LEVELS OF AWARENESS II








A Study in Thought

sa069



by





Marius Heuff

Chapter 1

Content

A brief review.
Following an average individual through a day of routine activities.
A grasp over the human cycle of life.
Many varied interpretations of reality.
The arrogance of an absolutist attitude.
The evolution of insights; a common-sense acknowledgement of shared experiences.
A painfully slow development towards a global consensus for the interpretation of reality.

We have discussed in the first part of this trilogy on the various levels of awareness, the theoretical background of human existence. We have reviewed, briefly, why it is justified to see ourselves as one of the animal species' on earth, and, what has made us rather unique in the spectrum of evolution. We have seen, how we are one specific branch of this wide variety of species' that started to rely on the ability to bring their behaviour finely in tune with the requirements of the moment, and the possibilities of the prevailing circumstances. We have discussed the fact, that Homo Sapiens is the only surviving member of a group of anthropoids, which began to experiment with the possibilities of symbolic representation.

One of the most important concepts we have developed, is the idea, that, "conscious awareness" is the ability to name awarenesses or label experiences, and, this ability to name and communicate a particular awareness, concept, idea, or series of mental images, gives a remarkable and specific quality of sharpness to the mental imagery of this conscious awareness. The fact, that, the awareness is "verbalisable", or can be named, means, also, that we have the ability to recall into the focus of our attention, quickly and voluntarily, the mental imagery that is being represented by a verbal label.

We have also discussed the fact, that there are levels of awareness without the ability to effect a voluntary recall of mental images through symbolic representations. All the behaviourally flexible animals show, clearly, that many stimuli will "alert" them, and, they go then through a phase of actively evaluating and classifying these stimuli, before making a behavioural response. We see an animal listen, or observe attentively a certain phenomenon, or, if it is trying to classify and recognise its surroundings with the sense of smell, it will sniff attentively the air that is floating by, or an object that has not been recognised as "familiar".

We have discussed, that it is difficult for us to imagine an awareness without the ability to make use of verbal symbols, and, we will come back in our discussions upon this peculiarity, when trying to interpret animal behaviour with the conceptual awarenesses and abstractions that are typically, and, perhaps, exclusively, our own.

We have discussed, briefly, the various levels of human awareness, ranging from a dull, barely verbalisable awareness and a reliance upon primitive, or "pre-programmed", behavioural responses, to highly alert, well-articulated responses that can be "rationalised" or verbalised quite extensively, and, often, convincingly, according to the belief structures of the individual and the social surroundings. Finally, we have indicated how we become, eventually, and, perhaps, inevitably, aware of the fact, that all these belief structures clash, so often violently and disastrously, and, that we are, eventually, compelled to re-think the reasons, why we believe so firmly in our absolute certainties. We have seen, that we can formulate a satisfactory answer to these questions and observations, whenever we go back to our evolutionary past and interpret our awarenesses, (including those we can verbalise and arrange into a coherent structure of certainties and absolute beliefs), as "behavioural tools", designed to give us the best possible existential advantage.

A relativistic interpretation of truth and certainty, together with the abandonment of the hope of finding absolute truths and certainties, will be the main focus of our attention in the third part of this series of essays. Here, we will come back upon a review of the many forms of awarenesses we can be aware of. After having sketched the theoretical background in the first part, we should be able to review, fairly quickly, a variety of mental states, and, we should be able to discuss and classify them in an evolutionary interpretation.

Let us follow the average human being through an ordinary day of his existence, and, we will describe the relationships between his awarenesses or potential awarenesses, on the one hand, and, his behavioural responses, on the other. We will follow him through periods of waking-up from a sound and restful sleep, through the myriad of tasks of looking after his needs and responsibilities, including the functions he has to carry-out for his "work". We will follow the hypothetical individual through his inter-actions and relationships with other people, his periods of rest and relaxation, and, eventually, to his falling-asleep at the end of a long day.

Certainly, we do not claim, that the average individual could verbalise all these awarenesses or potential awarenesses. This is the function of someone who is used to discuss and analyse these primarily subconscious experiences and awarenesses, and, we acknowledge, also, the fact, that an individual would verbalise or interpret awarenesses in his particular structure of reality perceptions and beliefs, and, not necessarily, in the structures of evolutionary explanations we are going to use. We are following an ordinary human being through an average day in his or her life, as well as through the various phases of his or her life-cycle, but, this description will reflect my particular perception of reality. However, I hope, that many people will, eventually, find some validity and usefulness in this type of reality perception and interpretation.

Let us not forget, that the imagery of the biological sciences has substantiated the ideas of evolutionary development to such an extent, that, to reject these ideas and images as speculative or as erroneous deviations from a Divine Revelation, would open-up many more difficult problems than such a rejection would solve. A "new" belief, or a significant change in various aspects of an existing structure of beliefs, has to accomodate observations and awarenesses that have made their presence felt recently.

An individual who is completely ignorant of all the scientific observations that point to the existence of an evolutionary development of all matter in general, and, of the living organisation in particular, can, perhaps, genuinely believe in the imagery of a world that has come into being through an Act of Divine Creativity, as portrayed in a variety of Scriptures that are considered to contain a Revelation of Divine Truth and Reality. However, even, those, who are ignorant of the many scientific pointers towards an evolutionary interpretation of reality, should not find it difficult to acknowledge, that the interpretation of Sacred Scriptures has always led to disputes and disagreements. Therefore, even, for those, who find a great deal of attraction and comfort in the imagery of Sacred Scriptures, it should be possible to acknowledge, that it is not easy to formulate "a truth", or belief, upon which the faithful can all agree.

It seems such a naive and arrogant attitude to conclude, that all interpretations at odds with the interpretation I believe in, are wrong. Yet, this is exactly the solution of most religious and other dogmatic groupings, communities or individuals to the problems of dissent or diversity of opinion. Therefore, let us concentrate on developing a belief structure, or, at least, a coherent set of classifying principles for our observations and awarenesses. We can do this by relying, first of all, on those experiences, awarenesses and observations, which can be repeated and verified, time and again, by anyone, who makes an effort to do so. Secondly, let us acknowledge, that none of our beliefs, classifying principles or reality perceptions are immune from evolutionary changes. Let us acknowledge, that, even the results of our most conscientious efforts and most valuable insights and interpretations, remain mental images that help us find an appropriate behavioural solution to the problems and tasks we are faced with; in a never-ending struggle to remain alive, healthy and well.

If we accept these common-sense principles, it should be possible, after a long, extensive, and, perhaps, painfully slow debate, to come to a consensus that is acceptable all across the globe, cutting across all sorts of cultural divergences and religious barriers.

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Chapter 2

Content

What happens, when we wake-up in the morning.
Drifting between sleep and wakefulness.
An "I-feeling" that floats helplessly with our awarenesses.
The perception of "time".
Dream-sequences are beyond the control of logic, or a check against reality.
Dreaming and day-dreaming; similarities and differences.
We all have to make a living.
The inter-play between individual and society.
Chores have to be done, regardless of the type of social organisation we live in.
The prevalence of existential requirements.

Let us look at the moment when we wake-up in the morning. We are so quickly "oriented", and, we become so immediately absorbed by the tasks that lie ahead, that we are rarely able, nor inclined, to use the first few moments of our re-awakened state of conscious awareness to ask ourselves in what kind of an awareness we existed, when we were asleep. We are not really aware of the gigantic changes that take place over a short period of time, whenever we make the transition of being asleep to being awake.

First of all, we become "oriented" again, and, by this we mean, that we have re-established contact with the environment, as well as the progression of time. We also re-establish, quickly, a contact with the tasks that lie ahead. We have to go to work, or to school. We have chores and responsibilities to take care of. Even, if we are on vacation, we have usually a fairly large number of projects lined-up; things we have planned to do this day. Sometimes, we realise the need, as well as the advantage of creating, deliberately, a "day off". We have then the freedom to laze around and linger a few moments in the morning, before we get-up to enjoy this day of leisure; or, we may drift back to a sleeping-dreaming state.

Here, we can notice something interesting; something, that seems to take place much more readily after we wake-up in the morning, than in the evening, when we try to go to sleep. We notice, that it is, on occasion, possible to drift in and out of a state of sleep without any effort and without any sharp awareness of the distinction between being awake and being asleep. This drifting back and forth between sleep and wakefulness is only possible, if we are completely relaxed and comfortable, and, if we are not brought into a much more alert and anxious state by the number of tasks and obligations, or plans and activities, that await us. In this relaxed state, we notice, (or, rather, we are able to notice, if we are attentive, and yet, do not destroy this fragile state between waking and sleeping by too intense a concentration upon our powers of observations), we notice, perhaps, more clearly in retrospect, when we are thinking about the conditions of sleep and wakefulness, that our feeling of identity, the I-feeling that is always attached to our feelings, observations and actions, is floating lightly, effortlessly, and, perhaps, "helplessly" with our thoughts as they "idle" and form loose associations.

The important feature in this state between "being awake" and "being asleep", seems to be the "idling of the mind", where images and thoughts are not sharply controled by the "will", or, the powers of critical observations. Then, our thoughts resemble the loosely coherent sequences we may recall, at least, fragmentarily, from a dream-sequence, after we have woken-up. Because we "idle" in our thoughts, (a state of activity that disappears almost completely after we have woken-up fully), we can also slide without any difficulties back into a state of being asleep, where we are only aware of the dream-sequences in our mind. These consist of mental images that are welling-up from the subconscious, as well as the more easily accessible recent memory-traces. When we are asleep, the feeling of identity is attached to these loosely coherent images. That feeling of "me, being me", the I-feeling, or identity feeling, has then no connection with the time and place of existence in our surroundings, as is always the case when we are awake.

We do not measure time continuously when we are asleep, and, we "measure" or experience time only selectively, or, partially, whenever we recall to have dreamt about one thing or another. Long periods of our existence during a dream-less sleep will pass without any feeling for, or recollection of, the passage of time. We also notice, that the subjective measurement or appreciation of time during a dream or dream-like sequence is very inaccurate. Sometimes, dream-sequences follow each other quickly, and, we may then get the impression that hours have passed, while, in reality, these dream-sequences took place within a few minutes. On the other hand, thoughts, or dream-like images may linger leisurely in our mind, or, they may come back, again and again, and, then, hours may pass in the world of reality, while we think that only a few minutes have passed-by while we were "dozing-off".

This shows us, that the perception of time is highly variable and depends very much on our state of alertness. During normal waking hours, when we are engaged in one activity or another, (but, always in continuous contact with the realities of our environment), we have a much better "feeling" for the amount of time that has slipped by, and, often, the numerous clues from our enviroment are nearly as accurate in telling us the amount of time that has gone by, as the measurement of a watch or clock.

The point we want to emphasise, here, is the fact, that our identity-feeling exists, only, as long as we are in contact with reality and engaged in some sort of activity with an element of conscious awareness. This identity-feeling seems to be locked into an idling state of the mind during sleep, where sequences of loosely associated thoughts are not controled by logic and environmental cues, as is the case when we are awake. If we are dreaming, these uncontroled image-sequences take center-stage in our mind, and, we experience the existence of a feeling of identity, but, we also know, that our sense of logic, the perception of time, as well as other discriminatory faculties, are defective. Therefore, day-dreaming is different from dreaming in a mode of sleep. In day-dreaming, we do not lose completely contact with our surroundings, and, in the back of our mind, we "know", that we are "fantasising", and, that reality is different from the images we like to mull over in our minds.

Certainly, we are likely to "forget" the time, when we day-dream, and, this may be partially due to a true lack of orientation in time and place, but, we should not forget, that, day-dreaming is an "escape", and, we are only inclined to indulge in such activities, if the contacts with reality are full of tensions and frustrations for which we have no answers, and, which can not be corrected or changed.

As soon as we become more "in contact" with our surroundings, the stream of awarenesses comes increasingly under the guidance and control from incoming sense impressions. It starts, when the alarm-clock goes off, and, this penetrating sound startles us into a much more awake state. However, if we are tired, or, if we are not aroused by the need to "get going", we may turn the alarm off, turn-over, and doze-off again. The process of fully waking-up takes, usually, only a few minutes, and, it is completed as we go to the bathroom, brush our teeth and shave.

Perhaps, you have a somewhat different routine, but, in the morning, we all are busy with a number of activities that prepare us for the tasks of going to work or to school. These activities include getting dressed and having breakfast, making a few preparations to gather what we need; books, a lunch-box, papers or car-keys, some money, etc. Of course, if we are traveling on a long trip, these activities may take place on board a ship or on a train, or, they may take place in hotels or other accomodations, but, most of us return every evening to our home, or the place that functions as our home. Whatever the specific details may be of your particular circumstances, let us review what you and I, as well as millions upon millions of other people have in common with each other, regardless of the job we do, or the country we come from; the language we speak, or the type of society we belong to.

The basic task we all share is the fact, that we have to make a living. This may mean, primarily, that we have to fulfill our obligations to society, especially, if the social environment has promised us that we do not have to worry about starving and deprivation whenever we are sick or out of work. In order to "earn" a high level of "social security", we will have to contribute to society, whenever we can, and, whenever we have an opportunity to do so. In a less structured society, where no such promises about care in case of illness, old-age or unemployment are made or given, the drive to go to work has an additional under-tone of anxiety to provide for the necessities, because, failure to do so, may mean genuine hardship and poverty.

Whatever the circmstances, we all know, that work has to be done to provide the food we eat, to pay for the shelter we live in, as well as the conveniences and luxuries we have come to rely upon, especially, in the more affluent parts of the world. In a strongly socialised society, the need and obligation to provide has become a collective effort, compared to the more individualistic societies that allow and encourage a large measure of competitive strife. While an emphasis upon social safeguards shields the individual from hardship in case of sickness or misfortune, there has to be a greater level of awareness, that obligations to society have to be fulfilled in order to maintain its ability to distribute these safeguards of social security.

