Transformative Transhumanism: A Short Introduction

By Mike Beachem

Transformative Transhumanism is devoted to intentional, guided change at the level of the individual, society and all of humanity, creating new opportunities for individuals to identify and move toward what and who they truly feel they should be. The individual, society and species is in constant transition and we work to help those who wish to take charge of that transition to become tomorrow more than they are today.

Although putatively labeled as a "religion," Transformative Transhumanism has nothing to do with the existence of a Creator or a divine soul but rather an exploration of reality as we as humans perceive it. We then use our new understandings of reality and the possibilities available to us, to bring about personal and societal changes. We use what we know to be possible to help bring new possibilities to the broader societies, routing around those portions of our society that impose restrictions and limit opportunity while remaining within the system.

A Short Introduction narrates the journey that brought Transformative Transhumanism into being and broadly describes the philosophy and goals of the movement. It is a short work meant to appeal to fellow travelers who are looking for "something more." It sets a distinctive tone and touches on many aspects of human culture and evolution that contributed to the formulation of Transformative Transhumanism.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mike Beachem
• Release date: Jun 15, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311207043

Book preview

Transformative Transhumanism

A Short Introduction

Copyright 2014 Mike Beachem

Published by Astral Projection Media at Smashwords

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Table of Contents

Background and Introduction

What is Transhumanism?

What is Transformative Transhumanism?

Creation: Book of the Sky

Self and the Soul

Personal Transformation

Society-Wide Transformation

Species Transformation

Technology

Relationships

Non-Exclusivity of Conscience

About the Author

Other Books By The Author

Introduction

Thousands of years ago, vast monuments and structures were erected. They built with a permanence that awe us today, to the point that large numbers of people believe that they were beyond human capabilities. It always amazes me that the reaction to a large scale project is It's impossible! Yet we can point to Nazca lines, to Stonehenge, to the monuments on the Giza plateau, to the megalithic temple structures of Malta, as proof that such things were, indeed, possible.

There are those who take the opposite tack and posit that because we scratch our heads and wonder, How the heck did they do those things? They feel that there are lost secrets that, if we could only uncover them, would today be considered miracles or magic. According to this view of history there has been an actual decline in our ability over time, in our knowledge of hidden forces that science cannot describe adequately.

It was mysteries such as these that propelled me into a study of anthropology. Why is it that so many people believe these monuments to be inexplicable? Are there actually no explanations? Under patient mentorship of a couple of archaeologists, I came to understand why people believe seemingly incredible things about our history and, indeed, humanity itself. And in the process, I started really understanding culture, human beliefs and how deeply ingrained irrationality is in the human mind.

Irrationality. One word dismisses a whole realm of human conceptions, feelings and beliefs. If there is irrationality involved, how does it get there? Why is it that in reading science articles from nearly a century and a half ago, we see the same lines drawn in the sand between science and religion? It is like there is a fulcrum that our modern culture rests upon that divides rationality and irrationality.

The late Vine Deloria, Jr. compared Western religion (meaning the three Abrahamic faiths) and native cultures in a very insightful way that sheds light on irrationality. In his view, Western religions are based upon the absolute meaning of specific moments in history, events that are considered universally applicable. Native religious beliefs are centered around place, without time being an important consideration. These irrationalities, when framed in this way, show how despite the vast distance separating the last common ancestral culture of the two groups, it is nearly universal. In fact, the studies done on the subject show that regardless of the culture, the same percent of people within it identify as very religious, somewhat religious, spiritual but not specifically as the official religions expect, and not religious at all. Even when there is universal participation or almost no participation in public worship, there is no meaningful difference in the proportion of true believers versus agnostics versus atheists. On official polls, the numbers differ far more than is found in the academic literature.

We know that anatomically modern humans have been around for tens of thousands of years. We know that human cultures as we know them today, with hallmarks of religion, art, territories and systems of wealth redistribution, have been around for tens of thousands of years. We can see evidence of this in ancient burials, in the icons and fetishes left behind, in the processing pits that we discover, even in the ancient pedigree of certain domesticated animals and plants. We also know that there