THREE MIND-SETS: The Thinkery-Thonkery, the Trainee & the Visionary

WHO ARE THE THINKERY-THONKERIES?

These are the opinion-forming people among us. They are those who have not yet spent sufficient time in the training of the mind, and are therefore ill-equipped to think deeply or to speak their thoughts clearly on any topic. If and when they do, however, it is often based on strong opinion and the thinkery-thonkery machinations of the kama-manasic mind. This is the lower mind, ever controlled by the impulses of emotion: the desire-mind. Within the parameters of this particular mindset there is very little scope for engagement in penetrative and intelligent conversation, as the listening skills and the discriminative faculty are weak; in fact, the Thinkery-Thonkeries are not in the least interested in the discovery of truth on any topic, but you will find them very adamant about their opinions and happy to argue their point till the cows come home . . . or at least until you lose by default. If life is comfortable enough and the physical and emotional appetites are satisfied, then there is no need – in their opinion – to make the necessary effort in pursuit of clear and intelligent thought. It is just not a priority!

There are many Thinkery-Thonkeries among us and we meet them at every corner. As a matter of fact, there are so many who are restricted by the constraints of this befuddled mind-set, that the outcome of many important disputes with them (disputes which often warrant intelligent decisions) is settled frequently by the people-pleasing alternative: ‘majority wins’.

WHO ARE THE TRAINEES?

These are people who are mentally trained in one way or another. They are not as influenced by the Kama-manasic mind (the desire-mind) as the Thinkery-Thonkeries, and have learned through experience to look before they leap and to think more carefully of the consequences in life situations before they commit themselves in any way. They are able to control, to a greater degree, the impulses of personal desire and so are able to see more clearly the reality of the situation, the other person’s point of view, as well as their own.

This is a key advantage over the Thinkery-Thonkeries who have as their primary objective the satisfaction of their own personal needs or desires. The active discriminative faculty of the Trainee mind-set gives them the inner space to think, speak and act in good time; before they jump into the pot they will test the water first for heat and then proceed to take the bull by the horn, if necessary. The Trainees are also sufficiently equipped with a degree of detachment and can leave a situation just as easily as they enter it. They are often quite interesting to engage with in conversation, have learned how to think, to penetrate to deeper levels, and are confident in their mental processes; the Trainees can teach and inform others intelligently about those areas of thought in which they have invested their time and energy.

The difficulty for the Trainees, however, lies in the tendency towards hubris: pride and arrogance, which quickly becomes stubbornness. Very often they need to realise that there is still so much more for them to discover and understand. Failing to see that they have only touched the boundaries of the concrete mind which, in its own sphere is vast indeed, to be sure, but they are often blinded to the fact that this lower aspect of mind is quite limited when compared with what lies in store for them as they leave behind the ring-pass-not of the concrete world and embrace that which lies beyond. It is very difficult for the Trainee to leave what he knows and to enter the parameters of the unknown, trusting that there is indeed far more beyond the logical, efficient thinking mind.

WHO ARE THE VISIONARIES?

Ah! The visionaries! These are those who have passed through and evolved beyond the Thinkery-Thonkery stages, through and beyond the Trainee stages, and are entering into those realms of mind that have nothing to do with the Kama-manasic mind-set of the Thinkery-Thonkery, nor with the intellectual mind-set of the Trainee. The Visionaries stand at the threshold of That which exists in realms beyond and which is unknown to the concrete mind, but which will, in course of time, use the same lower mind for the elucidation of that intuitive knowledge which lies beyond. The Visionaries see That which cannot be seen by the lower mind-sets; they are aligned with that tangible vision which ever remains oblivious to those whose minds are attached to the world of men . . . and to the Earth which they blindly call home.

True vision is ever hidden from those who stand closeted in the cocoon of worldly desire and concrete form.

Men and women of vision are able to glimpse those aspects of Universal Mind that drive the evolutionary process; they reveal the next step to be taken in the world of men which will lead towards inner growth, higher development, and eventual liberation of the ‘human’ spirit. Yet, the Visionaries too must take care, for they have the additional task of consciously manoeuvring in two very different dimensions, a task which requires intelligent skill in balancing and intuitive implementation. There are many subtle traps that beguile and bewitch the Visionaries who stand at the Threshold of the Higher mind, for they have not yet fully escaped the illusions of the gateway!