Scientific Mysticism
‘Scientific Mysticism’ is a term coined by Michael Whiteman, a British-born South African mathematician in addition to mystic. (This article may live read together with the article on Whiteman’second life together with thought.)
Introduction
The term ‘scientific mysticism’ appeared equally a championship inwards the trilogy, Old as well as New Evidence on the Meaning of Life,i 2 3 past Michael Whiteman. Volume One was entitled An Introduction to Scientific Mysticism.i Whiteman aimed to convey mysticism into the champaign of scientific discipline equally an entity that is ‘open up-minded, rigorously tested, rationally coherent, in addition to illuminating.’i ‘Mysticism’ here is defined as:
the study of everything non-physical, including the other worlds too their archetypal governance, likewise every bit our spiritual bodies, the facts and their relationship being known past the self-bear witness of direct observation too non past reasoning or speculation.iv
This indicates empirical scientific discipline, sharing territory with psychical enquiry. Yet Whiteman drew a distinction betwixt ‘psychical’ too ‘mystical’ feel. The one-time includes the written report of purportedly not-physical events, the latter extends to states that take a feel of higher significance too ultimates, openness to guidance, transformed existence, too orientation to the perceived beginning 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 virtually electric current translations as inadequate because the authors lacked psychical in addition to mystical feel. His revolutionary commentary, besides his translation of ‘The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’v combined amongst canonical Buddhist texts, ane two iii 5 exhibit striking parallels with refinements of modern idea.
Whiteman’second line equally a professor of applied mathematics provided a base inward physics for his scientific mysticism. Another base of operations was extensive personal experience inwards psychical together with mystical states. His methods rested on observation, conceptual analysis as well as insight, inwards melody amongst Edmund Husserl’second phenomenology.six This aims at gaining confront-to-face up self-testify too detailed precision, shedding the common ‘cloak of ideas’. Science in Whiteman’s utilisation is non an do inward theorizing.
Potentiality too Actualization
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 primal to Whiteman’sec scientific mysticism is the thought of potentiality too actualization. This had been developed by the physicist Werner Heisenberg,seven who saw that a physical ‘happening’ comes well-nigh through an occasion of observation, too that this ‘happening’ is open up to physical description. But what governs the happening is not open up to physical observation; at best it tin can be given mathematical expression. So behind a physical event ane has to recognize what Heisenberg called ‘an objective tendency or possibility, a “potentia” in the feel of Aristotelian philosophy’. And the governing potentia, the ‘reason’ for something to come about, is abstract in a physical feel; yous can’t set it inward a examination tube.
Whiteman concurred that exclusively transcending logical substructures, potentialities, merit the term ‘reality’, as opposed to appearances. Appearances come into being entirely on an occasion of observation, in addition to volition be actualized differently for dissimilar people.
Whiteman wrote, ‘zippo specific can be actualized without the integration of “subjective” and “objective” factors, non in succession, simply on the moment of actualization.’one An observer who is freed in close to way from the physical state will actualize for himself things that are beyond the accomplish of ordinary physical sensing. This is the beginning of psychical in addition to mystical perception.
Whiteman wrote, ‘The departure between ane “globe” and another and then depends upon the land of life in which the observer happens to live settled.’3 An private’s perceiving results from integration of objective potentialities together amongst his own subjective potentialities, including subconscious elements. Whiteman believed the potentiality-actualization principle operates inward the mental sphere of every individual: idea as well as images are actualizations inward consciousness of an private’s ‘thought-ikon sphere’, equally he called it, which includes retentiveness too imagination.i
Actualization of Psi Phenomena
Whiteman saw telepathy resulting from the interaction or resonance betwixt the thought-picture spheres of individuals. The interaction is not actualized at the physical grade, too then transfer of information occurs independently of physical infinite too time. Clairvoyance is resonance betwixt the potentiality-sphere of a physical object or result in addition to the thought-ikon sphere of an private, resulting in the actualization of impressions inwards the private’sec thought-icon sphere. Once again, resonance or interaction happens independently of physical infinite together with fourth dimension, not being physically actualized. Psychokinesis may be regarded every bit a opposite clairvoyant interaction; potentialities ordinarily linked in roughly fashion to an individual result in physical actualizations.
