Interview with Nandini Gosine-Mayrhoo

As an alumnus of International Space University, I have long valued interdisciplinary vision and Future Life Design.

Over a period, I have been drawn to connect with Future Life Institute (FLI) creator John Mee (author-Transcendental Engineering)and FLI contributors such as Anne Jirsch and Amit Goswami (whom I interviewed on my former BlogTalkRadio Show & wrote a testimonial for one of my early books).  Most recently, I connect with Nandini Gosine-Mayroo. She is a wealth of insight: a specialist in metaphysics, a research analyst and writer for the FLI. 

Appreciate very much your willingness to engage in this dialogue for our readers.

 Thank you for giving me the opportunity.

How has your childhood experience guided and influenced your life journey?

Having been born into a Hindu family, I grew up witnessing the religious ceremonies of this ancient faith. While I always felt somewhat alienated from those rituals, I intuited that my heritage held a special truth. In my early teens, I had what I can only describe as some form of mystical experience while sitting at my father’s altar. My life has been a journey of attempting to understand that experience and to gain a deeper appreciation of the wisdom in the teachings of Hinduism.  

Mystical experience is increasingly widespread.  Dr. Wayne Dyer echoes that we can become mystical beings simply by changing the mind from one that creates and experiences problems, to a mind that resolves them.

The popularity with science fiction films and books shows fascination with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and where it heading.  Tell us about Future Life Institute and how you came to collaborate.

Future Life Institute, founded by John Mee, has formulated a scientific approach to enhancing human consciousness. While humanity’s scientific and technological advancement over just the past 50 years is indeed impressive, human consciousness has not kept pace. Without the spiritual wisdom to manage our scientific developments in ways that serve humanity, we could very likely use those developments to destroy ourselves. FLI recognizes the wisdom teachings of Hinduism, including reincarnation, as truth. Its work is dedicated not only to helping individuals enhance their consciousness in this life, but in future lives as well. The former can be achieved via scientific developments in genetic engineering, preceded by comprehensive education and psychological counseling in managing higher states of consciousness. The latter is achieved through dedicated learning in FLI’s Future Life Design program. 

On meeting John Mee, I was immediately interested in his valuable work. As a writer, I assist in promoting FLI’s work through varied media.

Michaelangelo echos: 'The greatest danger for most of us is not that we aim too high and we miss it, but we aim to low and reach it.'  Share  how you came to focus on the evolution of consciousness.

I have always been intrigued by the concept of maya, the illusion of this world. It seems to me the greatest challenge of being human - being able to negotiate the demands of our lives successfully, while maintaining a sense of detachment from its reality.  I’ve also always been intrigued by the attainment of moksha, the liberation from the cycle of birth and rebirth.  While the ancient texts speak of moksha as being attainable through self-realization – exactly how does one achieve that? I guess I’ve had a lifelong interest in higher consciousness, searching but not entirely sure on where to find the answers. 

What differences and benefits do you see (if any) between the spiritual and scientific evolution of consciousness?

The spiritual evolution of consciousness is said to occur over countless lifetimes. A cursory assessment of humanity’s present collective consciousness supports this theory – we seem to have a very long way to go before achieving a higher consciousness where we can coexist in peace.  Conversely, our scientific evolution is leaping forward in ways where we are struggling to grasp the long term societal effects. How will robotics affect employment? How do displaced workers live? If scientists have the ability to genetically engineer human traits, should parents be able to dictate the eye color, athletic or intellectual capability of their offspring? If greed and the desire for power remain as the base human instincts controlling our world, how will those with access to these scientific developments use them?

Well, it appears artificial lines of separation need to be healed between science and spirituality... 

Exactly! Rather than being separate things, we need to harness the scientific and spiritual evolution of our consciousness, to keep pace with these scientific developments. The scientific enhancement of human consciousness via genetic engineering is by no means a “quick fix”, as considerable spiritual training and counseling is required to manage and maintain long term higher states of consciousness. The scientific and spiritual evolution of our consciousness must work in tandem if we are to evolve into our highest potential. Traversing countless more lifetimes is an outdated approach to higher consciousness, which in our current era, no longer serves our true potential.

I love Sadhguru, the founder of Isha Institute of Inner Engineering. he reminds us the mind is a complex amalgam of many influences. He also echoes the more identified we are with these influences, the further away we are from ourselves, and one could also say the truth.  

How would you describe stages of your own awakening? What did it reveal about your gifts?

I had an innate interest in spirituality, and as an introverted child I spent long days wondering about the world around me. I read Lobsang Rampa, the Bhagavad Gita and other spiritual material in my teenage years, which made me very aware of the human ability to experience the esoteric. In my later years I’ve awakened to an urgent call from Mother Nature, as a remarkable device named The Music of the Plants came into my life.   I have learnt that communication with plants is possible, something that was not previously a part of my spiritual yearning. 

