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Foundational Personal Philosophy Spirituality

Humanity’s 98% Failure Rate for Fulfilling Our Human Nature

How would you rate humanity’s performance at fulfilling our potential, so far, on a pass/fail grading system? Has the pass/fail ratio for various parts of the world changed over the centuries? Are there some places on earth today where people are doing well-enough as a group to receive a “pass” grade? Are there other groups […]

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Human Mind New Mammalian Mind Old Mammalian Mind Pre-Human Minds Reptilian Mind

Examples of Our Four Minds in Specific Circumstances of Life Part 4

Ultimate Sacrifice or Ultimate Gift and How Each Mind Acts in the Great Play of Life In this four-part essay, I give examples of how the four minds of the quadrune mind model of human nature can be observed as they function in various day-to-day circumstances. In the final part, I’ll describe how actors of […]

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Human Mind New Mammalian Mind Old Mammalian Mind Pre-Human Minds Reptilian Mind

Examples of Our Four Minds in Specific Circumstances of Life Part 3

Naïve Realism & Implicit Bias, Punishment & Discipline, Upstream Actions/Downstream Consequences, and You Can’t Change the Game by Winning It In this four-part essay, I give examples of how the four minds of the quadrune mind model of human nature can be observed as they function in various day-to-day circumstances. In the final part, I’ll […]

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Human Mind New Mammalian Mind Old Mammalian Mind Pre-Human Minds Reptilian Mind

Examples of Our Four Minds in Specific Circumstances of Life Part 1

Tara Westover’s Developmental Journey and Litmus Tests In this four-part essay, I give examples of how the four minds of the quadrune mind model of human nature can be observed as they function in various day-to-day circumstances. In the final part, I’ll describe how actors of each mind would perform their parts on the stage […]

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Human Mind Spirituality

What Is It Like to be a Human Being?

How to Use Humanizing Habits of Mind to Create a Spiritual Consciousness More men become good through practice than by nature. —Democritus Background A basic principle of the quadrune mind model of spiritual consciousness is that people are not born either spiritually enlightened or spiritually fallen. Also, being spiritually conscious does not mean having a holier-than-thou attitude […]

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Brain Foundational Human Mind Philosophy Pre-Human Minds

What Is It Like to Have a Mind?

Introduction If you were to ask a human being and a bat, “What is it like to have a mind?,” you would expect to get unimaginably different answers. What is less expected is that if you asked four different people the same question, you could receive four unimaginably different answers.  In 1974, philosopher Thomas Nagel famously asked […]

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Human Mind Philosophy Spirituality

Gautama Buddha or Friedrich Nietzsche: Contented Serenity or Agitated Courage?

Father, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what cannot be helped,and the insight to know the one from the other.—Reinhold Niebuhr, 1937 Introduction In the quadrune mind model of spiritual consciousness, we state that the purpose of a Human life is to reduce suffering and increase healing, but what does that […]

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Human Mind Pre-Human Minds Religion Spirituality

Quadrune Mind: A Secular Spirituality for the 21st Century

Introduction To define religion and spirituality is difficult to do. Yet, it is important that we have some understanding of what these words mean for the quadrune mind model of spirituality and this blog. The best definitions of “religion” and “spirituality” for the quadrune mind model come from Bowling Green State University. Spirituality is defined as “the […]

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Personal Philosophy Religion Spirituality

Green Burials: Recycling Matter and Spirit

Recently I was talking with some friends and as we are all of a certain age, the conversation came around to funeral service options. For various personal and religious reasons, several different preferences were expressed. Choices included cremation, a launch to sea on a small boat, donation to a medical school, and my offering, a […]

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Brain Foundational Psychology

QM and the Vital Difference between Consciousness and Intelligence

Consciousness is the perception of the purpose of life. Intelligence is the ability to successfully fulfill that purpose. Introduction The quadrune mind model states that the human brain is able to produce four distinctly different minds. Each mind has a different level of consciousness. The purpose of life is dramatically different for each mind’s level of consciousness. The […]