Cosmopsychism

Cosmopsychism is the view that consciousness is a fundamental feature of the universe. Proponents typically hold that the cosmos itself has a form of experience or mind, and that ordinary consciousness arises from this cosmic consciousness. In its strongest form, the universe is a single conscious subject, and individual minds are expressions, dissociations, or derivatives of that global mind. In milder versions, the cosmos provides the condition or ground for conscious experience, while personal minds emerge through natural processes.

Historically associated with contemporary discussions in the philosophy of mind, cosmopsychism has been defended by philosophers such as David Chalmers. It is often presented as a form of cosmological, or global, panpsychism, separating from orthodox panpsychism by locating ultimate consciousness at the level of the universe rather than in every particle.

Critics argue that cosmopsychism faces explanatory and evidential challenges: it raises questions about how a single cosmos-wide mind relates to the physical world and to individual consciousness, and it risks becoming unfalsifiable. Others contend that it is difficult to reconcile with physics and neuroscience, and that it does not provide testable predictions. Supporters respond that it offers a naturalistic solution to the hard problem of consciousness by making mind a fundamental aspect of reality and avoids postulating mysterious emergent properties.

Cosmopsychism sits within a broader family of theories about mind and reality, alongside panpsychism and idealism, and continues to be debated in contemporary philosophy.