Evolution of consciousness first, forms second

The evolution of gross forms is but a by-product in the universal
factory of evolution of consciousness. ^{(Meher Baba, GS p. 23 online version)}

The physical form that acts as the medium for experiencing the opposites of Creation is shown to be an increasingly complex by-product of this will of God to know Himself consciously. The very force of evolution of form becomes, not a random selection of the fittest, but a result of the necessity of the residues of experience to express themselves through increasingly more complex instruments. ^{(GS xxxi)}

...this evolution of consciousness inadvertently evolves a series of forms of higher and higher species...^{(GS 18)}
____________________

Notes:
by-product –noun
1. a secondary or incidental product, as in a process of manufacture.
2. the result of another action, often unforeseen or unintended.