© 2004. Journal
of Conscientiology, London, UK
Event
Report:
2003 Colloquium on Consciousness Studies
Gainesville (Florida, USA) 02nd
August 2003: Residents of this Florida city and students and faculty of the University
of Florida were presented with the opportunity to attend and participate in a
meeting convened at Williamson Hall on the university’s campus. Representatives
of a number of consciousness research organizations delivered presentations on
a variety of subject related to consciousness. Circa 20 individuals were in
attendance and the discussion, organized by the new Science of Self Club
was engaging and reported reward by participants.
BACKGROUND
The University
of Florida is amongst the largest and most prestigious in the United States;
multidisciplinary, multicultural and research-funded, the UF features
substantial liberal arts, engineering, and medical colleges as well as the Shands Hospital, the McKnight Brain Institute, and the
Center for Health and Spirituality. Located in Gainesville, north central
Florida, the University is within striking distance of Orlando (Disney world),
Tampa Bay and the Busch Gardens, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral
and “Spring Break Capital” Panama City, as well as Miami.
The Science
of Self Club was established as an official student organization of the
University of Florida in May 2003 with support from the University’s counseling
and clinical psychology faculty. Shortly thereafter, the Club launched its
maiden event, inviting speakers from a number of organizations engaged in
consciousness studies to deliver a lecture on campus. On 2nd of
August 2003, the Colloquium on Consciousness Studies took place,
featuring representatives from the International Association for Near Death Studies (Diane LaRoe,
Panama City, Florida); the International Academy of Consciousness
(Patricia Sousa, Miami, Florida); Florida Institute of Noetic
Sciences (Sharon Kleitsch, Saint Petersburg,
Florida) and the American Holistic Medical Association (Carol Roberts,
MD, Saint Petersburg, Florida).
The event was
aimed at illuminating recent breakthroughs in consciousness related research
and at stimulating debate on the subject of the study of the consciousness,
discussing the potentially earth-shattering implications of this work.
Consciousness studies integrate a variety of established sciences such as
psychology, sociology, physics, medicine, and
neuroscience. Its scope encompasses a myriad of interrelated topics, a brief
selection of which might include artificial intelligence, cloning, alternative
medicine, abortion, teen suicide, racism, criminal justice, complementary
alternative medicine (CAM), ethics, military intelligence, missing individual
searches. Many of these are hotly debated by the laity, scientists,
philosophers and religious scholars and feature regularly in contemporary
media.
This medley of
consciousness-related subjects appeals to individuals curious regarding scientific
studies of anomalous phenomena and altered states of consciousness. It is also
likely to attract those with a professional interest in psychology, especially those
engaged in clinical and cognitive psychology, as well as other health
professionals. Popular interest in the subject by the general public at large appears
strong and growing; a wealth of popular, silver screen paranormal
thrillers and increasing frequency of subject inclusive radio and television production
suggest a new all-time high.
Certain
individuals recognize the potential impact of these studies on spirituality and
human culture and cite the positive effects that often arise from near-death
experience(s) as an initial example.
Such a colloquium
as convened by the Club has the potential to generate lively discussion,
including within its scope unconventional but nevertheless scientifically-sound
research into epistemologically-challenging and controversial subjects – each
with wide-ranging, potentially earth-shattering consequences.
"What is
the consciousness (what are we)?" is the age-old ‘hard question"
of both science and spirituality.
Nelson Abreu,
president of the Science of Self Club, introduced the audience to
the subject at hand. Abreu began by explaining that
after centuries of avoidance, a ‘new’ science of consciousness[1]
appears to be emerging in human society a
notion supported by the rapid and apparently widespread increase in scientific
activity in this area. Abreu went on to describe the
substantial spectrum of interpretations and assumptions regarding the precise
nature of the consciousness and the variety of contemporary scientific approaches
to the ‘hard problem’ of science and spirituality.
Abreu asserted that
whilst the majority of scientists work to demonstrate that consciousness arises
from neural processes, alternative, non-conventional studies and theoretical
models are also under consideration. The cover article of the latest issue of Scientific
American (as at August 2003) referred to the Holographic Universe
Model, a theory derived from quantum physics that may fundamentally affect
the way we think about the nature and origin of humankind. Professor Sir Roger
Penrose of Oxford University has meanwhile proposed a model of consciousness in
which ‘consciousness information’ is encoded in ‘nanotubules’
in the brain at the quantum mechanical level. The Princeton Engineering
Anomalies Research lab has similarly employed quantum mechanical non-locality
and wave mechanics as analogies for a theoretical model of consciousness
following 20 years of research into precognitive remote viewing and
consciousness-physical process interactions. Nobel laureates Francis Crick and Christof Koch’s Nature Neuroscience article describes a framework to
develop a theory of consciousness in terms of competing cellular assemblies.
