Category Archives: Philosophy of Medicine

WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE TIME

SPIRITUALISM – TIME AND LIFE – SPIRITUAL INTERACTIONS :

 

LORD GAUTAMA BUDDHA HAD OBSERVED THAT WHATEVER IS BORN, PRODUCED, OR CONDITIONED CONTAINS WITHIN ITSELF THE NATURE OF ITS OWN DISSOLUTION. LIFE IS CONDITIONED TO EXPERIENCE CHANGE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF TIME AND LIVING THINGS ARE BORN TO EXPERIENCE DISSOLUTION AT THE END OF THEIR LIFETIME.

Gautama Buddha had observed that whatever is born, produced, conditioned, contains within itself the nature of its own dissolution. The greatest miracle is that of explaining the truth and to make man realize it. What is the Truth? To know the truth about Life, we have to understand the influence of Time. Individual living entities exist during their own LifeTime while the vital principle that animates all Life remains imperishable, immortal, eternal, and unchanging. Time is defined as the duration in which things are considered as happening in the past, present, or future. Time is the measurement of duration, the period between two events during which something exists, happens, or acts. This concept of Time demands that we must make a fundamental distinction between static and dynamic events. Static is the term used to describe a body, mass, or force that is at rest or in equilibrium and hence it is inactive, stationary, not moving, or progressing. Life is a dynamic event in which the object called the living thing exists by a tendency towards change or productive activity. Life requires the presence of a vital, energetic, animating principle that maintains the equilibrium called existence while responding to a flow of events that measure the duration of the existence of that living thing. In my view, Death is also a dynamic event and it is not a static event as the change called Death inevitably flows to cause Rebirth. The flow of Life  must be synchronized with the flow of Time for both of them to proceed until Eternity. I describe Spiritualism and Spirituality as the potency that generates Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility in the Time and Life Interactions to provide the Living Experience that is dependent upon Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility. To know this, we may have to know about  the Cyclical Changes of Matter, and the Cyclical Flow of Time. Chemistry is the Science that would give us the understanding of Living Matter and the Cyclical Changes that are caused by Chemical Reactions. In the study of Life, Chemistry is the Science that describes the nature of ‘Spiritual Interactions’. The ‘Spiritual Interactions’ between Time and Matter  establish, support, and preserve the existence of Life on this planet Earth.

MATTER – CHEMICAL ELEMENTS AND CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS :

 

HENNING BRAND(c. 1630-c. 1710), GERMAN ALCHEMIST WHO DISCOVERED PHOSPHORUS DURING c.1669 or 1674. I WOULD DESCRIBE CHEMISTRY AS THE SCIENCE OF SPIRITUAL INTERACTIONS.

 

ROBERT BOYLE (1627-1691)THE FATHER OF MODERN CHEMISTRY. Anglo-Irish Physicist and Chemist who separated the Science of Chemistry from Alchemy. He gave the first precise definitions of a Chemical Element, a Chemical Reaction, and Chemical Analysis. He discovered Boyle’s Law(Gas Laws).

All ‘Matter’ is composed of fundamental materials called Chemical Elements. A substance that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordinary chemical processes is by definition an Element. There are about 88 ‘naturally’ occurring Elements, and about 20 Elements are used in measurable amounts by most living organisms. Phosphorus is an essential Element to all Life as it is a component of DNA and RNA that make up the genetic material of all cells and control reproduction of both the cell and the organism. Phosphorus  is part of the energy storage and utilization system at the cellular level. In addition, Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Iron, Calcium, Potassium, Magnesium, Cobalt, Cadmium, Copper, Manganese, Zinc, Molybdenum, Boron, Sodium, Chlorine, Fluorine, Iodine, Sulfur, and Chromium are all essential to one form of life or another. Elements can combine with one another to form a wide variety of more complex substances called Chemical Compounds. A Chemical Compound is a substance in which two or more Elements are joined by Chemical Bonds. A Chemical Compound can be created or broken down by means of a Chemical Reaction but not by mechanical or physical separation techniques. It helps to make the distinction between Mixture and Compound. Most naturally occurring Matter represents Physical Mixtures of Chemical Compounds that could be separated using simple physical techniques. While the number of known Elements is small, the number of possible Compounds is almost ‘infinite’; perhaps a million or more Chemical Compounds are known to exist. When two or more Elements combine to form a Compound, they lose their separate identities, and the product called Chemical Compound has characteristics quite different from those of the constituent Elements. For example, the Common Salt or Sodium Chloride is a combination of the highly reactive metallic element Sodium(Na) and the poisonous gas Chlorine(Cl). The unique taste and flavor imparted by Salt cannot be discovered by studying the physical and chemical properties of Sodium or Chlorine. Elements in Compounds always are combined in definite proportion. For instance, a molecule of Water is always made up of two Hydrogen(H) atoms and one Oxygen(O) atom. Again, I would like to pay attention to the fact of two gaseous elements, Hydrogen, and Oxygen with quite different physical and chemical properties can combine to form the Compound Water which has altogether different properties from either Hydrogen or Oxygen. The simple, pure, original, and sweet taste imparted by Fresh Water cannot be discovered in its constituent Elements. I have mentioned that the Element Phosphorus is basic to all Life. Phosphorus is discovered in c.1674 by Hennig Brand. It is an extremely poisonous, yellow to white, waxy, solid substance. When exposed to air, Phosphorus ignites spontaneously. Some of the commercial uses of Phosphorus include the making of detergents, toxic nerve gases and explosives. We have to learn to make the distinction between Chemical Elements and Chemical Compounds and apply this understanding to know the nature of relationship between things. Calcium Phosphate is the principal material found in bones and teeth. Adenosine Triphosphate or ATP is the fundamental energy source in living things. It is very understandable that all Matter is composed of units called Atoms and the physical structure of Atom is well-known. We have to be very careful and avoid deriving understanding about Life and Living Matter from the descriptive knowledge derived from Quantum Physics. To understand the nature of living experience, we need Chemical Molecules and Chemical Compounds whose qualities and characteristics may not be discovered from the study of Nuclear Physics. The phenomenon of creating and breaking down Chemical Compounds in living organisms is known as Metabolism. A Chemical Compound’s smallest units are, Molecules, and Ions. A Molecule can exist in the free state and still retain the characteristics of the Element or Compound; a Molecule can be formed by an Element when it consists of one Atom, or two, or more similar Atoms; a Molecule can be formed by a Compound when it consists of two or more different Atoms. The term ‘Ion’ is used to describe an Atom or Molecule bearing an electric charge as a result of having a number of negative electrons unequal to the number of positive protons in its nuclei. ‘Ionization’ is the process that describes the formation of ‘Ions’ from neutral Atoms or Molecules. ‘Ions’ that are positively charged are known as ‘Cations’, and that are negatively charged are known as ‘Anions’. Simple ‘Ions’ consist of a single charged Atom; double, triple, or even higher positive or negative charges are possible. Oxidation of Hydrogen removes its single electron and gives H+ or cationic Hydrogen which contains no electrons and it has a nucleus which is composed of one proton. This cationic Hydrogen plays a particularly important role in the Acid-Base Chemistry of the human organism with many reactions exchanging protons between soluble molecules. The internal environment of a living cell includes Hydrogen, Potassium, Sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, Chloride, Sulfate, Phosphate and several organic acid ‘Ions’. The chemical events collectively called ‘Metabolism’ require the concentration of Hydrogen Ions and electrolytes to remain within narrow limits in the tissue cells and in the fluid which bathes them. The term ‘pH’ or ‘Acidity’ is a measure of the Hydrogen Ion concentration and a reading level of 7 indicates ‘Neutral’. Human life is possible only if the Hydrogen Ion concentration of body fluid is kept within a narrow range. In health, a blood Hydrogen Ion concentration of 36 – 44 nmol/Liter or pH level of 7.37 – 7.45 is maintained by several closely integrated but widely differing mechanisms.

THE CHEMICAL ELEMENTS AND CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OF LIFE :

 

HENRY CAVENDISH(1731-1810), British Chemist and Physicist noted for his discovery of Hydrogen, a gaseous Element during 1766. French Chemist Lavoisier named the gas Hydrogen in 1783. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe and it is the major fuel in fusion reactions of the Sun. However, this gas in its free state is very rare in our planet Earth.

 

Hydrogen, the most abundant Element in the universe is present in its diatomic, molecular form. Hydrogen is important for the formation of Stars. In this photo image, NGC 604, a giant region of ionized Hydrogen in the Triangulum Galaxy is seen.

 

Hydrogen makes up most of the mass( over 90%)of the universe and about 75 % of natural Matter by number of Atoms.Naturally occurring atomic Hydrogen is rare on Earth because Hydrogen readily forms covalent Compounds with most Elements. Hydrogen is present in the Water Molecule and in most Organic Compounds found in living organisms. Hydrogen forms a vast variety of Compounds with Carbon that are called Hydrocarbons.

To understand Life, we have to know about Hydrogen as it is the fuel that Sun expends in its role as the Cosmic source of Energy that supports the biological existence of all terrestrial organisms. Man exists on the surface of planet Earth not on account of the merit of his physical, or mental work and effort. Man has no direct access to this source of energy produced from Hydrogen fuel. If Hydrogen is important to support the existence of Life, we have to understand the nature of ‘Spiritual Interactions’. Secondly, Hydrogen is important as it is required to form the Water Molecule. However, Oxygen, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas, is the most abundant Element at the surface of the Earth. In the terrestrial environment, Oxygen accounts for about half of the mass of the Earth’s crust, 89% of the mass of the oceans, and 23% of the mass of the atmosphere or 21% of its volume. Oxygen makes up about two-thirds of the human body. It is a vital substance which supports vital functions. Among Chemical Elements used by human body, Oxygen has the highest electronegativity and electron affinity. Oxygen can form ‘Anion’ with a double negative charge by accepting electrons from a donor like Hydrogen. Most of the Earth’s rocks and soils are principally compounds of Oxygen with Silicon and other metals. It is well understood that most organisms depend on Oxygen to sustain their biological processes. Biological Oxidation-Reduction Reactions are ultimately the sources of energy for the higher plants and animals. While speaking about the importance of Oxygen in the biosphere, we must recognize that Oxygen is responsible for natural decomposition of all organic material. Waste products from the activity of the living organisms, dead plants and animals decompose or oxidized through the agency of microorganisms. Thus,  Oxygen plays a key role both in its support of important processes of Life and Death. Organic decay and decomposition is of fundamental importance for Life to renew itself and to be reborn and to cause rebirth. The study of ‘Spiritual Interactions’ must include the study of Life and Death.

 

Joseph Priestley and Karl Scheel were the first to isolate the gaseous Element during 1773-74 which was named by Antoine Laurent Lavoisier as Oxygen. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas, and is the most abundant Element found on planet Earth.

  

Oxygen makes up about 90% of Water, two-thirds of the human body, and 20% by volume of Air. Normal atmospheric Oxygen is a diatomic Molecule.
The common Chemical Reaction in which Oxygen unites with another substance is called Oxidation.Combustion or rapid oxidation, the burning of s substance may generate light and heat. The process called Oxidation need not involve the generation of light and heat. Oxygen itself does not burn. The Respiration of plants and animals is a form of Oxidation that is essential to the liberation of the energy stored in such food materials as Carbohydrates, Fats, and Proteins. Oxygen is necessary to sustain Metabolism which primarily involves the Oxidation-Reduction Chemical Reactions. If the Oxygen concentration were to drop to about half its value in the atmosphere, humans could no longer survive. The loss of Oxygen is critical as the human body has no means of storing Oxygen. Because the human body stores no Oxygen, any interference with breathing and ventilation that lasts more than a few minutes can cause Death.
 
Dr. Daniel Rutherford(1749-1819), Professor of Medicine & Botany, Edinburgh University, Scotland, discovered Nitrogen in 1772. Joseph Priestley and Henry Cavendish in England, and Carl W. Scheele in Sweden also get credit for the discovery of Nitrogen. The French Chemist Antoine Lavoisier proved that it is an Element.
 

On planet Earth, Nitrogen, the most abundant uncombined Element occurs as the diatomic molecule. Atmospheric air is 78.06% Nitrogen gas by volume. Nitrogen is an important component of Protoplasm or Living Matter. It is very remarkable to note that one type of organic molecule with a nitrogenous base plays a variety of roles in support of living functions.

 

Adenosine Tri Phosphate or ATP is a Nucleotide; the monomeric unit of Nucleic Acid,contains a Purine or Nitrogenous base called Adenosine, a Sugar called Ribose and three Phosphate groups.In most Chemical Reactions of all cells in which transfer of energy occurs, the nucleotide ATP is involved. It functions as a Coenzyme in many enzyme-catalyzed reactions and helps in the performance of chemical, electrical, and osmotic work in animals, plants, and microorganisms.

