THE ROLE OF REALITY PERCEPTIONS


in the acceptance of suffering, death and decay




A Study in Thought

sa030



by





Marius Heuff

Chapter 1

Content

About deserving attention and earning loyalty.
Something about my writing habits.
The title as a summary or focal point of a discussion.
What is death?
Religious beliefs and their use to cope with the stress of dying.
The psychological victory over death.
The personal nature of our reality perceptions.
We die in a reality of our own making.
The definition of death, and, differences with suspended animation.
Death; the irreversible dissolution of the structure and function of a living organism.
Freezing, and the slowing-down of chemical processes.
The possibility of a selective death of the brain.
A short review of the essence of the living coherence of a cell.
Clinical death, life-support measures, and the essential difference between selective brain-death and suspended animation, when cardiac arrest occurs in a severely chilled body.
The "power supply" to the brain, and the networks of nerve-cells engaged in specific functions.

I have been looking at this title, now, for some time, because I start a new piece of writing with the title. At least, at the present time, it is my practice to use the title as a focal point in the organisation of my thoughts, and, I try to keep this focus in mind throughout the entire work. In this case, the title has been written-down quite some time ago; several months, as a matter of fact, and, this reflects another aspect of my working methods. If I think about a certain topic, (long before I start to actually write about it), I usually jot-down a series of headings and this heading was the result of an intuitive decision that this topic deserved attention.

Yet, as you know, if you have ever tried to write-down your thoughts, one of the most difficult parts is the opening, and, I am not thinking, here, about the conventional advice that is given to aspiring writers; how they should make every effort to "grab the attention" of the reader.

Certainly, I believe that any writer has to earn, fully, the attention of his readers, as well as the longer-term loyalty of his audience, but I believe, also, that this attention and loyalty can not be earned or bought with gimmicks. I am convinced that serious readers will soon see-through such attempts to grab or capture the attention with psychological or technical tricks. No, lasting attention can only be drawn to a piece of writing by the simple fact, that the writer has something to say, and, if the writer is to the point, direct and honest, and, if he shuns verbosity or empty talk, (which is, usually, an effort to hide the fact that he does not quite know, yet, what to say, or how to say it), he will be able to focus attention upon his writings by being himself, and, by simply starting to say what he wants to say.

The difficulties experienced by a writer are, then, not a somewhat vain concern, whether or not his audience will like what he has to say; whether or not his readers will be captured by an intriguing or exciting opening, but, his concerns are about the organisation, presentation and illumination of the various aspects of the subject he is going to discuss.

Let us come back to the title of this discussion, which was written several months ago. At that time, I certainly had not composed, as yet, any outline of the thoughts I wanted to put-in writing, but, now, after a considerable time spent in thinking about the subject, it has struck me, that the title has a number of interesting features, which I did not perceive, clearly, at the time I wrote it down.

The heading suggests, first of all, the peculiarly human characteristic of being aware of death, as well as the knowledge that all living organisms have to die, at one time or another. The other implied assumption is the awareness, that death is, so frequently, preceded by suffering, in spite of the fact, that an individual or a socially integrated grouping is often exposed to suffering and decay without going-on to a state of irrevocable dissolution, or death.

Death may also come quick and painless, or, almost unnoticed, and we observe such a phenomenon with mixed feelings. Certainly, the absence of suffering and anxiety seems to make the process of dying and the occurrence of death, less frightening, but the mystery of death remains. What happens, when we die, and, what happens to our ability to be consciously aware of ourselves and our surroundings? These questions come to the fore, whenever we witness such a quick transition into a state of death. The sense of mystery about the essence of being dead, remains as clear and tangible as ever for those who are left behind.

In spite of all our technological powers and psychological insights, we still have the feeling, that we do not know what death is, nor do we know, what death will bring us when the time has come to die. It is such an irrevocable transition of existence; or, is it, indeed, a transition? Is there an existence after death?

Our religious beliefs have always provided us with clear-cut but unverifiable answers to our intuitive and explicit questions, and yet, the many conflicting religious view-points, as well as the imprecision of our thoughts about super-natural realities, do not really assure us, and, we always wonder, whether or not we can fully rely upon such an imagery. Certainly, we use every belief structure, primarily, as a means to cope with the challenges of life, and, ironically, the need to cope with the certainty of death, is one of these challenges of life.

We use religious beliefs, primarily, as a means to accept the inevitability of death, as well as the process of dying, in particular, when we are unfortunate and have to die in agony, pain and despair. In the reality of life, such stressful circumstances are not often resolved in a happy-ending, but, they lead, nearly always, to an overwhelming situation, ending in the death of the individual who has been exposed to such a high level of stress. It is true, that such a period of intense suffering, before death, may make us welcome death as a relief, but, before we can give-up our hopes and instincts to cling to life, we must, indeed, have suffered a great deal.

If we accept death and suffering as a transition to a state of bliss, we may accept the process of dying with less fear and aversion, and, we reduce the level of suffering by subduing our physiological and psychological instincts to cling to life. However, our beliefs provide us usually with an imagery where death is not seen as a final annihilation of our personality, but, as a transition to a state of existence where we have conquered death, and will be rewarded, in one way or another, for the suffering and misery we have experienced on earth. Then, the belief structure functions as a psychological adaptation to the stress of suffering, death and decay, and, in our hopeful expectations, we overcome death psychologically, even, if the reality of such a belief structure is not convincing to those, who are not involved in the stress and process of dying.

Upon careful study and thoughtful reflection, we could, perhaps, agree amongst ourselves, that there is no more powerful example of the concept, that, in essence, our reality perceptions are behavioural tools and are primarily designed to help us survive and adapt to stress. Is it not a fact, that the experiences and beliefs of the dying individual are, in essence, the only reality that matters for this individual? The perception of reality is, in essence, an act of individualised behaviour for each and everyone of us, but the level of conviction we achieve about the truthfulness of our reality perceptions, depends, to a large extent, upon the consensus we find in our social environment.

The religious believer, dying in the full conviction of his Faith, may be experiencing the opening-up of the Heavens, or Hell, because he has believed, and still believes, these to be realities of existence, and, for this individual, it is immaterial, whether or not he is being observed by someone who has a totally different perception of reality; someone, who does not believe, for one moment, that the dying individual is entering either a Heaven or a Hell. We may, therefore, say, that we all die in the context of our beliefs, and, for this reason, the individual, wrecked with guilt on his death-bed, will have to face the tangible reality, that he may be entering a Hell, while the agnostic may also be haunted by doubts about the reality of his agnostic beliefs, and, he may experience that his worst fears are becoming a reality at the moment of his death, because he is entering a Hell after all.

There is a wide variation in the abilities of dying people to communicate their experiences, but we should keep in mind, that, everyone, who is able to express certain experiences when dying, or, who is able to describe experiences after having recovered from a period of unconsciousness, will describe images and experiences that fit logically into the reality perceptions of this individual, and, these experiences do not necessarily represent a truth for those, who have a different perception of reality.

Of course, we do not have to emphasise the simple fact, that anyone who recovers from an apparent death, (even, if physicians have pronounced such an individual dead), has not crossed this essential boundary-line between life and death. By definition, anyone, who recovers after a severe illness or a period of deep unconsciousness, has not died, because the body, nor the brain, have broken their essential coherence, which is the essence and definition of a living structure. The definition of death is, therefore, not dependent upon an arbitrary time-period during which the heart-beat was absent, or appeared to be absent, but, it depends on the observation, whether a resumption of the biochemical mechanisms show the phenomena of life, or, the disruptive processes of decay and autolysis. Severe cooling of the body will retard the disruptive processes of autolytic enzymes to a remarkable extent, as we all know from the fact, that we can preserve meats and other foods, for years, in a good freezer.

We should consider, for a moment, those peculiar circumstances where modern technological aids make it possible to keep the body of a human being, or any other complex animal, alive, even, if a near-total destruction and autolytic dissolution of the brain has taken place. In a normal environment, such a severe degree of brain damage would be totally incompatible with life, since, quickly, the respiratory functions would cease as a result of spreading autolytic destruction and pressure upon the soft neural tissues within the skull or the spinal column. The impaired respiratory functions would, quickly, lower the oxygen-content of the blood to critically low levels, leading to heart-failure and cardiac arrest. Under normal or natural circumstances, the death of a vital organ will set into motion a chain-reaction that leads, quickly, to the death of all the organs and their cellular communities.

However, with the techniques of artifical respiration and the ability to correct chemical deficiencies or imbalances of the blood, "life" can be prolonged, almost indefinitely, after a selective destruction of the brain has occurred, even, if none of the normal physiological and psychological inter-actions can take place between the individual and his environment.

There is absolutely no evidence for any awareness function in people, who are sustained by such technical means, or "life-support" systems. We will argue, why it is justifiable to consider such individuals as having died already, while those, who recover from a prolonged period of cardiac arrest under circumstances where the body temperature had been lowered significantly, never died at all, but entered a state of "suspended animation".

If we look at a single cell, we see, that the criteria of life are embodied in the functional coherence of a complex set of biochemical reactions that take place in a spatial arrangement, as well as in a specific sequence. We also know, how these living structures, either, as an individually existing cell, or, as a community of cells in a multi-cellular organism, have to use, continuously, a part of the energy-flow through their system for the purpose of maintenance and repair. The fluidity of biochemical reactions, the lability of many biochemical compounds, the continuous influx of harmful substances, (such as ions from the watery environment, as well as the continuous accumulation of biochemical waste-products and other noxious substances), are the reasons, why some energy has to be used, continuously, in order to ensure, that the living system remains in a condition that is compatible with life. This is the essence of a state of continuing functional and structural integrity of the living organisation.

A paralysis of biochemical functions by a variety of poisonous substances, the lack of oxygen or a suitable source of energy, or, the disruptive effects of mechanical, chemical or thermal influences, all these factors may produce stressful circumstances, which may well be too great for the living unit to resist or repair. Metabolism, or, the flow-rate of energy liberated by chemical reactions, is directly proportional to the temperature of the cell and its environment. If the temperature is low, all reactions are slowed-down considerably. Reactions necessary for repair and maintenance are slowed-down as well, but, also, those that lead to the accumulation of noxious waste-products. It seems, then, as if "time" is stretched-out or "slowed-down", too.

Cells of the central nervous system are highly vulnerable to oxygen deficiencies at a normal body temperature, but, if these cells are much cooler than usual, the time-period that they can exist without adequate oxygen and energy-supplies, is markedly prolonged. Therefore, a cardiac arrest lasting more than three to five minutes in a body that is at normal body temperature, will lead to severe and often irreversible brain damage, while a body that has been chilled by exposure, may suffer a cardiac arrest for a much longer period of time, perhaps up to several hours, without serious damage. It all depends on the degree to which the cerebral metabolic rate has been slowed-down, and, how long the circulation through the vital organs, including the brain, has been interrupted.

We should not forget. that it is far more common for people who have suffered a prolonged period of cardiac arrest, to suffer brain damage than to escape with an intact central nervous system, since most people have not been chilled to any significant extent prior to a period of cardiac or circulatory arrest.

Similarly, brain damage may occur as a result of a direct injury, a bleed, or, some sort of pressure upon the brain, and, if the vital functions are adequately supported in a hospital environment, the integrity of the other body cells can be maintained for a prolonged period of time, provided, that the circulation and the oxygenation of the blood can be maintained adequately. In the case of a severe head-injury or bleed into the brain, the body, then, experiences a selective death of a majority of its brain-cells, and, the organism loses, completely, the ability to react to its environment. We see, then, only "primitive reflexes" that take place mostly at the level of the spinal cord, because the spinal cord is not quite as sensitive to a circulatory arrest as the brain.

However, brain damage may not be complete, and, often, head-injuries that impart a rotational force to the brain, cause it to pivot and twist around its axis or its "stem", resulting in a severe interruption of the pathways that "power" the brain into a level of conscious awareness. Under such circumstances, an individual may remain in a prolonged coma, but, the brain is not dead. Most, if not all of its major circuitry is intact, and, if the "power supply" can be restored by a gradual recovery of cellular function at the site of the interruption, consciousness may be regained. The body is, usually, able to maintain its respiratory functions in such a "brain-stem injury". Electrical activity of the brain is not absent, and, the chance of recovering consciousness remains fairly good, even, if it may, occasionally, take weeks or months, to accomplish it. The longer the period of unconsciousness lasts, however, the more likely it is, that evidence of severe and permanent brain-damage will become apparent, whenever a measure of conscious awareness has been regained.

However, if the brain has been largely destroyed, not only, its power-supply, represented by this network of circuits that allows the brain to be alert, but also, all the circuits that carry-out the specific cerebral functions, the brain becomes a shell, or, even, a thin-walled "bag", filled with clear fluid. In such a case, no "brain waves" can be detected or recorded with an electro-encephalograph, and, the body is nothing more than a collection of organs without a brain. It can only "vegetate", and, it is totally dependent upon the constant care and support of its surroundings. There is, then, no chance that the individual will regain consciousness, and we speak of "brain death".

This is the reason, why specialised physicians looking after such cases, will cease to do all that is in their powers to sustain the life of a body without a brain, once they have become absolutely convinced, that the brain is dead. The body is, then, allowed to deteriorate naturally, by not correcting all possible deficiencies in the oxygenation or electrolyte imbalances of the blood. Eventually, the heart function will become impaired, rapidly aggravating the deterioration of the blood-supply to the still living parts of the body. It is obvious, that, at the time brain death has been diagnosed with certainty, still healthy organs of the body may serve as a donor in transplant operations.

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Chapter 2

Content

The hope to gain an extension on life, in the future, by preserving a body in the deep-freeze.
The fallacy of the assumptions behind this hope.
Would future generations be interested to bring-back to life, if possible, the relics from the past?
The fearful egocentricity of the motivation to cling to life.
Pyramids of eternal hope.
The acceptance of death and suffering.
The importance of emotional neutrality, in particular, as a tool to avoid stress.
Death can also be accepted by an emotionally neutral understanding of the indivisible link between life and death.
The exploration of possibilities of existence; natural evolution.
Conscious awareness; a biological product of natural evolution, based upon the life and death of countless preceding generations.
The need to seek a harmony between our beliefs and behaviour-patterns.
The evolution and modification of beliefs as a prelude to behavioural adaptation can not be a goal in itself.
The viability of stress-anticipation and -avoidance.
Self-discipline and emotional neutrality; a possibility for educational transfer of attitudes and ideas.
The essence of the scientific method of classification; the usefulness of such classifying skills for our daily behaviour.
Accepting a calculated risk.
The ability to find a way-out, after fear and anxiety have been controled to some extent.

As a conclusion to this review of the process of dying and the definition of death, we should spend a few moments discussing the hopes of people who have decided to preserve their bodies, or the bodies of their relatives, by a process of rapid freezing at, or shortly after, the moment death has been established. The rationale of this practice is found in the expectation, that, at some time in the future, scientific knowledge and medical technology will have progressed to the point, that it has become possible to correct whatever processes were leading to, or have led to, the death of the person who has been frozen.

