We have lost our orientation
What is the reason for escalating problems in the world? The answer is quite simple: We've lost our bearings. This phenomenon is so deeply rooted that it can be considered a fundamental human trait. The rest of the animal kingdom relies on its innate stimulus-response pattern to navigate life. We have freed ourselves from this pattern through our intellect, but we haven't left our animal instincts behind. They drive the development of technology that has enabled the emergence of modern societies.
by Sascha Schlüter
by Sascha Schlüter
Human civilization is based on the use of technology. From the manufacture of tools, the mastery of fire, the cultivation of agriculture, the development of industries, to today's digitalization - each of these technologies brings with it enormous social changes, each resulting in completely different societies. In doing so, we are pushing the development of technology so far that we have created artificial needs that far overshadow our natural ones. Satisfying human natural needs requires things like nutritious food, clean water, social intimacy, a healthy environment, physical warmth, freedom of thought and action, and a meaningful range of activities. Artificial needs, on the other hand, indicate an unhealthy relationship that has negative consequences for humans. The increased pursuit of these artificial needs is due to our animalistic drive structure, which hopes for improved survival and reproduction through new technological means. However, this connection is often a fallacy, as our instincts are evolutionarily adapted to a relatively low-technology environment, and we cannot properly assess the effects of the latest technology without considerable reflection.
In evolutionary history, humans have invented epochal technologies such as agriculture, urban planning, highly developed weapons technology, industrial machinery, and digital computers within a very short period of time, which have massively changed our societies. The key difference from animals that has enabled humans to build civilizations is their unique ability to pause and plan in order to more 'intelligently' and sustainably pursue a hedonism, escapism, and comfort that are also anchored as drives in the rest of the animal kingdom. Only through the cognitive revolution of humans have we become capable of committing something like 'sins' and bringing chaos into the world. War, for example, B. is essentially nothing other than a conflict waged with highly advanced weapons technology, organized by instinct-driven rulers with the goal of acquiring coveted resources to ensure the continuation of technological development and thus the increase in consumption.
The reason for the increased pursuit of artificial needs and the simultaneous neglect of natural needs is the loss of a reliable sense of direction, which was lost during the transition from apes to humans. Through the development of reason, linguistic, and technical abilities, we distanced ourselves from the rest of the animal kingdom. While animals continued to behave unconsciously, humans began to act reflectively. However, alongside these positive achievements, this simultaneously opened up a wide field of possibilities for harmful activities, which brought with it a whole range of new problems. These include, among others, ecological impacts, polarizing debate cultures, the spread of disease, alienated working lives, and a breakdown of intimate family structures.
One possible answer to the loss of orientation responsible for global problems is religion. What makes them so attractive to humans are their established values and norms. The same applies to other ideologies, dogmas, and worldviews. We cling to such systems of thought because they provide us with precisely what we as humans have lost compared to the rest of the animal world.
Despite this loss of orientation, we continue to be guided by basic animal instincts that ensure our survival and reproduction. They precede our decisions and are a fundamental prerequisite for reflection and consideration. Evolutionary psychologist Douglas J. Lisle (PhD) summarizes the instinctual incentive structure of animals in the so-called "motivational triad": Every animal, including humans, is influenced by three central forces. It seeks pleasure, avoids pain, and conserves its own bodily energy. Without the pleasure of eating and sex, without the fear of pain from a predator attack, and without humans' built-in energy-saving mode, which motivates them to use their own bodily energy as economically as possible, they would know nothing about how to ensure their continued existence in the future.
Technology has empowered us as humans to gradually find more and more ways to indulge our animal urges. We increase our pleasure with hunting weapons, with fireplaces for cooking, with agriculture, with food industries, and with digitalized supply chains. We avoid pain by using defensive weapons and with fireplaces that insulate predators.by artificial agriculture away from dangerous wilderness, by machines that take over dangerous jobs, and by spatially distanced discourses in the ('social') media that operate without confrontation in analog space. And we save a lot of our own physical energy by making warm clothing with tools, by harnessing the warmth of fire, by farming, thus freeing up energy for activities that go beyond the daily search for food, by letting machines relieve us of strenuous work, and by progressing through the World Wide Web with just a few mouse clicks.
