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The Future Evolution of Consciousness
Thomas Lombardo
Center for Future Consciousness
Introduction
The Centrality, Wonder, and Mystery of Consciousness
Consciousness is at the core of human existence. We live our lives in the radiant illumination of our consciousness. To awaken to the world and to ourselves is to become conscious. Consciousness is the medium through which all that is meaningful to us is revealed, known, and understood. Our personal identity, as we apprehend it, is a reality of consciousness; we appear to ourselves as conscious selves.
Moreover, we create, shape, and direct the evolution of both ourselves and the world around us through our consciously structured thoughts, goals, plans, emotions, desires, and behaviors. We make and remake the world and ourselves through our conscious intentions and our purposeful actions. All our theories of reality and all our conceptualized solutions and approaches to the challenges of life are creations of our consciousness. The limits of our consciousness are the limits of our world.
All in all, the existence of consciousness—especially our individual consciousness—is an amazing and wondrous reality. We may be in awe over the vast extent and intricacy of the universe, indeed over the sheer brute fact of existence, but it is even more astonishing that each of us is aware and knows of this universe and can contemplate, wonder over, and attempt to understand its existence. Reality may be extraordinary, but that we can know of reality is even more astounding.
Our own personal conscious existence seems distinctively incredible and mystifying. Each of us has an experience of an “I” (or a “me”) that exists at the center of our consciousness, and this “I” —this “me”—is conscious of its own existence and its own consciousness. What is this “I” that we all possess?
Throughout human history, the origin and nature of consciousness has been one of the great philosophical mysteries. It has been a topic of great perplexity and debate. Equally each of our own personal conscious selves—that can consciously can reflect upon and ponder its own existence—has likewise been a great puzzle and wonder. What is the origin and nature of the conscious “I”? What am I and why do I exist?
There is a great wonder and mystery at the core of our existence.
Theories of Consciousness
It is not surprising that throughout history there have been many and often contradictory theories regarding the nature and origin of consciousness. Equally so, there have been many different theories of the nature of the conscious self. Although the phenomena of consciousness and our own individual conscious selves are so intimate and central to our existence, we can not seem to agree upon the origin, cause, and nature of these core realities of our existence. In fact, a review of contemporary books, essays, and online sources—inspired by diverse scientific, philosophical, mystical, or religious-spiritual ideas—reveals an immense, ever increasing assortment of theories and solutions to the nature of consciousness and the conscious self. Answers abound. The debates continue and grow more complex in subtlety and nuance. The mysteries and perplexities of consciousness persist in contemporary times.
Having, over the decades, studied and both taught and written about a wide array of past and current theories of consciousness I have been enlightened and inspired in numerous ways by the great thinkers, past and present, on the nature and origin of consciousness. I have become more conscious of my own consciousness through the conscious thoughts of other explorers on this fascinating topic. The consciousness of others illuminates our own consciousness. Although there are still puzzles and questions regarding consciousness, there is much to be learned and pondered over in the writings of other investigators of consciousness.
Yet, I have found these answers to the mysteries of consciousness and the conscious self unsatisfactory in a number of ways. Of special note, I’ve found theories, past and present, explaining the relationship between consciousness and the physical world especially problematic. We are conscious beings with physical bodies existing in a physical world. And we know and experience this physical world and our physical bodies through consciousness. How is this possible? I do not think that we have convincing answers to such questions.
One of the central goals of this book is to present a theory of consciousness and the conscious self and the relationship between consciousness and the physical world and our physical bodies. This theory is informed and inspired by a number of other thinkers and writers on these topics, but in some ways the theory I present is unique and runs counter to longstanding ideas on the nature of consciousness.
The Future Evolution of Consciousness
This book, though, is about more than just the nature of consciousness. As a second main purpose of the book, I am going to present a conceptual framework for understanding the future evolution of consciousness as well. How might consciousness evolve in the future? What can we, as humans, do to facilitate and guide this process? What would be preferable directions to take in evolving consciousness?
I am going to look at the relatively short-term evolution of our own personal consciousness. How each of us can in practical ways evolve our personal consciousness during our lives? I’m also going to look at the collective evolution of consciousness for human society as a whole, and even consider the future of non-human forms of consciousness, technological and biological. Aside from the short-term future, I’ll also consider the long-term evolution of consciousness at a planetary and even cosmic level. Informed by various science fiction visions I’ll consider the future evolution of consciousness in the universe.
Understanding how we can and, moreover, how we should evolve consciousness, including our personal consciousness, is intimately connected with understanding the nature of consciousness. Any valid approach to evolving consciousness needs to be informed and inspired by a credible and illuminating understanding of what we are attempting to evolve. Knowledge is power, as ignorance is impotence, and any efficacious approach to evolving consciousness requires understanding the nature of consciousness.
Hence, the two main goals of this book—presenting a theory of the nature of consciousness and a vision of the future evolution of consciousness—are intimately connected together. The latter is grounded in the former.
As stated above, I’ve taught and written on the nature of consciousness for a number of decades. Additionally, I’ve published and given numerous presentations and workshops on the future evolution of consciousness, often focusing on the personal and practical issue of how each of us can heighten and develop our individual consciousness in our lives. My collected writings and many videos on these important topics can be accessed on my website, the Center for Future Consciousness (hereafter CFC). This book is a synthesis and further development of my previous work on the nature of consciousness, its preferable future evolution, and the necessary and purposeful role we can play, both individually and collectively, in facilitating this process.
You can complete reading--with added references and footnotes--the rest of the Introduction at:
https://centerforfutureconsciousness.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/evol-of-consciousness-intro.pdf
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