Question: Is the term "awareness" used by the psychologists synonymous with the term "consciousness"?

Sri Chinmoy: No, it is not synonymous. Awareness and consciousness are two totally different things. In awareness you become aware of something. If I talk with someone, then I observe him, his qualities, whether he is a good man or a bad man. That is awareness. In awareness we have to approach the person; without mixing with him we cannot know his nature or anything about him. But in consciousness, immediately the nature of the person or thing will be revealed to us. The light is already there, the wisdom is there. Consciousness is something infinitely deeper and more inward than awareness.