Two Kinds of Intuition
Dos Clases de Intuición
A reflection on the two aspects of intuition: one arising from the mind's vast pattern-matching power, and another that seems to arrive from beyond the mind entirely.
Two Kinds of Intuition
A reflection on the two aspects of intuition: one arising from the mind's vast pattern-matching power, and another that seems to arrive from beyond the mind entirely.
There are two aspects to intuition, as I see it.
The mind as pattern matcher
The first is, let's say, a little more mechanical. Our mind is extremely powerful, and through all of its history it can gain understanding that goes beyond our conscious awareness. It can provide a certain knowing when the moment asks for it, a knowing that is, in a sense, beyond our cognitive understanding, but that is really still coming from our own mind.
I think of it this way: the mind is basically a pattern matcher, and a very powerful one. It can make connections that we would not consciously arrive at. We are making them, in the sense that it is a part of us, our own mind doing the work, but what it draws on is a reading of the present moment combined with everything from the past. It does this remarkably well. That is one aspect of intuition. It feels as if something is coming to us, but it is our mind.
Knowing from beyond the mind
Then there is another aspect: a knowing that comes from beyond the mind. This can, in a sense, be received if we are not fully identified with our mind. When that identification loosens, we become more permeable. What arises will again be coming from us, but coming from mystery. And it will carry certain qualities. It will be very aligned with principles of caring, of love, of freedom. There will also be beauty in it, an aesthetic quality.