Body, Mind, and Brain: An Evolutionary Look

At conception, we inherit one chromosome from the father and one from the mother. Chromosomes contain our genome.

Our genes contain the blueprint of our body and mind. The body is on the exterior while the mind is said to be on the interior running the behaviour of the external body.  Linguistic tradition uses two words to describe different aspects of what essentially is a unity; there is no body without a mind and no mind without a body.  

The said blueprint is contained in the infinite storehouse of genetic memory which guides our cells to produce an exact mix of specific chemical soup needed for sustaining the individual.

The figure above shows how innumerable genetic mutations combined with intergenerational inheritance of phylogenetic memory naturally shape the brain and behaviour of different life forms as they evolve from the original single cell life that inhabited the planet 3.4 billion years ago. Brain is the physiological correlate of the mind. (Courtesy: Scientific American)