EXPERIENCE YOURSELF AT SEVERAL LEVELS OF CONSCIOUSNESS

Sasha Lessin, Ph.D. sashalessinphd@aol.com

While you and what you perceive always imply each other, you can also think about the "you" part of the you-object relationship.

When you think about yourself as an object, you detatch by degrees from the objective world of things by reflecting. You mentally step back from your problems, reflect on them and use them to gain deeper wisdom, centering, freedom of choice and effective action.

Progressively reflection (epoche) your body, your reasoning about your reflection on your body, your observation of yourself as a reasoner, your reflection with a primary lover on you as an individual, your primary group's reflection on you and your primary as a pair, your secondary group's reflection on your primary group, humanity's reflection on your secondary groups as part of all human culture, your reflection as part of nature on humanity and your reflection from infinite space and timelessnsss on nature. This sequence of reflections represents successive detachments from the objective pole of the subjective-objective continuum. It is useful, in addition, to begin reflection beyond the animal level at the level of your subpersonalities [Assagioli, R., Psychosynthesis: A Manual of Principles and Techniques, New York: Penguin, 1976; Wilber, K., , Wheaton: Theosophical Publishing House, 1977; The Atman Project, Wheaton; The Spectrum of Consciousness: Theosophical Publishing, 1980. Wilber, K., No Boundary, Boulder: Shambala, 1981; The Holographic Paradigm and Other Paradoxes: Exploring the Leading Edge of Science, Boulder: Shambala, 1982.]

At each successively more inclusive and encompassing level of self- identity, you identify with (say "This is who I am") previously unrecognized parts of yourself which you had defined as alien to your self, projected into the objective realm and opposed as threatening to your narrower self-concept. You thus become one with what you had opposed and recognize your wider consciousness resulting from the now unblocked communication among your once-alienated facets.

You lose nothing by such consciousness expansion. You still have the capacities and abilities of your narrower self-facets as alternate identities. You are just no longer trapped in the more limited identifications.

In addition, communication among the attributes at any level of self-identification is synergistic--more than a mere addition of attributes. Unblocked communication allows novel interactions, fluctuations in self-organization and the reorganization which constitutes your next, broader level of self- recognition. Wider levels of self-definition add novel attributes of their own and confrontations with the higher-order dualisms (self versus nonself). At the level of unity consciousness, the subject-object dichotomy dissolves entirely and you are one with the unbroken, seamless continuous reality of the universe.

Fantasy of Broader Levels of Consciousness (Self-Concepts)

Have someone read these directions to you. Otherwise, read these directions, then close your eyes and engage in the fantasy indicated.

Sit comfortably. Breathe deeply.

Imagine yourself in front of the consciousness oscillator. The mode selector above the screen reads Personality Facets, Inner Voices, Subselves.

In succession, the screen shows you as you appear when you are
the way you like to be,
the way you are with people you do not know,
you at your worst,
the you that seldom emerges,
the you that takes over your personality when you are angry,
and each of your particular subpersonalities and distinctive ways of being in different situations.

As you view the screened visages of your subselves, you feel the emotional states and hear the characteristic voices you experience with each. The camera pans your subs as they enter a large spacecraft shaped like your head.

The mode selector changes to "personality integration." Your subs man and woman the various stations on the spaceship--some work on the engine; some plot courses; another steers; one cooks; one works the radio. All cooperate. The camera moves back to an overview of the head-shaped space- craft. See that all your subpersonalities are ultimately part of a single head-space, a single vehicle moving and moved by all your subs working together. You hear the choir for multiplicity of your voices blended as they sing together in your head.

The mode selector above the consciousness oscillator screen switches to Bodymind.

The screen shows your spacecraft landing atop a headcraft platform, shaped as a giant replica of your body from the neck down. As the head-shaped vehicle of your personality settles into its home body, the whole unit you are becomes animated. On the screen, you stroll over to a grassy knoll and lie down. You gesture to your viewer to do likewise.

