Conscientiology: the study of consciousness
There are many psycho-spiritual disciplines that can help us deepen our experience and understanding of ourselves as multidimensional beings in evolution. Conscientiology (“the study of consciousness”) was first proposed in Brazil, where it is developed and taught by many different organizations. Conscientiology seeks to understand consciousness by studying its multidimensional manifestations, i.e by improving our understanding of how we as individual consciousnesses manifest and express ourselves in this and other dimensions, during this and other lives.
In everything we do, our underlying assumptions will have a great impact on how we go about it, what we take into consideration and what kind of outcomes we are open to. So for example, if you believe that consciousness must arise from the physical brain, you will reason away, or possibly not even register, all the evidence that points to it actually existing independently from the body. The research approach in conscientiology is framed in such a way as to encompass the full range of experiences of consciousness.
As such it includes 4 key aspects in its focus of inquiry:
• Multidimensionality – by experiencing ourselves beyond the physical body we can start to appreciate that life manifests on more than one dimension. At the basic level we can distinguish between the intraphysical dimension – the one we inhabit in our physical body – and the extraphysical dimension – the one we experience when outside of the physical body, either during projections of consciousness (OBEs) or when we are “dead”. People who have explored the extraphysical dimension report that in fact there are many dimensions reflecting the mental and emotional energies of the consciousnesses who reside there.
• Multiple bodies – another thing we learn by experiencing ourselves outside of the physical body is that we have bodies beyond the physical. First of all we have a body that looks like the physical but is much more subtle. This is the body we most commonly use when we project from the physical body and during periods when we do not have a physical body. In conscientiology this body is called psychosoma. We have another body, known as mentalsoma. We can also project in that body, but this is rarer. When we do experience ourselves in the mentalsoma we have moments of great clarity and sense of connection with all of life (cosmic consciousness). The mentalsoma is incredibly subtle and manifests as a sphere or sometimes as a point of light, but it is still energy. Consciousness is beyond the mentalsoma. Finally, we also have an energetic body. This energetic body permeates and vitalizes our entire physical body. It also provides the crucial link between the physical body and the psychosoma. When we project, for example, there is always an energetic connection between the two, known as the “silver cord”. Each body is incredibly complex and worthy of in-depth study.
• Multiple lives – the existence of our various bodies provides a simple model for the process commonly referred to as reincarnation. The physical body dies, but consciousness continues its journey in the psychosoma which experiences a period in the non-physical dimensions before preparing for a new life. We have all had countless lives as humans and other species and understanding the pattern and dynamic of our series of existences can help us make the most of this current life.
• Bioenergetics – the final key component of this approach to consciousness research is an engagement with the subtle energy of life. As stated, we all have an energetic body made of this bioenergy, which is also known as Qui or Chi in the Eastern traditions. All life forms have such energy and our life in this dimension is in fact fundamentally energetic. We absorb energy through the food we eat, the air we breathe and in all our interactions with people and environments. Understanding the impact of energy on our whole system and learning to control it are key aspects to this approach to consciousness research and provide its experiential foundation.
Projectiology: the study of the projection of consciousness
Projectiology is an essential sub-discipline of conscientiology. It is the study of the projection of consciousness, the same experience some people call “out-of-body experience” (OBE) or “astral projection”. The projection of consciousness basically involves a person leaving their physical body in another more subtle body and experiencing themselves alive and aware yet separate from the physical body. A projection of consciousness can take an individual many places. Some people find themselves close to their physical body, in their bedroom our house. Others travel to another country or the other side of the world. Yet others visit other dimensions where they meet deceased relatives and a wide variety of other people. Sometimes projectors have encounters with people who seem to emanate overwhelming love and return to their bodies filled with joy and passion for making changes for the better in their lives. At other times, they may have experiences with less pleasant people who leave them feeling uncomfortable.
One of the benefits of studying projectiology is that we develop an appreciation of the vastness of the world of consciousness and gain a greater understanding of our place within it.
Other benefits can include:
• adjusting our relationship to our physical body, gradually loosing our fear of death as we come to fully realize that we are not our physical body
• gaining a better understanding of our personal history as we access memories of past lives while in expanded states of consciousness beyond the confines of the physical body
• gaining insights about our life direction as we access memories of the period before our most recent birth when we planned this physical life
Studying projections of consciousness is not about separating ourselves from physical life. It is about becoming more integrated human beings through increasing our inner sense of our multidimensional nature and consequently living our human life to its full potential.