truly experience the depths when consciousness moves into these ‘black hole’ levels of awareness far below our human range.
The Mother observes: “If one of you (I have my doubts, but still) went down into the Inconscient, what is called the pure Inconscient, you would realise what it is. A stone will seem to you a marvellously conscious object in comparison. You speak disdainfully of a stone because you have just a wee bit more consciousness than it has, but the difference between the consciousness of the stone and the total Inconscient is perhaps greater than that between the stone and you.”
Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Our Many Selves: Practical Yogic Psychology, Chapter 2, Planes and Parts of the Being, pg. 58
Santosh has been studying Sri Aurobindo's writings since 1971 and has a daily blog at http://sriaurobindostudies.wordpress.com and podcast at https://anchor.fm/santosh-krinsky He is author of 17 books and is editor-in-chief at Lotus Press. He is president of Institute for Wholistic Education, a non-profit focused on integrating spirituality into daily life.