spiritual frameworks

Is the world, reality, very, very different from what most of us have been taught through modern science? Could non-physical properties (mind, spirit, or other) Provisionally interchangeable terms include mind, spirit, Tao, be as fundamental as charge or mass? Can ancient traditions and mystical perspectives contribute to a more complete picture of the way the universe really is than our current physicalist conception?

According to the scientific models, explanations and narratives that dominate contemporary Western thought, the answer to these questions is a resounding “No.” The scientistic Insert scientistic intro. ***** worldview holds no place for non-material The terms “physical” and “material” are used interchangeably here. properties, presuming as it does that the entire contents of the universe consists entirely and exclusively of physical objects and the forces that affect them.

This project proceeds from the opposite presumption: that non-physical properties are as fundamental as mass and charge, even if we have no idea why that is— or even the wherewithal to fully grasp such a profoundly different conception. This alternative view of the world is not new. It is in fact quite ancient, although it has been largely ignored or derided for the last couple of centuries. But the advent of quantum physics blurred the sharp line of hard physicalism (at least in the view of some physicists and philosophers) and opened another window to renewed interest in what could reasonably be characterized as a mystical perspective. The crux of this is consciousness. We all have it and we all use it, Albeit to widely varying degrees. but we have no idea what it is. The 1989 International Dictionary of Psychology did not even try to define consciousness, saying simply that “Consciousness is a fascinating but elusive phenomenon: it is impossible to specify what it is, what it does, or why it evolved. Nothing worth reading has been written about it.“ The elusive nature of consciousness remains the same today,

The conception of spirit or mind as fundamental to reality has been a basic premise of mystical and religious traditions for millennia and was a favored perspective in Western philosophy for the better part of two centuries. But that conception was replaced by the physicalist conception of reality that emerged in lockstep with the mechanical worldview of the Scientific Revolution. For. Most of the last several centuries, the scientific view has been that matters of mind were a completely separate domain from the hard sciences (following Descartes' mind/matter dualism)— and that notions of spirit are pre-scientific imaginations or superstitions. Over the past few decades the idea that mind, all subjective

The physicalist presumption of mind as a secondary phenomenon has been strongly challenged, however, by the advent of quantum physics. Discoveries and conjectures related to the quantum nature of matter have led some contemporary physicists and philosophers to conclude that consciousness is an inextricable aspect of reality. Although many scientists and philosophers, perhaps most, remain unconvinced But then the the idea of a moving Earth was considered absurd by , the idea of fundamental mind or consciousness can no longer be summarily dismissed as non-scientific.

This project explores an emerging naturalist In contrast to a supernatural view wherein non-material entities narrative about the world in which mind/spirit is a core element of reality. This is not a new narrative, it’s long been at the core of many mystical, religious, and philosophical perspectives. But over the last century, discoveries and conjectures in quantum physics have provided scientific evidence that appears to support some of its basic elements— or, at the very least, does not stand in clear opposition to them. There appears to be sufficient reason to believe that qualitative aspects or dimensions are as real as the measurable ones that most contemporary Western thinkers take for granted as the only real constituents of reality.

My aim is to examine connections between what might appear to be a disparate set of disciplines and perspectives: spiritual, philosophical and esoteric traditions together with discoveries and conjectures of modern physics and biology. I take as a given (albeit a matter of belief) that spiritual dimensions are fundamental aspects of reality, that spirit (or an equivalent term) Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, is no less real than matter. All of this is in the hope of adding voice to an emerging worldview that accommodates both our knowledge of science and our intuitive sense of connectedness and spirit— and a replacement for the spiritually corrosive worldview of scientistic physicalism See “Physicalism” for a brief summary of this philosophical

The basic story line is just this: 1) At bottom, our Universe With a nod to notions about the Multiverse or the Many Worlds consists of a single substance or principle, referred to here as the One; The idea of a single, fundamental substance or principle— known 2) The world can be thought of, as a rough illustration and within the limitations of words available in this context, as a psychophysical continuum between what we traditionally think of as physical and spiritual. The physical aspect of this continuum has become well understood through science, but the psycho (mind/spirit) aspect cannot be understood with the tools we currently p mind (spirit, or a similar term) Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, is as fundamental as charge or mass consciousness is ubiquitous, and humans are a latecomer to highly-intelligent species on Earth.

