In this chapter we will consider what we know of the evolution of the universe and how, in the course of that process, life and mind came to be. This necessitates a consideration of hominin (formerly hominid) evolution, comparative psychology, and cultural evolution as aspects in the emergence and evolution of the mental or psychological. In acknowledging the biological as foun­dational to the emergence of mind, biology and neuroscience will be given their due, but not to the point of advocating biological determinism. The dependence of the psychological upon the biological will be established, however, it will be presented as relatively given cultural evolution and its impact on higher mental processes. We begin with the beginning.