At the present time, there is no indication that it is possible to freeze, completely, a complex animal organism such as a mammal, and bring it back to life when thawed-out many days, weeks, or, even, years later. Certainly, single-celled organisms and some of the lower multi-cellular organisms can be frozen for prolonged periods of time and will resume their living processes when thawed-out. It is not clear, however, whether the resumed life-processes are completely normal and comparable to those that were taking place prior to the freezing process. It is likely that some damage has occurred. These injuries may not interfere with the overall integrity of the structure of the living organism, but these changes may have a bearing on the expected life-span of the organism after thawing-out; e.g., they could have damaged the reproductive process or other biological functions necessary for the maintenance of normal existence.

Theoretically, there is no difficulty with the idea, that it should be possible to suspend, almost completely, all biochemical processes by quickly bringing an organism to a temperature close to the absolute point of zero degrees Kelvin, but, in reality, the processes of freezing and crystal formation of the watery environment in which all living processes take place, have a severely disruptive effect on the biochemical structure and its functions. Rapid freezing limits the size of the ice-crystals, but it is very difficult to freeze, rapidly, a large, warm-blooded organism. The practical difficulties in bringing a fairly large and complex organism into a state of suspended animation by freezing, and bringing it back to life after an arbitrary period of frozen existence, are so overwhelming, that those people, who have invested a great deal of hope, as well as large sums of money, are likely to be disappointed. Besides, these people are often unscrupulously exploited by those, who play upon their hopes and financial assets.

Even, if it would be possible to bring a healthy mammal into a state of suspended animation, who can foresee the difficulties that will be encountered in correcting the disease processes that led to the death, or near-death of people, who have now been frozen in the hope of living again? The next question we have to ask ourselves is this; would future generations of mankind have any desire to bring such relics of the past back to life? Perhaps, they may carry-out such a revival experiment, occasionally, as a technical curiosity, but there is no reason to believe, that they will feel any compelling urge to bring back to life everyone who has invested, fearfully and egocentrically, large sums of monies in the hope of prolonging their existence.

It seems to me, that the attempt to freeze people at the time of death, is nothing more than one of the numerous expressions of hope, that, somehow, at some time in the future, the human being will overcome the riddle and inevitability of death. We are, once again, expressing our tenacious instincts to cling to life as long as we can, and, we are not so different from those civilisations that embalmed their dead in the pyramids of eternal hope. Our generations, at least, some of the wealthier members, place their faith in the deep-freeze and the evolution of science. We can scarcely consider such primitive attitudes towards the problem of death as an adequate response to the phenomena of life and death. Let us, therefore, try, once more, to understand the essence of life and death.

Let us again look at the title, and, this time, we will emphasise the concept of acceptance. We have hinted, briefly, upon the emotional aspects of trying to cope with the impending dissolution of ourselves as an individual entity, as well as the simultaneous occurrence of the stress of suffering. We will argue these aspects more extensively, as we analyse and describe the psychological adjustments and adaptations that take place whenever we are subjected to one form of stress or another. I would like to emphasise, here, that it is possible to accept, intellectually and with an emotionally neutral frame of mind, the knowledge, that we have to face death at some time in the future, as well as the likelyhood, that we will suffer some form of stress at the same time.

The intellectual form of acceptance and adaptation to stress will be most successful, if we construct a clear-cut conceptual framework for the mental imagery of our reality perceptions, because such a conceptual framework will provide us with the most precise anticipation of the stresses we have to deal with at the time of our death. By recognising the fact, that we have, almost always, some opportunity to avoid or minimise stressful circumstances, we accept a measure of responsibility for the stressful situation we may have to face in the future.

You may want to ask, how we can avoid such an inevitability as our own death? In spite of all our attempts to anticipate and accept the happenings of the near future, we can never avoid the fact, that we will have to die at some time in that future. Yes, we can not avoid everything, and, we can certainly not avoid our own death, nor should we try or hope to avoid the fact, that our own personal life will come to an end at some time in the foreseeable future, but, a clear understanding of the processes of life and death will provide us with a measure of tranquility and resignation. This leads to a remarkable mitigation of our anxieties, as well as a broad insight into the inter-relationships that exist between life and death.

It should not be difficult to agree with the conclusion, that the living existence of each and everyone of us would not have been possible without the life and death of countless generations of human beings before us. Not only, do we make room for the next generation of human beings by dying in our own time and not lingering, indefinitely, in the realm of the living, actualised members of human existence, but, we may also see, quite clearly, that the evolution of the human gene-pool would never have been possible, if it had not been for this remarkable phenomenon of the temporary existence of each and every living organisation.

We have seen, how each living organisation is an expression of a particular possibility of existence. This possibility was originally given by the physical conditions on earth, and, it was, and still is, fueled by the constant availability of solar energy. We have described, on previous occasions, the reasons for the slow fusion of single cells into strictly organised, multi-cellular communities, exploring possibilities of existence with the tools of symbiotic co-existence, as well as the techniques of scavenging, parasitism and predation. Without this constant stream of life being born, and dissolving again into its basic, inorganic structural components, we would not exist, nor, would human consciousness and awareness exist; nor, would there exist any form of reality which you and I can recognise and communicate.

As a product of natural evolution, we occupy, momentarily, a position of actualised existence. We happen to represent a temporarily viable combination of human genes, which started to explore its particular possibilities of existence within our mother's womb, and, which continued to search for viability after birth, by learning and adapting within this complex structure of social inter-relationships into which every human being has been born. Slowly, our potential for awareness, thought and inter-action with our human and non-human environment was developed, while we soaked-up from our cultural environment the conceptual and symbolic tools, which made it possible for us to react as an integrated, yet individualised human being.

To see ourselves in this light provides an extra-ordinarily powerful tool to accept death as the inevitable corollary of having been born. Certainly, such an intellectual acceptance can still be swept-away easily by strong emotions, which are, largely, pre-programmed behaviour-patterns we have been born with. After all, we should not forget, that natural evolution of the living organisation was exclusively concerned with an exploration of possibilities of existence. Therefore, viability was always the supreme judgement of evolutionary success, and not the ability to accept death with an attitude of calm resignation.

The development of belief structures, as well as the subsequent need for the human being to react in accordance with his beliefs, has led to the formulation of questions, which are expressed in language symbols. This ability to formulate conscious beliefs and ask questions reflects a peculiarity in evolutionary development. The emergence of a conscious reality perception resulted from the evolution of symbolic representations, as we have discussed before, and, we are compelled by our nature to search for a belief structure that provides us with a coherent answer to our questions.

We need answers in order to have a coherent view of our realities and retain the ability to respond coherently to the demands and pressures from our external and internal environments. Yet, behavioural efficiency is centered around the criterium of viability, and not around the absolute validity of a specific reality perception. It does not matter, therefore, what we believe to be true; what matters for each one of us, is the fact, that we can only experience a measure of well-being, if we act and behave in harmony with what we believe to be true. If we fail to reach such a state of harmony, our behaviour is vague, indecisive, and, ultimately, unviable.

Certainly, a transitional period of search and exploration is useful as an expression of the ability to modify and adapt our belief structures, but, this period of searching for answers has only meaning as a transitional period, and not as a goal in itself.

The search for viability means, that, in evolutionary terms, the level of viability will determine the value of a behavioural response, and every belief structure will, ultimately, be judged in this light. Therefore, any belief, regardless, how logical or intellectually sound, which advocates a premature yielding to stress and an attitude of "lying-down" and "giving-up", is "lost", or, will be weeded-out as an evolutionary inviable way of life. On the other hand, an intellectual belief structure that allows us to avoid many stressful situations and allows us to enter, eventually, into a state of dissolution with a minimum of disruptive and futile agonies, is a highly valuable and evolutionary sound pattern of behaviour. Because of the ability to avoid or minimise stressful situations, we may postpone the moment of our death quite considerably, and, such an ability constitutes, beyond dispute, a gain in viability.

Let us come back to the intellectual imagery that lets us see life and death as inseparable twins; one not able to exist without the other. Does such a view-point lead to a fatalistic acceptance of the inevitability of death? Not at all. While a superficial reaction in a moment of despair, may sap, temporarily, the will to live, a life-long excercise of our abilities to think clearly and foresee the consequences of our actions and attitudes, will also teach us, that the bleak circumstances we happen to be in, may not have been necessary.

Even, if we accept contemporary circumstances as essentially unavoidable, clear and persistent thinking will show us, almost invariably, ways to improve the situation. Certainly, these pathways of improvement are often difficult and require emotional sacrifices in the form of stern self-discipline, or, the abandonment of emotional crutches and prejudices, but, it can be done.

It is very difficult to accomplish a radical shift in our attitudes and emotional reactions, once we have reached our full maturity in middle-age, but a youngster, trained in intellectually clear and consistent behaviour, and, rewarded, from time to time, for such an intellectually clear and emotionally controled pattern of behaviour, will be able to excercise a measure of self-discipline. Such an individual will be able to become a responsible and contributing member of society, provided, of course, that he or she has also been trained to use these intellectual tools within a framework of social responsibilities and moral concerns.

Let us look, for a moment, specifically, at the aspects of stress-avoidance. These behaviour-patterns become possible with clear-cut anticipatory insights, and, we will, once again, recognise the undeniable increase in viability resulting from such an emotionally neutral form of behaviour. We should all be able to identify with the experience, that a careful analysis of observations leads to an ever more precise classification of phenomena into categories of similarities in existence and event, and, upon these classifications rests the ability to manipulate our environment. We have stated, here, of course, the essential principles of scientific endeavour, while technological developments are a direct, manipulative application of the fruits of scientific insights.

In our daily lives, we rarely behave with the rigorous objectivity and emotional neutrality which lie behind the principles of idealised scientific work. Neither do we have, as a rule, the necessary technological aids at our disposal to make useful scientific observations. Yet, the attitude of emotional neutrality and the willingness to observe our inter-actions with a measure of emotional control, are powerful tools for all of us. By adopting such techniques, we learn to forecast, with an ever greater degree of precision and predictability, what the consequences of our actions are going to be; for us personally, as well as for others.

While we are not always interested in choosing a course of action that is the "safest" possible way to behave, we learn, nevertheless, to calculate, accurately, the risks we take upon ourselves, when we decide to engage in one activity or another. For example, because of the existence of surplus energies, or "elan vital", we need to lead a part of this growth-pressure into challenging and meaningful activities, and, we may, therefore, deliberately place ourselves in a position of danger, as we do, almost invariably, whenever we embark upon an adventure or a demanding sport. A careful analysis of all the possible consequences will show us, quite clearly, what dangers or stresses we are likely to encounter, and, by accurately evaluating the magnitude of these dangers and our ability to overcome stressful situations, we should be in a position to predict, accurately, the level of stress we will be exposed to, and, we should be able to judge our ability to handle these stresses.

If we engage in risky activities on the basis of an impulsive, spur-of-the moment decision, we will be unable to anticipate, accurately, what we are going to experience, and, the likelyhood of encountering severe, life-threatening situations is, therefore, greatly increased. "This is logical", you will say, but, let us not forget to see in this moment of self-evident logic, that the careful analysis in an attitude of emotional neutrality plays an enormously important role in minimising the exposure to severe stress, and, these attitudes and techniques are, therefore, direct contributors to our ability to survive.

Similarly, an emotionally or intuitively unattractive solution to the problem how to extricate ourselves from a difficult situation, may become more palatable by a critical, emotionally more or less neutral evaluation; whenever we have been able to overcome the influence of fear and anxiety aroused by first impressions. Carefuly analysis may show us, that the risks involved are not as great as initially feared, and, once again, viability has been enhanced.

These two generalised mechanisms of stress-avoidance; by emotionally neutral anticipations and controling a reaction of fear, show us, how useful our intellectual capabilities are. They function as a cautious moderator during adventurous explorations, as well as a tool to search for logical and acceptable solutions that are, initially, hidden from view by a strong emotional response.

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Chapter 3

Content

Emotional neutrality as a tool to analyse emotional reactions.
The intuitive and emotional worlds of human inter-actions.
The absence of a generally agreed-upon imagery of the human personality.
Behavioural flexibility; a complicating factor in the object of study, as well as the observer.
The ability to see similarities in human behaviour-patterns, when observing them in an emotionally neutral frame of mind.
The shared egocentric orientation of our goals and aspirations.
Many layers of motivations.
The temptation to engage in a fight, and the lure of victory.
A target for suspicion and hostility, if behaviour becomes markedly different from the average.
The trade-off between emotional control and stress-resistance.
The art of mediation.
An ultimate reality perception that can be shared globally.
The many opportunities to abuse intellectual skills.
Evolutionary weapons, developed, primarily, as an egocentric or small-scale social tool for survival, give us also the potential to forge a global society of harmony and justice.
Intuition, and its relation to emotions and emotional neutrality.
The scale from emotional neutrality to emotional extremes.
Coping with varying levels of stress.
The logic and emotional neutrality of many religious reality perceptions.
The logic of seeing the forces of nature as volitional, anthropomorphic forces.
The peculiar position of the scientific perception of reality.

We should consider the possibilities provided by an emotionally neutral technique of careful analysis, whenever we examine the complex world of stress and conflicts between human beings. Let us start by acknowledgeing, that, in the sphere of human relationships, the technique of emotionally neutral observations is even more difficult than in the relationships with our non-human environment. The main reason is the complexity of human behaviour, which makes it very difficult to arrange our observations into clear-cut categories without being side-tracked by fears and anxieties.

We lack the ability, at least, to a large extent, to recognise the patterns of similarity in human behaviour, and, secondly, we are dealing in our observations with an essential feature of human unpredictability; the freedom of choice. The freedom of choice, or, the anthropomorphic arbitrariness of a force-field, is exactly the one essential feature which modern scientific insights exclude from all observable phenomena in the world of matter and energy. Behavioural flexibility and the arbitrary human choice become, therefore, an object of observation, as well as a factor in the behaviour of the observing individual, and, the resulting complexity has prevented, until now, a decisive grasp over the nature of the human personality. We lack, therefore, an intellectual belief structure about our own existence, which can be widely accepted across cultural and religious barriers.

It is not surprising, that it has been very difficult to classify human behaviour within a generally acceptable framework of concepts, and, it is logical, that the mental picture of the human personality and his social relationships has remained confused. We have outlined, on several occasions, how this confusion can be overcome by constructing a reality perception that is based on evolutionary origins and mechanisms.

We will not repeat these arguments here, and, we will only mention the fact, that problems still exist, and, that we, necessarily, evaluate each other's behaviour largely in a pragmatic, emotional and intuitive manner. Yet, we would like to show the importance of trying to adopt more emotionally neutral attitudes when in contact with each other, and, we would like to point-out the remarkable benefits that may arise from such attitudes, even, if we do not understand the details of our behaviour.

An emotionally neutral attitude will show us the many similarities between us, and, it allows us to recognise the same traits and trends in others and ourselves. This is, by far, the most important observation we can make, since it provides a basis for a rational evaluation of the forces at work in inter-personal relationships, especially, if we encounter a situation, where our goals and aspirations are not shared by others. It will show us the rather pronounced egocentric orientation of our goal-patterns, and, it will provide us with an opportunity to see, that the objectives and aspirations of someone else, in close contact with us, may have a similar egocentric orientation that clashes with our interests. The similarity of the egocentric orientation becomes, then, the common feature explaining the stress and strain between us. We also learn to see, with an emotionally neutral attitude of observation, that we frequently use or abuse an apparently altruistic or socio-centric orientation as a means to satisfy our drive for influence, power or respect.

