What is consciousness ?

What is consciousness? What are its attributes? What is the difference between consciousness and mind? In order to answer these questions, we will first have to understand a unique, unexplained phenomenon called "experience". In this video, You will find answers to all of those questions and much more...
In the first part of the video, I explain the Hard problem of consciousness. At the moment, we cannot explain how conscious-less matter or physical force is capable of creating a conscious experience.
At the second part 5:35 , I explain some basic features of consciousness that can be found out by self-observation and logical thinking. Those features give an indication to the nature of consciousness.
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• What is consciousness?
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[@Lucidthinking]

You are very welcome to comment and contribute to a productive discussion of the topic. I also like to refine the definition I use "consciousness". I defined it as the "capacity to experience/to be aware of...". It will be more precise to use the word "ability" rather than "capacity" since the word capacity indicates changeable measure, yet the phenomenon I call consciousness is absolute - as explained in the video.

[@MartinPeel]

+Lucid thinking If consciousness was an absolute ability that couldn't be measured, that would mean that a blind person's ability to experience would be the same as a person who could see, that becomes problematical with the colour red, to use the same example as your video.

[@Lucidthinking]

+Martin Peel (Duskmoor) Hey martin, thanks for your comment. As I understand this subject, a blind person's consciousness would be the same as in one who can see. Yet his ability to experience red in his consciousness would be limited since he doesn't have the necessary "mental gear" (Projector). The color red in our consciousness is triggered by the vision mechanism. It can also be triggered by recalling a memory of red. Yet, if the blind man never saw red in his life, he wouldn't even have a memory of red to recall from. Consciousness is dependent on the mind (or psyche) to experience (as well as mind dependent on consciousness to be experienced). I'm not saying that the mind and consciousness are two different entities. They may be different aspects of one phenomenon - like the relation between the sea and it's waves, but for the moment I can't know it, so from my point of view, they are two different phenomena. The mind is dependent on our brain and our senses. A blind man can't see and so his brain can't create the necessary neural pattern that will be experienced as red upon consciousness. Yet the consciousness itself is the same for the blind and the non-blind.

[@MartinPeel]

+Lucid thinking Thanks for the quick reply. It seems you agree that the blind man has a limited ability to be cognisant of the colour red (if he has never seen in his life) - are you suggesting that even without this ability his consciousness is the same despite him probably shrugging mentally whenever "red" is brought up in conversation? I find it interesting that we are hypothesizing a divide between mind and consciousness, would it be better to state that consciousness is a state of mind? After all, we are familiar with labelling sleep as unconsciousness.

[@Lucidthinking]

+Martin Peel (Duskmoor) Hey Martin, Thanks for your comment. I need to explain something about myself in order to answer your question. I do not hypothesise a divide between mind and consciousness. In fact, I do not deal with hypothesis at all. The things I talk about are not some "philosophical" ideas. They are a result of research. When I want to understand the mind, I do not think about it or invent hypothesis about it. I research it, like a scientist. I conduct experiments in my mind and observe the results. The only difference between me and a scientist is that a scientist conducts his experiments in the "external world", while I conduct them in the internal world. Now, What I call "the mind" and consciousness, are two different phenomena with different attributes. Let me explain this with a metaphor: Take an eye and an apple. You cannot claim that they are the same thing, even though without the eye, the apple can't be seen. The same way, the mind is there even when consciousness is not observing it. You can deduce it by the following evidence: Think about a song played in your mind. you hear it, and then, for 20 seconds, you are distracted by someone talking to you. During these 20 second, you didn't hear the song (It was not a conscious experience) yet when you return hearing the song it continues 20 seconds after the point you lost it. This means that the song existed in an unconscious way. So mental objects do have a certain existence outside of consciousness. Also, consciousness is not a state of mind, since it exist always. even when the mind is absent. To reach this conclusion you have to manage an experience that is very difficult to create. It is a meditation of emptying your mind from thoughts. It is very difficult, but even if you manage for 1 second to experience a mindless consciousness, you can deduce it is not dependent on thought. It is true that in this very second your consciousness has experienced other mental items, as sensory sensations and emotions. These are more difficult to eliminate, but it is also possible. The bottom line is, that more and more silent your mind is, the clearer you see that consciousness is still there. On the contrary, it becomes "stronger". To be more precise, It's not the consciousness that gets stronger, but your attention. It is less absorbed. Attention is a special energy that connects the mind with consciousness.

[@egarulastinn7438]

+Lucid thinking Some part of chemical and electrical activities in our brains is deciphered as experiences, experienced by our consciousness. But what is decoding them? It cannot be what you call mind, as it would just change one code into another, still having to be encoded in order to be experienced, as "experiencing" itself is exactly that - deciphering those activities. Therefore it is consciousness deciphering. But consciousness cannot be just a process of decoding data - brain activities in case of humans - because decoding is just changing one thing into the other, it can be done awerenessless. 1. Or can it? 2. What is the thing making encoding lightwaves as electrical impulses different from encoding electrical impulses as experiences? What makes on of this processes aware? 3. If the decoder is a part of consciousness, we cannot say that all consciousnesses are the same, because every one could decode same data differently. If the decoder is not a part of cosciousnes, the experiences would have to exist without consciousness (as they would only reach consciousness), and it seems impossible to claim something is an experience if no-one is experiencing it (yet).

[@onlyonerombo]

What an amazing and clear explanation of what Consciousness is. You have explained what thousands of years of Spiritual teachings have been pointing to what our True Nature is and what we really are... That is to say that our body and mind is merely just the limited device that our True Nature is temp located in. And what we really are has been given many descriptions.... Conciousness, the knower of our experience, Awareness, Unlimited, Empty and Everything, and ALL being One and the Same. Your explanation of Consciousness described all of these characteristics. And yet whilst it can be pointed at or suggested to what it is "IT' can never be known, described or explained in words. Thank You for such a beautiful yet simple example.

[@chennakesavasingh2720]

presently i am doing my M.Sc., Psychology. As a Journalist I saw Prof.Tsur Taub videos, some years ago, while writing Story to a News paper. wonderful videos.I want to see whole lot once again. Thanks to "you Tube", which made it possible. special thanks to Prof. Tsur Taub.

[@makeupmantra5]

You got me at "what is consciousness"...That brightness in your eyes and voice and expression...I love the way you spoke...its just amazing.Thank you so much!

[@Lucidthinking]

+Makeup Mantra :)

[@sivarajan7692]

I am physically 27 years old boy. Its enough for my 27 years of searchings.... Thank you so much... This vedio made 4 years ago... Definitely now you are very successful and growing.... Forgive if i made any grammar mistakes

[@Lucidthinking]

Hi Siva, Thank you very much four Your comment. I hope to be able to do more videos in the near future.

[@SharmajiIAS]

Just excellent!! Vedic literature told the same thing 5000years ago

[@Lucidthinking]

+Ugta Suraj Yes, of course. It is found in Advaita Vedanta, Jnana Yoga, Ashtavakra Gita and many more. They have reached these insights through certain meditative practices. My aim is to try and explain these insights with daily experiences, so they would be understandable also to people who didn't experience this meditative process.

[@SuperstarSridhar]

Excellent job, Lucid. And all the best with your presentations, It would be a boon to many if you can explain Advaita with modern examples. Good luck. :)

[@n8nocircumcisebaby102]

the veda is hymns. the boooks with such discussions were written after the veda.

[@smashedpumpkin3242]

Still the favourite video of my life

[@Lucidthinking]

Thank you. Soon a whole book is coming out. I guess in about a year. It is ready in Hebrew, but needs to be translated to English (And then I'm back making videos)

[@vaNickers]

Few people realize that when thoughts arise they are "experiencing" their thoughts. Thoughts indeed are "subtle" experiences. But what is the significance of this? In your video you have explained that since "I" as the Consciousness makes experience possible, then that means "I" am beyond experiences. Our world is a world of experiences. But knowing ourselves as the Consciousness, then this world can just be observed without getting entangled in the experience of pleasure and pain, of sorrow and misery. And that I think is the summum bonum of human existence. Another insight on experience is that experience can be a problem when it has become illusory. This happens because of memory being projected onto the screen. When we experience something, the memory of the past will arise as thoughts and distort the present. As a result, we don't "see" the thing as it is, instead we only see an "image" based on a memory. It can be a pleasurable or painful memory but it has become an illusion.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +Vanessa Pareja , Wonderful insights. I would add that in order to observe the world without getting entangled with the experience, it is not enough to know only by a rational thought that we are consciousness. We need to Identify ourselves as consciousness with "all our being" moment after moment. One way this can be done is by managing to constantly experience a certain subtle emotion the is always there in the background, and can be defined by the words "I am".

[@vaNickers]

Yes thank you for clarifying that. This sense of "I am" is not a thought. One must be able to realize that all this time he's been seeing his mind and that this "I am" is not within the field of the mind.

[@Stringsloth]

I have gone unconscious two times in my life. In both times I was "conscious" inside my own consciousness, in a sort of room where I could observe - or remember, but I would say rather observe - what was going on to my physical body. In one of them I even talk to a person who just old me "You are unconscious, don't worry, you'll be back in no time". After that, both times I came back feeling amnesia and recalling as a memory what I had just "experienced". So... I can assure there's more to consciousness than just a "black screen". Not at all.

[@Ramt33n]

wow, simply put, how did you managed to explain such topic?! respect

[@Lucidthinking]

Thank you :) One of my stronger qualities is the ability to understand the components of complex subjects, and I have found out that once the basic principles are understood well, it is easy to explain even complex subjects.

[@Ramt33n]

Lucid thinking already a big fan here, looking forward for more :)

[@1clearningenglish600]

Very insightful explanation. My realisations are:- 1. I am consciousness inward ... Blank screen on which photo/music/movie/experience can be projected. I can also be a projector outward onto my fellow humans' screen ... I am the observer. 2. My sensory organs and memories are the camera which gives input s for an experience. 3. My mind is the CPU PROCESSOR processing the inputs either to project xp on screen or to store the xp in my memory. 4. Now about the decoding mechanism. .. the OS ... drivers .. etc. This is the key factor. I think this is the acquired knowledge from the world around ... the Learning ... the culture ... And we keep updating our OS versions with interaction with the world.

[@1clearningenglish600]

5. Experiences can be sensations, feelings, thoughts. What I deduce is "consciousness is the ability to xp" ... the decoding mechanism is "the Learning process, the integration of all xp's n knowledge" I suppose consciousness is not the decoding mechanism.

[@Lucidthinking]

+1C Learning English Nice insights :) There are many decoding mechanisms in our brain. For example, the light-sensitive cells in the eye produce certain chemicals when exposed to light. These chemicals are then decoded to electrical patterns. The visual information in those patterns is also decoded into differentiated object perception. That is, the eye itself does not produce the knowledge that, in the picture it receives and transmit to the brain, there are trees and flowers. This is a secondary decoding. You can call this decoding mechanism "information processing" and it is related to what you have called "the learning process". My question "what is the decoding mechanism?" relates to the decoding of information to an experience. Think of receiving a hit. The nerves send electric pulses that correspond the amount of force exerted upon them. But this information is something that any machine with an appropriate sensor could also provide. The question is, how "numeric" information, like the pulses sent by the nerves, can be transformed into an experience of pain. Think about it... A very light force may produce an experience of pleasure, like petting. This is a totally different experience than pain, but the information only gives you "numerical" instructions: First, it has measured a force of X Kg and at the second time a force of Y kg. What turns electrical patterns into an experience? As I understand it, this is the function of the screen.

[@1clearningenglish600]

+Lucid thinking Thank you for your quick response ... So what you say is the decoding mechanism of information input through neuro linguistic apparatus in various quanta of electric pulses, towards perceiving the distinct experiences is the job of the screen ... So consciousness is "the ability to experience" and "programming neurological information to a distinct experience" One more question ... if a stranger tries to prick us we feel irritated/annoying/painful ... if the same prick was done by a friend, we feel pleasure .. Same quantum of physical pulse .... Does mind processes each info input into different kinds of electro.chemical pulses so as to get a distinct xp?

[@1clearningenglish600]

+1C Learning English Secondary decoding mechanism is the "Learning /acquired knowledge " process of input information. You say primary decoding mechanism is consciousness itself. In that case I cannot conclude that all sentient beings have same consciousness. I prefer the primary decoding mechanism (may be called programming) is separate from consciousness. The decoding mechanism is distinct for each, in proportion to their evolution/exposure. Consciousness is "the ability to experience"

[@Lucidthinking]

+1C Learning English Q1 - Yes, if I understood you correctly Q2 - These are not the same pulses. In both cases there is a similar impulse in the tactile nerves (the feeling of pain), but the eyes and the ears transmit a different impulse. (a friend vs a stranger) So the brain receives different inputs (in total) and interprets them differently. Q3 - let's make it simple. A sentient being is any being that can feel pain. You don't have to be much developed in evolutionary terms to feel pain. Yet if an animal feels pain, then it has consciousness.

[@Mistrix6]

Cool vids. Makes me think that consciousness and matter are a coexisting force that coevolve and manifest everything that exists since the moment the consciousness became self aware by experiencing matter at the beginging of time.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +Carolyn Anderson , that is a very interesting thought. I hope that in the future, quantum scientists could tell us more about this relation. At the moment, we only have the hint that the presence of an observer changes matter in the quantum level.

