This is a really great article! I wonder if it goes farther than this, and if it can show up in different species. For example, it’s been shown in chimpanzees, apparently.
Thanks for the compliment and the link to the NPR article. The chimp behavior described in the article is very intriguing, why would they throw large stones at certain trees? Just like Prof King and the original researcher (Kehoe) I’m not sure that this peculiar behavior suggests some spiritual instinct in chimps, but it remains an outside possibility.
In general I would say, we should reserve jumping to conclusions even about the human sense of sacred being biological. We simply don’t have enough evidence. But as we collect more evidence for it, certainly the question will arise as to whether we can find it in other species, particularly great apes and other mammals, given our closely related brains, behavior and evolutionary relatedness.
Thanks again for your interest and thoughtful comment.
That is a key question IMO. Our biggest stumbling block is our almost total lack of progress in understanding consciousness and self consciousness since their Vedic descriptions about 4000 years ago!
Modern neuroscience has to figure out a reliable test for consciousness. It will help us understand its evolution in species. It will also help us identify fake claims of sentience being made about AI in machines.
This is a really great article! I wonder if it goes farther than this, and if it can show up in different species. For example, it’s been shown in chimpanzees, apparently.
https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2017/06/01/530937607/a-twist-in-discussions-of-chimpanzee-spirituality
And I think I have heard about it in elephants!
Thanks for the compliment and the link to the NPR article. The chimp behavior described in the article is very intriguing, why would they throw large stones at certain trees? Just like Prof King and the original researcher (Kehoe) I’m not sure that this peculiar behavior suggests some spiritual instinct in chimps, but it remains an outside possibility.
In general I would say, we should reserve jumping to conclusions even about the human sense of sacred being biological. We simply don’t have enough evidence. But as we collect more evidence for it, certainly the question will arise as to whether we can find it in other species, particularly great apes and other mammals, given our closely related brains, behavior and evolutionary relatedness.
Thanks again for your interest and thoughtful comment.
Quite thought provoking. How much is this linked to the evolution of consciousness in species?
That is a key question IMO. Our biggest stumbling block is our almost total lack of progress in understanding consciousness and self consciousness since their Vedic descriptions about 4000 years ago!
Modern neuroscience has to figure out a reliable test for consciousness. It will help us understand its evolution in species. It will also help us identify fake claims of sentience being made about AI in machines.