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THE CITY OF NINE GATES
by Michael A. Cremo
NOTE OF INTRODUCTION. Michael A. Cremo is a research associate of the
Bhaktivedanta Institute specializing in the history and philosophy of science.
The Bhaktivedanta Institute, founded in 1975, is a center dedicated to the
advanced study of the nature and origin of life and the universe in light of
ancient India's Vedic literature.

With Richard L. Thompson, Ph.D. (author of scientific books and articles on
evolutionary biology), he published in 1993 the book entitled FORBIDDEN
ARCHAEOLOGY: THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF THE HUMAN RACE (Bhaktivedanta Institute,
1993.)

FORBIDDEN ARCHAEOLOGY presents copious and well-documented evidence of bones and
artifacts showing that people like ourselves existed on earth millions of years
ago -- as indicated in many ancient Vedic sources.

The authors also present convincing evidence that the scientific establishment
has suppressed, ignored, or forgotten the remarkable facts represented by the
very ancient bones and artifacts -- because they contradict modern dominant
views of human origins and antiquity.

Michael Cremo is at present researching and working on another in-depth book
regarding consciousness studies and various spiritual, psychic, transcendental
and other special biomind phenomena inherent in our species -- and which are
found mentioned in India's ancient Sanskrit literature.

The abstract of his paper, THE CITY OF NINE GATES, which follows below is
self-explanatory.

We are grateful for Mr. Cremo's kind permission to reproduce his paper with the
stipulation that copyright and all other rights are reserved to him. For further
information, please be in touch with Michael Cremo at the addresses included in
his paper.
-- Ingo Swann


THE CITY OF NINE GATES:
A Complex Model for Mind/Body Dualism
from India's BHAGAVATA PURANA

Presented at Toward a Science Consciousness 1996,
April 8-13, 1996, Tucson Arizona

by Michael A. Cremo
Research Associate in History and Philosophy of Science,
Bhaktivedanta Institute, 9701 Venice Blvd., Suite 5, Los Angeles, CA 90034
Email: [e-mail]
Phone: (310) 837 - 5283
Fax: (310) 837 - 1056
TOPICAL AREA: Phenomenology/Culture

KEY WORDS: Consciousness, dualism, religion, India, parapsychology


ABSTRACT

One barrier to acceptance of interactionist models for mind/body dualism is a
shortage of conceptual resources. Turning to the ancient Sanskrit writings of
India, we find in the BHAGAVATA PURANA of India the allegory of the City of Nine
Gates, which provides a complex model from mind/body dualism. This model, rich
in imagery, allows one to account for such varied phenomena as phantom limbs,
out-of-body experiences, past life memories, traveling clairvoyance, and
perception of qualia.

*
Is there a conscious self that is distinct from the physical mechanism of the
body? Is there a mind that is distinct from the brain? Those who give positive
answers to such questions are called dualists, but they are not numerous in
contemporary science and philosophy.
Dualistic solutions to the mind/body problem are perhaps hampered, among other
things, by the impoverished analogical and allegorical resources of Western
thought. Whether we turn to Plato's cave, to the formulations of Descartes, or
to the proverbial little green man in the brain, there is apparently not enough
substance to inspire the modern consciousness researcher to seriously consider
dualism.

*
But in chapters 25-29 of Canto Four in the BHAGAVATA PURANA, a Sanskrit text
from India, one finds the elaborate allegory of the City of Nine Gates.
The sophistication of the allegory and the potential explanatory power of its
elements challenge modern researchers to take a second look at dualism.

*
The account of the City of Nine Gates is specifically identified as allegorical
in BHAGAVATA PURANA itself. It was spoken by the sage Narada Muni, who was
questioned by King Prachinabarhishat about the nature of the self, and Narada
Muni himself explains all the elements of the allegory in the original text.
In other words, it is not that I myself have identified some passages from the
BHAGAVATA PURANA as allegorical, and myself interpreted the passage in terms of
mind/body dualism. The allegorical nature of the passages and their application
to a dualist explanation of consciousness are features of the text itself.