Abreu continued, stating
that a group of individuals exist who propose that consciousness does not arise
from neural processes and is not a result of matter or energy but rather, that
the inverse is more likely – and that compelling non-conventional evidence has
been amassed to support this concept. Stating that whilst most researchers
appear to ignore parapsychic phenomena, Abreu explained that for others, such phenomena forms the central
focus of their research; that whilst some dedicate themselves to efforts to
disprove claims of para-psychic occurances, others investigate such
abilities of their subjects, still others employing astral projection as a tool
for self- and hetero-research.
Commenting on
the universality of the occurrence of and interest in the phenomena addressed
by the colloquium, Abreu noted that this is
considerable. Tens of surveys conducted in many countries around the world
suggest that more than 10% of individuals report having had at least one
out-of-body experience in their lifetime. Historical evidence accruing since the
ancient Egyptian era indicates the out-of-body experience has and continues to
be widely experienced, transcending national, racial and other boundaries and
classifications.
On December 15,
2001, the highly respected international medical journal, The Lancet,
published a 13-year study examining the phenomenon of the Near Death Experience
or NDE. Observations were made in 10 different Dutch hospitals in one of few
NDE studies to be conducted prospectively, meaning a large group of
patients whose heart and/or breathing function ceased were resuscitated during
a fixed period of time. Eighteen (18%) of these patients reported an NDE. The
majority of these patients felt this was one of the most positive experiences
of their life, re-prioritizing their activities to live more purposefully,
experiencing a reduced fear of biological death and in some cases, even
improving their personality and behavior towards others and themselves. Abreu also mentioned that studies, involving blind human
subjects experiencing NDEs but nevertheless making
accurate visual observations, have recently surfaced. It was estimated that one
in every one thousand patients checked-in to these hospitals experienced an
NDE.
During a recent
BBC Radio debate, Dr. Olaf Blanke
revealed that the epileptic patient - who unexpectedly reported out-of-body
perceptions when her right-angular gyrus was
stimulated - actually made visual observations of the operating room that the
conventional scientific paradigm cannot explain. Even though he understandably
excluded these details from the article published in the journal Nature,
the Bern neuroscientist did not dismiss the possibility of the objective
out-of-body experience, stating his opinion that it would be valuable to carry
out further studies. It is worth noting that The American Psychology
Association has published Varieties of Anomalous Experience, a move
towards placing more rigorous, scientific parapsychological
studies onto a more serious footing. Abreu also noted
that Dr. Waldo Vieira’s seminal volume Projections of the Consciousness
had received a positive evaluation in this review.
In his closing
comments, Abreu included details of one of the first
researchers to perform laboratorial experiments related to the OBE, a
psychologist named Dr. Charles Theodore Tart (1937 - ). In 1966, Tart invited a
young projector to participate in a series of experiments in the sleep
laboratory of the University of California - Davis. The resulting projectiological experiments took place over four nights
during which time the projector - "Miss Z" - lay down and was
instructed to attempt to depart the physical body whilst connected to a series
of devices measuring her physiological conditions. The objective of the
experiments was to identify a quasi-randomly generated five-digit number,
approximately 1.5 meters above her head that could not be observed physically.
From Monday to
Wednesday, the projector reported seeing the clock whilst floating out of body.
In coincidence with periods of projective activity reported by Miss Z, the
physiological montoring devices recorded unusual
brain-wave patterns. An absence of rapid-eye movements (REM) was also observed.
On Wednesday night, Miss Z identified the target number: 25132. The brain-wave
pattern during conscious projection differed from that of the patterns occuring during the waking state, during sleep and other ‘altered
states of consciousness’ an expression coined by Tart.
GUEST SPEAKERS’
PRESENTATIONS
Diane La Roe, author
of The Awakening, member of the Florida Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) and member of the International
Association for Near Death Studies (IANDS) provided an anecdotal account of her
own Near-Death Experience.
Ms La Roe described lucid experiences and perceptions ‘in another plane’ whilst
clinically dead following an automobile accident, prior to her medical
resuscitation.
The author also
provided a compelling account of parapsychic
communication with her grandmother. After the two had apparently met in ‘the
other place,’ her grandmother (who was not contacted about her accident)
informed La Roe’s parents, who were on vacation, about the incident. Even
though her lesions interrupted her singing, acting, and television anchor
aspirations, Ms. La Roe described this experience as the most positive
experience of her life and went on to explain how it transformed her.
