Panikkar declares consciousness itself to precede any subsequent process of experience, reflection or analysis of perception. Consciousness is therefore untouched by the temporal. It is, in its essential condition, one with the non-temporal, the eternal moment (of Glory). For the purposes of this project, perception is designated as an experiential process subsequent to the original (and always) moment of consciousness.
The Shift of Consciousness is the principal theme for the Frost Ph.D. dissertation included in NEPSIS. The Shift of Consciousness is the essential, ingenious, Shamanistic ‘means of discovery’ from Paleolithic origins and the spiritual (prayerful) heart of all subsequent religions. These include the yogic traditions of Asia as well as the ascetical practices and theologies of the Western (sacramental) Traditions.
Principal techniques of the Shift of Consciousness pertinent to NEPSIS:
Art: Shamanistic Fetish; Tibetan Mandalas–rooted in the cosmologies of Mesopotamia (and Egypt.)–As are Christian Icons; American Abstract Expressionism.
Erring: …to wander aimlessly until the world opens its doors of perception, i.e., Pilgrimage (as well as fasting, repetition, visualization, impersonation… etc.)
(The theory of Yoga and Asceticism [i.e. Christian yoga or monastic disciplines.])