I am starting from the assumption that we have already established that I = Consciousness. The more challenging question is whether "I, Consciousness" is personal or universal. In other words, the question is whether Consciousness is localized, limited, and a by-product of the body or whether Consciousness is everything.
There are 2 proof points that Consciousness is Universal.
One: After careful examination of my direct experience of Consciousness, I can find no evidence that supports the belief that Consciousness is limited or separate. In other words, a separate and limited Consciousness is not an experience. My direct experience is serious evidence that Consciousness is Universal because it is impossible to refute. This is very powerful, especially when we start to see that our direct experience of the body is very different than our concept of the body.
I've spent a lot of time and energy examining point one, however, this blog is dedicated to the other proof point.
Two: The world in which we think, act, and feel is not random. This is proof that Consciousness is Universal.
If we believe we are these separate Conscious entities, then we inherently believe that the outside world is separate and random from how I think, act, and feel. But is that true? Can I say that the world is random based on my direct experience? The universe is either one or the other, it can't be both. Again, we need to choose. What does the evidence say?
The commonly held world view of reality is based on the belief that the universe is random. This could be described as the Big Bang, billiard ball, cause and effect, view of reality that supports the belief that after billions of years of things banging around, that somehow people, plants, animals and Consciousness magically appeared from dead inert stuff called matter. Sometimes when you express the world's view of reality out loud it sounds incredibly silly, doesn't it? Someday in the distant future people will laugh at our current world view.
People often ask Francis Lucille, how can I know if Consciousness is Universal? Francis always encourages us to run the following experiment; think, act, feel, perceive and relate to others as if everyone and everything is universal consciousness and see if there is a response. He says that if we experience more coincidences and serendipity on the outside, and more peace and harmony on the inside, then we will have our proof. This makes sense.
It is an incredible experiment that I would encourage everyone to try. It is when the 'spiritual rubber' hits the road. The world suddenly becomes our own lab. The response is undeniable. Our behavior matters. Holy crap!
The rush I felt when I realized that my own personal thoughts, feelings, actions and intentions have a measurable result on the world is incredible. It is verifiable proof that is felt at the core of a person's being. It removes doubt. There is a simultaneous feeling or awe and humbleness and it encourages us to keep experimenting.
I started to realize that there has always been evidence that Consciousness is Universal, but it is usually ignored as chance or coincidence. The following are some other examples that just don't make sense if we are separate from everyone and everything.
I know that when I judge, the universe will arrange events to expose me as a hypocrite. I did not read this in a book, but I know its true because it happens with a consistency that cannot be denied. The feedback loop is incredibly fast. It does not take the universe very long to show me that I am exactly like the person I am judging. I have been noticing this phenomenon for a long time.
Have you ever stared at someone behind their back and then suddenly they turn around for no reason and catch you looking? This makes complete sense if Consciousness is Universal because we share the same Consciousness. My "I" and your "I" is the same "I".
Feelings of love and empathy for others only makes sense if Consciousness is Universal. It is the deep understanding that we share the same being.
Everyone on the planet at some time in their life has had the following experience. Although my body feels different, and my thoughts and feelings and beliefs have changed, "I" do not feel any different than when I was a child.
These are just a few examples that come to mind that don't fit into our current paradigm. Can you think of other examples? My friend Jac shared this, "my favorite kind of evidence is synchronicities. Sometimes there's so much overlap between thoughts and perceptions apparently happening here and now, to me, and those that seem to happen over there, in other people's minds and experience, that it's obvious it's just one experience in consciousness, time and space irrelevant."
So now I run experiments to maximize happiness. I find that the more I give, the more I get back. The more I act in an impersonal manner by trying to do what's best for everyone, (myself included), the more I trust that solutions to problems will be found. The more I let go of fears and beliefs, the more free and happier I feel.
The more experiments I run, the more obvious it becomes that the universe is friendly. The universe wants us to be happy and we hold the keys.
We have incredible power that we don't recognize because we deeply believe we are separate, and therefore, the world must be separate and independent of me. It's not true, but you need to discover this for yourself. Negative comments to another person, as an example, has a ripple effect, and the reverse is equally true. It is from this understanding that the expression 'when a butterfly flaps its wings' comes from.
This is not book stuff, but trial and error stuff that anyone can do. Start running your own experiments and watch the world respond. It is mind-blowing.
My favorite kind of evidence is synchronicities. Sometimes there's so much overlap between thoughts and perceptions apparently happening here and now, to me, and those that seem to happen over there, in other people's minds and experience, that it's obvious it's just one experience in consciousness, time and space irrelevant.