We live in a world where people identify themselves primarily with their belief systems. SHEN began to end human savagery against humans based on such identities and discovered that its solution resolves numerous problems of global scope that have been eluding resolution for millennia. Humanity have given up on their solution as impossible because they relate to our human condition. Who can take on the problem of transforming the human condition?

Born to Eradicate Identity Savagery

The Spiritual Heritage Education Network Inc., or SHEN, was established in 2,000 by a distinct group of individuals led by Dr Shiv Talwar, SHEN's founding president. This group, united by a shared real-life experience, forms the heart of SHEN's story. Their experience was the identity savagery that erupted amongst Indians during their country's 1947 partition into a Hindu-majority India and a Muslim-majority Pakistan. SHEN was born to eradicate such identity savagery. Swami Vishwatma Bawra, an unparalleled expert in metaphysics from India, had already shown the founding group the way. 

Physics and Metaphysics

Physics, the study of the physical world of matter, and the forces that govern its behaviour, encompasses a vast spectrum. Matter, the focus of physics, is particulate. Particles can range from a size visible to the naked eye to those too small to be visible, even with the most powerful electron microscope available today. They can be infinitesimally small or as large as heavenly bodies. 

There are three branches of physics: (1) Classical or Newtonian physics, which studies size within common human experience; (2) Quantum physics, which studies tiny particles; and (3) The branch of physics that may be called Celestial Mechanics, astronomy or cosmology which studies the movements of heavenly bodies in outer space.

Newtonian physics or classical mechanics is deterministic, giving students specific ideas. Quantum physics may be called mystical because it introduces uncertainties, non-locality, and entanglement; quantum particles may appear as particles or waves depending upon the observer. The physics of large heavenly bodies relies on classical mechanics and Einstein's general theory of relativity. 

On the other hand, Metaphysics delves into the profound, studying the reality that led to the physical world of matter, living beings, bodies and minds, and the forces that govern their interactivity. It provides students with an overview of universal phenomena, a realm of knowledge that is vast and intriguing, inviting them to explore the mysteries of existence. The physics approach may be described mainly as bottom-up, while metaphysics as top-down. Both are necessary because, while top-down metaphysics shows where to go, bottom-up physics shows the detailed map of roads to get there.

While the scope of classical physics can lend itself to replicable empirical experiments for authenticity, that of metaphysics cannot because it includes subtleties, like in Quantum physics, not open to perception by the naked eye; it can only lend itself to individual insights and affirmations by others' insights.

Where does the universe of matter, comprising the scope of physics, come from? Physics says it comes from energy. What is energy? Physics says it is the capacity to do work defined as moving a certain amount of matter against a particular force. Physics has no independent definition of energy, defined only by its products. Can energy be seen? The answer is no. Can energy be known? Because it cannot be seen, it is unknown; because it is unknown, nothing can be said about it. Can energy be measured? The answer is yes.

Where does the universe of matter and living beings, comprising the scope of metaphysics, come from? Metaphysics says it comes from spirit, an indivisible union of energy and consciousness; consciousness and energy are like two inseparable sides of a coin. Energy manifests itself as our material body and consciousness as our mind. Because of the inseparability of consciousness and energy, there is no body without a mind and no mind without a body. The mind in the body's interior runs the body's behaviour on the exterior.

What is spirit? Metaphysics says it is the capacity to act or do work on one side, and perceive, feel and know on the other. The word’s origin is human experience; is life not conscious and full of energy? Like physics, metaphysics has no independent definition of spirit, defined only by its products. Just like the scope of physics is included in the scope of metaphysics, the reality of physics is included in the reality of the universe of mind and body. Can spirit be seen? The answer is no; its existence is so infinitely subtle that it has no size; it is like a point of zero width, zero depth and zero height. Can spirit be known? Because it cannot be seen, it cannot be known; because it is unknowable, it is ineffable. Can spirit be measured? The answer is yes and no; energy is measurable, while consciousness is not. The scope of metaphysics, like quantum physics, is replete with uncertainties and paradoxes. Learning metaphysics is no more complex than learning physics, but it offers a deeper understanding of our existence, pregnant with meaning and purpose.  

