Rupert Sheldrake
Full Name and Common Aliases
Rupert Sheldrake is a British author, biologist, and researcher who has made significant contributions to the fields of animal behavior, plant biology, and spirituality.
Birth and Death Dates
Born on June 28, 1942, in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, England
Nationality and Profession(s)
British; Biologist, Author, Researcher
Early Life and Background
Rupert Sheldrake grew up in a family that valued learning and exploration. He developed an interest in nature and the outdoors from an early age, which would eventually shape his future career as a biologist. After completing his secondary education at Westminster Under School and Lancing College, he went on to study biochemistry at Christ's College, Cambridge.
During his time at Cambridge, Sheldrake became fascinated with the behavior of animals, particularly their ability to adapt to new environments. This interest led him to pursue research in animal behavior, which would become a hallmark of his work.
Major Accomplishments
Sheldrake's most notable contributions include:
The concept of morphic resonance: Sheldrake proposes that organisms are connected through a collective memory or field, which allows them to share information and adapt to their environment. This idea has been met with both praise and criticism from the scientific community.
The study of animal behavior: Sheldrake's research on animal behavior has challenged traditional views of instinct and learning. He argues that animals are capable of complex behaviors that cannot be explained by genetics or conditioning alone.
The development of a new model for understanding consciousness: Sheldrake proposes that consciousness is an emergent property of complex systems, rather than a product of the brain.Notable Works or Actions
Some of Sheldrake's notable works include:
"A New Science of Life" (1981): This book introduces the concept of morphic resonance and challenges traditional views of biology.
"The Presence of the Past" (1988): In this work, Sheldrake explores the idea that organisms are connected through a collective memory or field.
"Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home" (1999): This book examines the phenomenon of animal intuition and proposes new explanations for seemingly inexplicable behaviors.
Impact and Legacy
Rupert Sheldrake's work has had a significant impact on various fields, including biology, psychology, and spirituality. While his ideas have been met with controversy, they have also sparked important debates about the nature of consciousness and the interconnectedness of living organisms.
Sheldrake's research has inspired new areas of investigation, such as the study of animal intuition and the development of new models for understanding consciousness. His work continues to be widely read and discussed among scholars, scientists, and spiritual seekers.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
Rupert Sheldrake is widely quoted and remembered for his innovative ideas about the nature of life and consciousness. His work has challenged traditional views of biology and psychology, inspiring new perspectives on the interconnectedness of living organisms.
Sheldrake's willingness to question established theories and propose radical new explanations has made him a polarizing figure in academic circles. However, his influence extends beyond the scientific community, with many spiritual seekers finding inspiration in his ideas about collective memory and the interconnectedness of all life.
Quotes by Rupert Sheldrake
Rupert Sheldrake's insights on:
Traditional theories of human creativity ascribe it to inspiration from a higher source working through the creative individual, who acts as a channel. The same conception underlies the notion of genius; originally the genius was not the person himself but his presiding god or spirit.
All creation or destruction of forms, or morphogenesis, can be described by the disappearance of the attractors representing the initial forms, and their replacement by capture by the attractors representing the final forms.
Mathematically, morphogenetic fields can be modified in terms of attractors within basins of attraction.
But the cosmonaut Aleksandr Aleksandrov summed up the principal message for millions of people. Looking down on America and then in Russia, he saw the first snow and imagined people in both countries getting ready for winter. “And then it struck me that we are all children of our Earth. It does not matter what country you look at. We are all Earth’s children, and we should treat her as our Mother.
The sunlike energy released by the fusion of atoms of the lightest element, hydrogen, is detonated by the fission of one of the heaviest, plutonium, named after the god of the underworld.
I am all in favour of science and reason if they are scientific and reasonable. But I am against granting scientists and the materialist worldview an exemption from critical thinking and sceptical investigation. We need an enlightenment of the Enlightenment.17.
In any case, however many subatomic particles there may be, organisms are wholes, and reducing them to their parts by killing them and analysing their chemical constituents simply destroys what makes them organisms.
The commonest kinds of seemingly telepathic response are the anticipation by dogs and cats of their owners coming home; the anticipation of owners going away; the anticipation of being fed; cats disappearing when their owners intend to take them to the vet; dogs knowing when their owners are planning to take them for a walk; and animals that get excited when their owner is on the telephone, even before the telephone is answered.
The sudden appearance of all the Laws of Nature is as untestable as Platonic metaphysics or theology. Why should we assume that all the Laws of Nature were already present at the instant of the Big Bang, like a cosmic Napoleonic code? Perhaps some of them, such as those that govern protein crystals, or brains, came into being when protein crystals or brains first arose. The preexistence of these laws cannot possibly be tested before the emergence of the phenomena they govern.
We must become aware of the astonishing fact that as a species we are the victims of an instance of traumatic abuse in childhood. As human beings, we once had a symbiotic relationship with the world-girdling intelligence of the planet that was mediated through shamanic plant use. This relationship was disrupted and eventually lost by the progressive climatic drying of the Eurasian and African land masses.