CHAPTER 4

Is Reality Subjective or Objective?

Introduction - Personal Identity: The ‘self’

The mind is certain only in that it knows “I am me.” Yet, what does ‘me’ indicate? The self is ostensibly unique, separate, and the focal point of attention yet also presumably similar to the ‘self’ of other people. People presume that the primary difference between themselves and others is physical or situational. Differences seem to arise from personal likes and dislikes, plus presumptions or even dichotomies, such as Descartes’ “I think; therefore, I am,” or should it be the other way around: “I am; therefore, I think” (Sturme, 2007)?

The sequence of internal and external events and experiences builds up data in the brain’s memory banks so that the sense of ‘I-ness’ now includes serial internal as well as external events along a time-and-space track that is also owned as ‘me’ and ‘my mind’. The mind thus progressively comes into possession of enormous amounts of data from multiple sources with multiple levels of meanings and significance. With progressive maturity, there arises the awareness of responsibility and accountability as well as degrees of freedom of action. Out of all these factors arises the image of subjective self as a primary, intentional, volitional agent in the execution of options and choices and the locus of experiencing. It is then also the decider, the chooser, and, therefore, the will.

From the inner self also arise instinctual needs, intentions, aversions, and attractions, the primary focus of which is in that phenomenon called ‘experiencing’. The sense of self then shifts progressively as the sequential data processing compounds, and finally the mind concludes that it is the experiencer of events both past and present, within and without, as well as in the anticipated future. Thus, the mind concludes that it is primordial, causal, unique, individual, and separate from others, yet presumptively similar.

Out of this complexity arise the images of a personal as well as a social self (e.g., ‘personhood’), and a personal identity as well as presumptions about the nature of human existence itself. This integrated singularity of self as ‘me’ has a history and a name and thereby becomes a personhood that is linked with a discrete body and its numerous animal instinctual functions, but it also has an innate sense of autonomy, with the self as a primary causal agent.

The totality of experiencing is denoted by the abstract term ‘life’. The matrix of existence is affirmably biological, transient, and mortal, out of which arises the existential conundrum, “Whence did I arise? How do I know? How do I know that I know?” Thus, the individual faces the question of consciousness itself and its more abstract denotation as ‘spirit’.

Evolution of the Self/Ego

As described, by utilization of the simple technique of consciousness research, the truth or falsehood of any statement can be quickly ascertained, as can the specific degree of certitude by means of a progressive, exponential scale of consciousness calibrated from 1 to 1,000, which includes all possibilities within and even beyond the human domain. The calibrated number is obtained by means of a blind, impersonal technique resulting in biologically based physiological responses that occur (like litmus paper) independently of personal opinion. It is comparable to taking a person’s temperature or any other clinical laboratory data. (See Appendix C for methodology.) This capacity is merely an inherent responsive quality innate to biological life. The historical development of consciousness itself over great periods of time has been mapped and previously described elsewhere (Hawkins, 1995, 2006) and reprinted here for convenience.

Calibrated Levels of Consciousness
Animal Kingdom

Bacteria	1
Protozoa	2
Crustaceans	3
Insects	6
Arachnids	7
Amphibians	17
Fish	20
Octopus	20
Sharks	24
Vipers	35
Komodo dragon	40
Reptiles	40
Predatory mammals (hyena, lion, tiger)	40
Snakes	45
Alligators	45
Dinosaurs	60
Whales	85
Dolphins	95
Migratory birds	105
Birds of prey	105
Rodents	105
Rhinoceros	105
Baboons	105
Song birds	125
Doves	145
Polar bear	160
Grizzly bear	160
Water buffalo	175
Black bear	180
Jackal, foxes	185
Wolves	190
Hippopotamus	190
Javelina	195
Grazers (zebra, gazelle, giraffe)	200
Deer	205
Bison	205
Domestic pig	205
Elk	210
Dairy cow	210
Sheep	210
Range cattle	210
Elephants	210
Monkeys	210
Farm horse	240
Cats	240
Parrot, African gray	240
Family cat	245
Race horse	245
Dogs	245
Family dog	250
Family pig	250
Black crow	250
Oscar, famous cat	250
Gorilla	275
Chimpanzees	305
Exceptions:
Alex, trained African gray	401
Koko (trained gorilla)	405
Song bird’s song	500
Cat’s purr	500
Dog’s wagging tail	500

The consciousness-research muscle-response (‘Truth Reflex’) technique can be utilized by approximately one-third of the people in America (if they are integrous of intention). They have to calibrate over 200 and be more interested in arriving at the truth than at bulwarking a preferential viewpoint. The higher the level of consciousness of the participants (as pristine intention), the greater the accuracy (Jeffrey and Colyer, 2007).

