Charles Darwin agreed with William Wallace, who independently developed the theory of human evolution, that among human beings there has been for a long time little physical evolution. But "the case... is widely different," Wallace insisted, "in relation to the intellectual and moral faculties of man."

      Once humans develop certain physical traits such as a larger brain and the use of tools, further evolution must occur exclusively in the development of mental traits such as the enhancement of language and reasoning, moral refinement, and spiritual transformation. All elements of physical evolution can be used either for positive or negative purposes: to encourage the complete realization of humankind's potential or for the deliberate debasement of humans to a retrograde state.

      Since humans can think and act in a manner either to evolve to a higher state or devolve to a lower state, the critical factors are mental, moral, and spiritual development: the ability to understand and manifest capabilities in a positive manner.

As human consciousness has evolved over the last approximately ten thousand years, it's now reached a point at which a new mutation has become possible--and necessary. Those people who work within the Perennial Tradition 1 develop new organs of awareness, enabling them to evolve into supra-humans. 2       This essay explicates how Perennialists assist in guiding the mental, moral, and spiritual transformation of humankind. Our discussion takes place within the larger context of human evolution, in both its transcendent and terrestrial manifestations.                                 Transcendent Realm Terrestrial Realm       Divine Creation of Evolving Humans       Why is it that humans are capable of evolution? Referring to the Old Testament statement, "God created man in his own image," Nicholas of Cusa used a metaphor to explain his view.       Wishing to make an image of Himself, God could create an inert image which would remain the same, or a living image that could evolve, becoming progressively more like Himself. He chose, of course, the latter. "The situation is as if a painter wished to reproduce himself by painting, and because he himself is not replicable, there would arise--as he was reproducing himself--his image. "And because no matter how nearly perfect an image is, if it cannot become more perfect and more conformed to its exemplar, it is never as perfect as any imperfect image whatsoever that has the power to conform itself ever more and more, without limit, to its inaccessible exemplar. For in this respect the image, as best it can, imitates infinity. "The situation is as if the painter were to make two images [of himself], one of which was dead but seemed actually more like him, and the other of which was less like him but was alive--i.e., was such that when stimulated- to-movement by its object, [viz., himself, the original], it could make itself ever more conformed [to the object]. No one doubts that the second image is the more perfect qua imitating, to a greater degree, the art of the painter. In a similar way, every mind—even ours, too, although it is created as lower than all other minds--has from God the fact that, as best it can be, it is a perfect and living image of the Infinite Art. "Therefore, mind . . . can conform itself, when stimulated, ever more and more to its Exemplar. In this way, even though our mind at the outset of its creation does not have the actual reflection of the Creative Art in terms of trinity and oneness, nevertheless it does have the concreated power through which it can make itself, when stimulated, more conformed to the actuality of the Divine Art . . . while the preciseness of the Infinite Art remains always inaccessible." Nicholas of Cusa, Idiota de Mente [The Layman 3 on Mind]      The only way for a Higher Being to evolve spontaneous individuals is to allow them the freedom to manifest whatever ideas they're able to transmit through inspiration and awaken to their own ultimate reality. So humans are created with the possibility of freedom and allowed to discover themselves. What we discover is that the universe is a government of law: we reap what we sow; wrong acts are their own punishment and right acts are their own reward. "We have made thee neither of heaven nor of earth, neither mortal nor immortal, so that with freedom and choice and with honor, as though the maker and molder of thyself, thou mayest fashion thyself in whatever shape thou shalt prefer. Thou shalt have power to degenerate into the lower forms of life which are brutish. Thou shalt have the power, out of thy soul's judgement, to be reborn into the highest forms, which are divine." Pico della Mirandola, Oration on the Dignity of Man Human Evolution and Devolution      We must distinguish clearly between genuine evolution and mere development, mere change, mere expansion, or mere attainment of extraordinary powers. Of the several meanings of the term "evolution," moral evolution refers exclusively to the "process of continuous change from a lower, simpler, or worse state to a higher, more complex, or better one: growth."                 