Kawuki Mukasa’s Cosmic Disposition concerns the nature of existence and consciousness, attempting to condense the history of human experience into about 350 pages.

The author focuses on the human effort to understand the meaning of existence and our place in the universe— and how that effort has evolved over thousands of years. Mukasa notes that the book is “an attempt to trace our evolutionary path, to name the myths we live by, and to confront the illusions we cherish about our cosmic importance.” Much is made of the so-called “anthropoterminal drive” or belief that human beings are an essential component of the universe. The book argues that this is a “limiting paradigm that restricts our ethical imagination and blocks deeper solidarity with nonhuman life and future, possibly posthuman, beings.”

The narrative scope is enormous and interdisciplinary. Among other subjects, it covers: the beginning of human existence; the advent of farming; Eastern spiritual traditions; monotheistic religion; philosophy; the evolution of European culture and Western society; astrology; astronomy; the Enlightenment; artificial intelligence.

Cosmic Disposition is well written, delivering efficient, consistent, and articulate prose. Unfortunately, while the book clearly required painstaking research, it contains no citations. Apart from references to abstruse source material (e.g. the writings of Copernicus), there’s nothing to indicate where the information has come from. The author’s sweeping claims are presented with an authoritative voice that borders on omniscient. One of countless examples: “From about 700 BCE, a process of selecting and compiling the most enduring teachings of the [Eastern] Masters began and continued for more than five hundred years.”

Mukasa writes with equal certainty about the distant future: “In three to five centuries, Africa will emerge as the most technologically advanced region on the planet …”

Unfortunately, the lack of sources makes it impossible for readers to properly evaluate the accuracy of the material in this book. This issue undermines the book’s reliability and credibility, ultimately impacting its commercial potential.

Also available in hardcover and ebook.