 

Cyclic Adenosine Mono Phosphate or cAMP is formed from ATP by the catalytic action of the enzyme Adenyl Cyclase. It controls many important functions in the cell including the ability of the cell to generate electrical impulses and is called “Second Messenger.”It is responsible for the intracellular mediation of hormonal effects on various cellular processes; e.g., Lipid Metabolism, Membrane Transport by opening Ion Channels, and Cell Reproduction.

 

All living organisms need organic nitrogen compounds such as Proteins, Vitamins like Thiamine and Riboflavin. In nature, Nitrogen from the air is ‘fixed’ by some bacteria and plants. It is then made available to all organisms through ‘Nitrogen Cycle’.
 
The nonmetallic Element, Carbon is known to man since ancient times. Organic Chemistry is the study of Carbon Compounds. All living organisms contain Carbon Compounds and hence Carbon is the central Element in the Compounds of which organisms are composed. The Carbon Element found in all living organisms is primarily derived from Carbon Dioxide found in atmospheric air or dissolved in water. It occurs both free and combined form in nature and makes up about 1% of the volume of dry air. Carbon Dioxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas. It is the raw material for Photosynthesis in green plants and is a product of animal respiration and of the decay of organic matter. It can cause Death by suffocation if inhaled in large amounts. If this Chemical Compound Carbon Dioxide, a gas that has the potential to cause Death, can impart ‘SWEETNESS’ to a substance that we recognize as ‘SUGAR’, it speaks about the potency that I describe as ‘Spiritual Interaction’ between the Elements of Life.
 
Plants incorporate Carbon into Carbohydrates and other complex organic molecules by means of Photosynthesis. During Respiration or Cellular Oxidation, living organisms combine Oxygen with portions of Carbohydrate molecule, releasing Carbon in the form of Carbon dioxide and water.
 
Water Molecules are the simplest and most abundant of all the Molecules found in the living cell. The simplest forms of Life such as the Virus particles may exist as Molecules of Nucleic Acids and need living cells for their replication. Most Chemical Reactions inside the living cell require the aqueous medium. Cells contain 70 to 80% Water. Cell Chemistry involves the study of Reactions in aqueous solutions. But, much of the Water in Cells is not ordinary Water; it is found ‘structured’ in shells surrounding macromolecules, especially proteins. The activities inside the Cell are separated and take place inside compartments that are regulated. It is important to know that most of the Water inside the living Cell is structured and the Chemistry of the living Cell demands separation of events at Molecular level.
 
ANTOINE LAURENT LAVOISIER(1743-1794), French Chemist and Physicist. He discovered the Composition of Water Molecule and of various other Organic Compounds.
 
Water Molecule looks very simple and yet it plays a mysterious role inside all living cells. It is essential to Life and its propagation. Its Spiritual nature is revealed by its pure, original, and sweet taste it imparts apart from its role as a Chemical Compound. It is the main mode of transport of many Elements that are needed by the living organisms. Water is the Agent that leaches Nutrient Elements and Compounds from rocks and soils and makes them available for use by plants ,and animals.
 
THE CYCLICAL FLOW OF TIME :

 

SUN THE COSMIC SOURCE OF ENERGY SHINES ALL THE TIME. IT IS APPARENTLY AN UNCHANGING EVENT. HOW DOES MAN MEASURE HIS TIME?
 
The Flow of Time is measured as the duration or the interval between two events; Time exists for man and other living organisms as the measure of the period of duration from Sunrise to Sunset that causes an environmental change; the alternating periods of Light(DAY) and Darkness(NIGHT). Earth’s Rotational Spin transforms the instant called ‘FUTURE’ into an instant called ‘PAST’ without giving man any choice to know the instant called ‘PRESENT’. Earth’s Revolution brings Seasons that man experiences at regular and constant intervals of Time while man simply exists on the surface of planet Earth with no physical experience of Earth’s Motions through Space.
 
Things in Nature change with Time. Does Time exert a ‘FORCE’ entirely of its own to change things in Nature? If Time is viewed as a ‘FORCE’, or ‘POWER’, who controls this Force or Power and what are the Laws that operate this Force or Power? The Clocks and Calendars that man has invented create the illusion that we live in a world of mathematically measured segments of Time. Sir Issac Newton(1687) stated that the flow of Time is absolute. Time is looked upon as a flow like a river: It “flows equably without relation to anything external.” Herman Minkowski, a Mathematician, added Time as the Fourth Dimension of three-dimensional Space. Time is seen as a dimension like Height and Width and it gives meaning to events and the order in which they occur. In 1905, while postulating the Theory of Relativity, Albert Einstein had observed that the measurement of Time is affected by the motion of the observer and hence it is not absolute. Gravity affects both Time and Light. The measurement of Time is affected by the gravitational field of each celestial body. The experience of Time on this planet is an illusionary experience and it may not be an absolute experience. Physicists tend to describe Time and Space as the building blocks of this universe. In the context of understanding the relationship between Time and Life, we will be forced to see Time in the internal Biological Clocks that keep all living entities in ‘sync’ with Nature.

 

The Biological Clock: Every Living System behaves as if it contains a highly dependable ‘CLOCK’. It is a self-sustained internal timing mechanism that controls the ability of an organism to synchronize its existence with events in its internal and external environment.Such Time-Dependent variability in Function is called a Biological Rhythm.
 
All living things have in their nature a plan for their own dissolution and have the ability to use some unique Time-Dependent biological mechanism that is indissociable from life itself. Biological Rhythms represent the periodic biological fluctuation in an organism that corresponds to and is in response to periodic environmental change. Biological Clock in man measures Time as the Solar Day, the period of Earth’s Rotational Spin relative to the Sun. Such Biological Rhythms that occur once a Day are called Circadian( Latin Circa: About, Di: Day ), Solar Day, Diel, Daily, or Diurnal(Day-Active) Rhythm. The Rhythm is synchronized with an external Time-giving stimulus. Within the 24-Hour Cycle, a person usually sleeps approximately 8 hours and is awake 16 hours. For the health and the well-being of man, the daily alteration of Sleep and Wakefulness is important to maintain optimal physiological functions. Man is conditioned to exist under the influence of Time which is operated on planet Earth by its Rotation on its own axis.

THE CYCLICAL FLOW OF LIFE, MATTER, AND ENERGY :

All living organisms depend upon about 20 naturally occurring Chemical Elements. In order for Life to survive, these Elements must be constantly recycled in forms that plants and animals can use. Nutrient Cycle is the term used to describe the natural processes that keep all the Chemical Elements needed to support Life circulating within the Biosphere or Ecosphere. The far-reaching nature of Nutrient Cycles reveal the Interactions between Time, Life, Death, and Rebirth. Life continues using the process called Rebirth. Death is an important requirement to regenerate Life. The dissolution of individual living entities under the influence of Time is a prerequisite for Renewal of Life and the propagation of Life over the limits imposed by Time.

THE WATER OR HYDROLOGIC CYCLE :

 

The Water Cycle or Hydrologic Cycle is necessary to the operation of all Nutrient Cycles. The energy for the transportation of Water Molecules is provided by the Sun and it is the Fundamental Basis for all other Time-Life Spiritual Interactions.

 

Water is important to all life forms for its role in the control of environmental conditions and as it is  the main mode of transport of many nutrients; it is the agent that leaches nutrients from rocks and soils and make them available for further use by living organisms.
 
THE CARBON CYCLE :
 
The Carbon Cycle clearly illustrates the complexity of relationships involved in the processes of Recycling Nutrient Elements in Nature. Life depends on the interwoven and interdependent relationships of green plants and animals, supplemented by the activities of bacteria, and the constant transport of nutrients within the Ecosystem and within organisms.
 
The Carbon Cycle describes the exchange of Carbon between living organisms and non-living environment.To maintain Life, an organism not only repairs or replaces( or both ) its structures by a constant supply of the materials of which it is composed but also keep its life processes in operation by a steady supply of energy. Living Systems must be supplied energy on a continual basis. Once spent, the energy for Life cannot be replenished except by further exposure of green plants to Sunlight. The Chemical Elements of Life are continually recycled by such processes as Photosynthesis and Respiration.
 
THE OXYGEN CYCLE :

 

Photosynthesis and Respiration are complementary functions and drive the Oxygen Cycle.Oxygen is necessary to sustain Metabolism. Oxygen is also important and is responsible for natural decomposition of organic material, waste products of Metabolism, oxidative decomposition of dead plants and animals through the agency of microorganisms.
 
Oxygen is equally important for Life and Death as Death must be accompanied by decay and decomposition of organic material to release the Nutrient Elements for further use by other living organisms. 
 
THE NITROGEN CYCLE :

 

All living organisms participate in the Nitrogen Cycle. It includes the processes and Chemical Reactions involved in producing organic Nitrogen from inorganic Nitrogen and subsequently breaking down organic Nitrogen back to the inorganic form.
 
The Nitrogen Cycle begins when atmospheric Nitrogen and Hydrogen combine to form Ammonia in a process called Ammonification. The Nitrogen Compounds are made available to plants which combine them with the products of Photosynthesis to form Amino Acids, which are the basic components of plant Proteins. Animals eat plant Proteins, break them down into Amino Acids during the process of digestion, and recombine them to form their own particular forms of Proteins in order to build tissues and organs of their bodies. Through breakdown of waste products, death and decay, organic Nitrogen compounds reenter environment.
 

THE PHOSPHORUS CYCLE :

Phosphorus recycles more slowly than other Nutrient Elements. Phosphates are taken up by the roots of green plants and used in organic synthesis. They are passed to animals through ‘Food Chains’. Ultimately, Phosphates are released to soil through bacterial and fungal decomposition after the death of an animal.
 
We need to make the distinction between the Chemical Element Phosphorus and Phosphate the Chemical Compound that supports Life. The Phosphate mineral found in the rocks may have taken millions of years before it became available to plant Life.
 
ECOLOGY – LIFE AND DEATH SPIRITUAL INTERACTIONS :

 

Life depends on the interwoven and interdependent relationships between living organisms and the environment. No organism leads a truly independent existence of its own. Each organism lives by either consuming other organisms or the products from other organisms. In a Biological Community, Life and Death have a relationship which has a Spiritual Basis.
 
Ecology describes the movement of Chemical Elements and Chemical Molecules in nature because of the interrelationships and interconnectedness of organisms that form the ‘Food Chains’. This flow has a cyclical pattern and Life and Death could be described as two stages in this exchange of material and energy between the living and non-living environment. Greek philosopher Heraclitus( c. 535 B.C. – c. 475 B.C.) held that there is no permanent Reality except the Reality of Change. His famous maxim : “You cannot step twice in the same River.” I beg to differ from his view. The permanent Reality describes the unchanging Spiritual Nature of a Chemical Molecule that supports Life and Existence. Water Molecule came into its existence billions of years ago and it still retains its unique and distinctive properties and is entirely unaffected by the influence of Time while it undergoes both physical and chemical changes in its Interactions. I seek to describe Spirituality in the unchanging nature of Chemical Molecules that operate the dynamic events of both Life and Death. If Life involves a series of Chemical Reactions such as the Redox or Oxidation-Reduction Chemical Reactions, the same dynamic process continues into Death causing changes to promote Regeneration, Rejuvenation, Renewal, and Rebirth. Spiritualism could be the Dynamic Force that promotes Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility in the material transformations of Life and Death.

Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,

Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,

M.B.B.S.  Class  of  April,  1970.

Biographical Information:

1. Place of Birth: Mylapore, Madras City, Chenna Patnam, Chennai, Madras State, Tamil Nadu, India. Born Hindu(Brahmin, Niyogi, Smartha), Telugu-Speaking.

2. Date and Place of Marriage: January 29, 1973. Town Congregational Church, Cuddapah, Kadapa District, Andhra Pradesh, India.

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WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE MOLECULE

 

Tobacco mosaic virus
Tobacco mosaic virus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SPIRITUALISM – THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF SPIRITUALITY :

The molecules and processes responsible for energy acquisition, energy manipulation, growth and reproduction are basically similar in all life-forms. To understand life, consideration must be given to describe the molecules that determine its structure and to the ways in which molecules are organized. The Molecular Basis of Spirituality describes the organization of molecules that is responsible for the coordination of living functions and living activities of life-forms. Spiritualism involves the capacity or capability to organize molecules to establish the reality of biological existence by any life-form. To explain the Molecular Basis of Spirituality, I would begin with the simplest life-forms that we know.

THE FOUNDERS OF VIROLOGY – THE STUDY OF VIRUSES :

 

Dmitri Ivanovsky( Dmitri Iosifovich Iwanowski ), Russian Botanist in 1892, discovered the filterable nature of a very tiny agent that causes Tobacco Mosaic Disease.

