Conciousness is neither publicly observable, nor privately observable. Whatever is observed is observed by conciousness, and is fundamentally untrue. Information comes by mixing conciousness(Knowledge, which is true, or 1) with unconciousness(ignorance, which is false, or 0). No observation is possible without the mixing of Knowledge and ignorance, and the child of Knowledge and ignorance is illusion. Conciousness is the instrument, it cannot see itself, it can only be itself. That is why it is said 'God is the first and the last', the 'I am'. God is 'I am' without words, and that is the nature of conciousness.