Human Evolution: Charles Darwin, who gave the theory of evolution, was a great scientist of his time. How did humans evolve? He studied a lot to know the secret behind it.
Darwin helped in bringing a huge change in our thinking from the scientific point of view regarding some fundamental questions, such as who are we, where do we come from, why do we live and why do we exist. Darwin was respected as a god among scientists at that time, but whether Darwin believed in God, if he believed then what were his thoughts, in which religion did he believe and who were his idols?
Darwin’s biography, thoughts and was he a believer?
Darwin had written, there is no fundamental difference between humans and other creatures in the ability to feel pleasure, pain, happiness and sadness. Thanks to Darwin’s theory of biological evolution, science took a huge leap. Darwin’s theory established that no external or internal divine power or any creator like God was involved in the origin of life on Earth, rather human life originated due to chemical reactions and physical processes.
Darwin was born in 1809 in a rich family of Britain (UK). His father was a famous doctor and he wanted his son Darwin to grow up and become a doctor in the medical profession. However, Darwin, who was climbing the ladder of youth, was fond of hunting in the forest at that time. He was fond of horse riding. Apart from this, Darwin spontaneously started the work of investigating nature in depth. When he was 22 years old, he got a chance to study the geography of some parts of the world through a sea ship.
He grew up in a Christian family and initially considered himself an Orthodox Christian during his youth. His further scientific work, particularly the theory of evolution by natural selection, led him to question and eventually abandon traditional Christian doctrines.
At the beginning of his journey, Darwin was strongly influenced by religious dogmas. According to the prevailing beliefs of the time, all species were created by God at the same time and have remained the same ever since. At that time, there was also a belief that while creating each species, God had an ideal body structure in mind, if anything different from this is seen then there must be some defect in it. There is a tendency among organisms of any species that they are all alike, molded in the same mold. If some diversity is seen then it is just a distortion.
survival of the fittest
Darwin propounded the theory of natural selection of species around 1837. This principle was called the principle of ‘Survival of the fittest’. That means the one who is strong will survive, the weak will perish. Under natural selection, two motivations work at the core of all living beings: self-preservation and reproduction. All living beings keep themselves safe and try to ensure that their children survive and succeed in the world.
Origin of Species
In Darwin’s book Origin of Species, he wrote – ‘The pace of biological evolution is slow. Some live for 100 years and some die at a young age. Some have less children and some have more. Those who have more ability to survive are the ones who adapt to the environment and survive and a new species emerges. The origin of all species in the world is the same. They have evolved from the same type of bacteria. Human life is interconnected, from small creatures to humans, everyone has a common ancestor. All the species in the world were not created in one fell swoop but from already existing species. The primary mechanism of biological evolution is natural selection. Today we know that the basis of all forms of life present on earth is their similar molecular biology. Everyone uses the same genetic code to make proteins from their genes. All genes, DNA. Even the DNA chains of different organisms have many similarities. For example, the DNA sequences of genes of us humans and monkeys are 95-98 percent identical. The reason is that humans and monkeys originated from the same ancestor.
According to reports, Darwin was initially a believer but his scientific approach gave him a new understanding. After the publication of ‘Origin of Species’ there was an uproar and he was opposed. In fact, Darwin’s new understanding, new discoveries and understanding challenged religious beliefs. Darwin’s theory of biological evolution was not acceptable to the Church and its followers.