Leo, what does it mean to raise one's conciessness? What is conciousness?

[SamC]

@Leo GuraWhat does raising your conciousness really mean? What is that conciousness that is either higher or lower? What is conciousness relation to knowledge? Can one become more conciousnes by learning more? Is conciousness the same as understanding?

 

Edited September 11, 2021 by SamC

[Leo Gura]

If you really care to know, take psychedelic and you'll understand within 30 minutes what you may not understand in 10 years of thinking.

Words cannot show you consciousness.

[Lana Faye]

@SamC I'd refer to what Tolle defines as consciousness - "Pure Presence". I cannot call myself a conscious person, though but I've noticed that painful life experiences and intense emotional suffering always bring me to a more present state of mind. Perhaps, there is a varying degree of consciousness but I agree with Leo: attempts to describe consciousness using words won't result in grasping it.

[mandyjw]

If you sit on the beach and look out on the ocean, you know that it's salt water, it's the Atlantic or Pacific or whatever. Does knowing that enhance the beauty of it? What knows, prior to the thought ocean coming up to label it, the ocean? Or the label, beautiful? 

Have you ever noticed how learning some subject in school that you hated didn't come easily, and then you forgot it as soon as you could? But learning something you were fascinated by was effortless, and you never forgot it? 

What is knowing... knowing the screen without knowing what the words are, that allows you to know? Your knowledge is so slow compared to this, always way behind the 8 ball. Drop the silent k from know, and there's just now. 

[Breakingthewall]

consciousness is what it is, total. the ego hides it as the fog hides the sky. the more ego, the more hidden. no ego, radiant blue sky.

So raise your consciousness means decrease your ego

Edited September 11, 2021 by Breakingthewall

[Matthew85]

5 hours ago, SamC said:

What does raising your conciousness really mean? What is that conciousness that is either higher or lower? What is conciousness relation to knowledge? Can one become more conciousnes by learning more? Is conciousness the same as understanding?

@SamC When you see the phrase raising your consciousness in metaphysical communities they are referring to expanding your awareness. As your awareness expands you gain access to more knowledge and universal truth. Can one become more conscious by learning more? It depends on what you are learning. There are many people in academia who have acquired vast amounts of knowledge, but who are not very conscious. 

[Moksha]

Ultimate Consciousness is beyond space, time, and separation. There is no directionality, and thus no raising or lowering in the ultimate dimension. 

In the relative dimension, where beings are born and die, raising "your" consciousness simply means realizing your ultimate nature. It's like having a lucid dream. Even within the dream, you realize that the dream is not ultimately real. The character is not ultimately who you are.

The all-knowing Self was never born,
Nor will it die. Beyond cause and effect,
This Self is eternal and immutable.
When the body dies, the Self does not die.
If the slayer believes that he can kill
Or the slain believes that he can be killed,
Neither knows the truth. The eternal Self
Slays not, nor is ever slain.

- Katha 1.2:18-19

[SamC]

1 hour ago, Matthew85 said:

@SamC When you see the phrase raising your consciousness in metaphysical communities they are referring to expanding your awareness. As your awareness expands you gain access to more knowledge and universal truth. Can one become more conscious by learning more? It depends on what you are learning. There are many people in academia who have acquired vast amounts of knowledge, but who are not very conscious. 

@Matthew85 Yeah exactly! This is the explanation that I was looking for. What I want to know is:

What's the difference between raising your awarness and general knowledge? I think that awarness is knowledge about Meta patterns by holding different perspectives ( knowledge) in the had at the same time. what's tricky though is that one can be aware of something, yet be unaware of it in practice. It's like it has different levels to it. What are those levels? Thoughts?

[SamC]

7 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

If you really care to know, take psychedelic and you'll understand within 30 minutes what you may not understand in 10 years of thinking.

Words cannot show you consciousness.

Yeah I anticipated this answer and you're right.  Another question though ( which of course could be answered by psychedelics/ enlightenment aswell but I would like your answer). Is there a difference between awarness and conciousness? ( in a relative sense or is it the same thing).  @Leo Gura

Edited September 11, 2021 by SamC

[SamC]

 

3 hours ago, Breakingthewall said:

So raise your consciousness means decrease your ego

Gold

[SamC]

3 hours ago, mandyjw said:

If you sit on the beach and look out on the ocean, you know that it's salt water, it's the Atlantic or Pacific or whatever. Does knowing that enhance the beauty of it? What knows, prior to the thought ocean coming up to label it, the ocean? Or the label, beautiful? 

Have you ever noticed how learning some subject in school that you hated didn't come easily, and then you forgot it as soon as you could? But learning something you were fascinated by was effortless, and you never forgot it? 

What is knowing... knowing the screen without knowing what the words are, that allows you to know? Your knowledge is so slow compared to this, always way behind the 8 ball. Drop the silent k from know, and there's just now. 

So you say knowing only exsist when we create distinctions and not knowing ( esperiencing) is the only thing that is ultimate and before knowing and that conciousness and knowledge is not the same thing? (: or something else?

[Leo Gura]

1 minute ago, Edward mahairi said:

you write about psychedelics like that as if it is so fucking easy to acquire them Leo

It's easier than meditating for 10 years.

[The0Self]

It’s a dream. Has nothing to do with liberation. When liberation happens there’s no one left to enjoy it, there’s just enjoyment. But... That might sound like that’s somewhere else but it’s actually just already all there is. Liberation doesn’t happen “for someone.” No one is on a path of consciousness — it just can seem that way.

And it’s not even that it becomes obvious. It was always obvious, but seemingly veiled.

That fading out can be excruciatingly painful. In my case it was, but also, not only was it “not that bad,” it actually seemed to be quite fun having all those realizations and then penultimately realizing that infinity is actually just completely beyond all knowing, slowly, until it was recognized that I never went anywhere.

Edited September 12, 2021 by The0Self

[Gianna]

To me, consciousness = clarity.

Understanding can give you clarity, sure. But when I say 'clarity' it goes for all aspects of perception–not just the mind. It goes for sight, sound, taste, smell, touch, emotion, thoughts, everything. Raising these things means raising your consciousness. Here are some more words that describe high consciousness: 

Clarity, definition, discernment, lucidity, understanding, feeling, connectedness, holism, awareness, systems think, openness, willingness, Spirit, Love, knowing thyself, imagination, expression, allowing.

Edited September 12, 2021 by Gianna

[vizual]

I see consciousness as a helium balloon that automatically wants to go up gently and be free. But it’s pretty easy to tie down with your own inner resistance. So it’s your own blunt force resistance -which you are identified with- which is preventing your consciousness to go up.

 But this is just a word game. You need to actually experience it to get a feel for it