Is Consciousness just a word to describe the 5 senses?

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Wow, not surprising it happened, but that you rem it!!!
Before 2 yrs - in the play pen my mom had in the kitchen to rein me in...
I had an astounding exp ---hard to explain, tho ...
not an OBE (out of body, for the newbies), but I think just as good!
I recalled it in my early 20s when I meditated a lot, a lot!
I was placed right back there looking out from the play pen and trying to identify what I was seeing....big white,
floating 'things', flung outta space, as I turned my head this way and that, like a doggie - turned out to be the fridge and a washing machine.

Now! I see the first few daily sentences we are to ponder from ACIM,
A Course in Miracles' Workbook, the Lessons,
for newcomers here...are exactly for a re-shifting of our view of objects in this world...
seemingly childish, a waste of time , but turns after a few Lessons - very very powerful.

I always remembered it but never related it to anyone until to mom and in my early 20s. She was shocked, saying I couldn't possibly remember because I was only four months old. So I have independent verification. The look in her eyes was priceless. LOL!

Aside from that I don't remember anything until maybe 3 years old and those memories are sketchy.

[MikeS80]

Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy

Merriam-Webster isn't an authority on non-dualism or spirituality in general. That's not its purpose. If we use it as a guide to experience we're firmly in the world of materialism and the conditioned mind and that's duality.

On the other hand non-dual Vedanta's position is qualia, individual instances of subjective conscious experience, are experienced by Consciousness and that's not of mind. The experiencer, Consciousness, is unconditioned. It's called the Witness for a reason and because It's the witness of all experience. The ultimate experiencer.

If we're left with mind - identified with and trapped in mind - then conditioning cannot be escaped. That's the entire point of non-dualism, a shift in perspective from that which is conditioned to That which is unconditioned. It's there but you're not recognizing It.

The Wiki link is to define qualia and the Advaita links are to establish That which is conscious of qualia is not of mind but beyond mind. It's Atman. That's the breakthrough the ego-self will resist at every turn. It's Self realization and Self (Atman) is not self (mind, ego-self, Ahamkara, I-maker).

Before you reject this as separation it's not. Mind-body (including the ego-self) is an appearance of and within Self. Mind-body is limited by time, space and causation whereas Self is without limit. Time, space and causation are also only appearances of Self and within Self.

In the context of non-duality it's Merriam-Webster that will lead one astray, not Advaita. The prior is a simple reference for definitions and the latter a deep philosophy of non-dualism and road map to Self realization.

That is one poor and ridiculous excuse, and is not being honest. The conditioned mind does not get to create its own subjective definitions for words based on its conditioned personal mental characteristics or states, feelings, likes, dislikes, biases, dogma etc etc, thus does not get to create its own subjective spiritual foundation(s) based on those things. All that does is get you further and further away from knowing and experiencing truth/brahman/the right here and right now.

Spirituality/truth/brahman/the right here and right now is not subjective, spirituality/truth /brahman/the right here and right now is objective/solid like a rock.

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Boy, I'll say!
I experienced this Witness, certainly, a Consciousness, at 5 or 6 years old one summer.

'It' was inside my little head looking out of my eyes.
Even as a child I felt the wisdom, the haha - 'adultness', and the masculinity.

Now, I could say - it was not motherly, loving, angelic, feminine.
It was a watcher within me...and not me, a mischievous 5 yr old - exactly.

Always there ---like the clock always there, but you aren't noticing...
as if some fog simply got blown away...
and you saw what was in the clearing all along.


What happening at 8 yrs old was a whole other 'event' in 'Seeing' one summer day!
Fun to recall.

Check this out. It's a question during the Q&A portion of the video and about the Witness and experience as related to the three states of mind (waking, dreaming and deep sleep). Let me know if what Swamiji is describing is what you experienced as the watcher/witness.

This is from 1:16:40 to 1:24:40 https://youtu.be/VxTzC2-4ELg?t=4600

For me it's beyond intellect. Beyond concept and philosophy. It's reality. It's the silence that's always there, even in the midst of activity and even chaos. From my perspective it's Me, You, Us and all these little mind-bodies (and everything else!) are merely Its reflections. So I'm flipping the narrative. It's not inside you, but you are inside It. At your deepest core you are It and your mind-body is but Its reflection. One aspect of you is the Sugar and another aspect of you can taste It. You can have your cake and eat it too and not have to worry about calories!

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy

..... Let me know if what Swamiji is describing is what you experienced as the watcher/witness.

It's not inside you, but you are inside It.

At your deepest core you are It and your mind-body is but Its reflection. One aspect of you is the Sugar and another aspect of you can taste It.

Oh my, I had to stop it before it was done - torture for me...so much intellect trying to grab an understanding.