More than a philosophical perspective or imaginary narrative, a premise here is that the essence of this theme corresponds to the way the world really is (the same claim as made by physicalists). It takes as a starting point that the standard scientistic orthodoxy of a purely material or physical universe is incomplete— and simply wrong in its presumption that consciousness and the vast spectrum of subjective or experiential phenomena are exclusively derivatives of physical processes.

We’ll explore this story here through a mixture of ideas from Western philosophies and esoteric traditions along with discoveries and conjectures of modern science, particularly physics and biology. Variants of idealism, panpsychism and others— with a selective sprinkling of principles from esoteric or occult perspectives— fall into the broader composite considered here.

It’s important to acknowledges that efforts to tell this story are hampered by our language, grounded as it is in an old, classical view of the world. Just as the two-dimensional denizens of Edwin Abbey’s Flatland could neither describe nor conceive of the sphere that passed through their world, the languages and basic conceptions of contemporary Western civilization, with their roots in supernatural and physicalist presumptions, can (at least for now) only provide relatively crude approximations of what is shaping up to be a radically different perspective of reality.

In the end, of course, this is a matter of belief, different only in type from the prevailing scientistic commitment to physicalism: that science is the only valid means of reaching truth about the Universe and that everything (including consciousness and subjective phenomena) is exclusively physical. ……..This is, of course, a belief, no different except in conclusion from the foundational premise of modern neuroscience that all subjective phenomena such as mind or consciousness are derivatives of purely physical processes. But it appears to offer a much richer means of accommodating the immense spectrum of subjective phenomena that collectively represent much of what it means to be sentient— and, more narrowly, human.

source(“tufte_convert.R”)

Provisionally interchangeable terms include mind, spirit, Tao, : Provisionally interchangeable terms include mind, spirit, Tao, Chi, underlying unity, or consciousness. Words are an impediment here, as the basic conception(s) at issue appear to be beyond the ability of current language to convey.

Insert scientistic intro. ***** : Insert scientistic intro. *****

The terms “physical” and “material” are used interchangeably here. : The terms “physical” and “material” are used interchangeably here.

Albeit to widely varying degrees. : Albeit to widely varying degrees.

The elusive nature of consciousness remains the same today, : The elusive nature of consciousness remains the same today, although most neuroscientists are now focused on a narrower characterization of consciousness through “neural correlates of consciousness,” the idea that conscious states are identical to specific neurological events.

Over the past few decades the idea that mind, all subjective : Over the past few decades the idea that mind, all subjective phenomena, are secondary consequences of physical processes has largely replaced the dualist view, but that has not changed the overall antipathy to notions of spirit.. More on this in “Matters of Mind.”

But then the the idea of a moving Earth was considered absurd by : But then the the idea of a moving Earth was considered absurd by leading scholars in the 16th and early 17th centuries.

In contrast to a supernatural view wherein non-material entities : In contrast to a supernatural view wherein non-material entities possess high-level consciousness.

Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, : Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, underlying unity, or, very broadly interpreted, God. Words are an impediment here, as the basic conception(s) at issue are beyond the ability of current language to convey (at least for some of the words in English).

See “Physicalism” for a brief summary of this philosophical : See “Physicalism” for a brief summary of this philosophical perspective and some of the key challenges it faces.

With a nod to notions about the Multiverse or the Many Worlds : With a nod to notions about the Multiverse or the Many Worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. See “Many Worlds” for a brief summary.

The idea of a single, fundamental substance or principle— known : The idea of a single, fundamental substance or principle— known as monism— is referred to by different terms. underlying essence is

Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, : Provisionally interchangeable terms include spirit, Tao, Chi, underlying unity, or, very broadly interpreted, God. Words are an impediment here, as the basic conception(s) at issue are beyond the ability of current language to convey (at least for some of the words in English).