Intelligence in Nature: An Inquiry Into KnowledgeAnthropologist Jeremy Narby has altered how we understand the shamanic cultures and traditions that have undergone a worldwide revival in recent years. Now, in one of his most extraordinary journeys, Narby travels around the globe-from the Amazon basin to the Far East-to probe what traditional healers and pioneering researchers perceive about the intelligence present in all forms of life. "Intelligence in Nature" offers overwhelming illustrative evidence that independent intelligence is not unique to humanity. Indeed, bacteria, plants, animals, and other forms of nonhuman life display an uncanny proclivity for self-deterministic decisions, patterns, and actions. The Japanese possess a word for this universal knowing: chi-sei. For the first time, Narby presents an in-depth anthropological study of this concept in the West. He not only uncovers a mysterious thread of intelligent behavior within the natural world but also probes the question of what humanity can learn from nature's economy and knowingness in its own search for a saner and more sustainable way of life. |
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ability able according activity Amazon animals ants appear asked bees behavior believe birds body brain butterflies called capacity cause cells clay color comes communicate complex concept consider contain culture described develop example exist experience explain eyes fact feel Flores forest head human images important indigenous individual insects intelligence jaguar Japanese kind knowledge known lack language light living look macaws machines matter means mechanical memory mental mind move nature neurons observe organisms origin parrots particular plants possible problem proteins question recently recognize remained scientific scientists seemed sense shamans shows signals simple slime mold soul speak species spirits term things thought tion took transform trees true turn understand University visions walked wanted Western writes wrote
Bibliographic information
| Title | Intelligence in Nature: An Inquiry Into Knowledge |
| Author | Jeremy Narby |
| Publisher | Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2005 |
| ISBN | 1585423998, 9781585423996 |
| Length | 267 pages |
| Subjects | › › Body, Mind & Spirit / Shamanism Psychology / General Social Science / Anthropology / General |
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