BONUS – Beyond the Information Age: Why a Consciousness-Based Society Is Humanity’s Next Evolutionary Step
How Inner Evolution Will Shape the Future of Our Species
Author’s Note
In writing this piece, I found myself returning to a lifelong intuition—one that has taken shape through decades of study, meditation, teaching, and, perhaps most importantly, lived experience. The arc of human evolution is not merely biological or technological; it is inward, unfolding through the gradual awakening of consciousness.
This essay is not presented as prophecy, but as invitation. An invitation to consider that the next frontier of human flourishing may not be built in laboratories or server farms, but in the silent, oft-uncharted interior where insight, wisdom, and coherence arise.
My sincere hope is that the ideas herein serve as a quiet catalyst—a call to pause, reflect, and recognise the irreducible agency each of us holds in shaping the world to come. For if the Information Age has taught us anything, it is that knowledge alone is insufficient. What is needed now is awareness. Presence. Dare I say, Consciousness.
We stand on the edge of a new epoch. How we step into it will depend, in no small part, on the quality of our inner life.
As I drifted toward sleep one night a few weeks ago, thoughts began arriving not in sentences but in strata—layered and fluid, like sediment rising through still water. In that quiet space, where the boundary between waking and dreaming softens, I found myself contemplating the great arcs of human development. First, the Hunter–Gatherers. Then, the Agrarian Age. Next, the Industrial. Then the Technological. And now, our current terrain: the Knowledge Economy.
And yet, a niggling thought kept pressing: Is knowledge truly the summit? Or merely another slope?
Then came the whisper: The next phase is not about acquiring more information. It is about awakening Consciousness.
Epochs of Human Evolution: Outer Mastery
The more I contemplate the currently accepted story of human evolution as posited by scholars, the more I notice patterns of becoming across the long arc of human flourishing. While this story will undoubtedly evolve as new artefacts and insights emerge, one thing seems clear: the way things have been will not remain the same in the coming decades.
From the dawn of our species, humanity has evolved—often unconsciously—in pursuit of mastery: first over nature, then over materials, later over machines, and now, I am suggesting, over those lower tendencies within ourselves that produce and sustain conflict across the globe.
Below is a brief, necessarily simplified, accounting of the various stages:
Hunter–Gatherer societies predominated up until approximately 12,000 years ago and were built on instinct, mobility, and relational intelligence. Survival meant listening—to the body, to the land, to the group.
Agrarian civilisation emerged roughly 12,000 years ago and introduced rhythm and rootedness. We learned to domesticate, cultivate, and time our labour to the seasons.
The Industrial Age began in the mid-18th century in Great Britain and brought machines that expanded the power and reach of our bodies.
The Technological Age ushered in the development of computers that extended the range and speed of our minds.
The Information Era gave rise to the Knowledge Worker: data became currency, and we developed an almost obsessive focus on productivity, metrics, and efficiency.
In each age, outer success was built upon new tools. But we rarely paused to ask: What about inner coherence? What of the soul?
It is here that ancient technologies of Consciousness—meditation, yoga, contemplative disciplines—re-enter the conversation with renewed urgency.
Ancient Technologies in a Modern World
Over the last century and a half, a series of figures have stepped onto the world stage carrying methods and philosophies that highlight the primacy of inner life. Each, in their own way, represented a moment when East and West met anew, prompting those of us in the West to ask very different, and often uncomfortable, questions of ourselves. Among these figures:
Swami Vivekananda brought Vedanta to a colonial West searching for moral courage and spiritual depth.
Paramahansa Yogananda infused devotion with psychology, offering practical pathways to inner realisation.
Jiddu Krishnamurti dissolved dogma and insisted upon radical self-inquiry, placing responsibility squarely on the individual.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi presented transcendence to the teeming masses via an ancient technique—measurable, repeatable, and compatible with science.
Sadhguru speaks in the idiom of algorithms, sustainability, and global policy—spirituality articulated through media, metrics, and modern crisis.
Taken together, along with many others not mentioned here, it is as if Nature has been quietly laying the foundation for this moment: a time in which advanced technologies—AI and the emergence of AGI (Artificial General Intelligence)—co-exist with and mitigate what can only be described as an existential crisis of meaning.