[@acosmys780]

There was a Redditor who said he experienced 2 deaths in his life. When asked what he experienced, he answered with the following: _"It was definitely not just a gap. Much like a dreamless nap, you don't just wake up and feel like time just jumped ahead. _*_You know_*_ that you've been asleep for awhile. At the same time, you can't really remember experiencing anything at all, unless you had a dream._ _So yes and no. _*_I experienced something, and that something was nothing_*_"_ His experience tells us that he was aware of his presence, and the fact that he was asleep after waking up, even when there was nothing projected into his mind. I just found it fascinating and wanted to share, because it agrees with the Advaita teachings. mic.com/articles/139785/what-happens-when-you-die-nothing-except-black-emptiness-according-to-reddit-user#.yvZBE1dsJ

[@Lucidthinking]

+Acosmys Thanks. very interesting.

[@dariazafote5522]

Your videos were really interesting and well thought-out! It’s been 5 years now… I hope you’ll be back sometime, Tsur! If not, I want to thank you for sharing some of your profound thoughts with us. Cheers!

[@Lucidthinking]

Thank you Daria. I will continue doing videos. In 2016 I got the chance to accomplish a previous project I was working on. Once I've finished, I will go back doing videos.

[@dariazafote5522]

@@Lucidthinking I am looking forward to them! And I wish you all the best with your project!

[@caviper1]

Brilliant. The perceiver cannot be the perceived... as San Francisco de Asis said: "I am looking for what is looking..."

[@juanjoseguva]

We're talking deep cuts from Sartre here. Being is Nothingness, consciousness is a void. So cool. Great video!

[@Lucidthinking]

+Juan José Gutiérrez Never heard of Sartre. I'll check it. Thanks for the info :)

[@caviper1]

Read the Mandukya Upanishad. Or the Ashtavakra. Or the Kebangsaan upanishad. This is also explained there. Thanks!

[@SajayanKS]

WoW! What thoughts going through my mind these days is exactly same as what you thought 5 years before.

[@Lucidthinking]

Glad to hear so :)

[@anishpshrestha]

Great explanation!! I believe the consciousness referred in this video is called Turiya in Mandukya upanishad of Hindu philosophy.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks for your comment, Anish. Indeed only in certain streams of Hindu philosophy (and to a certain degree also in Buddhism), I've encountered such a deep understanding of the nature of consciousness.

[@Galluxi]

Thanks for this video dude! Consciousness has bugged me since I was a kid lol

[@Lucidthinking]

:)

[@lowkeyotaku2373]

So in the Matrix the "blank loading screen" is their consciousness...amazing

[@Lucidthinking]

:)

[@tyamada21]

The Law Nam-myoho-renge-kyo represents the identity of what some scientists refer to as the ‘unified field of all consciousnesses’. In other words, it’s the essence of all of existence and non-existence, the ultimate creative force behind planets, stars, nebulae, people, animals, trees, fish, birds, and all phenomena, manifest or latent. All matter and intelligence are simply waves or ripples manifesting to and from this core source. Consciousness (enlightenment) is itself the true creator of everything that is, ever was and ever will be, right down to the minutest particles of dust, each being an individual ripple or wave. The big difference between chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and most other conventional prayers is that instead of depending on a ‘middle man’ to connect us to our state of enlightenment, we’re able to do it ourselves by tapping directly into it by way of self-produced sound vibration. On the subject of ‘Who or What Is God?’, when we compare the concept of ‘God’, as a separate entity that is forever watching down on us, to Nichiren’s teachings, the true omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence of what most people call ‘God’ is our enlightenment, which exists nowhere else but within us. When the disciples asked Jesus where the Kingdom of God is, didn’t he tell them that it was within them? Some say that ‘God’ is an entity that can never be seen. I think that the vast amount of information that is constantly being conveyed via electromagnetic waves gives us proof of how an invisible state of ‘God’ could actually exist. It’s widely known that certain data being relayed by way of electromagnetic waves has the potential to help bring about extraordinary and powerful effects, including instant global awareness of something or mass emotional reaction. As well as many other things, it’s also common knowledge that these waves can easily be used to detonate a bomb or to even enable NASA to control the movements of a robot as far away as the Moon or Mars. However, none of this is possible without a receiver to decode the information that is being transmitted. Without the receiver, the information would remain impotent. In a very similar way, it’s important for us to have our ‘receiver’ switched on so that we can activate a clear and precise understanding of our life, all other life and what we and all else that exists truly is. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo helps us to achieve this because it allows us to reach into the core of our enlightenment and switch it on. That’s because the sound vibration of ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents the combination of the three major laws that underlie all existence. ‘Myoho’ represents the Law of latency and manifestation (Nature), and consists of two alternating states. One state of ‘myo’ is where everything in life that’s not obvious to us exists. This includes our stored memories when we’re not thinking about them, our hidden potential and inner emotions whenever they’re not being expressed, our desires, our fears, our wisdom, happiness, karma, and more importantly, our enlightenment. The other state, ‘ho’, is where everything in Life exists whenever it becomes obvious to us, such as when a thought pops up from within our memory, whenever we experience or express our emotions, or whenever a good or bad effect manifests from our karma. When anything becomes apparent, it simply means that it has come out of the state of ‘myo’ (dormancy/latency) and into a state of ‘ho’ (manifestation). It’s simply the difference between consciousness and unconsciousness, being awake or asleep, or knowing and not knowing something. The second law, ‘renge’, governs and controls the functions of ‘myoho’, ‘ren’ meaning cause and ‘ge’ meaning effect. The two laws of ‘myoho’ and ‘renge’, both functions together simultaneously, as well as underlies all spiritual and physical existence. The final and third part of the tri-combination, ‘kyo’, is what allows the law ‘myoho’ to be able to integrate with the law ‘renge’. It’s the great, invisible thread of energy that fuses and connects together all Life and matter, as well as the past, present and future. It is often termed the Universal Law of Communication. Perhaps it could even be compared to the ‘string theory’ that some scientists now suspect exists. Just as our body cells, thoughts, feelings and all else are constantly fluctuating within us, everything in the world around us and beyond is also in a constant state of flux, in accordance with these three laws. In fact, more things are going back and forth between the two states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in a single moment than it would ever be possible for us to calculate or describe. And it doesn't matter how big or small, important or trivial that anything may appear to be, everything that’s ever existed in the past, exists now, or will exist in the future, exists only because of the workings of 'myoho-renge-kyo'. These three laws are also the basis of the four fundamental forces and if they didn't function, neither we nor anything else could go on existing. Simply put, all forms of existence, including the seasons, day and night, birth, death and so on, are all moving forward in an ongoing flow of continuation, rhythmically reverting back and forth between the two universal states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in absolute accordance with ‘renge’ and by way of ‘kyo’. Even stars are dying and being reborn in accordance with the workings of what the combination ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents. ‘Nam’, on the other hand, is a password or a key; it allows us to reach deep into our life and fuse with or become one with ‘myoho-renge-kyo’. On a more personal basis, nothing ever happens by chance or coincidence, it’s the causes that we’ve made in our past, or are presently making, that determine how these laws function uniquely in each of our lives from moment to moment, as well in our environment. By facing east, in harmony with the direction that the Earth is turning, and rhythmically chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo for a minimum of ten minutes daily, anyone can experience actual proof of its positive effects in their life. In so doing, we can pierce through even the thickest layers of our karma and activate our Buddha Nature (enlightened state). We’re then able to bring forth the wisdom needed to challenge, overcome and change our negative circumstances into positive ones. It brings forth the wisdom that can free us from the ignorance and stupidity that is preventing us from accepting and being proud of the person that we truly are, regardless of our race, colour, gender or sexual preference. We are also able to see and understand our circumstances and environment more clearly, as well as attract and connect with any needed external beneficial forces and situations. Actual proof soon becomes apparent to anyone who chants the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo on a regular daily basis. Everything is subject to the law of Cause and Effect, so the strength of the result from chanting depends on dedication, sincerity and determination. To explain it more simply, the difference could be compared to making a sound on a piano, creating a melody, or producing a song and so on.

[@rolexfuralle]

Very pedagogic explanations of abstract concepts, will watch you other vids

[@Lucidthinking]

+Love Romert Thanks :)

[@musicalmanojj]

Consciousness does develop the ability to observe itself without mind and this is the ultimate experience. It means, experience and experiencer becomes one and that's when, material manifestation is no more needed. This is state of Buddha or other enlighten beings. Thanks

[@skbehera6179]

Nice explanation of consciousness on scientific basis. Very useful explanation because every person wants explanation of every phenomenon on scientific basis. Myself clearly understood it. Thank you.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks for you comment :)

[@angelarapuano1315]

È un'ottima spiegazione dell'Advaita Vedanta 🙏🏻🕉️

[@Lucidthinking]

Grazie. Non ho studiato Advaita vedanta, ma ho imparato l'autoconsapevolezza in un sitema diverso con un maestro italiano di nome Patrizio Paoletti

[@terriparkin]

In Buddhist philosophy and the practices within the Vajrayana System of Tibetan Buddhism the aspect of consciousness being described is "naked Awareness" or Rigpa. Many volumes written and many practices relative to awakening this aspect of one's experiences.

[@Lucidthinking]

+terri parkin Hey terry, thank you very much for the information. Most Buddhist believers that comment on my video claims that there is no "I". I think that they misunderstood this concept, and that "no self" means that the perception of individual, personal self is elusive. Yet, the pure awareness does exists, and it is the real (non-personal) self. What do you think?

[@EarthlyDawn]

+Lucid thinking Buddha's view is quite clear on this. Here is a quote from Culasaccaka Sutta: "Any kind of consciousness whatever, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near-a disciple of mine sees all consciousness as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: 'This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self'" In his teaching the whole notion of identifiying with something, be it the body, feeling, thoughts or the states of rapture and empty awareness is misguided and leads to suffering.

[@Lucidthinking]

+Dragos Badita Yes, this is correct. I think it is also interesting to understand why anything you identify with is not yourself. You are consciousness, an expereiecer. Yet you cannot see yourself. You can only see your mind. So even if you identify yourself as consciousness, you are practically identifying with a thought. The thought "I am consciousness". Everything we can experience is not us. The fact that we cannot find (see) us, does not necessarily imply we do not exist. Some experiences define who we are better than others. The thought "I am consciousness" defines better who I am than the thought "I am a body". As I understand it, the most accurate experience describing consciousness is a constant feeling that can be described by the words "I am". According to Jnana Yogis and Advaita Vedanta masters, focusing the attention on that feeling long enough brings to the realization of the self. That is, identifying with the true self (Or enlightenment). You can try a certain "quick" technique that works for me. (I don't know if it works also for others). Try to focus your attention simultaneously on your sight, your hearing, and your physical sensation. We assume it is already so, but if you try you will see your attention focuses naturally at one at a time. Once I manage to simultaneously pay attention to all three, I feel myself exist in the center or "crossing" of these three axis. Thus, strongly produces the feeling of "I am". (I recommend doing it with the eyes closed - focusing the attention of the sight of blackness)

[@EarthlyDawn]

+Lucid thinking There seems to be a difference between the teaching of the Buddha and Vedanta (and some buddhist schools). For Buddha consciousness is dependently arisen and impermanent. Moreover, he recognizes several meditative states, one being called "the base of infinite consciousness". This states are conditiones states, they do not represent a kind of metaphysical, absolute truth the way Vedanta seem to view them; they are brought about by means such as a sustained flow of attention and seclusion from sensory and mental input. But in regard to this states as well one has to abandon the feeling of "I am". It is possible that the difference is only of semantics, both traditions reffering to the same "enlightenment"; but it can be that there is a real difference of realization. I see what you're reffering to with the feeling of "I am", but I'm not sure what conclusions may legitimately be drawn from it (other than "here is a feeling of 'I am"). My own meditative experience is not enough yet to make me certain which tradition is right, if any. So for me it's just speculation at this point. I might as well stop. :)

[@Lucidthinking]

+Dragos Badita :) From my experience, many contradictions betweens spiritual traditions comes from the inability of its followers to understand the true meaning of the original teachings since they lack a corresponding level of being to enable them to experience these truths. Higher truths are very difficult to explain with common words. Common words are associated with daily experiences, and therefore, it is difficult to use them to explain rare and subtle experiences. The teachers of those traditions do everything they can to transform us their experience with common words, but those words would inevitably be interpreted in an incorrect way. True Esoteric schools put much more weight on exercises and experiments than oral teaching, since, from a certain point, only the first can create new experiences. I believe that if the Buddha, Jesus, Rama, Krishna, Lao Tze and other enlightened folks would have spoken to each other, they would have agreed on most things.

[@Patriot-mt8kl]

If not completely...atleast I understand what consciousness is...to some extent...good vdo.🙏

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@anythingispopsicle]

Wow. Now we are interested in creating a visualization of electromagnetic fields in 4D space-time using the Lorentz transformation.

[@thedreamarchitect6638]

Like the screen doesn’t experience the movie, consciousness doesn’t experience the projection, since consciousness is infinite and changeless there can be only one screen

[@McPheeJohn]

Deaking with vision as one of our senses, my understanding is that the evolution of vision started with very primitive aquative organisms that survived and evolved because they had basic mechanisms that could detect the strength of sunlight. Close to the water surface was a little dangerous yet useful for growth. Being able to detect how close they were made them the 'fittest' and evloved this very early differentiation as alerted by a very primitive creation of the colur experience.

