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1. What is the conscious mind?
2. The conscious mind is directed by various factors.
3. Techniques for enhancing the use of the conscious mind.  

What is the conscious mind? We can consider these definitions:

1. The conscious mind is an instrument -- like a spotlight -- which we employ to direct our attention toward a particular object which has been selected from the limitless assortment of thoughts, emotions, feelings, physical sensations, sensory messages, archetypal field-elements, etc. When this instrument is not willfully wielded, our attention zigzags from one distraction to another, making the conscious mind seem more like a nebulous "realm" than a precisely directed instrument. (In contrast, the unconscious mind is a "realm"; it is the default which contains everything which we are not observing at any moment; i.e., it is the area of "darkness" which is not currently being illuminated by the spotlight of the conscious mind.)

2. The conscious mind is the "piece" of consciousness itself which we claim as our own.

The conscious mind is directed by various factors.

1. Impulses. Our conscious awareness is automatically drawn to the most-powerful impulse from the mind, emotions, senses, physical sensations, a-field elements, or another source. Thus, the spotlight shifts from our reading to a radio's music to an itchy arm to our reading to a memory evoked by the reading, and so on.

2. The will. For example, we can choose to be attentive to our reading despite the influence of contrary impulses (e.g., the radio). Or we can willfully direct our attention from the reading to the radio and back again.

3. The soul. Consciousness is a characteristic of soul; the mind, senses, body, etc., are merely material instruments of perception by which the soul peers into its own spirit-substance, to explore a particular archetype as it would appear in various "dimensions" (e.g., mental, physical, emotional, etc.). Thus, while we might believe that the senses are conscious of an event, it is actually the soul which is conscious of the event, through the instrument of the senses within the senses' "dimension." Soul can send an intuitive message to our human "conscious mind" such that we direct our attention toward an item of interest; for example, we might suddenly feel an impulse to look at a particular person who is walking past us.

Techniques for enhancing the use of the conscious mind.

1. Archetypal field-work. As we discharge the residual charge from elements in the a-fields, our attention is not diverted by the needs of those elements; for example, we can concentrate on our reading without being distracted by the anger-charged thoughts which remain from a prior situation.

2. Meditation techniques. Any type of meditation will allow us to study consciousness, enhance our will, and clarify the field of the conscious mind. These types of meditation might be most effective:

• Thought meditation. We examine the process by which our thoughts arise, and we learn about consciousness, which is the separate function by which we are observing those thoughts.

• Mindfulness meditation. In mindfulness, we simply attempt to remain conscious of  the events around us and within us.

• Concentration. We use the will to direct our attention toward a single object (e.g., a candle flame). In the resulting conflict between the will and the distractions, we explore the will, the distractions, and the nature of conscious attention.