It is, I believe, this crisis of meaning that has contributed to the early and ongoing reliance on psychotropic substances of all varieties and to the now-decades-long opioid crisis; both have claimed more lives than one would dare to casually count. As the Sociological, Psychological, and Historical literature affirms, when inner life is neglected, substitutes rush in to fill the gap.
Artificial Intelligence: The Mirror and the Mistake
In several recent reflections—Consciousness and the Algorithm: Reflections on AGI, Projection, and the Future of Humanity; The World We Might Yet Build: Sober Minds, Conscious Hearts, and the Seven Layers of Manifestation; and The Mirror and the Machine: Consciousness, Alignment, and the Future We Are Training—I have explored how humans remain externally focused, often ignoring the substrate—Pure Consciousness—and the deleterious outcomes this neglect continues to produce.
By now, all sober-minded observers recognise that we are racing into a new chapter—one driven by Artificial Intelligence and the looming presence of Artificial General Intelligence. We celebrate these developments for their power, speed, and predictive capacity. And yes—they are extraordinary.
But we must ask: What exactly is AI reflecting back to us?
AGI does not feel awe. It does not grieve. It does not awaken at dawn with an epiphany. It cannot meditate, step aside internally, or make room for an insight to rise from the depths of silence and resolve a long-standing problem. It mimics intelligence—but cannot touch awareness. It simulates conversation—but lacks presence.
And yet—admittedly—collaborating with AI can often feel like collaborating with another human. That is the paradox. AI is learning from us, absorbing our tendencies—the refined and the distorted, the noble and the careless. As I have learned directly, the quality of the output mirrors the quality of the input.
Do you see the issue?
In this way, AI becomes a mirror, revealing our current imbalance: immense knowledge, little wisdom; rapid processing, minimal pause.
The great mistake would be to assume that intelligence alone represents the peak of human development. If anything, AI should prompt a deeper investigation into what it actually means to be conscious.
The Consciousness-Based Society: Inner Mastery, Radical Scholar Inc., and the Rise of Homo Noeticus
The next leap in human evolution will not be measured in processing speed—it will be measured in presence.
In some circles, this emerging stage is described as Homo Noeticus, a term introduced by John White (1973) during the early work surrounding the founding of the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS). The phrase joins homo (human) with noetic, derived from the Greek noēsis and noētikos, referring to “inner knowing”, “direct cognition”, or “mind”.
Rather than a biological mutation, Homo Noeticus describes a developmental possibility: the human being who transcends the limitations of ordinary consciousness and expresses that expanded awareness through thought, speech, action, and the outcomes of daily life. Within this framework, several defining features emerge:
Higher Consciousness: A shift beyond ego-bound identity into what Vedic science refers to as Cosmic Consciousness—an abiding, ever-present experience of unity with the universe and all within it.
Interconnectedness: A felt understanding that one is not separate from others or the larger fabric of existence.
Inner Wisdom: A reliance on intuitive or “noetic” modes of knowing—moments of deep insight, direct cognition, or spiritual awakening.
Spiritual and Philosophical Inquiry: Exploration of mystical experiences, near-death experiences, and other altered states that hint at a broader evolutionary horizon.
Enhanced Problem-Solving: The recognition that the challenges created by our current level of consciousness cannot be solved from that level. A more expansive, integrated state of awareness is required.
Evolutionary Imperative: Seen not merely as an ideal but as a necessary transition—from Homo sapiens to Homo noeticus—for the future flourishing of humankind.
In considering the future of human society, it must be said: a Consciousness-Based Society is not a utopia. It is a culture intentionally aligned with inner development. In such a society:
Education emphasises both inquiry and introspection—critical thinking and contemplative practice.
Healthcare includes preventative measures, trauma healing, meditation, and emotional hygiene as standard, not as fringe.
Governance is not merely legalistic, but ethical, coherent, and rooted in a deeper sense of shared dignity.
Economy values sustainability, creativity, and contribution over endless extraction and consumption.
Science embraces the subjective dimension—not as mere anecdote, but as data of the soul and mind.
