By Fabian Lyngdoh
Human society is all around in crises and turmoil caused mostly by irrational human behaviour despite the fact that human society has reached at the apex of its rational development. This situation leaves many thoughtful people in dismay, and even despair. Psychologists say that human behaviour is dictated by the conscious and unconscious level of the mind. The unconscious level of the mind is said to be a storehouse of the memory of past experience of life right from conception to adulthood. Dr. Eustace Chesser says that “the unconscious activity of our minds is chiefly concerned with attaining the gratification of our instincts”. This seems to suggest that the unconscious mind is made up not only of memories of past experience of life, but also of the inborn dynamics of the instincts. Instincts are universal in all living creatures in various degrees of expression.
Man is a rational animal. As an animal he is no different other animals in physical and physiological constitution. Rationally speaking, what makes him a rational animal and different from other animals is because he is endowed with superior intelligence, meaning that his brain functions are more complex than other animals. These superior brain functions serve the individual man in achieving the goals of his animal instincts in a more intelligent way. Therefore a rational man perceives human society and community living only as the means by which he can intelligently achieve the need of his animal instincts to the full. A rational man believes in himself not in the community. His policy is to project his instinctive interests as a community interests and convince others that it is an honour for them to die for the cause while he lives to enjoy the fruit of their martyrdom. Lower animals achieve the satisfaction of instincts through physical strength but in human beings intelligence plays a greater role than brute force. A feeble looking man with a broad smile on his lips and a blink of intelligence in his eyes and brow can win the hearts of a hundred women and defeat the scowling giant in the community in the propagation of genetic heritage and in acquiring control of the community resources. That is the basic being we all are as rational animals. But human beings are not only rational animals with superior brain functions but they are also spiritual beings.
To understand human nature we need only to accept that we are animals and see what we would do according to the dictates of our animal nature if there are no social codes to control us. When we contemplate and recollect on our own being with deep sincerity what do we find? Most certainly we would find that we are indeed animals with all the force of the instincts. I would indeed behave like a bull, a lion, a dog or a chimpanzee. To understand human nature we need not do scientific experiments on other people. We can do experiment on ourselves, on our own feelings and experience right from childhood as far as we can remember and we would find that we have all either actually or mentally committed all kinds of possible sins and crimes. Each of us has only to admit that “there is a beast in me” who is endowed with unrestricted urges towards the goals of his instincts and armed with superior intelligence to subtly achieve his animal purpose even in the guise of community sanction. Of course this process of introspection would not be accepted as a scientific method for writing a thesis but it is effective enough to give us personal insight if we are able to observe our own mental history objectively. The psychologists called the hidden force of the human mind as the sub-conscious mind, but for general understanding I would like to call it the urge or pressure of the instincts of an intelligently superior animal. I would like to define the sub-conscious mind as “the beast in me”. The ‘Id” is the bare beast in me, the ‘Ego” is the rational being in me, and the “super-ego” is the spiritual being in me. In the lower animals the brain function that controls them is only the ‘Id’ without ego or super-ego, but in human beings the ‘Id’ and the ‘ego’ together constitute “the beast in me”, the intelligent beast that is most dangerous.
The modern idea of liberalism though conceptually means the liberty of all human beings, but practically or rationally means the liberty of “the beast in me”. “The unconscious mind”, says Dr. Eustace Chesser, “is after all, the hidden reservoir of instincts. It knows nothing of right and wrong, good or evil. Every sort of propensity of which human beings are capable of is present in its depths”. So every man is a potential rapist, thief, robber, murderer, etc.
But, man is not only a rational being but he is also a moral being. His rationality is the apex of his instinctive animal being in a material world, while his morality is the shadow of his spirituality. Human society is a community of animals with very high intelligence for self interests, but conditioned by human spiritual nature. As a spiritual being, a man is ready to sacrifice his own life for the welfare of others rather than project his own interests as community interests and sacrifice the lives of others for his crown. Therefore human society is essentially a community of human beings with animal and spiritual nature, regulated through social norms and moral codes. Dr. Eustage Chesser says that “basically the purpose of social code is to regulate instinctive behaviour. The instincts would run wild if they were allowed to pursue their natural, amoral course. All ethical codes enjoin self-sacrifice of the individual for the benefit of the larger community”. May we mark here that the idea of ‘self-sacrifice’ is not part of animal instincts or of human rationality, but a part of human spirituality. Human life is an inseparable bond between matter and spirit. Human society would have to exist in the balance of these two natures of human beings. Matter is in line with individual freedom, and spirit is in line with collective order in every society. Individual freedom is accompanied by the beast, and collective order is accompanied by moral code and social norms. We have to wisely make our choice.
What do we naturally seek as human beings? We all seek continuity of existence in pleasure and contentment. All our thoughts and actions, our will and desire start and end with the pursuit of continuity of existence in pleasure and contentment. There must be a real aim of life apart from providing for the economic and spiritual inadequacy. If man in this physical existence is neither spiritually inadequate nor materially limited, he would be seeking pleasure. A man would like to fly over hills and vales as gracefully as an eagle, to swim as swift as the fish of the sea, to float with the clouds, to see the uppermost of the sky and the deepest of the oceans and so on and so forth, but his material existence is bound to material laws. He would like to do anything in society. He would like to be the most famous of men, to marry the most beautiful woman and keep as many mistresses as Solomon, to live in the best of palaces, to be the giver of the law and the director of actions. Yes indeed, every man would like to be the greatest of men; but alas! He is bound to social laws.
The modern concept of individual liberty mostly concerns with the liberty of “the beast in me”. Modern education primarily aims towards scientific achievement in itself, and for economic benefit, hence encourages the freedom of “the beast in me” to explore in all directions regardless of spiritual or moral values. If this tendency is not counter-acted by equally rigorous moral education, it would lead to crises when Poseidon releases the Kraken from the depth of the sea to cause havoc on the shore. Let us endeavour to bind this beast in its cage through spiritual and moral conditioning.