1. The term mind is used to represent the activating agent of spirit, supplying its creative energy. 2When the term is capitalized it refers to God or Christ (i.e., the Mind of God or the Mind of Christ). 3Spirit is the Thought of God which He created like Himself. 4The unified spirit is God’s one Son, or Christ.
2. In this world, because the mind is split, the Sons of God appear to be separate. 2Nor do their minds seem to be joined. 3In this illusory state, the concept of an “individual mind” seems to be meaningful. 4It is therefore described in the course as if it has two parts; spirit and ego.
3. Spirit is the part that is still in contact with God through the Holy Spirit, Who abides in this part but sees the other part as well. 2The term “soul” is not used except in direct biblical quotations because of its highly controversial nature. 3It would, however, be an equivalent of “spirit,” with the understanding that, being of God, it is eternal and was never born.
4. The other part of the mind is entirely illusory and makes only illusions. 2Spirit retains the potential for creating, but its Will, which is God’s, seems to be imprisoned while the mind is not unified. 3Creation continues unabated because that is the Will of God. 4This Will is always unified and therefore has no meaning in this world. 5It has no opposite and no degrees.
5. The mind can be right or wrong, depending on the voice to which it listens. 2Right-mindedness listens to the Holy Spirit, forgives the world, and through Christ’s vision sees the real world in its place. 3This is the final vision, the last perception, the condition in which God takes the final step Himself. 4Here time and illusions end together.
6. Wrong-mindedness listens to the ego and makes illusions; perceiving sin and justifying anger, and seeing guilt, disease and death as real. 2Both this world and the real world are illusions because right-mindedness merely overlooks, or forgives, what never happened. 3Therefore it is not the One-mindedness of the Christ Mind, Whose Will is one with God’s.
7. In this world the only remaining freedom is the freedom of choice; always between two choices or two voices. 2Will is not involved in perception at any level, and has nothing to do with choice. 3Consciousness is the receptive mechanism, receiving messages from above or below; from the Holy Spirit or the ego. 4Consciousness has levels and awareness can shift quite dramatically, but it cannot transcend the perceptual realm. 5At its highest it becomes aware of the real world, and can be trained to do so increasingly. 6Yet the very fact that it has levels and can be trained demonstrates that it cannot reach knowledge.