5 Divine Acts of Awareness: A Journey through Kashmir Shaivism’s Recognition of Self

Introduction: A View on Awareness Beyond Belief

In Kashmir Shaivism, awareness is seen as the infinite essence that animates everything in existence. Often likened to what theists might call “God” and non-theists may refer to as “Reality,” this awareness does not merely sit as a passive witness but actively expresses itself through five divine activities. Far beyond abstract ideas, these five functions also manifest within us, echoing the same energies in our own lives. Here, we’ll journey through these acts of awareness—creation, maintenance, reabsorption, forgetting, and remembering—and their profound implications for how we view both ourselves and the world.

1. Creation: Emanation from Pure Potential

The first activity of awareness might resemble what we think of as creation, but from the Kashmir Shaivist viewpoint, it’s more accurately described as emanation. Rather than something being created out of nothing, awareness is seen as a background of pure potential from which all phenomena emerge. Imagine a wave rising from an ocean—the wave doesn’t come from nowhere; it’s simply a unique expression of the water itself.

Interestingly, this concept aligns with modern physics, where the “nothingness” of space is actually a field of pure potential. Awareness emanates phenomena in a similar way, manifesting the essence of all we perceive around us.

2. Maintenance: Sustaining Presence

After something is created or emanated, it is held within awareness for a certain time—this is maintenance. Think of a tree that grows from a seed, emerging into form and remaining in existence for decades. This maintenance is the act of holding, nurturing, and supporting everything that has come into being, allowing it to have its time and presence within the unfolding of awareness.

Whether it’s the trees we see outside our windows or the relationships in our lives, maintenance allows for stability, offering us the beauty and continuity that make the world feel solid and real.

3. Reabsorption: A Return to Source

The third activity is reabsorption, which may appear to us as destruction. However, in Kashmir Shaivism, this is less about ending and more about returning. When a tree dies, its form doesn’t simply vanish; rather, it transforms, decomposing into the earth and nourishing new life. Awareness reabsorbs each phenomenon, returning it to the infinite potential from which it emerged.

In our lives, this reabsorption teaches us to understand that endings are not losses but transitions, parts of an eternal cycle that bring things back to source.

4. Forgetting: Losing the Self in Creation

Awareness also has the capacity to forget itself. It gets lost in its own creation, much as we might get lost in a compelling story or a role we’re playing. This self-forgetting allows awareness to fully experience the diversity and depth of its manifestations. By temporarily setting aside its recognition of unity, awareness can take on the full experience of being “other” or separate, immersing itself in the many forms of creation.

In human terms, this forgetting allows us to have individual experiences—distinct senses of self, unique thoughts, feelings, and identities. It’s this forgetfulness that enables us to live fully as individuals while still being expressions of the same awareness.

5. Remembering: The Return to Unity

Finally, awareness remembers. This remembering is the reconnection with its own essence, a realization that all phenomena, no matter how diverse, are united within the same vast awareness. In Kashmir Shaivism, this is the recognition that everything we perceive—whether “self” or “other”—is awareness gazing upon itself.

For us, this remembering may come through moments of deep insight, meditation, or life-changing experiences where we catch a glimpse of our interconnectedness. It’s an awakening to our true nature, a homecoming that brings us back to awareness as both witness and participant in all that is.

Conclusion: The Divine Activities in Our Own Lives

These five divine activities of awareness—creation, maintenance, reabsorption, forgetting, and remembering—reflect not only the cosmic play but also the journey within each of us. By understanding these functions, we gain insights into the rhythm of our own lives, finding beauty in emergence, stability, transition, individuality, and unity.

In exploring this ancient perspective, we’re invited to see beyond separation and recognize ourselves as expressions of a boundless awareness, interconnected and divine. Through each cycle of remembering, we touch the sacredness in all things, reconnecting with the awareness that is both creator and creation.

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