The Evolution of Working Memory

In this chapter, we suggest that a specific cognitive ability, an enhancement to working memory, was one of the key evolutionary acquisitions in human cognition, and indeed may even be the smoking gun of modernity. We demonstrate that Baddeley’s central executive, a key component of his Working Memory (WM) model, is synonymous with the basic executive functions that underlie the more complex ones such as planning. We then discuss the importance of WM to the modern mind, and how WM might be reflected in the archaeological record.

HINDU COSMOLOGY IN THE LIGHT OF MODERN PSYCHOLOGY

This paper tries to comprehend Hindu narrative of creation in the framework of modern cosmology and psychology. The objective is to build a conversation for mutual understanding. The following concordance between the two streams is suggested. The state of the Primeval Being before It desired to become many is not known in the Hindu stream just as the state of the universe before the Big Bang is not known in the modern stream. The Primeval Being desired to grow according to the Hindu stream. Modern psychology says there is an innate desire to grow among human beings that we extrapolate backwards to suggest that the Singularity desired to grow. The Brahman pervades the entire Universe according to the Hindu stream. The panpsychists hold that every particle in the universe has consciousness. Brahman is the fused consciousness of all the particles in the universe according to the Hindu stream. In parallel the panpsychists hold that the fused consciousness is more than the sum of the parts. The collective consciousness of a subset of the universe is “devta” according to the Hindu stream. This concords with the “unconscious substrate” created in social organizations according to modern psychology. The collective consciousness of individuals having their consciousness at the Vishuddhi, Manipur and Anahata chakras is known as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. These concord with the collective consciousness of individuals who have evolved to the needs of cognition, belonging and esteem according to Abraham Maslow. The devtas can descend into a living person who is then called an avatara. This concords with the descent of the libido into the unconscious as said by Carl G. Jung. In conclusion, Hindu Brahman is modern God. Hindu devtas are modern gods. Hindu avataras are modern individuals in whom the gods have descended. In this way we can make the Hindu cosmology understandable to the modern mind and vice versa.

Towards a Psycho-Sociological Understanding of Allah

It is not possible to determine whether Allah is inside the universe or outside it. While the traditional understanding is that Allah is “outside” the universe; the “inside” understanding is consistent with the Qur’ān as well as the writings of Carl G. Jung, Emile Durkheim, Abraham Maslow, and Philip Goff and can explain the concept and the writ of Allah to the modern mind. We hypothesize that Allah is the name given to the consciousness of every particle in the universe fused into One and called Universal Consciousness. The consciousness is not prior- or after matter but exists in parallel. There is a 2-way give-and-take between Allah and the Universe. The believers have a more direct communication with Allah. Allah rules upon the universe and, at the same time, Allah is constituted of the Collective Consciousness of the same universe. We show this hypothesis is consistent with al-Nūr 24:35 and Sūra al-Ikhlāṣ. This approach can be the foundation on which we can build a concordance between the understandings of Qur’ānic Allah and modern science, thus explain the majesty of Allah to the science-oriented modern mind including the atheists without diluting the spiritual content of the Holy Qur’ān.

Understanding the relevance of Dhammapada in modern mind: A conceptual study

Lord Buddha was the great preacher of non-violence and humanism. Dhammapada is an essential treatise on Buddhism. It regards as the most concise expression of Buddha's teachings from ancient to the present day. After the passing away of Lord Buddha, Arhants were accumulating to exercise his teaching. They collected some poetic speeches and many pieces of advice of Buddha, which is known as Tripitaka. We find Dhammapada as a part of Khuddaka Nikāya of the Sutta pitaka. Dhammapada is a reflective and poetical thought in Buddhist literature. Today we are facing different kinds of challenges. Especially the new generation becomes intolerant and violent because they are confused and sometimes, they are misguided. They do not have a clear path in their lives. As a result, they become frustrated. This paper attempts to show how the Dhammapada can become a significant and essential text to reduce the aggressive manifestation of intolerance from the early to modern-day. This paper also focuses on some positive teachings of Lord Buddha, such as 'Four Noble Truths, 'Eight-Fold Paths,' 'Pratitya samudpāda,' which offer definite ways to be patient and tolerant some extent.

Something Distinct, or Business as Usual? Interpreting the Plan of the Late Medieval Bridgettine Monastery in Naantali, Finland

This article analyses modern interpretations of the medieval plan of the Bridgettine Monastery of Naantali, Finland. Instead of seeing the distinct spatial organisation as deviation from the Bridgettine norm, we consider it as an expression of a medieval process, by which monastic principles were re-conceptualised in order to be realised in material form. This perspective builds on the shift in thinking that has taken place in the study of medieval urban planning. Instead of being ‘organic’, meaning disorganised, medieval urban development has come to be considered as intentional, guided by general principles, although not in a manner that is always obvious to the modern mind. We concur that models such as St Bridget’s visions and the plan of Vadstena Abbey are important tools for reconstructing medieval monastic plans. Meanwhile, we propose that such models can also add latent and counterproductive baggage to this field of study by encouraging modern expectations of regularity within monastic architecture. If the designs of monasteries do not follow such models perfectly, discrepancies are often erroneously misconceived as indications of the builders’ insufficient skills and knowledge.

Gregory Nanzianzen’s Oration II

Leadership styles in southeast Europe tend to lie at the poles along a line stretched between passivity and authoritarianism. This is a universal problem in the global church, not one unique to southeast Europe. However, the fact remains that the mainstream leadership models in this part of the world need to be appraised and healthier models need to be developed. Unfortunately, the leadership models being imported from the West take as their cue business management, often times focusing on efficiency, productivity, and growth rather than focusing on Kingdom expansion and serving the Bride of Christ. However, a model does exist for servant leadership, a model that emerged from the Eastern Church 17 centuries ago. In this paper, I will examine Gregory Nazianzen’s Oration II which presents a spiritual model of leadership for the 21st century. While written many centuries ago, this text is still able to speak to the modern mind and remains relevant for several reasons. First, this is the first extant extra-Biblical account of an individual’s struggle with calling and obedience to Christian ministry. Second, Gregory’s model is saturated with Scripture, providing a sound though unique perspective from his brilliant and highly trained mind. Finally, as one of Gregory’s primary concerns is remaining faithful during a corrupt public form of Christianity, the context is appropriate to the traditional church contexts of southeast Europe. Following a brief historical background, this paper will look at three elements of Christian ministry and how Gregory addresses their spiritual components. First, the roles of a minister, under the titles of priest, king, and prophet. Second, the challenges that beset ministers who seek to serve. And third, the personal struggles that an individual must face and overcome to be obedient in this calling.

Child’s Illusion of Legal Certainty in Jerome Frank’s Legal Psychology

Publication of the book “Law and the Modern Mind” in 1930 by J. Frank became one of the starting points in the history of American legal realism. The problem of legal certainty is central in the work of J. Frank. For him the vital question was why lawyers, judges and general public “believe in” and “rely on” the myth of certainty and exactness of the legal rules. One of the reasons J. Frank finds in our childish way of thinking that is tend to fixed, stable and immutable set of mechanical rules. According to the works of child psychologists, J. Frank elaborated and described the childish illusion of world’s clarity, the important element of which is the connection of the child with his father, and its counterpart in adult’s desire for legal certainty.