Does Consciousness = God ??
Some seemingly authoritative New Age teachers equate God and consciousness, the pure stillness underlying all experience. This is a fascinating and plausible view. And since God can manifest anywhere, that view certainly contains at least some truth. However, my view is that the Ultimate God and our own deepest reality lies well beyond consciousness. What is your view of this question and does the question matter?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on -
I too have questioned that God is pure consciousness. I do believe that in reaching a higher level of consciousness we more fully experience all that lies beyond our "self".
If the question is whether God is pure consciousness, I do not believe that our human conception is adequate to describe that aspect of the Creator, that it fails in the attempt. My understanding of our Creator is of an active force, responding to both human needs and to human endeavors.
Does it matter??? Yes. If we see spiritual growth as culminating in a high level of consciousness, then I think we miss the true value of that higher consciousness being reflected back to the world in thoughts, words, deeds.
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Permalink Reply by Graham Edwards on -
I think the question matters, as does our experiance of consciousness, consciousness can be percieved as mine ,something i inhabit, own,and even control.
Whereas "coming fully present to God" lies well beyond myself and any self determination, and for me is "approached fearfully in awe" in reverence of the purity of God.
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Permalink Reply by Cathrynn on -
how do you mean, Lisa - do you mean unconscious as if asleep, or is that still consciousness? have we all been in the Unknown before - before we were born? for millions of years - were we in the presence of God then, do you think? (my brain aches thinking about this!!)....C x
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on
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I caught this shortly after lt posted and will add my thoughts. It is my understanding that yes, our spirits have been in the presence of the Creator since our inception, the time of which is varied, as spirits are still being created. What you call the Unknown remains within the awareness of our spirits as they guide our lives.
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Permalink Reply by Cathrynn on
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a very simplistic version of how I would see this - is that our soul is like a fragile chain, which goes on and on eternally (perhaps?!) - and our lives are (perhaps?!) the pearls on the necklace which represent the lives that we drop into to experience and grow. That is the way I like to think of it - as I find it in fact impossible to make any sense of what 'beyond' and God really is.....the infinite....and all we maybe can do is trust and have faith .....we are too minute, like ants trying to make sense of the human world..:)
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on
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I appreciate the imagery of the necklace, but would see the soul in most cases as not fragile. Rather than a series of distinct pearls, I see the forming of one pearl through the integration of one lifetime's experience with past lives. . . . . on second thought, pearls are formed as a defence against irritants, and we must face the challenges of each lifetime, not withdraw from them. . . . . still, I like the image of each soul as a pearl, growing, acquiring a soft glow. I agree that trust and faith in the Creator and eventual return are of primary importance. tessalynne
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Permalink Reply by Cathrynn on
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do you believe in reincarnation then, Tessa? yes, I agree with you, definitely the soul is not fragile. A while ago, someone said to me that they had heard that the soul can separate and inhabit two lives at the same time...not at all sure of this one! x
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on
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Cathrynn, I realized after my last post that I had veered from the topic Does Consciousness Equal God? I am going to start a new topic, What is the Journey of the Soul? and give my understanding of the question you raised. /tessalynne
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on
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I agree, Yevgeniy. I believe that spiritual growth draws us closer to, and more like the Creator. It is my understanding that of the various lessons to be learned in each physical lifetime, there is a single lesson that is common to all lifetimes, and that is the lesson of love, in one of its many manifestations. . . . .a brief pause to meditate on being in the presence of absolute love. The power of that brief illumination will sustain me, and I thank you for pointing the way. tesalynne
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Permalink Reply by Yevgeniy on -
Thank you, TessaLynne. I can't pretend that i experience Consciousness often, these are very brief and very rare moments that help me immeasurably to orient myself. However, If i would be a flower, i would blossom hearing the words Love or God, but i would eventually wither hearing the word Consciousness.
That's all i can put in words:)
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Permalink Reply by tessa lynne on
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I see merit in the pursuit of higher levels of consciousness, but I often reflect on the distinction, if any, between those who pursue it as an end in itself and those whose lives are the embodiment of consciousness, too involved with life itself, with selfless giving and the everyday practice of love, to think about it.
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