The appearance of Homo Sapiens approximately 100,000 years ago appears to have been as a result of the human species developing specific capabilities: The ability to build and operate machines 4 The ability to reason: think for onself, search for and discover evidence, test hypotheses and arrive at tentative conclusions At this stage of our evolution as a species, it's clear that humankind has reached a crisis point: Either we develop genuine individual autonomy and move ahead in our evolution - or Cultural agencies will transform us into robotized creatures who follow the ideas and dictates of others. Evolutionary throwback      What has happened in human physical and mental evolution is that a small group of deviants--which we can best describe as the demonic cabal--has, through decades of inbreeding and special training, undergone a mutation that has lead to their becoming retrograde humans. 5   Evolutionary throwback        These persons can only be described as retrograde humans because they have lost the ability to think critically, possess no desire to understand the truth, have no compassion for their fellow-humans, and have as their primary purpose the amassing of wealth and power through barbaric annihilation of human societies. The absence of qualities that are essential in true humans renders these people sub-human. The present ruling group does not have the intellectual and moral capabilities to lead society in a productive and positive direction. They will self-destruct, as the results of their malformation catch up with them.      Mutations drive human physical evolution. Subtle changes in the pairing of the chemical letters of DNA--adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine--produce new cells with different traits than their ancestors. The fundamental basis of such change is called a single nucleotide polymorphism, or a copying error in the long chemical book of DNA. Japanese researchers have recently shown how environmentally damaged DNA letters lead to transcription flaws and, ultimately, human diversity.      To understand how this aberrant mutation--the cabal--has come about and how it explains current political-economic-social events, we must examine contemporary biological research on such "tuning" mutations (formally called homoeotic mutations). The animal most used in the investigations is Drosophila, the fruitfly. A whole range of these single-gene mutations have been found which produce various monstrosities. One kind, called antennapedia, leads to the antennae being transformed into legs. The unfortunate flies, which contain just one altered gene, produce legs instead of antennae growing out of their heads.       In retrograde humans, the abnormality occurs primarily in the brain and emotional center--resulting in monsters without human feelings, brains able only to evince cunning and subterfuge (not intelligence), and goals only of amassing power and wealth through destruction of other humans.       In his classic work The Emboldenment of Philosophy, Boethius explains that humankind's essence is the achievement of divinity through realizing our unity with our Higher Self, the Soul. Persons who are not leading their lives in pursuit of this goal, he says, are less than human. "Whatever loses its goodness ceases to be. Thus wicked men cease to be what they were; but the appearance of their human bodies, which they keep, shows that they once were men. To give oneself to evil, therefore, is to lose one's human nature. Just as virtue can raise a person above human nature, so vice lowers those whom it has seduced from the condition of men beneath human nature. For this reason, anyone whom you find transformed by vice cannot be counted a man. "Although vicious men keep the appearance of their human bodies, they are nevertheless changed into beasts as far as the character of their souls is concerned." "But I don’t want to go among mad people," Alice remarked. "Oh, you can’t help that," said the Cat. "We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad." "How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice. "You must be," said the Cat. "or you wouldn’t have come here." Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland Why and How Most Humans Are Devolving       Through our choices of what we think and do, we evolve or devolve, as Pico so eloquently phrased it: either "to be reborn into the highest divine forms" or "to degenerate into the lower forms of life which are brutish." At present most of humankind is regressing and devolving.       The majority of humans at present are not developing the intellectual and moral characteristics that make a person genuinely human: rationality, understanding, self-awareness, and altruism. 