*
In this paper, I will give a summary of the City of Nine Gates, adapted from the
Bhaktivedanta Book Trust edition of the BHAGAVATA PURANA (published as
Srimad-Bhagavatam) along with some hints as to the utility of the allegory in
resolving questions that arise in consciousness studies.

*
The central character in the allegory of the City of Nine Gates is a King named
Puranjana. In Sanskrit, the word puran-jana means "one who enjoys in a body."
Soul/body dualism is thus hinted at in the King's name.
King Puranjana originally existed as a spirit soul in a purely spiritual realm
in relationship with a supreme conscious being. God. Materialists may oppose the
introduction of this transcendental realm, which exists outside the material
universe knowable by science. But even the materialist cosmology of modern
science incorporates a "transcendental" realm, this is to say, a realm that
exists beyond the universe knowable by science, and from which that universe
emerged at the time of the Big Bang.

*
This transcendental reality, existing beyond time, space, and matter, is called
the quantum mechanical vacuum, and is pictured as a pure energy field in which
particles appear and instantly disappear. From this sea of virtual particles,
some go through a process of expansion that keeps them in existence. According
to many cosmologist, our universe is one such expansion.

*
So both the BHAGAVATA PURANA and the Big Bang cosmology of modern science have
an eternal transcendental existence from which our universe of matter, with its
features of time and space, arises.
Once this is admitted, we can then decide which version of ultimate reality has
the most explanatory power, when applied to the variegated reality of our
experience.

*
Modern cosmologists and other theorists have a great deal of difficulty in
coaxing a sufficient amount of variety from the rather smooth and featureless
universe that, according to theory, expands from the quantum mechanical vacuum.
The origin of consciousness also poses a difficulty problem.
In light of this, an ultimate reality that is itself variegated and conscious
might offer a solution.

*
Having departed from the spiritual world, by misuse of independence, King
Puranjana journeys through the material world, accompanied by Avijnata Sakha
("the unknown friend").
The Unknown Friend corresponds to the Supersoul expansion of God.
Then Puranjana leaves God and the spiritual world. His memory of them becomes
covered.
But unknown to Puranjana, God accompanies him on his journey through the
material world.
According to the BHAGAVATA PURANA, God accompanies all spirit souls in the
material world as their Unknown Friend, who observes and sanctions their
activities.

*
In the Western world, mind/brain dualism is identified with French philosopher
Rene' Descartes, who posited the existence of (1) matter extended in space and
(2) mind existing outside of space.
Cartesian dualism is characterized by an interaction between mind and matter,
but explaining how this interaction takes place has proved problematic for
advocates of the Cartesian model.
How, for example, are impressions transmitted from the realm of matter to the
completely different realm of mind?
Descartes thought the connection between mind and matter occurred in the pineal
gland in the brain, an answer most scientists today do not favor.

*
According to the BHAGAVATA PURANA, both matter and the souls in the material
world are energies of God, and as such both have a single spiritual source.
The BHAGAVATA PURANA philosophy is thus both dualist and monist, simultaneously.


*
The interactions of matter and the soul in the material world are mediated by
the Supersoul, who exists inside each material atom and also accompanies each
spirit soul.
By the arrangement of Supersoul, impressions of material experience can be
channeled to the soul. How this takes place is the subject of the allegory of
Puranjana.

*
Having left the spiritual world, Puranjana, accompanied by Avijnata Sakha (his
Unknown Friend, the Supersoul), wanders through the material world. He desires
to find a suitable place to enjoy himself. In other words, he searches for a
suitable kind of body to inhabit. He tries many kinds of bodies on many planets.

Here we note that each species of life consists of a soul inhabiting a
particular kind of body.

*
In this respect, the BHAGAVATA PURANA differs from that of Descartes, who held
that only humans have souls. For Descartes, animals were simply automatons.
If one concedes that animals, with all their signs of life and consciousness,
are simply automatons, then why not human beings as well?
The BHAGAVATA PURANA model avoids this particular weakness of Descartes' system.