Lie down and breathe very deeply with your image on the screen. Let the air push your belly out with each deep inhalation. Imagine you draw vital force into your mouth and all the way down to your belly. As you breathe out, imagine you radiate this force through your body. Let all thoughts dissolve and pass to infinity as you exhale. If you feel tense areas in your body, tighten them more. Imagine what emotion you may be holding in by these tensions and then allow yourself to release emotions and relax the tensions. Experience your integrated bodymind. [Assagioli, R., 1976, op.cit.; Wilber, K., 1981, op.cit.]

Get up and go back to the oscillator. The mode selection switches to Dyad.

The screen shows the person who you feel (or have felt) the closest to in your life walking over to you as you recline on the grassy knoll. She or he takes your hands and looks deeply into your eyes, and you relive the feeling of being connected with her or him. You know she or he knows how you feel, cares about your welfare and growth and lets her/himself to learn from you.

You likewise know, care and learn from him or her. Notice your common
consciousness, your feeling of unity, your dyadic level of self.

Primary Groups flashes above the screen, and your family, gang at
work, recreation buddies and other intimate, face-to-face intimates parade across the screen.

The image returns to your household. See you and all of your housemates interacting in your yard. As you see an aerial view of your household in its neighborhood your feeling of oneness with your family becomes salient.

Social Network flashes, and you see all your friends, relatives,
supporters and personal allies coming over for a network meeting in your yard. The friends and relatives of each of the members of your household and family also gather. This is your social network.

Institutional Consciousness appears as the screen shows the school, the company, the clubs and other institutions to which you belong. With each institution shown, an organizational chart appears, showing the formal structure by which the institution supposedly operates.

The mode selector indicates Developmental Stages, and you see yourself at different stages of your life-cycle, those through which you have already passed, your current stage and those to come. See yourself adding years of life and passing through stages where you successively develop trust, autonomy, initiative, industry, identity, intimacy, generativity and integrity. The screen shows you getting into the adult world, living through early adult crises, settling down and becoming your own person. It shows your midlife crisis, renaissance, awareness of your mortality, and your late blooming.

Then the mode selector shows your denial of, anger at, bargaining with, depression from, and then acceptance of death. You see and hear yourself at each stage of your development. You experience yourself as different at each stage; you also feel continuity as you move through the entire.cycle.

Community See your neighborhood, town and city on the screen. Feel your oneness with this level of awareness.

Culture is the next level. See the various ethnic groups in the world, including your own. Notice the differences in language, customs, art, morals and habits of each cultural group. Be aware of your cultural level of consciousness.

Humanity The screen sweeps before you the panorama of human forms,
colors, dwelling scenes, and activities. T he audio surrounds you with a sea
of human voices, spoken in every tongue, in every way. You experience your under- lying oneness with-all people.

The consciousness oscillator shifts into the hypnopedagogical mode. You become one with all humanity. As Humanity, the different cultures, nations and ethnic groups are like your subpersonalities. The oscillator tells you to be aware of your existence as Humanity. You intuit, as the beneficent spirit of humanity, your true needs at this time. You have valuable advice to give to your subpersonalities, the diverse people of the world, who are your parts. Tell them, Humanity.

Still in the hypnopedagogical mode, the oscillator flashes Ecological Consciousness on the screen.

You become Eartha, the spirit of the Earth personified. You are the whole earth. Get up and let yourself move as Eartha.

As Eartha, tell your constituent, Humanity, how you view her performance among the other creatures in terms of your ecology.

Finally, the oscillator flashes Unity Consciousness and the screen shows your peak, ecstatic, mystical or religious experiences, where you are with every aspect of the entire hierarchy and your timeless, spaceless identity in the various levels of yourself.

* Relate the thought and feelings you experienced, as you engaged in the fantasy above, to the notion that accepting the higher-order unity of apparent opposites expands your consciousness, or self.