What is Consciousness?

What you explore in this article

1. Consciousness and its characteristics

2. Lower & Biological Consciousness

3. Spiritual Consciousness

What is Consciousness?

Cognition and Consciousness are different.

Cognition - It is awareness focused to outside reality, losing connection with self. It is the result of action – reaction mechanism. It consumes energy- biological or physical as the case may be.

Biological Consciousness and Spiritual Consciousness are different.

Biological Consciousness - It is a process of cognition, differentiation, perception, thinking and reaction. It is a pure biological and physiological process. This process too is based on action-reaction mechanism. It consumes bio energy.

Spiritual Consciousness - It is an inward self awareness beyond cause & effect interaction mechanism.

1. It is awareness directed inside on the self i.e. self awareness.

2. It starts from localized self awareness to non-localized omnipresent self awareness. It is a paradigm shift from localized to non-localized phenomenon – when you get established in consciousness, you turn into a non-localized entity, ultimately it becomes a beyond space–time continuum phenomenon. It is opposite of concentration (which is a shift from non localized to localized process).

3. It is a beyond a cause and effect system or action – reaction framework phenomenon.

4. It is a very blissful (phenomenon / process) reality. Consciousness is not a process, because no activity is involved in it. It is not a phenomenon, because it is not incidence of something.

5. In the state of this consciousness, there is no desire left, it is a highly nutritiously enriched contended perception.

6. In the state of this consciousness there is no negative emotion like hatred, animosity, jealously etc. possible.

7. In the state of this consciousness one appears totally inert from outside, but totally live from inside, that’s why we can say when life turns inside, it evolves into consciousness.

8. It is an egoless phenomenon. Ego is when the vast confines itself into a boundary and acts as a distinct localized entity, while consciousness means breaking all boundaries and getting dissolved and expanded into vast, a grand shift from localized affair to a non-localized reality. Ego is a separating process, while consciousness is a uniting process. Ego is a shrinking, while consciousness is an expansion.

9. It is a beyond thinking or thought process. No - thinking process is required and involved in it.

10. It is the absence of all deterministic as well as non-deterministic patterns.

11. Despite being a super intelligent reality no intelligence is involved in the reality of consciousness, because intelligence is a selective process, while consciousness incorporates all possibilities of each possibility. Though all knowledge is imbedded in it, then also it is not intelligent, because it is neither a process nor a phenomenon of selection. It is a wholeness, while intelligence is relevant to only a partial reality. Intelligence is the attribute of a mental / thinking process or faculty when it has to make a choice or selection. When all choices are inherent, then intelligence becomes an irrelevant proposition.

12. Since consciousness is the possibility of all possibilities, hence it is a vast and all pervading entity, encompassing all space-time continuum in itself and at the same time it itself remains beyond all space-time continuum frameworks. But the moment it manifests any of its possibilities, it gives rise to materiality which is a localized event, producing a space-time continuum framework. So consciousness is a basis, a stratum, a genesis platform for the origin of all material and non material manifestation. Consciousness is an un manifested reality having potential of all possibilities, while manifestation is the expression of consciousness of its one or two or any limited member of possibility or possibilities. Space- time continuums are minute parts of consciousness, just as an ice berg is a small part of the vast ocean. As ocean itself is a vast entity, possessing and incorporating all ice bergs in it, same is the case with consciousness. Consciousness is the vastest of the all vast fields conceiving, incorporating and possessing all manifestations within it. This universe is nothing, but a localized event in the vast omnipresent ocean of consciousness.

13. Only in the state of consciousness the realization of love is possible. Love can never be subject to any condition from outside or anybody. If someone says that he loves a woman because she loves him, it means there is no love there. Love cannot be focused on any person; it is not subject to any condition except that it is possible only in the state of consciousness. When you are in love, you are in love with the entire existence, including your enemies too.

14. In consciousness neither cognition, nor perception nor thinking is involved.

15. It is not an energy consuming process, rather it takes you to the very source of energy making you totally rejuvenated, reinvigorated, vibrant and fresh. It is the highest possible height of contentment. It is the highest possible degree of bliss and beatitude. It is an eternal divine celebration. It is a dance of silence. It is the state where Buddha and Krishna dance together playing a Divine Holi (play of color during a celebration) with the entire cosmos and manifestation.