*
Eventually, Puranjana comes to a place called Nava Dvara Pura, the City of Nine
Gates. He finds it quite attractive.
The City of Nine Gates represents the human male body, with its nine openings --
two eyes, two nostrils, two ears, mouth, anus and the genital opening.
As Puranjana wanders through the gardens of the city, he encounters an extremely
beautiful woman. Puranjana is attracted to her, and she is attracted to him. She
becomes his Mahisi (Queen).

*
Puranjana, as we have seen, presents the conscious self. The beautiful women
represents Buddhi, intelligence.
According to the BHAGAVATA PURANA philosophy, intelligence is a subtle material
energy with discriminatory capabilities like those manifested by artificial
intelligence machines.

*
The attraction between King Puranjana and the Queen is the root of embodied
consciousness.
The King, it should be noted, has distinct conscious selfhood, with nonmaterial
sensory capability, but this capability becomes dormant when he begins his
relationship with the Queen.

*
The Queen (the subtle material element called intelligence) allows Puranjana
(the conscious self) to enjoy the City of Nine Gates (the gross physical body).
Employing a computer analogy, we might say Puranjana represents the user, the
City of Nine Gates represents the computer hardware, and the Queen represents
the software that allows the user to interface with the hardware and use it for
practical purposes.

*
The Queen is not, however, alone but is accompanied by eleven Mahabhatas (body
guards) and a serpent with five heads.
The bodyguards comprise the mind and the ten senses.
The ten senses are made up of five JNANA-INDRIYAS (knowledge acquiring senses)
and five KARMA-INDRIYAS (working senses).
The five knowledge-acquiring senses are the senses of sight, smell, taste,
hearing, and touch.
The five working senses are those of walking, grasping, speaking, reproduction,
and evacuation.

*
All ten senses are grouped around the mind. The ten senses are considered
servants of the mind.
Each of these servants has hundreds of wives. The wives are desires for material
experience, and the senses act under their pressure.

*
According to this system, the senses are different from the physical sense
organs.
The senses are part of the invisible subtle material covering of the soul, along
with the mind and intelligence.
The physical organs of sensation (the eyes, nose, tongue, ears, skin, legs,
arms, mouth, genitals, and anus) are part of the gross physical body that is
visible to the eyes.

*
The distinction between subtle senses and physical sense organs is important,
and offers consciousness researchers a valuable conceptual tool. Let us
consider, for example, the problem of phantom limbs. Persons whose legs or arms
have been amputated often report that they are able to distinctly feel the
missing limb, and even experience quite distinct sensations, such as twinges of
pain or itching. The City of Nine Gates allegory provides an explanation for
this mysterious phenomenon.

*
Let's take the case of someone whose arm has been amputated but who still feels
the presence of the arm.
The arm is one of the working senses. It is composed of two elements, the subtle
grasping sense and the physical organ of the arm and hand.
The process of amputation removes the physical organ through which the subtle
sense operates. But the subtle sense itself remains, and therefore its presence
may be mentally perceived.

*
Since the subtle sense is material, it may be able to act upon gross physical
matter, without going through the related physical sense organ.
This model may therefore, explain some of the phenomena reported in connection
with ghosts and apparitions, and in connection with mediums, particularly the
mysterious movement of physical objects.
For a good scientific introduction to these unusual phenomena, one might consult
THIRTY YEARS OF PSYCHICAL RESEARCH by Charles Richet, who in 1913 won the Nobel
Prize for medicine and physiology.

*
This model may also explain how persons are able to experience sense data during
near death experiences, during which the physical sense organs are incapacitated
because of anesthesia or shock.
For a good clinical study of near death experiences, I recommend RECOLLECTIONS
OF DEATH, by cardiologist Michael Sabom.

*
The senses are compared to attendants of the Queen. They serve her by bringing
information and conducting activity.
Together they comprise the array of material intelligence and sensory
capabilities, all formed from subtle but nevertheless material energy.
Combined, they manufacture a sense of self, with which the King becomes
entranced and falsely identifies.

