Consciousness exists not as a one-dimensional point, a two-dimensional line, or

a three dimensional solid. It is four

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-dimensional.
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the experience of the self deepens. Although in one sense the first three of the
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se dimensions are material and the fourth alone transcendent, each of them, if a
nalyzed in terms of the experience they afford, point us in the direction of dee
per experiences of the experiencer, the self.
How then can these material states of consciousness be seen as progressive stage
s of awareness of the nature of existence, ascending from waking to dreaming to
deep sleep? They can be seen as such if that which is experienced in waking, dre
aming, and deep sleep is analyzed in terms of its philosophical and ontological
ramifications. Otherwise, waking, dreaming, and deep sleep themselves are materi
al conditions produced under the influence of illusion, or maya. They have no be
aring upon the reality of the self other than that they are conditions in which

the soul does exist although unaware of its nature. The answer to the question t
hus lies in analyzing what these states tell us about consciousness' capacity to
exist in these dimensions.
If in the waking dimension of consciousness we can understand the three dimensio
ns of consciousness in terms of their ontological status, we will find evidence
grounded in experience, rather than mere theory. Basing our investigation on thi
s evidence we can pursue the fullest experience of the nature of being that is r
ealized in the fourth dimension. This fourth dimension, as with the other three,
can be considered in the waking dimension of consciousness in terms of our expe
rience. Experience, being at the very heart of consciousness, should guide us in
the direction of ultimate consciousness.
We all have experience of the waking and dreaming dimensions of consciousness. I
n these realms, the soul experiences the physical and psychic reality, yet it it
s asleep to itself. In deep dreamless sleep, when the physical and psychic dimen
sions close down, we continue to experience. Upon awakening, we remember that we
slept well. One can only remember that which he or she has experience of. Remem
bering the peaceful experience in dreamless sleep amounts to a vague yet definit
e experience of the soul, an existence independent of thought and objects of tho
ught.
Thought has a ground from which it springs Thought and its object are experience
d as distinct from one another, yet one has no meaning without the other. From t
his we can conjecture as to the existence of a realm from which they both arise
and in which they cease to be distinct (nonduality). Thought itself is outside o
f the self, as is, and even more so, the objective world. Where thought meets ob
ject and the subsequent judgment causes us to know, we may know everything but our
own selves and our source. As we know from the example of our witnessing the ex
istence of ourselves in deep sleep, consciousness itself, uninhibited by body an
d mind, is the ground from which thoughts and subsequently objects spring up, pr
oducing the world of duality. We go beyond the psychic and physical dimensions o
f consciousness in deep sleep and it is peaceful. Yet we cannot stay in this rea
lity, nor can we appreciate this reality in full awareness. Yet it leads us to k
now of the dimension of pure consciousness. It is more than a moral