An emotionally neutral attitude provides us with an opportunity to analyse our reasoning and become aware of hidden motivations. It may show us, how we, just as our fellow human beings, are continuously exploring avenues of a potential advantage for ourselves, either by persuasion, deceit or force. It may show us, how superficial the concerns for our fellow human beings really are, because we are insisting, primarily subconsciously, on recognition, gratitude, or the acceptance of authority in return for our "good deeds".

The recognition, that we all are, primarily, concerned with the well-being of ourselves as a matter of existential necessity, may dampen our emotional reaction-patterns of aggression and hostility, opportunism or fearful defensiveness, and, we may be awed by the vision, how similar we are in our desires to profit, gain power, wealth or security; to be loved, respected or admired; to be successful and to be satisfied with our accomplishments.

An emotionally neutral attitude may show us, how we are constantly subjected to the temptation to fight, and, how we long for an experience of triumph and victory, and, we may learn to acknowledge the price we have to pay, if we give-in to our primitive, instinctive desires. We understand and comprehend these mechanisms from a less egocentric point of view, if we learn to observe ourselves and others with honesty and rationality.

It is true, that, on occasion, a constant and disciplined approach in emotional neutrality may make us somewhat less accessible to those, who are not used to scrutinise and observe themselves, and others, in such a strange and unsettling atmosphere of rational and abstract relativity. It is true, that we will become less susceptible to being swept-up into communally synchronised attitudes of anger, aggression or fear, and, because of this isolation, we will become, sometimes, targets of suspicion and fear ourselves, since our emotional neutrality and rationality, as well as the refusal to become part of a polarised attitude, make us appear strange, unreliable and incomprehensible.

Since the other members of the community operate, so often, in an emotionally synchronised manner, the rational, reasoned and emotionally neutral approach is easily considered to be treacherous, and, it places a heavy burden of isolation on such an independently thinking and behaving individual. It requires skill and persuasion to allay the fears and suspicions of the social surroundings, and, when such an attitude of persuasion fails, the scapegoat is easily found in this slippery and treacherous attitude of a relativistic rationality.

It is also true, that a constant and disciplined emotional neutrality in attitude and behaviour may, occasionally, result in a diminished ability to resist severe stress, since we can not draw on those final reserves of resistance, which can only be liberated by a strong emotional response of fear and anxiety. Yet, when we are increasingly involved in highly significant existential circumstances, we are drawn into more primitive, emotionally charged reaction-patterns, and, we should recognise, in our emotionally more neutral moments, that emotional neutrality is a fragile and often temporary frame of mind.

The wisdom of moderation and the search for an acceptable compromise in order to avert a deadly conflict, have to be based on the emotionally neutral ability to discern the few common grounds that exist between us and our adversaries, and, these common grounds have to be exposed, carefully, in an effort to cool the emotions of hostility.

There can be little doubt, then, that, in a pragmatic, intuitive manner, the virtues of emotionally neutral attitudes in our dealings with each other, have been recognised for a long time, but, by providing a conceptual framework for the mechanisms of emotional neutrality and a generalised plan in the search for compromise when defusing a conflict-situation, we hope to raise the art of mediation from an intuitive skill to a level of conscious awareness, where we can teach our children, as well as all the citizens of the world, why it is so important to see the common denominators of human existence. An emotionally neutral but intellectually sophisticated imagery of the mechanisms of a relativistic reality perception, including a relativistic interpretation of the functions of life, will provide, eventually, a sound basis for harmony in view-points as well as attitudes.

We have to learn to see, that evolutionary developments show us, clearly, how behaviour can be finely tuned with observations that have been obtained in an emotionally neutral zone, and, we have to appreciate the reasons, why this represents a more sophisticated development in the search for viability than the more primitive, phylogenetically older patterns of emotional or instinctive behaviour. In other words; we have to control or "fine-tune" our emotional responses, and, we have to learn about the hierarchical order of the various functions taking place in the human personality.

Finally, we have to emphasise, once more, the enormous abuse intellectual skills have always been subjected to. Almost invariably, the sharpening of intellectual skills, manipulative powers, knowledge and insight have been used to serve narrow egocentric goals, either for the individual, or the elite. This, of course, reflects the fact, that, all skills, including the skills of intellectual analysis, have been developed and used as a weapon in the struggle for survival.

These same tools, developed as a result of the search for continuing individual or small-scale social survival, show us, also, the need to enlarge our sphere of concern, and, to extend our sphere of concern to all the members of mankind, and, eventually, to the entire terrestial environment. These intellectual tools show us, with ever greater clarity, that the increasing inter-dependence of human beings with each other and their environment, makes survival a question of harmony in symbiotic relationships, and not a survival of the strongest, predatory elements. In other words; these intellectual tools give us, at the same time, the possibility to recognise the viability of symbiotic harmonies in the multi-cellular organism, in addition to the more easily visible but more primitive struggle for survival by the mechanisms of competitive dispersion and the survival of the fittest. The latter mechanisms are rapidly losing their existential advantage because of the level of devastation associated with modern warfare.

I would like to make one additional point, here. Intuitive attitudes or actions do not necessarily imply that they are emotionally coloured. Intuitive attitudes, especially, in the art of mediation, are oriented towards emotional neutrality, but, intuitive attitudes, judgements or actions lack a comprehensive belief structure that allows us to spell-out the reasons, why we adopted, intuitively, certain attitudes, and, why we made the decisions we did. In intuition, we make use of a large input from a subconscious or only partly verbalised source of experiences, and, in doing so, we lack an essential element of clarity in the explanation or rationalisation of our actions. These attitudes and actions do not have to be coloured emotionally to any sigfnicant extent, but, if we lack the intellectual precision to scrutinise the mechanisms or logic of our actions, we will also lack the ability to perceive, clearly, when we are sliding into prejudicial behaviour-patterns or emotional attitudes.

We have indicated before, that the major contribution of intelligent scrutiny and emotionally neutral evaluations lies in the realm of stress-avoidance. Once we are subjected to stress, the sense perceptions become existentially highly significant, and, we are automatically sliding into a pattern of behaviour that relies more on pre-programmed, genetically determined behaviour-patterns. We have discussed the inter-play between learned and genetic factors in the composition of emotional behaviour, and, we will not repeat these arguments, here. We only remind ourselves, that there is a gradual, continuous scale from emotional neutrality to emotionally coloured responses, all the way to the most primitive, genetically determined behavioural reactions at the extreme ends of the existential scale of significance; either positive, in exuberance, triumph or ecstasy, or negative, in anxiety, fear and panic.

Let us return to a specific consideration of the acceptance of misery, suffering and death, and, we see, that the emotionally neutral zone is useful to avoid severe stress and contributes, thereby, significantly to viability or longevity. On the other hand, the actual coping with stress, once we find ourselves in a position of severe, relatively acute stress, evokes, primarily, an emotional form of behaviour. In a situation of chronic, relatively mild stress, we see a resumption of the emotionally more neutral mechanisms. It would be somewhat simplistic to say, that emotionally neutral behaviour-patterns only apply in stress-avoidance, and, that emotionally coloured behaviour only plays a role in stressful situations. It is correct, however, to see the function of emotionally neutral behaviour predominantly as a tool to stay out of trouble, while we tend to resort to more emotional behaviour-patterns, once we have gotten into trouble.

Similarly, it would be wrong to assume, that emotionally neutral observations would only give rise to scientific images, while emotionally coloured beliefs are the domain of the religious beliefs and behaviour patterns. We have discussed, on several occasions, the idea, that, beliefs and concepts we now classify as religious in nature, represent man's earlier attempts to come to a rational explanation of the phenomena and experiences he was subjected to. Therefore, a great deal of emotional neutrality and clarity of thought, as well as logical ways of connecting concepts into a framework of understanding, were part of beliefs that would see man within an overall structure of anthropomorphic force-fields, and, these beliefs would, therefore, include elements of a volitional "will" in the operation of these forces.

It was obvious to the members of mankind during most of the early, developmental stages of the emergence of beliefs, that they only partially understood the multitude of forces they were surrounded by. The apparent haphazardness and unpredictaility of all these forces led to the logical conclusion, that, most, if not all these forces were exerted by entities of existence which were endowed, just like man himself, with a will; a purposeful, flexible, volitional type of behaviour, very much like man's own.

When the powers of observation became more refined with an increased arsenal of technological instruments, the ability to predict became such a predominant phenomenon, that man stripped the forces of nature, gradually, from all vestiges of unpredictability or volitional, anthropomorphic features. Slowly, man developed this curiously mechanistic and extremely audacious concept of a Universe of forces that could be grasped with the technique of logical conclusions and mathematical calculations. The result was a near-perfect predictability, based on a foundation of generalised natural laws, as well a powerful concept of "statistical variability", or "scatter".

It is not our intention, here, to debate the validity of such a slowly evolved and hard-won perception of reality, but, we have to remind ourselves, living in an ambiguous age of technological mastery and a sense of suspicion about the fruits of science, that, indeed, such a mechanistic, scientific view-point is unusual, especially, when seen in a large historical perspective.

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Chapter 4

Content

The difficulties associated with an imagery of the Universe without any anthropomorphic features.
The emotional dissatisfaction with such an interpretation.
The emotional and emotionally neutral use of religious and scientific images.
Reaction-patterns in an increasingly stressful situation.
The four stages; avoidance, mild but increasing stress, the maximum resistance of stress, and the gradual yielding to overwhelming stress with the acceptance of impending death.
Decreasing abilities or opportunities to communicate in "stage four".
Fading gradually into a private world of blurred reality perceptions.
The mechanisms of a blurring of reality perceptions.
Stress is reversible, until the momentum towards disintegration has become overwhelming.
The stress of uncertainty.
A review of stress.
The role and function of hope.
The gradual return to a new "equilibrium" in conditions of chronic stress.
The balance between hope and emotionally neutral faculties of criticism.
Unnecessary suffering resulting from rigid behaviour-patterns, based on hope, divine exclusivity, or a belief in absolute truths.
The fine line between courage and stubbornness.
A comparison between dying and falling asleep; the common ground of losing contact with the environment.
The differences between falling asleep, being anaesthetised, coma and death.
The difficulties of thinking about a state of non-existence.
A review of sleep; subjective experiences when trying to observe the process of falling asleep.
The "pull-back"; the identity-feeling and its "appearance" during sleep.
The stress of being constantly in a state of vigilance.
Different scales of time perception in dreamless and dream-sleep.

An imagery of nature and the Universe, where all anthropomorphic features have been removed, creates difficulties for us, in particular, when this imagery fails to give us an adequate description of the human personality and its needs. There is a feeling of isolation associated with such a scientific view-point, and, the curious loneliness of our intelligence and "free will" makes this imagery difficult to accept, especially, when people have not been exposed to these scientific ideas in a coherent and comprehensive teaching program. If the scientific reality perception remains fragmentary and incoherent, it does not develop the same persuasiveness it may have for someone, who is fortunate to have developed a good grasp over the scientific imagery.

We have elaborated these arguments before, and, we only hint upon them, here, to show, that scientific and religious belief structures have many aspects in common. Both suffer from a tendency to be regarded as absolute truths, and, both have a strong foundation in the emotionally neutral zone of observations. Both become emotionally charged, when they serve in the organisation of existentially significant behaviour.

It is more advantageous to analyse the acceptance of suffering, death and decay in the various categories or zones of stress-adaptation, rather than in terms of a scientific or religious imagery. The first category, nl., that of stress-avoidance, has been discussed. The second category represents a gradually rising intensity of stress, and the behavioural organisation reflects then an increasing resistance to stress. Mild forms of stress are resisted with a measure of ease, and, intellectual or emotionally neutral behaviour still plays a dominant role, but, in the more severe forms of stress, we reach a point, where it threatens the continuation of existence.

This last category is an intense and painful experience, and the behaviour of a stressed human being alternates between hope, optimism, confidence, and, even, exuberance, if a turning point is seen or is thought to be present, and, periods of despair, depression and somber foreboding, where the resignation to the inevitable or the acceptance of a Divine Will, becomes a focal point for the relief of anxiety and despair. We have discussed the mechanisms of hope, as well as the attitudes of a reliance on the Wisdom of a Divine Will, on various occasions.

In the fourth category of stress, we see a gradual acceptance of the fact, that death is imminent. This stage is not always reached after a struggle, because it may be the result of a chronic illness, where the energies have been sapped by an illness, and the attitude of acceptance has prevailed, long before the terminal stage of the illness has arrived. Or, the stage of impending death may be reached so quickly, that the individual does not realise the severity of his predicament. This happens, often, in accidents of one sort or another. However, if the progression of events is slower, we see, how the attitudes of hope and rebellion give way to resignation. This stage is less likely to result in a vigorous and clear expression of feelings, sensations, emotions and thoughts, as the will to live and communicate begins to fade.

Certainly, it is common for people to experience feelings of togetherness when trapped into a situation of impending death. Yet, the ability to communicate becomes rapidly impaired, because contact with the surrounding world is nearly always absent. The powers of communication and observation are fading and make it more difficult for an observer to understand what is going-on. The clearest communications are received from those, who remain to the last moment in category three; considering themselves still to be a part of living humanity, and, hoping for a favourable turn of the events; until the last moment, when they realise, that everything has been lost.

Those, who give-in to stress, reduce their resistance to it, and, they become apathetic, less relevant and somewhat incomprehensible for those who are struggling. People in category four are becoming oblivious to their social surrounding. They fade, gradually, into a private world of their own, which is characterised by a blurring between sense impressions, representing a contemporary reality, and, memory-traces welling-up from their subcsoncious. Yet, those, who are severely stressed are not aware of this blurring, because their critical and discriminatory faculties have been over-powered by the level of stress.

Reality, as we see it, (and the dying used to see it, in spite of the many variables between the reality perceptions of those who are alive), begins to blend with mental images that well-up from conscious and subconscious memory-banks, and, these images may acquire the strength and conviction of visions or hallucinations. We need to have the ability to evaluate, critically, the differences between an occurring sense impression, and, an imagery that has welled-up from our memory-banks, before we are "in touch" with reality. We die, therefore, in the reality of our beliefs, based on past experiences and culturally acquired structures of concepts, if we die fully awake, but, occasionally, we lose all contact with a commonly shared world of realities, as the progression of images welling-up from our subconscious becomes rather haphazard and chaotic.

Most often, however, there remains a measure of contact, as well as a sharing of reality with those in the immediate social surroundings, until the level of awareness drops to a state of unresponsiveness. Then, the observers of the dying individual are unable to know anything with certainty about the sensations, feelings and thoughts of the person who is near death, and is living the last few moments of his or her life in the privacy of a personal reality perception.

These categories or stages of stress and awareness are only conceptual vehicles for our convenience and desire to grasp the reality of a transition into a state of death, and, these categories do not have sharp boundaries in reality. We see, in essence, that stress may occur at widely varying levels of intensity, and, stress may fluctuate, or be resolved, at any stage, but, it may also reach such a peak of intensity, that the possibility of existence is being lost. The loss of manipulability and predictability caused by increasing levels of stress is one of the reasons for the swings between hope and despair, adding its own dimension of suffering to the existing stress.