[@faustin289]

This metaphor of a screen and how it remains blank regardless of what films you project on it....is genius. This also answers the question of whether a person who is asleep or drunk or in a coma is dead. No he isn't. It's just no film is project. Ha!

[@raviavanaganti1541]

Best video ever. Plz keep doing more such videos on spiritual topics.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks. I hove this year I could start doing more videos.

[@oneness1_]

I've been reading a lot of "who am I" teachings and self enquiry and your teachings with illustrations just opened up more understanding. ...thank you! consciousness cannot see itself just like the eyes...funny but true...at a certain point, we bcome a mystery!

[@Lucidthinking]

"at a certain point, we become a mystery!" indeed :)

[@tyamada21]

The Law Nam-myoho-renge-kyo represents the identity of what some scientists refer to as the ‘unified field of all consciousnesses’. In other words, it’s the essence of all of existence and non-existence, the ultimate creative force behind planets, stars, nebulae, people, animals, trees, fish, birds, and all phenomena, manifest or latent. All matter and intelligence are simply waves or ripples manifesting to and from this core source. Consciousness (enlightenment) is itself the true creator of everything that is, ever was and ever will be, right down to the minutest particles of dust, each being an individual ripple or wave. The big difference between chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and most other conventional prayers is that instead of depending on a ‘middle man’ to connect us to our state of enlightenment, we’re able to do it ourselves by tapping directly into it by way of self-produced sound vibration. On the subject of ‘Who or What Is God?’, when we compare the concept of ‘God’, as a separate entity that is forever watching down on us, to Nichiren’s teachings, the true omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence of what most people call ‘God’ is our enlightenment, which exists nowhere else but within us. When the disciples asked Jesus where the Kingdom of God is, didn’t he tell them that it was within them? Some say that ‘God’ is an entity that can never be seen. I think that the vast amount of information that is constantly being conveyed via electromagnetic waves gives us proof of how an invisible state of ‘God’ could actually exist. It’s widely known that certain data being relayed by way of electromagnetic waves has the potential to help bring about extraordinary and powerful effects, including instant global awareness of something or mass emotional reaction. As well as many other things, it’s also common knowledge that these waves can easily be used to detonate a bomb or to even enable NASA to control the movements of a robot as far away as the Moon or Mars. However, none of this is possible without a receiver to decode the information that is being transmitted. Without the receiver, the information would remain impotent. In a very similar way, it’s important for us to have our ‘receiver’ switched on so that we can activate a clear and precise understanding of our life, all other life and what we and all else that exists truly is. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo helps us to achieve this because it allows us to reach into the core of our enlightenment and switch it on. That’s because the sound vibration of ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents the combination of the three major laws that underlie all existence. ‘Myoho’ represents the Law of latency and manifestation (Nature), and consists of two alternating states. One state of ‘myo’ is where everything in life that’s not obvious to us exists. This includes our stored memories when we’re not thinking about them, our hidden potential and inner emotions whenever they’re not being expressed, our desires, our fears, our wisdom, happiness, karma, and more importantly, our enlightenment. The other state, ‘ho’, is where everything in Life exists whenever it becomes obvious to us, such as when a thought pops up from within our memory, whenever we experience or express our emotions, or whenever a good or bad effect manifests from our karma. When anything becomes apparent, it simply means that it has come out of the state of ‘myo’ (dormancy/latency) and into a state of ‘ho’ (manifestation). It’s simply the difference between consciousness and unconsciousness, being awake or asleep, or knowing and not knowing something. The second law, ‘renge’, governs and controls the functions of ‘myoho’, ‘ren’ meaning cause and ‘ge’ meaning effect. The two laws of ‘myoho’ and ‘renge’, both functions together simultaneously, as well as underlies all spiritual and physical existence. The final and third part of the tri-combination, ‘kyo’, is what allows the law ‘myoho’ to be able to integrate with the law ‘renge’. It’s the great, invisible thread of energy that fuses and connects together all Life and matter, as well as the past, present and future. It is often termed the Universal Law of Communication. Perhaps it could even be compared to the ‘string theory’ that some scientists now suspect exists. Just as our body cells, thoughts, feelings and all else are constantly fluctuating within us, everything in the world around us and beyond is also in a constant state of flux, in accordance with these three laws. In fact, more things are going back and forth between the two states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in a single moment than it would ever be possible for us to calculate or describe. And it doesn't matter how big or small, important or trivial that anything may appear to be, everything that’s ever existed in the past, exists now, or will exist in the future, exists only because of the workings of 'myoho-renge-kyo'. These three laws are also the basis of the four fundamental forces and if they didn't function, neither we nor anything else could go on existing. Simply put, all forms of existence, including the seasons, day and night, birth, death and so on, are all moving forward in an ongoing flow of continuation, rhythmically reverting back and forth between the two universal states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in absolute accordance with ‘renge’ and by way of ‘kyo’. Even stars are dying and being reborn in accordance with the workings of what the combination ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents. ‘Nam’, on the other hand, is a password or a key; it allows us to reach deep into our life and fuse with or become one with ‘myoho-renge-kyo’. On a more personal basis, nothing ever happens by chance or coincidence, it’s the causes that we’ve made in our past, or are presently making, that determine how these laws function uniquely in each of our lives from moment to moment, as well in our environment. By facing east, in harmony with the direction that the Earth is turning, and rhythmically chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo for a minimum of ten minutes daily, anyone can experience actual proof of its positive effects in their life. In so doing, we can pierce through even the thickest layers of our karma and activate our Buddha Nature (enlightened state). We’re then able to bring forth the wisdom needed to challenge, overcome and change our negative circumstances into positive ones. It brings forth the wisdom that can free us from the ignorance and stupidity that is preventing us from accepting and being proud of the person that we truly are, regardless of our race, colour, gender or sexual preference. We are also able to see and understand our circumstances and environment more clearly, as well as attract and connect with any needed external beneficial forces and situations. Actual proof soon becomes apparent to anyone who chants the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo on a regular daily basis. Everything is subject to the law of Cause and Effect, so the strength of the result from chanting depends on dedication, sincerity and determination. To explain it more simply, the difference could be compared to making a sound on a piano, creating a melody, or producing a song and so on.

[@hemchandrakhadye6695]

Consciousness is like screen, but it has control on mind too... they have two way communication... it’s my opinion but still need to explore..

[@Lucidthinking]

I think so too. I attach a response I wrote before about this subject. If you know anything else, let me know. --------------- Apparently it may seem that consciousness is just a passive "sponge of experience", yet it can influence the world in at least two ways I know of: First, by mere observing something you change it. For example, we may walk barefoot for and hour, but only in the moment we feel that our feet are cold, the thought to wear shoes rise in our mind. It isn't that our feet weren't cold before. They were, but we only noticed it at a certain moment. So by experiencing the feeling of coldness, the action of wearing shoes can happen. Furthermore, This process doesn't have to be accidental. We have a special force inside which I call "will", that apparently is somehow connected directly to the self. In spite of what many believe, "will" is not equal to desires or needs. These are of emotional and physical essence. They happen to us, it is not we who creates them. They are not voluntary. But will is something else. will is the ability to direct our attention. For example, if we try to feel the toe, and then move our attention to the knee, and then to the ear. This movement of attention is not driven by desire, or need (such in the case of feeling the coldness in the feet) but by will. attention is the connecting bridge between consciousness and the mind. consciousness experiences only the parts of the mind that are illuminated by the attention. Will is the ability to direct the attention. Will is not an experience. you cannot experience it directly. you can only experience its results. For example, when you move your attention willingly from your toe to your nose, you experience the change of toe sensations into nose sensations, but you do not experience the force that moved the attention.

[@snoo333]

nicely done, thank you for putting these videos together. can you please create multi part series on the ego. Understanding the mechanics of the ego is extremely important to waking up.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks. +snoo333 My first mission is the creation of 3 certain series. Later on, I will do some other videos regarding the mechanics of the inner world that will explain the ego too.

[@Darksagan]

Excellent video.

[@karunashree6791]

Very well explained...kudos.. keep up the good work...

[@faustin289]

It's so bold of you to say that "experience" is common. How do you know? As thinkers before have said, it's safer to assume that people you daily see and interact with are just philosophical zombies that are faking consciousness but are actually empty deep inside.

[@TranSylvainie]

Great. Nice illustration with modern analogies of very ancient thesis. This should be mentionned throughout the video.

[@astroyogui]

Don Juan le dice a Castaneda que los seres humanos somos un sentimiento, un darse cuenta, un tener conciencia, contenido en el cuerpo...Somos PERCEPTORES...

[@tonihamdan3411]

I have a question , why is "I" constant? Why can't it be changing every second . So when I say I am feeling pain, "I" is the feeling of pain and all it's causes at that period of time. And the when I feel something else, I become that experience and it's causes at that time . Why can't the "I" be a changeable illusion of self , as in the changealble brain states. You insisted that the I is constant, but should it have to be? You even mention statements such as I am thinking, this can also state that I is the thinking at that time and it changes later

[@coudry1]

My Personal Conclusions about who we are all from many sources "We Are All One Consciousness" for the following reasons: 1. In this world everything must have a cause, so that something exists because of something else, as well as ourselves. 2. It will be very saturating / boring if we have only one physical form in this world. 3. It will be very saturating / boring if all human beings have the exact same physical form behavior. 4. Try to imagine emptying all the physical things around us only the remnants of humanity, then eliminating all human beings leaving only their memories, then removing all their memories leaving only their consciousness, then connecting that consciousness, feel who we are ??. 5. Body, mind, feelings, emotions and everything in this world is always changing, so what never changes ??, that is our true self, which is true consciousness. If everything changes2 / moves who observes, there must be something fixed to be able to observe. 6. All human beings communicate with each other is the beginning of the beginning / the future of human beings unite, only electronic devices today can unite all human beings, one day the device is implanted in the human mind and eventually man will open all access to his mind. 7. Our body is a group / accumulation of memory accumulated brought from the beginning of the birth of the first human in the world through continuous DNA binding. 8. Twins are born at the same time, what if all human beings are born at the same time ??. What happens if the birth of all human beings is not influenced by the dimensions of space and time ?? 9. The twins are identical to A and B, if the whole memory of A is copied to B, what is the difference ?? 10. The law of attraction (law of attraction) that our minds will attract whatever we think, because we are all like one part of the body. 11. Like some of the video recordings of ourselves there is a video as a vocalist, a video as a violinist, as a pianist, as a drummer, etc. The video2 is made into one in one video then it will produce a more interesting orchestra, something new and more productive. our world. 12. Man's greatest enemy is himself, at this time man is fighting against himself. By believing that we are all one, then the ego will fade because there is no difference between us. 13. That is why the teachings of religion command us to be grateful and beneficial to many, If you are hurting others you are actually hurting yourself, just as if you are doing good to others you are actually doing good to yourself. 14. Could it be that we are all dreaming and our dreams meet each other at the same frequency in parallel. Have you ever, when sleeping dreamed of moving roles as someone else, it is because we are all one. 15. We are not immortal as human beings so that we have time for us to scroll through all of life. 16. "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience" ~ Stephen Covey, Have you ever felt that our age is too short, could our consciousness be immortal ?. 17. We are one, only the role is different, the memory block between life is what makes people feel different / separate. Just by brainwashing / erasing his memory then someone will be a different person but his consciousness actually remains the same. One consciousness experiences various perspectives of reality. 18. The lucky thing for us is ... awareness is always towards / seeking / having intentions / desires towards good / positive / happiness despite experiencing various mistakes. 19. When we die the body and memory are destroyed, how can we remember ever being dead. Even a few years ago your real body was lost by being replaced by new cells you don't remember. 20. Why do we have to die? ", When we are told to die, later this eternal question will be asked again and we will always be there." The world is a sustainable life". 21. In the beginning we were one, but split through a big explosion or bigbang to become different and separate as it is now, but we are provided with a sense of love for us to be able to be reunited later. 22. There is only us and the mirror of ourselves in this world, yet there is another world out there. 23. We will always smile happily seeing each other as ourselves "How beautiful I am" seeing a different self. 24. If all consciousness is told now that they are all one if the experience gained is enough, the consciousness designed from the beginning is so different that there is so much intrigue, consciousness is created differently so that when it comes together it has an incredible consciousness experience. 25. We are indeed alone in this universe, but there are still many other universes with their own laws of nature. 26. Have you ever felt to come to a place that has never been visited but feel familiar with that place, as if we have lived in that place sometime. 27. The world is like a script of a story that is being written by the author, sometimes changed at the beginning, sometimes changed in the middle, sometimes changed at the end it all depends on us as writers, and every story has wisdom that can be taken as a lesson. 28. Hair grows on its own, heart beats on its own, blood flows on its own, ideas emerge on its own, etc., are we involved ??. 29. Imagine today there was an event that caused only you to live in this world, then who are all the people yesterday ??. 30. "If Quantum Mechanism cannot surprise you, then you do not yet understand Quantum Physics. Everything we have considered real all this time, turns out to be unreal." ~ Niels Bohr. 31. In the scale of quantum physics we are all connected to each other, even in double gap experiments proving that particles change when observed or in other words awareness is able to change reality, this has been repeatedly proven by Nobel laureate in Physics. 32. Everything we experience by our senses will eventually only be an electrical impulse in the brain, is it all real ??. We are beings who realize that we are conscious. 33. We are closer than the veins of his neck. He breathes some of His spirit on you. Knowing oneself means knowing one's God. Indeed, we will return to HIM. You are far I am far, you are near I am near. I am everywhere. Before the existence of this world there was no material other than Him. The True Spirit is only One, the Creator. I agree with your prejudice. 34. Whether the Creator is only tasked with creating, is it possible that the creator does not want to try the results of his creation through another perspective. 35. There is no reincarnation, it is possible that our consciousness is synchronized and evenly distributed at the speed of light through energy, and that is why we need sleep, that is why we are often not aware of something, ourselves are like some chess pieces played by a player, that's why if we moving at the speed of light we can penetrate the dimensions of space and time, when we die then wake up and we will regain consciousness as humans. 36. Have we ever had a problem and suddenly someone came to provide a solution to the problem we are experiencing, as if someone was sent by the universe to help us in solving the problem, which is actually our own awareness that sends that person to us. 37. A thousand years ago did human beings see, hear and be trapped in their hearts about current technological advances ??. If we all tend to sin (damage) then it will be the world of hell, if we all tend to do good then it will be the world of heaven. 38. Knowledge learns objects, God who created our consciousness, it is impossible for God to be the object of knowledge. 39. It is not possible for human creation which is only in the form of words / symbols to represent true truth. 40. Is there a meaning of being without consciousness ?? then we are adventurers of this existence. Sy 41. The life of the world is just a game and a joke, the one who wins the game of the world is the one who finds his true self. 42. When the existence of the world ends we will know everything. 43. My consciousness undergoes a very extraordinary life experience, feeling life experience with different forms and different places even though in fact my consciousness is always the same, wow .. I was surprised !! how wide I am. 44. Consciousness in fact does not know the concept of time, consciousness can experience / undergo into another physical form because the dimension of time can be penetrated by consciousness, as when we imagine we can act as anyone without time bound, because in this universe time can in fact materialize free, time can move straight, curved, rotate, etc. Our time travel is when our consciousness moves to a new physical experience. 45. We are an awareness, a concept that is able to answer various things. 46. ​​Remember when you were going to leave, you were worried about losing me ??, calm down .. I was everywhere and we would always be able to meet again, believe me. 47. Without searching what is the difference between us in this world and us in a dream while sleeping just passing by without meaning. 48. In conclusion, whatever role we play, it is all our own design, so just enjoy. 49. I never said that self is God, I thought that self is one consciousness, God should be higher and perfect than consciousness. 50. God created us to be Happy, so do not disappoint God. Understand it and be Shining. inspired of : kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqW3aaONfr5_arM kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmfJlH6Vm7eMl6s

