Elusive Consciousness

Author(s): Narendra Bhandari, Surendrasingh Pokharana, Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

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experimentation on them. Now this type of experimentation is not possible in case of human systems because as shown above human system has memory, free will, creativity, tendency to interact strongly with other fellow beings and the environment. Furthermore there are micro controls in the form of thought processes which cannot be easily adjusted in any planned "scientific experiment". Hence biological and social systems cannot be subjected to the strict process of physical measurement and hence they are not exactly describable in the strict terminology of the physical, sciences. Therefore such systems are studied in a different way by using statistical procedures. In such methods only some rough trends or patterns are found.
Hence to handle all the above problems, we look for a new discipline called General Systems Theory (GST, John Gigch, 1978). It has been developed to handle such complex systems and their properties. Different sets of rules are there to describe and understand such systems. As per this theory, all systems are characterized by transfer of information. Here knowledge and order (entropy) are more important compared to any other attribute, such as energy. Hence, under this discipline, pure physical sciences are now categorized as hard systems and subjects like sociology, religion, psychology, biology etc are classified as soft systems. It is observed that even religion also falls in this domain as some type of system in which there is information and knowledge transfer going on continuously. Thus religion and science can be put together in this formalism.
3.4 Darwin's principle of “Survival of Fittest” vs Jain's principle of “Live and Let Live"
There is another field of science where limitations of scientific knowledge is reflected in a somewhat different way. It is the process of evolution of Darwin's and, which can be compared with the evolution of consciousness described in Jainism.
As we know this principle is based on the rule of natural selection and was brought into lime light by Charles Darwin. An assumption is made that all life emerged from siow evolution from a single ancestor. The basic idea of his hypothesis is that due to limitation on resources, various species of living world struggle for survival. Those which have slightly superior functionality will survive and others which do not have these additional functionalities will be eliminated but the whole process is very slow. Hence those who can adjust with the change in time, survives and others are eliminated. This is therefore being described in short by a well know saying that is the survival of the fittest. This principle was
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