A Framework for Consciousness and its Interactions with the Physical World

1. A Framework for Consciousness and its Interactions with the Physical World Ashok K. Agrawala Professor of Computer Science University of Maryland

2. Realms • Pure Consciousness • Mental + Consciousness • Physical + Mental + Consciousness Consciousness Mental and Consciousness

3. Primary Building Blocks of Creation • Active • Consciousness • Energy • Passive • Information

4. Energy • Physical World Entities • Energy Mass Equivalence • Forms of Energy • Use of Energy • To carry out any action requires energy of the proper form • To represent information

5. Forms of Energy • Physical • Multiple forms • Potential energy • Kinetic Energy • Thermal Energy • Electrical Energy • Magnetic Energy • Gravitation • Strong and Weak Nuclear • Mass Energy Equivalence • Mental/Etheric • Spiritual • These may have multiple forms also.

6. Consciousness • Consciousness Element (CE) • Requires influx of Consciousness Current (CC) for it to activate • CE may become dormant if there is no CC. • Consciousness Current may come from another CE and may also contain some commands/goals/directives etc. • Basic Attributes • Awareness and Self-awareness • Self-actuation • Intelligence

7. Consciousness Attributes • Awareness and Self-awareness • Collection of all information that is accessible • When this includes access to its own information that implies self-awareness • Self Actuation • Ability to initiate actions • Typically in the form of changing information • Intelligence • Ability to map information to actions

8. Information • The common form for the term information • Uses energy • Access by active entities • Forms of Information • Physical • A representation – does not have meaning or essence • As arrangement of energy or matter • Coordinate Addressable • Using physical form of Energy or Matter • Primary uses – by Physical Entities, through physical means.

9. Forms of Information • Mental • Content Addressable • Uses Etheric/Pranic/Chi Energies • Accessible to Mental Elements • Does not contain meaning or essence • Primary user - Mind • Spiritual Level • Uses Spiritual Energies • Meaning and Essence • Smooth Transition among Levels of Abstractions • Primary user – Consciousness Entity

10. Physical Entity • Every Physical Entity has Energy or Matter as its physical component • Every Physical Entity has an associated Consciousness Element • All the information about the physical component is stored in higher realm and is accessible to the associated CE.

11. Basic Structure – Physical Entity • The interaction between the Physical Entity and its associated CE is through information – as the information changes so does the physical entity. • A CE attached to a non-living physical entity does not have any intelligence or self-actuation capabilities • A Physical Entity does not have its own energy generation capability • It interacts with other entities through available energy using the laws of their interaction.

12. Interaction of Physical Entities • As the Physical Entities interact due to the energies in and around them their information changes • The CE associated with the Physical Entities, which is primarily dealing with the information, changes as the information changes • A Physical Entity may change if the CE associated with it changes the information.

13. Interaction of Physical Entities • All interactions of Physical Entities require external energies which are physical entities also • An interaction may trigger another interaction and if suitably arranged a long sequence of interactions may go on

14. Grouping of Physical Entities

15. Grouping of Physical Entities • When we group a number of physical entities the CEs associated with each still remain but an additional CE is associated with the group which maintains a link with each CE of the group members • The Group CE may carry out a coordination function among the CEs of the group

16. Emergent Properties of Groups • The group CE has to make a CC connection • To the CE’s of the group • To external CE for actuation and receiving other directions • Depending on the composition of the group the abilities of the group CE may be more than what can be anticipated from the CE’s of the group members • Emergent Properties • Provided by the external connection to the group CE • Downward Causation

17. Living Entity (LE) • A Living Entity typically consists of a large number of PEs • A Living Entity has the ability of • Generating its own energy, and • Carrying out actions • A Living Entity requires food and may discard waste products • A Living Entity has a CE which is the group CE for all constituent PEs • This CE requires CC connection to some other CE which may be outside the Living Entity

18. Living Entity – A Cell • A cell consists of a number of molecules of chemical elements • A cell has the machinery to generate energy • It carries out some actions • The actions are initiated by the associated CE either directly or through CEs for some of the constituents of the cell

19. Living Entity – An Organ • An organ consists of a number of cells • There is a CE for the organ which coordinates the functions of all the cells in the organ. • CE for the organ has a CC connection with the CE for the body of which this organ is a part • Once the organ is separated from the body the CC connection may be lost • The organ can survive for a while as long as the “food” is available for it • May not be able to carry out its functions fully as the connection with the Body CE is missing.

20. Living Entity - Animal • An animal has • Many relatively autonomous parts • Sensing Capabilities • Action Capabilities • Voluntary • Involuntary • Much more complex • Survival requires quick action • MIND

21. Body, Mind, and Soul • Body • Physical Entity • Soul • Consciousness Entity • Mind • Mental Entity

22. Mental Region • Animal Body is a complex entity requiring a lot of coordinated actions which require suitable control mechanisms • The actions can be • Involuntary • Voluntary • When some living entities become large and complex and are capable of a lot of actions they require an intermediate level - MIND

23. Mental Entity (ME) • Function in mental realm • Have their own CEs • May or may not be associated with a body • Work with information which is primarily stored about all physical entities of the body and related things in the mental realm • Can initiate physical actions by influencing the information of the physical entities • Derive CC connection from Body CE

24. MIND • Has access to information stored in mental realm • Content Addressable • Has local storage of information which is not accessible to any other similar entity • Has ability to acquire information through sense organs • Has ability to initiate actions through action organs • Has some intelligence to translate information into actions based on: • Prior experiences • Reactive instincts – survival • …

25. MIND • Has a model of the world around in its local storage • This model is learned through sensing, education, experience, etc. • Functioning in the world is governed by this model • The model keeps evolving/changing with experience • The access to information is limited to what is stored and even that gets restricted • Has the ability of some manipulation (processing) of information using learned techniques – thinking • Derives its CC connection from the CE of the Body – Soul • Soul – the CE of a body, and the mind have a close connection

26. Pure Consciousness Realm • This is the realm of Pure Consciousness • Each CE is capable of functioning in this realm • The information in this realm is with its meaning and can transition smoothly at various levels of abstraction • A CE functioning in this realm may derive CC from the Universal Source (GOD) • Soul has access to the pure information at this level • The access is governed by the degree of enlightenment of the soul

27. Human Being • A Human being has a body, mind and soul • For functioning in the world a human being has to carry out a lot of functions which are primarily governed by the mind • Ego, which is a part of the mind, is primarily responsible for self-sustenance of the body, may block or restrict the connection to the soul • Mind has access to its mental information which it acquired. This may be different from the true information coming from physical realities etc.

28. Human Being • When a human being dies the body to mind and soul connection is broken • The mind and soul connection still exists • A lot of information the mind acquired and retained about its model of the world around is of no use and is discarded • The information which soul needs is retained and is available to the soul for the next birth. • If the mind- soul connection is such that nothing is to be retained by the soul after the death, the soul does not have to go through any more births

29. Side Effects of Interactions • Interactions among entities usually has side effects • The side effects fall in the domain of KARMA THEORY • Side effects are recorded as information • For living beings the record is in the information associated with it

30. Concluding Remarks • All components of creation are made of consciousness and energy • Information – a virtual entity – plays the key role of “glue” at all levels • Its mechanisms for representation and access in mental and pure consciousness regions are yet to be discovered