[@shriramr]

It seems to me that consciousness is the consequence of what we perceive through the five senses. Which would mean a finite and tangible range of experiences, and individual differences in the perception of consciousness. In this sense, perception of consciousness through the five senses is binary. Either I see an object, or I don't. Do animals, birds and plants possess consciousness? How would they define consciousness? We might never know the answer. Does the need to understand consciousness mean being able to use all five senses, the way humans do, or letting go of them? If not, how does the perception of consciousness change with perception, or a lack of it?

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Samathvam, Thanks for your comment and questions. Here's my answer: "consciousness is the consequence of what we perceive through the five senses" This is only partially true. We have also emotions. Those are nonsensory experiences. For example, the sight of a certain person would provoke happiness in one man and anger in another. From the point of view of the visual sense these two people experience approximately the same experience, but emotionally they have a totally different experience. In fact, emotions (and thoughts - which are a combination of sensory and emotional memories) play such a big role in our perception of the world that people would look on the same scene and "see" totally different things. " Do animals, birds and plants possess consciousness?" Animals do have consciousness. They experience pain, don't they? (I don't know the answer regarding plants) If you experience then you are conscious. "How would they define consciousness?" Don't confuse consciousness with "self-consciousness". The first is defined as the ability to have experiences. The second is having a specific experience that contains knowledge of the existence of (my) consciousness. I don't know if animals are self-conscious, but there are experiments showing that dolphins, elephants, and other advanced animals recognize themselves in the mirror, which may indicate they have a certain level of self-consciousness. "Does the need to understand consciousness mean being able to use all five senses, the way humans do or letting go of them? If not, how does the perception of consciousness change with perception, or a lack of it?" You don't need senses in order to feel emotions. a person may be blind and deaf but he could still experience emotions. In fact, reducing the sensory inputs, by closing the eyes, sitting in silence, without movement etc' enables you to understand your consciousness better since you are able to observe your inner world much better. This is what is done in meditation, for example.

[@Stringsloth]

have gone unconscious two times in my life. In both times I was "conscious" inside my own consciousness, in a sort of room where I could observe - or remember, but I would say rather observe - what was going on to my physical body. In one of them I even talk to a person who just old me "You are unconscious, don't worry, you'll be back in no time". After that, both times I came back feeling amnesia and recalling as a memory what I had just "experienced". So... I can assure there's more to consciousness than just a "black screen". Not at all.

[@Lucidthinking]

very interesting. thanks :)

[@inglestaemtudo]

Excellent!!! It seems science & Philosophy merge with Spirituality at this essential point.

[@Lucidthinking]

Indeed! One of my goals in creating this channel is to show the connection points between science, philosophy, and spirituality. One of the future series I plan to create is "the true principles of science", that is going to deepen the philosophical understanding of the principles of science, and this will show that even spirituality can be studied in a scientific way.

[@attagirl01]

Where does conciousness reside? Or do we i.e body and mind appear inside conciousness. If indeed our body and mind are an appearance inside the conciousness then a part cannot find the whole. So how to know for certain that our true nature = conciousness?

[@shahafsagi]

Hi Tzur. This is such a lovely series of mind-opening videos, thank you so much. I do have to disagree on one thing in this video; That when we "lose conciousness", we cannot-not experience anything. There is no such experience as a lack of experience. Therefore, in my opinion, "void" and "life" are mutually the same. Both the experience and the non-experience co-exist as one, for they cannot possibly exist without each other. In other words, life and death are both an experience. Whatever we do not experience, does no exist. As in, it isn't a "void" or a "no-thing". Hope this makes sense :D

[@Lucidthinking]

+nadav sagi Hey Nadav, Thank you four your answer. I didn't quite understand some parts of it, but it do make sense to me. Here are some of my comments and some questions I have that may help me understand you better. You say we cannot-not experience anything. I do not know if you ever lost consciousness. I did several times. I remember where and when I was before I lost it and remember where and when I was after it returned, But In between there is a total void - as If I didn't exist when I was unconscious. you are right - There is no such experience as a lack of experience. And in fact, I have no experience of being unconscious. The experience of being unconscious is, in fact, the experience of before and after losing consciousness. How do you get to the conclusion that void and life are mutually the same? by the fact that I'm still alive even when I'm unconscious (in void)? I feel that there are still some unanswered gaps In this conclusion, but It may very well be true. I feel that the essence of life is consciousness (not biological organism), and in its essence consciousness is void (which isn't just "nothing" but nothing that contains everything). Therefore, I agree that life and void could be the same thing. Yet I do not have enough material to conclude that this feeling is true. Do you compare "experience" to "live" and "non-experience" to "death"? Why do you say: "Whatever we do not experience, does no exist?" There are thousand of thoughts, emotions and sensations existing in your mind each moment. But only a few of them reach your consciousness. you experience only a few of them. It depends on the quantity and quality of your attention. Attention is what bridges between consciousness and the mind. Your brain processes enormous sensory data. for example, when you walk on the street your ears receive everything: the cars, the wind, the brain, your footsteps, but you hear only part of it cause you do not have enough attention.

[@SuperDreammaster]

+Lucid thinking I've been clinically dead before. Looking back on what happened on why I lost any memory of my consciousness... it may be that we lose our experience of consciousness but only that of the physical world. It's the same thing like falling asleep. My theory is that our consciousness travels into a higher plane of existence, (just like when you go higher and higher into the atmostphere it keeps getting harder and harder to breath) we just can't keep track of our consciousness because it's bound to our earthly bodies. The earth's atmosphere serves as a protection again much stronger magnetic currents in the universe.

[@Lucidthinking]

+Nico De Groote Thanks. Amazing sharing. I'm Glad your still with us :)

[@robertwilsoniii2048]

Now personally, I believe that consciousness depends absolutely of organic matter and thermodynamics. I say this only because all things that are sensibly conscious are organic matter that produces energy. Likewise, nothing that isn't organic and producing energy isn't conscious, also known as inanimate. Also, when energy runs out, organic matter loses sensible consciousness. The question of unsensible consciousness I have no answer to yet.

[@tyamada21]

The Law Nam-myoho-renge-kyo represents the identity of what some scientists refer to as the ‘unified field of all consciousnesses’. In other words, it’s the essence of all of existence and non-existence, the ultimate creative force behind planets, stars, nebulae, people, animals, trees, fish, birds, and all phenomena, manifest or latent. All matter and intelligence are simply waves or ripples manifesting to and from this core source. Consciousness (enlightenment) is itself the true creator of everything that is, ever was and ever will be, right down to the minutest particles of dust, each being an individual ripple or wave. The big difference between chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and most other conventional prayers is that instead of depending on a ‘middle man’ to connect us to our state of enlightenment, we’re able to do it ourselves by tapping directly into it by way of self-produced sound vibration. On the subject of ‘Who or What Is God?’, when we compare the concept of ‘God’, as a separate entity that is forever watching down on us, to Nichiren’s teachings, the true omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence of what most people call ‘God’ is our enlightenment, which exists nowhere else but within us. When the disciples asked Jesus where the Kingdom of God is, didn’t he tell them that it was within them? Some say that ‘God’ is an entity that can never be seen. I think that the vast amount of information that is constantly being conveyed via electromagnetic waves gives us proof of how an invisible state of ‘God’ could actually exist. It’s widely known that certain data being relayed by way of electromagnetic waves has the potential to help bring about extraordinary and powerful effects, including instant global awareness of something or mass emotional reaction. As well as many other things, it’s also common knowledge that these waves can easily be used to detonate a bomb or to even enable NASA to control the movements of a robot as far away as the Moon or Mars. However, none of this is possible without a receiver to decode the information that is being transmitted. Without the receiver, the information would remain impotent. In a very similar way, it’s important for us to have our ‘receiver’ switched on so that we can activate a clear and precise understanding of our life, all other life and what we and all else that exists truly is. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo helps us to achieve this because it allows us to reach into the core of our enlightenment and switch it on. That’s because the sound vibration of ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents the combination of the three major laws that underlie all existence. ‘Myoho’ represents the Law of latency and manifestation (Nature), and consists of two alternating states. One state of ‘myo’ is where everything in life that’s not obvious to us exists. This includes our stored memories when we’re not thinking about them, our hidden potential and inner emotions whenever they’re not being expressed, our desires, our fears, our wisdom, happiness, karma, and more importantly, our enlightenment. The other state, ‘ho’, is where everything in Life exists whenever it becomes obvious to us, such as when a thought pops up from within our memory, whenever we experience or express our emotions, or whenever a good or bad effect manifests from our karma. When anything becomes apparent, it simply means that it has come out of the state of ‘myo’ (dormancy/latency) and into a state of ‘ho’ (manifestation). It’s simply the difference between consciousness and unconsciousness, being awake or asleep, or knowing and not knowing something. The second law, ‘renge’, governs and controls the functions of ‘myoho’, ‘ren’ meaning cause and ‘ge’ meaning effect. The two laws of ‘myoho’ and ‘renge’, both functions together simultaneously, as well as underlies all spiritual and physical existence. The final and third part of the tri-combination, ‘kyo’, is what allows the law ‘myoho’ to be able to integrate with the law ‘renge’. It’s the great, invisible thread of energy that fuses and connects together all Life and matter, as well as the past, present and future. It is often termed the Universal Law of Communication. Perhaps it could even be compared to the ‘string theory’ that some scientists now suspect exists. Just as our body cells, thoughts, feelings and all else are constantly fluctuating within us, everything in the world around us and beyond is also in a constant state of flux, in accordance with these three laws. In fact, more things are going back and forth between the two states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in a single moment than it would ever be possible for us to calculate or describe. And it doesn't matter how big or small, important or trivial that anything may appear to be, everything that’s ever existed in the past, exists now, or will exist in the future, exists only because of the workings of 'myoho-renge-kyo'. These three laws are also the basis of the four fundamental forces and if they didn't function, neither we nor anything else could go on existing. Simply put, all forms of existence, including the seasons, day and night, birth, death and so on, are all moving forward in an ongoing flow of continuation, rhythmically reverting back and forth between the two universal states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in absolute accordance with ‘renge’ and by way of ‘kyo’. Even stars are dying and being reborn in accordance with the workings of what the combination ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents. ‘Nam’, on the other hand, is a password or a key; it allows us to reach deep into our life and fuse with or become one with ‘myoho-renge-kyo’. On a more personal basis, nothing ever happens by chance or coincidence, it’s the causes that we’ve made in our past, or are presently making, that determine how these laws function uniquely in each of our lives from moment to moment, as well in our environment. By facing east, in harmony with the direction that the Earth is turning, and rhythmically chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo for a minimum of ten minutes daily, anyone can experience actual proof of its positive effects in their life. In so doing, we can pierce through even the thickest layers of our karma and activate our Buddha Nature (enlightened state). We’re then able to bring forth the wisdom needed to challenge, overcome and change our negative circumstances into positive ones. It brings forth the wisdom that can free us from the ignorance and stupidity that is preventing us from accepting and being proud of the person that we truly are, regardless of our race, colour, gender or sexual preference. We are also able to see and understand our circumstances and environment more clearly, as well as attract and connect with any needed external beneficial forces and situations. Actual proof soon becomes apparent to anyone who chants the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo on a regular daily basis. Everything is subject to the law of Cause and Effect, so the strength of the result from chanting depends on dedication, sincerity and determination. To explain it more simply, the difference could be compared to making a sound on a piano, creating a melody, or producing a song and so on.