6 Humankind's Evolution and Current Devolution Man's Achieve- ment of Language The Oral Frame of Mind Man's Achieve- ment of Reason The 18th Century Enlightenment Reversion to Oral Frame of Mind Back to the Stone Age Homer Plato       Demonic tyrants have essentially destroyed the American educational system, resulting in retrograde humans who cannot read, understand, think for themselves, or even survive. These debased persons are allowing themselves to be brainwashed into a murderous ideology that leads them to volunteer as cannon fodder for the insane Iraq war: an evil plot to seize Iraqi oil, reconfigure the Middle-East, and murder American military personnel which are seen as "surplus population."       The fundamental intellectual and moral values on which Western Civilization was founded are now being systematically perverted into their opposite: Fundamental Human Values Positive Value Perversion or Inversion Reason, Intellectual Autonomy, Self-Awareness Cunning, Mind-Control, Deliberate Ignorance Individualism Egomania, License, Greed Altruism, Social Cohesion Totalitarianism, Collectivism Rule of Law, Justice Rule of Corrupt Officials Learning, Education Programming, Training, Conditioning Commonwealth, Democracy Dictatorship, Plutocracy Enlightened Capitalism Fascism, Imperialism, Globalization Prepared Military, National Defense Pre-emptive Unending War, Militarism Information as Basis of Commonwealth Misinformation, Propaganda       To qualify as a genuine human, a person must understand and act in accordance with the positive values above. Yet if we examine the beliefs and practices of most humans--especially leaders--today, we find that they hold to and act on the perverse or inverted non-values.       In a similar vein, there are basic moral values which a genuine human must adhere to. Persons who fail to follow these fundamental principles reduce themselves to retrograde humans at best, bestial at worst. Below we'll examine a few moral precepts which are fundamental to human life. We won't attempt to compile an exhaustive list, but review some of the more significant. Fundamental Human Precepts You must not commit murder or advocate and conspire in murder Murder: premeditated killing of an innocent person (one who has not acted in a violent manner) You must not act in a corrupt or depraved manner Corruption: deliberate breaking of the law for personal gain You must work to overcome tyranny and oppression Tyranny and oppression corrupt and degrade the human soul You must realize your intellectual, moral, and spiritual potential Human potential is realized through intellectual, moral, and spiritual ascent (see table below)       We'll examine in detail some examples of current belief and practice that bear on these fundamental human precepts: Current Political Insanity About Nuclear War         August 13, 2005: Reporter to President Bush: "Sir, when you talk about Iran, and you talk about how you have diplomatic efforts, you also say all options are on the table. Does that include the possibility of a nuclear strike?" President Bush: "All options are on the table." Nine of ten candidates for the Republican presidential nomination explicitly or tacitly supported a US attack on Iran using nuclear weapons, in response to a question at the June 5, 2007 nationally televised debate in New Hampshire.       Hillary Clinton: "We cannot, we should not, we must not, permit Iran to build or acquire nuclear weapons, and in dealing with this threat, as I have said for a very long time, no option can be taken off the table." Barack Obama, asked on 60 Minutes about using military force to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons: "I think we should keep all options on the table." "All options must remain on the table in regards to dealing with Iran, whose nuclear ambition threatens the security of Israel and the entire world." 2008 Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards                 Each of the above persons is attempting to become the next president of the United States and appears to most Americans as exhibiting the height of intellectual and moral accomplishment. Yet each of them is advocating, and in the case of Bush, practicing murder of human beings. A society that is unaware that most of its leaders and citizens have degenerated to the level of retrograde human (less than fully human) is in vital danger of self-destruction.       Living in a deranged society, it's almost impossible to realize that the people have been reduced to the status of retrograde humans and its institutions subverted and perverted into a totalitarian police state.       