Path to Enlightened Humanism

Each one of us has a choice. We can blindly accept the customs, moral codes, political philosophy, and the religious beliefs of the society into which we are born or we can critically examine the perceptions and beliefs of one's own society, or one's own group, which in the first instance would be responsible for conditioning one's personal beliefs and perceptions. This is what philosophy is all about. It identifies the fundamental principles on which decisions of this nature are based, and it exposes the individual to other points of view. Most people elect the former course of action, based not on conscious decisions, but because of the incredibly powerful influence of environmental conditioning. Developing a broader understanding of evolution, knowledge, religion, science, philosophy and politics opens a pathway to enlightenment.

For those deep thinkers who have become disillusioned with the archaic, restrictive and dogmatic doctrines and assertions of the many different religious orders in the world, Enlightened Humanism provides a working philosophy for people who do not believe in myths and superstitions. As far as human beings and other sentient creatures are concerned, and from a purely practical point of view, the philosophy of Enlightened Humanism, advocates the elimination of distress and suffering as the primary criterion on which personal and public action should be based. This is perhaps its greatest driving force – its concern for the unnecessary and avoidable suffering currently being imposed on mankind because of ignorance, archaic beliefs, and superstitious misconceptions. Path to Enlightened Humanism was published by the authors children and combines all three of the authors philosophy books, Knowledge, Philosophy and Enlightened Humanism into one book. It outlines the path this author took to reach his philosophical conclusions. If you think philosophy is difficult, this material is simple to read and understand. Volume One – Knowledge - outlines, simplifies, and summarizes general knowledge about our "world" encompassing explanations of the Planet Earth, Evolution, and the History of Man through ancient to modern Science, Religion, Politics, Man's Behaviour and the evolution of Social Morality. Volume Two – Philosophy, covers the schools of Philosophy from ancient and medieval times through to the modern age while also covering the branches of philosophy. These first two volumes lay the groundwork for Volume three. Volume Three – Enlightened Humanism outlines the Philosophy of Enlightened Humanism which has as it's guiding principle the improvement of the quality of all life on earth, both human and non-human. The challenge is first and foremost an intellectual one – to expand our knowledge of our planet and the complex living systems that it supports thereby gaining the wisdom to dispel misconceptions, prejudices and superstitions. Secondly, it is an emotional challenge – to promote the positive emotions of love, compassion, kindness, and justice, and conversely, to counter the negative emotions of fear, greed, envy, and hatred. Path to Enlightened Humanism includes two Addendums, the first – Reflections about Life and the World we Live in – encompasses most of the authors writing post publication of his three books which further develops similar subject matter. The second Addendum describes the authors illustrious career in Blood Transfusion.

Dr Ben Grobbelaar qualified as a medical practitioner in 1951, and obtained his doctorate in 1959. He devoted his professional career to the study of Blood Transfusion, and is regarded as one of the pioneers of the discipline in South Africa. He also rose to eminence internationally, representing the continent of Africa on the International Society of Blood Transfusion, in addition to becoming the Vice-Chairman of the World Federation of Haemophilia. After resigning from his professional appointments at the age of 45, he embarked on a programme of "self-education", reading widely in science and philosophy. Path to Enlightened Humanism incorporates Ben's three books. The first two, Knowledge and Philosophy provide the path Ben took in his search to determine a philosophy that would represent, in his view a practical and sensible approach to life and mankind's problems. His conclusion, contained in the third book, Enlightened Humanism, is a philosophy for those individuals who have become disillusioned with the archaic, restrictive and dogmatic doctrines and assertions of the many different religious orders in the world.