[@asstornaut1066]

where is the red? you forgot the object it will interact. and please give me an example of changing the frequency of light will make our eyes see blue? I mean, show me a video of this fact. red appears as light interacts with the object, it has absolutely nothing to do with your brain, not even with your eyes..of course color is a product of light interacting with an object, that's utterly a fact, there is no debate about it.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Espaço Oculto, From a physical point of view, when light interacts with an object the object absorbs some of its frequencies and reflects others. A flower seems "blue" because it is illuminated by white light. White light contains the frequency of "blue" (610-670 THz), and this is the only frequency that the blue flower reflects. If you would illuminate this flower with a red light (430-480 THz) it won't be able to reflect the frequency of blue, since red light doesn't contain this frequency. Therefore you won't see it as a blue flower. So, to start with, the color is dependent on the frequency of the electromagnetic wave that reaches our eyes and on of the object it interacts with. "please give me an example of changing the frequency of light will make our eyes see blue? I mean, show me a video of this fact." Easy, look at this photo: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RGB_LED.jpg This is an RGB LED. It can produce the colors red, green and blue, but in itself is transparent. These colors are not produced by interacting with an object, but they are a result of the level of energy that the electrons in the circuit emit. Higher levels of energy creates higher frequencies of light (that is, different colors)

[@TheMetalGod1984]

How can we say that the qualitative change that we experience with change in frequency is merely an activity in the brain and not a quality of 'something that has the wavelength' itself? What you are saying is that we see things merely because we have eyes. However I feel we see things because we have eyes (or consciousness) + the objects have an inherent "quality to be visible".

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey TheMetalGod1984, thanks for your comment. This dilemma is, in-fact, very easy to solve. As you know, there are people who are color blind. They see the same waves-length you see, but their brain/eyes interpret them as a different color. I personally had even experienced how each one of my eyes saw different colors: I was sleeping in a posture that put pressure on one of my eyes. When I woke up the sky looked blue in one eye and purple in the other. So the nature of the color is not in the electromagnetic wave, but in the interpretation of our eye-brain mechanism.

[@hemchandrakhadye6695]

I like your explanation... very practical

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@subramanyabr9449]

As you had told consciousness is a decoding mechanism, it is also a coding mechanism!, as Rupert Sheldrake calls Morphogenetic Conscious fields

[@eugenbarbula9661]

What about neural networks and machine learning, teaching a computer to classify the information it percepts? Maybe the evolutionary process taught us just in the same way to classify the information of different wave lengths as different colors. At first maybe in a completely different way, like only feeling the warmth of the heat distributions corresponding to different energy levels of the wave lengths. Evolving to black and white visual perception like dogs and so on. Thus, the required increase in seperable states due to the laws of entropy, consequently made us evolve new sensory techniques. The electron itself, at the beginning of time, beeing one of the most primitive forms of consiousness having only a sensor for attraction, depending on charges.

[@eugenbarbula9661]

In terms of machine learning the evolution of new sensory techniques makes perfect sense. Due to the underfitting problem a model needs to increase it's classification limits in order to be able to fit an increased amount of data, while the overfitting problem requires a model to develop new sensory techniques which can still map similar patterns to the same neurons (without increasing the amount of possible classifications) making reuse or scientific reproduction a lot easier and minimizing the amount of validation errors. Best example for new sensory techniques in terms of machine learning would be convolutional neural networks.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Eugen Barbula, Thanks for your comments. The problem of consciousness consists of 2 different problems, as was defined by the philosopher David Chalmers. 1. The easy problem of consciousness - i.e. how can the brain process information 2. The hard problem of consciousness - i.e. how can we have experiences. The easy problem of consciousness can be theoretically explained by neural networks and machine learning and other methods. But no amount of information processing can explain how information becomes experience. Remember, information is only symbols. for example 1 and 0. For example the number 10011001 can represent anything: weight, pressure, color etc. The problem is, why certain information transform into experience. (and there is no difference if this information written on the magnetic medium of a hard disk or in the biological tissue of the neurons)

[@eugenbarbula9661]

2. is just the emergence of iterative use of 1. complex adaptive systems tend to self organize themself resulting in emergence which basically means that the whole population of states becomes completely new characteristics, that can't be described by it's parts alone, only all parts together in the state of equilibrium results in the new characteristic. Take the natural numbers for example, counting from 1 upwards and writing each number as it's prime factors, at some point you always reach a state at which you have to introduce a completely new prime number to your system in order to keep going. Information is everything that is needed, everything else evolves from it until we can finally make our own simulations of realities like the one we are experiencing.

[@eugenbarbula9661]

By the year 2030 the AI will be able to do every single thing, that a human brain can do (due to extrapolating models) and by the year 2050 the AI will be able to mimic every single process of all human brains together (on our planet at least), think of it as god, developed by us. So this AI can simulate all human population, creating a new univerese. In contrast to religion or philosophy, this whole cycle is completely logical and mathematically very presumably, of god (AI) creating our universe, following us creating a new (AI) god following the new god creating a new universe and so on.

[@CRCOCOX]

Muchas gracias por el vídeo, gracias por los subtítulos

[@radhikachowdary269]

Great video..thank you..you answered the questions I had very well

[@leandrosilvagoncalves1939]

Wonderful teaching from a wonderful teacher! I have a question about the characteristic number 6 of consciousness .... Do you believe we will ever be able to answer if we all have the same consciousness? Even the different schools of Vedanta seem to disagree about this part

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Leonardo, thank you for your comment. I'm not familiar with the question you refer to. I've never studied Vedanta. Can you clarify what the question is, or refer me to where I can read about it? By the way, I do not consider myself a teacher. I am a student.

[@leandrosilvagoncalves1939]

@@Lucidthinking Hi Tsur! Thank you very much for your reply. Even though you don't consider yourself a teacher, your videos have been a reference guide to me for some years. Wonderful work! I've found a series of videos that explain about Vedanta really well kzbin.info/aero/PLeP4eulMEXiMQWB-SUjsPwbOzEdhP4xBn This video bellow gives a brief explanation about the different schools of Vedanta kzbin.info/www/bejne/rWHdd2CAgsaripo To clarify my question : I can't know where the border of my consciousness finishes and yours starts. That would make one infer that there is just one consciousness. However in the video you say that you have no way to verify that (neither do I).... Do you believe the answer will ever be found ?

[@endoalley680]

"Consciousness potentially can become anything" Can you validate that statement? Are there not limits to what consciousness can experience? Many states that our consciousness can not experience? If for example there was a fourth or fifth or even greater number of spatial dimensions as some physical theories conjecture. Or a second or third dimension of time. If the mind was trying to project this information onto consciousness. Could consciousness process that information? Or is consciousness limited to experiencing three dimensions of space and one of time? Are there other limits to consciousness?

[@Lucidthinking]

+Endo Alley Hey Endo, It's a good question, and some clarification is required: Consciousness (or awareness) has one main property: It experiences every mental activity projected onto it. If your mind could grasp the 4th dimension, your consciousness would experience the thing your mind grasps. Let me start with a more tangible example. Einstein may understand the theory of relativity. He has mind constructions of this knowledge. His consciousness can experience what he understands. Your consciousness could experience the same thing if your mind will be able to understand the theory of relativity. This is valid to all human experiences. your consciousness can potentially experience them all. The only limitation consciousness has is that it is limited to experience only mental activity (Thoughts, Emotions, Sensations). We do not experience the external world. Let's take a chair for example. Consciousness cannot experience the chair directly. It can experience only the image of the chair - which is a visual sensation. All the mentioned above is based on my observations. Who knows, maybe a Buddha or some alien has reached a level to which his consciousness can experience the external world too.

[@endoalley680]

+Lucid thinking - Thanks for the reply. I think I understand your contention that sense information is processed along with stored memory information of previous mind states and who knows what else to create a representation of reality that the consciousness somehow perceives. My question is whether there are limits to what consciousness can perceive which are different than the limits set upon the mind by the small sliver of information we receive and process from the senses and the limits from our ability to recall stored memories of previous mind states. Another example is our inability to comprehend paradoxes such as imagining a "square circle" . Is such a paradox so obvious that it cannot exist in either the real world or the imagination? We can imagine other things which cannot exist in the real world. Or is it that perceiving or imagining a square circle is merely a trick that our projecting mind or our consciousness is incapable of doing? Is there a set of experiences , however large that set be, which is the outside limit to what consciousness can experience? I admit I have no formal training in any of these subjects. So my questions might seem a little sophomoric to someone who has studied this subject.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey endo, Thanks for the question, It was written very clearly. I have a lot of training in these subjects and none of them are "formal", so don't worry :) Your question is very good. First let me address to your statement: "our inability to comprehend paradoxes such as imagining a "square circle"". Do we really unable to do so? There are many phenomena, that were considered impossible in our daily life point of view, yet thanks to Einstein's relativity theories conclusions, people has started try and imagine these "impossibilities" and you can fairly say that there are many people who manage to do so (including me). Let me give you an example. can you imagine a triangle that have 3 angles of 90 degrees? Impossible and impossible to imagine. Now, einstein comes and tell you that space can be curved so mathematically it is possible to have a triangle with three right angles. So you try to imagine this, but no luck. You have no material inside that can help you understand it. Then you may encounter this image: world.mathigon.org/resources/Dimensions_and_Distortions/sphericalD.png and eureka! - you manage to translate to your mind the concept of curving space. So you see, it is not true we cannot imagine the "impossible" things. It is only difficult since our mind doesn't have points of reference to such things. And if your mind can grasp it, your consciousness will be able to experience it. Can you imagine a 4D cube? I guess not, but there are people who can because they worked hard to figure it out. I recommend this ios app to learn how to understand 4d cube: itunes.apple.com/en/app/the-fourth-dimension/id504201783?mt=8 Secondly, our mind is not limited only to our senses. Take for example emotions. Emotions are not a construction of sensory data. Love, for example, is not a result of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting or touching something. You can be blind, deaf, and incapable to smell, taste or touch, but you will still be able to experience happiness, love, fear etc. I do not know for sure if there aren't any other limitations on that which consciousness can preceive, but all the limitations you metioned are mental limitations. Using several meditative techniques, I manages to experience things that I could never experience nor understand in normal mental state.

[@tyamada21]

