The idea of higher consciousness might sound a little woo-woo.
The term is almost always used in spiritual contexts, often by pretentious mystics or posers.
But higher consciousness has inherently nothing to do with spirituality.
Spirituality is one of the things that perhaps emerged from states of higher consciousness. Not the other way around.
Let’s explore the concept in rational terms.
As humans, we spend most of our life in states of “lower consciousness”.
Our primary concern is our own self — our survival, our relationships, our success or failures. We constantly obsess about the past or worry about the future.
There’s a lower part of the brain — labeled the ‘reptilian brain‘ — which we could probably associate with lower consciousness.
The reptilian brain is self-obsessed, greedy, and aggressive. It operates from a place of fear and acts on impulse.
And it can dominate our thinking process… if we let it.
Thankfully, we have the neocortex, the outermost layer of our brain, which enables our complex and logical thinking.
It gives us the power of abstract thoughts, language, imagination, empathy, and higher-order thinking like thinking about thinking. The neocortex is what separates us from animals.
We rarely utilize the complete powers of our ‘higher’ mind.
States of higher consciousness allow you to take a step back and detach yourself from your ego and your primal urges.
In such states, your mind moves beyond your desires and fears.
You become much more self-aware and transcend the mind’s normal preoccupation with the past and the future.
And our awareness is such a fascinating thing. Where it comes from is still a deep and intriguing problem for science. (The idea that our brain creates consciousness is a metaphysical assumption, not a scientific fact.)
Do this little experiment right now.
For a moment, close your eyes and simply observe your thoughts without any reactions or judgments. Don’t resist anything.
When you do this, you are literally observing yourself from a “higher” position. Almost as a separate entity. Instead of being wrapped up inside your identity.
In states of higher consciousness, you learn to see things for what they are instead of what you want them to be.
In normal states, your ego puts a filter on everything that comes through your senses, distorting your perspectives.
When you actively try to understand yourself in this way, you become open to seeing thoughts and belief patterns running in the background of your mind. Allowing you to identify the unconscious patterns that don’t serve you.
And when you consistently practice this skill, your ability to access the higher states of consciousness becomes sharper and sharper.
That’s the whole idea behind mindfulness meditation. (Why Meditate?)
You can also enter an almost trance-like state of higher consciousness when you are deeply involved in something. Like solving a difficult problem or creating art or talking to a friend or maybe just listening to music.
It’s referred to as the flow state. Where you become one with what you’re doing. Time slows down. Your inner critic (ego) shuts up. Everything flows effortlessly. You are at your absolute best.
And when you get out of the flow state, you feel like you just snapped back into reality. I’m sure you have experienced it at some point in your life.
Your best work, your happiest moments, your most profound insights, your most fulfilling experiences — all arrive in states of higher consciousness. When you’re completely immersed in the present moment. Without any fears or worries.
These moments are rare, but there’s no reason why you can’t have more of them.
Maybe that’s the secret to a happy fulfilled life. Filling it with as many such moments as you can.
Consciousness is a spectrum. And there are some magical ways to ascend further higher in this spectrum. (But that’s for some other day. If you know you know 😉
For now, realize that, as a society, we are drifting away from these states of higher consciousness.
Our modern lifestyle, technology, diets, habits all are pushing us towards lower states of consciousness.
You need to actively fight the attacks on your consciousness.
Here’s a good place to start: How Your Reptilian Brain Controls You
Onwards and Upwards.
Thank you for reading. Most of the content on this website has emerged from conversations with readers like you.
Every Sunday, I send out an email dissecting some aspect of the human mind.
If you can take out a few minutes every week, I’ll help you develop a strong understanding of how your mind works. So that you can have more control over your thoughts, behavior, and life.
You can sign-up below.
Or you can sign-up after reading my story and the core idea behind this website: We Should Be Getting More Out of Our Lives (would recommend)