Regardless of the type of society we live in, the requirements of existence and viability have to be met, and, it does not matter for the purpose of our discussion, whether these obligations are met collectively or individually. We like to emphasise, here, as an excercise for a moment of thought and reflection when getting ready for our daily tasks, to what extent our activities, awarenesses and goal-patterns are occupied and pre-occupied with the need to fulfill existential requirements. In a complex society, we become specialised and contribute one small item in the spectrum of needs in return for a financial compensation that allows us, then, to "buy", without further work, whatever we need. However, in a less advanced and less inter-dependent society, the emphasis on the need to "make money" is not so pronounced, because we can carry-out a much larger variety of the existential tasks ourselves.

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Chapter 3

Content

How inter-dependent are we?
We all share the need for security and justice.
The many, subtle and not so subtle forms of corruption.
The outlook upon our social environment.
The lure of competitive display.
A shared biological inheritance.
It is becoming too costly to settle our disputes violently.
Learning to see our enemies as ordinary human beings.
An unnecessary degree of resistance.
The center of the sphere of our awarenesses.
A consideration of relative importance.

As a rule, we do not realise, how inter-dependent we are. We forget, so quickly, how important the basic necessities are, whenever they come easily, and, we all have a tendency to take their fulfilment for granted in times of prosperity and well-being. The other reason for failing to see, how dependent we are on our social and natural environment, is the fact, that we do not consider ourselves as living organisms who share the basic needs, drives and instincts with all other life-forms.

By and large, we still see ourselves in the light of a specific religious truth or belief structure that has been absorbed or assimilated from the cultural environment in which we grew-up. This structure of beliefs divides our sphere of social contacts into friends and enemies. Too often, we glibly assume the dividing lines between right and wrong, justice and injustice, the saved and the damned, to lie in a manner that corresponds with the division between "us" and "them". This is very convenient, and, such an interpretation of reality may bolster our self-confidence, but, we forget, that this opinion about right and wrong is the opposite from the views held by those we consider to be our enemies or competitors.

We tend to overlook the simple fact, that we all have to make a living, and, that we all share the need for security and a sense of justice. We are, so often, seeking to advance our position at the expense of others, and, many of us subscribe, glibly, to the mechanisms of competitive free-enterprise, as long as we are young, healthy and energetic, and, as long as we have a chance to come-out on top in the competitive struggle for existence. We become obsessed with winning; with obtaining power and prestige; with money and assets, because, only, then, can we display our affluence, impress our friends, and wield power and influence.

Are we ever asking ourselves, whether or not we are infringing upon the rights and territories of others, while pursuing such egocentric goals? Do we ever realise, that we must make enemies and create resentment, if we obtain powers, privileges and assets that are not the free and voluntary gifts of admiring participants in a fair game of competitive skills, but the fruits of conniving deals or business intrigues, of cliqueing together with those who are in power and have privileges to dispense? If we obtain power and wealth through favouritisms or secret deals, without anyone being able to investigate how we obtained these privileges, we are practicing a form of corruption, and, we only vaguely realise, with a quickly suppressed feeling of discomfort, how many people we have deceived or exploited in order to reach and maintain this position of power and affluence.

No, we do not often think about the fact, that the millions of people we do not know, but, who share the same social environment, have basically the same requirements, the same worries, the same fears and competitive instincts. We tend to divide the people in our surroundings into three broad categories. First of all, there are those who have achieved more. They are more powerful and "live above us". They are the object of envy, admiration, and, perhaps, even, hatred, all at the same time. Then, there is the group we belong to. These are the people we can identify with as "our class", and, there is this large segment of the population that has not achieved the level of our "social status". Those, we hardly pay attention to, unless this group becomes a threat, especially, when people become restless because of their never-ending poverty and under-privileged status.

Within these social divisions, our ambitions and goal-patterns take shape. We set our objectives and try hard to equal, or, at least, resemble those we admire, or, whose achievements we hope to emulate. We compete with friends and strangers. When we are young, we compete for achievements; in sports or the arts; in studies, or, in some other physical or mental ability, but, when we become settled in middle age, and all our dreams of great accomplishments, fame and prestige have vanished, we are left with a desire to compete for a monetary income; for the luxuries we can afford and display; the type of car we own, or, the size of the house we live in.

In short, we rarely consider other people as beings that share a large number of basic drives, needs and dreams with us. We rarely see them as people, who like to feel a sense of justice, just like we do; who like to "make it", just as we have done. They are people who are looking for a possibility to exist, because, stimulated by our anxieties, we are behaving competitively, and, we are not concerning ourselves with a solution of these competitive tensions by constructing a more encompassing picture of reality.

Ironically, this globally shared package of genetic instructions, which we have inherited as a member of the species of mankind, makes us so much like each other, and, it instructs each one of us to see our fellow human beings as competitors. This package of genetic instructions, our "biological heritage", prompts us to solve the tensions of competitive strife by a fight, rather than by the insight, that we are so much alike. This biological fact of living existence will make it possible to come to a contract of essential equality and mutual respect, once we have recognised these realities.

We know, now, that it is becoming more costly to continue to seek a solution for competitive tensions by conflict and the elimination of the loser, rather than in a symbiotic relationship, based on the possibility to live together in harmony and peace, as long as we ensure that we all share, equally, in the resources and possibilities of existence.

If we could come to an agreement to treat each other as equals and live under conditions of essential equality, it would not be difficult to forego the lure of competitive strife, and, it would not be so difficult to see each other as similar, yet potentially complementary organisms with similar requirements and ambitions. Therefore, the excercise to analyse all goals, ambitions and attitudes, our daily activities and fears, worries, joys and achievements, in terms of existential requirements, serves to make us aware of the similarities between us.

It is useful to realise, that, those, who are powerful and wealthy, are still people, just like we, with hopes and fears, ambitions and dreams, but, also, with worries and weaknesses. It is useful to realise, that, those in positions of power, privilege and wealth, become very dependent on these "luxuries", in particular, when they have been born into them. If we want to take these privileges away by force and condemn the rich as "enemies of the people", we should not be surprised to see, that they will put-up a desperate fight, because, they know, that, to lose this position of privilege, means death, or, at least, an unacceptable level of poverty and humiliation.

It is useful to be aware of the unnecessary degree of resistance we create in those who are contributing to a state of injustice, if we simply try to force them out of power. "How else can we make them relinquish their power and wealth?", you ask. Can we induce them to let-go of these privileges voluntarily? Indeed, it is probably impossible to expect those in a position of power and privilege to abandon these positions entirely voluntarily, but, with a great deal of moral persuasion and economic pressure, combined with a promise of fair and equal treatment, without revenge, it should be possible to effect a slow, bloodless, if somewhat painful transition from a society that is torn by strident class-divisions, to a society, where the gap between the classes is narrowing, and the attitudes of mutual tolerance and social cohesion are increasing.

These are pragmatic concerns and awarenesses we have elaborated before, but, because it is such an extremely useful form of awareness to cultivate, and, because this type of approach in attitude and reality perception may mean the difference between life and death for thousands or millions of people, we have recapitulated these ideas, once more. Let us look at ourselves, and, let us try to interpret our behaviour and motivations from a biological point of view. Then, we will come to the conclusion that we understand our enemies a lot better than before, and, that we resemble them more than we ever thought possible.

We notice, that we exist in the center of a sphere of awarenesses. The people and events at the periphery of this sphere blur into a grey and undifferentiated zone, but, we realise, in turn, that, we too, are nothing more than a speck, an unimportant and unnoticed detail in the grey zone of someone else's peripheral awarenesses. We can see ourselves behave, driven by our goals and ambitions, and, guided by what we believe to be true. We can and should ask ourselves a few questions about these beliefs, and, we should ask, how it is possible that others see the same realities in a totally different manner. We should begin to ask ourselves, to what extent beliefs have been formulated around the existential needs and anxieties of people or groups of people, and, we should, then, come to the conclusion, that the beliefs and behaviour-patterns of other people, as well as other social environments, differ from us, and clash with us, because their particular belief structures, their judgements of right and wrong, of good and evil, of honesty and dishonesty, of advantage and disadvantage, are also centered around their particular existential needs and fears.

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Chapter 4

Content

Reasons for a lack of collective insights.
Abusing psychological concepts.
Contemporary psychological wisdoms.
No consensus, as yet, about the basic mechanisms of human existence.
The importance of "knowing ourselves".
The importance of a rational view.
Differences and similarities in behaviour.
We all are susceptible to emotional reactions.
Levels of abstraction.
Cultivating a habit of making considerate judgements.
Our leaders are often the greatest killers on earth.
Leaders and followers alike can be caught in a frenzy of combative instincts.

While the closing statements of the previous chapter will be obvious to anyone reading this in an emotionally neutral frame of mind, we should not forget the many reasons, why the collective judgement of people shows so much less insight than a single individual with a little common-sense. We should go one step further, and observe, how quickly we forget these insights, especially, when our existential anxieties have been aroused. We see, then, clearly, how fragile rational behaviour and thought really are, and, how easily our insights are replaced by belligerent instincts and hostile attitudes. There is, therefore, a great need to excercise firm control over our emotions, and, we see, here, the fallacy of the practice to equate the ability of analysing one's own emotional and psychological mechanisms, with a licence to do as one pleases.

After the discovery of repressive mechanisms in psychological dynamics, we came to the erroneous conclusion, that, therefore, all controls were undesirable. While we have developed a few insights into the way we function, the science of psychology has still not tackled the requirements of living together in a large group, because it has not formulated the attitudes and beliefs that are necessary for an ethical form of behaviour. The psychological wisdom of today is geared, almost exclusively, towards somewhat facile concepts of adaptability and conformism to an accepted norm, implying, that a ruthless egocentric and exploitative attitude is perfectly legitimate, as long as others do not perceive your intentions, and, as long as you "behave" according to the accepted standards.

At the time I am writing, the attempts to describe the human personality and man's individual and collective behaviour-patterns in a scientifically coherent manner, have largely failed. There is no basic core of agreed-upon knowledge. There is no agreement about the basic outlines of the human personality. Our ideas are still fragmented over a number of "schools" that seem unable to communicate meaningfully with each other. Unfortunately, these various schools of thought are taught as "science" in many universities, and, the practical results of the teaching of psychology, sociology, political science and cultural anthropology, are the acquisition of a confusing conglomerate of facts and theories.

It is impossible for the intelligent and interested lay-person to develop a coherent picture of the human being, and, this is the reason, why I feel compelled, time and again, to repeat the outlines of the human personality as I have come to understand them. This imagery has been based on evolutionary and biological evidence, and, it gives us a logical and coherent framework for the functions of alertness, conscious or verbalisable awareness, moods and emotions, drives and instinctive patterns of behaviour, language, as well as the zone of emotional neutrality.

Let us go back to our main line of thought. We were trying to show the importance of the ability to "know ourselves", and, to see ourselves as a "living organism" or "organisation". We represent one of the many thousands of millions of living human beings in existence, and, each one of us behaves and reacts according to the drives and genetic instructions of our biological heritage, as well as a super-imposed layer of cultural instructions, including a large number of beliefs, customs, notions and ideas, taken from the cultural environment. In a way, my attempts resemble, at least, to some extent, the objectives of modern psychological knowledge to "know ourselves", yet, I hope, that the reader is now sufficiently familiar with my work, to know, that I endorse only a fraction of conventional psychological insights, and, that I abhor the blatant egocentric and commercial use that is, so often, being made by the "consumers" of the few, more or less viable psychological insights, which honest and hard-working observers have been able to put-together.

We want to know ourselves in a rational and coherent manner for two good reasons. In the first place, we want to see ourselves behave, and, we want to learn, how to control ourselves by becoming aware of what we are doing, and, why we are reacting the way we do. This is the only way to learn to understand ourselves, and, it is the only way to learn to control the many emotions, fears and temptations we are exposed to, every day. Secondly, a coherent and rational imagery of our own existence and behaviour will show us, how remarkably alike we are in the basic outlines of our personality, and, how the many variations and variables of our behaviour can be grasped in a logical framework of causes and their effects.

We can put all these phenomena together in a logical framework, if we have a grasp over the basic factors at work, and, if we have a good idea, what sort of stimuli, emotions, drives and contacts have played a role in the behaviour or personality of a particular individual. We are so much alike, and, yet, we are so different, because we all live under different circumstances, and, we receive, therefore, different stimuli, varying in intensity, duration and sequence. The insight, that we are basically so similar in spite of our apparent differences, will give us a chance to construct a coherent classification of our experiences in a framework people all over the world can agree with. If we have accomplished this monumental task, we will be able to communicate meaningfully with each other, and, we should then be able to debate and discuss a fine point, accurately and fruitfully, without always sliding into irrelevant sidelines and intentional mis-interpretations or un-intentional misunderstandings.

Certainly, I am also susceptible to emotions, and, I sometimes lose a rational grip over my thoughts, because, often, I feel angry and frustrated at the lack of insight by the people around me, or, rather, I am frustrated by the fact, that none of the people around me seem to look at reality in the way I look at it. While I firmly believe, that, eventually, this approach to reality, as well as an evolutionary interpretation of all existence, including the functions of conscious awareness, will be widely shared all over the world, I feel often isolated. My efforts to write and write seem to be futile, because nobody shows the slightest inclination to make a rudimentary effort to grasp, what I have to say.

Fortunately, such emotional reactions are short-lived, because I know, that I can not do my best work, if I am in the grip of such emotions or moved by such feelings. Only, when I am perfectly relaxed and undisturbed by any other problem, only, then, can I think clearly and logically about what I want to say, and, usually, I can then write well, after I have composed my thoughts for a few days, and, sometimes, after only a few hours of concentrated thinking.