*
The body itself, the City of Nine Gates, is made of gross material energy, of
the kind that can be manipulated by ordinary physics and chemistry.
It is powered by five subtle airs, listed in the AYUR VEDA, the Vedic medical
science, as prana, apana, vyana, smana, and udana.
In the Puranjana allegory, the five airs, comprising the vital force, are
represented by a five-headed serpent.

*
In the allegory, Puranjana asks about the identity and origin of the Queen and
her attendants.
The Queen replies, "O best of human beings, I do not know who has begotten me. I
cannot speak to you perfectly about this. Nor do I know the names or the origins
of the associates with me.
"O great hero, we only know that we are existing in this place. We do not know
what will come after. Indeed, we are so foolish that we do not care to
understand who has created this beautiful place for our residence.
"My dear gentleman, all these men and women with me are known as my friends, and
the snake, who always remains awake, protects this city even during my sleeping
hours.
"So much I know. I do not know anything beyond this. You have somehow or other
come here. This is certainly a great fortune for me. I wish all auspicious
things for you.
"You have a great desire to satisfy your senses, and all my friends and I shall
try out best in all respects to fulfill your desires. I have just arranged this
city of nine gates for you so that you can have all kinds of sense
gratification. You may live here for one hundred years, and everything for your
sense gratification will be supplied."

*
The King's questioning the Queen represents the self's interrogation of material
intelligence for the answers to ultimate questions.
The answers provided by the Queen, as well as her fundamental attitude, reflect
those of modern science, which prides itself on avoidance of certain questions
and the tentativeness of whatever answers it may provide. "I cannot speak to you
perfectly about this... We only know that we are existing in this place."

*
Essentially, the Queen provides a monist, materialist answer to the King's
questions about his situation.

*
The BHAGAVATA PURANA then provides a more detailed description of the nine gates
of the city inhabited by the King and Queen.
Seven of the gates are on the surface (the two ears, two nostrils, and mouth),
and two of the gates are subterranean (the anus and the genitals). Five of the
gates face east.

*
The first two gates on the eastern side are called Khadyota (glowworm) and
Avirmukhi (torchlight).
In order to see, the King would exit these two gates, and go to the city called
Vibhrajita (clear vision).
On this journey he would be accompanied by his friend Dyuman (the sun, the ruler
of the subtle visual sense).

*
In other words, the King encounters QUALIA by sensory contact through the
physical gates of the body.
Qualia are secondary properties of objects, such as color. [NOTE: "Qualia" is
the plural of "quale" defined as a property considered as an object of
experience, especially in abstraction from a physical entity --i.e., phenomena
which may have no existence in physical fact but are sensed and experienced as
existing.]

*
In consciousness studies, the questions of how we perceive qualia is a much
debated topic. Do they exist in their own right, in the objects with which they
are identified, or, do they exist only in our minds?
According to the BHAGAVATA PURANA system, qualia, such as colors, exist as
subtle sense objects. They thus have a reality of their own, and are not simply
produced within the mind.

*
That the King goes out through the gates of the eyes to contact the subtle sense
objects in a city of visual impressions is interesting. This suggests that the
seeing process is not simply one of passive reception, but may involve an active
process of image acquisition (as in sonar, or radar).
This may explain such phenomena as traveling clairvoyance, whereby a subject can
mentally journey to a particular location, beyond the range of the physical
sense organs, and then accurately report visual impressions.
Visual sensations reported during out-of-body experiences could also be
explained by this mode.

*
The exact relationship between the physical sense organs, the subtle senses, and
the subtle sense objects are not easily understood, but could perhaps be
clarified by experimental work based on the overall model of the City of Nine
Gates.

*
In the eastern part of King Puranjana's city there are, in addition to the eyes,
two gates called Nalini and Naalini, representing the nostrils.
The King would go through these two gates with a friend called Avadhuta
(representing breathing and airs) to the town of Saurbha (odor).

*
The last gate on the eastern side of Mukhya (the mouth), through which the King
would go with two friends to the towns of taste sensation and nourishment.

*
Through the two gates on the northern and southern sides (the ears), the King
would go to places where different kinds of sound were heard.

*
Through the gates on the western side of the city, the King would go to the
towns where sensations of sexual pleasure and evacuation are experienced.

