It is generally stated that sensations
arise in us from the action of the external objects around us: they are
the effects of impressions made on our senses by the objective world in
which we exist. This is simple enough to an ordinary mind, however
difficult it may be to account for the transformation of a cerebral
nerve-current into a state of consciousness.
But from the standpoint of Mill's theory we have no proof of the
existence of any external object; even the objective existence of our
own senses is not a matter of certainty to us. How, then, are we to
account for and explain the origin of our mental states, if they are the
only entities existing in this world? No explanation is really given by
saying that one mental state gives rise to another mental state, to a
certain extent at all events, under the operation of the so-called
psychological "Laws of Association." Western psychology honestly admits
that its analysis has not gone any further. It may be inferred,
however, from the said theory that there would be no reason for saying
that a material Upadhi (basis) is necessary for the existence of mind or
states of consciousness.
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