Let us review the reasons, why we are entering a different level of abstraction and awareness, when we learn to observe our own behaviour and existence. We enter a new level of abstraction and awareness whenever we learn to observe our behaviour as it is strongly coloured by emotions. You may ask me, whether or not there is a contradiction, here. You may tell me, that the ability to form emotionally neutral, or "objective" observations, is only possible, when we exist in a more or less emotionally neutral frame of mind, and, yet, how can we be emotionally aroused and observant in a zone of emotional neutrality at the same time?

This is quite true, and, therefore, we learn, first, to observe with an emotionally neutral frame of mind the emotional and instinctive patterns of behaviour in other people, especially, when they are involved in a conflict-situation. Only later, mostly by inference and a retrospective recall of our own behaviour, when it was under the influence of strong emotions, only, then, will we be able to recognise, that our conclusions about "the stranger" are applicable to ourselves as well. Eventually, it becomes a habit to see ourselves behave and to interpret ourselves as we interpret others, and, I guarantee you that you will be amazed at the results, if you practice this habit faithfully.

All strong notions of right and wrong will come under scrutiny. This does not mean, however, that all distinctions between right and wrong are falling-away. It does not mean, that we abandon every judgement about who is right and who is wrong, when observing a conflict-situation in which we are not emotionally or existentially involved. What we do learn, however, is the fact, that a long chain of events and inter-related causes led, eventually, to the outbursts of open hostilities. We see a gradual polarisation of attitudes taking place on either side of the conflict, and, we see, how both sides, in an effort to "show strength" or "save face", put themselves into a position of intransigeance, from where it is not easy to retreat gracefully.

It is amazing to see, how, willingly and quickly, respected leaders put themselves into the position, where they commit themselves, or, rather, their peoples, to armed conflict for the sake of national pride and prestige. Our leaders are, often, the greatest killers on earth, because they are the people, who, eventually, sweep a nation into a hysterical desire to go to war. Many people will be swept-up into a war-hysteria, but, usually, they do not have a clue, what the war is all about. They can only repeat, slovenly, the propaganda that is fed to them, and, most of the brave citizens and patriots let themselves be led, willingly, to the battle-fields, without ever asking the question, whether or not their sacrifices were necessary. Cattle serves, at least, a constructive purpose after it has been slaughtered, but, we, civilised nations on earth, slaughter each other's bravest soldiers and the best civilians, often, for the sake of pride and prestige; as a result of the incendiary rethoric of pernicious leaders.

After the slaughter is over, the leaders get together and congratulate each other on the valiant efforts of their soldiers, and, they sign an armistice or peace-treaty. The citizens are left to bury their dead and mourn the slaying of thousands, and, perhaps, even, millions of people. Fortunately, ordinary people are beginning to wonder, ever more openly, whether or not the ravages and devastations of armed conflict are really necessary.

However, it is unfair to blame only our political leaders for senseless warfare. We all possess a tendency in our personality to engage in blind and uninhibited violence, in order to get rid of severe tensions. This combative solution to dissipate tensions is so much easier than the painfully slow and agonising process of compromise and negotiation with our adversaries. Let us, therefore, know ourselves, and, let us know our leaders. Let us be aware of the combative trends that are present in us all, because these combative trends are becoming increasingly counter-productive, and, they may, eventually, become the cause of an orgy of mass-suicide.

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Chapter 5

Content

A look at language.
The search for a structure of beliefs.
Re-naming an observation does not add to the level of understanding.
Diagnosis means; "seeing through" mechanisms of cause and effect.
Additional levels of conceptual abstraction.
Knowledge and insight are measured in the level of understanding they promote.
"I" and "me".
The dualistic theory of human existence.
The attractiveness of a belief in re-incarnation.
A defensive, fundamentalist Christianity.
Bridgeing the gap between modern and traditional explanations for the nature of human existence.
The remarkable conclusions of scientific insights.
It does not help us, if we try to blunt the impact of these scientific images.

If we look at the language of our culture, we see, that, over a prolonged period of time, the observations and discussions of ordinary but intelligent people have defined a large number of behavioural experiences, which were, originally, an unnamed experience or, merely, a form of behaviour. The fact, that these patterns of behaviour, together with their associated feelings and sensations, have been given a name, indicates, that a level of abstraction has occurred, bringing the experience itself into a zone of emotional neutrality and verbalisable awareness. Once such an emotional state or feeling has been labeled, it becomes possible to talk about it in a zone of emotional neutrality. It may, then, become part of a logical structure of coherent understanding, especially, if we have developed sufficient knowledge and insight to put a large variety of such named or labeled awarenesses together in a scheme of cause and effect relationships.

Putting-together named awarenesses into a logical and coherent structure is the primary function of a belief structure, and, this definition also applies to the belief structures of the sciences. Science is, after all, nothing more than a framework of coherent observations and conclusions, which has been put-together in the emotionally neutral zone of our behaviour. Certainly, scientists may feel the need to search, or "research", for more awarenesses, or "facts", by conducting a systematic scrutiny in a particular field, or, by conducting a specific "experiment", (a guided and controled event), which may shed light upon an important question and may help us to formulate or elaborate this structure of coherent relationships and observations.

However, if a science merely "re-names" what has already been named by society during a process of language development and common-sense, it does not contribute anything to our knowledge and understanding. Re-naming a known awareness with fancy names creates only the illusion, that something has been contributed. For example, if the science of psychology renames certain behavioural characteristics that have already found a name in the vocabulary of a current language, it hoodwinks the people. Science pretends, then, that it has contributed something, while it has not added anything to the process of clarification. It amazes me, how often people fail to perceive this fraud. People are so easily impressed by authority and fancy names, and, it seems so difficult to realise, that, giving an awareness a different name, does not increase our understanding one iota.

The same considerations apply to the world of medicine, where a diagnosis is a true diagnosis only, if it elucidates a mechanism that is taking place in a diseased body or mind, but, if the "art" of making a diagnosis is limited to replacing an already named phenomenon with a fancy or foreign name, we are not dealing at all with the art of diagnosis. Diagnosis means, literally, the ability to "see through" the disease processes that are taking place.

Let us be aware, therefore, of the deceptions that are taking place in the world around us, in particular, amongst the semi-professionals, who feel a great need to impress other people with their fragmentary and largely useless, or, even, dangerous smattering of knowledge. A true increase in knowledge is the description of an awareness, or "fact", that can be shared by many others, and, which has not been described accurately before. An increase in knowledge is represented by a refinement in the construction of a framework of logically coherent relationships.

Therefore, an additional level of abstraction about our own existence, experiences, sensations and emotions, should bring certain phenomena into a focus of awareness, which have not been clearly seen before. These phenomena and awarenesses should give us an additional grasp over the realities of our existence. Knowlege and insight are measured by the degree to which our understanding has been widened, and, not, in the number of names or words we can utter.

Let us now look at a particular form of abstraction that represents such a widening of our awareness sphere. I am thinking, here, about the feeling of identity, or, the concept of "I". This concept and feeling has been recognised for a long time, since most languages use the word "I" and have done so for a long time. Yet, the meaning of the word "I" is, usually, limited to denote the identity of the person who is engaged in a particular act of communication. If we want to communicate a happening, or, if we want to indicate that the communicating personality is involved with the story or message, we have learned to use the word "I", or "me", etc.

Here, we are primarily interested in the "feeling of I"; the identity-feeling; the sensation of "me" being different from my body; even, different from my feelings or sensations, or my fears and actions. We are all aware, that there are differences, and, that an abstraction of these differences is possible, whenever we distinguish between the feeling of "I" and the person I am or the organism I constitute.

The fact, that we can communicate this distinction, means, that people, throughout historical times, have realised, that there was, or seemed to be, a good reason to make such a distinction. We have seen, how these feelings were greatly accentuated in the dualistic theory of human existence, where the organic or physical existence seemed to be so far removed from the mental or psychological sphere, that it was logical to come to the conclusion that these two aspects of our existence represented two fundamentally different entities; a perishable, mortal body, and an imperishable, eternal or immortal soul, which could, either, be united in an eternal state of bliss with its Creator, after the death of the body, or, it could be condemned to another cycle of birth and life, or, to a state of eternal damnation.

Since it seems much more hopeful to believe, that a soul who has sinned, should be given another chance in another life, compared to the belief, that the soul has only one chance to "make it" into Heaven, it is not surprising to see, that, recently renewed contacts of the Christian World with the beliefs of re-incarnation have led to a remarkable responsiveness to the ideas of re-incarnation, while the severe and somewhat depressing imagery of an orthodox, fundamentalist Christianity has retrenched itself into isolated pockets in society, where the penetration of scientific ideas and contacts with foreign beliefs is rather lmited.

The imagery of the modern sciences, together with their evolutionary insights, have shown us, time and again, that the concept of a dualistic human existence is untenable, and, that an essential unity of function exists between the apparently unrelated phenomena of physical existence and conscious awarenesses. In accepting this esential unity, and, by explaining the emergence of conscious awarenesses as a behavioural tool in the organisation of flexible, living systems, we take upon ourselves the task of giving a reasonable explanation for the sensations and awarenesses that have found an expression in the language-symbols of human societies. These sensations and awarenesses have given birth to a large variety of religious view-points and philosophical explanations, which accept, in one way or another, the dualistic nature of the human being.

It is an important task, therefore, to try to bridge the gap between the more conventional and culturally much older religious imagery of human existence, and, the ideas that seem to emerge with a great deal of power and tenacity in the observations and descriptions of the modern sciences. This effort to bridge a cultural gap is seen, here, only as a logical step in the evolution of human awarenesses. We have discussed elsewhere, in more detail, the reasons, why, and, in what manner, the modern scientific imagery is so fundamentally different from the religious explanations of nature with its many different manifestations of existence.

We have discussed, before, how remarkable the scientific conclusions really are, denying the duality of body and soul, and, how audacious such a view-point must seem to those, who have not been thoroughly educated in the techniques of scientific thought and exploration. The most important and audacious conclusion of the sciences is the statement, that, in spite of all our inclinations and conclusions to the contrary, based on "prima facie" evidence, there is no reason to believe that a "Creative Will", or a purposeful act of creative intervention is necessary to explain the existence of all things in the world.

Even the existence of the human species, together with the very large range of its capabilities, including the ability to be consciously aware, to think and worship God, all these abilities do not necessarily lead us to the conclusion, that there must be a Creative Power or Will, making all these different forms of existence and ability possible. The conclusion, that the world and all its inhabitants must have been created, finds its origin in the fact, that, we, human beings, can create a whole host of potential and actualised possibilities of existence, which would never have a chance of coming into being, unless they have been created by our intelligent foresight and manipulative abilities.

Indeed, it seems extremely audacious, and, on prima facie evidence, highly illogical, to conclude, that, all these forms of existence and awarenesses can evolve along natural, evolutionary pathways, characterised by an essentially blind search for possibilities of existence. However, the most important conclusion of all our scientific observations is just this, and, it does not help us to deny or minimise the importance of this conclusion. It does not help us one iota to try to blunt the impact of this conclusion, because in trying to avoid the startling and potentially hostile consequences of such an audacious conclusion, we would lose sight of the most important feature, which the modern sciences have brought us; an insight into the pathways of natural evolution.

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Chapter 6

Content

A return to the world of "identity feelings".
The existence of an "inner me".
A bridge between the awareness of our environment and our own existence.
The central spectator, judge and "life-giver" of our sphere of awarenesses.
Re-creating the world of our awarenesses, as soon as we have woken-up.
Extending the sphere of awarenesses well beyond the time-span of our own existence.
Problems with visualising a state of death.
We give existence to any form of imagination and every content of mental awareness.
Death is the absence of existence; the disappearing circle.
Awarenesses are clothed in the cultural tools of our social environment.
Why we are strongly inclined to believe in the absolute validity of our reality experiences.
It is time to recognise the socio-centric nature of our belief structures.
Common-sense and the art of providing rational explanations.
Trying to formulate a perception of reality that is relatively free from cultural specifics.

We were discussing the feelings of "identity", and, we will now continue this line of thought. We hope to show, that these feelings and awarenesses are indeed an abstraction; nothing more, and nothing less. Just like the use of the words I, you, he, we and they, the word identity means, simply, a further identification of the person we are talking about. If we talk about our own identity, we usually mean a further awareness about who and what we are, and, this means, also, an awareness of our origins, to what group we belong, our rights of existence, and a justification of the personality we happen to be.

Here, we want to emphasise the reflective aspects of the concept of identity, where we are aware of a feeling, that, "I" am a specific entity of existence. This feeling of "being me", is somewhat different from the fact, that I am aware of my bodily existence. We are using, here, a subjective description, giving us the impression that such an identity-feeling or the awareness of an "inner me" is separable from our physical and biological existence, but, we know, now, that all levels and subjects of awareness are based upon the functions of a biologically intact, central nervous system. We want to form a bridge, therefore, between the awareness of our environment and the images that make us aware of our own existence; e.g. our biological features, including the characteristics we share with other people, as well as the features that seem to set us apart from other forms of life, or, which make us unique as a human individual.

We have seen, that the awareness of our behavioural reactions and emotions, as well as the awareness that many of our reactions are guided by what we believe to be true, are, in essence, "abstractions", where we have learned to abstract a quality or common denominator of a large number of behavioural reactions. We have seen, how the designation "I" is an abstraction of the awareness, that, in the totality of awarenesses and actions, some of the actions are initiated by others and some are initiated by me, but, we experience, also, the fact, that we can only be aware of our own sense impressions, and, that we have to infer or extra-polate, what the awarenesses are of someone else. As a matter of fact, if we look at the world around us, we come to the obvious but nevertheless remarkable conclusion, that all these awarenesses share our own being as the central spectator, judge, and, even, as the "life-giver" or "creator" of their existence.

