Consciousness Evolution Summit 2021 - Lecture Summary
TITLE: “SYNTHETIC and ORGANIC EVOLUTION”
INTRODUCTION
Talk covers three linked questions.
(a) What does consciousness mean?
Tied to an evolving physical body.
In common parlance - a reasoning mind and emotions, as opposed to subconscious or unconscious brain activity. Concept of different levels of consciousness is generally absent in the West.
In Eastern thought, it means something higher – connected to our higher selves or to the divine.
One way to see it: if reincarnation happens, what part of us would move between lives?
(b) How will it evolve?
Common scientific view = better reasoning powers. A functional view, providing a better survival chance or better mating chance.
What if instead… it gives us expanded/additional faculties: specifically Intuition, Foresight/Clairvoyance, Telepathy?
Maybe even a spiritual connection: access to divine, or awareness of higher beings. After all, that is meditation – an internal expansion of consciousness - delivers.
(c) What role will technology (AI, nanobiotech) play?
Humans augmented or supplanted by technology
Humans as mechanism or as consciousness.
What is uniquely human? What is it to be human?
Most controversially, I will claim that artificial augmentation will assist our evolution by granting us additional, unexpected faculties. However, most of us are not ready for that speed of evolution. There are limits, the dangers are considerable and will be far greater than we know.
WHO AM I – why listen to Stephan Collina?
If not unique, then at least a rare set of qualifications.
(a) Degree in Philosophy, concentration on moral, social, political, science, mind. Questioning, reasoning, objective evidence method.
(b) Yoga and meditation teacher, interest in Eastern philosophies too
Experiential, internal, subjective method.
Both these experiences are directly relevant to Summit.
(c)Technologist - software, internet, artificial intelligence.
Executive or Board of larger companies, CEO or Chair of smaller ones.
Own an AI (artificial intelligence) company, speak on ethics of AI.
Knowledge of role of technology in future evolution.
(d) Author and scriptwriter
One book in particular is relevant to summit, informed by above, about precisely this subject – a novel, to be accessible
Also writing book on higher levels of yoga - meditation, connection to infinite/divine.
(e) And lastly, a healer – intuitive (clairsentient, clairvoyant, telepathy), energy (hands harnessing universal life force) and sound.
Talk is based on my experience(s), my personal path. There are of course other paths.
MAIN TEXT - Synthetic vs Organic Evolution
Neuralink (Elon Musk) and others creating brain implants, internet connected.
Goal is improved comms, access to info, maybe enhanced reasoning.
Known as human augmentation – assisting conscious mind.
In truth, no idea of outcome.
Also connected to subconscious mind.
Experienced meditators know subconscious mind is seat of emotions and our connection to universal energy, to the infinite, to time.
So there are likely to be surprises.
Likely outcome of using implants therefore same (in part) as meditation:
Capabilities will include intuition, clairvoyance, telepathy.
May but probably will not include a connection to divine / universal energy.
Take a Step Back for a Moment
(i) Definitions.
Consciousness
Western definition is puzzling and controversial.
Best = a general awareness of internal and external existence, plus a present awareness of a specific thing (feeling, object, event).
Eastern is more akin to awareness of universal or spiritual or divine energy, however you prefer to define that, and oneness with it.
This is Higher Consciousness – of our higher selves, as part of and as inseparable from the rest of universal energy. And is what we are generally referring to in this summit.
Subconscious
Knowledge or experience not presently in awareness (ie not in conscious mind, but could become so.
Simplistically, the touch of the ground under your feet. Now I’ve mentioned it, you’ve become conscious of it. Before, only your subconscious felt it.
At a deeper level, our direct connection to universal energy.
Universal/Divine Energy
What lies behind our experiential world.
Perhaps has created it, and perhaps accessible to us but not by our 5 senses, which have evolved within our daily world (to help us survive) so by definition cannot be used to perceive it.
Meditation
(a) Clearing mind (Zen = sitting quietly, doing nothing. Yoga, using breath)
(b) Focused attention (candle gazing, mantra)
(c) Internal contemplation (reviewing experiences dispassionately)
All three are methods that work to some degree.
Via subconscious, a means of accessing universal energy/divine
Deep meditation
Requires competency at and is a step above all three of the popular methods.
Often accompanied at first by wavy patterns when eyes closed. Sign that brain has entered theta wave state.
Allows/enables conscious connection to subconscious thoughts, and a connection to universal energy.
