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Conciousness is that makes a human different from an animal. One feel that "I am a human" in because of human's conciousness he does have. If one's conciousness is similar to the animal - he's an animal, not the human.
I don't think there is a need to prove the value of high conciousness. I'm sure, everybody would buy it, if possible. It is not. Everybody would exchange it for anything they do have, if possible. Again it isn't. That's the problem. It is not cheap. You can't afford to buy it. It's the cause so many have declared they are "not in it". They are hiding they inability in such a way. It is not a matter of do they want or they do not.
Well, it's not so easy to explane either. You can know it or you can not know - it's more like this, rather then the question of learning it.
It is not surprising to see so many different explanations of it by different authorities. Whose who know - they know, but the problem of communicating it to whose who don't know arises - it's the problem. Different langueges can by tried. Even new languages can come to be used or developed - to communicate this most important message in the world.
Reliogions call it "soul". It's not the question of "do you believe or you don't" - it's the question of how you call it. You can just say "I" - if you like. Or you can simply use a word "conciousness". But the point is that you suppose to grasp it, you suppose to know it. Just to name it isn't enough. You are not becomming a mystic just by claiming you believe in a soul. You need to know a soul. So don't ask what's it, ask to show it. Because there is no way to explane what's it, although you can experience it.