Scientific Mysticism
‘Scientific Mysticism’ is a term coined past Michael Whiteman, a British-born South African mathematician too mystic. (This article may be read together with the article on Whiteman’second life together with thought.)
Introduction
The term ‘scientific mysticism’ appeared as a championship in the trilogy, Old too New Evidence on the Meaning of Life,i ii three by Michael Whiteman. Volume One was entitled An Introduction to Scientific Mysticism.i Whiteman aimed to bring mysticism into the champaign of scientific discipline every bit an entity that is ‘open up-minded, rigorously tested, rationally coherent, together with illuminating.’one ‘Mysticism’ hither is defined as:
the written report of everything non-physical, including the other worlds in addition to their archetypal governance, as well equally our spiritual bodies, the facts in addition to their relationship beingness known past the self-show of straight observation in addition to not past reasoning or speculation.iv
This indicates empirical scientific discipline, sharing territory with psychical enquiry. Yet Whiteman drew a distinction between ‘psychical’ too ‘mystical’ feel. The old includes the study of purportedly not-physical events, the latter extends to states that have a sense of higher significance too ultimates, openness to guidance, transformed being, too orientation to the perceived origin of the Right too Good.
Whiteman was familiar with Vedic, Sanskrit, Pali, Greek together with Biblical Hebrew, in addition to quoted extensively from ancient texts. He regarded most electric current translations as inadequate because the authors lacked psychical together with mystical feel. His revolutionary commentary, as well his translation of ‘The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’5 combined alongside canonical Buddhist texts, one two 3 five show hit parallels alongside refinements of modern thought.
Whiteman’second occupation every bit a professor of applied mathematics provided a base inwards physics for his scientific mysticism. Another base was extensive personal feel in psychical as well as mystical states. His methods rested on observation, conceptual analysis together with insight, in tune amongst Edmund Husserl’s phenomenology.half dozen This aims at gaining face-to-face up self-testify too detailed precision, shedding the common ‘cloak of ideas’. Science in Whiteman’second usage is not an do in theorizing.
Potentiality in addition to Actualization
A fundamental to Whiteman’sec scientific mysticism is the thought of potentiality too actualization. This had been developed past the physicist Werner Heisenberg,7 who saw that a physical ‘happening’ comes virtually through an occasion of observation, together with that this ‘happening’ is open up to physical description. But what governs the happening is non open up to physical observation; at best it tin be given mathematical aspect. So behind a physical upshot one has to recognize what Heisenberg called ‘an objective tendency or possibility, a “potentia” inwards the sense of Aristotelian philosophy’. And the governing potentia, the ‘argue’ for something to come about, is abstract in a physical feel; y'all can’t set it inwards a examination subway.
Whiteman concurred that solely transcending logical substructures, potentialities, merit the term ‘reality’, as opposed to appearances. Appearances come into existence exclusively on an occasion of observation, together with will be actualized differently for unlike people.
Whiteman wrote, ‘nil specific tin can be actualized without the integration of “subjective” and “objective” factors, non inwards succession, simply on the minute of actualization.’ane An observer who is freed inward close to manner from the physical land will actualize for himself things that are beyond the accomplish of ordinary physical sensing. This is the commencement of psychical and mystical perception.
Whiteman wrote, ‘The deviation between i “world” as well as another and then depends upon the land of life inwards which the observer happens to live settled.’3 An private’second perceiving results from integration of objective potentialities together with his own subjective potentialities, including subconscious elements. Whiteman believed the potentiality-actualization principle operates in the mental sphere of every individual: idea and images are actualizations inward consciousness of an individual’s ‘thought-ikon sphere’, equally he called it, which includes retentiveness together with imagination.ane
Actualization of Psi Phenomena
Whiteman saw telepathy resulting from the interaction or resonance betwixt the thought-picture spheres of individuals. The interaction is non actualized at the physical degree, as well as and so transfer of data occurs independently of physical infinite together with time. Clairvoyance is resonance between the potentiality-sphere of a physical object or effect together with the idea-icon sphere of an private, resulting inward the actualization of impressions inward the individual’s thought-picture sphere. Once again, resonance or interaction happens independently of physical infinite as well as time, not existence physically actualized. Psychokinesis may live regarded equally a contrary clairvoyant interaction; potentialities normally linked inward more or less style to an private issue inward physical actualizations.