Metaphysics, Religion, and Belief Systems

Metaphysics forms the basis of religion. Researchers in metaphysics are called prophets, sages, seers, and philosophers. Religion should be regarded as a subject of in-depth learning, understanding, and application in life, but alas, it has been relegated to a matter of acceptance or belief. 

Religion refers to the metaphysical reality called spirit as God. If spirit is only one, God is only one. God must also be unseen and ineffable if the spirit is unseen and ineffable. However, by attributing human-like characteristics to God, different belief systems have institutionalized their Gods with different personalities, which led to the idea that our God is better than yours; therefore, we are better than you. Thus, one human species got fragmented into perpetually conflicting faith groups instead of living in peace and harmony with other members of the same herd; animals do better than us in this respect.

Metaphysics, Evolution and Neurobiology

Metaphysics of the Human Mind 

SHEN has been researching the metaphysical structure of the human mind and body for over two decades to understand how we behave the way we do and how we can modify our behaviour. We found that its infinitely subtle metaphysical reality, called spirit,  underlying the universe and all it contains, including us, begins to concretize and grow to successively form various principles comprising our mind and then our body.

 The metaphysical growing process is similar to the biological growth of the body from an infinitesimal single-cell existence we were at conception to a full-grown 37.2 trillion-cell body or from a tiny seed to a giant tree. But there is one difference. While biological growth requires a continuous supply of energy from outside (sustenance), metaphysical growth is driven by inner fervour; remember the inseparability of energy and consciousness, two sides of a coin called spirit. 

We combed the scriptures of the world's major religions for metaphysical descriptions of the faculties of the human mind. We discovered that, although the names are language and culture dependence, there is a complete convergence of essence. All scriptures talk of three faculties of the mind listed in the sequence of their development: (1) the unconscious mind, in which consciousness works at a lightning speed like an automatic machine with little awareness, to keep our biological survival functions running around the clock, (2) the subconscious mind in which the awareness is partial in a way that we can exercise some control, and (3) a conscious mind which can work with full awareness and attention, but often fails to do so because the other two faculties with their brute force and urgency subdue the slow moving conscious faculty to serve their purpose although it can strategize to exercises dominion over them. 

Evolution of the Human Mind

Considering how life evolved on planet Earth leads us to the same three mental faculties as metaphysics. The first single-celled life on the planet some 3.8 billion years ago started with an unconscious automatic mind. Keeping alive was its only purpose. It had a sense of self-identity and of the other to save itself from others. It had to sustain itself with energy which it absorbed through its skin. It needed to reproduce to keep the species going. Identity, keeping alive, sustenance, and procreation were programmed in its mind by its genes. It reproduced by dividing itself and its genes into two. That was the birth of genetic inheritance. Changing environments caused the genes to mutate, leading to other species of life. Genetic inheritance and mutation drive the evolution of life. 

Over time, animals appeared, adding a subconscious faculty. This was followed by the evolution of mammals around 200 million years ago when the conscious faculty started to develop. Humans are mammals as well. Humans evolved around 200,000 years ago with their evolved conscious faculty. Because of their billions of years of history, the unconscious and the subconscious overwhelm the conscious and subdue it to serve their purpose. 

The sequence of development of the unconscious, subconscious and conscious faculties in the evolution of life and individual human life is the same. As compared to the conscious the unconscious has a head start if around 3.8 billion years, the subconscious of around a billion years in the evolution of life on the planet; this head start us repeated again in individual lives.

We are human because of the conscious faculty. If the conscious only serves the purpose of the other two, we are subhuman, no more than animals. To be fully human, we must train our conscious mental faculty to take total charge of life. 

Human Neurobiology

At conception, we begin the journey of our lives with the first mental faculty; soon, the second develops, and finally, the third begins evolving. The job of the first faculty is to run our physiological survival functions. It has to work instantaneously because survival cannot wait. It has to work at a faster clip if there is a real or imagined perception of external danger to physical survival. Traumas, fear of losing something we like, fear of getting something we dislike, and threats to our identity also act like the perception of danger to survival; they all increase the speed at which our unconscious mental faculty has to work. Lacking any perception of fears or external dangers to survival, the unconscious mental faculty can relax and slow down. 

