Pratyabhijñā Cosmopsychism: The Unity and Diversity of Consciousness
Philosophy East & West July 1, 2025 Tertia Gillett
Objections to cosmopsychism—the view that the universe as a whole is a unified conscious subject—often rest on assumptions about consciousness that need not be accepted. Drawing on the nondual Pratyabhijñā philosophical tradition, the author argues that examining personal phenomenal experience reveals a multiplicity of subjectivities within a singular, foundational cosmic consciousness. The faculties of imagination, action, and playful forgetfulness help make sense of individual experiences as aspects of this unified mind. Cosmic consciousness is compatible with everyday experience, and consciousness's capacity to conceal itself may address the individuation problem. The Pratyabhijñā also offers insights into recognizing consciousness in others and why a cosmic mind might appear alienated.