Cosmic Consciousness: Difference between revisions
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'''Cosmic Consciousness''' is | According to Canadian physician Dr. [[Richard Bucke]], William S. Bucke, '''Cosmic Consciousness''' "is a higher form of consciousness than that possessed by ordinary man [sic]."<ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 1, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> "The prime characteristic of cosmic consciousness...is a consciousness of the cosmos, that is, of the life and order of the universe."<ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 2, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | ||
</blockquote> | </blockquote> | ||
== | ==Concept Map== | ||
[[ | ===Syncretic Terms=== | ||
[[Connected Consciousness]] > {{#ask:[[Is a syncretic term::Connected Consciousness]]|format=ul}} | |||
===Related LP Terms=== | |||
[[Cosmic Consciousness]] > {{#ask:[[Is a related LP term::Cosmic Consciousness]]}} | |||
===Non-LP Related Terms=== | |||
[[Cosmic Consciousness]] > {{#ask:[[Is a related term::Cosmic Consciousness]]}} | |||
==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
Bucke | '''Cosmic Consciousness''' is the term used by [[R. M. Bucke]] and [[Edward Carpenter]] to describe the Consciousness attained during an intense [[Connection Event]] with positive and "cosmic" content (a.k.a. a [[Zenith Experience]])<ref>Bucke, Richard Maurice. Cosmic Consciousness. Book Tree. Kindle Edition. See [[Talk:Glimpse]] for an account of Bucke's [[Connection Event]]</ref> | ||
Bucke saw "three grades of consciousness," [[Simple Consciousness]], [[Self Consciousness]], and [[Cosmic Consciousness]].<ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 1, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | |||
Bucke, like Einstein, saw Cosmic Consciousness as a component of an unfolding utopia. He based his projection on the a) the emergence of advanced technology, 2) a communist revolution that would "abolish individual ownership and rid the earth at one of two immense evils--riches and poverty, and 3) a revolution in human spirituality that would lead to the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. <ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 3-4, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | |||
Some also use the term to refer to a state of [[Perfection]], [[Purity]], and [[Completion]] that allows for the establishment of strong, consistent [[Connection]]. On | |||
Bucke sees Cosmic Consciousness as a "nascent...faculty" that appears first in an "exalted human personality....in some, probably in all, cases the person has an exceptional physique—exceptional beauty of build and carriage, exceptionally handsome features, exceptional health, exceptional sweetness of temper, exceptional magnetism.<ref>Bucke, | Bucke sees the attainment of [[Cosmic Consciousness]] as the last step forward in human evolution. From [[Simple Consciousness]] through [[Self Consciousness]] to [[Cosmic Consciousness]]. | ||
Edward Carpenter picks up this thinking. | |||
Edward Carpenter also sees Cosmic Consciousness as the third and final step in a long process of emergence, separation, and final "reconciliation" or "reintegration" when object...is seen..to be one with the self. The knower, the knowledge, and the thing known are once more one“the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. <ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | |||
Bucke sees Cosmic Consciousness as a "nascent...faculty" that appears first in an "exalted human personality....in some, probably in all, cases the person has an exceptional physique—exceptional beauty of build and carriage, exceptionally handsome features, exceptional health, exceptional sweetness of temper, exceptional magnetism.the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. <ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009),, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | |||
Carpenter notes that "the great prophets and seers" who expounded their experiences of unity, knowledge, etc., prove the existence of "another stage of consciousness. | Carpenter notes that "the great prophets and seers" who expounded their experiences of unity, knowledge, etc., prove the existence of "another stage of consciousness. | ||
Contrast this with Maslow who see the ability to have [[Peak | Contrast this with Maslow who see the ability to have [[Peak Experiences]] as something everybody can do. | ||
==Quotes== | |||
<blockquote>The immediate future of our race, the writer thinks, is indescribably hopeful. There are at the present moment impending over us three revolutions, the least of which would dwarf the ordinary historical upheaval called by that name.... They are: (1) the material, economic, and social revolution which will depend upon and result from the establishment of aerial navigation. (2) The economic and social revolution which will abolish indivhe Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), hidual ownership and rid the earth at once of two immense evils--0riches and poverty. And (3) The physical revolution....Either of the first two would (and will) radically change the conditions of human life....The three operating...together will literally create a new heaven and a new earth."<ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 3, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref></blockquote> | |||
<blockquote class="quotation"> | <blockquote class="quotation"> | ||