 

Martinus Beijerinck, the Dutch Microbiologist in 1898 named the mysterious infectious agent that causes Tobacco Mosaic Disease as ‘VIRUS’.

I am glad to pay my respectful tribute to Dmitri Ivanovsky, Russian Botanist, and to Martinus Beijerinck, the Dutch Microbiologist, the founders of Virology, the Study of Viruses. Ivanovsky studied the Tobacco Mosaic Disease during 1892. By conducting experiments he had demonstrated that the disease is caused by a filterable agent smaller than bacteria. In 1898, Beijerinck independently replicated Ivanovsky’s experiments and found that the infectious agent could only reproduce by infecting leaves of the Tobacco plant. He named the mysterious infectious agent as Tobacco Mosaic Virus- the first Virus recognized.

THE STUDY OF VIRUSES, VIRIONS, VIROIDS, AND VIRUSOIDS :

 

Virus is a complex, molecular life-form that blurs the boundaries of living and non-living material.

Viruses are small masses of material( 100 – 2,000 angstrom ), complex molecular life-forms that blur the boundaries of living and non-living material. Most Viruses are smaller than the wavelength of visible light. They are extremely small and can only be seen with an electron microscope. As compared to light microscope, electron microscope can increase magnification from 1,000 – 2,000 diameters to around 300, 000 diameters. Viruses are 1,000 times more plentiful in water than originally suspected and hence Viruses could be the most numerous life-forms on Earth. Many hundreds of different types of Viruses exist and all of them need living cells to serve them as hosts. Viruses can only complete their life cycles as parasites as they reproduce only within the cells of their hosts, upon which they depend for many of their fundamental life processes. While many Viruses are harmless to their hosts, certain Viruses are responsible for important diseases of humans, animals, and plants. Many Viruses are known to man by the specific disease entities that they cause: Smallpox, Chickenpox, Measles, Mumps, Yellow fever, Polio myelitis, Rabies, Influenza, and the Common Cold. All of us without any exception would get the chance of experiencing the bouts of one or the other Viral infections.

 

The DNA of Herpes Virus particle is enclosed by an icosahedral(20-sided) shell of 162 protein units, or capsomers, and by an outer spiked lipoprotein envelope. It causes infectious diseases in man like Chickenpox and Shingles.

A complete virus particle or Virion consists of one molecule of Nucleic Acid, single or double-stranded, either DNA or RNA depending on the specific Virus. It has a protein coat called Capsid which consists of a specific number of protein molecules or Capsomers in a definitive arrangement. In some Viruses, the outer coat has lipid(fat) and carbohydrate. The protein coat helps the survival of the Virus while it exists outside a living cell. The protein coat is also concerned with the mechanisms by which the Virus enters and infects the host cell.

 

To understand the concept of Spiritualism as a functional relationship that generates Peace, Harmony and Tranquility, we must know the nature of biotic interaction called Parasitism that causes Disease. Millions of human lives have perished due to the scourge of Viral Diseases that afflict humankind. This Retrovirus called Human Immunodeficiency Virus(HIV) is responsible for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS.

During the stage of its life cycle, when the Virus is free and infectious, the virus particle or Virion is inert, and does not carry out the usual functions of a living entity, such as reproduction or growth in numbers. The propagation of a Virus requires the internal environment of a complete cell, including its biochemical machinery. The Virus loses the protein coat upon entry into a cell, after which the genetic material of the Virus reproduces using materials made by the host cell. The Virus leaves the host cell surrounded by the protein coat, the characteristics of these protein molecules are determined by the genes in the Virus, but the protein molecules are synthesized by the host cell. Viruses are often described as “naked genes” which have discarded all other attributes of complete cells. The Virion or virus particle contains the knowledge or biological information that is needed for its replication. However, to perform that reproductive function, a Virus needs the host cell’s chemical energy, and protein-and nucleic-acid synthesizing ability.

 

Viroids and Virusoids are the smallest and simplest form of all recognized Viruses and Self-replicating Molecules.They lack the protective shell of protein coat that most other Viruses have.

Viroids and Virusoids are the smallest and simplest form of all recognized Viruses and Self-replicating Molecules. Viroids are composed of nothing more than a single circular strand of genetic material and cause major disease in plants. Since Viroids lack the protective shell of protein, they do not even spread easily from one cell or plant to another. The genetic material of Viroid is RNA which has a length of only a few hundred ribonucletids(200-400). Viroids are described as molecules of “naked RNA” that are significantly smaller than the genome of the smallest Virus. They are also called ‘subviral particles’. Viroids/Virusoids “infect” other Viruses, and use the replication process of the host Virus to replicate themselves instead. Viroids are responsible for a number of serious diseases of economically important plants like the Coconut Palm and Chrysanthemums. Episomes are pieces of self-replicating genetic molecules found in some bacterial cells. These are similar to Viruses except for the fact that they only reproduce themselves when their host cells do, whereas Viruses reproduce themselves hundreds of times and often generate the signs and symptoms of the infectious disease they cause in the host.

RNA MOLECULE AS GENETIC MATERIAL :

 

The only human disease caused by a Viroid is HEPATITIS- D. The Viroid is enclosed in Hepatitis B Virus Capsid. Viroids use different strategies for encouraging host Viruses/cells to replicate its RNA molecule.

The RNA-containing Viruses are unique among living systems. They use RNA as their primary genetic material. Retroviruses produce the enzyme called RNA-directed DNA Polymerase or Reverse Transcriptase, which can make a DNA molecule from the Viral RNA molecule. This DNA molecule formed from RNA then serves as the principal genetic molecule within the infected, host cell. Retrovirus uses a life process that is termed ‘reverse transcription’. Two Retroviruses are associated with human leukemia which are Cancer of T-cells. The Retrovirus known as Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV is responsible for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or AIDS.

THE NUCLEIC ACID MOLECULE – THE ESSENCE AND EXISTENCE OF LIFE :

 

The Influenza Virus has the ability to cause pandemic(world-wide)infection of humans. The pandemic of 1918 is estimated to have killed 21-22 million people worldwide. The Virus got its name from the word “INFLUENCE” from an observation made more than 400 years ago that epidemics of respiratory illness occurred under the “influence” of planets and other astrological events. The term ‘spiritualism’ or ‘spirituality’ does not describe the ‘essence’ or character of this Viral Nucleic Acid Molecule.

 

Nucleic Acids are organic substances that are characteristic of all living things. These organic molecules are not found in nature except as components or products of organisms. They are called macromolecules; molecules of molecular weight greater than 10,000 daltons or 10,000 times the weight of a Hydrogen atom. These molecules are long chains or polymers that consist of chains of smaller units called monomers. Each Nucleic Acid chain is composed of subunits called nucleotides, each of which is composed of a specific sugar molecule( Deoxyribose or Ribose ), a molecule of Phosphoric Acid, and a molecule of one of four organic bases: Adenine(A), Guanine(G), Cytosine(C), and Thymine(T). The two chief types of Nucleic Acid are DNA( Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid ), and RNA( Ribo Nucleic Acid ). DNA contains the sugar deoxyribose and RNA contains the sugar ribose, and the base Uracil(U) instead of Thymine(T). The specific sequences of nucleotides constitute the genetic information of the life-form. Each three-nucleotide sequence specifies one particular amino acid. The long sequences of nucleotides thus correspond to the sequences of amino acids in the proteins that are synthesized. In order to be expressed as protein, the genetic information is carried to the protein-synthesizing machinery called Ribosomes found in the cytoplasm of the cell. Forms of RNA mediate this process and are important in the expression of the genetic code contained in the DNA for the synthesis of proteins. Although the triplet nucleotide code seems to be universal, the actual sequences of the nucleotides vary according to the species and individual organism. The Nucleic Acid Molecules, DNA/RNA is the substance of heredity; it carries the ‘essence’ or character of an organism from one generation to next generation. But, in the study of Viruses we have found that this ‘essence’ is not displayed until its ‘existence’ is supported and is established in a complete living cell. The Nucleic Acid Molecules do not have the capacity or capability of acquiring energy from their external environment. The Virion or virus particle is inert until it finds a host cell to establish its life as a living thing. The Nucleic Acid Molecules are important to establish the ‘essence’ of an organism and I find the characteristics called ‘Spiritualism’ or ‘Spirituality’ in the functional organization of those Molecules that establish the ‘existence’ of a living entity.

THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF SPIRITUALITY :

Smallpox or Variola was one of the worst scourges ever to afflict human beings. The Smallpox Vaccine developed by Dr. Edward Jenner, British Surgeon in 1796 was the first successful Immunization against any Infectious Disease or Agent. In October 1979, the World Health Organization(WHO) declared that the world is Smallpox Free. Spiritualism and Spirituality seek to establish Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility in all functional Biotic Interactions within the Individual and within the Biotic or Biological Community.

  

The purpose and goal of Spiritualism or Spirituality is that of generating Peace, Harmony, and Equilibrium in all functional relationships within the Individual and between members of the Biotic or Biological Community. The disease, the disability, the morbidity, and death caused by Viral infections demonstrate the consequences of Biotic Interactions called Parasitism. The functional organization of a variety of Molecules that provide the functional ability called ‘Existence’ that establishes a living entity is the chief attribute of the ground substance found inside the Living, Complete Cell and the viral particles have no such functional organizational capacity or capability. The Spirit or Soul represents the ‘Knower’ of the Function and is the Architect of Molecular Organization that causes ‘Existence’. The role of various other Molecules, the Molecules concerned with Life, found in living cells will be given further consideration in my next blog post to demonstrate the ‘spiritual’ nature of the Protoplasm, the ground substance, the living material, or living matter that constitutes Life.

Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,

Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,

M.B.B.S.  Class  of  April,  1970.

Biographical Information :

1. Place of Birth : Mylapore, Madras City, Chenna Patnam, Chennai, Madras State, Tamil Nadu, India. Born: Hindu, Brahmin(Niyogi-Smartha), Telugu Speaking.

2. Date and Place of Marriage : January 29, 1973, Congregational Town Church, Cuddapah, Kadapa District, Andhra Pradesh, India.

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WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE CELL

A diagram of a typical prokaryotic cell. This ...
A diagram of a typical prokaryotic cell. This diagram, made in Adobe Illustrator, is an improved version of a similar diagram, Image:Prokaryote cell diagram.svg, which was also made by LadyofHats. Besides general appearance changes, this version adds plasmids and pili, and notes that DNA is circular. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SPIRITUALISM – THE CELL THEORY OF SPIRITUALITY :

In Biology, cell is the basic or fundamental unit of structure, function, and organization in all living things or it is the building block of life. Let me begin with my respectful tribute to some of the people who contributed to ‘The Cell Theory’, one of the foundations of Biological Sciences. Cells were first observed in the 17th century shortly after the discovery of the microscope. Robert Hooke, british curator of instruments at The Royal Society of London, during 1665 coined the word cell. Dutch microscopist Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek(1632-1723) made over 247 microscopes and examined microorganisms and tissue samples. He gave the first complete descriptions of bacteria, protozoa( which he called animalcules ), spermatozoa, and striped muscle. He also studied capillary circulation and observed Red Blood Cells.

 

Robert Hooke, british curator of instruments at The Royal Society of London coined the term cell during 1665.

 

Dutch microscopist Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek(1668-80) studied capillary circulation and observed Red Blood Cells.

Improvements in microscopy during early 19th century permitted closer observation and the significance of cells had received better understanding. Matthias Jakob Schleiden(1838), german botanist, Theodor Schwann(1839), german physiologist, and Rudolf Virchow(1855), german pathologist, and others made important contributions to The Cell Theory that describes cell as the building block of all Life.

 

Schleiden, Professor of Botany, The University of Jena studied plant structure under the microscope, published “Contibutions to Phytogenesis”(1838). He had also published the two-volume text of ‘Principles of Scientific Botany’.

 

Schwann founder of modern Histology extended the Cell Theory of Plants to animals in his ‘Microscopic Researches into Accordance in the Structure and Growth of Animals and Plants(1839).

 

Schwann discovered Myelin Sheath covering peripheral axons, now termed Schwann Cells. He coined the term ‘Metabolism’ for the chemical changes that take place in living tissues.
Rudolf Virchow,german pathologist in 1855 coined the biological dictum “OMNIS CELLULA E CELLULA” – All living cells arise only from pre-existing living cells.

The Cell is the smallest unit in the living organism that is capable of carrying on the essential life processes of sustaining metabolism for producing energy and reproducing. Many simple, small, single-celled organisms like Protozoa perform all life functions. In higher, complex, bigger, multicellular organisms, groups of cells are structurally and functionally differentiated into specialized tissues and organ systems. Thus, The Cell Theory includes the following foundational principles of the Biological Sciences:

1. All living things are made up of cells. Cell is the most elementary or basic unit of Life. 

2. Cell is a fundamental unit of structure, function, and organization in all living things including plants and animals.