The level of suffering is directly related to the tensions created by the displacement forces of stress, (displacing the living organism from an "optimum equilibrium"), as well as the measure of resistance the organism puts-up against this displacement force. Stress is, indeed, a tension, and the intensity of this tension and the intensity of the experience of suffering, is, therefore, proportional to the magnitutude of the displacement force, multiplied by the resistance exerted by the living organism.

If the displacement force is small, the resistance is minimal, because the initial phases of adaptation are characterised by a "yielding" or "moving out of the way", rather than a behaviour of resistance. As we have discussed, the organism can anticipate the likely occurrence of a displacement force, and, it may be able to take appropriate measures to avoid stress all-together, thereby completely by-passing the occurrence of a situation of stress, except for the fact, that the avoidance-reaction in itself constitutes a certain form of stress.

Certainly, avoidance may mean a slight reduction in the status of an "optimum equilibrium", or, in the degree of accomodation left for future adaptative responses, but the important feature, here, is the fact, that it is, indeed, possible to avoid stress by proper anticipatory behaviour.

In the increasingly severe situations of stress, the degree of latitude in adaptation has been exhausted, and the organism is caught in a situation, where it has to resist the stress-producing forces as much as possible, in the hope, that the factors of stress will ease-off before exhaustion and collapse of the stress-resisting capabilities has occurred. The maximum point of stress is experienced at the point, where further resistance becomes impossible, and a conscious organism begins to realise, that the end is near, unless help or relief comes soon.

Here, the factor of hope, the expectation or belief, that the situation will improve, is exerting its maximum influence, and, we have discussed the curious trade-of that takes place as a result of the attitude of hopeful expectations. The bias towards an optimistic appraisal of the situation "as is" allows the organism to mobilise its last reserves of resistance and endurance, and, this gamble may pay-off, if easement of the stress-situation comes before total collapse has taken place. However, this bias of hopeful expectations diminishes the ability to finely tune the behavioural response.

A prolonged situation of stress will produce its own forms of adaptation, when the organism gradually accepts a new standard of reference as the "normal" status-quo, effectively reducing the level of stress and suffering, and, allowing emotionally more neutral evaluations to resume a role in the organisation of attitudes and behavioural responses. This slow adaptation to a situation of chronic stress is associated with increasing expressions of doubt about the validity of the belief structures upon which hopeful expectations have been based.

However, this is just an aside; a peculiarity that is associated with the effects of chronic, moderately severe, stressful circumstances. Let us resume our discussion about the trade-of between the increasingly emotional bias of hopeful expectations and the mobilisation of reserves on the one hand, and, the loss of behavioural fine-tuning on the other. There is little doubt, that such an emotionally coloured attitude of hope does, indeed, mobilise enormous quantities of energies for the resistance of stress, in particular, when this hope occurs in a synchronised form throughout a small community experiencing the same stressful circumstances.

Yet, we see, time and again, that such an emotional synchrony of hope and belief aggravates the tensions of stress unnecessarily, because the emotional bias prevents the individual, or the group, to see a reasonable compromise with the stress-producing factors. We are, of course, referring, here, to a situation, where communal stress is being experienced as a result of a conflict-situation with a powerful adversary. An emotionally synchronised attitude of hopeful expectations, strong religious, moral or ethical beliefs, as well as a mutual re-enforcement of ethnic pride and historical awarenesses, lead, so often, to a stubborn and uncompromising attitude, which fails, completely, to acknowledge the view-points or motivations of the stronger, dominating society. When we look at history, we see, time and again, the occurrence of unnecessary suffering, death and destruction as a result of such strongly organised behaviour-patterns that are based on hope, Divine exclusivity and an unshakable conviction in an Absolute Truth.

Occasionally, we see courageous, if somewhat incomprehensible behavioural acts that reveal an enormous capability to resist stress, or, some people seem to seek, actively, the severest, most lethal forms of stress in an attitude of defiance and triumphant victory over the stark contemporary realities of death and defeat. While these examples may be revered as sacrosanct attitudes by the followers of Heroes and Saints, we have to question, whether we are seeing, indeed, admirable courage and steadfastness, or, a measure of irresponsible stubbornness and fatal narrow-mindedness.

However, the main focus of our attention, here, is on the observation, that, strongly emotional behaviour will, inevitably, lose some of its ability to resolve the stress-producing factors by the mechanisms of compromise and an understanding of the adversay. This is the crux of the trade-of or price we pay for the comfort of hopeful expectations and the convictions of an Absolute Belief. We pay for an increased ability to resist a stressful force with a lessened ability to resolve stress with intelligent compromise.

Let us look, again, at category four, and see, whether or not we can gain further insights into the process of dying by comparing this process with the daily, yet mysterious experience of "falling asleep". We will see, that the differences are marked and far more obvious than the similarities, but, in one aspect, falling asleep and death show a remarkable similarity. I am referring, here, to the fact, that, in both instances, we lose gradually contact with our environment, and, an analysis of the process of falling asleep may help us visualise, what happens during the process of dying. We will also discuss the much less physiological experience of being anaesthetised, but, let us begin with a discussion of the differences between falling asleep and dying.

Obviously, the most striking difference is the fact, that falling asleep is a temporary, reversible loss of consciousness, while in the definition of death, the existence of the living organism is terminated by the processes of dissolution and post-mortem decay. Since the essence of living existence has been destroyed, the process of death is, by definition irreversible. We will discuss the difficulties we encounter, trying to visualise the transition into a state of non-existence; when we review the inevitability of giving a quality of existence to whatever we are thinking about. This leads to curious difficulties, when we try to think about the state of non-existence. Let us discuss, first, the mechanisms of sleep.

Sleep is a process that most complex animals, and, certainly, most mammals need as part of a general mechanism of physical restoration. We know, how an organism can call-upon vast reserves of energy in short bursts of activities, whenever it experiences a life and death situation. Such highly taxing experiences are seen, especially, in the predatory species', because they have to go through a strenuous hunting procedure to secure their energy-supplies, or, they may have to flee for their life, when they are pursued by a predator in turn. Short bursts of high energy-expenditure are possible, but, these bursts of energy-expenditure have to be repaid by a period of panting, where the oxygen-deficit is restored, waste-products are eliminated, and heat is dissipated. However, the organism also needs extended periods, when its behaviour is relaxed and the stress of constant vigilance has been removed.

Every complex animal needs periods when its alert, vigilant state of watchful contact with the environment, is being relaxed as a result of a situation of shelter, comfort and satiety. Then, the organism loses gradually contact with its environment. Nevertheless, the animal always remains "arousable", and, this means, that danger signals can still be perceived and will arouse the animal into a state of alertness.

If we try to observe in ourselves what is happening when we fall asleep, we encounter a curious difficulty. The objective of observing what happens to us as we start to fall asleep, implies a great deal of alert contact with the "external world", even, if this external world is, primarily, our own sphere of awarenesses, but, the process of falling-asleep is characterised, in essence, by a loss of orientation of our awarenesses in relation to their environment. This orientation towards the environment includes such fundamental functions as the awareness of time, the ability to think logically, and the voluntary recall of a large repertoir of images. It is, therefore, difficult, if not impossible, to really observe ourselves falling asleep, and, most of us have experienced the fact, that a sudden awareness that we were beginning to fall asleep, had the effect of pulling us suddenly back into a state of being wide awake.

If we wake-up after a short snooze, we may experience another interesting sensation, because it seems, that there remained a continuity of our "identity feeling" throughout this short period of sleep, and, it seems, as if our identify feeling became attached to a thought or a sensation and blended with it to such an extent, that we did not have the ability to distinguish between our feeling of identity and a mental image emanating from our memory-banks.

The reason why we can make this distinction when we are awake, lies in the reception of a constant stream of reality perceptions, which we are receiving as a result of our inter-actions with the environment. The awake state is, to a large extent, a continuous mental activity, where we, constantly, evaluate the situation "as is", including our memories, projections, hopes and fears, as well as other forms of judgements. In the awake and alert state, we are always able to make the distinction between a thought, a memory, a feeling or a wish, and, the sense impressions that reflect a contemporary reality which we have to take into account.

However, if we become "lost in thought"; if we start to day-dream, or, if we are severely exhausted or under the influence of certain drugs, or, if there is a remarkable poverty of sensory stimuli from the surrounding environment, then, the distinction between a reality, represented by contemporary sense-impressions, and a reality, that is created by a stream of mental images originating from our memory-banks, (such as specific memory-recalls, fantasies or thought-patterns), becomes very difficult, or, even, impossible.

Fatigue, drugs, sensory deprivation, stress of all sorts; all these factors can interfere with the perception of reality, as well as the distinction between a contemporary sense impression and a memory-trace. In the process of sleeping, we experience a more or less voluntary relaxation of these discriminatory faculties, where, under the influence of being sheltered and secure, as well as a general sense of well-being, we drift-off into a state of non-awareness, or, rather, of non-interaction with the environment. The constant alertness and vigilance of the awake state represents a form of stress, which requires energy and a measure of volitional input, at least, in the human being who is not strongly existentially aroused, and, after a number of hours, the organism gets tired and wants to fall asleep, restoring its reserves and capabilities in order to be able to be highly alert and vigilant, the following day.

During this period of physiological sleep, the awareness of the "self" in relation to its environment, (as a distinct entity, different from the body), seems to disappear, and, the "self" seems to become identified with a series of haphazard, often chaotic image progressions. The perception of time is distorted. Many hours of dream-less sleep are not perceived at all and seem to have passed in a moment, while, occasionally, a few minutes of vivid dream-sleep is associated with such a rapid progression of images that, in retrospect, the remembered portions, now perceived in the normal time-scale of being awake, will seem like many hours of dreaming.

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Chapter 5

Content

Dreamless sleep and dream-sleep.
Sequential image progression during dreaming.
Twitching of many muscles during dream-sleep.
Mental image progression and the processes of "free association".
The absence of "logic", due to the absence of a check against "contemporary reality".
The relaxing effects of a good night's sleep.
No image-progression during an anaesthetic; a period of restlessness and confusion during the recovery from anaesthesia.
The inability to fight-off a loss of consciousness.
The subjective experience of a short time-interval between "going under" and "waking up" after an anaesthetic.
No time perception is possible without a kaleidoscopic "play-back" of mental images, and, therefore, the fact of being deceased can not be experienced.
A review of the realities in which we may die.
Differences between the realities of our enemies and ourselves.
Testimonies by people, who have seen Heaven or Hell.
A short review of the reasons, why there is, almost always, a strong belief that some sort of life exists after death.
The appearance of deceased individuals in the dreams of the living.
The general acceptance of "spiritual" or anthropomorphic force-fields, existing without a body.
The belief, that the human being is a link between lower and higher forms of intelligent existence.
The difficulties and peculiarities of the scientific reality perception, where all forms of awareness are linked to the existence of a living organism.
The concept of the immortal soul, and the influence of science upon the religious imagery.
Problems in describing the functions and qualities of "the soul".

It has become clear, that sleep takes place, in essence, as two different forms of rest, but, both are characterised by a loss of contact with the surroundings. Large periods of sleep are spent at a markedly reduced level of activity of the body, including the brain, and, probably, there is no image-progression going-on in the brain during this form of sleep; at least, not with an intensity that makes it possible for us to recall fragments of the dream-sequences, later, after we have woken-up. However, these dream-less periods of sleep are interrupted with periods of sleep, where a very active mental image-stream occurs, and, where all sorts of twitching movements of the face, eyes, hands, arms and legs can be observed.

We think, that, during these periods of dream-sleep, the condition of being asleep is actively maintained by a center in the brain-stem, and, this active maintenance of a state of sleep reduces the susceptibility of the brain to arousal by stimuli from the environment. Yet, the brain itself is quite active during this form of "dream-sleep", because a rapid and active procession of mental images is taking place. However, this imagery is free from the usual restraints that are placed on the sequences of thoughts and mental images during a state of contact with the environment. During the awake state, the mental image-progression is guided by the constant stream of sense impressions that come-in from the senses and represent a "contemporary reality" for the awake organism.

Therefore, the sense of logic does not seem to operate in the same manner during a dream as it does in the awake state. While many parts of a remembered dream-sequence seem logical, there are always certain aspects of our dreams, in particular, behavioural situations and reactions, which seem, in retrospect, in the state of alertness, to be highly illogical or even impossible. Yet, no feeling of strangeness or impossibility was experienced during the dream itself.

Since these memory-sequences or image-progressions are not controled by our logic or voluntary will, (with the help of a check against incoming reality perceptions), these progressions are "free", in the sense, that, their sequence is determined, largely, by a process of association. In an association, an image may evoke another image by virtue of the fact, that the evoked imagery has some similarities or associations with a previous image.

During periods of dream-sleep, difficulties, problems, frustrating experiences, etc., have a chance to "re-play" themselves in many combinations, which would have been suppressed by our logic in the awake state, and, this may account for the fact, that the relaxation associated with a good night's sleep, often, makes it possible to see solutions or fresh approaches, which were not visible in a more anxious and somewhat compulsive attitude during the previous day.

People, who have been brought under the influence of an anaesthetic drug, also experience a reversible loss of contact with the environment. However, it seems, that, during the period, when the anaesthetic drug is exerting its influence, the brain is in a state of "dream-less sleep", since the activity of the brain-cells is suppressed by the anaesthetic. Image-progression is, almost certainly, not taking place, and, therefore, there is no perception of time. The moment of falling asleep or "going under", and waking-up, are experienced in immediate succession, regardless, how long the period of unconsciousness under anaesthesia has lasted.

The period of waking-up from an anaesthetic takes time, and, then, there may be a period, where the brain has become active, again, without the individual having regained, fully, his orientation and contact with the environment. It is during this period, that the individual may become restless and confused, and it is possible to experience vivid, dream-like experiences that can be recalled later; at least, to some extent.

It is possible to have a partial and, sometimes, fairly complete contact with reality, while, supposedly, being "under anaesthesia". The paralysing effects of some drugs used in conjunction with an inadequate dose of the anaesthetic, may prevent any communication of such a contact with reality, until after the period of "anaesthesia" has ended.

In addition to a marked distortion of the perception of time, there is, also, the feeling, that the identity of the individual became contracted into a point-like existence, when being brought under the influence of an anaesthetic drug. There may be a feeling of pressure, sound or other vague, non-specific awareness. Since the loss of contact with reality is rapid and involuntary when being anaesthetised, the awareness or the realisation that contact is being lost, does not result in a "pull-back" to reality, as happens, when such an awareness occurs while falling asleep physiologically. This inability to "fight-off" this loss of contact with reality, is somewhat frightening, but, since the waking-up is experienced almost immediately following this anxiety, the feeling of fright is, subjectively, short-lived.

Falling asleep under natural circumstances happens, because we are snug, secure and relaxed, and, the presence of anxiety-provoking stimuli will keep us awake, as we all know. As we mentioned, any sensation of drifting-off to sleep may be reversed, if we suddenly realise, that we are in the process of losing contact with the environment. Falling asleep is, therefore, quite different from being brought under anaesthesia, even, if we consent voluntarily to being anaesthetised, and, even, if the anxieties about the impending operation and anaesthetic are dulled with tranquillising drugs.