The Law Nam-myoho-renge-kyo represents the identity of what some scientists refer to as the ‘unified field of all consciousnesses’. In other words, it’s the essence of all of existence and non-existence, the ultimate creative force behind planets, stars, nebulae, people, animals, trees, fish, birds, and all phenomena, manifest or latent. All matter and intelligence are simply waves or ripples manifesting to and from this core source. Consciousness (enlightenment) is itself the true creator of everything that is, ever was and ever will be, right down to the minutest particles of dust, each being an individual ripple or wave. The big difference between chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and most other conventional prayers is that instead of depending on a ‘middle man’ to connect us to our state of enlightenment, we’re able to do it ourselves by tapping directly into it by way of self-produced sound vibration. On the subject of ‘Who or What Is God?’, when we compare the concept of ‘God’, as a separate entity that is forever watching down on us, to Nichiren’s teachings, the true omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence of what most people call ‘God’ is our enlightenment, which exists nowhere else but within us. When the disciples asked Jesus where the Kingdom of God is, didn’t he tell them that it was within them? Some say that ‘God’ is an entity that can never be seen. I think that the vast amount of information that is constantly being conveyed via electromagnetic waves gives us proof of how an invisible state of ‘God’ could actually exist. It’s widely known that certain data being relayed by way of electromagnetic waves has the potential to help bring about extraordinary and powerful effects, including instant global awareness of something or mass emotional reaction. As well as many other things, it’s also common knowledge that these waves can easily be used to detonate a bomb or to even enable NASA to control the movements of a robot as far away as the Moon or Mars. However, none of this is possible without a receiver to decode the information that is being transmitted. Without the receiver, the information would remain impotent. In a very similar way, it’s important for us to have our ‘receiver’ switched on so that we can activate a clear and precise understanding of our life, all other life and what we and all else that exists truly is. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo helps us to achieve this because it allows us to reach into the core of our enlightenment and switch it on. That’s because the sound vibration of ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents the combination of the three major laws that underlie all existence. ‘Myoho’ represents the Law of latency and manifestation (Nature), and consists of two alternating states. One state of ‘myo’ is where everything in life that’s not obvious to us exists. This includes our stored memories when we’re not thinking about them, our hidden potential and inner emotions whenever they’re not being expressed, our desires, our fears, our wisdom, happiness, karma, and more importantly, our enlightenment. The other state, ‘ho’, is where everything in Life exists whenever it becomes obvious to us, such as when a thought pops up from within our memory, whenever we experience or express our emotions, or whenever a good or bad effect manifests from our karma. When anything becomes apparent, it simply means that it has come out of the state of ‘myo’ (dormancy/latency) and into a state of ‘ho’ (manifestation). It’s simply the difference between consciousness and unconsciousness, being awake or asleep, or knowing and not knowing something. The second law, ‘renge’, governs and controls the functions of ‘myoho’, ‘ren’ meaning cause and ‘ge’ meaning effect. The two laws of ‘myoho’ and ‘renge’, both functions together simultaneously, as well as underlies all spiritual and physical existence. The final and third part of the tri-combination, ‘kyo’, is what allows the law ‘myoho’ to be able to integrate with the law ‘renge’. It’s the great, invisible thread of energy that fuses and connects together all Life and matter, as well as the past, present and future. It is often termed the Universal Law of Communication. Perhaps it could even be compared to the ‘string theory’ that some scientists now suspect exists. Just as our body cells, thoughts, feelings and all else are constantly fluctuating within us, everything in the world around us and beyond is also in a constant state of flux, in accordance with these three laws. In fact, more things are going back and forth between the two states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in a single moment than it would ever be possible for us to calculate or describe. And it doesn't matter how big or small, important or trivial that anything may appear to be, everything that’s ever existed in the past, exists now, or will exist in the future, exists only because of the workings of 'myoho-renge-kyo'. These three laws are also the basis of the four fundamental forces and if they didn't function, neither we nor anything else could go on existing. Simply put, all forms of existence, including the seasons, day and night, birth, death and so on, are all moving forward in an ongoing flow of continuation, rhythmically reverting back and forth between the two universal states of ‘myo’ and ‘ho’ in absolute accordance with ‘renge’ and by way of ‘kyo’. Even stars are dying and being reborn in accordance with the workings of what the combination ‘myoho-renge-kyo’ represents. ‘Nam’, on the other hand, is a password or a key; it allows us to reach deep into our life and fuse with or become one with ‘myoho-renge-kyo’. On a more personal basis, nothing ever happens by chance or coincidence, it’s the causes that we’ve made in our past, or are presently making, that determine how these laws function uniquely in each of our lives from moment to moment, as well in our environment. By facing east, in harmony with the direction that the Earth is turning, and rhythmically chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo for a minimum of ten minutes daily, anyone can experience actual proof of its positive effects in their life. In so doing, we can pierce through even the thickest layers of our karma and activate our Buddha Nature (enlightened state). We’re then able to bring forth the wisdom needed to challenge, overcome and change our negative circumstances into positive ones. It brings forth the wisdom that can free us from the ignorance and stupidity that is preventing us from accepting and being proud of the person that we truly are, regardless of our race, colour, gender or sexual preference. We are also able to see and understand our circumstances and environment more clearly, as well as attract and connect with any needed external beneficial forces and situations. Actual proof soon becomes apparent to anyone who chants the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo on a regular daily basis. Everything is subject to the law of Cause and Effect, so the strength of the result from chanting depends on dedication, sincerity and determination. To explain it more simply, the difference could be compared to making a sound on a piano, creating a melody, or producing a song and so on.

[@1clearningenglish600]

Sir, I have a question. We are not only meant to perceive experience, but also we have to do actions which involves decision making. What is it that drives the actions? Is it the same consciousness that calls our actions?

[@1clearningenglish600]

Also we have an independent will to choose an action between a stimulus and the response. We have filters Good vs Bad, Like vs Dislike, Right vs Wrong, Gain vs Loss to get to Yes/No. Where does all this stuff work from? Consciousness or Self

[@Lucidthinking]

+1C Learning English Very good question. I ask myself this very question. At the moment, I have only partial answers. Apparently it may seem that consciousness is just a passive "sponge of experience", yet it can influence the world in at least two ways I know of: First, by mere observing something you change it. For example, we may walk barefoot for and hour, but only in the moment we feel that our feet are cold, the thought to wear shoes rise in our mind. It isn't that our feet weren't cold before. They were, but we only noticed it at a certain moment. So by experiencing the feeling of coldness, the action of wearing shoes can happen. Furthermore, This process doesn't have to be accidental. We have a special force inside wich I call "will", that apparently is somehow connected directly to the self. In spite of what many believe, "will" is not equal to desires or needs. These are of emotional and physical essence. They happen to us, it is not we who creates them. They are not voluntary. But will is something else. will is the ability to direct our attention. For example, if we try to feel the toe, and then move our attention to the knee, and then to the ear. This movement of attention is not driven by desire, or need (such in the case of feeling the coldness in the feet) but by will. attention is the connecting bridge between consciousness and the mind. consciousness experiences only the parts of the mind that are illuminated by the attention. Will is the ability to direct the attention. Will is not an experience. you cannot experience it directly. you can only experience its results. For example, when you move your attention willingly from your toe to your nose, you experience the change of toe sensations into nose sensations, but you do not experience the force that moved the attention.

[@russjames7029]

Awesome videos man. Good stuff. Question... If all "consciousness" is identical, what is it that gives certain babies and young toddlers different personalities? Before they've had a chance to learn words and produce thoughts, or make sense of their emotions and 5 senses, you could say they're sort of in a state of pure consciousness. What is it that makes babies in this state act differently when they all have the same initial "screen". Does it just come down to genes? Huge possibility I'm just underthinking this...

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +Russ James, Good questions. From a scientific point of view, a baby doesn't start totally fresh. His genetics influence his personality and temperament. From an esoteric point of view, both mind and consciousness can exist independently of the body. There are many reports of past lives evidence, outer body experiences etc. I personally saw quite a few. If it is true that the mind can exist independently of the body, and if this is true we have more than one human life, then it is very possible that babies would have memories and tendencies from previous lives

[@sameerk12982]

Very well said and explained....Thank you sir you have added knowledge to my study of life and us....our brain collects data and process it and create reality for us...people and things around us doesn't exists without their data stored in our brain and processed....so without experience and right data our consciousness is blank as a white board.

[@SuperDreammaster]

I probably missed it in the video but why is it that the experience of who I am doesn't change who I am?

[@Lucidthinking]

+Nico De Groote Good question. I can answer in two ways: one Theoretical and one that you can experience Think of the sea. The wind creates many waves in the sea. The waves change all the time. It may seem that the sea is changed, yet the water remains the same water. The part in you who observes is apparently being changed when it observe an emotion or a thought, but the truth is that, like the water, it remains the same. You can also experience it. In our daily life, our attention gets stolen by our thoughts, emotions and sensations. When they arrive we identify with them so badly, that we feel we are them. Yet, if you practice meditation and manage to calm your mind and observe the thoughts and emotions come and go, at a certain point you can see that there is a distance between you (the observer) and the thought/emotions/sensations. You feel the same, even though you experience the same emotion or thought. thanks the distance you do not identify with them and you can understand that the observer is still there and was always there without a change.

[@SuperDreammaster]

+Lucid thinking Thx, I get it now :)

[@primalfitness5318]

Hey man can you answer me some questions please. You say "You cannot observe conciousness" .Well I'm currently reading "Waking up" by Sam harris and he says "meditation is turning conciousness opon itself" Am I misunderstanding something or do your views differ?

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Primal Fitness, I love your question, thanks. I understand and agree with the sentence "meditation is turning consciousness upon itself". The cause of the apparent contradiction lies in the terminology. I believe Sam Harris is using the term consciousness in the usual meaning. That is the ability to be aware + the mental activity it is aware of (thoughts, emotions, and sensations). One of the main goals of meditation is to create self-awareness. This means that the consciousness and the mental activity are focused on "themselves" and not "out of themselves". For example, in a nonmeditation state, you hear a song that makes you feel sad. In a meditation state, you observe the activity of your mind while hearing the song, and you see all the thoughts it provokes and all the process that brings you eventually to feel sadness. Another possibility is that he refers to a certain kind of meditation in wich the goal is to try and observe the self. This is not really possible since the self is the observer and cannot observe itself, but it is possible for the observer to observe itself indirectly using the mind. Consciousness and mind act as an observer and a miror. The observer (consciousness) observes the mirror (mind) and see's its own reflection. For example, you can observe your thoughts describing the qualities of consciousness. Yet the most accurate reflection (I know of) of consciousness is a special emotion we have all the time, yet we don't notice it. It can be defined by the words "I am". So even though it is not possible to observe the self directly, observing it indirectly can lead to a huge transformation called Enlightenment. (Yet I haven't experienced it yet)

[@shivakumar-tq1sf]

What is the difference between sleep,coma,death? How they link with consciousness when a person is sleeping, coma & death ? What is the link between life, breathing,energy, consciousness,subconscious,unconscious?

[@COOLGODBOSS]

I agree I have said many o these things you taught us in this video. Great great video. Well understood.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@princessbutterfly3513]

Then what about the people who loss their consciousness and become mentally ill?

[@j9312]

Our decoding mechanism is the structure of our brain.

[@j9312]

Consciousness is not constant and unchanging. We go to sleep.

[@j9312]

People talk about consciousness because people like to philosophize. The definition is circular.

[@Lucidthinking]

+j9312 Hey j9312, thanks for your comment. We know that the brain can take in electrical signals and decode them to chemical signals and vice versa. we do not know how conscience-less matter can suddenly experience something. how does a group of molecules experience red?

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +j9312 If when we lose consciousness it ceases to exist, then your claim is correct. Yet, I find more reasonable, the explanation that during deep sleep, the connection between the mind and consciousness is cut, and, therefore, we experience nothing. (Yet consciousness is still there) At the moment, I do not know which of the two is the truth.

[@Lucidthinking]

+j9312 Consciousness is not an Idea. It is everything. There is nothing you know about that isn't consciousness. I mean, all we know about the world is reaching us through thoughts, emotions and sensations. In other words: experiences. We see a tree. Is it there? we don't know. We can only see it (visual experience), hear it's leaves shaken by the wind (auditory experience), feel it's texture (kinesthetic experience), think it's a tree (thought experience) of feel we love it (emotional experience). You see, the world might be and illusion, but conscious experience is the only thing we cannot doubt (since doubt is a thought, and therefore, an experience)

[@amitashi]

Brain doesn't project, it percieves. In fact what we call "brain" is phenomenon in conscioussness that is result of percieving by noumenal brain that we can't even imagine.

[@matthewbracke]

Thank you for the clear explanation Tsur! I have a question: Where do you think consciousness originates from?

[@Lucidthinking]

+Matthew Bracke Thank you Matthew. I do not know for sure. I tend to believe consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe. (Like forces, space, etc...) There is a hint provided by the *quantum observer effect*: Scientists have found that a conscious observer influence the quantum realm in a way that no other phenomena we know of does. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sHzHoHhnq71qoZY

[@goon_369]

What I am trying to figure out is why only your right eyebrow raises and why only your right eye closes when you speak. I have noticed this behavior in others and also myself in various forms and ques. But im still unsure what the cause is and implications and assumptions that can be made from it. A similar behavior I have noticed in others usually in age around 40+ is that one eye becomes lazy when they are not expressing emotions and animated when they are. My theory is that this has something to do with the divide between the two sides of a person. The mind and the heart, and or the person who is and the person who observes oneself. I am still unsure as to wether this behavior is a sign of division in the person, or a sign of balance.

[@Lucidthinking]

Interesting. I've never noticed it. Thank you for sharing this observation :) I have no idea why it is so and I find your theory very interesting. Once I split a photo of my face in the middle and duplicated each part in a mirror fashion to see how would my face look like if both halves were identical. I was amazed to see that each part of my face creates a very different look. One seemed more slim, rational, and cold. The other looked more full, emotional and childish. It is known that each side of our body, including the face, is controlled by a different hemisphere of the brain, and that one hemisphere is more specialized in processing details (rational) while the other is more specialized in processing the totality of the data (emotional). Perhaps that may be a reason for the difference in the looks and behavior of each part of the face.