*
During his journeys, the King would take help from two blind men, Nirvak and
Peshakrit, who represent the arms and legs.

*
In all his activities, the King would follow the lead of the Queen. In other
words, the conscious self in the material world becomes conditioned by material
intelligence.
The BHAGAVATA PURANA says: "When the Queen drank liquor, King Puranjana also
engaged in drinking. When the Queen dined, he used to dine with her, and when
she chewed, King Puranjana used to chew along with her. When the Queen sang, he
also sang, and when the Queen laughed, he also laughed.
"When the Queen talked loosely, he also talked loosely, and when the Queen
walked, the King walked behind her. When the Queen would stand still, the King
would also stand still, and when the Queen would lie down in bed, he would also
follow and lie down with her. When the Queen sat, he would also sit, and when
the Queen heard something, he would follow her to hear the same thing.
"When the Queen touched something, the King would also touch it, and when the
dear Queen was lamenting, the poor King also had to follow her in lamentation.
In the same way, when the Queen felt enjoyment, he also enjoyed, and when the
Queen was satisfied, the King also felt satisfaction."

*
As noted above, an important question that arises concerning dualist solutions
to the mind/body question is how a nonmaterial conscious mind interacts with
material sense objects.
In this model, there is an answer to this question. As seen above, the
interaction is based on illusory identification.

*
To understand the nature of this illusory identification, we first need to
readjust the familiar mind/body dualism to a triadic conception incorporating:
(1) a nonmaterial conscious self,
(2) a subtle material body formed of mind and intelligence, and
(3) a physical body composed of gross matter.

*
In this model, the mind is a subtle material substance, associated with material
intelligence. Mind is at the center of the subtle senses, which are in turn
connected to the physical sense organs, which bring to the mind sense data in
the form of subtle sense objects. Here yet another question arises.

*
In consciousness studies, one is faced with the problem of how the various kinds
of sense data are presented in an integrated fashion. Even various elements of
the visual sense, such as perception of color and movement and form are located
in different parts of the brain. Sounds are process in other parts of the brain.

How are all these elements combined?

*
In the BHAGAVATA PURANA model, the integrating function is performed by the
subtle mind element, which receives sensory inputs from the subtle senses
grouped around it.
The mind is not, however, conscious.
The mind, might therefore, be compared to multimedia computer software capable
of integrating audio and visual materials into a single, integrated display,
making use of a variety of inputs and source materials.
The material intelligence, represented by the Queen, directs the consciousness
of the actual living entity to the integrated display of sense data.
Intelligence, as a subtle material energy, is not itself conscious, but it
mimics the behavior of consciousness.
It thus attracts the attention of the conscious self, causing the self to
identify with it, just as we identify with the image of an actor on a movie
screen.
By identification with material intelligence, which is in turn connected to the
mind's integrated display of sense data, consciousness is connected with the
sense data.
This connection is not direct.

*
The indirect connection of the conscious self with the gross matter arises from
the self's false identification with the action of a subtle material energy,
intelligence.
The extremely subtle material element that connects the conscious self with
material intelligence is called ahankara, or false ego. The whole system is set
up and directed by the Supersoul.

*
According to the BHAGAVATA PURANA picture, the conscious self originally
experiences nonmaterial sense objects through nonmaterial senses. This takes
place in the spiritual world, with God.
But having turned from this original situation, the self is placed in a material
body in the material world.
Identifying with this artificial situation, the self forgets its own nature and
that of God. But God remains with the self as Supersoul, the Unknown Friend.
If the self tires of the artificial material reality and desires to return to
its original position, the Unknown Friend will reawaken the original spiritual
senses of the self and reconnect them with their spiritual sense objects.

*
The whole system therefore resembles a computer-generated virtual reality.
In virtual reality systems, the user's normal sensory inputs are replaced by
computer-generated displays.
But just as a person can turn off the virtual reality display and return to
normal sensory experience, so the conscious self in the artificial sensory
environment of the material world can return to its original spiritual sensory
experience.

