public

The Collective Consciousness

Musings on the ancient transmission of themes in art, myth, and religion.

2 years ago

Latest Post Emergent Consciousness by Dr. Heather Lynn public


Consider a smartphone, laptop, and desktop computer. Although individually different in appearance and function, these devices can often communicate with one another. In recent years, there has been a move towards cloud computing whereby varying electronic devices can share and retrieve data through a remote source. From my point of view, this is somewhat analogous to the way by which information seemed to "go viral" among humans during ancient times. I call it "Cosmic Cloud Computing." However, by only looking at the material evidence that is found in the archaeological record, we may actually limit our understanding of how information spread in the ancient world.


First, we must establish how truly limited our knowledge of history is. Though primary schools may imply otherwise, our narrative of ancient cultures has only recently been written. Apart from a handful of religious texts, comparably few primary sources exist in the historical record about the lives and cultures of some of the earliest civilizations. Our current understanding of these civilizations is largely due to the careful reconstruction of evidence from excavations and the subsequent analysis of artifacts. The majority of this research has only been in the past few hundred years; just a speck on the timeline of the history of man.


Initially seen as a hobby, antiquarianism, as it was called, had been around since at least the first millennium BCE, as noted in ancient Greek texts that ponder lost technologies based on stone. Inquiry into the past has likely always been a part of human interests. People have searched for missing treasures and artifacts since prehistory and have routinely looted graves. However, the transformation of this informal activity into a science did not occur until the 17th and 18th centuries CE.

A group visiting the excavations at Meroë, including (from left) Midwinter Bey, director of Sudan Railways; Lord Kitchener; General Sir Francis Reginald Wingate, Sirdar of the Egyptian Army; Professor Archibald Sayce; John Garstang; and Lady Catherine Wingate, 1911.


The first systematic archaeological excavations are considered to have taken place in the 18th century, beginning with three significant sites: the Roman cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii in 1738, Thomas Jefferson's excavations in Virginia in 1784, and Napoleon's famous Egyptian excavations in 1798. The study of these sites eventually led to a boon of discoveries in the years ahead, from the Sumerian discoveries in 1899 to the discoveries of the Minoan, Olmec, and so on.


Organizational efforts started with the formation of antiquarian societies in the 19th century. Many of these societies observed basic guidelines regarding the classification of artifacts, the use of field notes and photography to record excavations, and the publication of results. It is also in these societies that we see the beginning of cooperative excavation and concern for the rights of indigenous people.


Upon reflection, it becomes shockingly apparent just how new archaeology is. The science of archaeology and related discoveries hit critical mass in the early part of the 20th century and has snowballed ever since. This has led to some of the most important and magnificent archaeological discoveries ever made. Still, archaeology continues to develop both as a science and as a profession, as does our understanding of our collective past. So how does archaeology explain the transmission of common themes in myths, legends, art, structures, and belief systems of the ancient world? Not adequately and certainly not conclusively. As our knowledge of the past is continuously changing, so are our theories and explanations.


The best place to begin examining the transmission of communication in ancient history is in Mesopotamia. This encompasses the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq. By at least the fourth millennium BCE, the first urban cultures started to form. These early civilizations included the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians. A substantial amount of knowledge has been gained from these civilizations due to their meticulous record keeping.


In Mesopotamia, as well as in Egypt, there was a quickening of cultural development and a population increase in the last centuries of the fourth millennium BCE. In a blink of an eye (about 300 years), we see complex structures, theologies, and written languages emerge. The reasons for this quickening remain a mystery and are still being debated by scholars. However, one school of thought is that advances in these civilizations were brought about by incursions of people from Western Asia.

The Ziggurat of Ur is a Neo-Sumerian ziggurat in what was the city of Ur near Nasiriyah, in present-day Dhi Qar Province, Iraq.

Some researchers believe in the existence of an "Asiatic invasion," which transformed an earlier African culture and established the foundations on which the dynastic state was brought about. However, this view has no firm support in the archaeological record. This is not to imply that there was no contact. There is little doubt about the cultural relations between Egypt and Western Asia. Scholars believe that relationships in these regions were greatly intensified over this short time due to increased contact brought about by the development of sturdier seagoing ships.


Another explanation for the rise of civilization in both Mesopotamia and Egypt is the irrigation hypothesis. This theory suggests that competition for water resources increased the need for laborers and spurred the development of a bureaucracy to manage the growing labor force. This ultimately led to the rise of a state superstructure evident in the building of temples and administrative centers. Increasing centralization of economic activity demanded the development of a complex recording system, as we find in the Sumerian cylinder seals and the thousands of cuneiform tablets that record business transactions of local and long-distance trade.


In turn, the need for job specialization such as professional scribes, craftsmen, managers, priests, and others at high levels of government illustrates the necessary shift from the use of tribal laws toward more centralized state governance. This shift is often referred to as the "Urban Revolution" and could be responsible for creating a more unified culture in the region.


