Four levels of hearing - an analogy for mental devolution

 1. Total deafness (almost)
due to self-created coverings --
past and presently continuing.

2. Partial deafness
by continuing further creation of coverings
along with
partial hearing
from removal of self-created coverings.

3. Partial hearing
when removal of coverings
exceeds
replacement
by ongoing creation
which still cause
partial deafness.

4. Total hearing (almost)
from maximum removal of coverings and
minimal to zero ongoing creation.

For mental devolution,
think of
impurities and
complexities,
as well as
coverings
from the hearing analogy.
In Sanskrit,
per Babuji, [1]
malam,
vikṣepam, and
āvaraṅam,
respectively.

All three
skew or
screw up
one's understanding
through
biases,
stereotypes, and
habits,
resulting in
the tendency
for instant --
usually negative,
definitely individualistic
and separative --
reactions
in various situations.

Reactive action --
reactive thinking,
speaking, or
acting --
is in contrast to
responsive action,
either mindful and
careful
responses --
usually at first,
then
affectionate and
heartful
responses --
usually later.

Initially,
responding
will be
slower than
reacting.

Thinking and
doing,
especially
overriding
instant
reactive
habitual
thinking,
takes more time and
energy.

But the Indian spiritual tradition
seems to point to an interesting idea:
once the mind and
heart
are purified,
response time
will actually be
faster than
reactive time.

This increased speed is,
perhaps counter-intuitively,
associated with reduced ego.

So how does
a reduced ego
result in
individual actions
happening faster?

And how can
more selfless or
transcendentally beneficial
actions
such as the mahavratas (ahiṁsa, satya, ...)
occur faster than
selfish or self-centred reactions?

After all,
neuroscience claims that
the emotional or
the amygdala-brainstem subsystem
is the fastest part
of the human brain
since it has to work for
the physical safety of
the individual human being.
The "no time to think" idea.

The argument that follows
is more from experience
than theoretical logic.

And while it is
observational and
subjective,
it is the common experience
of meditators.
 

1. As one's
   self-created
   impurities,
   complexities, and
   coverings
   get removed,
   the speed,
   responsiveness,
   clarity, and
   expandability
   of one's inner instruments
   increases
   exponentially.
   
   
2. This allows
   ongoing,
   real-time,
   directing of
   one's inner and
   also one's outer
   instruments
   by a transcendental entity
   whose instruments
   are even faster.
   
   
3. An attenuated ego --
   minimal to zero --
   reduces
   the processing needed
   for a signal or inspiration
   from that entity
   to take effect.
   
   
4. When such inspirations
   have consistently beneficial results,
   trust becomes blind faith,
   in that one may not know
   (as an individual)
   how one's actions will turn out
   until after an event. [2]
   
   
5. Understanding
   the immediate situation
   is also speeded up
   because it is understood
   transcendentally than
   individually.
    
6. Even at the
   partial deafness or
   partial hearing
   stages,
   one can observe
   one's thinking
   shifting
   from individualistic
   to empathetic
   to group
   to universal.
   
   
7. At the total hearing stage,
   one's actions tend to
   naturally be
   more beneficial to all
   than only for me.

In sum, inner instruments work faster at subtler levels without an individuating or separating ego,
resulting also in faster yet more altruistic actions across manasa-vāca-karmaṇa (thought-word-deed) levels.

NOTES

[1] Ram Chandra (Babuji). 1954 (2010 reprint).  Reality at Dawn. p. 55, Ch: Spiritual Training. Spiritual Hierarchy Publication Trust, Kolkata.

[2] Babuji reportedly used to wait for orders from "above" to be repeated 2-3 times to confirm that he was not fantasizing.