Science And Spirituality

Bridging the gap between science and the world’s great spiritual traditions to move our worldview forward • With contributions from 28 leading scientists and spiritual thinkers, including Michael Beckwith, Deepak Chopra, Larry Dossey, Amit Goswami, Stanislav Grof, Jean Houston, Barbara Marx Hubbard, José Argüelles, and Peter Russell • Offers strategies to promote the fusion of science and spirituality • Explores phenomena at the crossroads of science and religion, such as the nonlocal mind, conscious evolution, and quantum consciousness Edited by Nobel Prize nominee Ervin Laszlo and WorldShift International cofounder Kingsley Dennis, this volume brings together 28 leading scientists and spiritual thinkers for a game-changing conversation on bridging the gap between science and religion. With contributions by Michael Beckwith, Deepak Chopra, Larry Dossey, Amit Goswami, Stanislav Grof, Jean Houston, Barbara Marx Hubbard, José Argüelles, Peter Russell, and many other prominent visionaries, this collection explores phenomena at the crossroads of science and religion, such as the nonlocal mind, conscious evolution, and quantum consciousness, and offers strategies to promote the fusion of science and spirituality and develop a multiperson planetary consciousness. This book reveals higher consciousness as the bridge between science and spirit, passionate curiosity as the common ground among scientists and seekers, and the urgent need for an alliance between science and the great traditions of spiritual wisdom to move our worldview forward and meet today’s global challenges.

The Science of Spirituality is a ground-breaking book that integrates the individual systems of science, psychology, philosophy, spirituality and religion into a unified system that describes the multi-dimensional nature of man and the universe. It provides a more comprehensive description of reality than conventional science can offer and fully explains the mechanisms behind an array of paranormal phenomena that mainstream science chooses to ignore. It explains the science behind religious, spiritual and new-age belief systems, and sheds light on some common misconceptions. The Science of Spirituality systematically describes the mechanisms behind a diverse range of subject matter including: consciousness, sleep and dreams, reincarnation, religion, creation, evolution, space and time, higher dimensions, heaven and hell, ghosts, angels and demons, out of body experiences, near death experiences, clairvoyance, psychic abilities, personal development, meditation and the meaning of life.

Spirituality played a key role in the construction of Indian modernity. While science has certainly been an agent of modernization in India and other non-Western countries, what makes Indian modernity somewhat special is that spiritual leaders have also been instrumental in the process. Moreover, leading Indian scientists and spiritualists have recognized the immense potential for dialogue between the two disciplines. Post-colonial India, with its ready access to a holistic spirituality and significant achievements in science and technology, is a fertile site for such a dialogue. Each of the book’s four sections addresses specific themes: (1) The tension not just between science and spirituality, but also between the East and West; (2) how some key figures in India became carriers of modern consciousness, and explored the relationship between science and spirituality in the very process of trying to reform their society; (3) significant areas of research in which science and spirituality are both deeply implicated; and (4) the relationship of both scientific and spiritual practice with gender and social justice.

Addressing fundamental questions about life, this unique volume examines the way in which distinguished scientists of different faiths explore the connections between science, ethics, spirituality and the divine.

It is often assumed that there are two ways of interpreting the world: a rational scientific way, or an irrational religious way. Spiritual Science offers a third alternative: a spiritual view of reality that transcends both conventional science and religion, and answers many of the riddles that neither can explain. The standard model of science has had little success in explaining such areas as human consciousness, the connection between the mind and the body, altruism and ‘anomalous’ phenomena such as near-death experiences, psi phenomena (such as telepathy) and spiritual experiences. But from a ‘panspiritist’ point of view – which sees spirit or consciousness as a fundamental essence of reality – it is possible to make sense of all these things. Steve Taylor puts forward the evidence for a spiritual view of reality, drawing on the insights of philosophers, physicists, mystics, as well as spiritual traditions and indigenous cultures. He systematically shows how a ‘panspiritist’ view can explain many puzzling aspects of science and the world, including evolution and the origins of life, and a wide range of other phenomena such as quantum physics, the placebo effect, precognition and neuroplasticity. Spiritual Science offers a new vision of the world that is compatible with both modern science and ancient spiritual teachings. It provides a more accurate and holistic account of reality than conventional science or religion, integrating a wide range of phenomena that are excluded from both. After showing how the materialist worldview demeans the world and human life, Spiritual Science offers a brighter alternative – a vision of the world as sacred and interconnected, and of human life as meaningful and purposeful. Spiritual Science explains how the standard materialist model of reality developed, and turned into a belief system. This belief system can only function by denying (or explaining away) a whole range of phenomena that are part of human experience. It is possible to be scientific without adopting this belief system – in fact, it is much more rational to do so.