The Map of Consciousness of Dr. David Hawkins
One of the most robust frameworks of human consciousness was created by David Hawkins, a scientist & mystic, who mapped out the levels of consciousness, their corresponding emotions, energy field levels & world-views, and showed that elevated states carry great life energy.
The task of creating a map of human consciousness has been an endeavor of many great mystics, thinkers, artists, and scientists since ancient times. This is a grand task for two reasons. Firstly, it is difficult to formulate a precise definition of consciousness, which would be acceptable across disciplines — from philosophy to neuroscience to spiritual science. Consciousness is the very foundation of life, yet most attempts to create a unified theory of consciousness get stuck in the “mind-body debate”: Are the mind and the brain separate entities, and if so, then how do they interact?, What is the relationship between thought and consciousness? Is the mind independent of the brain? And secondly, human consciousness is a complex spectrum of many subtle and intricate levels, not all within the reach of the layperson. To be able to map those distinct levels of states of consciousness, one needs to either have a direct experience of them or at least be open-minded but non-dogmatic about any “unconventional” experiences by others.
One of the most robust, detailed, and renowned frameworks describing human consciousness was created by Dr. David Hawkins, a psychiatrist, researcher, author, and mystic. Dr. Hawkins was a Founding Director of the Institute for Spiritual Research and Founder of the Path of Devotional Nonduality. He authored 16 books and recorded over a hundred lectures, including “Power vs. Force,” “Truth vs. Falsehood,” “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness,” and “Reality, Spirituality, and Modern Man.”
In the words of Dr. David Hawkins, his lifelong work on the Map of Consciousness is both an Anatomy of Consciousness and a Qualitative and Quantitative Calibration of the Levels of Human Consciousness. This map is a result of extensive research work in behavioral kinesiology — the use of muscle-testing responses to evaluate the differential impact of positive and negative stimuli on the body. Over 20 years, Dr. Hawkins used muscle testing to conduct more than 250,000 calibrations. He found that base emotions, such as shame or fear induce weak muscle response, while elevated emotions, such as love and joy induce strong muscle response. Using this approach, Dr. Hawkins identified the distinct levels of consciousness, along with their corresponding emotions, energy field levels (in terms of frequency), attitudes toward the self, and attitudes toward reality.
Ranging from 0 to 1,000 on a logarithmic scale, the states of consciousness corresponding to the lowest energy levels are associated with the emotions of shame, guilt, apathy, grief, fear, desire, anger, and pride (all within the range from 0 to 200). The corresponding levels of consciousness are considered levels of force since they are dominated by the ego drive. The value of 200 is demarcated as a point of critical transition from destructive to constructive energies, and the corresponding emotion is courage. The corresponding levels of consciousness (>200) are considered levels of power, as they are dominated by personal integrity. Love is placed midway (500), joy has a value of 550, and peace 600. The highest energy values (700–1,000) correspond to states of consciousness which have traditionally been within the reach of the mystics, and these states have been named “ineffable” or “enlightenment.” These high-frequency energy fields carry great life energy.
Thus the Map of Consciousness provides a precise delineation of the stages of spiritual evolution, bringing a union of the ancient spiritual truths found in the scriptures, and the methods and rigor of modern scientific research. Hawkins’ Map of Consciousness is simple yet scientific and free of any religious dogma. Since every level of consciousness corresponds to a certain set of predominant emotions and certain systems of values, people who operate from different states of consciousness also view reality in different ways. This is often the cause of many challenges, misunderstandings, or even conflicts. However, these fields of consciousness as “attractor fields.” Aligning oneself with a high-energy field of consciousness brings more of that energy, bliss, and abundance into one’s life. Since Dr. Hawkin’s scale is logarithmic, as one progresses along the spectrum, the benefits for the body, mind, and soul are multiple times higher than those at the previous level of consciousness.
Sources
Dr. David Hawkins: “The Map of Consciousness Explained”, Hay House, 2020.