Consciousness is the state of being aware. I see it as having the capacity for awareness. Does the whole universe have consciousness? It's generally considered to be not so - the standard division is between beings with consciousness, and 'things'. A huge amount has been based on this distinction within esoteric and scientific or religious spheres. I see no reason to disagree with that, but I so see that everything has a spirit, in one general use of that term - a car has a spirit for example, but it doesn't appear conscious to me.
Freedom, is to big a topic.