There is this other consciousness seldom manifested, hardly noticed, almost never sought out, (at least profitably). Its existence is known mainly to men via its avocational employ; by way of what the majority of people dismiss as parapsychology, occultism, mysticism, new age-ism, or just downright weird-and-nutty-ism. A view not ill founded, based on the only visible attempts men make to put this other consciousness into active operation.
Man’s primary consciousness looks at such ideas as talking-to-the-dead, or to the creator of the universe, or ESP and the like, as the groundless notions that they be, (since it is wired to deal but with the tangible realities of life). But there is more to the other consciousness that can conceive of such ideas than is represented by its infantile exercises. Other consciousness, (for instance), conceiving of a conversation with a gigantic faraway god is unwittingly revealing its potential to communiqué with life up close cellularly. (Same with speaking to the departed, who are now atoms strewn about in a myriad of new visible forms.)
Put simply: everyone is aware that this other consciousness exists, for it exists in them, in their own brain. But it is not required for everyday life, and only gets infrequent, minority exposure through its most inchoate and useless exercise, (routine mysticism, etc). Thus does its existence in men not only receive no attention by ordinary men, but when it does appear in sight of their primary consciousness as forms of parapsychology and new age-ism, it is dismissed out of hand, (predictably and rightly so). This does not alter the fact that this other consciousness does exist, and that it has potential to think of things that man’s primary one cannot.
Those with that certain-hunger have historically taken the view, (not because they are stupid, but because of the way thought naturally performs), that what is needed to see more clearly is a remodeling of their ordinary consciousness. This is commonly described: “Man’s consciousness is asleep, but can be awakened; is in ignorance, but can be enlightened,” and is always based on the approach of changing your present state or form of consciousness into a different one.
If pursued to its inevitable end, this perspective can yield the desired result. More directly to the point would be to look at what goes on in your own consciousness as you attempt to alter its operations, and see that an equally valid description of the situation in your head is that there are two separate consciousness, and that what you are after already exists in the non-primary one.
J.