It is important to emphasise, that, dream-less sleep, as well as a deep anaesthetic, where the brain is not able to play-back a rapid, kaleidoscopic sequence of mental images, will be void of the perception of time, and, we know, therefore, that the eternity of death can not be appreciated by anyone who has died. Not only, can we not know that we are dead, but, we can not even perceive the time when we are deeply unconscious, and, for these reasons, we may focus our attention exclusively upon the process of dying rather than on the period of being dead. The transition period, when the organisation of life is falling-apart, as well as the mental imagery we can form about the state of being dead, are the most important features of our concerns about the phenomenon of "death".

Death has meaning only for those, who are living; not for those, who are dead. Death has an enormous meaning for those, who are in the process of dying, and, who are on the verge of losing contact with reality, knowing, that these are the final moments of their conscious existence. As we mentioned before, we die in the reality perceptions of our beliefs, and, those of us, who believe, strongly and honestly, that we have conducted ourselves to the best of our abilities and according to the Will of our God, may experience "going to Heaven". At least, a Heaven as its exists in our imagination. Those, who have doubts about their acceptance in the eyes of the Lord, will, inevitably, project their fears into the reality images of their final moments.

Those psychopathic individuals, who have lived and murdered, harmed or callously injured countless people, will also die in the reality of their beliefs, and, if they, somehow, think that they have done nothing wrong, their final experiences may reflect such a warped sense of justice, as well as undeserved state of tranquility. We, the injured, having suffered unimaginable injustice, can not visualise those enemies to die in peace, without retribution, and, they die, in our imagery, in a Hell of fire and just punishment, but, we should not forget, that this is our imagery, and not necessarily the imagery of our enemies.

The process of entering our own Hell or Heaven represents, therefore, a stage in the process of dying, and, the mental imagery may occur with a startling vividness. However, this imagery is, nevertheless, a product of the living mind, and, it reflects a function of life, and not of death. Sometimes, we hear accounts from people, who have "seen" Heaven or Hell, when they thought they were dying; e.g., when they were losing consciousness as the result of an illness or an accident. The mental imagery or the religious experiences of these people will, of course, reflect what they believe to be true or a likely event, even, if the actual account of what they saw or heard, was something that was "new" to them; something, they had never seen or experienced before.

The testimony of people who thought that they were dying, may be so sincere, so honest and convincing, that many people may be persuaded to believe the reality of such a testimony, and, since many of us share, culturally, the same imagery, even, if we disagree about the details, such convincing testimony may make people accept these experiences as evidence for the truthfulness of their religious beliefs.

The awareness of the existence of death, as well as the inevitability of the occurrence of death for each and every living organisation, is the price we pay for the possibility of intelligent, conscious awarenesses, with a wide scope of vision and a long-range anticipation of events. The awareness of being dead, however, is impossible, but the awareness of being in the process of dying, is a central concern in the reflective moments of us all. The many divergent opinions about the nature of death, as well as life, together with the questions about the sort of awareness or existence we may experience after death, give an aura of mystery and uncertainty about these matterns and make us wonder and think.

Let us repeat, here, briefly the arguments we have put forward for the almost universal belief in some sort of an existence after death, in spite of the common-sense evidence to the contrary. We can see this tenacious belief in an existence after death in nearly all religious beliefs, past and present. The belief, that man can, and does exist in some form after his death, is so widespread, that we do not have to concern ourselves with a proof for this statement, and, we will go-on to enumerate a series of reasons and arguments, which will make it understandable, why man, from the earliest times of being consciously aware, has concerned himself with the question, what happens to him when he dies.

The plausibility of some kind of existence after death was re-enforced, time and again, because the living members of the community would experience the appearance of a respected and recently deceased member in their dreams. Not only, would this constitute a "proof" of their existence for those, who were not aware of the distinction between memory-images and sense impressions representing a contemporary reality, but, it would provide, also, a very effective way to communicate with such a deceased individual. The belief, that deceased people would exist somewhere, and, that they could influence the living community, for better or worse, became, often, a central theme of religious beliefs and magical rituals, and, we see, how important these beliefs still are in the formulation of contemporary reality interpretations and behavioural guidelines.

Another reason for accepting the persistence or isolated existence of a human or humanoid "spirit", quite apart from its existence within the body, was, and still is, the fact, that all religious beliefs share an anthropomorphic interpretation of the natural force-fields. Such a natural force-field could have nearly all the qualities of a human personality, and, sometimes, their powers would be far greater, but, it would not have to exist in conjunction with a visible body. We see in the early religious beliefs, a whole pantheon of spirits, while later, in the mono-theistic religions, the multitude of spiritual forces is brought under the control of a Supreme Being, God.

The faculty of conscious awareness of the alert human being has almost always been linked to the world of spirits or divine beings, and, not to the existence of a physiologically intact organism. The idea, that all forms of conceptual awareness are intricately linked to the existence of an intact, functioning human body, is still a minority reality perception, shaped, largely, on the basis of rather recent scientific insights, and, this imagery is still widely unacceptable to those, who find such a fragility of conscious existence, illogical and emotionally unsatisfactory. The idea, that the human spirit, his consciousness, his occasional experiences of ecstasy, "expanded consciousness", or any other forms of "cosmic awareness", are only a product of natural evolution and a "by-product" of an intact brain in an intact human being, seems, for most people, a foreign and incomprehensible concept; far removed from our primary sensory impressions and conventional interpretations.

Certainly, for those, who do not accept, or have not been able to see reality perceptions in a modern, physiological, biological and relativistic light, the experiences of the human being seem to lead to the inevitable conclusion, that, some form of conscious life exists quite independently from bodily functions. The influence of modern, scientific thinking upon the traditional, religious interpretations of reality has resulted in a somewhat vague conceptual entity; the immortal soul. This soul is now generally considered by the intelligent religious believer to be stripped from most physiological functions, but, the knowledge of identity and some sort of implied or tacit memory-function remain an essential part of these concepts about the immortal soul, because a soul that has been stripped of all awareness functions would make the idea of an immortal soul, unsatisfactory and meaningless.

What would such a soul mean to a Christian, who believes, that God will judge this soul, if the soul would be completely stripped from all identity or knowledge that it represented the believer during his earthly stay? How could the soul be held responsible for the deeds of its owner, if this soul would not know, anymore, whom it represented, or, if it would not remember any of its behaviour on earth? Any punishment for wrong-doings it does not remember, or, for the existence of a sinner with whom the soul could not identify, seems unjust and arbitrary, and would come into conflict with our concepts of an all-knowing, all-loving God.

The belief in an immortal soul represents a common and durable, dualistic interpretation of human existence, and, it is an essential feature of the Christian Faith. For this reason, the soul has to have capabilities of knowledge and memory, but, we know, now, that these functions can not exist without the presence of an intact, living, human being.

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Chapter 6

Content

The creation of the past, the present and the future by the living human individual.
The central spectator, judge and life-giving agent; reasons, why we do not ask, where we were before birth.
Why it is not possible to visualise a state of nothingness, because every imagery possesses the quality of existence, including an attempt to visualise the essence of non-existence.
The need to use rigid analogies; the human circle and the electronic device.
The death of an electronic device, and the reasons why the components do not fall-apart or disintegrate, like the biochemical substances of a dead cell.
Death; the disappearance of functional and structural integrity.
The reversibility of the "death" of an electronic device or man-made machine.
The fragility of the living organisation, and the essential need for such a fragility and fluidity in order to react to the forces of natural selection; the low internal resistance to decay.
Chance, and the process of guided manufacture by the genetic code.
Similarities with man-made mass-production.
A comparison of the evolution of man-made designs and the mass-production of the genetic pool, after a blind evolutionary search has made a start in the chain of exploring possibilities of existence.
Parallels between the eternal existence of matter-energy and God.
Existence can not come from non-existence.
A mental imagery, accepted world-wide, is still a man-made concept and not an absolute truth.

There is another reason, why it is difficult to visualise a concept of death that leaves nothing in the place of this deceased human being, whom we still remember, so clearly. This difficulty relates to the simple fact, that all existence, even, all imaginary possibilities of existence, are created by our own conscious awareness. We have argued before, how the entire past, not only our own past, but of all happenings and events, exists only by virtue of the fact, that, we, the living generations, create such a collective mental imagery of this past in our minds.

Therefore, all past existence exists because of us, and, we function, not only, as the "creator", but also, as the central spectator and judge of all these happenings of the past. This is the reason, why we never have any difficulties accepting the fact, that we did not exist in this past. We hardly ever feel the urge to ask, where we were, before we were born. We know, intellectually, that we did not actually exist, when that past was a reality, but we do exist in this past as it has been recreated in our imagination, and, we are the central, life-giving body of this entire spectacle of past happenings and events, including the existence of past generations.

Similarly, if we think about the future, including the happenings that may take place after we have died, we accept, intellectually, the fact, that we will not be there, and yet, beause we are creating an imagery of this future in our contemporary minds, we actually do exist in the future, just as we exist in the past.

It becomes, therefore, impossible to "visualise" our death, because by trying to visualise what it means to be dead, or not to exist, we are trying to give birth to an image that takes us out of the sphere of existence. Yet, any such imagery or concept is created by us, as a living entity of conscious awareness, and, we are the "giver of existence" to this concept, and, in doing so, we are unable to avoid being the creator and giver of existence to a concept that portrays the non-existence of ourselves.

This is the "physiological argument", why complete nothingness of our individuality is so difficult to grasp for our imagination, and, this difficulty may well contribute to the universal human tendency to assign some sort of a conscious existence to ourselves after death. If we want to come closer to an appreciation of our own nothingness or non-existence, we will have to work with rigid analogies, rather than a mental imagery of nothingness, because we realise, now, the fundamental difficulties, when trying to create an imagery of our own non-existence.

We have learned to conceptualise many transient forms of existence, where we can see, clearly, their total disappearance without leaving a trace of their previous existence. If, e.g., a group of people form a circle by giving each other a hand, we see the existence of a human circle or chain, joined from hand to hand, but, the moment we release our handgrips, the circle is gone, without a trace, while we continue to exist as a group of individuals standing around in a form that resembles a circle.

There are many analogies like this, and, let us look e.g., at the functional unit of an intact electronic device, like a radio or television set. We see a conglomerate of components, joined by circuits in a certain manner. If powered properly, and, if all components function the way they should, it becomes possible for a tiny electro-magnetic signal, picked-up, together with countless others, to be selected, amplified and transformed, and, eventually, displayed in such a way, that the original meaning of the transmitted signal is understood by us in essentially the same manner as it was intended to be understood by the people, who transmitted this signal.

If, however, the device is not powered properly, the required electron-flow is not present, or, it is interrupted somewhere. Then, the various components are not able to perform their intended functions. The device does not work; it is "dead". Similarly, if an essential component fails, the electron-flow is interrupted, and, once again, there is no output. The device is dead, but since we are dealing with inorganic components, the structural integrity of the device does not suffer immediately, like the structural integrity of a living cell, where, as we have discussed on many occasions, there is a constant need for a minimum flow of biological energy, in order to prevent this constant tendency for the cell to break-down and disintegrate.

We have outlined, how the living organisation, seeking possibilities of existence under the pressures created by a reservoir of captured solar energy, requires a fluid medium of existence. It requires a fluid type of machinery in order to look for, and make use of, these possibilities of existence. In the electronic device, as well as other technological innovations of the human mind, the juxta-positioning of inorganic materials is created artificially, after testing possibilities of existence in practice, as well as in design. This means, that the possibilities of existence or function were created, as seen and judged by human intelligence.

Inorganic materials have a far greater resistance to natural decay compared to the fragile biochemical substances of the living cell. This is the reason, why a radio, if defective, does not decay like a dying cell, but the "fluid parts", such as an electron-flow, an electronic oscillation, or, the maintenance of an "electronic switch" in the random access memory of a computer, disappear, whenever the "power" or flow of electrons through the device has been halted, just like a waterfall disappears, if the continuous influx of water has been interrupted.

"Death" is reversible in the case of an electronic device, as long as the cause of the interruption of the electron-flow has been correctly diagnosed and the offending situation corrected. Similar considerations apply in medical therapeutics, where it is possible, on occasion, to reverse or alter the diseased flow of energy through a living system, thereby minimising the harmful and painful effects of a pathological process.

Once the energy-flow through the multi-cellular organism has been halted, the effects are so widespread and cumulative, affecting all cells of the body in rapid succession, that reversal becomes quickly impossible, because medical knowledge and manipulability have not progressed to the point, that they can restore the structural and biochemical relationships within a single cell. This would be necessary to re-create or re-channel the flow of biochemical energy and restore the functions of the living organisation.

Death is, therefore, the disappearance of a functional cohesion and structural integrity. Since functional cohesion and structural integrity are so closely linked in the living organisation, a serious functional interruption leads, rapidly, to an enormously chaotic structural dissolution, beyond human repair, and, beyond the restoring powers of the life processes themselves. Even, if the appearance of structural integrity has been maintained by a process of rapid freezing, death has occurred, in the sense, that a resumption of biochemical processes after the structure has been warmed-up, shows, only, the dissolution and decay of a post-mortem disintegration, and not the functions of life.

We have touched upon the fact, that technological devices have been created by a mechanism of human creativity in a conscious search for functional possibilities. This deliberate "putting together" is a specifically human inter-action with the natural surroundings, and, it is, of course, summarised by the concept of "creation". The essence of natural evolution is the fact, that there is no such artificial or deliberate juxta-positioning of materials, but, the evolution of a living organisation takes place as an essentially "blind search" for existence possibilities, and, this requires a different, more volatile and fluid type of building material.

The concept, that life arose from the myriad of biochemical combinations taking place in the fluidity of a luke-warm, primordial sea, implies, that this possibility to search, fluidly, for possibilities of existence is paid-for with a low interal resistance to decay. Without such a low internal resistance, these biochemical reactions would not be able to flow under the gentle pressures of captured solar energy, while seeking-out and testing the viability of all these possibilities of existence. Fragility and transience of existence are, therefore, the inevitable pre-requisites for an evolutionary exploration of the possibilities of living existence, and, as we have seen before, life could not have been developed without this essential feature of transience and susceptibility to death and disintegration.

Those chance-combinations that led to a state of increased viability, or usefulness, had to be safeguarded against loss of the "construction plan" by a process of guided duplication, as well as the encoding of sequential instructions for the organisation of biochemical mechanisms. The chances of finding, again, a fortuitous happenstance would be so low, that, any significant penetration into the realm of more complex possibilities of existence would be virtually impossible without a sequential code to duplicate complex possibilities of existence. Genetic reproduction of a complex living structure takes, therefore, the element of chance out of finding the combination again, and the genetic instructions become an organisor of biochemical events, steering the biological energy-flow and the substances, floating in the watery surroundings, in such a way, that, under favourable conditions, a replica of the same complex structure will come-about.

