Conscious of being Conscious: Hierarchical Recursive Emergence Theory of Consciousness

Consciousness research is multidisciplinary and multidimensional. The neurophysiological approaches to consciousness are obfuscated by the multidimensionality of the hard problem of consciousness. Meanwhile, the growth of artificial intelligence(AI) systems has generated speculation that AI may be embellished with consciousness in the near term. This paper looks at human consciousness at its highest manifestations and suggests that artificial systems will ever remain inferior, due to the missing absolute reference in AI, of the transcendental self as the quantum observer of human consciousness. Though behavioural functionalism may be achieved by artificial systems, the self-awareness experienced internally cannot be artificially generated on account of its transcendental connection. The capability of the self for structuring, in itself, the world for meaning-making is empirically validated but cannot be emulated by logical automata. Meaning-making necessitates an association different from and higher than the physical realm and this higher realm is the source of the meaning sought by the Self. Philosophers posit the existence of a transcendental realm above the physical realm, between which the self-building oscillations take place. These oscillations are inherently reflexive with self-reference as the key characteristic, enabling growth and emergence. Even the formulation of a theory of consciousness is an exercise in self-reference. The microscopic and latent manifestation of the physical and the transcendental in an embryo begins the process of self-building in an environment mediated by recursive interactions. The emergence of Self is the outcome, which is the highest manifestation of creativity and freedom in nature. This paper systematically develops the conceptual and procedural aspects of the emergence of conscious Self evolving as an interplay of bottom-up hierarchical recursive ascent and top-down entanglement observation. The interdisciplinary approach adopted in this theory is necessitated on account of the nature of the subject-matter which cannot be investigated solely by the methods of induction and falsification. The advances in neuro-physiology, quantum mechanics and artificial intelligence have augmented the understanding of consciousness today so that the findings of the present approach can be subjected to validation through ‘inference to the best explanation’ or ‘abductive’ approach, based on the 360-degree perspectives of human knowledge, experience and essence. An understanding of hierarchical emergence of consciousness has invaluable implications in shaping up human life and constructing its meaning. In view of the concern with education and human transformation, as well as the sustainability of human civilization, an integrated perspective of consciousness can add value and meaning to human epistemological pursuits. The Hierarchical Recursive Emergence Theory(HRET) is an abductive optimization approach for understanding consciousness, merging the bottom-up integration and top-down transcendence, given the multi-dimensional and inter-disciplinary nature of conscious experience.