Since we are limited to our own awarenesses, we can only surmise, that someone else has similar experiences. We experience a similarity of awareness, whenever we can communicate meaningfully with each other, but, we know, that our entire world of conscious and subconscious awarenesses, together with our fears, hopes and expectations, will disappear as soon as we disappear as a center of conscious awareness.

This is, of course, quite obvious, as soon as we think about it and realise, that all our beliefs and intepretations of the world around us and within us, are a product of our particular mind, and, that our particular perception or view-point of reality disappears, as soon as we "close our eyes". As a matter of fact, these reality images do, indeed, "disappear", when we are asleep, but, because we re-create a nearly identical image as soon as we wake-up, we do not get the impression, that the world of reality as we know it, did not exist, when we were sound asleep.

We create, not only, our own world of reality perceptions, based, largely, upon an imagery that is shared by many other people, but, we are always "there", as the central spectator of everything that exists in our mind. We are there, in the expectations of what is going to happen in the future, even, if we acknowledge, intellectually, that we are "visualising" an imagery of the future that lies well beyond the expected life-span of our own existence. Similarly, when we "know the past", or, when we learn about the history of our society and other civilisations, we are the central "agent" or creator of this imagery of the past, and, we are "there", even, if we know, that we did not really existed in this past.

We have discussed these ideas extensively before, and, we do not want to repeat the arguments on which these ideas have been based. We are now aware of the many implications of these mechanisms for the interpretation of our reality perceptions. We have seen, how our world of awarenesses can be compared to a large sphere or funnel. We exist at the center, and, whatever awareness or imagery exists within this sphere, has been created by us. We have discussed the reasons, why it becomes, therefore, nearly impossible to "imagine", what it will be like to be dead, because, by trying to imagine a state of death, we automatically and unavoidably give the state of death a quality of existence.

When discussing the state of death, we came to the conclusion, that it is impossible to equate death with a particular state of existence, regardless, how vague or nebulous, because the crux of death is the falling-away of a pattern of organisation. Just as we can create a circle by standing in the shape of a circle and join hands, so do we see, that, this circle vanishes completely, as soon as we break the bonds of the joined hands and move again randomly amongst each other.

Life is very much like a circle or pattern of organisation. What creates the sphere of reality and awarenesses, is the ability of an intact human organism to become consciously aware of himself and his surroundings. This ability depends on the way an individual has grown-up in a particular cultural environment, and, it depends on the manner in which this individual has utilised the opportunities to develop some of the potentials he or she has been born with. This sphere or funnel of awarenesses projects, therefore, a varied kaleidoscope of more or less haphazardly absorbed belief structures, mixed with personal experiences and notions, and, this sphere of awarenesses is coloured by the current existential concerns of this particular individual.

Certainly, the entire conceptual vocabulary has been absorbed or assimilated from the cultural environment, and the potential for creating this sphere of awarenesses has been given by the genetic code and the actualisation of a number of potentials. However, the focus of attention, the place of existence, its contacts with others, as well as the particulars of the stream of sense impressions infringing upon a particular individual and his sphere of awarenesses, are largely accidental circumstances. They represent the chances of fortune and misfortune, as well as the never-ending chain of causes and their effects.

Yet, we rarely behave with the knowledge or insight, that our realities constitute a sphere of awarenesses, which has been created by our particular capabilities of being aware of a large variety of mental images, be it consciously or subconsciously. We have, indeed, good reasons to believe, that, many of these reality images are shared in a nearly identical manner by the other people of our social or cultural environment, because the reasons, why we have accepted certain of these mental images as "truths", or unquestionable realities that are universally valid, are based upon the experience that these images are indeed shared by a majority of people around us, and, in particular, by those, who are authorities and leaders in our social environment.

We have to realise, that our leaders are absolutely convinced of the reality and truthfulness of their beliefs, and, as a rule, they insist, that we believe them without questioning as well. However, this does not necessarily mean, that these reality perceptions are "absolute truths", nor, does it mean, that they are shared, to any significant extent, by leaders of other societies or different cultural groupings. It is about time, that we learn to investigate the question, whether or not these images and beliefs are only valid for our particular culture or social environment.

Before accepting the validity of our images, we should ask ourselves, whether or not these images are shared all over the world, even, by people, who may have totally different interests. It is about time, that we learn to distinguish between narrow socio-centric or patriotic beliefs that are dictated by the existential anxieties of our particular social environment, and, those observations, conclusions and reality perceptions which seem to be interpreted and accepted in the same manner by people all over the world, regardless of existential concerns, religious beliefs, or social position.

It is, therefore, quite a different matter to accept the righteousness of our particular social system, religious or ideological beliefs, or our particular rights and interests, compared to the acceptance of the validity of well-founded, scientific observations and interpretations people can identify with all over the world. In the latter case, we are communicating a sense impression, or a feature of common-sense, that is entirely based upon a shared biological heritage of similar anatomical and physiological characteristics, but, if we believe in the righteousness of our religious or political views, we are, so often, only defending a position of power and privilege with "rationalisations". This has nothing to do with a genuine effort to try to bridge a gap in understanding between adversaries.

Therefore, if we try to communicate a basic, if abstract, awareness about this feeling of "me being me"; a feeling of identity and the awareness, that this "me" is the central spectator, judge and creator of my sense of awareness, we are formulating an awareness we all can agree-upon, because these conclusions and mental images are based upon a common biological heritage, and, these awarenesses are relatively free from cultural specifics, locally valid beliefs, or existential concerns and motivations.

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Chapter 7

Content

Let us not jump to mystical conclusions.
New levels of abstraction.
The desire to hold-on to an impressive feeling of identity.
Resisting the dissolution of an organisational pattern.
The joy of having mastered a skill.
A review of mystical experiences.
A strong mystical tendency in Christianity is a result of its accent on the meaning of suffering.
Sometimes, mysticism reflects a desperate search for certainty.
Receiving "divine instructions" by unsophisticated believers.
The fine line between normal and abnormal mechanisms in the experience of mystical awarenesses.
An unshakable belief in the reality of a mystical experience.

However, we are not much closer, as yet, to a satisfactory description of this elusive identity-feeling, and, indeed, we see, that the awareness of this feeling of identity fluctuates to a remarkable extent. Most of the time, it is merged with the behaving personality, and, only, when we sit-back, relax, think about ourselves and our actions; when we "see ourselves behave", only, then, is it possible to experience this feeling of "me", being a peculiarly concentrated and intense feeling of essence, which is apparently independent from any particular content of awareness.

Let us not jump to mystical conclusions, here, and, let us refrain from the temptation to fall into a state of mystical exaltation. Let us be very careful to avoid the sweeping and unfounded statement, that we have "glimpsed" for a moment, some sort of "eternal truth". All we have done, is to abstract, or become aware of, another level of awareness. What we are doing, is, abstracting the "state of being aware" from any particular content we may be aware of. This process is nothing new, but, the new "vistas", and the often strong sensations we experience, make it an important experience.

The ability to abstract the sensation of being aware and to "see ourselves behave", as well as the ability to see ourselves as an organism that is aware of the fact that it is surrounded by a large sphere of created awarenesses, makes us somewhat oblivious for many goals and ambitions we usually believe to be quite important. A close and apparently somewhat detached look at ourselves, makes us see the insignificance of our own existence, because we become only a minute speck on a sea of awareness spheres, and, this insight makes us also more aware of the fact, that we are so similar in our functions, ambitions and needs.

On the other hand, we may, indeed, experience a sense of importance, after having been able to abstract, for a moment, this intense feeling of "being me", and, we may, then, feel a surge of emotions and a desire to "hold-on" to the ability to feel such an intense awareness experience. Ironically, this feeling of wanting to hold-on to an unusual thought or sensation, in particular, the sensation of being aware of our own existence, reflects the basic drive of every healthy organism to resist the dissolution of a pattern of organisation, or "death". Perhaps, when this feeling or abstraction fades again into the totality of a behaving personality, we know, that it will be possible, at some time in the future, to recapture the essence of our identity feelings. Nevertheless, we are dealing, here, with a form of "dissolution"; with the loss of an organisation of thought or awareness, and, therefore, our instincts of self-preservation spring into action.

We see, then, that these intense experiences of identity or individuality, which are, usually, quite pleasant and inspiring, are nothing more than the abstraction of a very basic and biological potential that has been "given" to all the members of the human species. This ability is nothing more, and nothing less, than a step on the ladder of conceptual abstractions, where we "distill", so to speak", a common quality or feature to a level of individualised existence. The feelings of importance, the emotions of wanting to hold-on, as well as the sensations of happiness and elation, are nothing more than an expression of joy and confidence, which comes with the experience of having mastered a faculty of human existence.

Yet, let us ask the question, whether or not these mechanisms are similar or identical to those, which have been described by many people as "mystical experiences", or states of a "higher consciousness". Indeed, let us review, for a moment, the various states of the mind that have been classified as mystical experiences, or, states of an "expanded consciousness", and, we will try to relate these interpretations with the concept of an individualised sphere of reality perceptions.

In a mystical experience, an individual experiences, often somewhat vaguely, a state of being in communication with God, or, with some other entity of a divine and exalted nature. Some religious beliefs emphasise a body of knowledge and a set of ritual behaviour-patterns, which can lead, eventually, after many years of hard work, loyal devotion and sacrifices, to a state, where one experiences the reality of being able to communicate with, or being absorbed by, a Divine Being. Other religions minimise, or, even, actively suppress any notion of obtaining a divine status through hard, mystical work, and, they emphasise the fact, that one has to be found acceptable by God. This means, usually, being a socially acceptable and well-integrated individual.

Christianity has always had a significant tendency towards mysticism and intense experiences of "suffering", which were, often, induced by fasting, fatigue and extreme physical hardship. Even, within the accepted forms of Christian practice, mystical experiences were common and, sometimes, encouraged. However, throughout the centuries, the Christian Church has had to fight-off religious groupings and beliefs, which made the mystical experience their main objective. The Church, representing the thinkers and theologians of mainstream Christianity recognised the dangers of an egocentric and non-ethcial pre-occupation with the lures of a mystical exaltation.

Yet, the strong emphasis in Christianity on the meaning of suffering, the exaltation of suffering and hardship as a means to emulate the sufferings of Christ during His earthly stay, as well as the intuitive knowledge that extreme fatigue and physical stress could facilitate the experience of mystical states, hallucinations and other "messages" from a divine reality, have always excercised a strong fascination upon those members of the religious community, who sought and wanted intense experiences. These aspects of the Christian Faith were particularly attractive to those, who were intelligent enough to see, how often, professed beliefs and actual religious practices differed from each other.

The mystical experience was, and still is, for the intense, intelligent and devout believer, often, a desperate search for certainty and confirmation of the basic religious beliefs, in particular, when severe suffering by helpless millions of people brings doubts to the fore about the existence of an All-Loving God and Creator of all human beings.

Indeed, the underlying motivation for the quest of a mystical experience, or, the experience of an "expanded consciousness" in modern terminology, is the quest for certainty, and, you will, therefore, not find a significant tendency towards mystical experiences amongst those, who have been able to reconcile themselves to the idea, that there are no absolute certainties; neither religious, nor scientific.

It is interesting to note, that religious individuals are prone to "mystical experiences", or, they are likely to receive "personal messages from the Lord", whenever they are experiencing a severe stress. The problems they face may be primarily intellectual, especially, in those, who have had a wide exposure to the thoughts and observations of past and present generations, as well as the sufferings of poor, depraved and entrapped people. Sometimes, the problems they have to cope with are of a personal nature, and, the inclination to believe in an individualised help from the Lord comes to the fore, whenever their particular belief structure allows or encourages them to believe in the possibility to receive such help from God.

We see, indeed, how relatively unsophisticated these experiences are, if we listen to the testimony of uneducated religious people, who have been able to solve their personal problems by receiving "divine instructions". On the other hand, we see, how impressive and much more relevant the inner struggle for belief and certainty can be, especially, in people, who have an enormous vitality, as well as a tenacious dedication to practice their beliefs according to the Scriptures.

An analysis of a wide variety of mystical experiences shows us a number of common psychological features, which make it possible to classify, at least, in rough outlines, what is happening with the beliefs and reality perceptions of those, who claim to have undergone mystical or religious experiences. The cardinal feature is the fact, that such an experience is "exceptional", and, that those, who have undergone such an experience, are extremely moved by it. If we are dealing with people who receive "divine messages" on a regular basis, and, who are rather casual about it, we are dealing with extremely naive people, or, with people, who are suffering from delusions and hallucinations. However, we should refrain from considering all experiences of a mystical nature a form of mental illness, because we all have the potential to be susceptible to similar experiences under circumstances of severe stress and fatigue.

Another important characteristic of the mystical experience is its conceptual vagueness. Only rather meaningless superlatives or somewhat incoherent descriptions are used to express or communicate the experience. Nevertheless, the experience is extremely moving and is never forgotten. It tends to change the direction of an individual's life, such as the conversion of Saul to St. Paul, the apostle, and, the experience is often described as an extremely powerful, happy or blissful occasion, where, suddenly, the meaning of life, of God, of one's individual existence, has been revealed, and, all doubts and problems have been resolved.

Most people, who have had a mystical experience, have an unshakable belief in the reality of this experience, and they will invest everything in its truthfulness. Is it possible to shed more light on these psychological mechanisms? Let us give it a try.

