'The Battle For Consciousness Theory': A Case Study, A Treat, And A Warning

The Battle for Consciousness Theory: A Response to Ken Wilber's Appropriation of Sri Aurobindo's Work and Other Indian Thought. Rajiv Malhotra, Manogna Sastry, and Kundan Singh. Occam (an imprint of BluOne Ink). Pages 530. Rs 475.

There is a deep churning taking place in biological and neurological sciences today. There is more intensive research on the nature of consciousness being conducted in leading laboratories worldwide today than ever before. There are groups aligned to specific theories working on the problem of consciousness.

As in other sciences, the discipline of consciousness studies also produces popular science books that bring research findings to the public. However, these books are distinct, often blending quasi-spiritual and pop-science elements due to the nature of the subject.

In all of this, what active role does India play as a civilisation that has long studied consciousness as a core component of its heritage?

The new book, The Battle for Consciousness Theory, provides us a disturbing picture of this scenario. Authored by Rajiv Malhotra, Manogna Sastry, and Kundan Singh, the book is highly recommended for students of Indian Knowledge Systems.

The book shows how India’s civilisational contribution is studied, appropriated, digested and left unacknowledged in the Western discourse on consciousness.

The focus is on Ken Wilber and how he appropriated Sri Aurobindo's system and its components. Rajiv Malhotra developed his 'U-turn theory' regarding such Western appropriations and he uses that framework to study Ken Wilber's work.

In the first part, the book outlines Rajiv Malhotra's efforts to alert Sri Aurobindo's followers in Pondicherry and Auroville about the appropriation, downgrading, and lack of acknowledgement of Sri Aurobindo's work by Ken Wilber.

It addresses the general apathy, ignorance, and even passive acceptance of the appropriation and diminishing of Sri Aurobindo's work by Ken Wilber. Many view Malhotra as disrupting what they perceive to be a smooth and untroubled progression.

The second part is a treat for anyone interested in studying how ideas evolve globally through the intense exchange of concepts and frameworks. It also reveals how despite the intense inter-civilisational exchange that has propelled humanity to the forefront of consciousness research, the contributions from non-Western traditions, particularly Hinduism, have largely gone unrecognised.

The book reveals the startling extent of this lack of acknowledgement and the blatant appropriation that accompanies it.

One example highlighting the book's depth is found in Chapter 13, part 2. It is about Holons.

‘Holons’ is a term introduced by Arthur Koestler (1905-1983), a leading intellectual of the 20th century. The authors trace Koestler's entire intellectual evolution, highlighting the influence of the Hindu knowledge system on his work. Here, the authors quote an interesting passage from Koestler’s, The Yogi and the Commissar:

Koestler's discourse reflects the bias of his time. He depicted the Yogi, mainly inspired by Gandhi, as passive toward violence like that of Hitler and Stalin, and indifferent to India's poverty and unhygienic conditions. The portrayal is clearly wrong.

Gandhi’s movement was holistic in many ways, despite some flaws in hindsight. While opposing British rule, he also fought for a cleaner India and against untouchability.

Koestler, with eloquent rhetoric, wrote extensively about the supposed cultural and spiritual superiority of Western civilization. His understanding of Hindu traditions was overshadowed by his belief in a historically flawed sense of cultural supremacy. The authors highlight this with sharp precision:

At the same time, he was aware of the higher states of consciousness spoken in the Upanishads and even though he himself had not experienced them he was convinced of their existence and their higher state.

With this historical and psychological background on Koestler, the authors move into his important contribution - ‘Holons’, and seek its Vedic conceptual roots.

They convincingly show how the Holon concept is prefigured in Chandogya Upanishad. In fact, they show how the concept is even more complete than the one arrived at by Koestler.

The authors point out how Koestler had shown his knowledge of the Upanishad in The Lotus and the Robot. Yet, he did not acknowledge the Upanishads as an inspiration or influence, let alone the source.

One can think of an excuse here. In the book, Koestler provides a list of quotes from principal Upanishads to talk about the turiya dimension of consciousness to stress the following point:

As said before the derisive manner in which he describes Indian philosophy is visible in this quote. This contempt, despite being aware of Hinduism’s vast knowledge, blinds people to both intentional and unintentional appropriation.

Now the question here is this: If the Upanishads contain the concept of Holon, why didn’t Indians, who were knowledgeable in both science and the Upanishads, develop this concept themselves?

Quite interestingly, there is at least one very well-defined poetic expression of ‘Holon’ in modern Tamil literature that predates Koestler. A Vedantic poet of depth with considerable influence of Sri Aurobindo’s approach to Vedas, Subramanya Bharati (1882-1921) versified the concept without naming it – clearly showing its Vedic roots:

Oh Life! Who knows your grandeur?
You are the Divine manifest!
All laws are anchored in You.
All laws dissolve in You.
Oh Life!
You the wind; You the fire, You the land, You the water, You the space
In all forms arising, the principle of formation, is You.
In all the changes, the process of the change, is You.

Insect that flies, tiger that kills, worm that crawls
Innumerable the life forms on this earth and

Innumerable the earths, each teeming with innumerable species of life,
All these Your shining radiance.
We contemplate the life forms that permeate the soil and water and air.

In a square feet of air invisible to our eyes lakhs of microbial forms.
A living being huge and vast.

Within it manifold smaller life forms.

And within each still smaller lives.

All life thus contained by the planet.
Mahat, Mahat larger than Mahat.

Atom, particle tinier than atom, still smaller, still tinier, and tinier...
In both directions no end,

In both direction infinite.
Poets, It is Dawn!

Let us arise and praise Life in all its glory.
Namaste Vayo Tvameva Pratyaksham Brahmasi

One can see that Bharati has arrived at the Holon concept independently, poetically and more thoroughly than Koestler. Unfortunately, Bharati could never have the platform, clout, and opportunity that Koestler had.

The problem that The Battle for Consciousness Theory has revealed is a deep one. It needs institutional remedies at war footing. Concepts await us in the sacred texts of Hinduism and Buddhism. Buddhism has to a large extent made use of them to build a dialogue with science and it has created what can be called an epistemological window to do science and experience science.

But Hinduism, despite early pioneers like Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo, Bharati, and Tagore, seems to have missed the bus. What's more, the treasure has been left unguarded for appropriation and what Malhotra has defined as 'u-turn.'

The institutional weakness, lack of initiative and systemic spread of cultural illiteracy — all have converged to make Hindu society a passive observer of this appropriation and 'u-turn'. Then there is also the problem of pseudoscience.

Through this comprehensive case study of Ken Wilber in the context of consciousness studies and practices, the authors have shown the readers the immensity of the problem.

Today, consciousness studies are reaching new heights. Mainstream science is giving way to what would have once been derisively considered as ‘mystical’ or ‘speculative.’

Bernardo Kastrup, Donald Hoffman, and others are certainly driving a paradigm shift, not just in science but also in the field of consciousness studies. Organisations like ‘SAND’ (Science and Non-Duality’) are working in taking this worldview to the general public. SAND has Nisargadatta Maharaj as its inspiration. Again it is a predominantly Western movement and a 'u-turn' can happen anytime if it is not happening already.

But in all this, Hindus again lack an institutional presence. They are present as individuals but unlike Buddhism, they do not have a civilisational and institutional presence.

The current book is also a treat for those who want to study how concepts evolve in the modern age. More importantly the book is a warning bell. One hopes Hindus wake up.

(Readers can purchase the book here).