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