Whether there is an intelligent being initiating evolution or not, man is deeply intertwined within the rest of nature, so that, in order to maximise his chances of survival, it is vital that he best supports the delicate and diverse balance of life that surrounds and supports him, and treads lightly upon this Earth. To put it another way: life itself is at the centre of man’s world, and must be the centre of his focus.
When any creature exploits its habitat beyond sustainable limits, that habitat ultimately collapses or degrades until it can no longer support the population, and that population itself collapses or has to find another habitat to exploit. Further, the ability of a habitat to defend itself against climate change and exploitation depends upon its integrity and biodiversity, so that creatures which nurture their environments have a greater chance of surviving than those which do not.
It is therefore reasonable to view the preservation of habitat as being of evolutionary advantage, so that creatures which preserve their habitat – particularly more complex life-forms which have a bigger impact upon their environment, will be rewarded in some way; whilst those that do not protect their environment will not receive this reward.
Unlike the direct pleasures produced by procreation and consuming food and water, for example, the preservation of habitat is a more general, diverse and longer term, background need, which is more subtle yet vitally important for one’s children, their children and the lives to come; a long-term, background need. Therefore, in nurturing the environment, it is likely that the evolutionary reward would be a general underlying sense of wellbeing, peace, calm, fulfilment and happiness.
Individuals already group together and experience and nurture emotional bonds in order to bring up their young and survive against threats in general, but as the preservation of habitat cannot be achieved by individuals working alone, striving to work with others and to support them in this common goal is also likely to be of evolutionary advantage, and so ultimately beings which collaborate and care for each other and work to nurture the environment are more likely to survive for this reason also.
In a creature of sufficiently high levels of consciousness, doing ‘the right thing’ for nature and his fellow beings is, through evolution, automatically rewarded with a general sense of wellbeing, peace, calm, happiness, fulfilment and love – love for one’s fellow creatures and love for nature itself; and the closer one follows the advice of the wise ones and the wisest of the wise in doing the best that you can do and being the best that you can be, the happier and more fulfilled you will feel, and the closer you will come to achieving grace.
With his high level of consciousness and uniquely powerful technology, man has both the greatest ability and the primary responsibility to ensure a sustainable future for all life on Earth and, indeed, for life outside this solar system in the longer term as the dying sun makes it unsustainable.