This is analogous to the mechanisms of mass-production, where a product is rapidly mass-produced by a carefully controled, sequential organisation of manufacturing steps, transforming the available raw materials, with the help of a suitable source of energy, into the finished end-product. As long as the circumstances are suitable, mass-production will continue. As long as there exists a suitable source of raw materials and energy, and, as long as the organisation of the manufacturing instructions remains intact, copies of the same end-product are being produced.

Even in the design of technological devices, we see an interesting parallel with natural evolution. As soon as the human mind "foresees" a possibility to make a useful tool, it will make one, but, in the process of using the tool, the human mind will also see possibilities to improve on it, and, slowly, the tool "evolves", because there is a constant feed-back between the usefulness of the tool on the one hand, and the user on the other, because the user perceives and communicates possibilities to enhance or increase this element of usefulness. Just like natural evolution, circumstances may change so radically, that a tool, considered to be useful a short while ago, has become "obsolete', and, the tool "dies", or, rather, it becomes "extinct" as its use, production and development, cease.

There are many interesting parallels between the evolution of natural life and man-made implements, and, the short-cut of reproduction, (where a living organisation is sustained as long as the genetic blue-print has a chance to perpetuate itself in an uninterrupted series of successive generations), finds a ready parallel with the development of complex technological devices and instruments, which have been "created" by the human mind.

The successful genetic pool of instructions for the "manufacture" of an actualised living organism, evolves under evolutionary pressures. Sometimes, evolutionary change is rapid, if there are severe pressures, and, the gene-pool may be teetering on the brink of extinction as it tries to adapt, as rapidly as possible, in order to maintain its viability. Viability is found, if the gene-pool is successful in creating a sufficient number of actualised individuals to ensure the existence of a number of successive generations.

The chance-happening forms the beginning in the exploration of a series of existence possibilities, but, continued existence of a viable combination depends on safeguarding the blue-print of the viable chance-happening. The blue-print is the sequential organisation of the instructions that are necessary to transform the raw products, (the substrate), into the finished end-product, (a copy of the living organisation), with the help of a suitable source of biochemical energy and building-blocks.

As a parallel, we see, that the "creative" activities of the human mind explore possibilities of existence in the form of mental images, but this process of "conception" tests actual existence, first, "in the mind", before it tests such an existence in reality. Together with the manipulative ability of the human organism, this mental pre-testing allows for the deliberate putting-together of inorganic materials, or "building-blocks", in such a manner, that a suitable flow of energy through the system may create all sorts of effects and results that are more or less "foreseen" in the mind of the designer. Without design, logical reasoning or conceptual structuring, the chances of finding something that is useful or workable, would be extremely small, and, yet, we know, that, often, such chance-happenings play a role in the development of a tool or a scientific insight.

The precision of conceptually forecasting the results of an artificially created sequence of events, is limited, however, and, we have described, before, why there has to be a continuous process of testing, in order to ensure, that conceptual extra-polations, judgements and predictions stay more or less in line with actual observations. Creation by a human intelligence shows many aspects or features that are reminiscent of natural evolution, as possibilities of usefulness are continuously tested by alterations and changes in the instructions for the manufacture of a product. We see, how a line of industrial instructions may become extinct as the usefulness of a product, tool or device has disappeared, or has been supplanted by a more useful tool with a different lineage of development.

Creation and evolution are, therefore, similar and complementary processes that go hand in hand. The reason, why the human mind has difficulties seeing the similarities between the creation of a human device and the natural evolution of a biochemical, living structure, relates to the fact, that the mechanisms of coherence of the various living species' were not clear, until quite recently. The complexity of the living structure is still so baffling, that the human being, in an attitude of humble reverence, comes to the conclusion, that a far superior Divine Intelligence or Will must have created this complexity in a manner, which is somewhat similar to the ways man can create a complex tool or device.

We have, now, a clearer picture of the relationships between the physical conditions and circumstances of the early earth, and, the origins of the experiment with the living organisation. However, let us acknowledge, that we "sense" this coherence more than we can prove it. We do not know, and, we will never know, exactly, a reality "as it really happened". Just because we have learned to see, how our human reality perception must be a fantastic over-simplification of any external, non-human reality, (if there is any correlation), it has become intellectually easier to accept the fact, that these complex biological mechanisms could, indeed, have been formed in this unimaginable vast laboratory of biochemical experimentation; the early earth.

Since we do not know where existence comes from, except as a creation of our conscious mind, and, since we assume, that existence can not come from non-existence, we surmise, that matter-energy has always existed in one form or another. This is an argument that has an interesting parallel with religious reasoning, where God can not have come forth from non-God, and must, therefore, have existed from eternity.

At this stage in our knowledge, the scientific imagery seems to favour the eternal existence of matter-energy, oscillating between a high-velocity and rather stable form of radiant energy, and, an orbital, gravitationally contracting form of matter-energy, with mass or inertia, which we call "matter". Together with an unexplained and unexplainable existence of this matter-energy, we accept, that this matter-energy has certain characteristics and fundamental properties or constants that are valid throughout the Universe. Again, we do not pretend to know these constants with any degree of finality, and, even, if we reach a situation where our interpretation of these constants would be generally accepted from one generation to the next, we still should not lose sight of the fact, that this conceptual formulation is a man-made and collectively agreed-upon mental imagery, rather than an absolutely valid reality.

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Chapter 7

Content

Intelligence; a behavioural tool that develops only under specific and restricted circumstances.
The break-through of predation and symbiosis.
In the religious point of view, "Intelligence" is the essential, organising principle.
The logic of man's beliefs in a created reality.
The Prime Mover; a concept that developed as a result of increasing scientific coherence.
The emotionally unsatisfactory aspects of such a stark image of reality.
Religious sects, and the elitists.
The hierarchy of spirits, and the intermediate position of man; in between the lowly physical forms of life and the "free spirits".
Difficulties reconciling religious and scientific points of view.
The similarities between the concepts of matter-energy and those of a Prime Mover.
Reality perceptions, seen as a biological function; the relativity of truth.
A review of what has been discussed.
Suicide; the voluntary death by one's own hand; mechanisms and an analysis.
Pathological forms of human existence.
The most harmful elements are not suicidal but psychopathic in nature.
Conditions for a reflective attitude.
The slow emergence of an appreciation for life.
Relinquishing obsessive long-term goals.
The meaning of death has to be found in the meaning of life.
Death is nothing more, and nothing less, than the absence of life.
The fallacy of suppressing thoughts about death and dying.

In our modern, scientific insights, we tend to interpret the nature of intelligence as a behavioural tool that may develop under specific and restricted evolutionary circumstances. Life, as we know it, is a process that requires a particular set of conditions as existed on the early earth, and, under the right conditions, a natural experiment with the possibilities of the living organisation will take place.

We have discussed, on previous occasions, how the break-through of multi-cellular symbiosis is preceded by the mechanisms of predation, and, we have seen, how it has become possible to explain our own existence, including the functions of the central nervous system, on the basis of predatory, multi-cellular existence. The break-through of behavioural flexibility and secondary social integration led, eventually, in the human species, to the ability to represent and communicate, symbolically, a large variety of conscious awarenesses.

These conscious awarenesses can be evoked and re-stimulated, voluntarily, into a focus of attention with the help of symbolic representations. We will not repeat these developments and images here, but, based upon such insights, the scientific view-point favours the idea, that intelligent life is the result of a particular line of evolutionary development, and, the faculty of intelligence is, therefore, completely dependent upon the existence of a biological organisation of matter-energy.

In the religious explanation, intelligence has been interpreted as the essential, organising principle of the Universe, and, we have discussed, how man's primary observations of the complexity of the observable world with his naked senses, favoured, logically, the interpretation of a "created reality", just because man himself was able to create tools and objects of use, and, because he was able to bring-about conditions of existence in a goal-directed, teleological way of life.

The creative intelligence of the spirits and the gods slowly contracted into an overall Intelligent Principle, still very much like human intelligence, but, the exalted position of the overall Creative Spirit led, naturally, to the belief, that it must be an Omiscient, Perfect Intelligence, endowed with all those attributes of behaviour that were highly regarded and valued amongst man. These qualities included love and compassion, (if we look at Christianity), but, also, sternness, strength, and, even, "wrath", if we look at the God of the Old Testament. As the concepts and ideals of human existence evolved, the images of the human gods changed too, and, eventually, under the pressures of scientific scrutiny, the Creative Intelligence of the Spirit became a Prime Mover; a force, that started the clock-work of the Universe, but, then, remained silent and unmoved.

However, such a stark picture of Divine Intelligence has never satisfied a majority of human beings, and, the religious reality perceptions developed several "systems", where the nature and intentions of the Divine Creator were outlined with varying degrees of precision. In addition to the major religions with their guiding Scriptures, there have always been a number of more secretive, elitist and essentially non-ethical religious movements, where an active participation and conscious effort were required in order to achieve, eventually, some sort of mystical union with this Supreme Intelligence. The vagueness of these secretive beliefs and their essentially anti-social nature, made mystical sects a haven for the elitist, and, often, a target of scorn and hatred for the rest of society.

Let us not get lost in the myriad of ramifications we can see in the religious views and practices of mankind. We only want to emphasise the idea, that "Intelligence" is not a product of natural evolution in the religious perception of reality, but, it is the ultimate Creative Principle for the existence and function of the Universe, as well as everything that exists in the Universe. Since the human form of intelligence seems to represent the highest form of intelligence amongst the living creatures on earth, the human being assumed an exalted position, but, in the overall hierarchy of intelligent existence, the human being was often seen as a rather lowly form of intelligence amongst the many types of spiritual, angelical or divine forms of Intelligence that were presumed to exist throughout the Universe.

This difference in the interpretation of "Intelligence" is a corner-stone of the division between the sciences and the religions, and, this difference in interpretation explains, why the religions were compelled to attribute an immortal or independently existing form of intelligence to the physical existence of the human being. The human being is then seen as a curious, transitional form of existence; on the one hand, linked to the lower, non-intelligent, instinctive forms of animal life, and, on the other hand, reaching out into the clear, unfettered realm of Spiritual Intelligence.

These remarkable differences in interpretation explain the many antagonistic view-points between the sciences and the religions. Many people, searching for a harmony between these view-points, point to the common ground of the eternal existence of the cosmos, matter-energy, and the eternal existence of a Prime Mover. Yet, as we have discussed, we feel, that this approach is somewhat old-fashioned and has been explored, now, for centuries. I am convinced, that a far more fruitful approach is found in an analysis of our mental mechanisms, including our beliefs and levels of awareness. Such an analysis will lead, eventually, to the concept of the relativity of truth, and, we have outlined these arguments, now, on a number of occasions.

It is time to return to the central theme of our discussion, when we took upon ourselves the task of reviewing the mechanisms of a wide range of reality perceptions, as well as the resulting knowledge of the inevitability of death. We have discussed a number of specific aspects, ranging from the experience of dying, the differences between dying and falling-asleep or being anaesthetised, and, we have pointed-out the common links between the experiences of losing contact with a contemporary reality, because, we know, now, that every form of conscious awareness is based on the continuous evaluation of a stream of sense impressions.

We have also discussed the complex reasons, why man believes, nearly always, in some sort of an existence after death, and, we have discussed the nature of death. We have indicated the difficulties associated with conceptualising nothingness, and, we have outlined the concept of functional cohesion and structural integrity as a central element in the definition of life and death. The inevitable link between life and death has been considered, and the evolutionary processes have been reviewed, briefly. The function of hope, belief and emotional neutrality were hinted upon during an introductory review of some of the psychological mechanisms that play such a crucial role in the way we accept death, or cope with the stress of suffering and dying.

So far, we have assumed, that death has been faced involuntarily, and, this is indeed the case in most instances, regardlesss of the fact, that the circumstances under which death has to be faced, may vary widely; from a slow, well anticipated death to the almost instantaneous annihilation in a severe accident. But, as we all know, a substantial number of deaths occur voluntarily, where people, either take their own lives, or, are seeking death in one way or another and welcome it as a relief from an unbearable situation.

Suicide, the death by one's own hand, is a surprisingly common occurrence amongst the members of affluent societies, and, so often, from an outsider's point of view, such a death seems to be needless, because it is not associated with unbearable suffering or interminable misery, and, we tend to feel a mixture of horrified disbelief, as well as anger, when confronted with a suicide victim. We are subjected to contradictory feelings and emotions. On the one hand, we try to sympathise with the victim, and, in particular, with friends and relatives of the suicide victim, and, we try to understand, at least, to some extent, the mental and emotional mechanisms that led to a suicide, but, on the other hand, we feel an emotion of anger with the short-sighted self-pity of those who commit suicide, and, we deplore their incredible lack of vitality or inability to enjoy life in the circumstances they may find themselves.

It is clear, that a great majority of suicide vicitms did not experience circumstances most people would consider "unbearable". Many people survive, and survive quite well, under far worse conditions, such as imprisonment, physical and mental violence, anguish, persecution, or, even, torture, and, they are still able to maintain their sanity and find a measure of meaning in life. Suicide victims seem always pre-occupied with a sense of worthlessness, and, they are blinded by a lack of appreciation for their own physiological and mental capabilities. They are unable to communicate with others because of a chaotic personality structure. The personality may have become defective for one reason or another, or, it may have been severely damaged and stunted during its growth and development.

Since the perception of reality is a self-centered function of the mind, and, since we all are responsible for creating our own reality perceptions, the reality perception of such deranged, extremely introvert and depressed people is clouded with feelings of anxiety; a sense of failure, as well as a deep sense of being worthless or useless. The mere act of staying alive, facing the mostly trivial or imagined anguishes and problems of life, (trivial and imagined from an outsider's point of view), the obsessive, egocentric orientation, as well as a constant self-pity, give the impression to the suicidal personality, that life has become an intolerable burden; that no improvement is in sight, and, slowly, the inexorable desire develops to end it all in a state of blissful oblivion.

We will not discuss, here, the many neurotic asepcts of the suicidal personality, or, the frequent use of the threat of suicide as a means to get attention. The neurotic dependency, the chaotic personality, and the frequent addiction to drugs, the inability to excercise self-discipline and the ever more distorted perceptions of reality, often lead to self-destruction, but, these developments are, at the same time, an indictment of the social environment in which the suicide victim grew-up.

The many divergent circumstances and mechanisms that may lead to suicidal tendencies will not concern us, here. We only want to emphasise the simple fact, that, death for an individual with a suicidal tendency, is not a stressful, anxious or mysterious hurdle, but a welcome relief from inner turmoil and anxiety, chaos and confusion, because we are then dealing with a mind that has lost most, if not all its natural inclinations to cling to life as long as possible. We are dealing with a mind that is sick and recognises, intuitively, its low viability and its inability to cope with the normal stresses of existence, and, above all, the suicidal personality recognises, intuitively, but essentially accurately, that it is not valued by society. Then, the suicidal personality may have come to the sometimes justified conclusion, that it is "in the way", and, that it would do the community a service by removing itself.

We will not judge, here, whether or not suicide is justifiable; whether or not society should calmly accept the suicide of those, who want to make an end to their existence. It seems, that in the pathological areas of our modern, aflluent societies, many minds have become so diseased, so distorted and warped, so inviable, that, indeed, it seems, that no-one would miss them, if these diseased minds remove themselves from society. Unfortunately, the most harmful and dangerous pathological elements in society are not suicidal at all, but, they are ruthless, exploitative and manipulative psychopaths, who do far more harm than the lonely, pityful, depressed and neurotic individual, who is contemplating doing away with him- or herself.