Cosmic Consciousness is a third form which is as far above Self Consciousness as is that above Simple Consciousness....The prime characteristic of cosmic consciousness is...a ''consciousness of the cosmos'', that is, of the life and order of the universe....Along with the consciousness of the cosmos there occurs an ''intellectual enlightenment'' or ''illumination'' which alone would place the individual on a new plane of existence—would make him almost a member of a new species. To this is added a state of ''moral exaltation'', an indescribable ''feeling of elevation, elation and joyousness'', and a ''quickening of the moral sense'', which is fully as striking and more important both to the individual and to the race than is the ''enhanced intellectual power''. With these come, what may be called, a sense of immortality, a consciousness of eternal life, not a conviction that he shall have this, but the consciousness that he has it already.< | Cosmic Consciousness is a third form which is as far above Self Consciousness as is that above Simple Consciousness....The prime characteristic of cosmic consciousness is...a ''consciousness of the cosmos'', that is, of the life and order of the universe....Along with the consciousness of the cosmos there occurs an ''intellectual enlightenment'' or ''illumination'' which alone would place the individual on a new plane of existence—would make him almost a member of a new species. To this is added a state of ''moral exaltation'', an indescribable ''feeling of elevation, elation and joyousness'', and a ''quickening of the moral sense'', which is fully as striking and more important both to the individual and to the race than is the ''enhanced intellectual power''. With these come, what may be called, a sense of immortality, a consciousness of eternal life, not a conviction that he shall have this, but the consciousness that he has it already. <ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 2, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref></blockquote> | ||
</blockquote> | |||
<blockquote>In contact with the flux of cosmic consciousness all religions known and named to-day will be melted down. The human soul will be revolutionized. Religion will absolutely dominate the race. It will not depend on tradition. It will not be believed and disbelieved. It will not be a part of life, belonging to certain hours, times, occasions. It will not be in sacred books nor in the mouths of priests. It will not dwell in churches and meetings and forms and days. Its life will not be in prayers, hymns nor discourses. It will not depend on special revelations, on the words of gods who came down to teach, nor on any bible or bibles. It will have no mission to save men from their sins or to secure them entrance to heaven. It will not teach a future immortality nor future glories, for immortality and all glory will exist in the here and now. The evidence of immortality will live in every heart as sight in every eye. Doubt of God and of eternal life will be as impossible as is now doubt of existence ; the evidence of each will be the same. Religion will govern every minute of every day of all life. Churches, priests, forms, creeds, prayers, all agents, all intermediaries between the individual man and God will be permanently replaced by direct unmistakable intercourse. Sin will no longer exist nor will salvation be desired. Men will not worry about death or a future, about the kingdom of heaven, about what may come with and after the cessation of the life of the present body. Each soul will feel and know itself to be immortal, will feel and know that the entire universe with all its good and with all its beauty is for it and belongs to it forever. The world peopled by men possessing cosmic consciousness will be as far removed from the world of to-day as this is from the world as it was before the advent of self consciousness. <ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 4, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref></blockquote> | |||
<blockquote>The Saviour of man is Cosmic Consciousness — in Paul’s language — the Christ. The cosmic sense (in whatever mind it appears) crushes the serpent’s head — destroys sin, shame, the sense of good and evil as contrasted one with the other, and will annihilate labor, though not human activity.<ref>R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 5, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.</ref> | |||
</blockquote> | |||
{{endstuff}} | |||
[[category:terms]] | [[category:terms]] | ||
[[Is | [[Is a term::R. M. Bucke| ]] | ||
[[Is | [[Is a term::Edward Carpenter| ]] | ||
[[Is a:: | [[Is a syncretic term::Connected Consciousness| ]] | ||
Latest revision as of 17:21, 6 June 2026
Cosmic Consciousness
According to Canadian physician Dr. Richard Bucke, William S. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness "is a higher form of consciousness than that possessed by ordinary man [sic]."[1] "The prime characteristic of cosmic consciousness...is a consciousness of the cosmos, that is, of the life and order of the universe."[2]
Concept Map
Syncretic Terms
Related LP Terms
Non-LP Related Terms
Notes
Cosmic Consciousness is the term used by R. M. Bucke and Edward Carpenter to describe the Consciousness attained during an intense Connection Event with positive and "cosmic" content (a.k.a. a Zenith Experience)[3]
Bucke saw "three grades of consciousness," Simple Consciousness, Self Consciousness, and Cosmic Consciousness.[4]
Bucke, like Einstein, saw Cosmic Consciousness as a component of an unfolding utopia. He based his projection on the a) the emergence of advanced technology, 2) a communist revolution that would "abolish individual ownership and rid the earth at one of two immense evils--riches and poverty, and 3) a revolution in human spirituality that would lead to the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. [5]
Some also use the term to refer to a state of Perfection, Purity, and Completion that allows for the establishment of strong, consistent Connection. On
Bucke sees the attainment of Cosmic Consciousness as the last step forward in human evolution. From Simple Consciousness through Self Consciousness to Cosmic Consciousness.
