Rediscovering the Wisdom
of Human Nature
By Chet Shupe
God did not Cast Us from Eden
We Humans Shamed Ourselves Out
What, specifically, happened that threatens to bring down the spaceship, Planet Earth?
It wasn’t much, really. Just an innocent mistake—so innocent that it’s hard to believe it has caused so much chaos and suffering. The situation that made the mistake possible came into being some two hundred thousand years ago when evolution gifted humans with the spoken word.
For most of those years, language served our species well. Our predecessors used it as an extension of body language to share feelings, communicate about the location of food, water, and other necessities, and make short-term arrangements, such as who was going to fix breakfast in the morning, or who was going to go on the hunt, the next afternoon.
If evolution had been monitoring the scene, it would have congratulated itself on the success of its latest innovation. It might have commented, to itself, that—after two hundred thousand years—nothing bad had happened. So, its newest innovation—the spoken word—had proven itself fail-safe. I, too, join in congratulating evolution, although I must caution, “Don’t rest too easily, Mr. Evolution. Not yet—” because, after two hundred thousand years of unqualified success, evolution’s language experiment took a wrong turn.
It happened, only a few thousand years ago, when people decided they wanted those short-term arrangements to become long-term ones. It was no longer enough to know who was going to fix breakfast the next morning. People wanted arrangements that assured them they would have a place to live—and the satisfaction of lifelong relationships, and all the other things they felt they would need, for life. (Read More)
Why Men Love War
Evolution commissioned sisterhoods to be the caretakers of life, and brotherhoods to be life’s protectors. So, evolution configured men’s feelings so that when facing danger, men value the lives of the people they are protecting more than they value their own, not by choice. By the grace of evolution, it is how they feel—no good intentions are required. And because they can’t feel any other way, they know that somewhere down deep in their souls, they care. So, men love war because it provides an opportunity for evolution to remind men that their lives count. Before humans domesticated themselves, there were all kinds of dangers for men to face. Thus, they were constantly reminded that they were needed. Now that civil order has eliminated most of those dangers, men must wait until the next war for their inborn feelings to remind them that they care.
Men at war enjoy the camaraderie of brotherhood, and they feel needed. Back home, there are no brotherhoods, and no dangers to face, so they don’t feel needed. True, on the battlefield, men are at risk of losing their physical lives, but because they feel needed, it’s one heck of a boost to their spiritual ones—so much that sometimes it’s hard for soldiers to go home. Back home, they are yet at risk of losing their physical lives, but in this case, it’s by their own hand, because they find that they are no longer able to bear the burden of having lost their spiritual ones.
Lost in a Blizzard of Knowledge
How do we regain our spiritual freedom? Frankly, I do not know if it is possible. I liken mankind’s circumstances to the situation my father found himself in when I was a little boy. He was lost on horseback in a blizzard about five miles from home. The wind was so strong that he could hardly tell which way was up, much less North. He got home that afternoon, not by determining the way, but by letting go of his horses’ reins. During the entire trip, he had no clue where he was until the image of the barn door emerged from the haze of the blowing snow. He saved his life by trusting the spirit of his horse. One could say that, given his situation, he had no other option, which is true. But he had reason to trust his horse. He had ridden that horse for years, during which they had been there for each other many times. So, he knew the horse. When the two of them disappeared into that blinding storm, he had confidence that they would not end up going over the edge of a cliff.
In my estimation, humanity is also lost in a blizzard; only in our instance, it is a blizzard of knowledge. The knowledge swirling around us is making us so dizzy that we, too, can’t tell which way is up, much less determine which knowledge contributes to our species’ wellbeing and which endangers it. Our situation is worse than my dad’s. We don’t know that spiritual homes exist, thus don’t realize we are lost. Instead of seeking the sense of well-being that a real home provides, we look to more knowledge for salvation. which only intensifies the storm in which we are lost.
What Chet Shupe thinks About Valentine’s Day
I have pretty much stayed away from women since my second divorce, some 40 years ago. This is not because I don’t like, respect, or admire women. Indeed, I see them as significantly more emotionally intelligent than men. How could I not admire them? It’s just that I have discovered that women have inborn expectations regarding relationships that I am unable to fulfill, not even by pretending. I stay away from women, not because I don’t like them, but because it pains me so when I disappoint them.
So, on Valentine’s Day, I don’t have much to do. But when I see a sidewalk stand with a big bouquet of roses, a teddy bear, or a heart-shaped box of candy on display, I say to myself: “I’m glad that I am not in sufficient trouble with a woman that I would have to get her one of those. It’s not that I wouldn’t mind getting her one. Indeed, I would delight in that. What I mind is being in trouble with a woman,
I share the above in the spirit of humor, but also for a more serious reason. I trust that, through personal experience, many men will identify with my plight. People are quick to agree that “What the World Needs Now is Love, Sweet Love,” yet we experience less and less of it. Clearly, something has gone wrong. Is it possible we are depending too much on feelings of romance to hold family relationships together, the feelings through evolution inspire us to procreate, and not enough on sisterly and brotherly love, the feelings through which evolution inspires humans to form bonds that typically last for life? Whatever has gone wrong, we need to think about it. It is affecting mankind’s happiness, our emotional health, and eventually, maybe our ability as a species to survive on this planet.
“Rediscovering the Wisdom of Human Nature by Chet Shupe is an insightful, honest, and intriguing read about the impact of civilization on inner peace and happiness.” — Scarbaby
“Have you ever wondered what consciousness is? Can you tap into the wisdom provided by your feelings? Did you know that you are under the subjugation of moral laws that force you to ditch your spiritual obligations?” —Centfie
“What I like about the book is the same thing I hate about it. From Shupe’s point of view, I find his aggression towards civilization somehow reasonable.” — AfraBrb
“I see this manuscript becoming a highly praised philosophical read that will be enjoyed by anyone seeking to understand the madness of our civilization.” —Rasheedah Hakeem
“I would humbly recommend this book to those who, like me, have always felt unmoored from life and have never understood why.” —Anjellina
To look inside the book, Click Here.
Rediscovering the Wisdom of Human Nature can be purchased at: “Amazon.com“
An audio version can be purchased at BookBaby.
Essays
God did not Cast Us from Eden – We Humans Shamed Ourselves Out
What Happens when our Feelings are Replaced by Cold Logic
The Spiritual Authority of Sisterhoods – The Hope for Mankind
What About Death- Why Modern People Fear It
Artificial Intelligence- A Blessing or A Curse
Why We Humans No Longer Love Another
My Special Evening In Oak Creek Canyon
How Human Rights Silences Our Love for Our Fellow Man
Does Evolution Have an Unrecognized Flaw
An Invitation to Rethink our Belief in Civil Rule – How Hobbes Led Us Astray
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