The Pyramid of Hierarchy of Consciousness

Lately, I have become a staunch believer in the existence and recycling of souls, transforming from one body to another until they reach their highest level of hierarchy or growth in one form. I do believe souls are a form of energy and they stay in this form until some event triggers a transformation again. This event can be a level of growth or some divine force that transforms it. 

We all can hypothesize the post-human life, but none of these theories are proven one way or another. These are just theories based on our understanding of some real-life events, some imagination, and some rational connection of dots. Here is my theory on the Hierarchy of Consciousness which is developed using  Maslow’s Theory of Human Motivation model. 

For me, the definition of Consciousness is awareness and the use of our mental capabilities beyond physical existence.   

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is an idea in psychology proposed by American Abraham Maslow in his 1943 paper “A Theory of Human Motivation” in the journal Psychological Review. From the bottom of the hierarchy upwards, the needs are: physiological (food and clothing), safety (job security), love and belonging needs (friendship), esteem, and self-actualization.

Similarly, I believe that Soul energy exists in every living thing from plants to animals to humans and beyond. Each unit of energy (a plant, animal, or human) goes from one form to the other in a hierarchical order. Just like in the hierarchy of needs in Maslow’s pyramid, energy travels thru different levels of consciousness. So we can call “consciousness” the equivalent of a need. Our consciousness moves up a level once a satisfactory portion of the lower-level need is satisfied.  There is no clear boundary of when this hierarchical movement happens. One moves to the next level without even realizing the move. It’s a gradual progression that we all go through in this life and over multiple reincarnations. There is no timeline.

Let’s break it down in simple terms. I am born as Manoj and I have no idea where I came from and where I am going. However, I was born with certain soul energy at a certain level of consciousness. My soul chose or was sent to a household where I grew up in whatever conditions. That was my lowest level of consciousness in the level I was born in this life but not necessarily the lowest level in the pyramid of consciousness. Based on the pyramid diagram below, say Gautam Buddha was born in the “Sainthood” level but at the lowest level of Sainthood, hence he had to elevate his consciousness in this life thru his karma to reach the Divinity level.  Perhaps Gandhi was born at the “Social and Universal Consciousness” level and he elevated his consciousness to “Sainthood/Social Transformation.” I may have been born at the Survival level but because of my karma, I can raise it to the next level or stay at the same level and keep coming back to grow my consciousness to the levels higher.  

So the Hindu philosophy of reincarnation until we reach Nirvana/Moksha makes sense when using this model. The Divinity level is the Nirvana/Moksha level where a soul has reached the ultimate consciousness as a human. What happens after that is anyone’s guess. Perhaps it transforms into another being or non-being and that may have its own levels of consciousness. Is there another “conscious life”? We don’t know. The only thing we know is that energy never dies or ends, it transforms. And what that transforms to, only divine souls would know. Based on the book “Many Lives, Many Masters” by Brian Weiss, there is a hierarchy of souls. Perhaps the divine souls transform into what we call, a Godly hierarchy of consciousness. 

Let’s look at each consciousness level closely. 

1. Transformation to Human Consciousness. As we say in Hindu philosophy, animal souls grow up to the human soul or human consciousness level. Plants may become animals or vice-versa and those plants/trees/animals evolve to become human souls. But they are born at the lowest levels of human existence. These human souls go thru a cycle of lives to evolve over a period. But they start their lives with animalistic consciousness.  
2. Once transformed into humans, these souls learn to survive in this world. They are merely learning the human ways of surviving. Their consciousness level is still pretty low and has no knowledge or inclination to reach higher levels of spirituality or enlightenment. 
3. The mid-level of this hierarchy is where our consciousness becomes aware of the value of family and the materialistic world and experiences the comforts and discomforts of life on earth as a human. 
4. The 4th level is where you notice some aware souls who practice compassion and love for others, beyond their own. These souls realize the beauty of the coexistence of all things living and work towards making the surrounding a better place at the physical level. 
5. Social and Universal Conscious people believe in Sewa (helping others). Their purpose in life is to help others thru them. They are sent on this earth to make others’ lives better and serve as the keeper of other human souls.
6. People who change the world around them with no personal gain, belong to this level of consciousness like Gandhi, Buddha, Mother Theresa, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Vivekanand, etc… All these people dedicated their lives to the betterment of humans, animals, and the earth in general. They reach the level of sainthood in whatever work they do. And their souls become as pure as they can be humanly possible.
7. Divinity is when a human soul becomes a divine soul. These souls come to life form to spread divinity in this human life, like Ramkrishna Paramhans, Shirdi Sai Baba, Jesus Christ, Prophet Mohammad, Guru Nanak, etc.  

So what’s the purpose of this exercise of learning and contemplating consciousness? Well, it may define the purpose of life on this earth for those who are looking for a purpose. And if we understand our purpose, it helps us grow in this life. I have found my purpose, have you? 

This content is an original thought of Manoj Tiwari and is protected under Copyright Laws.