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Personal

Aphorisms from the Quadrune Mind Perspective

I love aphorisms. Below are aphorisms I have written to help express the values of the quadrune mind model of spiritual consciousness. Aphorisms that originally appeared in blog posts are hyperlinked to their respective post. I have also used aphorisms with the “30 Habits of the Human Mind” to describe characteristics of human consciousness in […]

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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 […]

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Brain Philosophy Spirituality

QM and the Future of Spiritual Consciousness

(Or, Metamorphoses of Mind) Introduction Quadrune mind is a secular, evolutionary model of spiritual consciousness. Until the 21st century, consciousness has “naturally” expanded on earth without active, intentional human intervention, but that is rapidly changing. With emerging neurotechnologies, neuroscientists and neuroengineers are capable of making radical changes to what the human brain is and what kind of mind(s) […]

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Contemporary Issues Human Mind Religion Reptilian Mind

Why Religious Fervor and Spiritual Consciousness Are Not The Same

(A Comparison of Two Religious Politicians, Josh Hawley and John Lewis, in Light of the Quadrune Mind Model)  Josh Hawley and John Lewis each has lived his life in service to what he believed was right. But does that mean they have both lived spiritual lives? For the quadrune mind, it’s the level of consciousness, […]

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Human Mind Philosophy Profile Religion

QM and the Human Mind of Siddhartha Gautama

Introduction In previous posts we have profiled each of the three pre-Human mentalities: the reptilian mind (as seen in Donald Trump’s behavior), the old mammalian mind (as seen in Temple Grandin’s understanding of animals), and the new mammalian mind (as seen in Tara Westover’s intellectual journey).  These profiles are not meant to demonize anyone, but […]