A significant
portion of the audience seemed unsatisfied with the support for La Roe's claims
about physical actions of what she called angels (like hiding an object
and then later placing it at an unlikely spot). Certain of the attendees
hypothesized these could be mischievous extraphysical
consciousnesses, rather than Helpers – highly evolved extraphysical
persons with assistantial roles. Most,
including a psychology graduate student and the president of the Undergraduate
Philosophy Society thought it was more likely that she misplaced it herself
without realizing it. La Roe remained firm on this issue, stating as the basis
of her belief the fact that these events had occurred on several occasions. In
one such instance, La Roe claimed to have laid a towel on a chair, left the
room in which it was situated and upon her return, discovered its disappearance.
Some attendees
felt that, on certain occasions, the speaker seemed evasive, avoiding
questions, and felt an excessive proportion of her presentation was devoted to ‘self-healing’
foods and methods. La Roe later explained that she wished to avoid overlapping
into the next speaker’s subject. However, most agreed that hearing a first-hand
account of an NDE was indispensable and that if parapsychic
abilities exist, training to develop them should be
available to the general population. Ms. La Roe’s NDE has not apparently
motivated frequent lucid projections, but Diane recommended a practice
described in her book The Awakening of “quieting the mind” and relaxing,
which leads one to an altered state of consciousness after which the ‘answers
will come.’ Amongst other roles, Ms. La Roe is currently a religious
minister.
Patricia
Sousa, officer of the Miami
and Mexico City offices of the International Academy of Consciousness (IAC)
entertained more probing questions regarding parapsychic
phenomena, mainly the out-of-body experience (OBE, projection of the
consciousness, astral projection) and described how such an experience can
function as a tool for self-research. As prescribed by that organization, the
audience was advised ‘not to believe in anything’ but rather to ‘Experiment
- Have your own experiences’.
Ms. Sousa, who
like all IAC instructors is a volunteer, argued that ideas and experiences of
others - as powerful and convincing as they can be - provide no real change in
another individual. A policy of ‘99% practice and 1% theory’ encourages each
individual to have OBE’s through the application of
their own will and subsequently, comparison of reports allows to a consensus to
be derived as opposed to simple attempts to convince others of their veracity.
Since
consciousness is not palpable, the IAC studies its attributes. After more than
40 years of research by hundreds of researchers worldwide (a principal contributor
being Dr. Waldo Vieira, MD), the construction of 18 laboratories in a research
campus at Iguassu Falls (Brazil), the compilation of a
library of more than 60,000 consciousness-related books, and the delivery of
classes on the subject to more than 150,000 students, the following list of attributes
was compiled and ascribed to the consciousness:
constantly-evolving ∙ self-conscious ∙
muldimensional (able to manifest itself in different
realities) ∙ multiexistential (undergoes
several periods of physical and non-physical existence) ∙ with integral
(or holo-) memory (archives memories of all its intra-and
extraphysical existences) ∙ parapsychic
perception ∙ differentiated from both matter and energy.
These
assertions were heavily contested by the audience, and an engaging discussion
ensued. Anecdotal accounts, histories of previous scientific experiments and
thought-experiments somewhat surprisingly led the audience to adopt an
open-minded position with respect to this very controversial set of proposals. Amongst
the most striking of the ideas proposed was that all individuals undergo the
transition to an out-of-body state every night, usually lacking only the lucid capacity
to recognize and recall these events – apparently being pre-disposed to the
condition of ‘blackout’. Such situation is, however, not irremediable according
to these observations. In fact, Sousa maintains, a state of uninterrupted
awareness is eventually reached by all persons.
Amongst
questions considered were:
Is it possible
for animals to perceive projectors? What does astral projection tell us about
life after death and the seat of consciousness? Is it possible to develop
abilities that allow us to interact with multiple dimensions? Do we have a
history of previous lives? If this is the case, why do we not remember them? Is
it possible to recall such lives through projective experiences? Can
individuals meet others who have already ‘desomated’
(died) or with those preparing for ‘resoma’
(rebirth)? Are there counter-indications to forced retrocognitions
brought about through hypnosis? Do techniques exist that one could apply in any
moment to attempt a projection? Does the human body have a subtle energy field?
Is it possible to manipulate those energies? If so, how can this be achieved
and why should we wish to do so? Do the energetic fields of individuals’
interact one with the other? What are the benefits that might be associated
with OBEs? Do we have any responsibilities in
physical and the extraphysical world? Are personal
attributes derived solely from ‘nature and nurture’ or could certain of our
previous conditioning, talents, and deficits (cons, or
units of awareness) derive from previous physical existences (existential seriation)? What is the role of emotional balance in the
out-of-body experience? What is the difference between the out-of-body
experience and clairvoyance? How does one ‘feel’, let alone control, bioenergies? What is the vibrational
state, how is it induced, and for what purpose? What laboratorial or personal
experiments might be carried out in the future? Are
certain health problems intimately related to issues originating beyond the
physical body?