But the drives fueled by technology, through their constant stimulation, create new artificial needs that go beyond the natural needs for health and happiness. The resulting greed for ever more resources, the irritability when needs are not met, and the egoism of consumerism can be blamed for a wide variety of conflicts in the world. These include phenomena such as war, the narrowing of discourse, environmental pollution, resource scarcity, and climate change. Diseases also have their origins in the use of technology, for example, through the overconsumption of artificially produced food; through chronic lack of exercise in a technologically enabled comfort; through chronic sleep deprivation due to stimulating digital devices; through the breakdown of familial and intimate social structures in the course of urbanization, which leads to loneliness; through chronic feelings of stress in an alienated working life made possible by technological innovations; through harmful substances brought to the earth's surface through the use of technology; and through artificially created unsanitary conditions in cities and industrial animal farms, which favor the emergence and spread of pathogens.
The basis for the rampant stimulation of human instincts is the creative mind, which has produced a wide variety of technologies. But it is also the only antidote to being able to take a different path in the future. To tackle the modern problems induced by technology, we need a self-imposed and firmly anchored community-based approach that allows us to reliably resist all the temptations of modern technological development. Humans will continue to need certain technological aids in the future. This is due to their specific anatomy, which has evolved over tens to hundreds of thousands of years to accommodate technological products such as tools, clothing, and shelters. This has reduced the burden on humans in terms of physical strength, protective skin, and heat retention, leading to a decline in muscle strength, hair growth, and the immune system because technology no longer required them to the same extent. Without technological means, we would therefore have difficulty satisfying our natural needs, as the competition with the rest of the animal world would be virtually impossible to win. However, technology itself always brings with it undesirable side effects that can only be prevented by refraining from its use. This is particularly relevant with modern technology, which, unlike ancient technology, has serious consequences and spirals out of control. Due to the physical law of cause and effect, technical attempts to solve modern problems will never go beyond treating symptoms and shifting the problem.
Due to the causal connection between the forces of the motivational triad (seeking pleasure, avoiding pain, conserving one's own body energy) and the use of technology in general, and modern problem constellations in particular, it is important to consciously defend oneself against these instinctive forces whenever they go beyond the satisfaction of natural needs and serve artificial needs. The reliable compass of a meaningful, healthy, and content life therefore indicates: avoid pleasure, seek pain, and use energy - this expressly does not mean harming one's own body or depriving it of balanced pleasurable experiences. Quite the opposite. Pleasure in food and sex, the avoidance of dangerous pain, and caution against overexertion remain important guideposts for humans. However, the patient renunciation of a purely hedonistic search for pleasure; the conscious confrontation with, as opposed to the repression of, painful thoughts and feelings; as well as the sufficient use of mental and physical energy, are very positive for people and help build and maintain a peaceful community in which life's various challenges can be addressed constructively.
ALife satisfaction appropriate to the circumstances is the consequence of focusing on natural needs, because our psyche, including all its emotions, has developed in response to low-technology conditions over hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, with only simple tools being used for a very long time. It was only agriculture around 10,000 years ago that brought about radical technological developments that enabled societies to settle in a specific location.
If we are socially integrated and our physical health is intact, if we can think and act freely and our work fulfills us, and if we find adequate environmental conditions and regularly spend time in nature, then satisfaction is the reliable result of these achievements. Emotions are nothing more than electrochemical signals in the brain that serve as a feedback mechanism and guide future behavior. Therefore, in the case of satisfaction, not much needs to change; dissatisfaction, on the other hand, encourages us to question our own situation. In this context, evolutionary psychologist Douglas J. Lisle (PhD) speaks of the "states of mind of contentment and dissatisfaction," which, in their sphere of influence, are clearly separate from the motivational triad (seeking pleasure, avoiding pain, conserving one's own body energy). With this, he wants to make it clear that pleasure does not automatically correlate with contentment, pain does not automatically correlate with dissatisfaction, and low physical energy expenditure does not automatically correlate with health. While other animals can continue to blindly rely on their emotions to successfully regulate their behavior, we must use our minds and align our thoughts and actions with a self-imposed compass, firmly anchored in communities, in order to consciously counteract hedonism, escapism, and convenience in the form of overuse of technology. With the help of the psychological mechanism of neuroadaptation, it is then possible to adapt neuronally to completely different environmental conditions over time, as long as natural need satisfaction is ensured. This path is not an easy one, but it is the only one that gets to the bottom of the true causes of modern problem constellations.
