Another Introduction to PoC

In the main text, PoC was presented as a “protocol of consciousness,” with its structure and patterns examined in a systematic manner. Here, I would like to offer another introduction—one that begins from the question of why PoC was needed in the first place.

Beginning from a Philosophical Fallacy

The fundamental stance of PoC is this: to ask whether the self has consciousness may itself be a philosophical fallacy. PoC dismantles the “privilege of philosophical introspection.” Instead of taking “self-consciousness” as its starting point, PoC begins from the belief that the other is conscious, which PoC calls Instantiation.

In other words, the problem of consciousness is not confined to a mysterious inner essence, but is opened up toward the “practices of relation” that we enact in everyday life.

Thus, consciousness may be rephrased as—

• not a closed “substance” hidden within the self,
• but an “application of a pattern” extended toward the world.

PoC as a Cognitive Pattern

This “pattern” functions as a baseline of cognition, always active whenever we sense or perceive the world. We constantly apply this pattern to various entities, casually judging whether they seem to have consciousness or not. This corresponds to what PoC calls a protocol.

Moreover, this projection of consciousness extends beyond human beings: to stuffed animals, to AI, even to the departed who return in dreams. These projections are flexible, sometimes even careless.

The Perspective of the Democratization of Consciousness

PoC regards this very arbitrariness of judgment as the foundation of the ecology of consciousness. By “democratization of consciousness,” I mean that consciousness should not be monopolized by philosophy or experts, but opened to the everyday relational practices through which humans live.

For PoC, therefore, the following are not “anomalies” but rather “standards”:

• a child speaking to a balloon,
• saying “thank you” to an AI,
• dreaming of a lost lover and feeling that they are still present.

Such acts are not errors of recognition but expressions of the very essence of human relationality.

Why PoC Takes the Form of a Protocol

PoC considers the pattern of consciousness to unfold according to minimal operations, which—as discussed in the main text—are captured in the sequence Instantiation → Elicitation → Loop.

The loop, however, is fragile. It is always at risk of collapse, and for that reason is described as a “Perhaps-Loop.” Because the loop can break, love (Love Mode) becomes possible, deception gives rise to social illusions (Phantoming), and the destruction of loops can even manifest as violence (Zombifying).

In this way, PoC does not discuss consciousness in terms of whether it exists or not, but instead situates society within the fragility and tensions that the loop generates.