3. Cells only rise from division of previously existing cells.

4. All cells are similar in composition, form, and function. All cells are basically the same in chemical composition( in spite of variations ) in organisms of similar species. For example, all the solid tissues in the human body can be shown to consist largely of similar cells; differing it is true, but that are essentially similar to an Ovum.

5. The cells exhibit functional autonomy. The activity of an organism depends on the total activity of ‘INDEPENDENT’ cells.

6. Energy flow( metabolism and biochemistry ) occurs within cells.

7. Cells contain hereditary, biological information(DNA) which is passed from cell to cell during cell division.

THE CELL THEORY OF SPIRITUALITY :

The basic or fundamental unit of life in the human organism is derived from the fertilized egg cell that eventually develops into a complete organism. The most significant feature of similarity between the cells of the human body is the presence of a soft, gelatinous, semi-fluid, granular material inside the cell. This substance known as Protoplasm or Cytoplasm, or Cytosol is similar to the ground substance found in the Ovum or the Egg Cell. This viscous, translucent, colloidal substance is enclosed in a membrane called Plasma Membrane or Biological Membrane. A small spherical body called nucleus is embedded in the Protoplasm of the cell. The two essential features of any living cell in the human body are that of the presence of Protoplasm and the nucleus.

 

Human Ovum Structure – The Cell Theory of Spirituality is based upon the Substance, Structure, Form, Organization, Function, Action and Interactions of this Single Fertilized Egg Cell that eventually develops into a complete human organism.

THE SPIRITUALITY OF SUBSTANCE, FUNCTION, ORGANIZATION, ACTION, AND INTERACTIONS :

To establish the biological existence of the human organism, I add the concept of Spiritualism and Spirituality to The Theory of Cell. The Single Fertilized Egg Cell has ground substance that is of Spiritual nature and the Spiritualism and Spirituality consists of the following functional, and organizational characteristics:

1. The Cell is Conscious of its own existence and knows its internal condition and knows it external environment.

2. The Cell is Intelligent and it has the Cognitive abilities like perception and memory to acquire information, to retain information, to recall information, and to use information in the performance of its complex tasks in a sequential manner.

3. The Cell has the ability to show characteristics such as mutual cooperation, mutual tolerance, and display functional subordination and subservience while being independent.

4. The Cell grows, divides, and develops into a complete organism while it acquires substances and energy from an external environment and it continuously transforms matter to build matter of its own kind for its own benefit to sustain its  existence with its own identity, individuality while the Organism represents a social group or a biological community. The Spiritual nature of the substance brings this functional harmony and unity by bringing together its Essence and Existence.

The theoretical claims about Spirit and Soul, the religious and philosophical doctrines of Spiritualism and Spirituality must be verified using The Cell Theory that defines the human organism. To describe Soul or Spirit as  nonmaterial Self will not help man to know the real or true man.

WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE BIOLOGY

Principle of ECG formation, fast Deutsch: Prin...
Principle of ECG formation, fast Deutsch: Prinzip der EKG-Darstellung, schnell (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SPIRITUALISM – THE BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF SPIRITUALITY :

From the beginning of human history, the ideas and concepts about Spiritualism and Spirituality included a desire to find Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility in the living human experience and it is concerned about the experience of Happiness, Joy, and Bliss which is described as ‘ANANDA’ in Sanskrit language. Thinkers have contemplated that Spiritualism or Spirituality may involve a potency that is associated with an intelligent, immaterial substance called Spirit. The term Soul is often used to describe the immortal, immutable aspect of man who is separate from his body. The term Spirit is used to describe a thing that may have an independent existence of its own apart from the physical body and it may survive after the death of the body. The ideas or concepts about Soul or Spirit appear to be valid and upon verification, I seek the existence of Soul or Spirit in a substance that is basic to life activities, and in a material that is responsible for all living processes. I, therefore, propose that the understanding of the true or real nature of this ground substance of all living matter will help man to discover Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility in all of his internal and external relationships while man exists in a physical environment as a member of a social group, social community, and Society. In this blog post, I would like to pay my respectful tribute to Jan Evangelista Purkinje and Hugo Von Mohl for their great contribution to the scientific understanding of the living substance, living material, and living matter.

JAN EVANGELISTA PURKINJE – JAN EVANGELISTA PURKYNE :

 

Jan Evangelista Purkyne(Czech name), Jan Evangelista Purkinje(German name)also known as Johannes Evangelist Purkinje, b. December 17, 1787, d. July 28, 1869. The pioneer Czech experimental Physiologist whose investigations in the fields of Histology, Embryology,and Pharmacology helped create a modern understanding of the eye and vision, brain and heart function, mammalian reproduction, and the composition of cells.

 

Purkinje conducted his research on human vision at the University of Prague and later on, he served there as a Professor of Physiology(1850-69). He went to Germany and was appointed the Chair of Physiology and Pathology(1823-50) at the University of Breslau, Prussia. There Purkinje created the world’s first independent Department of Physiology(1839) and the first Physiological Laboratory(Physiological Institute, 1842). He is best known for his discovery of large nerve cells with many branching extensions found in the cortex of Cerebellum of the brain(Purkinje Cells, 1837). He discovered the fibrous tissue that conducts electrical impulses from the ‘pacemaker’ called Atrioventricular node or A-V node along the inside walls of the ventricles to all parts of the heart to help in Cardiac contractile function(Purkinje Fibers, 1839). In 1835, he invented and introduced the scientific term ‘Protoplasm’ to describe the ground substance found inside young animal embryo cells. He discovered the sweat glands of the skin(1833); he discovered the nine configuration groups of Fingerprints used in biometric identification of man(1823); he described the germinal vesicle or nucleus of the unripe ovum that now bears his name(1825), and he noted the protein digesting power of pancreatic extracts(1836).

 

Purkinje Fibers and Cardiac Contraction. The spiritual nature of protoplasm brings functional unity among the cells, tissues, and organ systems of the human body.

 

Purkinje Nerve Cells or neurons found in Cerebellum of brain.Protoplasm is a spiritual substance that brings functional unity between the cells, tissues, and organ systems of the human body.

 

Fingerprint Identification: By using the current biometric identification technologies, each human being including identical twins could be known as specific individuals. Protoplasm is a spiritual substance that establishes the Individuality while the genome presents the morphological appearance and physical identity of man.

 

HUGO VON MOHL :

Hugo Von Mohl, b. April 08, 1805, d. April 01, 1872, German Botanist noted for his research on the anatomy and physiology of plant cells.

Hugo Von Mohl named the granular, colloidal material that made up the main substance of the plant cell as “Protoplasm” in 1846. Purkinje had invented the word, but Hugo gave more clarity, understanding, and knowing the nature of this ground substance. He viewed cell as an “elementary organ” and in Physiology he explained Protoplasm as an organ of Motion or Movement, Nutrition, and Reproduction. It is the preliminary material in cellular generation. He was the first to propose that new cells are formed by division of preexisting cells and he had observed this process of Cell Division in the algal cells of Conferva glomerata. His observations are very important to understand the Cell Theory that explains cells as the basic building blocks of Life. He was the first to investigate the phenomenon of the stomatal openings in leaves.

PROTOPLASM – THE GROUND SUBSTANCE OF SPIRITUALISM AND SPIRITUALITY :

 

The Ground Substance of Spiritualism and Spirituality. The vital characteristics, the animating principles of Protoplasm could be known by observing Amoeba proteus. The Living Substance works as an organ of Motion or Movement, as an organ of Nutrition, and as an organ of Reproduction to generate new cells which have a life span of their own. In these physiological functions, I describe the characteristics such as Cognition, Consciousness, Memory, and Intelligence which have a Spiritual role as they bring functional unity and harmony in the interactions between different parts of the same individual organism while it exists in an environment as a member of a biological community.

Protoplasm is a complex, viscous, translucent solution of such materials as salts and simple sugars with other molecules, mostly proteins and fats, in a colloidal state, that is dispersed but not dissolved in one another. Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, and Nitrogen constitute more than 90 percent of Protoplasm. It exhibits properties such as Protoplasmic Streaming or Cytoplasmic Streaming or Motion that is called “Amoeboid Movement.” It has the intrinsic power to change its shape and position. It has the power of Nutrition by which it can attract and obtain the materials necessary for its growth and maintenance from surrounding matter/environment. These functions involve acquiring, processing, retaining, and using information to perform tasks in a sequential manner for a predetermined purpose and hence describe Consciousness, Memory, and Intelligence. The terms Soul and Spirit belong to the materialistic realm where the Physical Reality of man’s biological existence is established. I have not yet discovered any good reason to use the terms Soul and Spirit as a metaphysical or transcendental Reality.

WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE COGNITION

SPIRITUALISM – THE COGNITIVE SCIENCE OF SPIRITUALITY :

The term cognition is derived from Latin word ‘cognitio’ which means knowledge which is related to the Latin word ‘cognoscere( co-, together + gnoscere, know) which means the act or process of knowing. Cognitive Science involves the study of all human activities related to knowledge. These activities include attention, creativity, memory, perception, problem solving, thinking, and the use of language. Cognition is the process involved in knowing, or the act of knowing which includes awareness and judgment. Cognition is often viewed as a psychological function and its nature is described as the relationship between the knowing mind and external reality. The Cognitive Science of Spirituality that I would like to describe is related to the cognitive abilities of a living cell or living organism; the abilities such as recognition, responsiveness, communication using signals, memory, ability to process, store, retrieve, and use information that could be innate or acquired, the ability of adaptation to changing internal or external environmental conditions, and the fact of awareness of its own existence; the awareness of its internal condition, and the awareness of its external environment.

Amoeba proteus and The Cognitive Science of Spiritualism. To understand the human person as a Spiritual being, we need to know and understand the Spiritual nature of Living Matter or Living Substance and describe its Cognitive abilities.

The purpose of the Cognitive Science of Spirituality is not that of describing a cognitive theory of human personality. The Behavioral Science is primarily involved in the study of stimuli and responses; it observes human activities particularly social behavior and not that of higher mental processes which are not available to direct examination. While Cognitive Science is concerned with mind’s ability to acquire, process, store, and use information, the information processed need not be represented in cortical awareness. Cognitive Psychology does not rely on conscious introspection or mental reflection. The Cognitive Science of Spirituality that I describe does not involve acts of Meditation or mental introspection to discover the spiritual nature of man. I suggest that Spiritualism can be understood without regard to the machinery of brain/mind’s information processing. The organism that we all know as Amoeba( Greek word – ‘Amoibe’ which means change) is a spiritual entity as it is Conscious or Aware of its existence, it shows responsiveness by changing its shape as it likes, it is Intelligent for it uses, processes, stores, retrieves, and uses information to perform its metabolic functions, and it displays abilities such as adaptation and memory of its acquired experience. I tend to view these biological functions and characteristics as an attribute of the spiritual nature of its living substance and this spiritual nature brings functional harmony to sustain its existence as a biological entity.

THE THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE AND THE COGNITIVE SCIENCE OF SPIRITUALISM :

Bertrand Arthur William Russel, b. May. 18, 1872, d. February. 02, 1970. English logician and philosopher, best known for his work in mathematical logic, his advocacy of both Pacifism and Nuclear Disarmament. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950.

