The Mysteries of Self, Qualia, Consciousness & Evolution

On the Mystery of the Self & the Selection Problem: A Mathematical Approach by Daniel Caputi

The self, which presents to us as an irreducible entity in which our subjective experience is directed onto, is often thought of as an unremarkable phenomenon or illusion. However, the mere perception of it cannot be neglected for our scientific endeavor to explain consciousness, and this point is illustrated through a multitude of thought experiments. These thought experiments also show the importance of differentiating selves between distinct conscious organisms, regardless of their individual phenomenological content. A distinction is made between an active subject (a self that is conscious) and a potential subject (a self that is unconscious). Potential subjects refer to selves that would otherwise be present in organisms that are currently unconscious or post-mortem. They can also refer to an infinite amount of imaginary selves that will never be born into existence. This infinite reference space shows that there is an explanatory gap between our knowledge that conscious organisms have selves and our knowledge that specific selves are mapped into specific organisms. This explanatory gap needs to be closed in order to design effective uploading technology to extend the life of our minds beyond the life of our body. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/399

Consciousness & Evolution by Vibha S. Vaishnav, Kireet Joshi

The theory of evolution and consciousness which Sri Aurobindo has presented is fundamentally experimental. In this experiment, Sri Aurobindo, and his French collaborator, the Mother applied scientific methods and developed a new system, which has come to be known as Integral Yoga. As a result of this, a successful attempt was made in fixing the Supramental Consciousness in the mind of the cells of the human body. The entire exposition of the experiment would be too vast for this paper, but the primacy of consciousness is expounded against the background of increasing evidence being collected now in the scientific fields. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/406

Is Qualia Meaning or Understanding? by Cosmin Visan

By arguing that qualia is meaning or understanding, a new framework for understanding consciousness is developed. In this way, the meaning of yellow and red are uncovered. The suggested solutions are that yellow means “source of light” and red means “important”. Also, in the process of arguing that qualia is meaning, remarkable similarities in the structure of qualia are uncovered. In this way, a reason for why very hot and very cold water feel the same, is given. The same behaviour is also shown to take place for colours. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/407

The Dance by Steven E. Kaufman

It is time to Awaken and open our eyes to our formless Nature so that as we Dance we will no longer trip over Ourself, no longer create suffering for Ourself, but will instead dance in harmony with Ourself and once again just enjoy the Dance, unconcerned with form, unconcerned with goals and results, unconcerned with what are really only byproducts of the Dance, byproducts of What Is Really Important, byproducts of What Really Matters. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/408

Intelligence by Steven E. Kaufman

What is true intelligence? No one can really say, because true intelligence is non-conceptual, and so beyond words. What is the true source of intelligence? That too cannot really be spoken, because the true source of intelligence is also non-conceptual, and so also beyond words. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/409

Conscious & Unconscious Movement by Steven E. Kaufman

It is the way of unconscious Consciousness, the way of Consciousness that knows itself as form, to oppose some forms and to cling to others, and in so doing to create suffering. It is not the way of conscious Consciousness, not the way of Consciousness that knows Itself as the Formless, to oppose or cling to the lesser forms that arise as experience within Itself. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/410

The Flow of the Great Mother by Steven E. Kaufman

The Great Mother is One, everything else comes in pairs of opposites, because everything else is created as the Great Mother Flows in relation to Herself. And so in constructing the door that leads to Her enjoying Herself, She also constructs a door that makes it possible for Her to do the opposite of enjoying Herself. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/411

Formlessness in the Service of Form by Steven E. Kaufman

We are Formlessness living in the service of a form that we ourselves are creating. We serve the form that we ourselves are creating by defending it from that which appears to cause its diminishment. And we also serve the form that we ourselves are creating by clinging to that which appears to cause its enhancement. And it is in identifying with and then serving the form that we ourselves create that we hide from ourselves our Nature as That which both creates and apprehends form. See http://jcer.com/index.php/jcj/article/view/412