[Buddha-l] Darwin's 200th centennial

[Erik Hoogcarspel]

Jim Peavler schreef:
> Precursors of Darwin are, I think, non-existent since Darwinism  
> consists of the idea that speciation is caused by natural selection.  
> The idea that living things might "evolve" out of earlier forms can be  
> mildly suggested by lots and lots of precursors, but until they are  
> verified by tons and tons of individual facts (which Darwin provides)  
> don't mean much. Hell, it would be possible to make a case that the  
> very idea of kharma is a precursor of evolution because of the notion  
> of all effects grow out of causes. It is probably easier to defend  
> kharma from the Intelligent Design people than it is to defend  
> evolution because it is not possible to just create something out of  
> nothing.
>
>
> You can be discovered to have presursed damn near anything in either  
> myth or prophecy.
>
>
>   
May I add that a myth is not a scientific theory, so the word 
'precursor'is used in a very lose sense. Myths have no cognitive claims. 
All that can be said is that the myth just symbolises the view that man 
has a zoological as well as a divine nature.
>   
>> On another list, someone just claimed that "Darwin was
>> prescientifically
>> 'preceded' in the Tibetan mythology, where mankind has origin in
>> monkeys."
>>
>> Anybody know about this intriguing bit?
>>
>>     
Erik

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