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Chapter 8

Content

The perception of reality is based on a continuous stream of judgements.
A brief review of the mechanisms of a reality experience.
A comfortable routine for the well-adjusted individual.
Persistent questions, and a sense of irritation.
The intelligent youngster learns quickly the limits of tolerance for questioning his social environment.
A primitive reaction of muted anger and suspicious attitudes.
A front of affable conformity.
A frustrating lack of response.
The solution of an inspiring religious imagery.
The fusion between the status-quo and the desired status.
Being "moved".
Explaining the mystical experience.
A strong awareness becomes a "proof" in itself.
The failure to evaluate sense impressions critically, enhances the likelyhood of mystical experiences.

We have to remind ourselves, that the perception of reality is based upon an on-going judgement process, where we classify the incoming sense impressions, not only, according to familiar categories, (in order to be able to recognise our sense impressions and keep ourselves oriented), but, we also form a nearly continuous judgement about the existential significance of the conditions and circumstances in which we find ourselves. This means, that we have to discriminate, continuously, between the sensations and awarenesses that are recalled from our memory banks by the current situation or set of circumstances, and the awarenesses that are evoked by the incoming sense impressions themselves.

The function of recognition requires a constant comparison of the incoming sense impressions with those that are present in our memory-banks, and, we have discussed the fact, that we exist, therefore, mentally, in an inextricable blend of contemporary, or "now-occurring", sense impressions, a variety of similar experiences that are recalled into a focus of awareness by associations, (which help to classify these contemporary sense impressions), as well as a variety of expectations allowing us to visualise what to expect in the immediate future. We have seen, how important this faculty of anticipation is for the functions and viability of human beings, and, how important it is to keep these three temporal aspects in mind, whenever we discuss the significance of our reality perceptions.

Most of us find, sooner or later, a "comfortable routine", which means, that we classify all sense impressions, as well as all associative thoughts and emotions, with ease and in a confident routine. We are, then, "well-adjusted", and our behaviour is organised around various short-term and medium-term goals. We are basically happy with our present situation, and, we function with a sense of well-being. This means, also, that our daily experiences, including the behaviour of the people around us, fit-in quite well with the beliefs and attitudes we have absorbed from our cultural environment. We tend to believe, and follow, the advise and guidance of our leaders and leadership institutions, and, we are, in short, a "good citizen" of our community.

However, some of us are not so easily satisfied with the status-quo, and, we find it difficult to suppress a tendency to ask questions and point-out discrepancies. If we adhere to a religious reality perception, we will be bothered by the discrepancies between professed beliefs and the short-comings of ourselves and others. We are constantly asking questions, whether we should be so and so, or, do this and that. Initially, the authorities and the established citizens welcome the questions of an inquisitive youngster, but, they soon become irritated and frustrated by the fact, that the generally accepted answers and refutations are not blindly and blandly accepted. Then, the sense of irritation spreads to an open hostility, and the questioning individual becomes a liability rather than an asset to his community.

The intelligent youngster is well aware of the fact, that he or she is encouraged, at least, to some extent, to ask questions, but, he knows, also, that this questioning is looked-upon with suspicion and dismay, as soon as it begins to encroach upon beliefs and attitudes that are not supposed to be questioned. The youngster begins to realise, that society, including the leadership, does not have truly satisfactory answers for many questions, in particular, when the questions touch upon areas that are "taboo". The inquisitive mind recognises, at least, intuitively, that the authorities themselves do not know, why they are getting irritated with the inquisitive members of their society, nor, do authorities realise, how primitive their reactions of muted anger and suspicion are, in spite of the fact, that they believe themselves to be devoted disciples of a religious belief, that preaches tolerance and love for those who are considered to be "enemies".

In short, some members, in every social environment, have to live with a significant degree of tension between themselves and their social environment, as well as an awareness of persistent discrepancies. These tensions are based upon the fact, that the inquisitive personalities are unable to share, fully, in the official beliefs and doctrines of their social environment, and, this failure makes them also more prone to hostile and suspicious sentiments, as long as they have not learned to "put-up" the desired front of an "affable conformity". Even, after they have learned to do so, they will feel "out of touch" with the mainstream of society and its prevailing opinions and attitudes, and, these people become inevitably reflective and restless, looking for a reality perception that is more satisfying than the official beliefs or fashionable opinions of their surroundings.

If such an individual succeeds in formulating a more comprehensive structure of beliefs, and, perhaps, a more sophisticated framework for the classification and interpretation of awarenesses and observations, this person will, at times, feel quite happy and confident. The inability to find an audience to share one`s interpretations is somewhat frustrating, but, self-confidence is growing nevertheless. This self-confidence, or feeling of happiness, is similar to the feeling of self-confidence of anyone, who has found a solution to one's problems. In this case, the problem was to find a more comprehensive framework for the classification of reality perceptions, and, this activity is dominated by an attitude of critical evaluation. The feelings of happiness and confidence are subdued, however, because a life-long attitude and practice of establishing an atmosphere of emotional neutrality has led to a somewhat sceptical attitude towards all perceptions with a strong emotional coloration.

However, if a sensitive individual tries to find a solution for his particular problem, and, if one finds it, eventually, after a lot of hard work, perhaps, in the wholehearted adoption and emotional abandonment of an inspiring Faith, or in attitudes of trust and love for the members of one's family or those one is responsible for, or, in the personal endorsement of a common wisdom or the advice from a spiritual or secular leader, then, such an individual can sense, quite strongly, the emotions of happiness, whenever a difficult problem appears to have been resolved.

We recall, here, that the experience of "happiness" is visualised as a fusion between the "state" as we judge ourselves to be in, and the "state" we would like to be in. For a moment, the discrepancies between our status-quo and our goal-patterns fall-away, and, we have described, before, how this fusion liberates a strong flow of emotional energy, which we experience as "being moved". We have also seen, that this experience of "being moved" can be generated, whenever a precise, persuasive and believable artistic presentation of a comical or dramatic situation allows us to identify with the people involved. If this identification is complete, our own emotions follow, closely, those of the characters that are being portrayed. Or, our own emotions may follow a pattern that was the deliberate goal of the artistic creator, when the dramatic or comic tensions were set-up. They were designed to move us, either to tears, or to laughter.

We have recalled these mechanisms, because we believe, that the experience of a mystical exaltation, or "expanded consciousness", or any form of ecstasy, is, in essence, built upon the same mechanisms. If we have been searching hard and long for a solution, we may, suddenly, find such a solution. If the solution is in the form of a "vision", a divine revelation, or a strong conviction, interpreted as a divine command, the resolution of doubts, the abolition of the search, and the dissipation of the anxious fore-bodings of failure, liberate such a strong feeling of happiness, that it may overwhelm all sense impressions that are coming-in from the environment. We become, then, totally oblivious to what is happening around us, and, we also lose the ability to distinguish between a mental imagery that is coming to us "from the outside", and, a series of images that are a synthesis of our concepts and ideas about God, Heaven, the Devil, or, any other feature of the world of religious or meta-physical existence.

Let us not forget, that the true believer accepts the taught or culturally absorbed meta-physical imagery as an absolute reality, and, sometimes, these images are even more real and durable than the imagery from the senses. In spite of the fact, that the believer has never been able to actually experience, or "verify", the truth of these religious beliefs, an overwhelming sensation is taking place, that one is experiencing, now, such an imagery from the world of religious or super-natural existence. This strong sensation or awareness is interpreted as a "proof", or, as a verification of the fact, that these images are true and real. It is logical, therefore, that the religious visions of those who experience a mystical vision or revelation, conform to the religious imagery of the culture in which these people have grown-up.

The "break-through" of the religious imagery into such a strong focus of attention that there is no possibility to distinguish this imagery from an actually occurring imagery of contemporary sense impressions, leads to the experience, that these images are "really happening", there and then. The failure of the critical faculties to distinguish between the reality of the moment and the reality of believed-in images, projects these believed-in reality images into the environment, and, the individual is, therefore, completely honest and truthfull, whenever he or she testifies to the reality of these experiences.

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Chapter 9

Content

The contents of a mystical experience reflect past cultural contacts.
Nearly all cultures contain religious images.
Philosophical and ideological structures of belief are much less successful as guidance-patterns during times of stress.
Offering our soul to God.
Mechanisms of hallucinating.
A coherent view of many, inter-related phenomena.
Our sense of reality fluctuates continuously.
The problems of dealing with confusing and contradictory sense impressions.
Reflective thoughts.
We like to grasp the essence of our existence.
When we are getting older.
Letting all amibitions go is a sign of despair.
Neglecting the warning signs of the environment, or, of our own organism.

If we do not believe in the reality of the religious imagery that happens to be current in our society, we can not have "visions" based upon such an imagery, unless we "profess" not to believe these images, but fear, secretly, that those teachings are true, after all. This, of course, is a common occurrence for many people, who profess to have "lost faith" in their religion. If these people have failed to replace their beliefs with another structure that is equally capable of explaining all the phenomena that fall traditionally under a religious belief-structure, we see, that they have a difficult time to maintain their "un-belief" in times of severe stress. Then, the old religious imagery re-establishes itself, and, the individual re-affirms his beliefs as he purges himself of severe guilt feelings, having neglected, for so long, the call of the Lord and the tenets of his Faith.

Such a course of events is, of course, quite logical, and, in nearly every social environment, people receive, during their formative years, a variety of religious images and teachings, because the guidance structures for stressful periods, as well as the teaching of moral behaviour-patterns and ethical guidelines, are still, largely, in the domain of religious beliefs. Very few philosophical or ideological belief structures manage to guide people effectively through a period of stress, because most philosophical and ideological beliefs see man as a rational machine, and, they fail to consider, adequately, the needs of man as a living organism, clinging tenaciously to hopeful expectations, whenever the going gets rough. Even, if the element of hope in Eternal Salvation, or a better life after death, has to be bought with the fear, that, perhaps, this life after death has to be spent in Hell, the powerful lure of hopeful expectations is such a basic need and drive, that, all of us, regardless, what we believe to be true, may offer a prayer to God, when we feel, or know, that we are on the verge of losing our life.

Rather than citing these instances as a triumph for the religious explanation, I prefer to see these phenomena as a logical reaction to severe and ultimate forms of stress, because, if we see it as a final act of the attitude of hope by a living human being, we are not surprised to see, that the way God is being addressed and the manner in which the soul is offered into His custody, depends, entirely, upon the beliefs in which the dying indiviual has been brought-up. What we profess to believe, and, what we really believe, may be quite different, just as there can be a large discrepancy between the way we think we behave, and, the way we actually react to our sense impressions and circumstances.

Let us go back to the idea, that a sense of happiness, together with a strong reality-experience of a projected mental imagery, are due to the fact, that, on the one hand, our critical faculties fail to discriminate between actual sense impressions and the memory-images of our mind, and, on the other hand, this reality-experience depends upon a fusion of the status "as it is", and "as we would like it to be". These two mechanisms, of failure and fusion, may, occasionally, take place in all of us, but, let us see, whether a facilitation of the failure to discriminate between the sense impressions of the moment and those, which emerge from our conscious and subconscious memory-banks, will, indeed, cause an increase in the likelyhood of experiencing a number of visions or hallucinations. Let us review the normal and physiological mechanisms that may precipitate a failure of our critical faculties, and, especially, let us look at the distortion of these mechanisms of perception and interpretation by the ingestation of certain poisonous substances.

It is logical, that, the fusion between a status-quo and the state we would like to be in, is facilitated, whenever we lose the critical ability to distinguish, clearly, between these two conditions. A "fusion" may lead simply to a euphoria, because it suppresses doubts and all sorts of unpleasant awarenesses and anticipations arising from the circumstances in which we find ourselves. The elements of hope and euphoria, fears and feelings of depression, as well as mystical experiences, visions and hallucinations, are coming together, here, in a coherent image of inter-related mental mechanisms.

Our sense of reality fluctuates continuously. Most of the time, the classification of sense impressions, as well as the formulation of an appropriate response, occur easily and nearly automatically, and, we do not have to call-upon our voluntary will to synthesise, deliberately, a behavioural response. However, if the incoming sense impressions are confusing, contradictory and difficult to interpret, we need to make an effort to classify them properly. This process takes time, as well as a prominent place in the focus of our conscious attention, and it requires, therefore, "thought".

This means, on the one hand, a series of judgements about possible effects of a hypothetical or potential behavioural response, and, on the other, we are engaged in a conscious effort to evaluate the situation as precisely as possible. If the decisions to be made are of crucial importance, we have to cope with a chronic anxiety, because we fear, that we will choose wrongly, and, we are anxiously evaluating the consequences of a decision, in particular, if such a decision does not have the expected results and leads to all sorts of complications.

Sometimes, the process of thinking about what we should do, how to react or to evaluate a situation, represents a review of a large period of our existence. We are dealing, then, with an effort to re-assess the value of our long-term goal-patterns, together with the principles and beliefs that have been guiding our actions for quite some time. This is a "reflective" type of thought, which is usually not the result of a pressing problem, but, of a vague feeling of dissatisfaction. This vague feeling of dissatisfaction may come to the fore, after we have become settled into a routine and our life seems to be slipping-by, fast, while we have the uneasy suspicion, that we still fail to grasp the essence of our existence.

If we are confronted with serious and difficult problems, we are less inclined to reflect broadly upon the meaning of our existence, because it would, at least, initially, add to the confusion and difficulties of finding a solution to the more pressing problems. Eventually, we may come to the conclusion, that chronic problems can only be solved by making such a broadly based, reflective review, and, by making correspondingly radical changes in the way we live. However, we require, as a rule, quite a long period of thought and reflection, before we are ready to make drastic changes in our goal-patterns, living habits, beliefs and ideals.

Yet, the objectives remain essentially the same. We like to understand and grasp the meaning of our existence and the meaning of life in general, because, if we fail to do so, we experience a discrepancy between our concepts and ideas "as they are", and, as they could be. Therefore, the drive to think and reflect in a philosophically or religiously inclined personality is based on the same type of discrepancy between status-quo and desired status, which exists in every ambitious individual, who is trying to achieve a specific objective.

