SR104EN: Consciousness, Qualia, and Identity — Formalization of Consciousness in Coherence Cosmology

This paper formalizes consciousness, qualia, identity, and free will on the basis of Coherence Cosmology (SR103). The central claims are as follows. Qualia are physical structure itself; they do not exist outside structure. The sensation of “now” is not a dynamic reference process but is crystallized in the structure of that moment. Identity is not an objective boundary but a choice of definition. Free will is the basic property of all existence and is not contradicted by determinism. The choice of definition itself is also a pattern of coherent structure. These converge into a single principle: “The intrinsic behavior of physical structure is itself free will. The fact that the future is determined does not contradict free will. No objective boundary exists. There is only the choice of definition. And that definition is also a pattern of coherent structure.” This paper is published as the philosophical foundation of consciousness theory within Coherence Cosmology, not as a completed theory of consciousness.