The individualistic age of humanity developed the approach of Science to bring forth a new view and standpoint for humanity in its attempt to comprehend human life and the world within which we live. Physical science, mathematics, chemistry, physics, astronomy all worked to explore the world we live in, and understand its laws, processes and relationships. Eventually however, even an exclusive focus on the physical principles of life are found insufficient and the search must turn inward, to the study of the vital and mental processes, and finally to a recognition that consciousness informs the universe and creates the physical world and physical laws rather than the other way round.
Sri Aurobindo notes: “But after a time it must become apparent that the knowledge of the physical world is not the whole of knowledge; it must appear that man is a mental as well as a physical and vital being and even much more essentially mental than physical or vital. Even though his psychology is strongly affected and limited by his physical being and environment, it is not at its roots determined by them, but constantly reacts, subtly determines their action, effects even their new-shaping by the force of his psychological demand on life. His economic state and social institutions are themselves governed by his psychological demand on the possibilities, circumstances, tendencies created by the relation between the mind and soul of humanity and its life and body. Therefore to find the truth of things and the law of his being in relation to that truth he must go deeper and fathom the subjective secret of himself and things as well as their objective forms and surroundings.”
Sri Aurobindo, The Human Cycle: The Psychology of Social Development, Chapter 3, The Coming of the Subjective Age, pp. 28-29
Sri Aurobindo Studies 