The Mystery of Consciousness

About this book

Ruth Nanda Anshen is one of the world's foremost living philosophers. This brilliant treatise challenges traditional science's belief that human consciousness is something that can be measured and quantified. Indeed, argues Dr. Anshen, consciousness is and will remain a mystery and should be treated as such. Consciousness is many things. It bestows upon humans the ability to interpret outside signs - to think. It allows us the power to establish the value of a perceived object - to feel. Consciousness embodies intuition, making it possible for humans to establish relationships between subjects and objects, thus moving away from passive acceptance of the world around them. However, Dr. Anshen believes that traditional science, in its effort to study consciousness, only fragments it and thus negates its very nature. "Science itself, even neurobiology, cannot solve the mystery of consciousness which cannot, should not, be submitted to empirical investigation or examination." Ultimately Dr. Anshen argues that consciousness should be understood as a moral state, which allows "our freedom of choice, our will to choose either Good or Evil through our awareness of both."