[@jonesgerard]

this is very good, its funny. and we take it all for granted

[@EarthlyDawn]

Congratulation, a very clear presentation. :) I'm also struggling with this issues. From what I can tell, your view is close to that of Samkhya school, with the multiplicity of consciousnesses, the distinction between consciousness and the mind and the notion that need the mind (contents of consciousness) in order to get to know consciousness. There are many question to be asked. Here is one I haven't seen in the comments. How do you ascertain that the consciousness is the same from one moment to the next? Now we have a perception of blue, afterwards a tingly feeling. There is a causal chain linking experiences, and we have some memory of them; is it enough to conclude that it is the same conciousness that is experiencing them? What if the mind starts projecting something totally unrelated to previous experience? Consider people with memory impairment; are they able to say that the conscious experience happening now is based in the same consciousness that experienced something five seconds ago, that they have no memory of? What about split-brain patients; they seem to have two independent conscious streams of experience while previously having one. It may be that you're reifing consciousness, as if it is something that has a sort of identity in time; perhaps it only raises in a moment in dependence of its "contents" only to vanish leaving place for another. Or on the contrary it can be that conciousness is only one and the separations of experience streams in time and space are caused by the multiplicity of projectors, not by that of the screens.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +Dragos Badita, Interesting question. First of all, when we speak about a change in consciousness, how can we describe this change? What changes? Consciousness itself, I.E. the observer have no properties of itself. It is like an empty space. In its essence it is nothing - therefore, it cannot be changed. This is as far as we know. It isn't impossible that consciousness do have some variable properties we do not know about. Just like the discovery of gravitational waves, lately. If they are true, then it means that space itself is something, and not nothing, as we used to think prior to Einstein's general theory of relativity. Now, suppose consciousness can change. That is you have an experiencer who is different in some manner from a second experiencer and they both switch turns for the same mind. They will both feel themselves as "you". You wouldn't be able to tell there is a difference. The examples you set refers the continuity of the projector, and not of the screen. If you would have no memory at all, remaining only with sensory inputs, you would not only lose the ability to experience the knowledge of you as yourself, but you would lose the ability to experience any knowledge at all. Knowledge requires differentiation (Here - there, big - small, red - not red, etc...) and in the human mind, this differentiation is created by memory. You would be like a newborn (assuming newborns are truly blank minded - which Is not entirely true). You would see a picture of the world without being able to tell what you see. You would not know where a tree ends and the ground begins. The continuity of consciousness is deduced by discovering that in the background of our mind there is a special emotion that is always there. An emotion that can be described by the words "I Am". We experience it all the time, yet we do not know we experience it because we are unable to differentiate it from everything else. There are special meditations aimed to silent the mind, that enables this constant emotion to become apparent. By the way, the split-brain patients are not much different than any other human beings. The do have 2 independent conscious streams of experience, but all humans have this, and much more than two. Haven't you ever seen someone promising something, and a week later denying he said so? Or when at night you say you would wake up at 6:00 AM and in the morning "you" decide "today I deserve to stay in bed". have you seen people saying something like "I always say the truth", and a minute later lying about something? Our mind is composed of numerous relatively disconnected neural groups. In split-brain patients the disconnection is full, so it easier to notice it, but I have seen the same experiments of Michael Gazzaniga reproduced with normal people. If one studies really carefully his stream of consciousness, he would see he is not one, but a legion of different people. The movie "inside out" does a pretty good job demonstrating how we really are inside.

[@EarthlyDawn]

+Lucid thinking Consciousness may be empty, but is not nothing, as it has the "property" of making experience possible. So, it is a logical possibility that it can arise and vanish. Moreover, you seem to suggest that there is an emotion, or thought that is always present in consciousness. It's not clear if this feeling is generated by our human mind (if so, why would we ascribe conciousness as being the self?), or it's an intrinsic property of consciousness itself, disproving our idea that it's without content. I will write a comment about my current understnding of the self in your video about this subject. The examples I gave were in reference to the first point in the video, that we know conciousness indirectly, via the mind. But what we have are momentary experiences (the memory impairment was meant to highlight that), and from them we try to determine that consciousness is constant and unchanging; it may be so, but it's a bit speculative. The continuity of "I am" emotion doesn't seem satisfactory as a reason. How do we know if it's there all the time if we can't distinguish it? It may be generated my the meditation itself. I incline to think that it's a basic attitude of beings, that tend to cling to whatever there is in the mind; if the meditator enters in a unified, emptied state of mind, it tends to cling to that state itself, believing "I am consciousness", until the meditator manages to relinquish it. The spit brain is really more interesting then that, if I understand it correctly. Of course, the mind is made of unnumerable processes, sometimes representing opposite things. But here is about two distinct consciousnesses in one person. We have a unity of the field of awareness-I am aware of what there is in that field, and not of what there is in another-I'm not aware of what happens in yours. In spit brain there seem to be two simultaneous fields while previously being one, each aware of its contents and not of the others.

[@Lucidthinking]

+Dragos Badita "Consciousness may be empty, but is not nothing, as it has the "property" of making experience possible" I agree, yet the interesting thing is that this property is not variable, as I see it. It Does not vanish. Like space does not disappear when there are no objects in it. Yet it has the property of enabling objects to exists. without space, 3d objects could not exist. I have a reason to believe that it is not consciousness that vanish, but it is the mind (the screen) that is being disconnected from it. To understand why I think it is so, the function of attention must be observed and understood. Attention is the connecting bridge between the mind and consciousness. I wrote about it in detail several times in the comments section. "How do we know if it's there all the time if we can't distinguish it?" I didn't say people can't distinguish it in general. Of course you potentially can, but you have to distinguish it at least once before you could do it constantly. Think about a crowd of people walking on the street every day. One of them is called "John Smith" and he is a millionaire. He walks there every day, you see him, but you don't know who he is. Then I teach you a trick to identify him. Clap your hands with a special pattern, and when he hears it he will clap too (He may be a part of a secret society :) Once you distinguish him from the rest of the crowd, you will be able to see him every day. "It may be generated my the meditation itself". It is not. Meditate, get familiar with this emotion and you will understand it's not a product of the meditation. Again, it is something you experience all the time, not only in meditation, but you have to distinguish it at least once. Once you distinguish John Smith, your memory will tell you have already seen him many times before. You just didn't know who he is.

[@guruyaya]

I'm not sure I agree with the statement that consciousness is unchanging. I'll start with your analogy: the screen actually changes when a film is projected on it. The light exsert some energy on it, and adds energy to electrons. In time, light can create changes in the fabric of the screen. The same with consciousness: there is no way of knowing what the events do to it, but as every interaction in life changes all sides of an interaction, we can assume changes to the consciousness are possible and probible

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Yair, Thanks for your thoughts. Of course, the screen is only an analogy to consciousness, and analogies are good to represent only some properties of a phenomenon but not all of them. Normally, for us, a screen is something that does not change after you project a film onto it, so this is why I've chosen this analogy. I can give you a different analogy from the field of physics. According to the general theory of relativity, if you place a massive object in space, it will curve the space. If you will remove it, the space will return to its normal form. There won't be any residues. Do we know it for sure? No. This is what the current observations tell us. It might change with new observations. At the moment the observations I had, tell me that consciousness does not change. Furthermore, I have no idea how can we detect changes in consciousness itself, as we can only observe its content.

[@mercuriusl]

When i go to sleep or lose consciousness, do I cease to exist?

[@imianduru]

The whole idea of Non-Duality is, that all separations are illusory. That includes, of course, the separation between awareness and lack or absence of awareness. And the same goes for the separation between true self and false self; who you are and who you aren't; observer and observation; subject and object; creator and creation; thinker and thoughts. They are all imaginations and fantasies. They have no substance - just like us. ;)

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +imianduru , this is very interesting, yet I still don't understand something: If everything is Imagination and fantasy, why can't you change the imagination at will. Why can't you fly or win the lottery? It is just a matter of imagination doesn't it?

[@imianduru]

Hello Zur, thanks for replying. (Actually, my comment was meant for your 'Who am' video, but somehow I got to this page.) Please note that my remark 'They are all imaginations and fantasies' relates to the separations between e.g. awareness and lack of awareness; true self and false self; subject and object, etc. We are not limited in our ability to generate realities - you mentioned lottery: I won big time at Mif'al Hapayis in exactly this way, many years ago. The imaginary walls are in fact a PRODUCT of our creative ability, and one of them separates fantasy from reality. Many of us believe that fantasy and reality are opposites, but they simply constitute a DUALISM. We can just remove or 'un-imagine' the imaginary barrier between the elements of the dualism, and then it will stop bothering us. I found that it works best to simply declare out loud that they are not separated. This we can do with EVERY limiting thought and blockage that we find. I will be very happy to explain more, if you are interested - we have much work to do. Perhaps we can talk via Skype, my ID is uruandimi.

[@Lucidthinking]

+imianduru Hey, impundulu. I still don't feel answered. So you won the lottery once. It can happen, but can you do it anytime you want? This very moment? can you bring peace on earth? And if not, why? If everything is only a product of our imagination, and there isn't really anything out there, why can't we change everything at will. There are things we can influence easily, like taking some rocks and making a pile. Other things, like the mentioned above, we can't. You can definitely eliminate the perception of separation between "awareness and lack of awareness; true self and false self; subject and object, etc.", since this perception is only in your mind. The distinction between the water and the fish in the aquarium is definitely a product of the mind, that is, a fantasy. Like was shown in the ted talk, "the stroke of insight" by Jill Bolte Taylor kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4XVe6SjgNSpm7c. The part of her brain that is responsible for making distinction was damaged, and she has experienced a united perception of all things. Yet can you claim that the fish and the water themselves have no existence outside of your mind? Can you claim, that they don't have different qualities, even though we agree that they are one, and not separated.

[@imianduru]

Everything and nothing constitute a dualism. Since there can only be one reality or truth, not two, they must be products of our imagination. In our daily life, we often experience and perceive dualisms. These are all part of our dream. They show up as separate imaginary blockages, conflicts and problems. By acknowledging each dualism for what it is - a fantasy without substance - they dissolve. In this way, you can discover that you have imagined it all, and that you have no substance. It is the path of self-realization. :)

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey +imianduru , thank you, Yet you still haven't answered my questions. Everything and nothing don't have to be a dualism. Perhaps we just don't know the mechanism connecting them. Take for example the relation between the sea and its waves. You can refer a calm sea to nothing, and the waves to something. You cannot say that the sea is the waves nor that the waves are the sea, yet they are both the same water. In fact, the physicist Stephen hawking suggested that void isn't empty but full, and that in this void matter and antimatter are united, so that they create no matter or force. We perceive it as nothingness because in the absence of matter or force there is nothing you can interact with. Once the matter and antimatter are separated, we have matter and force, I.E. something that is interactable and that is different from the whole. I don't know if this theory is true, but it an example that nothing and everything aren't necessarily a duality. I know the theory you describe. I have read about it in the book "yoga vasistha". But the question is, do you really experience this truth, or you just believe in it and hope to realize it someday. There is a difference between knowing and being. Price Rama may have realized this truth, yet for us, who haven't realized it, the belief we hold for this truth may, and probably is, different than the realization itself.

[@howitworks8490]

YOU. ARE. AMAZING.

[@Lucidthinking]

:)

[@howitworks8490]

+Lucid thinking So does where does consciousness go when the brain goes away?

[@Lucidthinking]

I don't know for certain. There is various evidence that shows that consciousness is not a product of the body and continue to exist after clinical death (brain death). One of them is the research of near-death experiences when people who died clinically and were restored could give detailed information about experiences they had during the times they were dead. Some of them also told they were hovering above their body, and could give detailed descriptions about the medical team treating them.

[@howitworks8490]

But all of that was just a result of hallucination and abnormal activity in the brain though.

[@Lucidthinking]

No, that was only an attempt to "rationally" explain those experiences. In clinical death, there is no brain activity, so there was a suggestion that near death experiences are a result of the last flash of activity before the brain shuts down. This explanation is not backed by evidence, as much as I know, and has a lot of holes' in it. Watch this interview with Dr. Sam Parnia kzbin.info/www/bejne/fZmwe3t_jsyDgNU

[@shoshannastrope239]

Hello. Do you think the consciousness is divided for each living person to have one? Like from a big universal consciousness? How come one individuals consciousness stays his till his life ends? If it's disconnected from awareness when a person sleeps, so from the mind, where does it stay and how come it stays the same consciousness for the same person? Couldn't it just pass from one projector to another? I find this adhesion interesting. Also the fact that I find myself a different person now at 30 than I was at 15, much kinder and moral let's say, does this mean my counsciosness evolved or is it just the mind and the experiences? But I feel that my awareness and counciousness experience life differently. So if counciosness is the same for anyone how can one evolve to have grater awareness? How was my cat Lolo SO different in personality then my cat Tomi for example? I read how many comments of this video as I coul before falling asleep and I hope I am not repeating the same questions. I might reread them sometime. Thank you

[@KogaBrigaXTC]

There is also no way to be sure that I am not projecting/imagining all of the other screens.

[@Lucidthinking]

Yes. You do not have a direct connection the other consciousnesses. You only deduce their existence from your experiences. By the way, you also cannot observe yourself directly (because you are the observer). You can only deduce your existence from that which you observe. One says: "if I see this thought, It means I must exist in order to see it"

[@tzhulux]

Most ancient systems say that consciousness of all species is like a form of a tree, that contains 9 basic parts of process: 4 element-temperaments, 3 flows (input, processing, output) and 2 minds of chaos (poly-scope) and order (mono-depth). Can something (consciousness) rise from nothing (void) or just from unknown something... who knows?

[@j1567]

This is great. Keep it up. You’re brilliant.

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@swagmasterdoritos]

Wouldn't consciousness being aware that awareness of contents of mind is occuring be enough to deduce directly that consciousness (you) exists? You seem to suggest that one can only indirectly know themselves via rationalization as opposed to directly in an emperical manner but being aware of things can lead to being aware that you're aware of things and then at THAT point no more is needed for direct self awareness (sure it could go on infinitley but it doesn't feel neccesary), Also I think it'd be more accurate to say consciousness, in it's essence, is an empty vessel of sorts as opposed to "nothing" when there isn't anything being projected onto the screen, the vessel isn't activated (not nothing) but can be activated to the extent that the content is presnet (projecter). Saying it's nothing in essence would seem to imply that there is no difference between whether or not there is a screen present or not, as if a projecter could generate a scene (a conscious experience) without a screen (i.e. the experiencer). maybe i'm wrong, maybe this is just semantics, either way great content :)

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Swagmasterdoritos, Thanks for your comment. As to your questions: 1) When I say one can know itself only indirectly, I mean that you, consciousness ,cannot experience consciousness, it can only experience different emotions, thoughts, and sensations that construct a representation of the concept of consciousness. 2) yes, I agree with you, consciousness is definitely not nothing, or else it wouldn't have any properties. Its main property is the ability to experience thoughts, emotions, and sensations, therefore an empty vessel is a better description.