We know from experience, in particular, after we have become a little older, that, many of our goals will remain out of reach, and, these goals may, on reflection, not be all that important after all. We learn, then, to shift the method of accomplishment by reducing our goals and ambitions, thereby, facilitating a more frequent feeling of accomplishment and a more tranquil and balanced mode of existence.

However, to let all ambitions go, is a sign of despair, and, if we have lost the hope, that we can reach, at least, some of our objectives, we feel chronically trapped, and, the sense of joy, the feeling that it is good to be alive, may disappear all-together. The only refuge, then, is to sooth or suppress this constant stream of hopeless and depressing awarenesses by the frequent use of tranquilising or narcotic drugs, which dull the awareness of these unpleasant environmental stimuli and bring us into a nearly constant state of day-dreaming, neglecting, increasingly, the warning signs of our environment, as well as our own organism.

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Chapter 10

Content

The influence of drugs on the perception of reality.
The importance of normal cellular metabolism.
A dangerous quest for "strange experiences".
The role of extreme fatigue on the experience of reality.
A tendency of the focus of attention to "wander-off" to sleep.
Being deprived of external stimuli.
Defective self-identification mechanisms.
Abnormal chemistry or faulty data-processing?
An inadequate structure of beliefs.
The upheaval caused by stressful circumstances, and a slide into "mental illness".
Evolving towards globally acceptable concepts of mental functions.
A short summary of topics that have been discussed.
"Expanded Consciousness" is, in essence, a "contracted" state of the mind.
A blend between scientific, para-scientific and pseudo-scientific concepts; science-fiction and mysticism.

If we think, that we are trapped into some sort of unsolvable dilemma, regardless, how personal or subjective this feeling may be, we tend to become despondent, and, if we do not take the road of drug-addiction, we may opt for suicide and a quick end to these chronic and increasingly unbearable tensions.

We know, that various drugs have the ability to suppress, not only, the influx of sensory stimuli, but, they may distort the perception of them profoundly. The fact, that, chemical substances, dissolved into the blood-stream and percolating through the fluid that bathes the cells of our body, including the cells of the brain, can cause such profound alterations in the perception and interpretation of sensory stimuli, shows us the importance of intact and "normal" cellular functions, or biochemical reactions, (of the central nervous system, as well as the body as a whole), for the perception of reality. If these mechanisms are altered, we may experience great difficulties recognising our normal and familiar environment. The result may be a state of nearly constant hallucinations, which is extremely confusing and debilitating. The break-down of our reality perceptions is, not only, a frightening experience, but, it makes us extremely vulnerable, because we lack, then, the basic tools to evaluate our environment and react appropriately.

Throughout history, man has known about certain naturally occurring substances, obtained from various plants and mushrooms, which could induce hallucinations, but, the modern ability to refine and concentrate chemical substances has created a much larger arsenal of hallucinogenic drugs. These drugs are, primarily, a scientific curiosity, or a tool in the elucidation of physiological mechanisms, and, they may have a limited use in carefully controled efforts to alleviate certain disorders of perception. They are certainly not meant to be used for unguided experiments with strange, and, perhaps, fascinating sensations. This quest for strange and exciting experiments with altered states of perception is just as dangerous as attempting to fly a plane, or steer a racing car, without knowing, how they can be operated safely.

Apart from these drastic and artificial alterations in the physiological mechanisms guiding the normal functions of classification and recognition, we also know, that great and prolonged periods of fatigue, as well as conditions of extreme isolation, make it sometimes difficult, or impossible, to distinguish between the images representing an actual reality, and, images that well-up into the focus of awareness from our memory-banks.

Again, the reasons are clear. Extreme fatigue means, that the normal drive or tendency to rest and sleep, has been thwarted for a long period of time, and, the organism is trying to operate well beyond its normal capacity of endurance and attention. To stay awake becomes an ever more forceful act of the will. Eventually, the constant stream of classifications and recognitions is interrupted by periods, where our attention "wanders-off" into the direction of sleep. As we have seen, during sleep, there is no restriction upon the image-sequence by, either our sense of logic, or the evaluation of incoming sense impressions. Both are an essential feature of being in contact with "reality".

Similarly, if the environment becomes extremely deprived of recognisable stimuli, we may, eventually, have insufficient stimuli to keep our orientation mechanisms intact. We are, then, not sure, anymore, about the time, the place, the date, or the type of environment we are in, and, logically, it becomes very difficult for an organism to keep in contact with a reality that gives so few clues about its nature and specific features. Eventually, an individual is unable to distinguish between the reality of evoked images on the basis of associative thoughts, and those, evoked by the "recognition mechanisms" of incoming sense impressions. As a result, our grip over reality fades, and we become confused and we may begin to hallucinate.

Some people experience periods of mental functioning, where the reality perceptions begin to deviate so strongly and so frequently from the other people around them, that they have difficulties functioning adequately in their social environment. For example, the "identity", or self-identification may become defective, as some people begin to think, that they are someone else, usually, a well-known historical figure, or, they may believe to be a target of persecution or ridicule. Sometimes, they may perceive selective areas of reality in a manner that does not correspond with the perceptions of other people. These victims of a distorted reality perception may see things, hear voices, or, they may be in frequent contact with an imaginary super-natural world. In severe cases, such distortions of the reality perception make them completely unsuitable, and unreliable, for any sort of function in society.

The question, whether such distortions are due to basic disturbances in the physiological mechanisms of the brain, or, a result of "faulty processing" of sense impressions, is difficult to answer. Undoubtedly, some cases are due to a "primary pathological mechanism" of the central nervous system, such as a metabolic disturbance, a toxicity, or an epileptic discharge of nerve-cells, or the growth of a neoplasm, but, there are many other severe distortions in the perception of reality, which have, so far, not yielded any evidence for a primary physiological disturbance.

Certainly, many members in society develop a "poor", or, somewhat unusual way of perceiving reality. Their belief structures and classifying principles may be laid-down by a combination of personal experiences and a rather haphazard and fragmentary assimilation of cultural guidelines. As a result, their "normal" mechanisms of classification do not quite correspond with those of the social surroundings.

Even a mild form of stress, an unsettling experience, or, a period of confusion and despair, may disturb the reality perceptions of people with a poor grasp over their realities. Often, the delusions or the "abnormal" perceptions and interpretations people are suffering from, are evidence for a defective defense mechanism of a somewhat poorly structured mind, and, the whole appearance of such an individual may be judged to be sufficiently abnormal to be called "mentally ill".

We should not forget, that the boundaries between normal and abnormal behaviour, will always be somewhat arbitrary, because these boundaries depend, in the final analysis, on the opinions and judgements of a significant or influential segment of public or expert opinion. As we develop a greater insight into the normal mechanisms of the human personality, we will also develop a much better understanding for the mechanisms that have been altered, or the faults that have been introduced during the construction of a belief-structure, or, the abnormalities taking place in the mental classication mechanisms of an individual. After careful study and patient observation, we have been able to unravel many physical disease processes of the human body. Similarly, we should, eventually, be able to analyse, with a similar degree of expertise and a globally acceptable range of concepts, the mechanisms of the human mind.

We have many good reasons to believe, that we can already make a fruitful start on this road, and, that we can outline a few basic mechanisms of human behaviour. Certainly, there will be many refinements of this imagery in the future, but, it seems futile to speculate, in more detail, about the mechanisms of the human mind at this point in our understanding, because we still disagree amongst ourselves about the most basic concepts involved. Let us re-iterate, here, only, that it seems quite justified to see the mechanisms of reality perception as a continuous process of judgement, where we classify, quickly and accurately, the incoming stream of sense impressions into a large number of categories for familiar awarenesses, and, we know, now, that a variety of disturbances in these mechanisms can take place, whenever the on-going classifications and critical evaluations of sense impressions have been distorted, or interrupted, for one reason or another.

We have discussed the disturbing influences of drugs, fatigue or a paucity of environmental stimuli, but, we have also seen, that, strong emotions, such as extreme happiness, anxiety, a violent rage or a sexual ecstasy, make us oblivious to the surroundings, and, such a state of the mind interrupts, nearly completely, the perception of the stream of incoming sense impressions. We also know, that the faculties of critical evaluation recede into the background, as soon as we leave the zone of emotional neutrality, and, these critical evaluations cease to make a significant contribution to our behaviour-patterns, whenever we enter into pre-programmed, stereotyped, strongly instinctive and emotional types of behaviour.

The mystical experience represents such a state of high emotionality and extreme bliss, and, in spite of its powerful influence upon our beliefs, behaviour and interpretation of reality, I believe, that it is justified to see this state as an "emotional condition", which is actually quite old, phylogenetically, and, it is, therefore a much earlier evolutionary development compared to the faculties of rational behaviour.

I believe, that it is justified to say, that the existence of various levels of awareness, means, varying levels of abstractions, and, that we are entering different levels of awareness, whenever we learn to verbalise a level of behaviour, which was previously not realised or recognised, and could, therefore, not be grasped in conceptual terms. Besides, I believe, that it is quite useful to emphasise this development as an "expansion" of our conscious awarenesses, because, it shows us, more clearly, our common biological heritage and the similarities of our behaviour, in particular, when we compare these faculties with the more instinctive patterns of behaviour.

I believe, that it is erroneous to consider these states of mystical experience or "altered consciousness" resulting from the use of drugs, fasting or fatigue, as a state of "expanded consiousness". There is nothing "expanded" about these awarenesses, or the communications that arise from them. As a matter of fact, it would be fairly easy to argue, that such states represent a "contraction" of the normal sphere of awarenesses, and, that these states make it very difficult for us to distinguish between reality and fantasy.

An interesting phenomenon seems to confirm this point, because communications about such states of "expanded consciousness" tend to confuse the facts of generally agreed-upon scientific evidence with a large variety of para-scientific half-truths and outright nonsense. Many people have a great deal of difficulty distinguising, clearly, between facts and unproven notions or impossible hypotheses, and, this favours an emotional reaction to these phenomena, as well as an unfounded fascination with the fields of the imagined super-natural. Often, scientific images are clothed in a peculiar way with para-scientific, or, even, "gnostic" notions, and, suddenly, these scientific images are given a meaning, and, they are placed in a context that is totally at odds with their original meaning and intention.

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Chapter 11

Content

The ability to think clearly is the pinnacle of human evolutionary success.
A mental imagery of convenience; a definition of knowledge.
The logic of religious explanations for our reality experiences.
Rational thought can be shamelessly abused.
A personal "credo".
Somewhat disappointing conclusions.
Rational thought seems to emphasise, so often, similarities, rather than differences.
Let us not regret the absence of a personal uniqueness.
The price of a just and peaceful solution to the problems of competitive strife.
A wasteful search for "personal discovery".
Taking time to reflect upon dreams and failures.
We resemble our enemies to a remarkable extent.
What is waste?
A cultural code, constantly in need of repair and reform.
Our influence upon others is more important than we think.
The need for openness.
Being ourselves, while trying to be cooperative and contributing members of our social environment.

I would like to place the ability to think clearly, critically and rationally, unequivocally at the pinnacle of human evolution, but, this ability to think clearly and form coherent structures for a sophisticated and refined perception of reality, is not the same as the somewhat blind and contemptuous attitude that elevates scientific truths into a sphere of absolute validity. Clear thoughts, critical evaluations and logical structures for the interpretation and classification of awarenesses, show us, clearly, that all knowledge is, in essence, a mental imagery of convenience, which has been recognised as a valuable way of interpreting reality by a substantial number of people.

Rational thought does not look with contempt upon emotional and religious behaviour, but, it understands the role and historical development of religious belief-structures, as well as the role and function of the various patterns of human behaviour. Rational thought acknowledges, that, many, if not most religious explanations, were quite logical and valid interpretations of reality under the prevailing circumstances, but, clear thought and rational attitudes recognise, also, the problems of continuing to hold-on to a religious imagery in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary; pointing in favour of another interpretation of reality.

Rational thought should be the first to acknowledge, that, the power and persuasiveness of clear thinking can be shamelessly abused for egocentric purposes, such as, as a tool for hierarchical infighting. Rational behaviour does not mean condoning a "free-for-all" grab for power and privileges, where the clever take all the spoils and the other people become increasingly enslaved to them. The results of truly clear thought, as well as an evolutionary interpretation of human existence, show us, clearly, the need, as well as the means, to construct a firmly coherent structure of guidelines for ethical behaviour; a structure of ethical guidelines and principles that is not geared towards the well-being of a particular social environment, but, towards the well-being of the society of mankind as a whole.

After this "credo", I think, that it is time to return to our main theme, and, in the closing pages of this essay, we like to consider more common and less esoteric awarenesses. Let us pick-up the thread of an individual's experiences during an average day, or, during the life-cycle of an ordinary citizen in a normal and average social environment. In order to remain, hopefully, relevant for a large number of people over a long period of time, we will, as usual, refrain from discussing any specifics or particulars.

Perhaps, it is somewhat of a disappointment for some of you, that the conclusions of all these arguments seem to lead to a glorification of the faculty of rational analysis, while those fascinating glimpses into a "strange" perception of reality, are banned as emotional, irrelevant, egocentric and phylogenetically "old" states of human existence. Other people may be somewhat relieved to know, that these mysterious and exclusive states of being can not justify their claims to represent an expanded form of consciousness; to be a pass-port to Heaven or a re-union with God.

It may strike you as somewhat ironic, that the highest form of human evolution turns-out to be this fickle instrument of rational thought and critical analysis, while the feeling of identity, or the contemplation of our existence, turns-out to be fragile and evanescent abstractions, always fusing again with our personality shortly after their birth. You may be somewhat disappointed to learn, that this seemingly unique abstraction of our essence is a common feature we all share, in spite of the fact, that we do not have the same capabilities to communicate these experiences. Perhaps, it is somewhat disappointing to hear, that our hopes, drives or desires to perpetuate the existence of our essence, turn-out to be nothing more, than a shared biological instinct to cling to life, as long as we can.

