Universal Consciousness may exist as a property akin to Dark Energy, or as an aspect of one of the dimensions we cannot perceive. This Universal Conscious may well be entirely mundane, like Time, a mere property that completes the equations, or serves as a dimensional placeholder. In other words, not a spiritual nor religious aspect, just another Planck's Constant that helps complete the picture and fulfill the spooky action at a distance . Be cautious that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. We do have evidence for consciousness, and we don't understand it, yet. The caution is against assigning any sort of overly transcendental role to something that may turn out to be entirely prosaic.

A universal consciousness is too akin to God for my liking.. but the rest is somewhat agreeable. I'd say that at first there was something that we don't yet know what, then a different something which would become our universe, then rules, then matter, then consciousness. I see no reason to believe that consciousness isn't more then just physical brain activity.

Yes, my thought arises because of the electro chemical activity of neuorons.

It’s surprisingly simple.