Is our sense of interconnectedness a lingering evolutionary blueprint?
In short: Humans across diverse cultures frequently report a profound sense of oneness with the world around them. While often attributed to spiritual practice, philosopher Helen De Cruz suggests this feeling might be deeply embedded in our psychology, potentially tracing back to our ancestral social networks and our long history with nature.
Helen De Cruz, a philosopher specializing in the cognitive science of theology and experimental philosophy, explores why the experience of interconnectedness is so universal. Rather than viewing 'oneness' solely as a modern spiritual construct, De Cruz looks at how these experiences might be rooted in the fundamental ways humans perceive their environment and each other.
The research suggests that our psychological architecture may still carry traces of early human social networks. In our evolutionary past, survival often depended on high levels of cooperation and a deep understanding of our place within a community. This necessity for social cohesion may have shaped a cognitive framework that favors perceiving the 'whole' over the 'individual,' creating a psychological predisposition toward feeling connected to others.
Furthermore, our longstanding relationship with the natural world contributes to this sense of unity. Because humans have evolved in constant interaction with ecosystems, our minds may be biologically tuned to recognize patterns of interdependence. De Cruz's work invites us to consider that what we now call 'spiritual' experiences of oneness might actually be the cognitive echoes of our evolutionary history—a deep-time perspective on how human morality and perception were forged.
By examining the intersection of cognitive science and philosophy, De Cruz highlights that these intuitions are not just abstract ideas. They are part of the human hardware. Understanding this connection allows us to see 'oneness' not as a departure from reality, but as a fundamental way of experiencing the world that helped our ancestors survive and thrive.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Did Evolution Give Us a Sense of Oneness? | Helen De Cruz
- Also: www.slu.edu — Helen De Cruz, Ph.D.
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