Edward Carpenter picks up this thinking.
Edward Carpenter also sees Cosmic Consciousness as the third and final step in a long process of emergence, separation, and final "reconciliation" or "reintegration" when object...is seen..to be one with the self. The knower, the knowledge, and the thing known are once more one“the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. [6]
Bucke sees Cosmic Consciousness as a "nascent...faculty" that appears first in an "exalted human personality....in some, probably in all, cases the person has an exceptional physique—exceptional beauty of build and carriage, exceptionally handsome features, exceptional health, exceptional sweetness of temper, exceptional magnetism.the emergence of a cosmic consciousness amongst the general population. [7]
Carpenter notes that "the great prophets and seers" who expounded their experiences of unity, knowledge, etc., prove the existence of "another stage of consciousness.
Contrast this with Maslow who see the ability to have Peak Experiences as something everybody can do.
Quotes
The immediate future of our race, the writer thinks, is indescribably hopeful. There are at the present moment impending over us three revolutions, the least of which would dwarf the ordinary historical upheaval called by that name.... They are: (1) the material, economic, and social revolution which will depend upon and result from the establishment of aerial navigation. (2) The economic and social revolution which will abolish indivhe Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), hidual ownership and rid the earth at once of two immense evils--0riches and poverty. And (3) The physical revolution....Either of the first two would (and will) radically change the conditions of human life....The three operating...together will literally create a new heaven and a new earth."[8]
Cosmic Consciousness is a third form which is as far above Self Consciousness as is that above Simple Consciousness....The prime characteristic of cosmic consciousness is...a consciousness of the cosmos, that is, of the life and order of the universe....Along with the consciousness of the cosmos there occurs an intellectual enlightenment or illumination which alone would place the individual on a new plane of existence—would make him almost a member of a new species. To this is added a state of moral exaltation, an indescribable feeling of elevation, elation and joyousness, and a quickening of the moral sense, which is fully as striking and more important both to the individual and to the race than is the enhanced intellectual power. With these come, what may be called, a sense of immortality, a consciousness of eternal life, not a conviction that he shall have this, but the consciousness that he has it already. [9]
In contact with the flux of cosmic consciousness all religions known and named to-day will be melted down. The human soul will be revolutionized. Religion will absolutely dominate the race. It will not depend on tradition. It will not be believed and disbelieved. It will not be a part of life, belonging to certain hours, times, occasions. It will not be in sacred books nor in the mouths of priests. It will not dwell in churches and meetings and forms and days. Its life will not be in prayers, hymns nor discourses. It will not depend on special revelations, on the words of gods who came down to teach, nor on any bible or bibles. It will have no mission to save men from their sins or to secure them entrance to heaven. It will not teach a future immortality nor future glories, for immortality and all glory will exist in the here and now. The evidence of immortality will live in every heart as sight in every eye. Doubt of God and of eternal life will be as impossible as is now doubt of existence ; the evidence of each will be the same. Religion will govern every minute of every day of all life. Churches, priests, forms, creeds, prayers, all agents, all intermediaries between the individual man and God will be permanently replaced by direct unmistakable intercourse. Sin will no longer exist nor will salvation be desired. Men will not worry about death or a future, about the kingdom of heaven, about what may come with and after the cessation of the life of the present body. Each soul will feel and know itself to be immortal, will feel and know that the entire universe with all its good and with all its beauty is for it and belongs to it forever. The world peopled by men possessing cosmic consciousness will be as far removed from the world of to-day as this is from the world as it was before the advent of self consciousness. [10]
The Saviour of man is Cosmic Consciousness — in Paul’s language — the Christ. The cosmic sense (in whatever mind it appears) crushes the serpent’s head — destroys sin, shame, the sense of good and evil as contrasted one with the other, and will annihilate labor, though not human activity.[11]
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Footnotes
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 1, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 2, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ Bucke, Richard Maurice. Cosmic Consciousness. Book Tree. Kindle Edition. See Talk:Glimpse for an account of Bucke's Connection Event
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 1, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 3-4, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009),, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 3, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 2, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 4, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.
- ↑ R. M. Bucke, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind (New York: E.P. Dutton, 2009), 5, https://archive.org/details/cosmicconsciousn01buck.