The second faculty's job is to run our emotional life, which works automatically except when we exercise some conscious control with awareness. The opportunity for conscious control of the emotional life decreases when the speed of the unconscious increases and increases when the unconscious relaxes and slows down. We spend more than half of our lives in the grip of the first two faculties; it happens in the early development period and during deep, whether sound or dreaming. 

The last mental faculty governs our behaviour in the external world during our waking state. Only then do we have a choice between (1) taking charge of our destiny with our own will, and (2) letting latent impressions of the subconscious and unconscious manifesting as random mental wanderings run life on autopilot. The ground between the two choices is not level but tilted to choose life on autopilot.

We also combed neuroscience to see whether the brain structure corresponds with metaphysical mental faculties. We found a complete convergence there. There is the first to develop a largely reflexive nervous system up to and including the brain stem, the last reflex loop. It is the physical correlate of the unconscious faculty of the mind. The second to evolve is the reactive limbic brain taking care of our emotional lives. It is the physical correlate of the subconscious mental faculty. The last to evolve is the physical correlate of the conscious faculty, the neocortex, the prefrontal part of which is where decisions are made, our will is shaped, and learning happens. It takes almost a quarter of a century before the neocortex is physically fully formed. We need to keep using it for it to mature. We become human only through its use. We can remain subhuman if we let life run on autopilot by the subcortical brain stem and the limbic brain.

Identity, Otherness and Genes

All fears and external dangers to survival from another. Metaphysically, we were all united in one unseen spirit before the universe's origin. The universe of infinite diversity exists because of otherness, without otherness or identities, there would be no universe. 

We and others are all different manifestations of one spirit; the spirit dwells in all of us. The first force that drives our interactivity is the force of non-differentiation, and the second is otherness or differentiation.

Physically, the first to evolve is the diversity of matter. Matter interacts, and there is no interactivity without identity and otherness. Interactivity in the material domain is driven by an integrated material force that later splits into four: gravitation, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, and weak nuclear force. There are no life-and-death survival issues in matter, as it lasts as long as the universe.

There are life-and-death survival issues in living beings and a heightened role of identity and otherness. Biologically, life is matter with genes and can reproduce. Life is born, lives for a while, and then has to die. Survival, therefore, is the major driving force of interactivity in living beings. The integrated force of survival may be considered four forces: a strong sense of identity and otherness, an instinct to avoid death as long as possible, sustenance or continued external energy supply, and reproduction to keep the species going. The force of survival is the genetic inheritance of all living beings.   

Thus, all living beings are genetically programmed to live as long as possible. Fear of the other is an absolute necessity for survival in living beings. As seen above, fear keeps us subhuman by speeding up the working of our unconscious and subconscious mental faculties to the extent that our conscious faculty has no chance to be aware and pay attention, which takes time. Given enough time to pay attention, we can all transcend the divisive force of survival and access the unifying force of interactivity through non-differentiation.

The Journey from Subhuman to Fully Human

We noted that the unconscious faculty of the mind must work very fast around the clock to keep us alive, it has to work even faster when there is a perception of external danger to life, and it can relax to slow down when there is a perception of safety of survival. The speed of the subconscious and conscious increases with the increasing speed of the unconscious, and vice versa decreases with the decreasing speed of the unconscious. The higher the speed of the three faculties of the mind, the higher the barrier, presented by random mental fluctuations driven by the unconscious and the subconscious, to taking conscious charge of life. Thus, the road that can lead us from a subhuman life to a fully human lies in decreasing the speed of the three mental faculties; in simple terms, decreasing the speed of life or, in neurobiological terms, reducing sympathetic activation while increasing parasympathetic, which transforms our biochemistry, reconfigures our neural circuitry, and alters our gene expression transforming us in and out. However, individuals have to make an effort to engage in simple physical and physiological practices that reduce the speed of life, enabling us to pay attention to life transcending mere survival.

Ending Identity Savagery to Transforming Human Condition

Practices that reduce the speed of life comprise the key to transforming the prevalent human condition. This is the story of SHEN, an organization born to end identity savagery and unwittingly discovered how to transform the human condition, which ends all problems related to it, including identity savagery. It is now incumbent on SHEN to teach it to the whole world.