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Awakening Human Consciousness
6. Awakening Human Consciousness
It has meant a great deal to me to learn that consciousness (from con-scire,
that with which we know) is a property of the universe from the beginning.
Although disputed, there is much evidence that a basic sentience, a capacity
for knowing is a fundamental property of the universe. Dramatic discoveries
and changes in understanding help us realize how deeply human consciousness
is integral to the earth and cosmic story, no longer isolated from a supportive,
alive context. In his book, The Living Universe, Duane Elgin observes that
there is a continuum of consciousness such that everything has a knowing
capacity that is appropriate to its nature. He quotes researchers who "have
found that molecules consisting of no more than a few simple proteins have
the capacity for primary perception that is the signature of living systems.
As one of the researchers who made this discovery stated, 'We were surprised
that such simple proteins can act as if they had a mind of their own.'"
Although the universe is now understood to have a basic capacity for knowing,
it is without the ability to reflect upon the knowing process itself to the
extent that humans clearly do with language and images. The universe is thought
to be becoming conscious of itself in a new way through the apparently unique
self-reflective capacities in human consciousness. We need to awaken further
to the great significance of this capacity and the responsibilities it entails
so we can address the threatening ecological catastrophe.
This self-reflective capacity is expressed by the woman in the painting.
With it we can begin to consciously reinvent the human as a dimension of
the emergent universe and evolve into a mode of being human in which we care
deeply for all of life and may be willing to make sacrifices based on this
caring.