Does form exist within consciousness or is consciousness created by form?

Within the first option is the possibility that form is consciousness "exteriorised" and "objectified" which enables consciousness to then gaze "out" upon itself as if the forms it perceives were somehow seperate from itself, when in fact, they are part of the consciousness itself.

Within this belief is the acceptance that All is One, and that there is no separation between objects and consciousness within this universe. Therefore life is viewed as consciousness exploring Itself through form.

To accept the second premise one must believe that it is possible for form, which is assumed to be free of an "inner life" or consciousness, to somehow, through "natural laws", group together and "miraculously" create consciousness. Many scientists believe that to achieve consciousness a certain level of complexity of form is required usually formed into what is known as a "nervous system".

In the minds of many scientists intelligence and consciousness are not equated. So that, even though it is clear that the smallest forms of life such as amoebas and even bacteria and viruses are intelligent, few scientists would attribute them with the quality of consciousness, or an inner life.

From my own view I believe that without an "inner experiencer" (the I) there would be no creative intelligence.

The existence of machines is often used as an example of how an seemingly "intelligent" form can exist without apparent consciousness. But at this point such machines show no possibility of being able to continue to exist indefinately (without human input) in a changing and unpredictable world as life forms are able to do.

Machines are not creative in any way, a characteristic necessary for life forms to continue to exist and a characteristic that defines all things that are living. This means living things are able to respond to novel situations in ways that help ensure their survival and wellbeing.

It could be argued that the problem is one of complexity and that if machines were created to be as complex as living systems then they too would be able to operate creatively and continue to exist and evolve without human input and without consciousness.

(To be continued...)