The mistake of the intellect
The Vedic cannon of knowledge is deep, complex, and, if you study it closely, offers immense wisdom on how to live life in accordance with nature, for your highest evolution.
One of the terms we often discuss is ‘pragyapradh’ or ‘mistake of the intellect’. Pragya means ‘intellect’ and apradh translates to crime. Pragyapradh is essentially all the mistaken notions we have about ourselves, the world and our position in it. As we become fixated on the surface or material level of life, we begin to identify solely with that aspect of consciousness, rather than the wholeness of consciousness that exists everywhere at all times. What does this look like in real-time scenarios? It’s belief systems, conditioning and opinions that keep us limited and separate to the rest of life. “I am unlovable”, “the world is against me”, “I have to battle my way through in order to have any kind of success”, “good health isn’t possible for me”. When we are living from our mistaken intellect, we cease to be centred in ourselves. Essentially, we are living in our thinking about the world, rather than being in the world, and joining the dance of life.
In order to correct our mistaken intellects, we first need awareness - what we don’t know, we don’t know! How to we cultivate awareness? We meditate. Twice each day, we can dive beyond the active thinking level of mind and into stillness. We can re-orient ourselves with the silence behind the mind - that unwavering witness that is always there, silent, non-judging and grounded in love, peace and compassion. As we connect more and more with that part of Self, we have the space between thoughts to notice them. To see what kind of dialogue we are having about ourselves and the world. With that knowledge, we can begin to challenge those beliefs and, over time, replace them with new beliefs that are more accurate. So, statements like “I am lovable” become “I am love”, “the world is against me” turns into “the world is there to support me” and so on.
I always like to caution a word on the intellect, as speaking about pragyapradh can make us think, “so then what, is our intellect evil? My intellect has gotten me a lot of good places too!”. And it’s is absolutely true. When used correctly, our intellects are powerful. We can use them to discern, learn and understand many things. But like all good super heroes, they must recognise that with great power comes great responsibility, and left unchecked, our ego can use the intellect against us, as effectively as it can use it for us.
Today, see if you can notice the belief systems underlying your thought patterns. What mistaken intellects may be driving certain aspects of your life? And, if you were to challenge them, how might you re-frame them?