I am not concerned about Bertrand Russell’s skeptical atheist temperament. The Spiritualism that I describe is not about religious faith or belief and the Spirituality that I write about is not concerned with religious practices or rituals. I claim that man is a Spiritual being because of the spiritual nature of his living matter or living substance. It is important to know that Russell was determined not to be beguiled by human pretensions to knowledge. He had never supported unbacked assumptions either about the foundations of knowledge or about what may be said to exist. He endorsed the application of rationality to all aspects of human thought and language. He was seriously concerned with the application of logical analysis to epistemological questions and attacked this problem by trying to breakdown human knowledge into minimum statements that were verifiable by empirical observation, reason, and logic. He was convinced that all knowledge is dependent on sense experience. His primary aim was to inquire with skeptical intent, “how much we can be said to know and with what degree of certainty or doubtfulness.” In 1898, with Trinity Fellow G.E. Moore, he rebelled against Idealism and became an Empiricist, a Positivist, and a Physical Realist or a Materialist. He held that the scientific view of the world is largely the correct view. He addressed the problem of the pretensions of human knowledge in his books, An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth(1940) and Human Knowledge, Its Scope and Limits(1948). His aim was also analytic and he assumed that it is possible to infer something about the world from the language in which it is correctly described. Russell analyzed that language must be used to state its minimum requirements, its atomic facts and avoid the use of descriptive phrases which may postulate the existence of objects. He held that a proposition is a picture of the facts that it asserts and must have in a sense the same structure. He stressed the importance of similarity of structure as a criterion in inferring causal relationships. In a Lecture titled ‘Why I am not a Christian’ given on March 06, 1927, Russell explained the nature of his beliefs about God and Mortality. In his opinion and personal belief, he held the view that Life suitable to Protoplasm could be possible under certain physical conditions like temperature. Russell’s speculative assumption about the existence of Life or Protoplasm is not supported by scientific evidence. He had no scientific data to support his view. The ideal conditions for Life and Protoplasm exist right now and what we know is that Life is always born from previously existing Life. However, he had concluded his Lecture by stating that, “it needs hope for the future……., the future that our intelligence can create.” His assumption that human intelligence is the basis for man’s biological existence is incorrect and is not consistent with the scientific reality about human existence and its nature. At a very fundamental level, man’s ability to acquire energy from an external source in the physical environment does not depend upon his physical or mental work or effort. If green plants with Chloroplasts have the ability to trap Sun’s energy, it could not be attributed to man’s intelligence and the fact of Chloroplasts and their ability is not dependent on man having any kind of intelligence. Russell’s theoretical claims have no relationship with observational evidence and his opinions could be easily refuted for lack of validity. Physical Sciences and Biological Sciences provide accepted body of information about the world and human body. We need to arrange this information into a meaningful pattern and interpret it to describe the reality. The purpose of the Cognitive Science of Spiritualism is to describe and codify observations and experiences to explain the biological basis for human organism in its given environment as an individual, and as a member of a biological community.

Whole Spirituality – Whole Synthesis

Spiritualism – The New Synthesis:

Dr. Edward Osborne Wilson,American biologist, an expert in the Study of Ants(Myrmecology), former Professor of Zoology, Harvard University, founder of Sociobiology, has studied the genetic basis of the social behavior of all animals including humans. He had presented his theories about the biological basis of Social Behavior in his book, Sociobiology : The New Synthesis(1975). The biological basis of Social Behavior must include the study of the Behavioral Ability of the Living Substance.

Dr. Edward Osborne Wilson is recognized as the world’s leading authority on ants. He is the foremost proponent of Sociobiology, the study of the genetic basis of the social behavior of all animals including humans. In his book, Sociobiology: The New Synthesis (1975) he presents his theories about the biological basis of social behavior. It involves the application of the Theory of Evolution to the study of animal and human social behavior. It holds that the Theory of Evolution by ‘natural selection’ applies to behavior in the same way that it applies to structure and physiological functions. He holds that behavior patterns are genetically determined and are governed by the process of ‘natural selection’. Accordingly, he explains that social behavior relies upon the principle that genes are able to influence behavior and will be selected if the behaviors they encourage contribute ultimately to the reproductive success of the individual carrying those genes. The ‘Darwinian Fitness’ of an organism or a gene is a measure of the ability of that organism or gene to project copies of itself into future generations. Because, ‘natural selection’ would influence genetically controlled behavior, he believes that individuals will tend to behave in ways that maximize their ‘Darwinian Fitness’. However, he attributes 10 percent of human behavior as genetically induced, the rest being attributable to environment.

In my analysis, it could be indeed true that some behavioral abilities depend on underlying genetic mechanisms which support the neural and hormonal mechanisms that are required in the performance of actions by organisms. Dr. Wilson recognizes the essentially biological principles on which animal societies are based and could apply those principles to human social behavior. One of Dr. Wilson’s most notable theories is that a characteristic such as ‘altruism’ could be genetically based and may have evolved through the process of ‘natural selection’. Dr. Wilson maintains that altruistic behavior is consistent with ‘natural selection’ in that the sacrifice is made to save closely related individuals who share many of the sacrificed organism’s genes.

Altruism and Sociobiology:

Ants, approximately 8,000 species of the Insect family Formicidae ( Order Hymenoptera )are social in habit and live together in organized colonies. Worker ants are maximally ‘altruistic’ and devote their whole lives to caring for the Queen to reproduce, constructing and protecting the nest, foraging for food, and tending the larvae while they are sterile. The worker ants display unselfish concern for the welfare of others and they have no chance to reproduce.

The term ‘altruism’ (French – altruisme) was coined by Auguste Comte, the founder of Positivism and Sociology. It is considered as antithesis to Egoism. Altruism is behavior that benefits others at some cost to the individual displaying altruistic behavior. Social scientists refer to altruism as the behavior of an individual who consciously comes to the aid of another, without expecting anything in return. Such behavior is influenced by empathy, an emotional response that results from being aware of another person’s emotions. In Ethics, altruism is described as a theory of conduct that regards the good of others as the end of moral action. It describes unselfish concern for the welfare of others.

However, biologists view altruism as any behavior that reduces the ‘Darwinian Fitness’ (reproductive success) of the altruist while increasing the fitness of another. It is common for animals to share food, help provide for another’s young, defend others against predators, and give alarm calls when a predator appears. Such animal altruism is common and it does not require psychological abilities and functions like sharing of emotions, feelings, and thoughts. Altruism as a behavior  is not always a psychological function or ability. It is displayed as pure altruism in the social behavior of worker bees, ants, and wasps.

Spiritualism – The New Synthesis:

It must be understood that behavior is a fundamental characteristic of life and of all living entities. All species, whether single-celled protozoans or the largest of mammals possess the capacity to respond to stimuli in their environment. This ability called responsiveness is the fundamental attribute of all kinds and types of behavior.

Psychologists like B.F. Skinner tend to focus on the learned components of behavior and stress the importance of environment and its influence on behavior. Biologists like Konrad Lorenz tend to focus primarily on the analysis of the innate components of behavior. Sociobiologists tend to recognize the role of genes and the influence of environment and describe that  behavioral abilities depend on underlying genetic mechanisms that develop the structures and physiological mechanisms that are important to display a given behavior. It may be noted that both Psychologists and Biologists are describing behavior in the context of social relations and interactions between individual and groups of living organisms. Living things behave in ways to maximize their chances of survival.

In the entire animal kingdom, most living organisms display parental or social instincts. All animals display social behavior. There is no animal that is ever completely isolated from some kind of environment that includes members of the same species or other species. Animals form parental societies to care for their offspring. Bacteria come together to live as colonies. Hence, it will be important to recognize social behavior that is displayed by individual living cells.

I define Spiritualism as the capacity or the biological ability of an individual living cell to formulate harmonious relations with others and to participate in or contribute constructively to changes in the social environment. The potency called Spiritualism is reflected in the biological functions of Consciousness and Intelligence.

Red Blood Cells – Altruism – Spiritualism – The New Synthesis: Unlike most cells of the human organism, mature Red Blood Cells do not have nuclei, have no mitochondria, and have no other organelles. The Red Blood Cells cannot divide and reproduce and lead a short life while they exist to support the life and survival of trillions of other cells in the body.

At a cellular level, the social aspect of Consciousness is reflected by the biological abilities of the cell such as  association, cooperation, communication, recognition of other living cells in its immediate environment, and performing actions which have characteristics of functional subservience to provide benefits like survival and reproductive success to other cells. A very good example of Spiritualism is that of altruism displayed by the mature Red Blood Cells of the man. The mature Red Blood Cells have no nuclei and hence cannot divide or reproduce. Each Red Blood Cell has a very limited life span of its own. They sustain their meagre energy needs by a form of anaerobic respiration as they do not have mitochondria like the trillions of other cells of the human body. The Red Blood Cells are passive in nature and they simply exist to provide Oxygen to other cells and tissues, collect Carbon Dioxide while being swept along by the blood stream. Since the mature Red Blood Cells have no nuclei, their behavior is not operated by genes or genetic mechanisms which could be important in their formation, development, and maturation. The social aspects of the Red Blood Cell behavior is related to the spiritual nature of its living substance.

I ask Biologists to give attention to the nature, functional abilities of the living substance apart from the consideration of genes and genetic mechanisms. It may be very clearly understood that the nucleus, the chromosomes, and the genes have no independent existence of their own and they perform their cellular functions while they derive energy and nutritional support from the living substance or Protoplasm that has the biological abilities of Consciousness, and Intelligence which is reflected in its properties like responsiveness, the power of nutrition, and reproduction.

Spiritualism is the Science of New Synthesis; the New Synthesis that formulates the relationships between Substance, Structure, Function, Heredity of a Living Organism and its Environment, Behavior, and Social Community.

Spiritualism – The New Synthesis. The Behavior pf the Red Blood Cell can be described as Altruism. Red Blood Cells are packed with hemoglobin. Each Red Cell contains over 600 million hemoglobin molecules.
Whole Spirituality – Whole Synthesis: Whole Foods opened its Store in Ann Arbor on September 16, 1993. Whole Foods, Whole People and Whole Planet inspire Whole Dude to invent Whole Phrases: Whole Linguistics-Whole Language, Whole conversation, Whole Cookie, Whole Huddle, Whole Grind, Whole Love and others. Whole Dude uses the phrase Whole Linguistics to describe three entities; 1. Language User, 2. Language Interpreter and 3. Language Creator. Image Credit: Agenda Publications, Ann Arbor District Library, Issue Dates, September 1993, December 1997 and February 1998

WHOLE SPIRITUALITY – WHOLE DOCTRINE

Protoplasm
Protoplasm, the living, corporeal substance, is the source of energy, knowledge, and work that supports the living form that lives and is known. (Photo credit: salimfadhley)

SPIRITUALISM – THE MEDICAL DOCTRINE OF DIALECTICAL SPIRITUALISM :

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel(b. August. 27, 1770, d. November. 14, 1831),German Idealist Philosopher, author of Phenomenology of Spirit or Phenomenology of Mind(1807), Science of Logic(1812-16), and Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences(1817) and other works and lectures. He developed theories of Ethics, Aesthetics, History, Politics, and Religion. He developed a Dialectical scheme that influenced the development of Existentialism, Marxism, Positivism, and Analytic Philosophy.

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel influenced most facets of modern philosophy. At the center of the universe, Hegel posited an enveloping absolute Spirit that guides all reality including human reason. His absolute ‘Idealism’ envisages a world-Soul, that develops from, and is known through, a process of change and progress termed as the Hegelian Dialectic. The doctrine of ‘Idealism’ makes the attempt to account for all objects in nature and experience as representations of the mind, and sometimes it assigns to such representations a higher order of existence. According to Hegel, reality is Absolute Mind, Reason, or Spirit which manifests itself in both natural and human history. His famous dictum, “the real is rational and the rational real”, is an expression of the identity of reality and the rational process. Because reality is rational, it acts in accordance with the laws of reasoning. Hegel suggested that understanding the nature of thought will lead to understanding the nature of reality as a whole. Dialectics is a form of logical argumentation that could be applied to diverse fields including thought, nature, and history. Hegel identified dialectic as the tendency of a notion, or idea to pass over into its own negation as the result of conflict between its inherent contradictory aspects. He developed the concept that Mind or Spirit manifested itself in a set of contradictions and oppositions that it ultimately integrated and united without eliminating either pole or reducing one to the other. According to Hegelian principles, one concept or ‘thesis’ inevitably generates its opposite or ‘antithesis’; their conflict or interaction generates a new concept or ‘synthesis’ which in turn becomes the ‘thesis’ of a new triad. Hegel developed a dialectical scheme that emphasized the progress of history and ideas from ‘thesis’ to ‘antithesis’ and then to a higher and richer ‘synthesis’. His main contribution is that of giving a clear view of reality; Reality can only be understood as a totality, “The Truth is the Whole”, and that the attempt to understand the apparently individual and unconnected phenomena of nature, history, and human life through separate categories of thought is utterly mistaken. I would like to endorse his view and submit that Reality must be known as a Whole.

THE MEDICAL DOCTRINE OF DIALECTICAL SPIRITUALISM :

Amoeba proteus and the understanding of Reality as a Whole or the ‘Whole Truth’. To understand the reality of human life, we need to know and understand the Reality of a material substance that is common to all living organisms. This common substance called Protoplasm is found in all living cells including the cells of human brain, an anatomical organ that is associated with thinking,and Mind the seat of thoughts. However, I would ask all of my readers to know and understand Protoplasm, the substance in which thoughts are generated and reside. I give attention to the Spiritual Nature of this substance and divert attention from Mind and Brain.