What you said. Now that was more like it ---the 5 yr old me, was this little extension into this dimension, this weird funny solid dimension!!
Like feelers on an octopus, my eyes the binoculars back TO this Being I was inside of giving data to. Impersonal at that time...just a Witness.
Hmm, reminds me of peering into the ocean with a submerged telescope ...into a whole other world ---"I" was the telescope, tho.
An instrument to see and experience this place...this weird place. Ha.
I am the glove, He is the hand ---He needs a glove to dabble on this world.
These experiences are hard to put into words..I did ok, tho...hahaha.

(Easy if a person is acquainted with the many Beings from Gene Roddenberry's mind.)
I wish I could describe the dreams I'm given..this is why it's so easy for me to understand this place being a hologram....each particle possessing the Whole!
Really, this Being that is our Maker and Sustainer is so beyond the beyond...It's even beyond awe.

(A Dream, I got at 8 yrs old and a big demonstration at 24 ish and other times - again no drugs, ha.)
I love that quantum physics caught up. Not one thing you see with your eyes open is real ---nothing is what it appears to be.
Ha!

[Ewwerrin]

Originally Posted by WeRDivine

Isn't that just a fancy word for the 5 senses? Without the senses we wouldn't be conscious right?

And how do we know we have souls? I can't feel one.

You can be consciousness without the 5 senses.
And the 5 senses are just vibrational interpretational translations.

The most valuable of your vibrational translators, is your ability to feel your energy motional relativity between you and your greater non-physical consciousness(soul), which is always indicated by your emotions.

You always feel emotion. Even if you feel no emotion, that is also an emotion.
The way to connect to your soul is to think and feel. When you focus, your consciousness into energetic thought patterns, you can feel your energy motional relativity between that thought and the greater knowing of your soul, which is ever expanding. You find a thought that feels worse? It lets you know what your soul might be thinking, as that would feel better. And the better you feel the more you are capable of allowing your greater allowed realisation of all that you and all that exists is truely being and becoming evermore here and now for you as you with you and by you and through you, evermore naturally and effortlessly and freely and joyfully, as all is one and one is all.
Namaste.

[Ewwerrin]

Originally Posted by WeRDivine

What if you're born without senses? You wouldn't exist.

Your greater non-physical consciousness (soul or god or inner being or source consciousness) is always being and becoming evermore ever expandingly here and now, non-physically focused. Holds all that you may want to be do or have purely energetically vibrationally in pure positive energy, for you, so that you can always feel your energy motional relativity to that, emotionally, to allow your evermore natural and effortless and free and joyful greater allowed realisation of any and all things that you may possibly want to be do or have, as you and all that exists are being and becoming evermore naturally and effortlessly and freely and joyfully here and now. As all is one and one is all.
Namaste.

[r6r6]

Originally Posted by WeRDivine

What if you're born without senses? You wouldn't exist.

False. "You" exist because others observe "you".

The i-ness ego * i * is not neccessary for existence.

All is connected as one-ness via Gravity ( ) if not also via Dark Energy )( i.e. they are two sides of the same tori ( * ) i ( * )

We have the outer surface side, and, inner surface side, as well as,

the inside of the tori ---0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15,18 etc--- is where Observed Time reality/energy as associated with sine-wave /\/\/\/ pattern.


We have 18 kinds of quark and 18 kinds of anti-quark.


We have 3 kinds of electron and 3 kinds of anti-electron.


We have 3 kinds of neutrino and 3 kinds of anti-neutrino.


We have Mother /**\.....


father *Y*.....


progeny * *

[Sanctus]

I think the 5 senses are an integral part of our consciousness, the part that we use to navigate our way around the 3D plane. The higher senses are an extension of these, they operate on the higher planes.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by Sanctus

I think the 5 senses are an integral part of our consciousness, the part that we use to
navigate our way around the 3D plane.
The higher senses are an extension of these, they operate on the higher planes.

Welcome ! Love the name!

I'm going to say again ..hahaha and now with Covid ..people can have no taste, ha, and no smell...certainly no sight or hearing...and yet ---
they are conscious.
Whatdayano?

So where does consciousness lay or lie? In the eyes? the mouth? The ears?
Or say you are now a severe burn victim ...touch pretty dulled....on drugs.

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Welcome ! Love the name!

I'm going to say again ..hahaha and now with Covid ..people can have no taste, ha, and no smell...certainly no sight or hearing...and yet ---
they are conscious.
Whatdayano?

So where does consciousness lay or lie? In the eyes? the mouth? The ears?
Or say you are now a severe burn victim ...touch pretty dulled....on drugs.

The obvious is we have conscious experience in dreams and the experience is not coming from the sense organs.