*
The idea of comparing the position of a soul in the material world to a person
experiencing a virtual reality generated by a computer first occurred to me in
1986, when I attended a conference on artificial life organized by the Santa Fe
Institute.
The idea was further developed in discussions with my Bhaktivedanta Institute
colleague, Richard Thompson, who also attended the conference, and was
subsequently presented by us in a Bhaktivedanta Institute video titled
"Simulated World."

*
In the BHAGAVATA PURANA allegory, King Puranjana and his Queen enjoy life for
some time in the City of Nine Gates.
Eventually, however, the City of Nine Gates comes under attack by a king named
Chandavega.
Chandavega represents time, and his name literally means "very swiftly passing
away."

*
Chandavega commands an army of 360 male Ganharva soldiers and their 360 female
companions. Together, they represent the days and nights of the year.
When Chandavega's army attacks, the five-headed serpent fought the attackers for
one hundred years but eventually become weak, causing anxiety for the King and
his associates.

*
Finally, the attacking soldiers overwhelm the defenders and set the City of Nine
Gates ablaze.
As it becomes obvious that the battle is being lost, King Puranjana is overcome
with anxious thoughts of his wife and other relatives and associates.
Then the commander of the invading forces arrests the King and takes him away
along with his followers, including the five-headed serpent.

*
As soon as they are gone, the attackers destroy the City of Nine Gates, smashing
it to dust. Even as he is being led away, the King can not remember his Unknown
Friend, the Supersoul. Instead, he thinks only of his wife, the Queen. He then
takes another birth, this time as a woman.

*
In this part of the allegory, we see how the conscious self leaves the gross
physical body, accompanied by the intelligence, the mind, and subtle senses.
When they leave, the gross physical body disintegrates. The conscious self then
receives another gross physical body.
The kind of body received depends on the condition of the subtle material body,
which is composed of intelligence, mind, and subtle senses.

*
The subtle material body is the template upon which the gross physical body is
constructed.
This model allows one to account for reports of past life memories, such as
those researched and verified by Dr. Ian Stevenson of the University of Virginia
in his book TWENTY CASES SUGGESTIVE OF REINCARNATION.
In the BHAGAVATA PURANA model, the mind is the storehouse of memory, memory of
past lives.

*
In his next life, King Puranjana becomes Vaidarbhi, the daughter of King
Vidarbha. When grown, Vaidarbhi becomes the Queen of King Malayadhvaja.
At the end of his life, Malayadhvaja retires to the forest and takes up the
process of mystic yoga.

*
The BHAGAVATA PURANA (4.28.40) informs us: "King Malayadhvaja attains perfect
knowledge by being able to distinguish the Supersoul from the individual soul.
"The individual soul is localized, whereas the Supersoul is all-pervasive.
"He becomes perfect in knowledge that the material body is not the soul but that
the soul is the witness of the material body."

*
In this state of higher awareness, Malayadhvaja, following the yoga process,
deliberately leaves his material body and achieves liberation from material
existence.

*
Queen Vaidarbhi (formerly King Puranjana) is overwhelmed with grief at her
husband's departure.
At this point, King Puranjana's Unknown Friend (the Supersoul), appears before
Vaidarbhi as a brahmana sage.
The brahmana says to Vaidarbhi: "My dear friend, even though you can not
immediately recognize Me, can't you remember that in the past you had a very
intimate friend? Unfortunately, you gave up My company and accepted a position
as enjoyer of this material world. . . You were simply captivated in this body
of nine gates."
The brahmana then instructs Vaidarbhi further about her original position as
purely spiritual self in the spiritual world.

*
In this paper, I have extracted only the principal elements of the City of Nine
Gates allegory.
The complete account is much more detailed, and allows one to make an even more
subtle and refined model of self/mind/body interaction.
This model does not fit easily into present categories of the mind/body debate.
Although dualist, it partakes also of idealism and monism.
It does, however, allow one to integrate many categories of evidence from
humanity's wisdom and traditions, into a rich synthesis, providing fruitful
lines of research confirming and refining a complex dualism model of mind/body
interaction.

(End)