There is nothing external or internal in consciousness as such. With reference to an object like pot, we can say 'the space within the pot' and 'the space outside the pot'. But from the standpoint of space, there is no external or internal.
Suppose that out of ignorance, space somehow has the notion that 'I am confined to the pot'; 'I am only as big as the pot'. Then the space existing outside the pot would be called 'external space' and the space existing within the pot will be called 'internal space'. But in reality, from the standpoint of space, there is no external and no internal. 'External' and 'internal' are imagined based on the boundary of the pot.
night that, we have this ideas of external and internal based on the boundary of the body. But just as there is no external or internal from the standpoint of space, there is also no external or internal from the standpoint of consciousness. however, the mind imagines external and internal. Because the mind thinks that the body is the self, if there four things that whatever is outside the body is external and whatever is within the body is internal.
Therefore, it is the mind that goes out; the consciousness does not go out. Consciousness does not have anywhere to go. Atma has nowhere to go. Don't think that Atma departs this body and goes to another body. Atma is sat-cit-ananda: it is consciousness; it is everywhere. There is no movement of Atma. when a pot moves in space, the pot space does not move, but to us it looks as do the pot space is moving because our attention is on the walls of the pot. So also, when the subtle body departs and travels from one embodiment to another, we think Atma also is travelling. Atma, consciousness does not have any movement. Consciousness has no going, no change no modification, nothing external, nothing internal.
however, we superimpose the modifications taking place in the mind upon consciousness and we say 'external consciousness'. What is externally focused is the mind, but because consciousness is identified with the mind, we say 'external consciousness' with reference to the external objects. Therefore, we say the waker's consciousness is external meaning he is experiencing the external objects.