Potentiality-actualization relationships should not live seen every bit static; potentiality-fields continually alter or prepare, in addition to have feedback loops, although non inward physical time. This volition affect the result of time to come physical events, which helps to explicate how precognition happens. Whiteman saw precognition every bit actualization inward an private’s thought-ikon sphere of developing potentiality-fields that may bear upon future physical events. The private may fifty-fifty intervene inwards the physical actualization of these events by altering the potentiality-fields, so allowing prevention of a precognized effect from happening.ane Even if potentiality-fields are time-ordered, resulting in a succession of events actualized in the physical globe, the ordering is not fixed inwards the manner a road map is fixed. They are accessible inwards states of physical detachment, in addition to then allow express modification together with the do of gratis will.
Out-of-trunk Experience
Whiteman defined mysticism equally ‘the written report of everything non-physical, including the other worlds ...’ As only discussed, potentiality-fields have the capacity to deliver different spaces or worlds of physical too non-physical actuality, depending on the country of the observer. Without this agreement, mysticism cannot commence to brand feel. Direct feel of ‘the other worlds’ occurs mainly inward out-of-torso feel, which Whiteman preferred to term ‘separative’ experience, since at that place is usually awareness of a torso of around variety.
The commonest type he termed ‘chief separation’, inwards which at that place is no awareness inwards the physical torso, even though what appears to live the physical body can live viewed. In ‘secondary separation’ the physical body is nether about level of conscious control, but primary awareness lies inward some other organism seemingly not located inwards the space of the physical body, and the 2 bodies are quite independent. In ‘tertiary separation’ the physical body is ordinarily nether complete control, merely in that location is total awareness of being in a dissimilar bodily grade despite the locations of the 2 bodies seeming to live the same. Difference between the ii bodies may live radical, such as 1 beingness male together with the other female person. For Whiteman, the highest mystical experiences were more often than not of this type.
Whiteman noted that such non-physical feel, inward damage of reality-impression in addition to intensity, may range from appearing weak to seeming fifty-fifty more existent as well as meaningful than in physical life. At its virtually powerful, termed past him mystical, ‘Everything in such states, spatial characteristics included, is known every bit if inward archetypal unchanging form, and is therefore startlingly more than real (rationally-objective, e'er-present) than the derivative as well as shifting forms of the physical world.’i He saw a ask ‘to distinguish between what is deceptive or illusory too what has the lineament of face up-to-confront objectivity and truth which we depict past proverb that a thing is real.’one This requires setting upward a numerical scale, which he called a General Index of Reality.
Index of Reality
This index covers a range from ordinary dreaming (naught rating) to what is experienced every bit spiritually releasing amongst a high grade of reality, namely mystical feel (high rating). The Index properly relates to separative experience. Features scoring inwards the Index include continuity of retention between physical and non-physical experience, complimentary observation, power to compare accurately with physical in addition to not-physical states, awareness of nub and tangibility, communication of idea amongst others, as well as a feeling of transcendence of physical life.
The General Index does non include reports of observing physical things during a separative experience. Regarded past most people as veridical (corresponding to reality), these observations could have been made past clairvoyance or remote viewing, as well as do not necessarily hateful that something somehow separated from the physical torso to brand the observation. As Whiteman stated, whatever claimed physical supporting show simply has ‘chiefly propaganda value for the uninformed or sceptical, who do not realize that separation is non established past them, simply who may thereby be induced to take the “interior” testimony equally having some bearing on “scientific fact”.’ane
Whiteman’second Index mightiness seem of express value to touchstone parapsychology, where a useful scoring arrangement should identify experiences that rate better than dream, hallucination or some course of pathology. In Whiteman’s Index the management of ranking is towards mystical experience, which is hardly looked for inwards parapsychology, even shied away from. The social club of ranking is: undeveloped, borderline, psychical, pre-mystical, mystical. Out of a possible 16 points, experiences reaching vi to eight points order equally ‘psychical separations’, scoring on criteria listed ii paragraphs to a higher place. Further requirements of ‘mystical’ rate were noted inward the Introduction, in addition to demarcate ‘mystical’ from ‘psychical’. Yet inward the eyes of a physically-fixated investigator, the mystical requirements would signal reduced reality rating, since ‘reality’ agency ‘similar physical feel’. For Whiteman this was a key fault; higher reality tin entirely hateful ‘dissimilar physical feel’.
