Man was but animal yesterday. He is man today. His destiny is to become Brahman or the Absolute as the result of a gradual process of self-perfection.
The mineral becomes the plant with life. The plant becomes the animal with a higher development of life. The animal becomes a man with life and thought.
The stone sleeps. The plant breathes. The animal moves. Man is conscious. The sage is super conscious.
A human being is rational. An animal is instinctive. A sage is intuitive.
Of all the animal creations of God, man alone can realize God. He alone is endowed with discrimination, intelligence, discernment, reasoning and judgement. Intellect is the greatest gift of God to man. Man is a poor being physically; but his dignity consists of thought, discrimination, reasoning and enquiry.
Man evolves himself according to his thoughts and actions. Man is changed by every thought he thinks and by every action he does.