Inner self defines human beings

To the editor:

What is the small difference that makes such a huge difference between human beings and our primate cousins? In addition to genes and culture, different levels of conscious awareness separate different species of life from each other.

Our primate cousins are similar to us because their brain is on the verge of self-consciousness, but at the same time, they are different because of their inability to recognize an awareness of their own individuality. However, if a primate ever achieves self-consciousness, it will immediately begin to develop its own individual inner self, which is a defining characteristic of human beings.

Even though the source of the energy that exploded in a Big Bang is a mystery, it seems evident that the energy of matter is ingrained with intelligence, which is inherent in the laws of physics, whereas the energy of life is ingrained with emotion that is apparent in the fears and desires of a will to live. The intelligence of matter and the emotions of life are united in the makeup of a human being.

Millions of years after the Big Bang gave birth to the universe, the realm of life came into being when certain combinations of matter became infused with a will to live. In the favorable environment of Earth’s primordial sea, a primitive form of life emerged that was affected by changing conditions that produced different levels of physical pleasure and pain, which impelled life forms to pursue more favorable environments and adjust to different conditions. Eventually, an intelligent species of primate achieved self-consciousness and recognized the emotional joys and sorrows of life.

Self-consciousness produced a human inner self that is composed of non-physical thoughts, feelings, hopes and dreams. When a self-conscious person dies, his or her inner self continues to exist as a soul, and through the process of reincarnation, the soul continues to experience human life by means of a symbiotic relationship with a newborn babe. The symbiotic relationship imparts self-consciousness to the baby, who in turn, imparts another lifetime of human experience to the soul.

Art Carney

Wasilla