When we think of early man, especially during the Upper Paleolithic period (roughly 30,000 to 40,000 years ago), the phrase “Dark Ages” often comes to mind. While that may be an apt description of mankind’s infancy regarding material tools and technology, it misses a profound possibility: that in terms of spiritual development and psychological integration, early humans may have been far more advanced than we are today.
The Shamanic Canvas: David Lewis-Williams
In his seminal work, The Mind in the Cave (2002), cognitive archaeologist David Lewis-Williams argues that the breathtaking art found in caves like Lascaux or Chauvet is not merely “primitive” decoration or simple hunting magic. Instead, it serves as evidence of a sophisticated shamanic belief system.
Perhaps the most startling example of this “advanced” interior life is found in the Shaft of the Dead Man at Lascaux. Deep in a nearly inaccessible 16-foot well, far from the communal galleries, lies a painting of a bird-headed man with a bird-topped staff, seemingly in a trance beside an eviscerated bison. Lewis-Williams and others interpret this not as a hunting accident, but as a depiction of a therianthrope—a shaman undergoing a spiritual transformation. The “dead” man is not physically deceased, but is experiencing the “ritual death” of a deep trance, his soul taking flight to communicate with the spirits of the animals.
Lewis-Williams suggests the caves were perceived as the “entrails of the underworld,” where the rock face acted as a thin veil between dimensions. He proposes that early humans possessed a rich, tiered cosmology and a spiritual capacity that was essentially “fully formed”—perhaps even more naturally integrated than our modern, rationalized mindset. Using neuropsychology, he demonstrates how the dots, grids, and zigzags found in cave art match “entoptic” patterns—visual hallucinations humans experience during deep meditation or trance. As Lewis-Williams notes:
“The cave was a laboratory of the mind… the images were not ‘pictures’ of visions but the visions themselves, fixed to the walls to harness their power.”
This sentiment was echoed by a modern master of art. After visiting the Lascaux caves in 1940 and witnessing the incredible use of “twisted perspective” and the sophisticated shading of the 17-foot-long bulls, Pablo Picasso reportedly emerged and lamented:
“In fifteen thousand years, we have invented nothing.”
His remark underscores the central theme: that while our tools have become more complex, the core of our creative and spiritual genius was already at its zenith in the “infancy” of our species.
Homo Religiosus: Karen Armstrong
Building on this from a theological perspective, Karen Armstrong argues in A Short History of Myth and The Case for God that spirituality is not a skill we “learned” as we became civilized; rather, it is a fundamental part of our biological nature. She uses the term Homo religiosus to describe a species that is hardwired to seek transcendence.
Armstrong views these deep Paleolithic caves not as shelters, but as sanctuaries. The fact that artists crawled through dangerous, narrow passages in near-total darkness suggests that these “underground labyrinths” were a form of spiritual technology designed to induce a shift in consciousness. By leaving the “daylight world” behind, they encountered a different plane of reality.
This early worldview was likely based on the belief that everything and every sentient being possesses a divine nature or “soul.” By painting an animal, the hunter was not just depicting meat; they were connecting with the eternal and divine essential nature of that creature. Armstrong suggests that in this specific area, we have actually devolved.
Where the ancients saw the world as “transparent” to the divine, we have made it “opaque,” viewing the universe as merely material and devoid of inherent spirit.
The Paradox of Progress
The evidence from both neuropsychology and mythology suggests a startling paradox: as our external technology grew more complex, our internal technology—the ability to navigate the landscapes of the soul—became increasingly neglected.
If the caves of the Upper Paleolithic were truly the birthplaces of human consciousness, they reveal that we did not begin our journey as “blank slates” waiting for civilization to give us meaning. Instead, we began at a spiritual peak, possessing a profound, intuitive mastery of the inner world. To look back at the “caveman” is not to look at a primitive precursor, but perhaps to look at a version of ourselves that was more deeply connected to the “transparent” reality of the divine—a connection we are now struggling to remember.
“The myths of the Paleolithic were the first attempts to explain the mystery of life. They were not false stories, but the most sophisticated psychology available to the human spirit.” — Karen Armstrong