Other Spaces
All separative feel, physical-similar or transformative, was considered past Whiteman to occur inwards spaces other than physical, although often and then like to what is presented physically equally to be false for it. He called it ‘duplicate physical’ space. He wrote:
If one is taken into a ‘psychic’ infinite when not familiar alongside such states, or alongside fixed ideas well-nigh them, too if the phenomena resemble physical ones closely... at that place may be a stiff sentiment to mean that the objects are existence observed physically; too this applies fifty-fifty to possible duplicate presentations of the observer’second physical trunk in its actual situation.i
‘Fixed ideas’ assume in that location is exclusively 1 ‘real’ infinite that tin be manifested, namely the physical world. H5N1 fixed thought volition contribute to the potentialities governing a separative experience, in addition to lead to the actualization of a physical-like ‘duplicate’ scene. Yet as someone free of the constraints of 1-degree thinking, Whiteman wrote of an ‘inexhaustible multifariousness’ of appearance in other spaces. Naturalistic conditioning may notwithstanding result inward ‘fantasy influences’ in undeveloped states, nonetheless highest development leads to ‘perfectly acceptable forms of transcendent unified beauty’, where ‘the surroundings, correspondingly, are distinguished past the character of the low-cal, in addition to gain inwards intelligible grapheme, perfection of beauty, depth of glowing middle quality, unitive freedom in addition to sense of blending alongside other minds, equally the highest status, which is that of Mystical Form Liberation, is approached.’ In these descriptions, Whiteman states,
‘I’ and ‘me’ make not stand for the familiar consciousness of self inwards the physical personality, or, in fact, for anything that tin can live known inward an ordinary physical country of listen. To empathize what is meant, the characteristics of the merged ordinary self must be ruled out.iv
One mightiness query how ‘other spaces’ are related to the physical too, if at all, to each other. In states classified past Whiteman every bit third separation, the non-physical body holds much of the focus of attention only does non seem to be spatially apart from the physical torso; ‘the locations of the two bodies seem the same, inwards spite of differences in their course and/or size as well as perchance besides inwards their surround.’1 This seems to fit with a view widespread in spiritist circles that different ‘levels’ of experience as well as beingness all coincide spatially but take different ‘vibration frequencies’, and so at that place is no contact or communication between the various states except through exceptional mediating weather. Whiteman did include ‘interpenetrating spaces’ inwards a particular ready of ‘facts of feel’,i only he did not acquaint the thought of interpenetrating spaces as close to sort of cosmological arrangement; he was disposed to go along to systems of facts, not constructs of theory.
Skills, Cycles
Whiteman was confident well-nigh discovering the underlying logic inwards phenomena, existence convinced that behind any item observation in that location is an intelligible construction ‘operative inward together with analysable out of the full feel’.8 He did not have Kant’s thought of the unknowability of things-inwards-themselves.viii Instead, there is ‘intellectual or perceptual knowledge which transcends inward a certain clear as well as unmistakable way the onward urge of fourth dimension, the stiff apartness of spatial objects, in addition to the apparent isolation of the individual mind inward its country of fixation on bodily impressions. It is a land of loose. Fixation being overcome, the listen opens out into universality’.viii We cannot achieve this land, he believed ‘without psychological as well as spiritual faculties of attention, judgement, purposiveness together with self-discipline’, based on iii ‘foundational skills’ named Active Recollection, Continuous Recollection, as well as Faith + Obedience.one (The source of these skills in his ain life is reported inwards Michael Whiteman.)
Active Recollection aims to think or recover the heart inward what is perceived, ‘and thence the attainment of objective insight together with free’.1 Husserl termed it the phenomenological epoché or stoppage, ‘the necessary operation which renders pure consciousness accessible to us’.1 It is termed samādhi or sati inwards Indian literature.5 Continuous Recollection is ‘the freely stabilized earth of unloosen at which Active Recollection has been aiming.’one Obedience is not a land of subservience but orientation to ‘the transcendent Source of Right and Good.’ane It operates inward conjunction with Faith inwards this transcendence.
The iii foundational skills were structured into a iv-office arrangement known since ancient times together with appearing in mod contexts inward learning theory, Freud in addition to Jung. Described equally the iv creative functions, these are ‘purposive campaign, deciding on way, putting into do, together with a nigh underground maturing of i’s skills inwards consequence’.iii In ancient texts they are represented equally four stages in the passage of the Sun, ascension inwards the east, zenith inward the S, downwardly to Earth inward the west, as well as hole-and-corner inwards the northward.thirteen This corresponds alongside aspiration (eastward), assessment (S), action or manifestation (westward), fulfilment or non-attachment (due north); it also corresponds respectively with Faith, Obedience, Active Recollection, Continuous Recollection.one
Whiteman placed bang-up importance on this bicycle having its opposites or ‘counterfeits’ of self-volition, self-satisfaction, automaticity, complacency, which may lead to a corresponding bike of ‘stresses’ of expiry-feeling, shame, hurting, fear. This inward plow may lead to ‘inner contests’,i 2 3 which hopefully overcome these spiritual deficiencies.