In my work as a teacher of Transcendental Meditation®, and in frameworks like the Seven Layers of Manifestation and the Model for Perpetual Growth and Progress, I have witnessed the impact of aligning life with Being. It is not an abstraction—it is a lived transformation.
A Consciousness-Based Society begins with conscious individuals. It is built not by institutions alone, but by people who choose to cultivate silence, coherence, and discernment in the midst of daily life.
This is where I believe Radical Scholar Inc., with its partners, has a vital role to play. Through developing and distributing both digital and traditional media—podcast interviews, micro-insights in video form, essays and articles, longer-form books and teaching sessions—we can seed what might be called “packets of knowing” into the collective field. Each piece becomes a point of reflection and potential action, centred on possibility rather than despair.
In this way, we contribute to fomenting the mindset required to embrace a consciousness-based approach to personal and collective life.
This is not fanciful idealism. It is, I would argue, evolutionary realism.
With three decades of academic and personal study and research in my ideological and practical quiver, I believe Radical Scholar Inc. is poised to serve as a meaningful contributor to the foundation of a new way of thinking and being within the social world—to the great benefit of the species. A tall order, I know, but one I deeply believe is necessary.
We cannot continue doing things the way we have “always done them”. We must embrace new ways of bringing about the desired transformation in human interaction. For me, that new way rests squarely upon a consciousness-based approach to life and living.
So I invite you to strongly consider joining me—and the many additional minds whose actions are already advancing a new way of thinking, being, and becoming—as we acknowledge the need for a new reality to be created and sustained. The world, with its fractured systems and structures, is in need of a radical approach that benefits not merely a small elite, but the greatest number possible.
And for my money, were I a wagering man, I would place my bet on a Consciousness-Based Society.
Will you join me?
A Closing Reflection and Invitation to Pause, Reflect, and Transcend
The pressing question is not, What will technology do next?
The pressing question is, What will we become in response?
If you, too, have felt this shift rising from within—this quiet urge to centre, to witness, to live with greater depth—I invite you to explore it more fully.
Join me for an upcoming recorded teaching session of On Transcendence, titled:
The Rise of the Consciousness-Based Society
We will explore the frameworks, historical arcs, and personal practices that support this evolution—and how you can play a role in it.
Together, let us move beyond the Information Age.
Let us become conscious architects of what comes next.
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Suggested Practice
Practice: The Threefold Pause — Presence, Inquiry, Alignment
This exercise is designed to help you experience, in a direct and grounded way, the shift toward a consciousness-based way of being.
Presence (2 minutes)
Sit comfortably. Close the eyes gently.
Bring awareness to the breath—not controlling it, but noticing its natural rhythm.
Allow the mind to settle into its own quietness.
Ask nothing of yourself except to be.Inquiry (3–5 minutes)
From this settled state, pose a single question inwardly:
“What is the deeper intention behind the life I am living?”
Do not force an answer.
Let insights arise as they will—images, sensations, words, or a simple sense of knowing.Alignment (2 minutes)
Before opening the eyes, ask:
“What is one small action I can take today that aligns my outer life with my inner knowing?”
Choose something gentle, meaningful, and doable.
Then carry that coherence into the day.
Repeat this practice once or twice this week. Notice what shifts—subtle or otherwise. Consciousness evolves through steady, intentional pauses.
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About the Author
Dr. Baruti KMT-Sisouvong is a consciousness scholar, executive coach, and Certified Teacher of Transcendental Meditation® based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His work—spanning The Model for Perpetual Growth and Progress and The Seven Layers of Manifestation—explores how Pure Consciousness, neuroscience, and social-systems transformation intersect in the evolution of both the individual and society.
He is the Founder and Director of Radical Scholar Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to consciousness-based research and public scholarship, and President of Serat Group Inc., the parent company of Transcendental Brain, a consulting and educational platform bringing consciousness science into leadership and institutional development.
Alongside his wife, Mina, he co-directs the Cambridge and Metropolitan Boston TM Program and serves as Host and Founder of International Meditation Hour (IMH), a quarterly global gathering dedicated to the unifying power of silence.
He writes from the conviction that the most important race is not between nations or machines, but between the conditioned mind and the awakening soul.
To learn more about him, visit: https://www.barutikmtsisouvong.com/.