A summary of some of the themes we explored:
McGilchrist Conference Review
Simon and Sam had been watching some of the recordings of the McGilchrist conference I cohosted back in March, asking for my overall sense of whether some synthesis perspective emerged from the various presentations. I explained that one major theme was the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and how it is influencing our human self-understanding. Several speakers including John Vervaeke and Zak Stein expressed grave concern about the ways tech companies are seeking to integrate AI into culture through marketing and interfaces designed to mimic human interactions. This is a very dangerous trend, particularly for young people who may grow up with these technologies in ways that derail normal psychosocial developmental pathways.
Recontextualization and Human Atomization
Simon shifted the conversation to a discussion about recontextualization, drawing insights from Mike Levin’s conference talk on bioelectricity. He highlights the idea that humans currently experience a highly atomized sense of self, disconnected from larger social and cosmic bodies. In premodern cultures, people generally felt more integrated into their communities and environments, while modern individuals feel isolated within their own bodies. Simon reflects on how, in the past, people might have felt part of the “body of Christ” or the “body of the cosmos,” while today, humanity struggles with its place amid the deterioration of Gaia’s biosphere.
Gaia as an Organism and Evolutionary Theory
I then explored the idea of the Gaia hypothesis and the way that traditional evolutionary theory itself can’t fully explain Gaia’s status as a living organism. Life on Earth might be viewed as derivative from a more primary “Gaian cell,” shifting the way we think about life’s origins and evolution. Rather than Darwinian selection alone, Gaia could represent a more primary form of self-organization that Darwinian processes enhance but do not create. Granted, many of the self-regulating feedback loops currently understood by Earth Systems Science seem to have emerged at some point after living cells, but we can understand the birth process of Gaia as beginning prior to our usual understanding of what constitutes biological life.
Humanity’s Role as an Organ in Gaia
The conversation deepens into an exploration of humanity’s role within Gaia, with speculations on whether humans can learn to see themselves as organs within Gaia’s planetary body. We liken the human role to that of cells within a liver or another organ, questioning how cells identify with their place in the body. Might humanity come to recognize itself as a vital organ within the biosphere?
Disruptive Societal Changes and Evolution
It may be difficult to distinguish in advance whether a societal shift will be destructive or lead to a higher form of organization. Referencing Whitehead’s philosophy, I suggested that “evil is novelty in the wrong season,” and sometimes, disruption is necessary to catalyze evolution, even if the initial effects seem negative.
Death, Mortality, and Reincarnation
The conversation takes a spiritual turn as we get into the importance of death in human and biological evolution. Confronting our mortality may turn out to be essential for contacting Gaian intelligence, since individual human life is part of a larger planetary and cosmic cycle. I explore the possibility of reincarnation as a way to take our ecological responsibilities seriously. Even in a naturalistic sense, reincarnation can foster a sense of continuity between generations and deepen our connection to the nonhuman lifeforms with whom we share this planet. Humans inherit the successes and failures of past generations, and the idea of reincarnation offers a way to understand how our actions today impact the future, as we will be here to face the consequences.
Critique of Transhumanism and the Denial of Death
We criticize the transhumanist goal of defeating death and the idea that human consciousness could one day be uploaded into machines. I believe it to be a great delusion that may lead to a bifurcation in human evolution, where some people become cyborgs while others resist such technological “enhancements.” This discussion ties into the broader theme of humanity’s technoscientific disconnection from Gaia her potential immune response to ecological degradation, such as declining fertility rates due to environmental toxins.
Humility, the Role of Humanity, and Gaia’s Evolution
We emphasized the importance of humility in humanity’s relationship with Gaia. Although humans may currently act as parasites, Gaia likely values human life and is seeking to guide us back into alignment with planetary processes. We discuss the possibility that humanity is still in an adolescent phase, rebelling against its parent (Gaia), and that technological infrastructure represents our attempt to create an artificial womb from which we must eventually emerge to fully re-integrate with the Earth.
Wonder, Love, and Cosmic Communion
Sam reflects on the importance of cultivating wonder and love as antidotes to the indifference that can destroy the fabric of human society as well as Gaia’s body. He suggests that the human ability to experience awe is a powerful means of reconnecting with Gaia and understanding our role within the larger cosmic order. I believe this sort of cosmic communion is essential for the growth of the divine body—an evolving process that depends on the conscious participation of all beings.
The Internet, Noosphere, and New Forms of Consciousness
I mentioned Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s idea of the Noosphere or emerging planetary mind. I am critical of the transhumanist interpretation of the Noosphere as simply equivalent to the Internet, suggesting that instead, it represents Gaia’s emerging consciousness. He speculates that the Internet and AI infrastructure may be a temporary scaffolding for something more organic and subtle that will arises humanity matures. The Internet has the potential to create planetary culture and a sense of global interconnectedness, though it has also fueled culture wars. We agree that this tension represents growing pains as humanity navigates the transition to a more conscious and integrated planetary body.
Growing Gaia through Human Communion