The Layers of Human Existence – Body, Mind, and the Witness

According to Dr. Baba Steve Bedi, every human being is made up of three layers of existence — the body, the mind, and the witness. Understanding these three layers is the key to true self-realization and inner healing.

The first layer, he says, is the objective body — the physical form we can see, touch, and measure. It is made of the food we eat and is constantly changing at the cellular level. Each cell, he explains, is like a city with its own intelligence and purpose. The body, therefore, is not merely flesh and bone, but a living, breathing laboratory designed by nature itself.

The second layer is the subjective mind — invisible but deeply influential. This is where emotions, thoughts, ideas, and memories live. The mind, however, is unstable; it constantly drifts between the past and the future, never truly in the present. Because of this, most people live their entire lives disconnected from the now.

The third layer — the most powerful one — is the witness or the consciousness within. This is the silent observer that can see both the body and the mind. It is neither thought nor emotion, but pure awareness — the same energy that animates existence itself.

Dr. Bedi calls this state unconditional consciousness. When you start witnessing your thoughts instead of being trapped in them, you begin to rise above duality — beyond ego and fear. That’s when you touch your real nature: infinite, blissful, and free.

He writes, “Once you become the witness, your mind begins to transcend into total awareness. This is the point where existence fills you with organic perfection. You are no longer separate from life — you become part of the universal consciousness.”

At that moment, he says, life becomes effortless. You are not seeking joy anymore — you are joy itself.