TRANSFORMATION
Understanding the Subconscious Mind By Dilip Parekh, Editor, Jain Digest
(This article is based on a conversation between Dr. Bruce Lipton and Dr. Shamini Jain during the Science of Healing Summit held in February/March 2022) Many of us feel that we are a victim of our circumstances and have no control over our lives. In most cases this is a result of our thinking, our mind, and our attitude. We forget that all of us are creators. We can create a happy, fulfilling life for ourselves and our loved ones. However, to do that we need to understand our mind. In fact, two minds – Conscious and Subconscious. Both have a different function and learn in different ways. The conscious mind is a thinking, creative mind. This is how humans are different from all the other animals. We have a conscious creativity. It can manifest, create what we want. The subconscious mind is an automatic, programmed mind. Subconscious means below conscious, in other words, it does things without you having to pay any attention to it. It is regulating your body temperature, your breathing, your blood pressure, your digestion, etc. You don't consciously do that. That's all happening underneath.
One way the subconscious mind learns is by repetitive actions. When we are learning to drive, we are aware of everything that we see on the road, the turns we take, the sudden brakes we apply, etc. After we master the art of driving, when we drive from point A to point B, we don’t recall the details of our drive while getting to point B. That is because driving was not a conscious activity anymore. It was executed by our subconscious mind. Driving has now become a habit. We have many such habits that are being handled by our subconscious mind.
Another way our brain learns is from the environment – especially in our childhood. Our brain is like a computer that needs programs to function. In the first 7 years of our life, we learn mainly from our parents and family members. We learn by observing other people’s behavior and have not developed that much thinking capacity. This is all absorbed by our subconscious mind as “programs”. Hence, we make impressions about life that are not based on our own, but other people’s experiences. The two minds are interdependent. Each one has a function, and they connect together. The function of the conscious mind is to be creative. That's the one that has wishes and desires. That's the one that wants to create heaven on Earth. But the subconscious mind that helped us become a member
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of a family or a community was programmed by observing others. Your programs in your subconscious mind didn't come from your wishes and desires. They came from just observing other people.
Most of the time we are not even aware of these programs. Most people don’t love themselves and feel that they are not good enough. Often this is because as a child they have been criticized, disciplined, scolded, and compared with others. And since that is what is in their “program”, the brain then creates an experience that is in coherence with the program in their subconscious. This is summed up in one sentence by Henry Ford - “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t; you are right!” This unawareness of the programs executed by the subconscious mind is obvious in our interactions with others – especially our loved ones, life partners. When we fall in love with someone, each time we talk or meet, our full attention is in the present moment, in that experience of love and intimacy. Our conscious mind is fully engaged and not in a thinking mode. However, after some time the busyness of daily life, the chores and responsibilities move the attention of our conscious mind away from the partner. Now we are in a thinking mode. While doing simple chores like cooking and cleaning, our conscious mind is busy thinking, and all our actions are on auto pilot – being performed by our subconscious mind. Now, this itself is not a problem when we consider the usefulness of this programmed behavior. But now consider the following scenario. You are busy at your desk. You are in the middle of answering an important email. Your partner comes in the room and asks you a question about something important and you blurt out, “Don’t you see I am busy? Leave me alone.”
