Consciousness Explored

Consciousness has three approaches: Experimental, this realm belongs to scientist, Expositional, the domain of the philosophers and Experiential, the area belonging to the mystics.

It was Ramakrishna’s realization that the entire universe is immersed in the ocean of consciousness and that there is no distinction between matter and spirit in the realm of super consciousness.

Both Ramakrishna and swami Vivekananda declared that the Consciousness is one and indivisible and that is the Transcendental or Cosmic Consciousness. This realization has a profound socio-religious implication according to Swami Vivekananda, since in all religions the superconscious state is identical.

Christian, Hindus, Islam, Buddhists, and even those of no creed, all can have the same experience. He also said that Individual Consciousness and Cosmic Consciousness are one and the same. The highest plane of consciousness, the one superior to self consciousness is samadhi or superconsciousness.

Super mind and Evolution according to Aurobindo

Aurobindo states that the expansion of the mind to levels not yet dreamed of is possible and probable. He states that the evolution from knowledge to greater knowledge, from consciousness to greater consciousness, from being to greater being is ongoing. This implies that the evolution of the human being is far from complete; in a sense that would imply that a human being is a transitional being and has yet to evolve to its full potential. On how this can be attained, he states, is by human effort through yoga and meditation.

 

 

Evolution and us

Geoffrey Miller of the University of New Mexico, author of ‘The Mating Mind’ believes that the rate of human evolution is accelerating. Philosopher Daniel Dennett (2006) Tuft University Boston stated: ‘But I expect that Homo sapiens are evolving at a rather swift state.’

These thoughts find some support from empirical studies. James Flynn (1980) of the University of Otagom, Dunedin, New Zealand, a political scientist stated that, in 20 countries that he documented to date a rise of about 20 IQ points happens every 30 years. If everyone who took an IQ test today, using the norms set 50 years ago, more than 90% of them would be classified as geniuses, with an IQ of 130 and higher. Similarly if peoples scores were taken around 1949 using today’s norms, over 90% would be labelled ‘borderline mentally retarded’ with IQ below 70 or so.

JBS Haldane (was a British geneticist and evolutionary biologist) quoted that in about a million years, the average person would think like Newton, write like Jean Racine, (great playwrights of 17th-century France), Paint like Jan Van Eck (Flemish painter), compose like Bach and be incapable of hatred like St. Francis.

What do culture, spirituality and religion have to do with this evolutionary process?

According to Christopher Wills (Christopher J. Wills is Professor of Biology at UCSD. He received his Ph.D. from UC Berkeley), it is in intellectual and psychological areas that our culture generates the greatest advancement and diversity. He states, that rather than slowing us down, our culture has probably propelled us into developing at unprecedented speeds. Whether or not culture has shaped our biology in the past, John Campbell of UCLA (The moral imperative of man's future evolution, Evolutionary Journeys, R. Wesson and P. Williams, editors, 1995; 79-114.) thinks we will soon consciously control our own evolution.

Can human beings influence the enhancement of their consciousness or mind?

Samuel Alexander

1859 - 1938

Professor of Philosophy, University of Manchester

Lectures

1916–1918: Space, Time, and Deity, vol. 1

1916–1918: Space, Time, and Deity, vol. 2

He states: the cosmic process has reached the human level and man is now looking forward to the next higher quality. According to him men of spiritual advancement are preparing humankind to the next stage of development.

Alexander’s philosophy is called philosophy of emergent evolution. This doctrine implies that in the course of evolution, some entirely new properties, such as life and consciousness, appear at certain critical points, usually because of an unpredictable rearrangement of the already existing entities.

According to Alexander, when physical structures reach a certain point, life emerges as something new.

Ponder this.