Beginning Here and Now: Two Humanities

Mechanical humanity in contrast to cognizant humanity - and the means to change from one to another. Includes an explanation of the sheep and the goats from the gospels. Read the lecture transcription. The word 'human' is a compound word made of two words: Hum and Manas. The word Manas is a Sanskrit word that means mind. This is why when we say "man," we are indicating the mind. The mind is characterized by reasoning. Reasoning distinguishes the rational animals (you and me) from the irrational animals. The mind exists in animals, plants, and minerals. It is not just the patrimony of the human being. But, the difference between the mind of the inferior kingdoms of nature and our mind is that we reason. Reasoning is precisely the difference. That is why we are called "man." The other word in "human" is Hum. Hum is the spirit. This is related to the Latin humus, meaning "earth or ground," that spirit from which the Man is taken. The "spirituous earth," the life within the "humus," is that matter, that dirt, which is written in the book of Genesis, where in the beginning God made the mind (the man) from the humus, or from the dust of the earth. It is a symbol. That dust implies the humus, implies the elements, chemical elements, and other unknown elements (archetypes) in which the spirit of God, the "spirituous earth" is hovering, according to the book of Genesis. When we study the phrase "in the beginning the spirit of God was hovering upon the face of the waters," that is a statement related with all the kingdoms of nature. The difference between the inferior kingdoms and the human kingdom is that we as rational animals can take advantage of that spiritual force that is hovering within any matter. In order to take advantage of this "spirituous earth," this spirit of God, we have to have the knowledge about it, because it does not occur mechanically.