According to anthropologists, fire was first used as a religious implement rather than as a tool to cook food, fashion weapons, etc. Fire only came to be used as a practical tool in everyday life when its religious significance died down. Anthropologists think this because they have found evidence that, for quite some time, fire was used in ritualistic settings and in no other circumstances.

Given the obvious practical benefits of fire, it is interesting to consider that man’s first and foremost instinct, upon discovery of this new and powerful technology, was to employ it in a ritualistic, spiritual capacity. In modern society, when it comes to new tools, we immediately harness them in a purely utilitarian capacity, most often with the goal of profit or comfort in mind. This begs the question: If Neanderthal society’s orientation towards new technologies was deeper and more profound than my own, does this mean that my society is completely out of touch with itself?

After consulting with my good friend Joseph Campbell, I have come to the conclusion: not necessarily. One thing about fire that made it spiritually significant to early man was that he didn’t understand it. Somehow, it created intense heat and bright light. It consumed biological material. Fire was a mystical substance to him. It would be sacrilege to cook a steak over it.

Modern society better understands fire, physics, computers, and lots of other stuff. This renders fire, the solar system, and pretty much anything else that can be found in a science textbook relatively ineffective as a religious symbol. Me, I would cook a steak over a computer any day of the week.

Is there anything left in the universe that carries an innate, spiritual charge? The only answer I have been able to come up with is the human mind - consciousness. (Perhaps this is why Star Wars captures us, as a society, in such a powerful way.) Although we have for some time been able to understand the more elementary aspects of human behavior (i.e. carrot and stick psychology), consciousness itself basically remains a mystery to us. What we are becoming more aware of is that consciousness does not operate purely on Newtonian physics (i.e. A + B = C); it appears to interface with nature in a quantum capacity as well. If you lie down on the beach and think about this for a while, the implications are pretty staggering.

At any rate, I think it is safe to conclude - at least from a religio-symbolic standpoint - that we are not engaging in sacrilege when it comes to harnessing new technologies for non-religious ends, since our tools do not carry any kind of inherent spiritual charge.

However! If consciousness does carry a spiritual charge, and if consciousness is the means by which we interface with our tools, this implies that we need to approach our tools with a certain degree of caution and respect, since our tools affect consciousness when we use them. Being aware of this, before utilizing a certain tool it becomes important to consider whether this tool will be “good for consciousness.” A tool is good for consciousness when I am sufficiently harmonious with it; when it has the potential to act as an extension of my own creative being.

How do tools such as MS Report Builder 1.0 affect consciousness? If heaven and hell are states of mind, then working with MS Report Builder 1.0 is akin to being burned alive in hell. Which is why I regard such tools as The Evil One.