In the nature vs. nurture debate, nurturists will argue: "But I can believe anything I want! I can be anything I want!"   Yes, and what you WANT to believe, WANT to be, has been predetermined by your genes, glands and hormones, sense limitations, brain structure and nervous system. You think you are making a free, unrestricted decision, but to a large extent, it has been preprogrammed. Of course, the experiences of each person throughout    life impact and influence their thinking and decisions. But there are always invisible boundaries on human knowledge, concepts, values, and decisions -- however much wiggle-room exists within those boundaries.

In the area of philosophy, biogenetic structuralism has explored the inherited 'models' of reality in our brains (minds). These mental paradigms are flexible and adaptable to new knowledge that is absorbed; but the catch is that what new knowledge is accepted is limited. Information that does not conform to the biogenetic imperatives of humans is not absorbed, not recognized as valid. Structuralism calls these mental paradigms 'neuro-gnostic models'. While these inherited models are themselves systems which can evolve and adapt over our lifetimes, they are nevertheless not infinite in their flexibility. For example, we resist certain concepts of social organization that would be more appropriate for insects.

Sages since ancient times in all cultures, before modern science, recognized inherent limitations in human cognizance and resulting behavior, and tried to go beyond these restrictions. These limitations are essentially of the conscious mind, the home of the human ego. The sages recognized that identification of the person with the ego caused illusion and suffering. They offered a path of meditation and ritual which would raise the person above the ego and physical limitations of life to comprehend a higher awareness, even an experience of Infinite Mind. But can a physical, biochemical system leap outside its inherent limits of perception and conceptualization? This is not referring simply to what one can imagine, but what one can actualize as a mode of existence.
 

Sociobiologists, philosophers, scientists in many disciplines, and lay-people who like to try to think objectively, have all recognized that the human mind is not a blank tablet at birth, but is an inherited system which can learn and form concepts, albeit with limitations and biases. But the focus of the great majority of these people has been the conscious mind as a function of the cerebral cortex. What Carl Jung discovered and developed in 20th Century psychology was the fact that the human deep unconscious (also called 'collective unconscious') is also an inherited system within the human mind. It contains inherited symbols common to all cultures, and forces for inspiration and creativity, that compliment and even lead the conscious mind toward forming concepts and making decisions.

It is much easier to understand Jung's work in the psychology of the unconscious, especially the inherited collective unconscious (refer to his writings on my site) when one realizes that the entire human mind -- conscious and unconscious -- is an inherited system with biases and preprogrammed information. And the unconscious mind is the
seat of spiritual experience, and possibly the home of the soul.

People interested in developing their spiritual sense would do well not to abandon biology and psychology. In order to develop one's spirit, without merely inventing comforting fantasies, one needs to confront the concepts in-place in their minds. This need not be done cynically, for I believe these inherent systems and symbols are the gateway to spiritual realization. I have extended this line of thought into the psychological & religious area in my essays:
The Connection: Mind to God, and Psychology, Mythology, & Religion.