Potentiality-actualization relationships should non be seen every bit static; potentiality-fields continually change or train, and have feedback loops, although not in physical fourth dimension. This will impact the effect of time to come physical events, which helps to explicate how precognition happens. Whiteman saw precognition equally actualization in an individual’s idea-ikon sphere of developing potentiality-fields that may touch on futurity physical events. The individual may even intervene inward the physical actualization of these events by altering the potentiality-fields, and then allowing prevention of a precognized outcome from happening.ane Even if potentiality-fields are time-ordered, resulting inwards a succession of events actualized in the physical world, the ordering is non fixed inwards the style a road map is fixed. They are accessible inwards states of physical detachment, too then allow limited change in addition to the do of gratis will.
Out-of-body Experience
Whiteman defined mysticism every bit ‘the study of everything non-physical, including the other worlds ...’ As just discussed, potentiality-fields accept the capacity to deliver dissimilar spaces or worlds of physical too non-physical actuality, depending on the state of the observer. Without this understanding, mysticism cannot begin to brand sense. Direct experience of ‘the other worlds’ occurs mainly in out-of-trunk feel, which Whiteman preferred to term ‘separative’ feel, since at that place is normally awareness of a torso of more or less form.
The commonest type he termed ‘principal separation’, inward which there is no awareness inwards the physical body, even though what appears to live the physical trunk can be viewed. In ‘secondary separation’ the physical body is under about level of witting command, simply master awareness lies inward some other organism seemingly non located in the infinite of the physical torso, together with the ii bodies are quite independent. In ‘3rd separation’ the physical torso is commonly nether consummate command, merely in that location is full awareness of beingness inward a unlike bodily class despite the locations of the 2 bodies seeming to live the same. Difference between the ii bodies may live radical, such equally 1 being male person together with the other female. For Whiteman, the highest mystical experiences were by and large of this type.
Whiteman noted that such not-physical feel, inward price of reality-impression as well as intensity, may range from appearing weak to seeming even more than real together with meaningful than inwards physical life. At its well-nigh powerful, termed by him mystical, ‘Everything inwards such states, spatial characteristics included, is known as if inwards archetypal unchanging class, together with is therefore startlingly more real (rationally-objective, e'er-present) than the derivative too shifting forms of the physical earth.’1 He saw a ask ‘to distinguish between what is deceptive or illusory as well as what has the character of confront-to-face up objectivity as well as truth which nosotros depict by proverb that a thing is existent.’i 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 (nothing rating) to what is experienced as spiritually releasing alongside a high degree of reality, namely mystical experience (high rating). The Index properly relates to separative feel. Features scoring inward the Index include continuity of retentivity betwixt physical too non-physical feel, gratuitous observation, power to compare accurately with physical too non-physical states, awareness of substance too tangibility, communication of idea amongst others, in addition to a feeling of transcendence of physical life.
The General Index does non include reports of observing physical things during a separative feel. Regarded past about people equally veridical (corresponding to reality), these observations could accept been made by clairvoyance or remote viewing, as well as do non necessarily hateful that something somehow separated from the physical body to make the observation. As Whiteman stated, whatsoever claimed physical supporting evidence merely has ‘chiefly propaganda value for the uninformed or sceptical, who make non realize that separation is not established by them, only who may thereby be induced to have the “interior” testimony equally having approximately bearing on “scientific fact”.’ane
Whiteman’sec Index mightiness look of limited value to measure parapsychology, where a useful scoring organisation should place experiences that rate meliorate than dream, hallucination or about grade of pathology. In Whiteman’s Index the management of ranking is towards mystical experience, which is hardly looked for inward parapsychology, fifty-fifty shied away from. The order of ranking is: undeveloped, borderline, psychical, pre-mystical, mystical. Out of a possible xvi points, experiences reaching half-dozen to eight points place every bit ‘psychical separations’, scoring on criteria listed two paragraphs in a higher place. Further requirements of ‘mystical’ grade were noted in the Introduction, together with demarcate ‘mystical’ from ‘psychical’. Yet in the eyes of a physically-fixated investigator, the mystical requirements would signal reduced reality rating, since ‘reality’ agency ‘like physical feel’. For Whiteman this was a primal mistake; higher reality tin can solely hateful ‘unlike physical experience’.