 Hegel in his book, Phenomenology of Mind or Phenomenology of Spirit has traced the progression of consciousness from sense perception to Absolute Knowledge. In my view, Amoeba proteus is conscious and intelligent. I speak about Spirit or Soul in relation to a material substance called Protoplasm. I would hesitate to equate Mind with Spirit as that would mislead people to think of consciousness and intelligence as the exclusive biological functions of an anatomical organ called brain. At the same time, it must be clearly understood that brain and mind perform their specialized functions using the same living matter or substance that is found inside Amoeba proteus. The fact that brain and mind perform very complex functions should not hide the fact of the true or real nature of Protoplasm. There is inherent conflict in the nature of Protoplasm. It is inherently unstable; the living matter is thermodynamically unstable, and without continuous supply of energy from an external source, it will dissolve into its constituent inorganic molecules and non-living physical elements. This nature of energy dependence and the risk of its dissolution is the ‘thesis’ and it is opposed by its potency and potential to remain immutable, or unchanging, the ‘antithesis’. Protoplasm is unstable and is stable at the same time. It has survived and has continuously lived on the surface of planet Earth for billions of years after having come into existence. We have account of several major and minor extinction events and yet Protoplasm has remained and existed without any apparent change in its properties, characteristics, and functions. Protoplasm has demonstrated the potentiality called Imperishability, indestructibility, Immortality and the ability of Eternal or Everlasting Life. The interaction or conflict between unstable(‘thesis’) and stable(‘antithesis’) nature of Protoplasm has generated a new ‘synthesis’ called Immortality or Everlasting Life. I call this higher state of existence as ‘Dialectical Spiritualism’. Man is a physical, Mortal Being and his body substance is Perishable. Through the process of Dialectical Spiritualism, the conflict and interaction between the unstable and stable nature of Protoplasm which is a Spiritual substance, man progresses towards his goal of becoming a Complete or Whole Spiritual Being and his body substance will exist in its higher state of existence of  Imperishability. The Medical Doctrine of Dialectical Spiritualism proposes the hypothesis of Man’s Immortality or Everlasting Life as a higher state of existence of a mortal or perishable substance that has developed the potentiality and progressed towards its natural goal of Imperishability and indestructibility.

Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,

Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,

M.B.B.S.  Class  of  April,  1970.

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Whole Dude – Whole Behavior

Human Nature and Human Behavior:

The Vitruvian Man c. 1492. The painting by Leonardo da Vinci displays the spirit of scientific inquiry. We must know the distinction between Human Nature and Human Behavior.

What is man? The motivation for asking this question comes from a statement expressed in Sanskrit language : “Sarvesham Swastir Bhavatu”, which seeks the well-being of all humans, of all races, of all religions, of all cultures, and of all nations. Our efforts to support the well-being of man would be affected by our understanding the ‘real’ or ‘true’ nature of man. I recognize that man exists with the following five forms, 1. the Physical Being as described by Human Anatomy, Human Physiology and other Medical Sciences, the human being in health and sickness, 2. the Mental Being, the intellect and emotional aspects as described by Psychology and Psychiatry, 3. the Social Being as described by Social Sciences, 4. the Moral Being as described by Morals and Ethics, the power of discernment used by man to make the distinction between good and evil, and right and wrong, and 5. the Spiritual Being as described by the spiritual nature of man’s corporeal substance that develops and builds the cells, the tissues, the organs, and the organ systems of the human body. While most religious and philosophical traditions explore spirituality by understanding human thoughts, and feelings, I try to know this spiritual aspect of human nature by observing the functional behavior that is displayed in the interactions of cells, tissues, and organs that constitute the human organism. If man is viewed as a multicellular organism, human behavior must be observed in the biotic interactions of cells, tissues, and organs because of whose functions man lives in the world. The five aspects of man contribute to the five kinds of behavior of man; the physical, mental, social, moral, and spiritual behavior. A muscle cell displays the behavior of contraction in response to a stimulus and it is able to contract because of its contractile nature which gives it the power of contracting.

In my view, Spiritualism is the human nature that gives the man the power or ability to perform his living functions and display his characteristic behaviors like feeding, breathing and reproduction. I remind my readers to be very careful to make the distinction between Human Nature and Human Behavior. For example, the power of Nutrition described by Human Physiology is not the same as the eating behavior that manifests as the problem of obesity.

Human Behavior and Environment:

Whole Dude – Whole Behavior: Burrhus Frederick Skinner (1904 – 1990), Professor of Psychology at Harvard University (1948 – 1974) proposes that the empirical study of human behavior is the only way to arrive at a true theory of human nature. He had published several books, The Behavior of Organisms:An Experimental Analysis (1938), Science and Human Behavior (1953), and Verbal Behavior (1957).
Whole Dude – Whole Behavior: The relationship between Man and Nature (Environment) that conditions human behavior.

B. F. Skinner studied behavior and the environmental causes of behavior mediated through conditioning mechanisms. In his opinion, all behavior is a function of environmental variables. He proposed a thesis of Universal Determinism, and thinks that every human event including all human choices has a set of preceding environmental causes.

Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 14, Verse 5

सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणा: प्रकृतिसम्भवा: |
निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् || 5||

sattvaṁ rajas tama iti guṇāḥ prakṛiti-sambhavāḥ
nibadhnanti mahā-bāho dehe dehinam avyayam

In the Indian tradition, the Bhagavad Gita also explains the relation between human behavior and environment or ‘Prakriti’. Chapter XIV, verse 5 states : “Sattvam, rajas, tama iti gunah prakriti sambhavah”, the modes of human behavior such as Sattva (the mode of goodness), Rajas (the mode of passion), and Tamas (the mode of ignorance) are generated by the interactions between human body and the environment in which he lives.

Whole Dude – Whole Behavior: A thing comprises of two categories, 1. Matter, and 2. Form. Behavior pertains to the actions performed by the Form and Nature pertains to the material nature of Matter, the Living Matter or the corporeal substance.

At the same time, Indian tradition makes a very clear distinction between true human nature and the three modes of human behavior. The real, or true man is described by the spiritual characteristic of human nature. The Bhagavad Gita in Chapter XVIII, verse 20 claims that all living entities share a single reality even while they are divided into innumerable forms (Sarva bhutesu yenaikam bhavam avyayam iksate) and directs us to recognize that spiritual nature as the true reality that is common among different living forms. B.F. Skinner paid attention to the external causes or influences that generate or modify human behavior and has totally avoided the study of innate or inner cause of behavior. He did not give any importance to the role of heredity in human behavior. This internal influence on an organism’s behavior is not directly observable and an experimenter cannot manipulate such internal influences to conduct experimental studies of behavior. Skinner’s findings about external influences and environmental conditioning mechanisms explain several aspects of human behavior but they do not explain the relationship between human behavior and human existence. To understand human existence, we have to learn about the nature of man’s substance and the behavior of the cells, tissues, and organs that provide the structural and functional basis of the human organism.

Man is a very complex living organism that shows structural differentiation and the functional organization of various tissues and organ systems. The specialized functions of tissues and organs is possible because of the functional subordination of the cells to the requirements of the organism as a whole. In other words, the specialized functions of tissues and organs could be described as ‘altruistic’ behavior, a behavior that promotes the well-being and appears to favor the individual’s chances of survival and reproduction. Man may exhibit behavior under the influence of environment and may act in the modes of behavior such as goodness (Sattva), passion (Rajas), or ignorance (Tamas), but his existence is made possible by his innate human nature which acts as an internal influence and determines the characteristics of the biotic interactions between the cells, the tissues, and organs of his own body.

Whole Dude – Whole Behavior: The integration of Structure and Function describes the Spiritual Basis for Health and Human Existence. By knowing the structure and function of the Red Blood Cell or Erythrocyte, we can establish the facts of Blood Circulation, the reason for the structure of the Heart and Lungs, their motions and their relation to each other and their relation to the Human Being who exists as an Individual with Individuality.
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WHOLE DUDE – WHOLE DANGER

Muhammad Ali Jinnah (محمد على جناح) (December ...
Image via Wikipedia

WHAT IS SECONDHAND SMOKE? :

When you breathe in smoke that comes from the end of a lit cigarette, cigar, or pipe ( often described as ‘sidestream smoke‘ ), or when you breathe in smoke that is exhaled by a smoker(often described as ‘mainstream smoke’ ), you are exposed to the risk of secondhand smoke. You will be inhaling almost the same amount of chemicals as the smoker breathes in. Tobbaco smoke contains more than 4,000 different chemical compounds, and more than 50 of them are known to cause Cancer. Some of these known carcinogens are Hydrogen Cyanide, Benzene, Formaldehyde, and Carbon monoxide. Involuntary or passive smoking can kill. There is no amount of exposure to secondhand smoke that is considered as a safe level of exposure. The more secondhand smoke that you breathe in, the more your health risk increases. Secondhand smoke exposure causes nearly 50,000 deaths per year in adult nonsmokers in the United States. 3,000 deaths are from Lung Cancer, and 46,000 deaths are from heart disease. Nonsmokers increase their risk of developing Lung Cancer by 20% to 30%, and heart disease by 25% to 30% when they are exposed to secondhand smoke. The risks of Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer and other types of Cancer are also higher. Women who are exposed to secondhand smoke face a 69% higher risk of heart disease and a 56% higher risk of Stroke than those who are not exposed to smoke. Children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of secondhand smoke because of their bodies are still growing and they breathe at a faster rate than adults. The effects of smoking can be very significant especially for those who live or work with a smoker. In reality, most of the smoke from a burning cigarette doesn’t get sucked down into smoker’s lungs- it simply escapes into the air where it can be inhaled by anyone unfortunate enough to be nearby. Living under the shadow of a great person may give some benefits, protection, and a sense of security. But, life under the shadow of secondhand smoke is a prescription for death. There was such an unfortunate victim who had lived under the shadow of a great leader known as Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

MOHAMMED ALI JINNAH, QAID – E – AZAM – THE GREAT LEADER OF PAKISTAN :

Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Qaid-e-Azam, the great leader and founder of Pakistan. What is the risk of Living under the Shadow of a great leader?

 Jinnah, Indian Muslim politician was the founder and first Governor General of Pakistan (1947-1948). His parents arranged for an early marriage for him before he left for England at the age of 16. While in London, Jinnah suffered the loss of his wife and mother. In 1895, at the age of 19, he was called o the Bar on completion of his formal studies to become a barrister. He had supported the election of Dadabhai Naoroji, a Parsi leader, a leading Indian nationalist who ran for the English Parliamnet. Naoroji became the first Indian to sit in the British House of Commons. In 1896, Jinnah returned to Karachi and then moved to Bombay to start his legal practice. He met Ruttenbai, the daughter of Dinshaw Petit, a Bombay Parsi millionaire. Jinnah had married this young and beautiful lady over tremendous opposition from her parents and others. The great love and the marriage withered and proved to be an unhappy union. The stress imposed by exposure to secondhand smoke was not known and was not recognized those days. Jinnah’s addiction to Tobacco and the price paid by his wife describe the other side of Jinnah which many people in Pakistan and India tend to ignore.

The Other side of Mohammed Ali Jinnah :

Jinnah, a great leader with a simple addiction to Tobacco.

 

This young and beautiful lady had great feelings of love for Jinnah and those tender feelings withered while she had lived under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke.

 

I would like to share the very interesting and powerful story about the life of Ruttenbai who had lived under the shadow of Mohammed Ali Jinnah . Unfortunatley, this story posted below my post fails to mention the nature of cancer that had killed this beautiful lady at such an young age. I am very sure about the nature of her illness. She died of Lung Cancer. She developed Cancer because of inhaling tobacco smoke and it is a very well recognized risk factor now. Secondhand Tobacco smoke kills people and even now the chances of survival are not good. I had personally witnessed a similar case and had narrated that story at my Home page of BhavanaJagat and the story is titled ‘Living Under the Shadow – A Prescription for Death’. A young, beautiful lady, the first wife of Chief of Army Staff (under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi), General K S Sundarji ( who is well-known for Operation Blue Star ) died of Lung Cancer in Army Hospital, New Delhi during 1978. The connection between smoking and Lung Cancer was well understood but at that time the
risk of Lung Cancer due to Secondhand Tobacco Smoke was not properly recognized.

The Chief of Army Staff, General Krishnaswamy Sundarrajan, PVSM - I had served under his Command while he was the General Officer Commanding of the First Armoured Division during 1976 to 1978. His first wife, Padma Sundarji had lived her life under the shadow of Secondhand Smoke.

http://bhavanajagat.wordpress.com/2010/05/01/living-under-the-shadow-a-prescription-for-death/

Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,
Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,
M.B.B.S., Class of April, 1970.

 
The Softer Side of Mr. Jinnah

More than 61 years have passed since the death of founder of Pakistan , Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. But even today, nothing about Jinnah seems ordinary —not his legal career, politics, personal life, his legacy and even the property he left behind.

The great South Asian intellectual Eqbal Ahmed once described Jinnah as an enigma of modern history. His aristocratic English lifestyle, Victorian manners, and secular outlook rendered him a most unlikely leader of India ’s Muslims. Yet, he led them to separate statehood, creating history, and in Saad R. Khairi’s apt phrase, “altering geography”.