Thus A point of orientation for humanity is given, one that appears early in the history of ideas. In Judaism, pain is to be endured bravely, pleasurable masturbation is to be avoided, and energy-conserving laziness prevents one from fulfilling the divine rules of life. In the Bible, Jesus willingly accepts pain in order to redeem humanity. They are to live a life in accordance with God's will, as he created it. If one understands 'God' as a transcendental word for all of untouched nature, then intentionally seeking pain leads back to this nature. Behavior that turns against nature (God) is a sin. Among the specific sins handed down from the Middle Ages are the seven deadly sins: greed, gluttony, lust, sloth, envy, pride, and anger. They warn against unbridled hedonism (the pursuit of pleasure) and stagnant communal action (the conservation of energy). In Islam, excessive pleasure-seeking in the form of alcohol consumption is frowned upon, and energy-intensive discipline is demanded. Pain is considered a test from God, which can be overcome with patience and perseverance to wash away sins. In Hinduism, it is possible to reverse bad karma by willfully going through pain; there are abstinence rituals that renounce pleasure, and the use of energy for selfless acts helps on the path to salvation. Buddhism is founded on a critique of consumerism and thus technology; the story of Buddha's turning away from a lavish life to abstinent fulfillment is well known. Without drowning in a flood of further examples, and without advocating for a particular school of thought, the tendency of the statements made should be clear. The pleasant path of greatest possible increase in pleasure, minimization of pain, and conservation of physical energy is the wrong one. Why and in what context one finds this wisdom to be true is secondary. The opposite path is the right one, as long as the natural needs for health and contentment are authentically pursued and fulfilled. Broken down practically, the true, yet counterintuitive, compass of a of a meaningful life: "Face the unpleasant."
April 16, 2025
* Sascha Schlüter (31) recently completed his master's degree in philosophy and sociology of technology and science. He previously studied politics and computer science for his bachelor's degree. His passions include reading, writing, and discussion.
More information: Link to X @SchlueterSascha
CLICK HERE FOR THE NEW BOOK
TICKETS FOR THE SHOW "SONGS & STORIES"
TICKETS FOR THE SHOW "HE\\'S BACK"
In evolutionary history, humans have invented epochal technologies such as agriculture, urban planning, highly developed weapons technology, industrial machinery, and digital computers within a very short period of time, which have massively changed our societies. The key difference from animals that has enabled humans to build civilizations is their unique ability to pause and plan in order to more 'intelligently' and sustainably pursue a hedonism, escapism, and comfort that are also anchored as drives in the rest of the animal kingdom. Only through the cognitive revolution of humans have we become capable of committing something like 'sins' and bringing chaos into the world. War, for example, B. is essentially nothing other than a conflict waged with highly advanced weapons technology, organized by instinct-driven rulers with the goal of acquiring coveted resources to ensure the continuation of technological development and thus the increase in consumption.
The reason for the increased pursuit of artificial needs and the simultaneous neglect of natural needs is the loss of a reliable sense of direction, which was lost during the transition from apes to humans. Through the development of reason, linguistic, and technical abilities, we distanced ourselves from the rest of the animal kingdom. While animals continued to behave unconsciously, humans began to act reflectively. However, alongside these positive achievements, this simultaneously opened up a wide field of possibilities for harmful activities, which brought with it a whole range of new problems. These include, among others, ecological impacts, polarizing debate cultures, the spread of disease, alienated working lives, and a breakdown of intimate family structures.