Other Spaces
All separative experience, physical-like or transformative, was considered by Whiteman to take place inwards spaces other than physical, although often and so similar to what is presented physically every bit to be false for it. He called it ‘duplicate physical’ space. He wrote:
If ane is taken into a ‘psychic’ space when not familiar alongside such states, or amongst fixed ideas most them, in addition to if the phenomena resemble physical ones closely... in that location may live a stiff view to mean that the objects are beingness observed physically; too this applies even to possible duplicate presentations of the observer’s physical torso inward its actual situation.1
‘Fixed ideas’ assume at that place is entirely one ‘existent’ infinite that tin can live manifested, namely the physical earth. H5N1 fixed idea will contribute to the potentialities governing a separative experience, too Pb to the actualization of a physical-like ‘duplicate’ scene. Yet equally soul complimentary of the constraints of 1-degree thinking, Whiteman wrote of an ‘inexhaustible variety’ of appearance inwards other spaces. Naturalistic conditioning may withal consequence in ‘fantasy influences’ inwards undeveloped states, all the same highest evolution leads to ‘perfectly acceptable forms of transcendent unified beauty’, where ‘the environment, correspondingly, are distinguished past the character of the light, and hit inwards intelligible graphic symbol, perfection of beauty, depth of glowing center quality, unitive freedom in addition to sense of blending alongside other minds, every bit the highest condition, which is that of Mystical Form Liberation, is approached.’ In these descriptions, Whiteman states,
‘I’ and ‘me’ make non represent the familiar consciousness of self inwards the physical personality, or, inward fact, for anything that can live known inwards an ordinary physical country of mind. To sympathise what is meant, the characteristics of the merged ordinary self must live ruled out.four
One mightiness question how ‘other spaces’ are related to the physical as well as, if at all, to each other. In states classified past Whiteman equally 3rd separation, the non-physical trunk holds much of the focus of attending merely does non appear to be spatially apart from the physical body; ‘the locations of the ii bodies seem the same, inwards spite of differences inwards their form and/or size too perchance likewise inwards their environs.’one This seems to gibe amongst a thought widespread in spiritist circles that unlike ‘levels’ of feel too being all coincide spatially just accept unlike ‘vibration frequencies’, and then in that location is no contact or communication betwixt the diverse states except through particular mediating conditions. Whiteman did include ‘interpenetrating spaces’ inwards a detail set of ‘facts of experience’,1 merely he did non acquaint the thought of interpenetrating spaces every bit roughly kind of cosmological organization; he was disposed to go on to systems of facts, non constructs of theory.
Skills, Cycles
Whiteman was confident near discovering the underlying logic in phenomena, beingness convinced that behind whatever item observation at that place is an intelligible structure ‘operative inwards in addition to analysable out of the full feel’.viii He did not take Kant’s thought of the unknowability of things-in-themselves.eight Instead, in that location is ‘intellectual or perceptual cognition which transcends in a certain clear in addition to unmistakable style the onward urge of time, the rigid apartness of spatial objects, in addition to the apparent isolation of the individual mind inwards its land of fixation on bodily impressions. It is a country of unloosen. Fixation beingness overcome, the mind opens out into universality’.viii We cannot reach this land, he believed ‘without psychological too spiritual faculties of attention, sentence, purposiveness too self-subject area’, based on iii ‘foundational skills’ named Active Recollection, Continuous Recollection, too Faith + Obedience.1 (The beginning of these skills in his own life is reported inward Michael Whiteman.)
Active Recollection aims to call back or recover the sum inwards what is perceived, ‘as well as thus the attainment of objective insight as well as unloose’.one Husserl termed it the phenomenological epoché or stoppage, ‘the necessary performance which renders pure consciousness accessible to us’.i It is termed samādhi or sati in Indian literature.five Continuous Recollection is ‘the freely stabilized ground of liberate at which Active Recollection has been aiming.’one Obedience is not a land of subservience merely orientation to ‘the transcendent Source of Right and Good.’ane It operates in conjunction amongst Faith in this transcendence.
The iii foundational skills were structured into a iv-office system known since ancient times together with appearing inwards mod contexts inward learning theory, Freud and Jung. Described every bit the 4 creative functions, these are ‘purposive movement, deciding on means, putting into practise, together with a virtually cloak-and-dagger maturing of one’sec skills inward outcome’.three In ancient texts they are represented equally iv stages in the passage of the Sun, ascent inwards the east, zenith in the south, downward to Earth inwards the W, in addition to hole-and-corner inwards the N.xiii This corresponds with aspiration (eastward), assessment (S), action or manifestation (due west), fulfilment or not-attachment (N); it likewise corresponds respectively alongside Faith, Obedience, Active Recollection, Continuous Recollection.one
Whiteman placed swell importance on this cycle having its opposites or ‘counterfeits’ of self-volition, self-satisfaction, automaticity, complacency, which may Pb to a corresponding cycle of ‘stresses’ of decease-feeling, shame, pain, fearfulness. This inwards plow may atomic number 82 to ‘inner contests’,i ii iii which hopefully overcome these spiritual deficiencies.
