Can't talk intelligently about reality without talking about perception.   Can't talk about perception without talking about consciousness. Can't talk about consciousness without talking about experience. Can't talk about anything related to life without talking about biology. Can't talk about the individual without reference to the social.   

Thanks, Janie. I hadn't followed the other thread. I like the way you put that.

Ivor said:
consciousness roughly = being alive and awake

awareness       "    = noticing.

Not sure I agree completely, based on my experiences with patients who were not conscious, yet upon waking, remembered hearing, i.e. noticing, what was said around/to them when they were "under." As a patient, I remember the same type of thing. Hearing is the last faculty to go and still works even when we are heavily sedated, so...there can be consciousness even if one may not be awake?

Of course, there is also consciousness based on metaphysics, which to me, would be an "all aware" consciousness (higher self) regardless of the circumstances. Whether I/ego? grokked (to use Amos') onto what that consciousness, within me, was aware of or not, would depend on whether I was paying attention, interested, open to, etc. And, right there we have a conundrum because I believe I am never separate from that higher self, so it feels odd to refer to myself as apart and having to "notice." In some AMORC monograph, many, many years ago, I am sure there was a better explanation. (Obviously I didn't retain it.:-)

For the thirty years or so I have studied metaphysics, I soaked up what I believed of the teachings, having proven them to myself (subjective/perspective/etc. I know!)and they became innate or meshed with what was already within me. Once that became the case, I did not retain the particulars of what I read, so I can offer only anecdotal experiences. I have been reluctant to share those in recent times on the Mudcat as they didn't meet certain criteria. I didn't think they would be appropriate for and/or measure up to the high bar this thread has raised.:-) I'll keep reading. Thanks.