One possible answer to the loss of orientation responsible for global problems is religion. What makes them so attractive to humans are their established values and norms. The same applies to other ideologies, dogmas, and worldviews. We cling to such systems of thought because they provide us with precisely what we as humans have lost compared to the rest of the animal world.
Despite this loss of orientation, we continue to be guided by basic animal instincts that ensure our survival and reproduction. They precede our decisions and are a fundamental prerequisite for reflection and consideration. Evolutionary psychologist Douglas J. Lisle (PhD) summarizes the instinctual incentive structure of animals in the so-called "motivational triad": Every animal, including humans, is influenced by three central forces. It seeks pleasure, avoids pain, and conserves its own bodily energy. Without the pleasure of eating and sex, without the fear of pain from a predator attack, and without humans' built-in energy-saving mode, which motivates them to use their own bodily energy as economically as possible, they would know nothing about how to ensure their continued existence in the future.
Technology has empowered us as humans to gradually find more and more ways to indulge our animal urges. We increase our pleasure with hunting weapons, with fireplaces for cooking, with agriculture, with food industries, and with digitalized supply chains. We avoid pain by using defensive weapons and with fireplaces that insulate predators.by artificial agriculture away from dangerous wilderness, by machines that take over dangerous jobs, and by spatially distanced discourses in the ('social') media that operate without confrontation in analog space. And we save a lot of our own physical energy by making warm clothing with tools, by harnessing the warmth of fire, by farming, thus freeing up energy for activities that go beyond the daily search for food, by letting machines relieve us of strenuous work, and by progressing through the World Wide Web with just a few mouse clicks.
But the drives fueled by technology, through their constant stimulation, create new artificial needs that go beyond the natural needs for health and happiness. The resulting greed for ever more resources, the irritability when needs are not met, and the egoism of consumerism can be blamed for a wide variety of conflicts in the world. These include phenomena such as war, the narrowing of discourse, environmental pollution, resource scarcity, and climate change. Diseases also have their origins in the use of technology, for example, through the overconsumption of artificially produced food; through chronic lack of exercise in a technologically enabled comfort; through chronic sleep deprivation due to stimulating digital devices; through the breakdown of familial and intimate social structures in the course of urbanization, which leads to loneliness; through chronic feelings of stress in an alienated working life made possible by technological innovations; through harmful substances brought to the earth's surface through the use of technology; and through artificially created unsanitary conditions in cities and industrial animal farms, which favor the emergence and spread of pathogens.
The basis for the rampant stimulation of human instincts is the creative mind, which has produced a wide variety of technologies. But it is also the only antidote to being able to take a different path in the future. To tackle the modern problems induced by technology, we need a self-imposed and firmly anchored community-based approach that allows us to reliably resist all the temptations of modern technological development. Humans will continue to need certain technological aids in the future. This is due to their specific anatomy, which has evolved over tens to hundreds of thousands of years to accommodate technological products such as tools, clothing, and shelters. This has reduced the burden on humans in terms of physical strength, protective skin, and heat retention, leading to a decline in muscle strength, hair growth, and the immune system because technology no longer required them to the same extent. Without technological means, we would therefore have difficulty satisfying our natural needs, as the competition with the rest of the animal world would be virtually impossible to win. However, technology itself always brings with it undesirable side effects that can only be prevented by refraining from its use. This is particularly relevant with modern technology, which, unlike ancient technology, has serious consequences and spirals out of control. Due to the physical law of cause and effect, technical attempts to solve modern problems will never go beyond treating symptoms and shifting the problem.
Due to the causal connection between the forces of the motivational triad (seeking pleasure, avoiding pain, conserving one's own body energy) and the use of technology in general, and modern problem constellations in particular, it is important to consciously defend oneself against these instinctive forces whenever they go beyond the satisfaction of natural needs and serve artificial needs. The reliable compass of a meaningful, healthy, and content life therefore indicates: avoid pleasure, seek pain, and use energy - this expressly does not mean harming one's own body or depriving it of balanced pleasurable experiences. Quite the opposite. Pleasure in food and sex, the avoidance of dangerous pain, and caution against overexertion remain important guideposts for humans. However, the patient renunciation of a purely hedonistic search for pleasure; the conscious confrontation with, as opposed to the repression of, painful thoughts and feelings; as well as the sufficient use of mental and physical energy, are very positive for people and help build and maintain a peaceful community in which life's various challenges can be addressed constructively.