Physics in addition to Psychology
In his search for underlying logic, and for universality, Whiteman converted his ‘psychological’ cycle into a xvi-crimp issue organization, amongst the aim of integrating it alongside a ‘physical’ xvi-flexure number system derived from iii space together with three time dimensions. He noted that 3 of the creative functions – effort, way, together with maturing – are composite, containing 2 ‘commencement principles’ of gist as well as beingness, equivalent to potentiality and actualization. In plough, gist together with beingness each have 3 constituents, termed past him ‘hypostases’, significant underlying, irreducible causes. The iii hypostases of inwardness were seen every bit purpose, agency, finish. The hypostases of being were actuation, becoming, manifestation, the 3-phase construction of creation called in Upanishadic philosophy the Great Stride of Vishnu.one So, for instance, ‘deciding on means’ combines ‘way’ (nub) firstly with ‘actuation’ (beingness), and then amongst ‘becoming’ (existence), in addition to in conclusion alongside manifestation (being). The tertiary quarter, West, brings prior causes into manifestation purely every bit ‘existence’ as well as and so lacks an ‘heart’ hypostasis.
This analysis allows the evolution of a number system inwards psychology, too and then the prospect of comparison amongst a number arrangement inward physics.1 two 3 From these number systems Whiteman intended to provide ‘a clear-cut explanatory system... equally, for case, the basic laws of mechanics are exhibited before whatsoever problems are tackled’.two The hypostases of kernel were numbered one = function, 2 = agency, 3 = end. The hypostases of beingness were numbered 6 = actuation, 5 = becoming, 4 = manifestation/grounding. So, for case ‘East’ tin can be expressed as the combination xvi (enthusiasm), 15 (inspiration), 14 (intention). Combining the numbers 1 to 6 results inwards sixteen subfunctions, in agreement amongst ‘xv + i kalās, stages inwards any creative act, as recognized inwards the Upanishads’.iii
The physical number system was derived from the 3 infinite in addition to iii time dimensions. One fourth dimension dimension lies inwards potentiality-fields amongst a fourth dimension-ordered, infinite-like facial expression noted to a higher place inward connectedness amongst precognition. Another time dimension or part involves the processes leading to physical actualization from time-structured potentiality. Finally in that location is physical clock-time; it is the entirely time-dimension that is measurable. Combining the half-dozen dimensions yields a xvi-bend number organization similar the psychological subfunctions, ‘inward such shut correspondence alongside the formulations of quantum theory that at that place is an obvious invitation to exhibit the two equally aspects of an integrated understanding of the world’.9
Space does non permit a tabulation of the physics/psychology correspondences, or how they were derived. The correspondences, all the same, satisfied Whiteman’second view that to explain what nosotros experience is to
acknowledge a subjective bicycle, such as mystics, many theologians, together with or so psychologists accept admitted. This wheel, inward its most consummate grade is sixteenfold, as well as parallels just what may live called the ‘Earth bike’ (equally it appears inward Quantum Field Theory) in every mode, spell manifesting itself inward every form of human being feel. This is a class of potentiality which is discernible, too indeed can be lived by the individual inwards an enormous multifariousness of ‘altered states of consciousness’...three
Whiteman’second Scientific Mysticism was a revolutionary effort to discern as well as characterize this potentiality.
John Poynton
Literature
one. Whiteman, J.H.yard. (1986). Old too New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical globe-persuasion too inner competition. Volume 1, An Introduction to Scientific Mysticism. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
2. Whiteman, J.H.G. (2000). Old and New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical world-opinion too inner competition. Volume two, Dynamics of Spiritual Development. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
iii. Whiteman, J.H.thousand. (2006). Old together with New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical earth-thought in addition to inner competition. Volume three, Universal Theology in addition to Life inwards other Worlds. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
four. Whiteman, J.H.K. (1961). The Mystical Life. London: Faber and Faber.
5. Whiteman, J.H.K. (1993). Aphorisms on Spiritual Method: the ‘Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’ inwards the low-cal of mystical feel. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
half-dozen. Husserl, eastward. (1931). Ideas: General Introduction to Pure Phenomenology (trans. due west.R. Boyce Gibson). London: Allen & Unwin.
7. Heisenberg, west. (1959). Physics too Philosophy: the revolution in mod scientific discipline. London: Allen in addition to Unwin.
viii. Whiteman, J.H.chiliad. (1967). Philosophy of Space as well as Time and the Inner Constitution of Nature: a phenomenological study. London: Allen together with Unwin.
ix. Whiteman, J.H.1000. (1977). Parapsychology in addition to physics. In Wolman, B.B. (ed.) Handbook of Parapsychology. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
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