Tuning into the vibrations of nature changes how we relate to ourselves and the world. Finding the middle road between natrue and technology baffles a lot of people.

From yoru view, what is cognitive engineering and why is it important for humanity?

Cognitive engineering is the process of scientifically actualizing the potential of human cognitive functions, through genetic engineering. Our cognitive processes include sensation, perception, attention, intelligence, memory, thought - basically the functions required to negotiate our surroundings and our lives.

Cognitive engineering of our brain-based skills provides the means of becoming more intelligent beings, more perceptive of how our actions impact our immediate and long term future. It can enhance our critical thinking skills, enabling us to devise suitable solutions to the problems we face. FLI’s work has a greater emphasis on consciousness enhancement, as opposed to only enhancing cognitive brain-based skills. FLI’s work brings balance between intelligence and spirituality - which must be the way humanity fulfils its fullest potential. 

Many people are familliar with the films like Bladerunner 2049 and RoboCop and the robotic arms on the Space Shuttles and other space technolgy.

How do you see the future relationship involving robots and human beings unfolding?

I have not seen Robocop. Robotics is now replacing and will continue to replace manual jobs. A failure to adapt to these rapid economic changes will certainly result in a dissatisfied populace, susceptible to empty promises from demagogues – not the future we wish to envisage. Robotics development is calling for humanity to up its intellectual potential. Jobs in the future will demand heightened cognitive ability. Some futurists anticipate singularity – when artificial intelligence becomes smarter than humans. Even the technology we have today is evidence that this may indeed be a possibility. Rather than creating machines that outsmart us, humanity should focus on increasing its own intelligence. As mentioned previously, intellectual strides must be accompanied by the spiritual. 

How much truth do you see in popular culture films such as Next Gen?  Which films or books do you feel offer an accurate take on the technology revolution in this world? What would you like to see?

I will admit that I have never seen Next Gen! Star Trek and Star Wars sum up my sci-fi repertoire!

Can totally relate to the Star Wars/Star Trek and Contact movie fan club...

Speaking of technology revolution, the communication devices and sliding doors in Star Trek provided glimpses into our future. Perhaps the holographic communication seen in Star Wars will be our reality before long. My personal interest lies more in films and books that speak of galactic intelligence and communication. Thor to my mind provides hope for a future meeting with extraterrestrials in a way that earlier films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind only suggested is possible. I am currently reading 2150AD by Thea Alexander - a depiction of a future intellectually advanced utopian society. I would like to think that the film producers and book writers who provide these glimpses into our possible future, are divinely inspired to plant seeds of hope in our ailing society.

So much on the horizon while so much is already here as well, yet not necessarily in public use...

Anyway, you have also written about reincarnation. What is your take on the subject? What causes you to feel this way?

Having a Hindu heritage, reincarnation is encoded in my DNA. Applying some rational thought to the theory of reincarnation, it seems the only logical explanation to what makes each of our lives different – as reincarnation and karmic learning go hand in hand.

Imagine a world where reincarnation and karma no longer existed or was no longer necessary because humanity had expanded consciousness beyond it.  Now that is food for reflection! 

If you could leave our readers with a vision or some advice, what would it be?

My high school best friend and I had a motto “Look up, reach out”…we even shortened it to “LURO” at the end of our numerous notes to each other (this was back when written notes were still a thing!). I think it is fitting advice for humanity at this interesting and challenging time in our evolution. We need to look up to our highest potential, beyond the limitations within which we have confined ourselves. We also need to look up to the skies above us, devising ways of reaching out to the more intelligent life in our Universe and beyond. 

Please let people know where they can contact you:

I can be reached at nandini1863@gmail.com or 1-561-324-4868

For anyone interested in learning more about Future Life Institute: 

http://futurelifeinstitute.org/

www.futurelives.org

https://www.cognitivegenetics.co/

 Please also refer us to where we can read more of your articles.

Certainly! Those interested can Google my name and also access the following articles through links:

https://medium.com/@nandini1863/the-genetics-of-higher-consciousness-is-cognitive-engineering-the-future-of-human-evolution-ae5b764038e0?source=friends_link&sk=72d5ae48f1c2ebb6086c34f941b64e95

https://www.spiritofchange.org/mind-spirit/Transcending-Lives--Reincarnation-As-Truth/ 

For anyone interested in the Music of the Plants:              

www.nandimotp.org

Thanks Nandini. We encourage you to continue devoting your attention to topics that enable you to feel most alive. Let us know who inspires you as you go along. Elon Musk for instance, is a big inspiration for many.