Throughout human history, we've allowed ourselves to be held back from full development by accepting as "natural" certain dogmas, absurdities, and brainwashing schemes in the religious, political, and social arenas. There have been notable instances when persons acted in accord with fundamental moral precepts in struggling to overcome destructive dogmas and practices: Past Political Dogma And Its Denunciation Louis XVI of France George III of England "But there is another and greater distinction for which no truly natural or religious reason can be assigned, and that is, the distinction of men into KINGS and SUBJECTS. Male and female are the distinctions of nature, good and bad the distinctions of heaven; but how a race of men came into the world so exalted above the rest, and distinguished like some new species, is worth enquiring into .... "It is not so much the absurdity as the evil of hereditary succession which concerns mankind. Did it ensure a race of good and wise men it would have the seal of divine authority, but as it opens a door to the foolish, the wicked; and the improper, it hath in it the nature of oppression. Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance; and the world they act in differs so materially from the world at large, that they have but little opportunity of knowing its true interests, and when they succeed to the government are frequently the most ignorant and unfit of any throughout the dominions." Thomas Paine, Common Sense      To be genuine humans, persons must realize their full intellectual, moral, and spiritual potential through working to ascend to the height of positive human development. The Ascent True Believer Persecution of heretics Sacrifice of self "Union" with mass movement Dogmatic espousal of ideology Assumptions "I know everything" "I understand everything" "I can do anything" "I know how to learn" Addictions-Obsessions Excitement Routine Personality Qualities: "sincerity," "authority," "loyalty," etc. "Knowledge": theory, fantasy, fraud Misinterpretation and Greed Union With Higher Consciousness Real Knowledge: Wisdom, Truth Understanding Development with a Teacher Knowledge Self-discipline and surrender Learning the distinction between information, knowledge, and understanding Learning how to learn Self-knowledge Interest in and desire for knowledge Dissatisfaction with oneself       Most humans live in a mental and emotional state of deadly self-satisfaction, ignorant of their own ignorance. They're only able to begin their ascent if they somehow experience a sense of divine dissatisfaction with themselves, the feeling that they should or must change and improve.       Motivated by their desire for self-betterment, they become aware of their ignorance and seek information that will enable self-transformation. They first hear about and then actually hear or read transformative material. At that point they either work assiduously to attain to truth, morality, and wisdom or they degenerate into retrograde humans by following the path of delusion.       The Perennialist teacher Rumi 7 taught that humans attain organs of perception as a result of the need for specific organs. His admonition to persons seeking spiritual illumination was to increase our need. 8 The Next Step in Human Evolution: the Supra-Humans       Though ordinary humans are rapidly losing the ability to understand reality, a small contemporary group is accessing supernormal knowledge through portals into Higher Consciousness. They are making knowledge available about what is actually going on in the world--beyond what the demonic cabal's media lies say is going on. And, of critical importance, they are preserving higher knowledge in books and Web sites which will be available when conditions have degenerated to the point where a rudely awakened mass of people will suddenly say: "How can we get out of this intolerable situation? What knowledge do we need to re-build a sane and progressive world?" Humankind's spiritual--and physical--evolution has been guided by seers such as Hermes, Plato, Jesus, Rumi, Francis of Assisi, and Shakespeare, and continues to be inspired and directed by contemporary Perennialist teachers. "For the Supermind as the Truth-Consciousness of the Infinite has in its dynamic principle the infinite power of a free self-determination. It can hold all knowledge in itself and yet put forward in formulation only what is needed at each stage of an evolution; it formulates whatever is in accordance with the Divine Will in manifestation and the truth of the thing to be manifested. It is by this power that it is able to hold back its knowledge, hide its own character and law of action and manifest Overmind and under Overmind a world of ignorance in which the being wills on its surface not to know and even puts itself under the control of a pervading Nescience. But in this new stage the veil thus put on will be lifted; the evolution at every step will move in the power of the Truth-Consciousness and its progressive determinations will be made by a conscious Knowledge and not in the forms of an Ignorance or Inconscience." Aurobindo, The Future Evolution of Man, Ch. 5 Notes: 1  The Perennial Tradition is the single stream of initiatory teaching flowing through all the great schools of mysticism and philosophy. It has taken many names over the centuries such as Hermeticism, Philosophia, Platonism, Esoteric Christianity, Neo-Platonism, Gnosticism, Esotericism, Alchemy, Cabala, Magic, Sufism, and Illuminism, among others. For a complete explication of its ideas and practices, see the author's recent book The Perennial Tradition. 