We live in a world where there’s increasing concern about conserving energy, especially because conventional sources of energy such as fossil fuels are finite. We need to extend this concern to another form of energy: the energy of our consciousness. This energy is foundational: it determines how well we use all our other energies. And like other forms of energy, it too is finite — we can’t pay attention to an unlimited number of things. 

When we seek to conserve any regularly used form of energy such as electricity, we need to begin with becoming conscious of our typical patterns of consuming it. The same applies to consciousness: to better conserve the energy of our consciousness, we need to first become consciousness-conscious. 

Let’s understand how our consciousness is typically engaged. Suppose we are at a bus stop, waiting to catch a bus. We will see many other vehicles, pedestrians, shops and billboards. While these may merit a part of our attention in case of an emergency or an epiphany, they don’t need to capture our attention entirely and they don’t need to capture our attention long after we have moved on from that place. If either happens and certainly if both happen, our consciousness will be dissipated.

How can we prevent our consciousness from being consumed by things other than our desired object of perception? One way is by regularly asking ourselves two questions and articulating the answers as clearly as possible: 

  • Question to check our focus: “What exactly am I doing right now?”
  • Question to sharpen our focus: “Why am I doing what I am doing?”

The resulting clarity of consciousness is commended in the Bhagavad-gita when it describes such illumination as a characteristic of the mode of goodness (14.11). 

One-sentence summary: 

The energy of our consciousness is our most foundational form of energy — we need to become conscious of how it is being consumed.

Think it over:

  • Why do we need to be concerned about conserving our consciousness?  
  • During our daily life, how does our consciousness get dissipated?
  • How can we prevent such dissipation of our consciousness? 

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14.11: The manifestation of the mode of goodness can be experienced when all the gates of the body are illuminated by knowledge.

To know more about this verse, please click on the image