Julian Jaynes Bicameral Breakdown Series, 3 of 8
Writing eroded the auditory authority of the bicameral mind [god’s orders were transmitted via ‘auditory hallucinations’ within mind of the bicameral man]. The input to the divine hallucinatory aspect of the bicameral mind was auditory. Once the word of god was silent, written on dumb clay tablets or incised into speechless stone, the god’s commands or the king’s directives could be turned to or avoided by one’s own efforts in a way that auditory hallucinations never could be. The word of god had a controllable location rather than an ubiquitous power with immediate obedience (p208).
“What had to be spoken is now silent and carved upon a stone to be taken in visually” (p302).
The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, Julian Jaynes, 1976.
ISBN 0-395-20729-0
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