Much has been written about Jinnah’s legal career, politics, his role as a founder of Pakistan and his vision, but even today, very little is known about Jinnah’s personal life. This was probably because Jinnah never had time to write a diary or an autobiography and whatever little he wrote was formal and matter of fact. For most of his life, he remained reserved, taciturn and secretive. He wrote his will in May, 1939, but it was only after his death that Liaquat Ali Khan, his close associate and the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, came to know that he was its trustee and executor.
His only child, Dina Wadia, has hardly ever spoken about her father in public. So furious was Jinnah with Dina that he disowned her after she married a Parsi man against his wishes, and yet he left two lacs for her in his will. Akbar Ahmed’s movie Jinnah had just ten to fifteen minutes on Jinnah’s personal life, which are nowhere near enough.

Jinnah’s first wife, fourteen year old Emibai from Paneli village, died just eight months after he left for London at age sixteen in 1892, to join Graham’s Shipping and Trading Company, which conducted business with his father in Karachi. It was a forced marriage, as Jinnah’s mother was afraid that if he went to England , he might end up marrying an English girl. He barely knew Emibai.

Jinnah’s second marriage with the most beautiful girl of Bombay – Ruttie: The Flower of Bombay – was like a fairy tale. It began in the summer of 1916 in Darjeeling or “Town of the Thunderbolt” (how appropriate considering what was to happen there).

Jinnah had established himself as a lawyer and a politician by then and had become friends with Sir Dinshaw Maneckjee Petit, the son of one of the richest and most devoutly orthodox Parsis of the 19th century.
The Petit`s chateau overlooked Mount Everest and it was there Jinnah met his only daughter Ruttenbai Petit or Ruttie as she was popularly called. Merely sixteen at that time, Ruttie was a charming young girl. Stanley Wolpert writes in Jinnah of Pakistan : “Precociously bright, gifted in every art, beautiful in every way. As she matured, all of her talents, gifts and beauty were magnified in so delightful and unaffected a manner that she seemed a fairy princess”.

A dazzling beauty and full of life, Ruttie had exquisite taste and affable manners. Quick-witted, she was easily one of the best dressed and most popular women among the elitist circles of Bombay . She was intellectually far more mature than other girls of her age, with diverse interests ranging from poetry (Oscar Wilde being her favorite, whom she often recited) to politics. Her large collection of books, which remained in Jinnah’s possession after her death, reflected her deep interest in poetry, literature, history, occultism, mysticism and sorcery. She was an excellent horse-rider. She attended all public meetings and was inspired by Annie Besant’s Home Rule League.

A fierce supporter of India for Indians, Ruttie was once asked about rumors of Jinnah’s possible knighthood and whether she would like to be Lady Jinnah. She snapped that she would rather be separated from her husband than take on an English title.
Jinnah on the other hand also had a special interest in acting and in Shakespeare’s dramas. While in London , he had acted in some Shakespearean plays and even considered seriously taking up acting as a profession. It was his dream to play Romeo at The Globe in London . Khwaja Razi Haider thinks it was probably Jinnah’s deep interest in Shakespeare that gave him insight into the intricacies of the human character, which he was to use for grasping the essentials of Indian politics. Jinnah was thirty-nine and Ruttie sixteen, but the age difference proved no obstacle in their love. Love has no logic.
He was enamored by her beauty and charm and she was awe- struck by “Jay”, as she called him. Jinnah asked Sir Dinshaw for Ruttie’s hand in marriage, who became furious and refused. Jinnah repeatedly pleaded his case but Dinshaw never gave in, as Jinnah had a different faith and he was more than twice Ruttie’s age. Their friendship ended and Dinshaw forbade Ruttie from meeting Jinnah while she lived in his house. He even got a court injunction restraining Jinnah from meeting her (a pity no biographer has yet traced the court papers).
The couple continued to meet secretly, and patiently waited for two years until February 1918 when Ruttie turned eighteen, and was free to marry. She walked out of her parental home to which she was never to return, and converted to Islam at Bombay ’s Jamia Mosque, under the Muslim Shiite doctrine, on April 18, 1918.

The very next day, Jinnah and Ruttie got married in a quiet ceremony at Jinnah’s Malabar Hill house in Bombay . Located in a most highly-priced area today, with Maharashtra’s Chief Minister as its next-door neighbor, Jinnah House remains a dispute between India , Pakistan and Dina Wadia. Jinnah owned another house at 10 Aurangzeb Road , Delhi , which he sold just before Partition for Rs 3 lacs. The Dutch Ambassador to India lives there now. The Raja Sahib of Mahmudabad, who signed as Jinnah’s witness, and a few other friends, attended the wedding. Maulana Muhammad Hasan Najafi was Ruttie’s witness. Jinnah presented the wedding ring to Ruttie, a gift from Raja Sahab, and paid Rs 125,000 as haq mehr . Nobody from Ruttie’s family attended the wedding. Interestingly, the Nikah Nama stated “Ruttenbai” as the bride’s name instead of Marium, her Islamic name. The honeymoon was first at Raja Sahab’s Nainitaal mansion, and then at the Maidens Hotel, a magnificent property just beyond the Red Fort.

Quaid’s Nikahnama


Quaid’s house in Bombay

Gandhi’s grandson Raj Mohan Gandhi writes about the wedding in his book Understanding the Muslim Mind: “For the first time in his life, a girl had absorbed Jinnah’s emotions. Living for sometime now in a large but somber Malabar Hill house, bowing to ladies (on occasional parties) and praising their sarees but otherwise keeping a distance from them, (he) fell in love with Ruttenbai. Joy and laughter entered Jinnah’s life. The Malabar Hill house became brighter.’ She presented him with a daughter, Dina. But, ‘Alas the happiness was not destined to last; Sarojni’s veiled prediction of trouble came true”.

Sarojni Naidu was a huge admirer of Jinnah, wrote several poems and prose pieces on him, and many historians believe she was in love with him.
She wrote this about the wedding in a letter to Sir Syed’s son, Syed Mahmud: “So Jinnah has at last plucked the Blue Flower of his desire. It was all very sudden and caused terrible agitation and anger among the Parsis; but I think the child has made far bigger sacrifices than she yet realises. Jinnah is worth it all – he loves her; the one really human and genuine emotion of his reserved and self-centred nature. And he will make her happy.”

The first few years of the marriage were a dream for Ruttie and Jinnah, the happiest time of their lives. They traveled across India , Europe and North America together. Ruttie watched with a great sense of pride the feverish political activity of her husband. She would be seen in the visitors’ gallery when Jinnah was due to speak, accompanied him to the High Court, and even attended the Nagpur session of the Congress in December 1920.
According to Wolpert: “They were a head- turning couple; he in his elegant suits, stitched in London , she with her long, flowing hair decked in flowers. There was no limit to their joy and satisfaction at that time. Their only woe was Ruttie’s complete isolation and ostracism from her family.”

Kanji Dwarkadas, a veteran leader of Congress and a close friend of the couple, who looked after Ruttie during her last days, wrote in his book Ruttie Jinnah: The story of a great friendship: “For Jinnah, who was not generous in many matters, no expense was too great to satisfy the extravagant claims of the baronet’s spoilt child. During a visit to Kashmir , she spent Rs 50,000 in refurnishing the boathouse and Jinnah gladly paid all the bills. He treated her wonderfully well, and paid without a murmur all the bills necessitated by the luxurious life she led. Ruttie’s fabulous beauty, spontaneous wit, and immense charm have been praised to the neglect of her serious interests.”

Even though Ruttie was much younger than Jinnah, she made him a very happy man. They had no separate existence and Jinnah found her a great source of inspiration.
He resigned from the Orient Club where he used to play chess and billiards. He was so deeply in love with Ruttie that he would return from the law courts on time each day and talk to her for hours on end.
Unfortunately, their happiness was short- lived and the marriage started to crack after 1922-3. What caused the ruination of the Jinnah-Ruttie marriage? Was it Jinnah’s busy political life and his inability to give enough time to Ruttie, their age difference, or their incompatibility of temperaments? He was cold, introverted and domineering. She was young, extroverted, glamorous. There is no clear answer but the fact remains that Ruttie and Jinnah still loved each other despite the rift in their marriage.
It is evident in every letter Ruttie wrote during that period, and every book written on their relationship. She moved to London with Dina in 1922 and from there too, her heart was still set on her life with Jinnah.
She wrote in a letter to Kanji in India :“And just one thing more – go and see Jinnah and tell me how he is – he has a habit of overworking himself and now that I am not there to tease and bother him, he will be worse than ever.”

After her return, the couple tried one more time to save their failing marriage and took a five-month tour to Europe and North America together. But the rift grew and by January 1928 they were virtually separated, when Ruttie became seriously ill with cancer. Shortly before her death, she wrote a letter to Jinnah from Marseilles , France where she had gone for treatment. It turned out to be her last letter to him (larger view of original hand-written letter with typed text here

S. S. Rajputana,
Marseilles 5 Oct 1928 Darling – thank you for all you have done. If ever in my bearing your once tuned senses found any irritability or unkindness – be assured that in my heart there was place only for a great tenderness and a greater pain – a pain my love without hurt. When one has been as near to the reality of Life (which after all is Death) as I have been dearest, one only remembers the beautiful and tender moments and all the rest becomes a half veiled mist of unrealities. Try and remember me beloved as the flower you plucked and not the flower you tread upon.

I have suffered much sweetheart because I have loved much. The measure of my agony has been in accord to the measure of my love. Darling I love you – I love you – and had I loved you just a little less I might have remained with you – only after one has created a very beautiful blossom one does not drag it through the mire. The higher you set your ideal the lower it falls.
I have loved you my darling as it is given to few men to be loved. I only beseech you that the tragedy which commenced in love should also end with it.

Darling Goodnight and Goodbye Ruttie

It is a pity that none of the letters that Jinnah wrote to Ruttie have ever been made public. M.C. Chagla, a former Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and a diplomat at the UN, has described the last days of Ruttie and Jinnah’s marriage in his book “Roses in December”. Chagla knew the couple very well, as he assisted Jinnah at his chambers during that time. He idealized Jinnah but severed all ties when he began working on the idea of an independent state for the Muslims of India. He writes:
By 1927, Ruttie and Jinnah had virtually separated. Ruttie’s health deteriorated rapidly in the years after they returned from their final trip together. Ruttie lived at the Taj Hotel in Bombay, almost a recluse as she became more and more bed-ridden. Kanji continued to be her constant companion. By February 18, 1929 she had become so weak that all she could manage to say to him was a request to look after her cats. Two days later, Ruttie Petit Jinnah died. It was her 29th birthday.
She was buried on February 22 in Bombay according to Muslim rites. Jinnah sat like a statue throughout the funeral but when asked to throw earth on the grave, he broke down and wept. That was the only time when I found Jinnah betraying some shadow of human weakness. It’s not a well publicised fact that as a young student in England it had been one of Jinnah’s dreams to play Romeo at The Globe. It is a strange twist of fate that a love story that started like a fairy tale ended as a haunting tragedy to rival any of Shakespeare’s dramas.”

The second time Jinnah ever broke down was in August 1947 when he visited Ruttie’s grave one last time before leaving for Pakistan . The architect of Pakistan paid a high price for Partition by leaving two of his most beloved possessions on ‘the other’ side of the border, the Jinnah House on Malabar Hill where he had the happiest moments of his life, and his beloved wife Ruttie who remains buried in Bombay. Jinnah left India in August 1947, never to return again, but he left behind a piece of his heart in a little grave in a cemetery in Bombay .

Whole Dude – Whole Awareness

What is Truth?

The Truth about Self, The Inquiry about Self, Who am I?

The term Truth suggests confirmity with facts, experience, or with Reality, either as an idealized abstraction or in actual application to statements, ideas, acts, etc., Truth signifies an established or verified fact, or principle. Truth is related to the validity of what we mean. Plato defined the nature of Truth as correspondence between thought and reality. Dr. William Jones in his book, ‘The Principles of Psychology’ states : “True ideas are those we can assimilate, validate, corroborate, and verify.”

The universe is vast and man’s role in it is insignificant. Man’s great need is not only to know the world around him but also know himself better. Man has to know the Truth about himself.

The Three Dimensions of Truth:

1. Truth is correspondence between a statement and the reality of external world.

2. Truth is correspondence between the observer and the reality of the observed fact. Here, we need to recognize the method used for the observation such as intuition, sense experience, or revelation.

3. Truth is correspondence between man and his true nature.

Lord Jesus Christ – Truth as Prophecy:

The Truth of Jesus, The Book of John, Chapter 20, verse 29: Jesus said to him (Thomas), “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” Truth – Is it a matter of sight or sense experience, or is it a matter of faith and belief?

