In a Hindustan Times interview published October 2, 2026, epidemiologist Ramanan Laxminarayan describes cooperation as a force connecting life’s earliest forms with human society. His new book, Bacteria to Buddha: How Cooperation Shaped Consciousness – and Makes Us Human, develops that idea into a broad account of consciousness, meditation and the ways people relate to one another. The interview presents Laxminarayan’s argument and views; it does not independently test the scientific claims behind them.
What is Laxminarayan’s central idea?
Laxminarayan’s thesis, as presented in Kanika Sharma’s interview, is that cooperation is not merely a human virtue but a pattern that helped life become more complex. He says, “Cooperation is a fundamental pattern of life and is why life became complex,” and adds, “Without cooperation, there is simply no complex life.”
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The book’s reported account follows a proposed progression from single-celled organisms through nervous systems, neurochemicals, emotions and self-awareness, before linking cooperation and consciousness to language, civilisation and human traditions. The interview describes this as the book’s synthesis, rather than establishing it as a scientific consensus.
From microbes to human society
In the account given by Laxminarayan, microorganisms exchange information about resources and dangers. That interaction offers a starting point for considering how coordination can support more complex forms of life. At the human scale, cooperation enables people to build collective institutions and shared ways of living. The continuity between these scales is the book’s organizing idea, not proof that microbial signaling and human social cooperation are identical processes.
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How does he think people should balance cooperation and competition?
Laxminarayan argues that cooperation between individuals requires fairness and equity, even when achieving them seems distant. He also points to “a sense of balance within individuals” as important to living harmoniously with others. The interview offers this as his perspective on social life, not as a measured formula for resolving conflict.
What does Laxminarayan say about AI and human connection?
His concern is less whether AI is conscious than what AI may do to human consciousness and relationships. “The more relevant question is what AI is doing to our consciousness,” he says. He worries that AI could “perform relationships for us with others,” potentially leaving people less practiced at connecting and cooperating. These are concerns he raises in the interview, not demonstrated causal findings there.
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He says the loss of person-to-person connection worries him most, adding: “We will crack climate change and likely tackle AI. But the loss of person-to-person connection worries me most.” The forecast about climate change and AI is his own view; the interview does not establish it as a prediction with a stated evidentiary basis.
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Why does meditation enter the book?
Laxminarayan says a conversation with the Dalai Lama prompted him to investigate the purpose of meditation. To approach the question as a scientist, he wanted an anchor he could work with, and chose evolution. The interview thus presents meditation as one route into the book’s broader inquiry about how consciousness arose and changed.
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What does he want education to teach beyond intellect?
He argues that education should nurture perception and awareness of the social world alongside intellectual development. In particular, he cautions that moving children too quickly toward screens may reduce opportunities to read faces and tones. The interview does not provide measurements of this proposed effect, so it should be understood as his concern rather than a quantified outcome.
What does the book say about consciousness in the distant future?
Laxminarayan speculates that consciousness could become far more expansive over deep time. He says, “A billion years from now, consciousness will undoubtedly be much more expansive and sentient life will be as different from us as we are from fungi.” This is a prediction about the far future, not an observation that can be verified by the interview.
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What is known about the book and its release?
The interview identifies Bacteria to Buddha: How Cooperation Shaped Consciousness – and Makes Us Human as Laxminarayan’s latest book and says it “released last month,” relative to its October 2, 2026 publication date. It does not give an exact release day, edition or ISBN. The interview also names The Value of Information, Choosing Health in India (2009, co-authored with Prabhat Jha), and Extending the Cure (2007, co-authored with Anup Malani and David Howard).
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Further reading: Read Kanika Sharma’s Hindustan Times interview with Ramanan Laxminarayan for his remarks on the book and its ideas.
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