2 We must distinguishes two different strains or "types" within the human species: Ordinary human beings within a culture Human beings who have undergone a spiritual transformation through initiation into a Higher Consciousness and are harbingers of the evolutionary Supra-Human The new supra-humans compose a race of adventurers, dwelling invisibly among mankind, who have evolved to the point of being able to deliberately and actively return to the divine Fount of Reality. They have attained Being, union with the One, and teach these mysteries to authentic seekers. Because of this, they have a unique importance for the evolution of the human race in revealing humankind's full potential and how this potential can be realized. Supra-Humans (Clement of Alexandria referred to them as "True Gnostics") are not just superficially different in degree from ordinary humans; they are a different "type" altogether. They represent a distinct higher level of being within the Man (Homo) genus and the homo sapiens species--the new evolutionary strain that is now emerging. They are distinguished from ordinary homo sapiens by their: Achievement of a higher understanding Experience of spiritual transformation Ability to live in both the terrestrial and the spiritual worlds simultaneously Outwardly, these supra-humans appear the same as ordinary human beings; the difference is internal and spiritual and can only be discerned by members of the same "type." Supra-humans are confluently active in a higher consciousness, co-conscious with one another in a super-human intelligence. 3 Cusa, like many Renaissance thinkers, rejected the scholastic pedants' pretence of erudition and referred to the native, experiential wisdom of the lay seeker. 4 A machine is a manufactured device which transforms one form of energy into another, decreasing entropy.   Additional information on this aspect of evolution Early in humankind's physical evolution we began to store mental and social information: how to build and use machines. This kind of knowledge has to be learned after birth, it is not instinctual or innate--no hominid is born knowing how to build any machine. With the development of language, this information could be passed from one generation to the next. Beyond the capability of building and using machines, the extraordinary power of invention was the essential mutation which made a new type of psychosocial evolution possible. An invention is a new machine which can increase the "fitness" of a particular species. "Fitness" refers, in physical evolution, to a species' capability for producing progeny. In spiritual evolution, "fitness" means the capability of understanding higher knowledge: humankind's essence as an expression of a Higher Being. 5 The word "sub-human" has been used by various groups as a mindless term of rejection: the Nazis depictinig other European peoples as sub-human; some cultures referring to women as sub-humans; Hindu society depicting untouchables as sub-human, and so on. I am using the term "retrograde humans" only in a descriptive manner, referring to certain people as retrograde who have lost the ability to think critically, who possess no desire to understand the truth, and who have no compassion for their fellow-humans. Since those and other qualities are essential in true humans, their absence from these people renders them retrograde human. Retrograde: tending to or resulting in a worse state than was formerly realized; a reversal in development: devolutionary 6 Altruism: unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others 7 "Sufis believe that, expressed in one way, humanity is evolving to a certain destiny. We are all taking part in that evolution. Organs come into being as a result of the need for specific organs (Rumi). The human being's organism is producing a new complex of organs in response to such a need. In this age of the transcending of time and space, the complex of organs is concerned with the transcending of time and space. What ordinary people regard as sporadic and occasional bursts of telepathic or prophetic power are seen by the Sufi as nothing less than the first stirrings of these same organs. The difference between all evolution up to date and the present need for evolution is that for the past ten thousand years or so we have been given the possibility of a conscious evolution. So essential is this more rarefied evolution that our future depends upon it." Idries Shah, The Sufis 8 In periods of crisis when all of humankind is threatened with physical and mental extinction--when our need for development of new organs or awareness is a matter of life or death--elementary information about Perennialist activities is made public so that persons with genuine interest and dedication have the opportunity of working toward acceptance into transformative programs.