Are all thoughts about the essence of our personality, all feelings about the uniqueness of our existence, and, all hopes to understand and grasp these matters in a truly coherent fashion, then, nothing more than a hopeless illusion; an unwitting play of our biological instincts and natural drives? Yes, we can not deny, that our thoughts and conclusions of rational thought seem to emphasise, again and again, our similarities rather than our differences. These conclusions emphasise our shared drives, the shared pool of genetic instructions and possibilities for a varied pattern of actualisation, rather than the cultural differences and the vagaries of our personal histories.

However, in stead of regretting the absence of a unique essence or unique importance of our particular existence, we should regard the insights about these shared characteristics, traits and drives as a valuable treasure of wisdom and knowledge; a wisdom and knowledge that does not lead to an exclusive path of egocentric Salvation and non-ethical, mystical experiences, but, the knowledge and wisdom, that we do not have to fight, and, that a conflict of interest does not have to be settled in a violent and destructive manner, provided, we really do not want violence, and, provided, that we are willing to pay the price for a just and peaceful solution.

If we spend our days, or a life-time, in a vague but constant search for the discovery of the reasons why our particular existence is important, or, what the ultimate truth really represents, or, how we can secure for ourselves an eternal future of happiness in a blissful existence after death, our search will remain inconclusive, and, we will, eventually, invest heavily in an emotional structure of beliefs that remains, in essence, untenable. If we make an effort to see ouselves as a particular manifestation or actualisation of an existence possibility of the human gene-pool, sharing, to a large extent, a common biological heritage with countless other people, but, differentiated from each other by cultural factors and our particular experiences, then, I feel, we gain a very useful perspective upon ourselves, as well as upon the people around us, and the world at large.

If we take the time, once in a while, to reflect upon our existence, goals and ambitions, our dreams and failures, our emotions and contacts with other people, we will gain a valuable view of the many similarities between ourselves and the many people we know, and, we will come to the rather startling conclusion, that we share a large number of traits and interests with those we dislike the most.

It is useful to take stock of ourselves, once in a while. It is useful to see, whether or not our overall objectives are realistic and productive. If we come to the conclusion, that we have wasted a lot of time in foolish and trivial pursuits, we should console ourselves with the knowledge, that it is better to see, now, why our life has been rather unsatisfactory, rather than to continue our old ways and deny the nagging doubts that we may be on the wrong track.

Certainly, a lot of lives, and a lot of time, is being wasted, but, then, such is the way of nature. In order to select a viable trait, the mechanisms of genetic encoding need an anormous amount of "wasted life", where large segments of many generations are doomed to die early, and, these segments are not even able to fulfill their biological inclination to participate in the reproductive processes.

We have seen, how the genetic code has been supplemented with a far more flexible, but, also, less enduring cultural code, which allows us to make quick adaptations to changed and changing circumstances. We are beginning to realise, that this cultural code has a tendency to deteriorate quickly, and, it may become rapidly irrelevant, obsolete or outright erroneous. We are beginning to realise, how important it is to scrutinise, constantly, what this cultural code is telling us, and, we are beginning to understand, how dangerous and unviable it is, to accept and transmit this cultural code without a thought; without a personal contribution; without our genuine evaluations, adaptations, or "amendments", as well as a convincing seal of approval.

Without this constant work on the evaluation of the cultural guidelines and beliefs that are current in our social environments, we would jeopardise the usefulness of this code, and, we would jeopardise the viability of countless millions of people who rely upon this code of cultural transmission for their viability.

Most of us will never participate in shaping the cultural code in such a dramatic manner, that we influence or contribute to a change in concepts, or, a change in the guiding principles and belief structures of our society. However, we all build in a very important way on the reality perceptions and interpretations of the people we are in contact with. If we are a selfish, exploitative, conniving and corrupt individual, we will only re-enforce the egocentric tendencies and existential anxieties of those, who know us, and, in stead of building upon the structure of social cohesion, we are actively destroying it by exhibiting an attitude that glorifies the laws of the jungle.

However, if we are able to approach others with a measure of trust, compassion, openness and understanding, we will give other people an important experience for the interpretation of their reality perceptions. If others can experience the fact, that there is a measure of trust, honesty, cooperation and openness in the people around them, they will feel encouraged to respond likewise, recognising, intuitively, the wisdom of such attitudes. However, if we present only a "front" of social behaviour, or, if we fail to present these qualities as a genuine gesture of trust and realism in human relationships, our attitudes will indeed be felt as non-genuine, deceptive, or, merely as a superficial veneer to create a favourable impression.

Openness means just that; if we have a reason to be suspicious or angry with someone, we should express it, and, we should be angry or suspicious. In this way, someone else can learn, what sort of behaviour is expected, and, what is considered to be unacceptable. The people around us are, then, discouraged from considering us a target for easy exploitation and abuse, while we try to be a good and compassionate member of our community.

.......

Chapter 12

Content

A few doubts about people's willingness and ability to reflect.
Accepting a status-quo as we find it; advantages and disadvantages.
The value of a pragmatic approach to our realities.
Manipulating mental images, rather than working with our hands.
Being active; mentally as well as physically.
The price of a specialised development.
We should not take the route of specialisation too soon.
The need for a ready-made package of beliefs.
The possibilities of hard work and a diligent search for understanding.
Seeing the logic, as well as the roots, of religious and scientific reality perceptions.

Perhaps, you feel, that I have indulged in wishful thinking, and, you may conclude, that these ideas and concepts about the content and level of awareness of the average individual, are not realistic. You may think that it is utopian to believe, that most people will, eventually, be able to master such complicated thought-patterns, or, to master a degree of verbal dexterity and express themselves precisely and in detail. Perhaps, you feel, also, that there is too much emphasis on the ability to abstract and reflect, and, you may want to argue, that it is not realistic to believe, that people will be able, or willing, to "re-work" their belief-structures so extensively.

Most people are barely aware of the existence of belief-structures, and, certainly, most people do not have any idea, how, or why, they function in their own sphere of conscious reality perceptions. In addition, you will point-out to me, that, it is far more likely for the average individual to adjust pragmatically to the status-quo or to changing aspects within their environment. This would mean, that the individual classifies the situation or circumstances of his existence, together with the problems and stresses he is exposed to, by differentiating between conditions he can change or influence, and those, he can not. Therefore, most people will accept the status-quo and take the circumstances they find themselves in, for granted.

This means, on the one hand, that, particularly favourable circumstances are taken for granted without the realisation, how fortunate one is to be able to live under such favourable conditions. We become, then, "spoiled", and, we are weakened by ignoring the fact, that the situation could easily become a lot worse. On the other hand, if we happen to find ourselves in difficult or disadvantaged circumstances, we are also inclined to accept the status-quo and make the best of it. Our ignorance is, then, a "blessing", because we lack a sharp feeling of regret for missed opportunities, or a wounded sense of justice, when comparing ourselves to those, who are able to exist in less stressful and more favourable conditions.

Indeed, the average individual, in particular, when still fairly young and healthy, will benefit from the resilience that comes with the acceptance of a status-quo. Difficulties are taken in stride. No time is wasted in lamenting, how things could have been, or should be, and, we get-on with the job of exploring and exploiting all the possibilities to improve conditions and consolidate our position. I agree with you, that such a pragmatic approach is valuable, as well as necessary, and, undoubtedly, the reflective, somewhat phlegmatic and hesitant personality may, indeed, be discouraged and give-up too easily, or, he may be tempted to waste time by an ineffective approach to get the necessary chores done.

Certainly, there is a temptation for those, who rather manipulate mental images than work with their hands, to sit-back and lament, how things could or should have been. However, while fully acknowledging the value of the ability to dive, decisively, into a task or chore, we should not become mentally lazy, nor, should we lose valuable opportunities to learn and gain insights by rejecting, indiscriminately, all manners of thought and reflection. While the philosophically inclined individual may lack, to some extent, the resilience and endurance, as well as the intuitive grasp of what is practically possible, he may also have the foresight of sound long-term planning, as well as the ability to foresee and forestall problems, allowing him to avoid situations of stress into which the pragmatic individual will blunder, time and again.

There is no reason, why an individual can not be versatile enough to be both pragmatic, as well as reflective. Why could we not sharpen the faculties of making quick, pragmatic and intuitively sound decisions about the various practical problems at hand, and, why would it be impossible to stimulate, at the same time, the ability to reflect and think, and become a little more aware of the imagery that is available about the history, the achievements as well as the follies of human existence?

The attitudes of pragmatism and intellectualism do not have to exclude each other. Often, an individual develops, either one or the other, because either one of these trends is sufficient to make him or her into a contributing and accepted member of the community. Because of this "specialisation", we tend to neglect other potentialities, but, this does not mean, that it has to be this way, or, that it is desirable to let capabilities wither-away unnecessarily. True, we have concluded before, how the full development of a highly skilled and specialised potential demands so much time and energy, that we have no choice but to neglect a large area of other potential abilities, but, we have also seen, that, too narrow a specialisation is a hindrance for the full accomplishments of our goals. We have discussed, on several occasions, that a broadly based education and development of potentials should take place, before a narrow, specialistic career is chosen. As a result, it will be much easier to acquire the special skills and forms of knowledge we will need, and, the ultimate pinnacle of achievement will be so much higher, if the road towards specialisation has not been taken, too soon.

I agree, that it is tempting, but, probably, quite irrealistic to believe, that the average member of society will ever develop a significant degree of reflective skills, because, after all, that is not the way an average individual functions. The average person is, by definition, someone, who needs and wants leadership, and, he needs, and wants, to give his trust to those, who are leading him. Therefore, he wants to believe what he is being told, and, he needs a ready-made package of beliefs, regardless, whether these beliefs are religious, scientific or philosophical in nature. Yet, the average individual has to understand, at least, something of the way he functions; how other people function, and, how his society and leadership institutions operate. If he is exposed to a confusing and corrupt society, he will become introvert and distrustful of the society at large, and, the average individual is then inclined to seek his or her security by bonding together with people in similar circumstances, and, by engaging in open hostilities towards other groupings or regions.

Therefore, a leadership that has become weak and incompetent sets into motion a natural tendency towards mutual hostilities, regionalism and the decay of the larger social structure. While we should not expect to be able, nor, even try, to teach a complicated and sophisticated perception of reality to a large majority of the members of mankind, it should, eventually, be possible to distill a clear and generally agreed-upon set of mental images that give us a good over-view of the processes of natural evolution, including the nature of living systems.

It is now possible, with hard work and a diligent search for understanding, to sketch a plausible picture of ourselves. We can project an imagery, that lets us see ourselves, not only, in a light of evolutionary changes, but, also, as a creature that needs religious explanations, whenever plausible images of an evolutionary development are not available.

Rather than contributing to a seemingly inevitable polarisation between science and religion, a relativistic perception of reality should see the logic, as well as the common developmental roots of the religious and scientific reality perceptions. It should be possible to avoid the useless polarisations and feelings of suspicion and contempt, which arise, so easily, from a contact between opposing points of view, but, both sides in the battle for the best possible interpretation of reality, the scientific as well as the religious "believer", have to relinquish the idea, that there is an absolute, knowable and unshakable truth.

.......

Chapter 13

Content

A summary of the topics that have been discussed.
A hierarchy of levels of awareness.
Conceptual life, seen as "an abstraction".
The identify-feeling.
The belief in an immortal soul, and man's tendency to cling to life.
The difficulties of imagining "what it would be like to be dead".
Giving the quality of life to every image of understanding.
Are we going to die with more anxieties, when we lose the ability to believe in an immortal soul?
Getting older and becoming more reflective.
The elan vital prevents us from accepting the prospect of dying with calm resignation.
Religious behaviour-patterns may be a desperate adaptation to a sudden and severe crisis.
Vitality and old-age.
Circumstances and the passage of time may prepare us to accept death gracefully and die peacefully.

The concepts and practical implications of a relativistic perception of reality will form the main topic for the last essay in this series, and, we will, therefore, return, in the final chapter of this essay, to the various levels of awareness we can be aware of. We like to round-off this discussion by reviewing, briefly, what we have discussed, and, by filling-in a few gaps. I do not doubt, for one moment, that we could extend this discussion significantly, and, that there are many more aspects of awareness, which could stand a more detailed treatment.

We have seen, why we may consider ourselves as one of the living species' that evolved under the pressures and possibilities of the forces of natural selection, and, we have also seen, how we are the heir, par excellence, to the possibilities of "behavioural flexibility". In addition, we have reviewed the fact, that, so far as we know, we are the only surviving species that has developed, to any significant extent, the possibilities of symbolic representation and the voluntary manipulation of mental images.

An important concept we have tried to elaborate and make plausible, is the idea, that our subjective but shared experiences of a "conscious awareness", are related to the development of symbolic representation and the voluntary recall of mental images. We have seen, that, being aware of something, means, as a rule, the ability to name or describe a certain awareness. In addition, we have discussed the on-going trend of becoming increasingly aware of qualities, feelings, sensations, emotions and notions, which used to be "below" the level of conscious awareness. Because of this trend, we are getting a better grip over our behaviour, and, these abilities of abstraction and conscious awareness allow us to experience the sensation, that we are observing ourselves, while behaving in relation to our environment.

We have argued, that, these successive levels of awareness, where we realise, consciously, how and why we behave the way we do, constitute a hierarchy of awarenesses. We have discussed the concept, that the principle of "abstraction" goes back to the need to classify and categorise our awarenesses in groups of similarities, and, that, therefore, classifying qualities or common denominators begin to lead an independent conceptual life as an abstraction. As the number of abstractions increases, we need new categories to group these classifying principles together, and, in this way, we are creating a variety of levels of abstraction, paralleling, to some extent, the hierarchy of the levels of awareness we mentioned above.