The Truth about Lord Jesus Christ had come to a very critical scrutiny while he got arrested and stood before Pilate, the Roman Governor. The Book of John, Chapter 18, verses 37 and 38 record the conversation between Jesus and Pilate: So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a King?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a King. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”  “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Jesus did not answer the question as the truth must have correspondence with reality in external world. The truth of Jesus is about establishment of Kingdom of Heaven upon Earth. It was a prophetic truth and the truth would be evident only when the Prophecy comes true.

Lord Gautama Buddha – Truth as Experience:

Lord Gautama Buddha c. 563 to c. 483 B.C. also known as Prince Siddhartha (he who will accomplish) witnessed irremediable human suffering in the form of physical disability, sickness, oldage, and death. Acting under the uplifting Power of Compassion, he left the royal palace in search of Truth.

 Lord Gautama Buddha known as Siddhartha (He who will accomplish), c. 563 B.C to c. 483 B.C., left the palace at the age of 29 leaving behind his young wife and infant son. After six years of ascetic life, while meditating under a Pipal tree (later called Bodhi or Enlightenment Tree ), he became Supreme Buddha (c. 528 B.C.) at the age of 35. He preached his first sermon at Sarnath. He outlined his Doctrine of Four Noble Truths and the First Noble Truth is that of suffering, the experience of pain and sorrow called DUKHA  is implicit in human existence. Buddha’s truth is related to man’s experience of the nature of his existence in the world.

I maintain that man exists at any stage of his existence, at any given age, under any given circumstance, in either good health or ill health, in pain and suffering or that of joy and happiness due to the operation of a Fundamental Force/Power/Energy that delivers Mercy/Grace/Compassion. If suffering describes one face of the coin called human existence, Compassion describes the second face of the same coin. Compassion is implicit in human existence and that of all living things.

Lord Rama – Truth in Action:

“WHO AM I? WHY I AM LIKE THIS?” were the questions asked by Lord Rama and these are the questions that we need to ask ourselves to know the Truth about Self.

 In the epic poem known as Ramayana, Indian poet Valmiki describes Lord Rama’s life journey. Rama spends 14 years in the forest to help fulfilment of the word or promise made by his father. In the final Chapter, Book Six, Yuddha Kanda, Chapter (Sarga) 117, verse 11, he asks the following question:

“aatmaanaM  maanuShaM manye RaamaM Dasharathaatmajam;

so aHaM yasya yatashchaahaM bhagavaMstadbraviitu me.”

“I think of myself to be a human being, by name Rama, the son of Dasaratha. You, as a gracious Divintiy tell me who I am and why I am like this?”

In the story of Ramayana, the Creator Lord Brahma responds to the questions asked by Lord Rama. These are the questions that we need to ask ourselves. To know Truth about Self, man must begin his inquiry with the question of Who am I?

The Inquiry about Self – Who am I?

Socrates before taking poison that would end his life had stated: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” “Know thyself” is a virtue and to defend that virtue, Socrates made no attempt to save his life.

 The tradition of knowing oneself is a longer tradition than any other Science. This is a study in which the Knower and the Known are one. The object of scientific inquiry is the nature of the scientist.

How to discover the Truth about Self?

Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud: “No knowledge can be obtained from revelation, intuition, or inspiration.”

 Religion, Philosophy, and Science may represent three distinct fields of learning about Truth and Reality. Each tries to answer fundamental questions about human life. All three differ from each other in the selection of method and subject matter. Auguste Comte, the 19th century French philosopher, the founder of Sociology had described Positive Science as the study of natural, mental, and social phenomena by empirical methods. In his view, Philosophy is mere speculation and Religion is superstition or irrational belief. Speculation represents a futile attempt to go behind the phenomena in order to discover ultimate causes or substances and such speculative methods may result in guess work or conjecture and not in knowledge. Philosophy may use Logic and system and yet its conclusions may lack the validity or objectivity of Science.The philosophical inquiry does not involve investigation by experiment. Science not only provides the knowledge that something is true, but also the reasons why it is true. The famous Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud had categorically claimed that no knowledge can be obtained from revelation, intuition, or inspiration. There is a tendency in modern times to reject the methods used by Religion and Philosophy. Philosophy may use intuitive generalization or induction from ordinary sense experience. The scientific method involves induction from an inference from experiments which involve testing and verifying a hypothesis. The observations of scientist go beyond the experiences which ordinary men have in the course of daily life. The instruments that are invented and used by scientists have immense abilities to collect numerous kinds of empirical data with precision, accuracy, and consistency. However, it may not be easy to conclude that Science alone can arrive at correspondence with Truth and Reality. Could we extend scientific methodology of investigation to every field of Inquiry? Could we obtain clarity and certainity in all matters using scientific methods? Could Science  be the only avenue to Truth? Could we find Truth and Reality as an external experience? Could man use scientific information to experience Truth and Reality?

Sir Issac Newton demonstrated the properties of Light rays using experimets. Science explains this optical illusion. Could Science remove the optical illusion and give man a chance to experience the reality of this Pencil. The Reality of this Pencil would be known when the Pencil is removed from water and man has no ability to change the properties of Light rays.

 When a object exists in  a conditioned state, like this Pencil in water, Science may explain the illusion generated. Science and scientific information may not provide the direct experience of Truth and Reality. Man is the observer, and the reality or truth of Earth’s Angular Speed, or Linear Speed is not an observed fact obtained by direct human sense experience. Scientific information can not provide the experience that could be generated by the truth and reality of Earth’s Motion.

The Purpose of Science: The Knowledge about Self:

The purpose of Science is to describe observation and experience and provide accepted body of information and arrange it into a meaningful pattern to explain truth and reality.

The purpose of Science is to describe and codify observation and experiences. Natural Sciences such as Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Medical Sciences provide accepted body of information about the world and human body. We need to arrange this information into a meaningful pattern and interpret it to describe the Reality or Truth about man. We need to apply a reasoning process which involves analysis of basic concepts to determine their consistency. Something could be said to be true if, and only if it could be verified by logical or scientific procedures. We need to use a reasoning process, a philosophical analysis to clarify statements, to verify or refute a theoretical claim by demonstrating relation between the theoretical claim and the observational evidence.

The Self and the Knowing-Self:

I divide man into two categories; 1. The Self: it represents the man as a physical, mental, and social being. The Self represents the thinking person or the person having thoughts, and feelings. 2. The Knowing-Self: it represents man as a moral, and spiritual being. The Knowing-Self is aware or Conscious of the thoughts and feelings of The Self.

Thinking vs Consciousness:

Dr Florian Mormann & Dr Christof Koch have defined Neural Correlates of Consciousness as the minimal neuronal mechanism jointly sufficient for any one specific Conscious percept. This definition basically makes no distinction between Thinking and Consciousness. The NCC definition is not based on correct understanding of the function known as Consciousness. It fails to speak about the role of Reticular Formation, and Brain Stem Nuclei that have the Capacity of Consciousness. The Capacity of Consciousness is an essential precondition of the Content of Consciousness. The Reticular Formation filters incoming stimuli to discriminate irrelevant background stimuli and composes the Content of Consciousness before relaying the information to the Cerebral hemispheres to cause Cortical awareness.

The Self may think about the nature of consciousness, but Thinking and Consciousness are two distinct functions. Thinking and Consciousness are not one and the same. Consciousness functions to provide Awareness and it is not involved in mental activities such as Thinking. The conscious individual is aware of his thoughts. The Reticular Formation supports functions such as AROUSAL and it maintains wakefulness, alertness, and sleep. In the absence of this Brain Stem function, the Individual is not capable of generating thoughts, and feelings and would not be aware of what goes on inside the Individual, and what goes on outside the Individual.

In Clinical Medicine, the medical practitioner evaluates the Level of Arousal or Alertness of his patient.

The Individual – Identity and Individuality – The Two Sides of the same Coin:

The Self has two aspects- External Reality describes the Identity of the Individual; Internal Reality establishes the Individuality of the Individual.

 If man is viewed as a living thing, the thing is made of Matter and Form. The Form establishes the morphological appearance in the external world. The Matter establishes the Individuality of the Individual. The external appearance or Phenotype of man undergoes constant change and is not the same at all times. The Individuality is related to the Genotype which remains constant while man goes through various stages of his existence from conception to old age. As per The Law of Individuality and Creation, man is a created being who would always exist as an Individual with Individuality and man has no choice other than that of existing as an Individual. The Truth about Self is not about the Identity of the Individual in terms of his anthropometric measurements, biometric information, name, gender, race, ethnicity, language, religion, nationality, education, social occupation, social status or social ranking, and affiliations. This external reality has a degree of correspondence in the external world as it is often confirmed  and is recognized by others who can observe the Individual. But this knowledge is subject to change and the information it provides is not experienced in a constant, and objective manner. The Truth about Self is the Truth about the human organism which is multicellular. We need to know as to who or what is the subject who lives because of the functions of the trillions of cells that comprise the human organism.

Who am I?  –  “I am Consciousness”:

WHO AM I? This question must be answered by applying a reasoning process to Inferential Knowledge about Cell Structure (ANATOMY) and Cell Functions (PHYSIOLOGY). Life is defined as “Knowledge in Action.”

 All living organisms use similar building units called cells. Basically, the cell has a membrane, a nucleus, and a living substance known as Protoplasm. The nucleus has nucleic acids like DNA/RNA which have no independent existence of their own. The genome functions when it is associated with Protoplasm which has the exclusive ability to obtain energy (food) from its environment. Consciousness is a natural principle that describes the condition of an Individual; the condition of knowing, awareness, or recognizing the fact, the state, and the act of biological existence in a given environment. The term environment refers to all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding, and affecting the existence of a given Individual, or a group of Individuals. Who is this Individual who has the ability to know and be aware of its external, and internal environment? The Individual is a living organism and the organism could be unicellular or multicellular. The most fundamental aspect of Consciousness as a living function that establishes biological existence is that of acquiring energy from environment. The living cell is a thermodynamically unstable system. This means that without continuous input of energy, a cell will degrade spontaneously into a non living collection of molecules.

“I am Consciousness” – The Verification of the Proposition:

The proposition that “I am Consciousness” could be subjected to a reasoning process in two manners: 1. The Coherence Theory of Truth, and 2. The Correspondence Theory of Truth.

1. “I am Consciousness” – The Coherence Theory of Truth: The standard of Truth is the logical consistency of a proposition with a large system of propositions. “I am Consciousness” is the proposition. The propositions to support my proposition are :

a. Consciousness is a mental experience.

b. Consciousness is a sense experience.

c. Consciousness is a physical or body experience.

d. Consciousness is a social experience.

e. Consciousness is a moral experience.

f. Consciousness is a spiritual experience.

g. Consciousness is a cellular experience.

The Subject “I am” of the proposition could be defined as a physical, mental, social, moral, and spiritual being based upon the contents of the ‘Total Consciousness’ experience of that Individual.

2. “I am Consciousness” – The Correspondence Theory of Truth: Truth is viewed as a relation between an idea or proposition and its object. “I am Consciousness” is the proposition. The Subject known as “I am” is related to an idea or object described as “Consciousness.” We need to verify the Truth or Reality of a relation between the Subject and its Object. The Subject is the whole or entire human organism comprising of trillions of individual cells which function as organs and tissues of the body. The Subject “I am” can not be defined merely as a single individual,specific organ like brain or mind. The body organ called brain has no independent existence of its own. Brain and its cells (neurons, axons, and connective tissue) need energy to sustain its metabolic activities. The functional relationship between the Subject and the Object operates and involves the activity of the entire organism and is not limited to the activities of brain or mind. The purpose of Consciousness at cellular level is to foster functional unity of the multicellular organism and establish it as an Individual. A living thing maintains it Individuality while being a member of a given social group. The process by which a living cell acquires energy to perform its living functions is called ‘Nutrition’. Consciousness is the awareness of energy dependent existence in a given environment and it is the characteristic of all living cells irrespective of their differentiation, functional subordination, and identification as the constituent parts of specific organs, tissues, and organ systems. The idea or Object called “Consciousness” is fundamentally related to the Subject called “I am” both at the level of the entire organism and at the level of individual cells.

Human Knowledge and Self-Knowledge:

WHO AM I? Lord Krishna described Himself in The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter X, The Opulence of the Absolute, verse 22:”Of the Vedas, I am the Sama Veda; of the demigods, I am Indra; of the senses, I am the Mind; and in Living Beings, I AM CONSCIOUSNESS.”

 Human Knowledge is of two kinds; 1. Acquired Knowledge that is dependent upon sense experience, and reason, and 2. Innate or Intuitive Knowledge, the genetic information, the biological information that all living cells and organisms use to perform living functions and to exhibit biological behavior and instincts. Knowledge about Self, or Self-Knowledge begins with the implantation of Consciousness in Matter and not as Sense experience, and not on account of rational thinking with application of reason.