By utilization of the simple technique, the qualities of consciousness expressed as thought, feeling, or knowingness can be analyzed and described along a progressive scale by which it is possible to obtain the specific degree of truth revealed by a set of questions and answers. (The muscle-strength test is the simplest, but there are others, such as pupillary response (Davis, 2007) or changes in brain function displayed by magnetic imaging. The physiological responses to truth versus falsehood are the current focus of extensive multimillion-dollar research by United States government security agencies (Applebaum, 2007), as well as current Transportation Security Administration ‘Spot Security’ systems in airports to detect possible terrorists.

By reflective self-inquiry, it will be discovered that thoughts and mentalizations are discrete, unique, separate, and different from each other and are therefore described as ‘linear’, which means they are definable as well as locatable in space, time, and relationship. In contrast, the capacity to become aware of that which is held in mind is consequent to the overall nonlinear field of awareness/consciousness itself. Thus, the field of consciousness is like the blank screen of the television set. The linear content is the program that can then be viewed. All experience is thus simultaneously that of content (perception, images, thoughts, feelings, etc.) illuminated by the nonlinear field of context (the light of consciousness/awareness).

The failure to make this distinction is why prevailing, supposedly scientific discussion and argument about the nature of consciousness is so limited and unproductive; it calibrates at 400 or commonly even lower. It is critical to differentiate the substrate infinite energy field of consciousness/awareness itself (cal.600 and above) from its limited linear mental content (e.g., thoughts, images, feelings, and memories).

Consciousness is thus an impersonal ‘given’, but its content consists of linear definitions in time and space that are also a consequence of programming, which can be either deliberate or accidental. The mind of man is thus both subjective/experiential and selective as well as impersonal, nonselective, and unintentional. Therefore, the mind is uncertain whether the screen or the program is really ‘real’. Upon simple observation, it becomes apparent that the quality of consciousness/awareness is the primordial impersonal capacity intrinsic to the condition of life itself, but that its specific content is of personal historical development.

Is reality subjective or objective? At some point, the introspective mind ponders the truth of its qualities, that is, “How do I know? How do I know that I know? How do I know that which I presume to be truth is actually true?” In addition, “Whence arose life, and what is its source?” This subjective state is nonlinear, primordial, and a priori. Out of this impersonal field arises the very personal sense of ‘I-ness’ as a primary quality of content. This basic subjective sense of ‘I’ is capable of reflexive self-knowing, whereas, in contrast, the mind merely thinks.

As mentioned previously, René Descartes made the seminal observation that there is the mind itself (res interna/cogitans), and then there is external reality (res externa—the world or nature as it is). The principle could be seen as a way of stating the difference between perception and essence. That there is often great disparity between the two conditions is the dilemma of humankind, as has been noted by the sages of history, such as in Socrates’ dictum that man always chooses what appears to be the ‘good’, but his difficulty is that he cannot tell the ‘real’ good from that which is illusory (i.e., differentiate appearance from essence). Note that ‘do-gooders’ (cal. 190) frequently bring about long-term social disasters (Charen, 2004).

In all spiritual traditions and teachings, the recognition of this disparity is basic and fundamental, and recognition of man’s primary defect is technically termed ‘ignorance’. In consciousness research, the difficulty is seen to arise from the limitation of the degree of the evolution of consciousness itself (both personal and collective). Thus arise the problems of culpability versus responsibility and the consequences of one’s choices and actions.

Construction of the Human Mind

In previous works and studies (Hawkins, 1995-2006), the structure of the human mind has been likened to a computer in that the mind’s basic structure is akin to the hardware and its content to the software. The mind has limited control over the content of the programming; thus, the human is simultaneously accountable and responsible yet innocent.

