Who Am I? A Journey into Awakening – Part 2

Cosmic Consciousness – Continued

There are 2 distinct stages in Cosmic Consciousness: witnessing and awakening.

During witnessing, one becomes the detached observer of their own thoughts, emotions, and experiences. We may observe life from a neutral perspective. We may start to experience a continuity of awareness that permeates waking, dreaming, and sleeping. However, like any experience, it comes and goes. As mentioned before, anything that comes and goes is not our true nature.

While witnessing can provide a sense of freedom, it is not the same as awakening, or what eastern traditions call “Self Realization.” The “Self” is pure consciousness, awareness and silence. The Self is not our thoughts, emotions, or physical sensations. These are fleeting and transient, while the Self remains constant. It’s like the sky that remains unaffected despite the clouds and storms that may pass through it.

In witnessing, there is still a duality of “I” and the “Self.” More importantly, the identification with the ego has not yet been shattered.

At the stage of awakening, our sense of identity shifts from the ego-self to the cosmic Self. For some (like myself), it was a dramatic snap. Now, instead of being a passive observer of experiences, we identify with the infinite consciousness that underlies all.

As the physiology embodies this awakening more and more, the silence migrates from the background to the foreground. In other words, silence gets louder than the world. We effectively meditate 24/7. This can further lead the way to more refinement in the body and the eventual dissolution of boundaries…

Unity Consciousness – the Second Stage

There is still duality in the pervious stage. We may be the unbounded awareness that we call the Self, but what about the world out there? What about the “others” in the universe?

Eventually, the separation between the experiencer and the experience, and the observer and the observed, all collapse into wholeness. They are all expressions of “That.”

Surprisingly, the “I” returns but in an unbounded cosmic scale. “I” becomes “That.”

In everyday activities, we might begin to start losing the sense of “doing” and instead experience a natural unfolding of life. Actions happen through us rather than by us. It’s as if the larger cosmic intelligence is working through us on its own.

Our body is no longer perceived as “my” body, but rather as an expression of reality – the same essence that pervades everything. There can be a profound sense of reverence towards the body. It is recognized as a divine instrument for experiencing and expressing life.

We perceive that there is no separation between “I” and “the world.” Our personal self dissolves into the universal Self. Where we once perceived boundaries and separate entities, we now see a seamless, undivided wholeness. We directly experience this fundamental unity at the core of our existence… it permeates our very sense of identity and being.

The transition may not be all-inclusive at first. When we first begin to glimpse Unity, we might only perceive it in relation to the direct objects of our awareness. For example, we might sense a oneness with a beautiful tree we’re observing. We may still perceive everything beyond that direct object of perception – the background – as separate or “other.” While deeply connected with the tree, for example, we might still see the park around the tree as separate from us.

However, as our consciousness continues to expand, Unity will begin to include more and more of everything until there are no boundaries left. Everything – not just the objects in our direct perception, but all beings and phenomena – is recognized as the same reality as our inner being. There could be another snap – an explosion – that encompasses the entire universe as your own consciousness.

When consciousness has matured and explored itself at every point, there is a natural progression to the next phase…

Part 3 here