In each
instance of each question, participants were curious about how IAC researchers had reached their conclusions.
Ms Sousa explained how verification could be obtained through personal
experience. At least one point of disagreement remained: whether Ms Sousa was
able to perform some demonstration as proof of these phenomena, there and then.
The speaker insisted that each individual strive to have their own experiences,
however certain attendees argued that such a
demonstration would provide a great deal of motivation, pointing out that
obtaining direct, personal evidence could take considerable time and effort.
A topic generally
agreed to deserve much more ‘airtime’ is that of cosmoethics,
a universal code of ethics mentioned following a question form the audience
regarding the spiritual implications of the IAC’s
work. Apparently, the ability to project or at least to recall the experiences
(as well as affecting the overall quality of it) is limited by unethical
behavior over time. Whether the mechanism that controls such a response is
natural or a by-product of a particular consciousness is a subject that was
agreed worthy of further investigation.
The concept of thosene (thought-energy-sentiment) as an inseparable unit
of manifestation of the consciousness was raised several times during the
event, including the observation that an individual cannot practice deceit
whilst projected as one’s energies accurately transmit actual intentions,
sentiments, ideas, and thoughts immediately perceptible by others. Does this
have any future role in our judicial system? One of the interviewees felt conscientiology could support the development of legal
institutions to be less combative or retaliatory and more reformative or assistantial in spirit.
The colloquium’s next speaker, Sharon Kleitsch, a community
consultant working with the Florida Institute of Noetic
Sciences (FL-IONS), briefly introduced several ideas and their integration into her ‘project in
development’. The Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) lab, the
Global Consciousness Project, The World Café, the OpenSpace
method, and HeartMath have compiled scientific
evidence and personal verifications that emotionally-charged events can bias
the randomness of natural systems and phenomena and that a so-called
‘heart-field connection’ can be established between a small and large group of
persons. This coherence and resonance is, in turn, reflected in significant
biasing or distortion of random event generator (REG) data.
Kleitsch described a project in Sao Paulo (Brazil) in which 8th
grade students were making profound changes in their slum community as an
analogy to the heart-field she intends to install in an area of the city of
Saint Petersburg. Students were invited to experience this field first hand and later, to attempt connection to the larger field;
Klietsch proposed this experiment take place despite
the participants being physically located in Gainesville, claiming that
distance apparently had no effect on the phenomenon. Kleitsch
shared her vision for a widespread REG network throughout Florida, including
one in Gainesville, proposing that the Science of Self Club might assist with
its operation and monitoring. Kleitsch reported that
she has identified more than 20 grant opportunities that might be employed to
fund this project, which would require REG’s priced at about $300.
Accompanying Kleitsch, Carol Roberts, MD (recently elected
president of the American Holistic Medical Association) shared illustrations by
Alex Grey of the human energy system and described the function of the main chakras to clarify the heart-field concept. Although Mrs Kleitsch and Dr. Roberts did not provide technical details
of the heart field and Global Consciousness Project, Ms. Kleitsch
provided literature and contact information on these and other projects as well
as donating books by renown scholars Rupert Sheldrake, Peter Russell, George
Leonard and Willis Harman (incidentally a historical UF faculty member).
IAC-Miami offered each participant a copy of the proceedings of the 3rd
International Congress of Projectiology and Conscientiology (which includes a paper co-authored by
Sousa); journals; Out-of-Body Experience: a glimpse of immortality (a
video documentary on the OBE); and a copy of the
landmark scientific treatise Projectiology:
a panorama of experiences outside of the human body by Waldo Vieira, MD.
Ms. La Roe also offered a copy of The Awakening.
All speakers
traveled and lectured free of charge. The Club thanked each speaker for their
generosity.
During the
event, students actively engaged in discussion, asking pertinent questions and
sharing their experiences. Two participants mentioned instances in which they
had successfully induced projections or pre-projective phenomena after reading
a book on the subject. Neither had had such experiences
before applying the techniques. The majority of those who attended
filled out a (preliminary) version of a survey on views and experiences related
to consciousness studies, spirituality, and parapsychism.
An important part of such an event is the conviviality, familiarization, and
exchange of ideas amongst the speakers before, during, and after the event.
Overall, organizers, speakers and attendees alike appeared to be pleased with
their experience.
Event details:
2003 Colloquium on Consciousness Studies
August 2, 2003. 11 am – 6:30 pm.
Geology Building / Williamson Hall 100
Stadium Road
University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida, USA
[1] ( meaning: that which we are; the self-aware, sentient, intelligent, individuality principle, soul, ego, spirit, essence, atman, or self)