In this information age, the mind’s programming is incessant and constant, yet the mind is lacking in protective mechanisms; therefore, it can be made to believe anything by mere repetition no matter how outrageous or absurd, as was noted by Joseph Goebbels, the propaganda minister of Hitler’s Third Reich. Such programming is likened to indoctrination that is outside of awareness. The human mind is actually unwittingly subject to constant indoctrination (see Horowitz, 2007).

The above is, of course, now common knowledge. Research of prison-guard/prisoner experiments (Milgram, 1974; Zimbardo, 2007) indicates that even normal people can be turned into cruel victimizers. This is also exemplified by the famous movie and book, Lord of the Flies.

Under appropriate conditions, primitivism that arises from deep within Freud’s ‘Id’ can be activated, brought to the surface (‘going postal’), and expressed via destructive activity as was shown by the slaughtering of thirty-two innocents by Virginia Tech University student Cho Seung-Hui (cal. 5!) in April 2007. This same primitivism has been demonstrated by school or workplace spree killers and in rampant criminality such as occurred in the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina disaster, which was followed by genuine social anarchy. (One wonders at the sanity of purported anarchists when one views the catastrophe of actual real-life anarchy in contrast to its philosophical promulgation as social theory.)

In summary, the mind is so constructed via biological evolution that its capacity to discern even an operational reality from illusion and emotionalized misperception is not only impaired but also greatly limited. This limitation becomes most marked at calibration levels below 200, so the consciousness substrate of both personal and politicized violence can calibrate as low as 10 to 20 (e.g., terrorist indoctrination).

The brain’s physiology itself is reflective of the level of consciousness as represented by the following very critical diagram of brain physiology.

BRAIN FUNCTION AND PHYSIOLOGY

Below 200	Above 200
Left-brain dominance	Right-brain dominance
Linear	Non-linear
Stress—Adrenaline	Peace—Endorphins
Fight or flight	Positive emotion
Alarm–Resistance–Exhaustion	Support thymus
(Selye–Cannon: Fight/Flight)
Killer cells and immunity	Killer cells
Thymus stress	Immunity
Disrupt acupuncture meridian	Healing
Disease	Balanced acupuncture system
Negative muscle response	Positive muscle response
Neurotransmitters–Serotonin
Track to emotions twice as fast	Track to emotions slower
as through prefrontal cortex	than from prefrontal
to emotions	and etheric cortexes
Pupil dilates	Pupil constricts

Importance:

Spiritual endeavor and intention change the brain function and the body’s physiology and establish a specific area for spiritual information in the right-brain prefrontal cortex and its concordant etheric (energy) brain.

The individual’s capacity to recognize reality is consequent to the level of consciousness and concordant brain physiology. Notable is that spiritual intention markedly increases mental capacity and brain function so that the mind has greater capacity to actually discern essence. Thus, the answer to the question, “What is the purpose of life or of the world?” depends primarily on the calibrated level of consciousness and associated brain physiology of the person pondering the question. Overall, we see that the higher the level of consciousness (higher mind), the greater the capacity to discern truth, essence, and reality from illusion and emotionalized misperception (lower mind).

The Sense of Reality

The mind automatically assumes that it is continuously aware of reality, and it is unaware that what it considers to be reality is actually only its own presumptive inner processing function that has been termed ‘the experiencer’ (Hawkins, 2000-2006). Thus the data has already been automatically processed and edited via ego mechanisms within 1/10,000th of a second that have thereby added or subtracted value, meaning, and importance as well as emotional tone and shadings of memory and significance. What the ordinary mind presumes to be ‘truth’ is actually a processed composite of thousands of variables of differing degrees with superimposed editing, selection, distortion, and emotionalized, preferential evaluation. This editing is done unconsciously in 1/10,000th of a second and is not eliminated or bypassed until one reaches Enlightenment (cal. 600 and above).

Faith and Science

The term ‘science’ implies detached observation of data and the presumption of selfless objectivity via the dialectics of reason, rationality, and logic. The processing of data is considered ‘objective’ yet, at the same time, its value, significance, and meaning are all simultaneously the result of subjective colorations. While abstract fields of science are within the levels of the 400s (see Map of Consciousness), individual scientific experiments often fall far below the necessary level of Truth at 200 (e.g., ‘junk science’). In fact, the same scientist can, at different times of life, perform research experiments that vary quite widely, from as high as 460 down to 170, due to the interference of intention.