These seem like logical theories to explain how information could travel between a diverse cross-section of people. That is, until you consider that at approximately the same time on the other side of the globe, different cultures experienced similar rapid advancements in technology, art, and society. Take the Olmec civilization, for example. According to the archeological record, the Olmec civilization just suddenly appeared around 1200 BCE. There seems to have been no gradual sequence of local growth in the region. Clearly, there has been no simple explanation for Olmec origins or their evolution. What we do know, is that it expanded rapidly between 1200 and 800 BCE and that the Olmec symbols and artifacts are present in several distinct areas such as Honduras and Costa Rica. Did artistic and creative elements of Olmec civilization develop somewhere else and get transported to Mexico?

Giant Olmec Head (stone)


Some researchers believe this may be the case and have even pointed out some similarities in art and myths between Mesoamerican and Mesopotamian cultures. A minority of whom have theorized that the spread of information in these regions was so rapid that an invisible hand of an invading civilization must have been responsible. However, this could be viewed as too speculative or presumptuous since for as many similarities as we may find, there are just as many, if not more, differences. For example, many ancient writing systems were similarly pictographic, but upon in-depth study, clear differences can be identified.
So what does archaeology teach us about the spread of information in the ancient world? Not as much, as mainstream archaeologists and historians would have us believe. Ultimately, the majority of history is still a mystery. According to Thomas Edison, "We don't know one-millionth of one percent about anything." I would venture to say that this is a fair assessment.


This leads me to my personal theory of "Cosmic Cloud Computing." Admittedly not entirely supported by the archaeological record; it is partially supported across a number of other fields such as metaphysics, psychology, biology, and quantum theory. So, let's consider it more of a musing. Rene Descartes believed there was only one conscious mind. Carl Jung expanded on this thought by introducing the concept of the collective unconscious. Modern scientists, such as Rupert Sheldrake, have suggested that nature, in general, has memory that can be described as telepathic. All of these theories point to the idea that there is interconnectedness between all living things and possible collective memories within each species.


Aristotle said, "Nature operates in the shortest way possible." Rather than trying to reconstruct the past by filling in the blanks, let's use Occam's razor to dissect the complex creations of past civilizations and try to recognize basic underlying concepts. Take the example of the "Golden Rule". Most are familiar with this basic ethical tenant. It tells us to treat people how we would like to be treated. Below is a table that illustrates some of the numerous recorded versions of this tenant, spanning cultures, time, and geography.

The Universality of the Golden Rule

All of these examples are written in different styles with varying complexities and originating in unique languages. Apart from all of these differences, there is a unified message of empathic reciprocity. Considering what the archaeological record shows about possible diffusion, migration, trade, and expansion, it still does not fully explain the consistency in the underlying message. When stripped of cultural identity, the message remains the same. Are we to believe that the "Golden Rule" is instinctual? Is it an innate principle? If so, where does it originate?
Jung believed that we experience the unconscious through symbols. This includes the products of all art, music, and language, both written and oral. Given the remarkable consistency in the underlying themes of these symbols, perhaps there is a collective memory being transmitted, evocative of the Memes in Greek mythology, universally expressed through the creations of humans.


Archetypal symbols are mysteriously transmitted throughout history and modernity. Nevertheless, it is not a question of specific inherited images as much as it is one of a unified conscious experience. The interaction between our individual perceptions, universal consciousness, and symbolism enriches life and promotes personal development and growth.


Going back to my analogy of cloud computing, imagine that there is a universal consciousness filled with unlimited data. All organisms, unique in design and function, are wired in such a way that they can tap into this "Cosmic Cloud" to send and retrieve data. Likewise, we can communicate with each other, but to do so requires an interface or the use of symbols. Which symbols we use depends on a number of factors unique to our individual abilities and limitations. However, as in the example of the "Golden Rule," a unified message of mysterious origin can still be found underneath the symbols. Core messages seem consistent and enduring, even after the death of an individual or entire civilization. The information does not die along with the computing device or organism. Just as if your laptop were to no longer function, you can be sure that there are still people accessing their email and streaming media online somewhere else in the world.


People do indeed travel, communicate, and spread ideas and symbols. This is an indisputable fact. It can be proven in the archaeological record as well as in numerous other fields of study. Likewise, our smartphones can sync with tablets, and our tablets can sync with desktop computers, and so on. The transmission of this data can appear to be purely physical. If someone were to observe the sharing of data between two smartphones and not know or understand the unseen details behind that process, it would appear that the two devices simply independently communicated with each other because they were of similar design, function, and in close proximity. This is essentially what we do when we focus solely on the physical or material evidence left behind by ancient cultures. We interpret out of the artifacts rather than looking in.


These perspectives are not mutually exclusive. Like modern computing devices, we can and do physically share information when we are in close proximity. However, I believe there are also unseen, immaterial factors, as suggested in the research and theories of Rene Descartes, Carl Jung, and Rupert Sheldrake. The question of how ancient people seemed to rapidly transmit themes in art, myth, and religion, regardless of geographic or technological restrictions, can perhaps only be answered if we view the universe as greater than ourselves. If we choose to see reality as consciousness, maybe we can begin to free ourselves from the bonds of the material world and transcend both time and space.  

(A version of this article was originally printed as the foreward to the book, Viral Mythology, by Marie D. Jones and Larry Flaxman)

Dr. Heather Lynn

Published 2 years ago