Oh Ya!! It is that time again…more talk on consciousness!! Whoo! Since it is my literal obsession in this lifetime, I thought that I would write another post on it as I have learned more about this topic on my journey. As of now, I am currently getting my masters degree in Consciousness and Transformation. Throughout this program, I have come into contact with many different ideas, perspectives, thoughts, and theories about all things consciousness. Yet, there is still so much out there on this subject that we do not know! It is ultimately a mystery to us. The grand enigma. Perhaps this is why it is so heavily debated and criticized in our modern, mechanistic paradigm. Lets dive in….
The study of consciousness is relatively new. About thirty years old. So, when we think about how old our universe is (around 14 billion years) it is a very new phenomenon. Yet, consciousness may have been around from the beginning of it all. Before space and time came into existence! Pretty interesting to think about. This of course, is depending on who you ask. Who and what is conscious? We are all aware that we (humans) are conscious, yet we are unaware of how this happens. Does consciousness arise from matter? Did consciousness evolve somewhere along our evolutionary ladder? It is difficult to say. Even more difficult for scientists, philosophers, and psychologists to wrap their minds and research on! Consciousness is a subjective experience which makes it hard to study in a lab and even harder for theories to formulate from.
William James (a philosopher and psychologist) says about the meaning of consciousness, “it’s meaning we know so long as no one asks us to define it”. Perhaps when we try to measure it, think about, and interact with it, we are actually changing it from what it was. Sort of like in quantum physics! In fact, consciousness and quantum physics are very much intertwined. Unfortunately, both are still on the fridge of our culture and have not yet been heavily accepted by the masses. It seems we are in need of a new paradigm shift if these topics and “crazy” ideas are to be accepted as “reality”. The good news is, we are control of our reality and can see it how we like.
There can be different kinds of conscious experiences. There are the “normal” experiences that we have everyday and that we are having right now. Then there are the experiences that we have during special states of consciousness. For example Van Lommel (2010) states in an NDE (near-death experience) “a special state of consciousness occurs during an imminent or actual period of physical, psychological, or emotional death”. p.viii. He goes on to explain, “according to people who have had an NDE, death is nothing other than a different way of being with an enhanced and broadened consciousness, which is everywhere at once because it is no longer tied to the body. People must appreciate that their picture of the material world is derived from and constructed solely on the basis of their own perception.” p.xvii.
What are the implications of consciousness? Consciousness can show us that perhaps there is much more to our “reality” than what meets the eye. It can show us that time and space are not linear but exist everywhere and that the past, present, and future are happening now. Consciousness is aligned with awareness. When we have awareness of ourselves and our actions, we can decide if we like our reality or if we want to change it. We can decide to be more than the judgments, thoughts, and cultural norms that we cling to. We can become connected to what is always there waiting for us.
There is much more I could say on this topic. It excites me a lot! I am sure I will write more on it as I learn and grow. It is also important when studying and learning about this topic and any topic for that matter that there are always many ideas and opinions; and that one is not necessarily better than the other. We can actually learn a lot from hearing someone else’s opinion. Even if it is different than yours. This is something that is hard for me sometimes.
I will leave you with some questions. Feel free to write your own in the comments or message me also with any answers and ideas about them.
What is the self? How does something unconscious such as brain matter produce something which is (mind) conscious? How does something objective give rise to something subjective? Can computers eventually become conscious? Is consciousness is us or are we in consciousness?
As always, thanks for reading and for the support! I hope you all have a splendid weekend! Maybe you will think about consciousness and it’s role in your life:)
Also, the image that is included in this post is from artist Annette S. Lee. She is an artist, astrophysicist, and director of Native Skywatchers. According to her website, “Native Skywatchers seeks to remember and revitalize indigenous star and earth knowledge. The overarching goal of Native Skywatchers is to communicate the knowledge that indigenous people traditionally practiced a sustainable way of living and sustainable engineering through a living and participatory relationship with the above and below, sky and earth.” I will include a link to her website!
Peace,
Rylee
References: Van Lommel, P. (2011). Consciousness Beyond Life. New York: HarperOne.
https://annettelee.com/index.php/bio/