Let us return to the more normal reluctance to give-up a life that seems, so often, to acquire ever more meaning as death comes closer. It seems, that we are only occasionally able to appreciate the wonderful fact of being alive; of being a thinking, feeling and communicating individual, acutely aware of the joys of a crisp morning, a fragrant smell, a beautiful view, a warm, cosy corner to sit-in and relax. We seem to appreciate contemporary existence, only, after we have lost some of our compulsive drive to pursue those long-term goals of success and achievement.

It is remarkabe that we are not even aware of our existence as an individual during a significant part of our lives. After we discover ourselves as an existing "I" during childhood, this identity remains, often, submerged for prolonged periods of time, as we develop, slowly, our skills and confidence, seeking and testing our position in society, formulating our goals and aspirations.

During childhood and adolescence, we begin to formulate some ideas about who and what we want to be in terms of social standing or skilled abilities. We work and play, and, gradually, very gradually, we learn to become more critical of what we hear, see, or are being told. The sharpness of our mental imagery develops like a delayed photographic plate, and, many of us will always remain a follower of someone or something, belonging to a political party, a social movement, or a religious organisation.

Yet, even so, we learn, that our elan vital has limitations. We learn, that our progress through the social hierarchy is coming to an end, and, that our goals and financial obligations are absorbing an ever greater part of our energies. We slowly learn to consolidate our situation, and, for the first time, we relax somewhat and start to look around with a renewed interest and a fresh approach to the meaning of it all.

As we grow older, a slow physical deterioration starts to drive home the fact, that we may have to accept a gradual but inexorable decline in physical powers, and, later, of mental powers as well. Then, we start to reflect more intensely. At least, some of us have a tendency to become reflective, while others bury themselves deeper into work, hobbies or activities, in order to forget about advancing age. Most of us will cling tenaciously to our social position, because a loss of our social position is a severe reminder of our declining powers.

It is remarkable, how much energy people are willing to spend in holding-on to the illusion, that they are not ageing, and, that their performance at work is not declining. In the affluent societies, the anxieties about a social decline and a loss of prestige and earning powers, are, sometimes, compensated for by a flamboyant, consumerist life-style, entrapping an individual in ever-increasing financial and social obligations.

It seems safe to state, that, in a competitive social environment, almost all middle-aged people spend their entire energy-output in fighting the inevitable decline of social status and earning powers, as well as a decline in physical and mental capabilities. It is not surprising, therefore, that society is, so often, immune to the wisdom and admonitions of those who have overcome these obsessions.

Yet, the time comes, that we can not hold-on any longer. Often, we realise, suddenly, how much of a stress or burden we are under, and, then, our goals may change radically. From a tenacious clinging to a position, we want to get-away from it all, finally relaxing and enjoying ourselves in a leisurely pace of living, realising, that time is running-out. Sooner or later, we all are forced to develop, at least, a measure of wisdom, but, unfortunately, during those tenacious and desperate years of social activities, we may have done a lot of harm to ourselves, our family, our social environment, or the community as a whole. During those years that we were blinded by egocentric anxieties, we probably have contributed significantly to this pernicious momentum of an egocentric and consumerist life-style.

Society does not mature as quickly as an individual, and, the varying rates of communal and individual maturation form a fruitful topic for reflection and study. However, we will not enter upon this topic here, because we are discussing the remarkable fact, that we only learn to appreciate the moment of the present, after we have abandoned, to some extent, our compulsive pre-occupation with the future.

Perhaps, for some of us, the clearest realisation and appreciation of the mystery of being alive, will come as we enter this other mystery of our existence; our death. What a regret must we feel, if we realise, all of a sudden, that the most precious appreciation of all, the appreciation of our own existence, was completely overlooked and taken for granted, as we obeyed, unthinkingly, our existential drives and the promptings of our vital energies.

At the threhshold of death, while becoming an object for reflection and study for those left behind to ponder the mystery of death, we may suddenly realise, that the real mystery is not death, but the existence of life. As we depart from life and slowly lose contact with those around us, the single, clearest thought in our mind may be the surprising conclusion, that we have failed, completely, to appreciate and probe the mystery of our existence as it was passing-by, so quickly.

What an irony would it be, that the mystery of death turns-out to be a discovery, that we failed to give sufficient attention to our existence as a living human being. But, then, perhaps, it is only possible to become aware of the mystery of life and the possibilities of living existence, if we are quite familiar with the phenomenon of death. Only by realising, clearly, that living existence is measured in a very limited span of time, can we appreciate the phenomenon of death. Only by thinking, clearly, about death, when we are alive and well, can we avoid the regretful insight at the moment we die; that we have failed to understand the meaning of being alive.

Life and death are two faces of a single reality. Life is not possible without death, except, perhaps, in a vague and imprecise religious belief that has been based more on hope than on clear thinking, and, understanding the processes of dying, is not possible without an appreciation of the essence of living, since death is nothing more, and nothing less, than the disappearance of the coherence and integration that characterise the living entity.

Therefore, one of the most foolhardy and counter-productive attitudes we can adopt, is a neurotic suppression of the awareness, that we have to come to terms with the fact, that we will die, at some time in the future. By our fearful refusal to think about the fact that we have to die, and, perhaps, suffer as well, we deprive ourselves from one of the most essential mechanisms to help us understand life, humanity and ourselves.

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Chapter 8

Content

How to avoid the tragedy of discovering, at the time of our death, that we have failed to appreciate life.
Why we should care about building-up a coherent imagery of reality and our own existence, whenever we can.
The reliance upon society, and, the limitations of an attitude of complete reliance upon the leadership-input from other people.
The need to become responsible, and develop all our talents for thought and reflection.
The importance of the intelligent, deliberate choice.
The meaning of individuality.
An exhortation to become thinking individuals within a social contract of essential equality and global justice.
Let us not underestimate the difficulties of dying.
The death penalty.
A review of some ideas about social existence.
Religious freedoms, and the need to monitor all sub-groupings in society.
The need for transparence, and the ability to scrutinise all leaderships, including the overall political leadership.
How to live with a condition of complete social transparence.
A return to the process of dying.
Our responsibilities towards future generations.

Let us try to give a few examples of what we have in mind, and how we can avoid the trap of wasting our lives in vain and idle goals. How can we avoid the tragic discovery at the time of our death, that we failed to understand life? How can we avoid this final moment of intense regret, or, do we have to reach, once again, for a religious reality perception in order to ease our mind and allay our fears?

Let us begin by asking ourselves, simply, who we are. Do we have any idea, how we function? Do we know what makes us tick? Do we know, what information is available; what people have been thinking about the nature of human existence and life itself? Do we care, what information is available, and, what people have thought about these questions?

We should, because, if we do not care about these matters, and, if we fail to build-up some sort of coherent structure of beliefs, we will not be able to know, whether or not we are blindly following our instincts and passions, or, perhaps, the fashionable trends of the day. We will be ill-prepared to cope with the stress of growing old or getting sick, as the worn platitudes of conventional beliefs and wisdoms may fail us at the crucial moment of our death.

We may feel comfortable in the conventional wisdoms of our cultural environment, and, we may place our full confidence and unquestionable faith in the authority of our leadership, but, what happens if our leaders are wrong? What happens, if our leaders crumble, and, if there is no-one in whom we can place our trust? What happens, if we come into conflict with another culture, another society, or another nation? Are we going to war, again, blindly and blandly believing, that we are totally right and our enemies totally wrong?

If we allow ourselves to be guided, and, possibly, misguided by our leaders or the fashionable opinions and worn-out platitudes of our social environment, relying completely on the traditions of our culture or the concepts of our Faith, then, we share in the blame, if things go wrong. We will be partly to blame, if our culture stagnates because of simplistic attitudes of right and wrong, and, we will have failed in our duties as an individual, because we have failed to excercise, fully, our powers of observation and thought. If we rely, blindly, upon our culture, we become a parasite, sucking-up this culture for our nourishment, while never thinking about the need to give something back to the cultural code of our social environment.

It is not sufficient to give our culture and our leadership a blind loyalty, because we do not contribute, then, in any way, to a renewal or rejuvenation of the cultural pool. We remain will-less tools in the hands of our leaders, and, let us not forget, that the temptation to abuse blind devotion and loyalty is always there. There is nothing more tempting for a leader than to "mold" a will-less and loyal following for the purpose of pursuing egocentric objectives.

No, we owe it to ourselves, as well as our social environment, to question, scrutinise, observe and think about everything we see, hear and do, because, only then, will we be able to support, wholeheartedly, whatever we understand and consider to be valuable and worth preserving. We do not support on account of a blind faith, or, because we are used to obey orders. We understand, we have evaluated, and, we support, because we see and appreciate the importance of what we support.

The ability to support, enthousiastically and wholeheartedly, the main features of our culture and the guidelines of our society, is paid-for with the price of having to criticise, reject or modify some aspects, because, as mature and critical citizens, we are able to see, how, and why, some features lead to undesirable side-effects. We criticise, reject or amend those features we can not endorse in an attitude of responsible dissent, because we have come to the well-founded conclusion, that these features are unworthy of our support. The cultural guidelines of our social environment may be harmful to some, or unjust to those outside our immediate concern and cultural horizon.

We do not worship the freedom of individual unfolding as an opportunity to sharpen our intellectual skills for narrow egocentric gains during a ruthless, competitive struggle. This would be an irresponsible attitude, and, every social environment that worships the freedom of individual enterprise with this egocentric objective in mind, betrays a fundamental lack of knowledge and concern about the social origins of its culture and the essence of its viability.

Individuality is a tool for evaluation and examination, requiring hard work and honesty, as well as devotion to a sense of logic. Individuality requires a consistent attitude and a balanced approach to our environment, and, it leads, often, to the conclusion that the truth is a pragmatic but scrupulously fair interpretation of common-sense principles of operation.

A culture that fears the individuality of its members is caught in the trap of stagnation and has cut itself off from its only source of rejuvenation, but, a culture that does not recognise the fragmentation of unbridled egocentric individualism, is decaying without realising it. Unless we learn to harnass the instincts of individuality in the light of socially responsible attitudes, we fail to ensure the continued viability of a cultural system, but, if we suppress, in a neurotic anxiety, the elan vital of our members, we have stifled our society into the mold of a living fossil.

This is our duty in life; to understand ourselves, and, in doing so, we will be able to recognise the similarities as well as the differences between human beings. It is our duty to think and ponder, examine and be honest, otherwise, we do not learn and contribute, but, we posture and deceive. We posture and deceive, primarily, ourselves, and, perhaps, a few others as well.

Not all of us are endowed with the gift of scrutiny, nor, have we all been given the opportunity to develop whatever talents we have, and, therefore, a large number of people will always feel the need to place their trust in a leadership. However, none of us should abandon the responsibility to do whatever we can, and, make a contribution to the Cause of individualised existence, whenever we have an opportunity to do so.

Yet, understanding life, and ourselves, will come in many different ways. For some, it may be an articulate philosophical exposition. For others, it may be a more intuitive, artistic experience; again others may find their understanding in the beauty of a genuine religious belief, while some will find their essence of understanding in a devotion to another human being, a family, or a specific ideal. Yet, let me repeat; in addition to the emotional satisfactions that flow from an artistic appreciation, the comfort of a religious promise, or the buoyancy that comes with a tightly-knit group of friends and relatives, we all have an intellectual capability as well, and, we can not ignore this faculty of thought and scrutiny.

Each one of us should develop this intellectual ability as fully as possible, because we all are called-upon, sooner or later, to make important decisions that will affect our lives, as well as the well-being of our immediate social surroundings. Making sensible decisions, based upon a thorough understanding of what we are and what we really need, will be a pre-requisite for long-term, large-scale, social viability. It will be necessary to contribute, consciously and voluntarily, to the "collective will", and, we have discussed, on previous occasions, how important this conscious, collective will is going to be for the future of mankind.

The excercise of our intellectual capabilities will make us realise to what extent we have been caught in a web of our own making, woven by our aspirations, desires and drives, while blindly obeying a large variety of primitive behavioural organisers. There is no more convincing argument in favour of the mechanisms of natural evolution, than to have a close look at the nature of human existence, as well as the organisation of life in general. Such a perception of reality, which can now be extensively elaborated and supported by massive scientific evidence, will show us, also, that we have to accept, fully, the intellectual and emotional consequences of such a mental imagery.

We have to realise, that an atmosphere of peace and good-will between human beings can not be brought-about by wishful thinking, a pious hope, or, a prayer to God, but, it has to be worked for, and, it has to be negotiated in a settlement that acknowledges, in practice as well as in theory, the existential requirements of all human beings. The conditions of peace and good-will have to satisfy this all-important criterium; a satisfaction of the sense of justice for the overwhelming majority of the members of mankind.

With natural evolution as our common background, as well as the basis for a commonlly shared reality perception, the future of mankind is not, any longer, an uncertainty beyond the control of the human will. It is not a future that has to be feared and prayed for, nor, does it have to be drowned in a fatalistic concentration on the dreams of the past, the hopes for the future, or the pleasures of the moment. The future of mankind will increasingly be the product of a sustained and concerted effort, which, in turn, can only be generated, if we start to accept the need for, as well as the importance of, a deliberately designed and articulated "collective will".

Mankind is growing, not only, in size and numbers, but, also, in its level of awareness and the clarity of its perceptions, and, in spite of the fact, that the penetration of more rational attitudes will be painfully slow, we have, now, the technical means of communication and education, to make sure, that the next few generations will grow-up with a far more coherent philosophy of life.

A reflection upon the meaning and possibilities of life will provide us, also, with the fortitude to cope with decay and death, but, let us not underestimate the difficulties. Many of us will have to leave the realm of living existence, long before we feel ready to do so; before we have understood life, savoured life, or, before we have contributed to life in the way we feel, we can. Inevitably, many of us will feel a measure of regret and incomprehension, when we realise, that the time of our departure has come. The vagaries of fortune, disease and accident will always be with us, and, probably, the crimes of murder and violent injustice as well.

I do not want to leave the impression, that the death penalty should be abolished completely. We have argued, elsewhere, that society will need to eliminate, occasionally, incorrigeable psychopaths; people, whose psychological functions are, for one reason or another, so derailed, that it is not possible to ever accept them back into society. Rather than incarcerate and sequestrate such individuals for life, we have argued, that it would be more humane to execute them. We have also discussed, that psychopathically diseased personalities have often such a warped sense of reality that they feel completely out of place in society, and may themselves prefer death over life-long incarceration. Similarly, non-criminal but severely disturbed people with strong suicidal tendencies may also prefer, after all treatment has failed, to end their lives, and, we should not categorically prevent such a course of action.

It is obvious, that it is never justified to resort to murder or executions merely to stifle opposition or dissent. We have outlined, how verbal or ideological dissent can only be counter-acted by verbal or ideological means, and, if an established ideology feels seriously threatened by a new and revolutionary idea, it may be time to examine such revolutionary ideas carefully, because they may well have something to contribute, and, they may point to the fact, that the established ideology is becoming rigid and irrelevant.

