Sensory Mind Summary

The dichotomy of our brain and mind into a vision-based and a speech-based cognitive component is consistent with known evolutionary development of vision and hearing/speech.  The parallel-wired sense of vision and the sequential communication ability of speech serve as the base level neural circuitry from which our cognitive abilities developed.  The dichotomy, which can be observed through introspection about our own consciousness, is also largely separated into the 2 cerebral hemispheres.  This dichotomy is also consistent with some of the most influential writings and thinkers from history including the Story of Adam and Eve, the Greek philosophers, and Freud and Jung.

The vision-based mind is shared with the animals and contains all of the self-identity and group-identity information that comes from that world.  It is a silent world insofar as there are no words.  Thinking or reasoning do not occur in the right-brain mind.  But, the right brain should not be diminished in its importance to our individual and collective life, as labels such as “dark”, “sinister”, “unconscious’, etc. may imply.  Our survival instincts come from that visual side.  Likewise our concept of “self” resides in our vision-based mind.  Also, our most basic drive for survival resides on the vision-based side and is driven by our “self” and “group” constructs.  Vision-based cognition also drives our instincts for reproduction and sex.

Our speech-based left brain separated us from the animals and has served as the major basis for the amazing accomplishments of Homo sapiens at transcending other life forms on this planet.

Our concept of “group” (or “collective unconscious” in deference to Jung) and our “group thoughts” have provided the mental structure to enable us to organize our groups and civilizations from pre-history through early and current Civilizations. In this respect, the human mind is a collective resource housed in all of our minds.  As members of the same species, we genetically share most of the same anatomical and physiological aspects of the brain.  It’s as if we all have the same computer hardware and programs and are sharing files with one another. 

Our vision-based right brain can be characterized as an analog computer, and our speech-based left brain as a digital computer. Each is powerfully integrated with the other.

The separation of our mind into vision-based and speech-based portions that have different cognitive modes can also apply to our historical development of groups and civilizations.  The history of humans will later be told as the development of our collective right and left brains.