ALife satisfaction appropriate to the circumstances is the consequence of focusing on natural needs, because our psyche, including all its emotions, has developed in response to low-technology conditions over hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, with only simple tools being used for a very long time. It was only agriculture around 10,000 years ago that brought about radical technological developments that enabled societies to settle in a specific location.
If we are socially integrated and our physical health is intact, if we can think and act freely and our work fulfills us, and if we find adequate environmental conditions and regularly spend time in nature, then satisfaction is the reliable result of these achievements. Emotions are nothing more than electrochemical signals in the brain that serve as a feedback mechanism and guide future behavior. Therefore, in the case of satisfaction, not much needs to change; dissatisfaction, on the other hand, encourages us to question our own situation. In this context, evolutionary psychologist Douglas J. Lisle (PhD) speaks of the "states of mind of contentment and dissatisfaction," which, in their sphere of influence, are clearly separate from the motivational triad (seeking pleasure, avoiding pain, conserving one's own body energy). With this, he wants to make it clear that pleasure does not automatically correlate with contentment, pain does not automatically correlate with dissatisfaction, and low physical energy expenditure does not automatically correlate with health. While other animals can continue to blindly rely on their emotions to successfully regulate their behavior, we must use our minds and align our thoughts and actions with a self-imposed compass, firmly anchored in communities, in order to consciously counteract hedonism, escapism, and convenience in the form of overuse of technology. With the help of the psychological mechanism of neuroadaptation, it is then possible to adapt neuronally to completely different environmental conditions over time, as long as natural need satisfaction is ensured. This path is not an easy one, but it is the only one that gets to the bottom of the true causes of modern problem constellations.
Thus A point of orientation for humanity is given, one that appears early in the history of ideas. In Judaism, pain is to be endured bravely, pleasurable masturbation is to be avoided, and energy-conserving laziness prevents one from fulfilling the divine rules of life. In the Bible, Jesus willingly accepts pain in order to redeem humanity. They are to live a life in accordance with God's will, as he created it. If one understands 'God' as a transcendental word for all of untouched nature, then intentionally seeking pain leads back to this nature. Behavior that turns against nature (God) is a sin. Among the specific sins handed down from the Middle Ages are the seven deadly sins: greed, gluttony, lust, sloth, envy, pride, and anger. They warn against unbridled hedonism (the pursuit of pleasure) and stagnant communal action (the conservation of energy). In Islam, excessive pleasure-seeking in the form of alcohol consumption is frowned upon, and energy-intensive discipline is demanded. Pain is considered a test from God, which can be overcome with patience and perseverance to wash away sins. In Hinduism, it is possible to reverse bad karma by willfully going through pain; there are abstinence rituals that renounce pleasure, and the use of energy for selfless acts helps on the path to salvation. Buddhism is founded on a critique of consumerism and thus technology; the story of Buddha's turning away from a lavish life to abstinent fulfillment is well known. Without drowning in a flood of further examples, and without advocating for a particular school of thought, the tendency of the statements made should be clear. The pleasant path of greatest possible increase in pleasure, minimization of pain, and conservation of physical energy is the wrong one. Why and in what context one finds this wisdom to be true is secondary. The opposite path is the right one, as long as the natural needs for health and contentment are authentically pursued and fulfilled. Broken down practically, the true, yet counterintuitive, compass of a of a meaningful life: "Face the unpleasant."
April 16, 2025
* Sascha Schlüter (31) recently completed his master's degree in philosophy and sociology of technology and science. He previously studied politics and computer science for his bachelor's degree. His passions include reading, writing, and discussion.
More information: Link to X @SchlueterSascha
CLICK HERE FOR THE NEW BOOK
TICKETS FOR THE SHOW "SONGS & STORIES"
TICKETS FOR THE SHOW "HE\\'S BACK"
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