An ideology that denies the validity of equal rights for all people and attempts to destroy the principles of social justice and essential equality, should be vigorously attacked and exposed by a skillful campaign of verbal counter-attack, and, there should be no problem to expose the fallacies of such erroneous ideas.

As long as a view-point refrains from interfering with the essential rights of other people, the idea should only be attacked ideologically. If, however, warped ideas lead to an infringement upon the rights of others, or the society as a whole, the behaviour based on these ideas becomes criminal in nature, and has to be dealt with accordingly; but, always, with a sustained effort to understand, why such erroneous ideas and doctrines appear to appeal to some people.

We are sliding somewhat into considerations that are relevant for the construction of Constitutional Guidelines, and, they do not concern us, here, as we explore the beliefs and attitudes that play a role in the acceptance of suffering, death and decay. Yet, in the context of what we have discussed above, we should say a few words about the range and limitations of religious freedoms.

In many contemporary societies, we have come to the conclusion, that it belongs to the fundamental rights of each individual to worship his God and practice his religion completely free from scrutiny or interference. Such ideas arose out of the awareness, that religious conflicts have led to untold misery and bloodshed in the past, and, that it is possible to avoid many of the pernicious clashes between absolute beliefs, if society tolerates a freedom of religious expression.

On the whole, such an attitude and practice has worked well, and, this practice is in keeping with the ideals of freedom of expression. However, on occasion, we are confronted with religious fanatics who practice within their group a level of coercion and control that is contrary to the ideas of individual freedoms and rights. While we assume, as members of the society at large, that the members of these religious sects always have the freedom to leave such a sect, whenever they start to dislike them, we completely ignore the level of control the leaderships of religious cults and sects excercise over their members.

Society has a right, as well as an obligation, to monitor the behaviour of each and every individual, including the leaders of every sub-grouping and the leadership of society as a whole. If we do not insist on such widespread monitoring activities, we close our eyes to many intentional or inadvertent violations of the Constitutional guarantees that are supposed to safeguard the rights of all members in society.

We will not repeat, here, our arguments, that, eventually, secrecy has to be abolished completely, and, that we have to accept responsibility for all our actions, intentions, and, even, our thoughts. In many contemporary societies, the right to privacy is held sacred, but, often, this right to privacy is subverted by egocentric attitudes and violates the requirements of honesty and justice. We have to learn to live in such a way, that we do not have to be ashamed for anything we say and do, or, anything we own and earn.

Here again, we are a long way from implementing, or, even, accepting these ideas, but, a reflection upon the need for mutual trust and essential equality in a social contract of justice, makes it clear, that we can not expect our neighbours to trust us, unless we are completely open and honest in our dealings with them. If we are wealthy, or, if we earn a lot of money, we should not hide the extent of our property, nor should we hide the way we earned our income or acquired our assets. If we do, we create a justified suspicion in the minds of our neighbours, and, we give the impression, that our acquisitions and earnings are immoral, exploitative or, perhaps, even, outright illegal.

There is, probably, nothing more comforting when we die, than the knowledge, that we have acted justly, and, that our friends, relatives and neighbours are left behind in an atmosphere of good-will and mutual trust. To die with hatred, disillusionment and cynicism in our hearts and minds, must be a frustrating death, since we will be torn by emotions and fears, as we start to lose contact with reality at the moment of our death. Those fears and feelings of hatred, the passions and turmoil of our mind, will take shape as thoughts or images of reality, and, we may die, after all, in a Hell of our own making.

Certainly, the moment will be short, and, soon, we will become nothing, We will dissolve, as the life processes of our particular being are coming to an end. Yet, our time perception has been altered, and, we have argued, how we will not be able to know eternity and the peace of nothingness. All we know are those dreadful moments of our final existence, and, we may fear, that we are never going to get out of those final moments.

In a way, it is logical to see those final moments as an eternity, and, it is somewhat justified to consider such a tormented soul as entering an eternal Hell of turmoil and anxiety; all, beause the individual has failed to understand, and has failed to find peace and tranquility in an attitude of justice and honesty towards his fellow human beings.

Do we know, now, what death and dying is all about? Our concepts will continue to change. Our attitudes will change, too, from time to time, and, even, a confident feeling of understanding and compassion may be shattered by strong emotions of fear and doubt. It will be a struggle, at times, and, we will have to work diligently, all our lives, to deepen a sense of understanding and maintain an attitude of acceptance about the inevitability of death.

It is natural, that we will always fear, at least, to some extent, the possibility of severe suffering before it is all over. Regardless, how resigned we are to the idea of having to die, none of us relish the thought of having to suffer, and, fortunately, there is rarely a need for it.

Most suffering can be avoided, if we die in an atmosphere of harmony with those around us. It is rarely necessary to die in a heroic struggle against our enemies, if we take the necessary steps to avoid a bloody confrontation. We do not have to die in great pain and a prolonged agony, as our knowledge of analgesics and tranquillising medication can help everyone, who is suffering from severe pain or mental disturbances during a terminal illness. Certain deaths will be painful. It will always be painful to die from thirst, starvation, exposure or wounds sustained in a remote place, far away from help, but, then, most people who die in such unfortunate circumstances have taken the risk to be exposed to such an occurrence, even, if they often failed to appreciate the true magnitude of these risks.

Death will often remain tragic and unnecessary, but, let us anticipate, clearly, what may happen, before we embark upon risky adventures, and, this applies, in particular, to our strong tendency to engage a common enemy in a euphoric mood of absolute righteousness and victorious expectations.

Let us keep thinking about our life and our death, and, the simultaneous focus on these apparent antipodes may be one of the most powerful ways to achieve understanding, harmony and a genuine feeling for our common existential roots. Let us abandon that foolish and neurotic suppression of the awareness of impending death, or, even common ageing. Let us mature, because it is time to grow-up and accept, fully, the responsibilities of being alive. Let us think about the generations of mankind that are coming after us, and, let us realise, how dependent their existence and quality of life will be upon our contemporary actions and insights.

Let us acknowledge, that we may jeopardise their existence, or, even, make their existence completely impossible, if we fail to formulate a vision of long-term responsibilities and conditions of viability. Understanding what human life is all about, will, not only, make our own death natural and fully acceptable, but, we will be able to give life to many generations of mankind still to come.

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Summary

1. About deserving attention and earning loyalty.
   Something about my writing habits.
   The title as a summary or focal point of a discussion.
   What is death?
   Religious beliefs and their use to cope with the stress of dying.
   The psychological victory over death.
   The personal nature of our reality perceptions.
   We die in a reality of our own making.
   The definition of death, and, differences with suspended animation.
   Death; the irreversible dissolution of the structure and function of a living organism.
   Freezing, and the slowing-down of chemical processes.
   The possibility of a selective death of the brain.
   A short review of the essence of the living coherence of a cell.
   Clinical death, life-support measures, and the essential difference between selective brain-death and suspended animation, when cardiac arrest occurs in a severely chilled body.
   The "power supply" to the brain, and the networks of nerve-cells engaged in specific functions.
   
   
   
2. The hope to gain an extension on life, in the future, by preserving a body in the deep-freeze.
   The fallacy of the assumptions behind this hope.
   Would future generations be interested to bring-back to life, if possible, the relics from the past?
   The fearful egocentricity of the motivation to cling to life.
   Pyramids of eternal hope.
   The acceptance of death and suffering.
   The importance of emotional neutrality, in particular, as a tool to avoid stress.
   Death can also be accepted by an emotionally neutral understanding of the indivisible link between life and death.
   The exploration of possibilities of existence; natural evolution.
   Conscious awareness; a biological product of natural evolution, based upon the life and death of countless preceding generations.
   The need to seek a harmony between our beliefs and behaviour-patterns.
   The evolution and modification of beliefs as a prelude to behavioural adaptation can not be a goal in itself.
   The viability of stress-anticipation and -avoidance.
   Self-discipline and emotional neutrality; a possibility for educational transfer of attitudes and ideas.
   The essence of the scientific method of classification; the usefulness of such classifying skills for our daily behaviour.
   Accepting a calculated risk.
   The ability to find a way-out, after fear and anxiety have been controled to some extent.
   
   
   
3. Emotional neutrality as a tool to analyse emotional reactions.
   The intuitive and emotional worlds of human inter-actions.
   The absence of a generally agreed-upon imagery of the human personality.
   Behavioural flexibility; a complicating factor in the object of study, as well as the observer.
   The ability to see similarities in human behaviour-patterns, when observing them in an emotionally neutral frame of mind.
   The shared egocentric orientation of our goals and aspirations.
   Many layers of motivations.
   The temptation to engage in a fight, and the lure of victory.
   A target for suspicion and hostility, if behaviour becomes markedly different from the average.
   The trade-off between emotional control and stress-resistance.
   The art of mediation.
   An ultimate reality perception that can be shared globally.
   The many opportunities to abuse intellectual skills.
   Evolutionary weapons, developed, primarily, as an egocentric or small-scale social tool for survival, give us also the potential to forge a global society of harmony and justice.
   Intuition, and its relation to emotions and emotional neutrality.
   The scale from emotional neutrality to emotional extremes.
   Coping with varying levels of stress.
   The logic and emotional neutrality of many religious reality perceptions.
   The logic of seeing the forces of nature as volitional, anthropomorphic forces.
   The peculiar position of the scientific perception of reality.
   
   
   
4. The difficulties associated with an imagery of the Universe without any anthropomorphic features.
   The emotional dissatisfaction with such an interpretation.
   The emotional and emotionally neutral use of religious and scientific images.
   Reaction-patterns in an increasingly stressful situation.
   The four stages; avoidance, mild but increasing stress, the maximum resistance of stress, and the gradual yielding to overwhelming stress with the acceptance of impending death.
   Decreasing abilities or opportunities to communicate in "stage four".
   Fading gradually into a private world of blurred reality perceptions.
   The mechanisms of a blurring of reality perceptions.
   Stress is reversible, until the momentum towards disintegration has become overwhelming.
   The stress of uncertainty.
   A review of stress.
   The role and function of hope.
   The gradual return to a new "equilibrium" in conditions of chronic stress.
   The balance between hope and emotionally neutral faculties of criticism.
   Unnecessary suffering resulting from rigid behaviour-patterns, based on hope, divine exclusivity, or a belief in absolute truths.
   The fine line between courage and stubbornness.
   A comparison between dying and falling asleep; the common ground of losing contact with the environment.
   The differences between falling asleep, being anaesthetised, coma and death.
   The difficulties of thinking about a state of non-existence.
   A review of sleep; subjective experiences when trying to observe the process of falling asleep.
   The "pull-back"; the identity-feeling and its "appearance" during sleep.
   The stress of being constantly in a state of vigilance.
   Different scales of time perception in dreamless and dream-sleep.
   
   
   
5. Dreamless sleep and dream-sleep.
   Sequential image progression during dreaming.
   Twitching of many muscles during dream-sleep.
   Mental image progression and the processes of "free association".
   The absence of "logic", due to the absence of a check against "contemporary reality".
   The relaxing effects of a good night's sleep.
   No image-progression during an anaesthetic; a period of restlessness and confusion during the recovery from anaesthesia.
   The inability to fight-off a loss of consciousness.
   The subjective experience of a short time-interval between "going under" and "waking up" after an anaesthetic.
   No time perception is possible without a kaleidoscopic "play-back" of mental images, and, therefore, the fact of being deceased can not be experienced.
   A review of the realities in which we may die.
   Differences between the realities of our enemies and ourselves.
   Testimonies by people, who have seen Heaven or Hell.
   A short review of the reasons, why there is, almost always, a strong belief that some sort of life exists after death.
   The appearance of deceased individuals in the dreams of the living.
   The general acceptance of "spiritual" or anthropomorphic force-fields, existing without a body.
   The belief, that the human being is a link between lower and higher forms of intelligent existence.
   The difficulties and peculiarities of the scientific reality perception, where all forms of awareness are linked to the existence of a living organism.
   The concept of the immortal soul, and the influence of science upon the religious imagery.
   Problems in describing the functions and qualities of "the soul".
   
   
   
6. The creation of the past, the present and the future by the living human individual.
   The central spectator, judge and life-giving agent; reasons, why we do not ask, where we were before birth.
   Why it is not possible to visualise a state of nothingness, because every imagery possesses the quality of existence, including an attempt to visualise the essence of non-existence.
   The need to use rigid analogies; the human circle and the electronic device.
   The death of an electronic device, and the reasons why the components do not fall-apart or disintegrate, like the biochemical substances of a dead cell.
   Death; the disappearance of functional and structural integrity.
   The reversibility of the "death" of an electronic device or man-made machine.
   The fragility of the living organisation, and the essential need for such a fragility and fluidity in order to react to the forces of natural selection; the low internal resistance to decay.
   Chance, and the process of guided manufacture by the genetic code.
   Similarities with man-made mass-production.
   A comparison of the evolution of man-made designs and the mass-production of the genetic pool, after a blind evolutionary search has made a start in the chain of exploring possibilities of existence.
   Parallels between the eternal existence of matter-energy and God.
   Existence can not come from non-existence.
   A mental imagery, accepted world-wide, is still a man-made concept and not an absolute truth.
   
   
   
7. Intelligence; a behavioural tool that develops only under specific and restricted circumstances.
   The break-through of predation and symbiosis.
   In the religious point of view, "Intelligence" is the essential, organising principle.
   The logic of man's beliefs in a created reality.
   The Prime Mover; a concept that developed as a result of increasing scientific coherence.
   The emotionally unsatisfactory aspects of such a stark image of reality.
   Religious sects, and the elitists.
   The hierarchy of spirits, and the intermediate position of man; in between the lowly physical forms of life and the "free spirits".
   Difficulties reconciling religious and scientific points of view.
   The similarities between the concepts of matter-energy and those of a Prime Mover.
   Reality perceptions, seen as a biological function; the relativity of truth.
   A review of what has been discussed.
   Suicide; the voluntary death by one's own hand; mechanisms and an analysis.
   Pathological forms of human existence.
   The most harmful elements are not suicidal but psychopathic in nature.
   Conditions for a reflective attitude.
   The slow emergence of an appreciation for life.
   Relinquishing obsessive long-term goals.
   The meaning of death has to be found in the meaning of life.
   Death is nothing more, and nothing less, than the absence of life.
   The fallacy of suppressing thoughts about death and dying.
   
   
   
8. How to avoid the tragedy of discovering, at the time of our death, that we have failed to appreciate life.
   Why we should care about building-up a coherent imagery of reality and our own existence, whenever we can.
   The reliance upon society, and, the limitations of an attitude of complete reliance upon the leadership-input from other people.
   The need to become responsible, and develop all our talents for thought and reflection.
   The importance of the intelligent, deliberate choice.
   The meaning of individuality.
   An exhortation to become thinking individuals within a social contract of essential equality and global justice.
   Let us not underestimate the difficulties of dying.
   The death penalty.
   A review of some ideas about social existence.
   Religious freedoms, and the need to monitor all sub-groupings in society.
   The need for transparence, and the ability to scrutinise all leaderships, including the overall political leadership.
   How to live with a condition of complete social transparence.
   A return to the process of dying.
   Our responsibilities towards future generations.

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