dattaswami

Chittam—Storage and Receiving Medium

When the same chittam or inert energy flows in the nervous system, the same chittam is called as nervous energy or awareness. Thus, basically there is no difference between the awareness and inert energy.

[The human subtle or inner instrument, which is generally called mind, contains four faculties or
Antahkaranas:

• Manas—the thinking or fluctuating faculty; also called as mind

• Buddhi—the intelligence or deciding faculty

• Ahankara—the ego

• Chittam—the storage faculty.]

The same inert energy, when it flows in a superior part of the brain in doing decisions is called as intelligence (buddhi). The same inert energy, when it flows through the nervous system becomes aware of itself is called as egoism (Ahankara). The same inert energy flowing in the nervous system, aware of other objects or other information is called as mind (Manas). The mind, intelligence and egoism can be treated as awareness or nervous energy because in these three faculties the awareness of other objects (as in the case of mind and intelligence) or the awareness of itself (as in the case of egoism) exists. But in the case of the faculty of chittam, the state of inert energy, awareness does not exist. Therefore, you are not aware of the information stored by chittam.

Whenever, a particular part of the information is required by the other three faculties, that part of information is supplied by chittam to these three faculties. Such supply of part of information is called as memory (Smranam). When the part of information is supplied by chittam, the part of information is transferred from the inert energy to the awareness or nervous energy. Once the part of information is caught by the awareness, the part of information is memorised. Here you have to carefully analyse the concept. The points in this concept are:

1) A part of information is stored in the inert energy as a pulse and during the time of storage the part of information is not remembered because the energy that stores the part of information is only the inert energy [Chittam] and not awareness.

2) When the part of information is stored in the inert energy, you are not aware of the information either in the deep sleep or in the waking state.

3) When you are recollecting that information, the awareness is bringing it out from the tank of inert energy called as Chittam.

4) While bringing that information, the awareness not only carries it but also stores the information in itself for sometime and during this time the awareness can also be treated as secondary store of information and can be called as Chittam temporarily.

These points give you the conclusion that chittam, which is the storing energy (like a capacitor) is in the form of inert energy permanently as well as awareness temporarily. During deep sleep, the chittam is no doubt inert energy only. But even during the waking state, when you are not recollecting the information, the information lies in the inert energy alone. Therefore, the inert energy-form of chittam is constant during deep sleep as well as during the waking state. The hard drive [with the information stored in it] in the computer is always present whether the computer is working or not. But during the waking state, at the time of recollecting the information, the awareness also acts like a temporary memory storage (RAM), while registering the information on the screen. During this time the awareness can be also called as chittam. Therefore, the characteristic of chittam is storage, whether the chittam is in the form of inert energy or awareness. The awareness-form of chittam is temporary as it is limited to the waking state or dream state. In the state of meditation there is no question of storage of information by awareness because the awareness is not aware of any other thing but is aware only of itself.

It is stated that the chittam has another function apart from storage (Smaranam). The other function is receiving the information (Samjnanam). As the awareness (chittam) receives the information from the tank of inert energy containing all the information it also receives information from the external world. Thus, the awareness working to receive information from the internal store of inert energy or from external world is called chittam.