The evolution of consciousness

The Evolution of Consciousness
By Jimmy Henderson

‘Consciousness, like the universe, is ever expanding, moving outwards to fill the framework of all possibilities’
J. Henderson

The evolution of the human consciousness is merely another way of describing the process of spiritual evolution or the unfoldment of our souls or true spiritual selves through the different levels of so-called physical reality. Everything seems to point to the fact that the universe is geared towards growth and that in terms of human development this evolutionary process usually takes place naturally as the result of our day-to-day learning and growth experiences. However, as metaphysicians, we also know that the process can be speeded up through more fully conscious living and a daily commitment to self-development which usually occurs with religious, spiritual or metaphysical practices. These evolutionary processes can also be assisted by an association with higher forms of life and consciousness such as celestial beings and spiritual masters. For example, we know that the more we interact with, and stimulate children intellectually, the quicker they develop the necessary life and learning skills.

This whole idea of evolution has always been a contentious issue usually involving religionists versus scientists. However, even within metaphysics itself, many still do not fully understand the principles involved in the migration of the soul (or consciousness) through the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms. And this is often purely due to conceptual confusion and semantics. For example, does the idea of our consciousness entering the material world and passing through an evolutionary process of unfoldment really imply that at some stage we were a specific animal or insect, a vegetable such as a carrot or even a stone lying somewhere on a beach? To some people this seems unimaginable and even absurd, so perhaps the basic principles have not been clearly explained.

For instance, we need to first understand that the process taking place on this plane is not the spiritual self evolving but rather a gradual transmigration of a soul consciousness through increasingly complex physical structures in order to be able to more perfectly express its essential nature, which is, in fact, a part of God-Consciousness.

Second, individuation (or the emergence of a distinct individual personality), can logically only take place when there is at least a degree of self-awareness. This suggests that during the earlier stages of unfoldment, the soul consciousness is more likely to be submerged in a group or collective consciousness to emerge only later as an individual when the particular structure is sufficiently complex to receive it. In other words, even as early man may have existed in some primitive form or another, he did not become a distinct personality until his body and nervous system had evolved to a point where it could sustain self-awareness, at which point he became a ‘living soul’ (Gen. 2:7). (This answers the question as to how evolution and creationism can be reconciled).

This idea of group and collective consciousness is supported by research on the coordinated movements of animals such as schools of fish and flocks of birds (group consciousness) and the ‘connected’ and co-coordinated actions of bees and ants (collective consciousness). However, the antics, intelligence and emotion displayed by higher animals such as dolphins, apes and even some dogs and cats do suggest a distinct personality, so perhaps at that level of consciousness soul individuation is beginning to take place.

To conclude therefore, it is more logical to assume that on lower levels of consciousness, namely that of the minerals, plants, insects and even most animals, we are dealing with an embryonic group or collective consciousness through which the distinct spiritual personalities of our souls are merely passing and it would be wrong to say that any one of us was ever a specific vegetable or a fruit on the table, as opponents of the principle of the evolution of the soul or consciousness have laughingly challenged.

Jimmy Henderson is a metaphysical teacher and the author of a number of books and articles on self-development. His latest book ‘Multi-dimensional Thinking’ (Kima Global, 2007) is available at selected bookshops. He is also a facilitator with Metavarsity.
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