Often experienced as white light etc. - you’ll know it when you see it.
This is not an ‘empty’ mind. The observer is one with the energy, can have conscious thoughts, can manifest, can read and heal – the basis of energy healing.
Healing
Most often means removing old, false, unwanted beliefs. And replacing them with more useful, truthful beliefs.
Beliefs often inherited from childhood, but can be from past life or genetic.
Can mean many other things, but that’s covered in a different presentation.
(ii) The Results of Meditation
Intuition
Hidden knowledge, not accessible by rational thought.
Of thoughts (your own, and those of others nearby),
Of past,
Of future,
And of past and future thoughts.
Clairvoyance
Visually based knowledge, typically of future, ‘see’ things.
Clairsentience
Feeling-based knowledge. At a simple level, when we feel the mood of a room.
Telepathy
Communicate to others by thought. Typically ideas, phrases, pictures.
Connection to Universal Energy, and Healing ability
Personal experience of all these. And there are others eg clairaudience, manifestation, healing ability.
BIG QUESTION - Will Result of Brain Augmentation be the Same as Meditation?
Intuition, Clairvoyance, Telepathy are a result of concentrated mental effort.
In my case were achieved at a basic level relatively quickly after commencing meditation practice.
Therefore could/should be capable of being accessed by augmented brains/minds.
Access to divine/universal energy?
Less likely but possible.
Took me much longer. Result of assiduous, deep meditation.
Requires devotion of time, affects personality and attitudes
Therefore not clear that augmentation will facilitate access without that devotion. Probably not.
Healing ability?
Unlikely. Requires access to universal energy, and a receptive, giving personality. And to be effective, a deep and honest self-healing.
Many healers become healers to avoid self-healing, it’s either too painful or they lack the energy or devotion.
This is likely the mark of someone who wants to use augmentation - a quick fix to get ‘there’. To give them the appearance of a healer.
Without an appreciation of one’s own past failings and abilities, without a true, deep understanding of our internal nature, it’s not effective.
Hence, users may gain intuition etc, but not likely become true healers.
HOMO TECHNICA
My thoughts have been turned into story form.
Easier to understand and accept. Written as a novel because these concepts are dry and reasoned explanations are not the best means of understanding them.
Historical precedent – even now, advanced spiritual disciplines use aphorisms, poems, metaphors and stories to explain them to disciples. (eg Yoga Sutras, Geeta)
Story compares a father going through an enlightenment – a spiritual development -
with his daughter who, given a brain implant, uses the abilities she gains (intuition, telepathy, etc, and the ability to manipulate thoughts of others) for her own ends.
He becomes a healer, she becomes a criminal, manipulating others.
Thousands of others have been given the same implants, so the result is global chaos, amid a complete lack of privacy of thought.
A worldwide moratorium on implants is declared, and the devices confiscated.
Because there’s no guarantee that any one group of people or state will abide by it, the only resolution is that everyone worldwide must have one (except for the few meditators who don’t need one). We have all become cyborgs.
And who designs and controls the devices?
Frightening thought, huh?
It certainly would have been prior to pandemic panic – we seem to have accepted governments have such powers.
Eventually, the father works with an ancient feminine Order and they work together to create a kinder world.
Or at least, to counteract a cruel, uncaring, and institutionalized world that is too full of masculine energy and is losing touch with its humanity. (Feminine and masculine, not male and female).
The novel is a good way of understanding what could happen, of the concepts discussed above, of how narrow the bar between good and bad really is, and of how to gain the same abilities through meditation.
Details on my website – stephancollina.com
And will be in video form on youtube (linked to website) within 2 weeks.
And of course, I’m happy to answer questions during question session on 24th.
Summary
Evolution will take several forms for humans:
(a) Biological – hopefully not pharmaceutical-based.
(b) Mental – improved reasoning?
(c) Higher Mental – ‘new’ faculties including intuition, clairvoyance, telepathy
(d) Spiritual – connection to universal/divine (and destruction of dualism).
Will be augmented by biotech/AI.
Will affect our view of nature of consciousness.
Access to divine and healing only through meditation or similar.
The difference between true and false healers.
Our likely evolution, its benefits and dangers.
Provoke thoughts on ‘human’-ness, here and in my novel.
What matters most as we evolve? Surely its self-development/self-awareness, community, cooperation, empathy and especially Love.
Thank you and I look forward to engaging with you on 24th.