Physics together with Psychology
In his search for underlying logic, too for universality, Whiteman converted his ‘psychological’ wheel into a 16-flexure issue organisation, with the aim of integrating it amongst a ‘physical’ xvi-fold number arrangement derived from iii space too iii time dimensions. He noted that three of the creative functions – effort, means, in addition to maturing – are composite, containing two ‘kickoff principles’ of meat as well as being, equivalent to potentiality together with actualization. In turn, pith too being each have iii constituents, termed past him ‘hypostases’, pregnant underlying, irreducible causes. The iii hypostases of heart were seen equally function, agency, end. The hypostases of beingness were actuation, becoming, manifestation, the 3-phase structure of creation called inwards Upanishadic philosophy the Great Stride of Vishnu.1 So, for case, ‘deciding on way’ combines ‘means’ (pith) foremost with ‘actuation’ (beingness), then amongst ‘becoming’ (existence), together with last with manifestation (existence). The tertiary quarter, West, brings prior causes into manifestation purely as ‘existence’ and then lacks an ‘centre’ hypostasis.
This analysis allows the development of a number arrangement in psychology, together with then the prospect of comparison alongside a number organisation in physics.i ii iii From these number systems Whiteman intended to supply ‘a clear-cutting explanatory arrangement... as, for example, the basic laws of mechanics are exhibited earlier whatever problems are tackled’.ii The hypostases of pith were numbered i = function, two = way, three = cease. The hypostases of beingness were numbered 6 = actuation, v = becoming, four = manifestation/grounding. So, for case ‘East’ can live expressed equally the combination sixteen (enthusiasm), 15 (inspiration), 14 (intention). Combining the numbers i to six results inward 16 subfunctions, in agreement alongside ‘fifteen + ane kalās, stages inward whatsoever creative deed, as recognized in the Upanishads’.iii
The physical issue organization was derived from the 3 infinite too 3 time dimensions. One fourth dimension dimension lies in potentiality-fields alongside a time-ordered, infinite-similar aspect noted higher up inwards connectedness alongside precognition. Another fourth dimension dimension or part involves the processes leading to physical actualization from fourth dimension-structured potentiality. Finally in that location is physical clock-fourth dimension; it is the alone time-dimension that is measurable. Combining the half-dozen dimensions yields a xvi-crease issue organisation similar the psychological subfunctions, ‘inwards such close correspondence alongside the formulations of quantum theory that there is an obvious invitation to demo the 2 as aspects of an integrated understanding of the Earth’.9
Space does not permit a tabulation of the physics/psychology correspondences, or how they were derived. The correspondences, all the same, satisfied Whiteman’second persuasion that to explicate what we experience is to
admit a subjective cycle, such equally mystics, many theologians, as well as just about psychologists take admitted. This bicycle, in its well-nigh consummate course is sixteenfold, together with parallels just what may live called the ‘earth bike’ (equally it appears inward Quantum Field Theory) in every style, while manifesting itself in every form of human being experience. This is a class of potentiality which is discernible, and indeed can live lived by the individual inwards an enormous diverseness of ‘altered states of consciousness’...iii
Whiteman’s Scientific Mysticism was a revolutionary try to discern in addition to characterize this potentiality.
John Poynton
Literature
1. Whiteman, J.H.grand. (1986). Old too New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical globe-opinion in addition to inner competition. Volume i, An Introduction to Scientific Mysticism. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
2. Whiteman, J.H.thou. (2000). Old as well as New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical earth-sentiment and inner competition. Volume two, Dynamics of Spiritual Development. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
iii. Whiteman, J.H.M. (2006). Old and New Evidence on the Meaning of Life: the mystical earth-persuasion as well as inner contest. Volume three, Universal Theology and Life inwards other Worlds. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
4. Whiteman, J.H.chiliad. (1961). The Mystical Life. London: Faber in addition to Faber.
5. Whiteman, J.H.thousand. (1993). Aphorisms on Spiritual Method: the ‘Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’ in the low-cal of mystical experience. Gerrards Cross: Colin Smythe.
half-dozen. Husserl, east. (1931). Ideas: General Introduction to Pure Phenomenology (trans. westward.R. Boyce Gibson). London: Allen & Unwin.
7. Heisenberg, W. (1959). Physics in addition to Philosophy: the revolution inward modernistic science. London: Allen as well as Unwin.
viii. Whiteman, J.H.chiliad. (1967). Philosophy of Space as well as Time as well as the Inner Constitution of Nature: a phenomenological study. London: Allen and Unwin.
nine. Whiteman, J.H.M. (1977). Parapsychology together with physics. In Wolman, B.B. (ed.) Handbook of Parapsychology. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
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