The mind sees the mind

We sat on a terrace in the sun, with a glass of cool water. A couple entered the terrace. First came the woman, I think she was about 85 years old. She had to do three steps up, and did it perfectly. Behind her was her husband, at first glance he was maybe 95. He had to give much more effort to overcome the three steps. He did it with a folding walker. After he had come on to the terrace and reached the table, he folded the walker and found his place on an uncomfortable wooden chair. But while he was making this effort, he was making jokes with the people he had to pass. After he sat down he chatted in a lively manner with his wife. They ordered some drinks, had a long talk with the waitress, and after some time, another elderly lady joined them. Obviously the ladies wanted to sit together and look at the sea, so the man stood up cheerfully, moved from one chair to another chair on the other side of the table and joined the conversation again. After some time a younger woman came joyously to the table, in the company of three adolescent girls, all three very beautiful. The old man looked with satisfaction at them and they, one by one, went to him to kiss him very heartily.

This whole scene took place right under our eyes, it was impossible not to see it. And we enjoyed it very much. Here again, a proof was given of the content of my text of the past week. It was clear that the man was very, very old and that he suffered from his body becoming more frail. It was visible that he had to drag his body with him, as if it were a heavy weight, and that he had to seek support to be able to. You could see the lack of physical energy and force, the longing for rest... On the other hand, though, you could see how his witty and alert mind was organising all this: taking the steps with the folding walker, folding it, finding his chair, letting himself down on it - and then all the freedom of the mind to converse and make jokes.

We have to have two kinds of eyes to watch this. Physical eyes see the old, decayed body and that is all they see. But the mind sees the mind. And the mind doesn't age in so far as it remains freely conscious in itself. In so far as it is only the body that lives on while becoming older and taking the mind with it, the mind will seem to age also. But here, in this very old man, the mind was as young and wakeful as ever.

Everyone can see the mind with the mind, we don't have to be clairvoyant for that. It is just a shifting of our mindfulness, from the physical senses to the experience of the psyche. That is not an unusual activity, we employ it all the time when we really listen to what someone is saying to us. More unusual, is to 'see' with this listening, which is not a mere hearing, but has an understanding quality. If you get used to 'seeing' with your understanding faculty, you see people's minds. And if you see these, it will become more and more impossible not to love them deeply.

In watching a young child, it is normal to see its mind, because it displays it in all its playing. It is the mind that plays and that can be seen with eyes. In adolescent people the mind is hidden for the eyes, but is visible to the mind... And the mind doesn't age.

The mind sees the mind by Mieke Mosmuller