We've spoken about the mind as an instrument we use. This is the more-or-less ideal situation. For most of us, most of the time, it would be more accurate to say our thoughts and emotions "use" us. By calmly "standing aside" as well as we can from the whirl of stuff going through our awareness and just noticing, like a spectator, each aspect of mind and how it works, we are actually doing a mindfulness meditation. Some might call it "peeling the onion" to find out the true essence of who you are. This attempt at calm self-observation is the first step toward self-mastery.

In speaking of the mind as an instrument we are not suggesting our minds are in any way "optional" nor that we would be better off without it. Its value as a tool only becomes apparent when we use it, instead of the other way around. We get into trouble by thinking it's "us" and we can't change it. It's no more who you are than your car is who you are, but that car is much more valuable to you if you're comfortably holding the steering-wheel. Instead, in relation to the vital mind, many of us find ourselves looking helplessly out the back window.

The reason for this situation is the vital aspect of consciousness was already quite well evolved when the mental consciousness first came into being. The relative new-comer, mind, was enslaved by the vital to serve its own purposes. So, what are the purposes of the vital?

The vital is life. It is the urge to grow, to live, and live more abundantly, to expand and extend itself, to exceed its limitations, to annex, absorb and possess as much as it can. When the vital annexed the young mind, the resulting composite is what we call the "vital mind." Now, the mind has continued to evolve, and it is not wholly dominated by the vital. And to the extent it is not so dominated, we are able to look "down" on the vital mind and examine its processes with an eye to liberation, mastery and establishing a greater harmony.

The best one-word characterization of the vital mind is desire. Indeed, in some schools of thought it is referred to as the desire-mind. It also roughly corresponds to what western psychology calls the ego. It is not a single, separate thing, but like every other aspect of being, the vital mind occupies a range of the spectrum of consciousness. At the low end, its desire is for physical satisfaction; lust, food, comfort. In the mid-range we find the desire for material possessions, wealth, fame, power, dominion. Toward the higher end of the vital mind we see the desire for beauty and higher achievements, personal expressions in art, politics and invention. The mental aspect of the vital mind is devoted to justifying or rationalizing the its "me first!" desires, imagining new aggrandizements for itself, and planning how to attain them.

Perhaps all would be well, if only the vital mind could be satisfied by attaining its many desires...but it isn't. The keyword with the vital itself is "more" and the desire for more can never be satisfied. And if 'more' isn't enough, picture how the vital mind reacts when it gets 'less' than what it wants! The list of reactions is familiar to every one of us, probably on a daily basis frustration, anger, envy, resentment, depression, apathy, etc. The vital mind is just as good at rationalizing and explaining its frustrations as it is its desires. It is at the level of vital mind the notion of "evil" first appears, as a characterization of whatever, or whoever, interferes with the vital desires. And so it is also at this level, of what western psychology calls "neuroses" arise, along with mental abstractions like lack, inadequacy and failure.

The vital mind, in its common, 'unimproved' condition, instantly converts any pleasurable sensation into the desire for more, or a perception of beauty immediately becomes the desire to possess the beautiful object. Satisfaction is fleeting, if the vital mind experiences it all, because it quickly turns toward desiring, imagining and planning its next objective, or jealously fearing the loss of its latest attainment. This state of almost continual dissatisfaction, sometimes called "the anguish of desire" is really what desire is all about. Paradoxically, the satisfaction we vitally desire is only available to us when we stop desiring.

Now, it's obvious we will benefit from disciplining our vital mind, but it is very persistent, so merely repressing it or telling it to "stop desiring" doesn't work, and will only provoke disharmonious consequences. For instance it might flare up in violent, rebellious excesses, or go on strike and leave us dull and depressed. On the other hand, giving in to its desires only trains it to want more.

When fully disciplined, purified and integrated, our vital mind can delight in the sensual form of a rose, the coordinated strength of sport, the exaltation of great music and much more, without the disturbance of desire. In the transformation of the vital mind, barely-conscious, self-aggrandizing desire becomes sublimated into the calm, powerful energy which acts out the will of the mind in the material world. The great power of vitality is in the service of the higher self.

Can you recognize some manifestations of vital mind in your life?

We'll give you a hint here It can be readily seen in the "I'll be happy when" attitude. Do you ever say things like this? "I'll be happy when I...get my degree, a job, enough money, a better house, the right drug, the right spouse, effective therapy, a better idea, the right kids, a new car, get elected President." After achieving any of those things, you might have noticed you were still looking for something else to "make" you happy.

You may notice this part of the mind if you're the sort of person who looks back on a wonderful experience in your life and finds a single aspect of it that was not exactly to your liking and focuses obsessively on that small negative.

When we're talking about these problematic aspects of the vital mind, it's important to remember there's nothing inherently "wrong" with IT, nor with the urges of vitality itself. This "Life-Force" is an essential aspect of our existence and activity in the material world. The problems result from this essential, natural force being "out of control." We have referred to the importance of achieving harmonious cooperation with our vital nature (the "ku") in our class "Manifesting Success," and we describe a simple technique to constructively use its power in the contemplation, COMPLAINING.