We have discussed the feeling of identity; the "I" feeling, and, we have seen, how we should classify the experience of an observing "I", observing the "me" in action, as a result of the ability to abstract awarenesses. We have also discussed, briefly, the ironic conclusion, that we experience as the most specific and intense essence of our being, a feeling that is shared by us all, be it at different times, and, at varying levels of intensity. We have also discussed the fact, that the drive to "hold-on" to this feeling, or, to prolong the existence of an "I-feeling" for as long as we can, is nothing else than the expression of a healthy vitality, which we share, not only, with all other, healthy human beings, but, with the entire realm of life. Certainly, only the human being seems to be able to verbalise this feeling and communicate it in an abstract manner, but, as a behavioural instinct, all living organisms have to be equipped with this drive in order to secure the continuity of their own existence.

We have briefly discussed, how the tendency to believe in the existence of an immortal soul, is tied-in with the drive to cling to life, but, we have also seen, that it is physiologically a contradiction to "imagine", what it would be like to be dead. In our definition of death as the disappearance of the organisation that characterises an entity of life, we have seen, that, death is, in essence, the absence of existence, while, in our attempts to grasp or understand something, we give the quality of existence to whatever imagery of understanding or near-understanding we have developed. Yet, there are other reasons, why the dualistic interpretation of body and soul was a logical conclusion of "prima facie" experiences and impressions, compared to a concept that lets us see, how all forms of awareness, including any form of awareness attributed to an immortal soul, has to be based upon the existence of an intact, living human being.

We have seen, how "prima facie" evidence, or, the evidence of direct sense impressions, shows us, indeed, a wide gap between the realm of the mind, and, the realm of the body. The fact that we found ourselves to be the only thinking and verbalising species on earth, accentuated the idea, that the world of the mind and the world of the body, were, indeed, far apart. It takes quite a sophisticated body of scientific knowledge to appreciate the modern scientific insights, which let us interpret all forms of awareness, categorically, as a tool of our behavioural repertoir.

Does this mean, then, that we will die less happy than those, who can still believe in an immortal soul, or those, who believe in the possibility, that, they, or, rather, their souls, may be re-united with the Creator in an ever-lasting eternity of blissful exstence? Obviously, we have to leave some comfortable beliefs behind, but, then, let us not forget, that we can not cling, tenaciously, to comfortable beliefs, if we know, in the back of our minds, that these beliefs contradict a lot of other concepts and reality perceptions we have become aware of, and, which have proven their validity during the last few centuries.

What, then, could be a modern form of comforting awareness, whenever we come home, tired, after a long day of hard work or frustrating tensions, and, what should be our attitude, if we, finally, have admitted to ourselves that we have become "old"; that we belong, now, to the generation that is "on the way out", and, that the mainstream of life is going to be in the hands of those, who are younger? We have finally realised, that our life is coming to an end, and, we know, that our most ambitious dreams will remain unfulfilled.

Sure, one day of hard and tiring work is no reason to give-up our ambitions and dreams, because, tomorrow, there is another day to accomplish, what we want to achieve. But the days follow each other quickly, and, we realise, that we have stagnated in a routine existence, and, that we are not going to make any further significant contributions. As a matter of fact, we are not even sure, that anything has changed as a result of our existence, nor, are we sure, that anyone will remember us for any length of time after our death.

The family has grown-up, and the children are busy leading their own lives. Soon, we will notice a deterioration in our health. There will be an increase in ailments and infirmities. Soon, even, to walk, climb the stairs, drive a car, or looking after our own needs, will become a burden, and, we may become dependent on help from others. It is customary to regret the course of a life-cycle. When watching the decay of an elderly person, when we are still young, healthy and full of vigour, makes us shudder for a moment at the thought, that we may, some day, be in the same situation. Now, we realise, how close this day has come.

Yet, let us look at these phenomena and awarenesses again, and, let us see, what happens, if a young and healthy individual is, quite suddenly, faced with the prospect that life is coming to an end. As long as a strong vital energy is flowing through us, we will find the prospect of dying or being dead, adhorrent. The knowledge, that, at some time in the future, we will meet our end, is a powerful spur to find a structure of beliefs that conquers this depressing awareness.

Yet, in a way, old-age prepares us to accept death more gracefully and more naturally. At the present time, I am still healthy and vigorous, and, I would regret it very much, if I would have to die soon. The certainty of death has certainly been a spur and a motivation to think about death, and to develop a few thoughts about it. Yet, I still would feel a strong sense of regret, if I had to go, now, because my instinctive reactions rebel against the thought of having to die. As we discussed before, the sudden, religious reaction to resign one's soul or fate to God, is, in essence, a behavioural adaptation to the sudden awareness, that death is imminent.

The regrets we have when we get older, together with the uncomfortable feelings that we have grasped so little of the essence of life, in spite of the fact that it may now be almost over, are natural events, and, they are an expression of our instinctive drive to hold-on to life as long as we can. Therefore, it does not make sense to a still healthy, older individual to be told that "he or she has had a full life", because he or she is not ready to go. The vital energies are still strong.

The social environment may glibly come to the conclusion, that the death of an elderly person is "quite natural", because he or she has had the opportunity to live a long and generally healthy and prosperous life, but, such a conclusion or attitude is felt as an injustice and an insensitivity, because these elderly people are not anymore prepared to go than they were ten or twenty years ago.

Old-age, the gradually increasing infirmities, the increasing dependence upon much younger people, the increasing isolation as a result of the death of friends and relatives, as well as the increasing difficulties of keeping-up with the events considered important in society, may prepare an older individual, quite naturally, for the coming of death. Then, an individual may, indeed, agree with the judgement of his environment, that life has been long and good, and, such a person may go, gracefully and peacefully, without a futile and heart-breaking struggle. Our individual entity has then ceased to exist, and, our sphere of awarenesses and our particular world of reality have vanished, forever.

.......

Summary

1. A brief review.
   Following an average individual through a day of routine activities.
   A grasp over the human cycle of life.
   Many varied interpretations of reality.
   The arrogance of an absolutist attitude.
   The evolution of insights; a common-sense acknowledgement of shared experiences.
   A painfully slow development towards a global consensus for the interpretation of reality.
   
   
   
2. What happens, when we wake-up in the morning.
   Drifting between sleep and wakefulness.
   An "I-feeling" that floats helplessly with our awarenesses.
   The perception of "time".
   Dream-sequences are beyond the control of logic, or a check against reality.
   Dreaming and day-dreaming; similarities and differences.
   We all have to make a living.
   The inter-play between individual and society.
   Chores have to be done, regardless of the type of social organisation we live in.
   The prevalence of existential requirements.
   
   
   
3. How inter-dependent are we?
   We all share the need for security and justice.
   The many, subtle and not so subtle forms of corruption.
   The outlook upon our social environment.
   The lure of competitive display.
   A shared biological inheritance.
   It is becoming too costly to settle our disputes violently.
   Learning to see our enemies as ordinary human beings.
   An unnecessary degree of resistance.
   The center of the sphere of our awarenesses.
   A consideration of relative importance.
   
   
   
4. Reasons for a lack of collective insights.
   Abusing psychological concepts.
   Contemporary psychological wisdoms.
   No consensus, as yet, about the basic mechanisms of human existence.
   The importance of "knowing ourselves".
   The importance of a rational view.
   Differences and similarities in behaviour.
   We all are susceptible to emotional reactions.
   Levels of abstraction.
   Cultivating a habit of making considerate judgements.
   Our leaders are often the greatest killers on earth.
   Leaders and followers alike can be caught in a frenzy of combative instincts.
   
   
   
5. A look at language.
   The search for a structure of beliefs.
   Re-naming an observation does not add to the level of understanding.
   Diagnosis means; "seeing through" mechanisms of cause and effect.
   Additional levels of conceptual abstraction.
   Knowledge and insight are measured in the level of understanding they promote.
   "I" and "me".
   The dualistic theory of human existence.
   The attractiveness of a belief in re-incarnation.
   A defensive, fundamentalist Christianity.
   Bridgeing the gap between modern and traditional explanations for the nature of human existence.
   The remarkable conclusions of scientific insights.
   It does not help us, if we try to blunt the impact of these scientific images.
   
   
   
6. A return to the world of "identity feelings". The existence of an "inner me".
   A bridge between the awareness of our environment and our own existence.
   The central spectator, judge and "life-giver" of our sphere of awarenesses.
   Re-creating the world of our awarenesses, as soon as we have woken-up.
   Extending the sphere of awarenesses well beyond the time-span of our own existence.
   Problems with visualising a state of death.
   We give existence to any form of imagination and every content of mental awareness.
   Death is the absence of existence; the disappearing circle.
   Awarenesses are clothed in the cultural tools of our social environment.
   Why we are strongly inclined to believe in the absolute validity of our reality experiences.
   It is time to recognise the socio-centric nature of our belief structures.
   Common-sense and the art of providing rational explanations.
   Trying to formulate a perception of reality that is relatively free from cultural specifics.
   
   
   
7. Let us not jump to mystical conclusions.
   New levels of abstraction.
   The desire to hold-on to an impressive feeling of identity.
   Resisting the dissolution of an organisational pattern.
   The joy of having mastered a skill.
   A review of mystical experiences.
   A strong mystical tendency in Christianity is a result of its accent on the meaning of suffering.
   Sometimes, mysticism reflects a desperate search for certainty.
   Receiving "divine instructions" by unsophisticated believers.
   The fine line between normal and abnormal mechanisms in the experience of mystical awarenesses.
   An unshakable belief in the reality of a mystical experience.
   
   
   
8. The perception of reality is based on a continuous stream of judgements.
   A brief review of the mechanisms of a reality experience.
   A comfortable routine for the well-adjusted individual.
   Persistent questions, and a sense of irritation.
   The intelligent youngster learns quickly the limits of tolerance for questioning his social environment.
   A primitive reaction of muted anger and suspicious attitudes.
   A front of affable conformity.
   A frustrating lack of response.
   The solution of an inspiring religious imagery.
   The fusion between the status-quo and the desired status.
   Being "moved".
   Explaining the mystical experience.
   A strong awareness becomes a "proof" in itself.
   The failure to evaluate sense impressions critically, enhances the likelyhood of mystical experiences.
   
   
   
9. The contents of a mystical experience reflect past cultural contacts.
   Nearly all cultures contain religious images.
   Philosophical and ideological structures of belief are much less successful as guidance-patterns during times of stress.
   Offering our soul to God.
   Mechanisms of hallucinating.
   A coherent view of many, inter-related phenomena.
   Our sense of reality fluctuates continuously.
   The problems of dealing with confusing and contradictory sense impressions.
   Reflective thoughts.
   We like to grasp the essence of our existence.
   When we are getting older.
   Letting all amibitions go is a sign of despair.
   Neglecting the warning signs of the environment, or, of our own organism.
   
   
   
10. The influence of drugs on the perception of reality.
    The importance of normal cellular metabolism.
    A dangerous quest for "strange experiences".
    The role of extreme fatigue on the experience of reality.
    A tendency of the focus of attention to "wander-off" to sleep.
    Being deprived of external stimuli.
    Defective self-identification mechanisms.
    Abnormal chemistry or faulty data-processing?
    An inadequate structure of beliefs.
    The upheaval caused by stressful circumstances, and a slide into "mental illness".
    Evolving towards globally acceptable concepts of mental functions.
    A short summary of topics that have been discussed.
    "Expanded Consciousness" is, in essence, a "contracted" state of the mind.
    A blend between scientific, para-scientific and pseudo-scientific concepts; science-fiction and mysticism.
    
    
    
11. The ability to think clearly is the pinnacle of human evolutionary success.
    A mental imagery of convenience; a definition of knowledge.
    The logic of religious explanations for our reality experiences.
    Rational thought can be shamelessly abused.
    A personal "credo".
    Somewhat disappointing conclusions.
    Rational thought seems to emphasise, so often, similarities, rather than differences.
    Let us not regret the absence of a personal uniqueness.
    The price of a just and peaceful solution to the problems of competitive strife.
    A wasteful search for "personal discovery".
    Taking time to reflect upon dreams and failures.
    We resemble our enemies to a remarkable extent.
    What is waste?
    A cultural code, constantly in need of repair and reform.
    Our influence upon others is more important than we think.
    The need for openness.
    Being ourselves, while trying to be cooperative and contributing members of our social environment.
    
    
    
12. A few doubts about people's willingness and ability to reflect.
    Accepting a status-quo as we find it; advantages and disadvantages.
    The value of a pragmatic approach to our realities.
    Manipulating mental images, rather than working with our hands.
    Being active; mentally as well as physically.
    The price of a specialised development.
    We should not take the route of specialisation too soon.
    The need for a ready-made package of beliefs.
    The possibilities of hard work and a diligent search for understanding.
    Seeing the logic, as well as the roots, of religious and scientific reality perceptions.
    
    
    
13. A summary of the topics that have been discussed.
    A hierarchy of levels of awareness.
    Conceptual life, seen as "an abstraction".
    The identify-feeling.
    The belief in an immortal soul, and man's tendency to cling to life.
    The difficulties of imagining "what it would be like to be dead".
    Giving the quality of life to every image of understanding.
    Are we going to die with more anxieties, when we lose the ability to believe in an immortal soul?
    Getting older and becoming more reflective.
    The elan vital prevents us from accepting the prospect of dying with calm resignation.
    Religious behaviour-patterns may be a desperate adaptation to a sudden and severe crisis.
    Vitality and old-age.
    Circumstances and the passage of time may prepare us to accept death gracefully and die peacefully.

.......