THE
ANIMAL CALLED MAN
Hello once again! It is
another Monday; a beautiful day which God has made, if and only if you do take
out time to behold the wonders and beauty of each day and stop bemoaning it.
Today, we continue the Enlightenment Series with the lovely topic above. (Don’t
forget to send yours via the administrator; thanks to the comments made last
week by Consider and others. Remember, we only seek to find the way forward.)
Yes, “The Animal Called Man”! You might ask, “What’s this guy trying to say?”
or “Are you trying to insult or degrade mankind?” Well, perhaps you will answer
the questions at the end of this edition. (Note that I will be writing
primarily from an individualistic perspective. “Man” is used in a generic sense
here.)
I remember my Biology
textbook in secondary school saying that there are two kinds of “things” in the
world; viz. living and non-living things. It further went ahead to sub-divide
living things into plants and animals. From this, you can see that it is either
you are a plant, or an animal. (I believe
plants do not read!) However, the same textbook went further to sub-group
animals into other bla and bla which you should know; Man is not
the only mammal that was mentioned by the textbook. But, in order to “avoid”
the “animality” of Man, we choose to call ourselves “higher animals”. I totally
agree to this though, because I do not see myself in the same level/class with
the goat, fowl, monkey, chimpanzee and even the lion or the eagle. This is
because “God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them. And God... said to them, ‘... rule... over
every living creature that moves on the ground’” (Gen. 1:27&28, NIV). I
then begin to wonder why some people say that life evolved from the water and
that Man is the latest form of this evolution which has occurred some millions
of years ago after the “Big Bang”. I would like to ask them why man has not
evolved into another “being” after many such years of their existence. Let them
please answer!
What then is an animal?
Encarta dictionary says an animal is a living organism that is distinguished
from plants by independent movement and responsive sense organs.
What then makes Man an
animal? The acronym MR NIGER D helps us out. Man is often denoted as a:
·
Social animal – This is because Man
thrives well in the company of fellow men. Someone once said that the man who
naturally resigns to himself away from the others is often times said to be
either a beast or a god. From birth, Man learns to depend on his mother’s milk
and love, father’s protection and support and siblings’ company for survival.
He also learns to interact with a vast majority of fellow humans and other
animals as he grows up, and needs also their approval and admiration. Even the
prisoners, monks and nuns interact amongst themselves and so, there is no
exception to the sociality of the animal called Man.
·
Political animal – This is because as he
grows and thrives on his interdependence on others, he desires to control,
organize and dominate them. As such, he sets out to seek for power over them
via many means; sets up governments, formulates laws and enforces them, all in
order to rule, be respected and even feared. Some people lay hold to the claim that
they are “born to rule”; but I ask, who then is “born to be ruled”??
·
Rational animal – This is because as he
traverses his ecological location, he observes a lot of things which lead him
to wonder, ponder and go yonder to conquer. Man is a being of value who is
ontologically not interested in wasting his time and life. These values
influence his choices and preferences in life, and thus decide his behaviour.
Man thinks and philosophizes on the issues of life.
·
Religious being – This is because he
believes there is a Supreme Being who is responsible for his existence and that
of other things which he sees, and who in one way or the other controls the
world and everything in it. Thus he seeks to acknowledge, respect/ worship and
approach this Divine Being higher than him, using various means and depends on
Him for protection, provision, fulfillment and support. As a result, there are
motley of religions all over the world, who in one way or the other seek
dominance over the others.
·
Selfish being – This is because he is
not more interested in others than he is in himself; he is naturally
egocentric, proud and ambitious; if not for true, real Love (of God).
·
Creative being – Oh how I adore the
creative powers of the human mind! Who has ever thought of building a “tower of
Babel”? Or of constructing the pyramids of Egypt or the Hanging Gardens of
Babylon? Or of flying without wings or swimming without fins? Or of the
internet or of even going to the moon?! Or of writing or reading? Or of singing
and making sweet, melodious tunes? Who, if not the powerful, creative animal
called Man? Never underrate or underestimate the great, powerful abilities of
the human being!
Oops! We are sorry we will not go
any further, because we promised that each publication would not exceed two
pages. However, this great topic continues next week. Do keep in touch.
<www.skola93.blogspot.com>
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