An example of this is a recent study on the efficacy of prayer in promoting healing, which appeared in the American Journal of Cardiology (April 2006) and reported negative results. This, of course, is contrary to the wealth of literature that has arisen over the years affirming the opposite conclusion, along with the millions of recoveries in faith/prayer self-help groups. The research design of the years-long million-dollar study calibrates at only 170. (Oddly enough, this study was financed by the Templeton Foundation, which itself calibrates at 500.)

A similar example is Crick’s research that resulted in the discovery of the DNA helix. That research calibrated at 440, while his last research project, which was designed to show that consciousness is solely the result of neural activity, calibrated at only 170. (He was an atheist.)

The deviation of science from authenticated truth is rampant due to the favoritism of funding sources for politicized positionalities and promoted causes by which faith in science becomes ‘scientism’, with associated faith and blind enthusiasm. Thus, ‘environmentalism’ results in earth-warming panic as purportedly being due to human causes (greenhouse gases, etc.), which calibrates as false (cal. 190). Deep polar-ice drillings and other data indicate that earth-warming cycles are the consequence of the magnetic activity of the sun’s surface (Lehr and Bennett, 2003; also Mehlman, 1997). Those studies calibrate at 455, which is the level of scientific validity. Note that while the mass of Arctic ice has diminished, the volume of Antarctic ice has increased even more than the Arctic loss.

The Journal of the American Medical Association (June 2005) reports that one-third of research reports are later proven to be in error. The collective research of the supposed dangers of secondhand smoke calibrates at 190 and was declared invalid by a federal court (Meier, 1998). Even the studies linking obesity to later-life diseases turned out to have been overstated by two hundred percent.

Another source of misleading scientific research reports is the misinterpretation of statistical correlation as causality. (The fact that ninety percent of people who develop tuberculosis wear brown shoes does not mean that brown shoes cause tuberculosis.) That statistical correlation is not causation was also reported by Austin in The Economist (February 2007). Paradoxically, the more prestigious the reporting institution, the greater is the likelihood of reporting error. This is apparently due to the media’s advantage of capturing a big name as a purported sponsor. Note that, historically, nearly all the great discoveries that have benefited mankind originated from very humble beginnings (e.g., Fleming’s discovery that eventually led to the development of penicillin).

Due to the inherent defects and vagaries of the human mind, without consciousness calibration, it is not possible to actually ascertain the level of truth, even when it is expressed as intended. While the likelihood of bias may be suspected or intuited, it can only be conclusively detected and proven by consciousness research itself. It will then be discovered that profound falsehoods can be uncovered in almost any human endeavor. However, most people are influenced by the commonality of social beliefs (e.g., the earth is flat; the sun circles the earth) as well as those documented in the famous book, Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds (Mackay, [1841] 2003).

Dominance of Subjectivity

The sense of ‘real’ is the consequence of subjective processing, and thus all supposed ‘objectivity’ is itself a purely subjective presumption and conclusion. Intrinsic subjectivity is therefore the a priori premise of all mental processing, and it operates as a dominant premise. To be precise and specific, it can be said that ‘objectivity’ is itself a purely subjective presumption.

The sense of being ‘real’, however, also accompanies altered states of consciousness, such as dreams, hypnotic and ‘oneric’ (fugue) states, as well as hallucinations, delusions, and induced suggestions; UFO abductions (cal. 170); and out-of-body experiences of other realms and ‘visions’, such as astral trance.

In contrast are amnesic states that may be brief and transitory or may last for hours, days, or even longer. Long-lasting conditions are seen in compartmentalized split-personality disorders. Such ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ personalities do indeed exist, and the two personalities actually calibrate quite differently. Some of these cases played critically important roles in very serious security breaches, including atomic energy projects where the defection of high-profile double agents resulted in the current world’s atomic bomb hazard (e.g., Robert Hansson, Klaus Fuchs, and the Rosenbergs).

Unsuspected compartmentalized personalities currently continue to pose a grave risk to security in the United States. They can be detected only by consciousness calibration techniques by which identification occurs quickly and easily. This would seem to be important in that in today’s nuclear world, the lives of millions of innocent people are at risk.