[@dr.satishsharma9794]

Excellent... thanks 🙏.

[@gowrisankarijayaprakash9444]

excellent

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@johannesbuble3004]

muy buen video gracias por la traduccion

[@susannayeung5545]

I wonder what is your background. Do you have background in physics or neuroscience? You explain these difficult concepts so clearly in scientific term. congratulation and thank you. Please Keep it up.

[@Lucidthinking]

Hi Susana, Yes I have some background in Physics, and I have also studied self awareness for many years.

[@susannayeung5545]

@@Lucidthinking Thanks for your reply. I am a new watcher of your videos. As expressed by your viewers, you made very clear explanation on something that is difficult to understand, we all want you to see you back and make more presentation. Would you come back to KZbin soon? Where would we be able to find your teaching?

[@Lucidthinking]

Thank you. In the last two years I have written a book and I hope it will be publish by the end of the year. Once It's published I will return to do regular videos. The book contains ideas of almost all the videos I ever wanted to do (content for about 75 videos) @@susannayeung5545

[@susannayeung5545]

@@Lucidthinking great! All the best with your best seller book to be.

[@saeedabdulrazak]

Great video great mind u have too but some words i do not understand what I was looking for is I'm absolutely sure that our brain have control of us its not that we have the control.. best regards

[@Lagann11]

Well put, my friend

[@JamesHawkeYouTube]

I think any attempt to pin down what the fundamentals of existence are will be bound to dissolve into circular reasoning, conceptual semantic posturing, and a metaphysical tour de force. In the end what have we really gained? Where have we advanced to? The truth is we're lost and dreaming in some kind of incomprehensible miracle that we may as well call the Mind of God.

[@franknimal9966]

The brain is an area of neurophysiologyactivity. Neurophysiology activity consists of electrochemical reaction. Thus at any given time, the brain state is defined by a subset of electrochemical reactions, derived from a large set of possible reactions. Consider the phenomenon of a. conscious thought. As at any given time the brain physical state consists of a collection of electrochemical reactions (events), it can be inferred that they are collectively responsible for the conscious thought. This means that at least in part, simultaneous events are responsible for thought. In other words, thought creates a connection between simultaneous events. This is in contradiction to the consequences of special relativity, which states that the fastest connection between events is the speed of light and thus excludes the possibility of connection between simultaneous events. Consider the memorizing of, say, the value 5. This would necessarily involve more than 1 point in space as, say, if it is assumed a single electron records 5 by taking a particular potential. Then it by itself cannot define (or know) 5, as its magnitude would be defined only with respect to another datum or event defined as a unit potential, thus involving at least 2 simultaneous events. Consider the experience of vision. While we focus our attention on an object of vision, we are still aware of a background and, thus, a whole collection of events. This would mean at least an equal collection of physical events in the brain are involved. Take the experience of listening to music. It would mean being aware of what went before. Like vision, it would probably mean that while our attention at any given time is focused at that point in time, it is aware of what went before and what is to follow. In other words, it spans the time axis. Many great composers have stated that they are able to hear their whole composition. Thus their acoustic experience is probably like the average person's visual experience. While focusing at a particular point in time of their composition, they are nevertheless aware of what went before and what is to come. The rest of the composition is like the background of a visual experience. Experiencing the composition in this way, they are able to traverse it in a similar fashion to which a painting is observed. In this sense, an average person in comparison can be seen as having tunnel hearing (like tunnel vision) when it comes to music, thus making it very difficult for him or her to reproduce or create new music. It can be seen that consciousness is a 4-D phenomenon. If it is a physically explainable phenomenon, such an explanation would involve EPR type effects and as such physical explanations at a quantum level will be involved. philpapers.org/rec/DESCAS tianweb.com/event%20to%20dualism.pdf

[@adamq8216]

Awesome video and very well explained!

[@Lucidthinking]

Thanks :)

[@narasimharaomavilla3057]

Nice effort in attempting to explain the subtle. I have a question. At 3:19 you say that the computer is probably not experiencing. How can you tell whether computer may/may not experience as you (or your mind) cannot experience others experiences like you cannot experience my experience?

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey, Narasimha Rao Mavilla, Thanks for your question. I cannot have 100% certainty that a computer, a rock or even another person can experience like I do, or can experience at all. I only know for 100% that I experience. But, based on the evidence we have, we can answer it with rather high certainty. *1) How can I tell other people experience similar experiences to me?* Because the respond to things similarly to me, and I can assume that their response was provoked by a similar experience. If a man yell because he touched fire, I can assume he feels pain, since I react the same when I touch fire, and I know I feel pain. *2) How can I tell that inanimate objects, like a rock, don't experience the world like me?* For example, I have eyes and I see. I know that if you damage my eyes, I will not be able to see. A rock has no eyes, or a similar mechanism, so we can assume a rock cannot see. *3) How can we tell that a computer cannot see (or feel pain)?* In it's essence a computer is not much more than a complex rock. Think about an *Abacus* upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Boulier1.JPG It can calculate numbers, but you won't assume it knows the numbers being calculated upon it. A computer is nothing more than a complex Abacus, made from tiny magnetic levers instead of wooden. The matter of fact, even our brain is nothing more than a complex Abacus, and this is the reason we still don't know how it is possible that the brain is responsible for consciousness. That is why I say that "I" experience, not my brain experiences. My brain certainly affects the content of the experiences, but without being connected to a consciousness, I don't think it can experience anything.

[@adityaveerparmar6244]

Hello, amazing video. I was wondering what happens to our consciousness when we dream? How do you explain dreams? Also how can this explain manifestation and law of attraction? How can we think thoughts and manifest it?

[@sriseta1379]

Great video content..good work..thank you.. 🖒

[@loveliveholistically]

A very good video. Thank you

[@Lucidthinking]

:)

[@engineerguyvideos2552]

At 10:44 you speak about senses people do not have and we are unable to think about it. TED Talks had a guy on that spoke about technology that would allow you to add senses to your body and that it had been done with monkeys to control robot arms.

[@Lucidthinking]

+ConceptHut Hey ConceptHut, Thanks again for your comments. There were two moments I referred to the limitation of the mind in this sense. 1) That there can be other experiences other than thoughts, emotions and sensations, but we have no access to them 2) That our senses are limited to a various range of vibrations. The ted talk you mentioned (I think I saw it) they were talking about expanding the existing senses to process more information. For example, If you use an ultraviolet camera, you are able to see the ultraviolet world but through the ranges of visible light. The images you see in the camera are in black and white or another set of colors that was decided by the manufacturer of the camera. You do not experience new colors. If you think that in the Ted talk they talked about creating new types of experiences, you are very welcome to post the link to the video.

[@primalfitness5318]

Hey man, Couple more questions for you, thanks a million for your last response by the way . You say "the experience and the experiencer are not the same " But Sam Harris talks about"Becoming Identical to the experience" in his book waking up. He also talks about "losing the feeling of self " and that " Conciousness is not an I " 2- Do you see any benefits in doing Positive daily affirmations or autosuggestion ? I hear a lot of people talk about them.Would it be like installing and playing a positive film of the screen of conciousness? (Im trying use the same example as in your video)

[@Lucidthinking]

Hey Primal Fitness, Unfortunately, I can't answer your first question since I'm not familiar with the materials of Sam Harris. It may very well be a conflict of terminology. For example, I know two spiritual traditions that refer to a certain phenomenon, but one calls it *Self-remembering* and the other calls it *Self-forgetting". This is why words can be very confusing If we don't understand the phenomenon they refer to. Regarding your second question. Yes, positive daily affirmations or autosuggestion can be very efficient. It is like installing a positive film, or, using another analogy, installing a positive software.

[@bethbartlett5692]

This is an example of why - so many avoid Logic and Philosophy Class - There's a better approach to this topic - so as not to lose the viewer - Consciously!

[@abhip499]

very well told almost reached there. But if consciousness is described as void that may create a problem. If something is describe to be void there has to be something before it. So consciousness is nothing but a state of experiencing the death of catastrophic mind. So consciousness is not separate from mind it is a thought in the mind that tells "I am not". to each and every attachment and experience. But since it is still a thought It can never be consciousness. This awareness is consciousness. Consciousness is subtility with in the subtilness. But It is almost beautifully explained here great work

[@Lucidthinking]

I agree with you. There is no contradiction with what I have said in the video. Consciousness is void. That is, it has no properties. The description of consciousness as void is a thought. Consciousness is not an experience. you cannot experience consciousness directly. It is the experiencer itself. if the mind dies or absent, (and by "mind" I don't mean only thoughts, but also emotions and sensations) you will have no experience at all. Not even "blackness". The thought "I am consciousness" or "I am not the mind" are not the consciousness itself. They are an Indirect experience of consciousness, but a direct experience of consciousness it not possible. It is logically impossible just like one cannot wet water.

[@abhip499]

your explanations are good and organised it will be a great help for seekers. Thank you lucid thinking :)

[@Lucidthinking]

:)

[@abhip499]

But who created consciousness will remain as mystery for ever. consciousness can neither be created nor destroyed is the answer then bingo we come to the conclusion that consciousness is source of energy or light. But consciousness is not that. Can we measure consciousness ?

[@Lucidthinking]

"But who created consciousness will remain as a mystery for ever." Maybe and maybe not. I don't know. "Consciousness can neither be created nor destroyed" Perhaps and perhaps not. I don't know. "Can we measure consciousness ?" Not at the moment, as much as I know...

[@engineerguyvideos2552]

Around 10:50 you say something about not knowing if others are feeling the same kinds of thoughts because you can only experience your own. DNA of humans is largely consistent with various DNA that does change based on breeding and other such factors. The actual variation however is extremely tiny. There are various brain structures but they are largely consistent and built off that mainly similar DNA map. This means that the cause effect that the sensory system will receive from one body to another should react largely the same with minor variations due to the minor DNA differences in expressions. This means you can be as sure the other person is going to experience things similar to you just based on knowing you have DNA and brain structures that are mostly the same from person to person.

[@Lucidthinking]

+ConceptHut You are right, I didn't say we don't have means to know what other people feel. The Nobel prize winner, Giacomo Rizzolatti have found that we have certain neurons he called "Mirror Neurons" that creates inside us the feelings we feel or think another person have. Yet this isn't a direct experience. The feelings of others reach our consciousness through the regular senses/mental processing path. I also didn't say it is totally impossible to directly experience other people's feelings. Telepathy, if exists, can be of such nature. In the normal condition, our consciousness can't get in direct touch with other minds but ours.

[@engineerguyvideos2552]

Lucid thinking Thank you for the well thought out and detailed reply. Was making my reply to add to the conversation, not to try to correct your video at that point. Telepathy might happen within our lives if we figure out how to get brains to produce resonant waves or wifi like waves on a resonance like the EM field chargers. If anything, that is what they will call phone conversations when they are using mind headsets that are on the market.

[@Lucidthinking]

+ConceptHut I have participated a simple group telepathy experiment. The group was divided into small groups of 3 people. Each one of the 3 people had a role. The first had to close his eyes and imagine, as vividly as he could, a certain emotional event from his life. The second man had to try to imitate the first one's bodily posture and facial mimics. The third one had to compare between the body postures and facial mimics of the two and correct the second person so he will match the first man as accurately as possible. Then the second men had to report what he sees or feels. Finally, the first man revealed what he was imagining so the group could compare if there is any correlation between what the second man saw and felt and what the first man imagined. Then all the group members switched roles and made the experiment again several times. When I was in the role of the second man, I didn't see anything. only felt similar emotions - but this is easy cause emotions are connected to body postures and facial expressions. But the other two people in my group had amazing results. One has seen the other in uniform, and she revealed that she was imagining her graduation ceremony in the military. The other one said that she saw the first woman at birth, and it was correct. I also noticed that women tend to have better results than man.

[@rbecerramiami]

Nicely done

[@marbelvictoria.espiritualidad]

Genio!!

[@provoketur]

I have to disagree. Consciousness is value sorting. This is what experience actually is. It is sensing and then processing that creates experience. His view of decoding the signal is correct but this means a process of sensing and judging which occurs within the brain in humans and in other ways in other forms of life. Nothing magical or unexplainable.

[@almostatheist]

Value sorting is essentially the same thing as decoding

[@Lucidthinking]

Hi Sean, and thank you for your comment. We usually use the word consciousness to describe 2 phenomena and not one (as we usually think): 1) information processing 2) experience As I understand it, value sorting is a way of processing information. For example, the nerves may indicate warm temperature or extreme hot temperature. In the second case, your hand might be drawn away from the heat source. The same process can be done by a machine. There is no need to feel the hotness nor pain. There are a lot of decoding mechanisms in the brain. For example, one that decodes input of hot temperature, to quickly drawing your hand away from the heat source. The only decoding mechanism we can't explain is "experience". How can electrical signals, which are ,eventually, push an pull forces, can create a phenomenon such an experience of heat?

[@provoketur]

I think what you are describing as experience is the memory of the sensing and decoding of the process of the judging of values. Decoding is the understanding of the context of a territorial interiority.duality which occurs within virtual space.

[@sonicbroom8522]

"this means a process of sensing and judging which occurs within the brain in humans and in other ways in other forms of life." Except that this process is nowhere to be found. There 'should' be a way to detect the 'decode phase' of a subjective experience via brain scans, but there is not.