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Systemsphilosopher,integraltheorist,concertpianist

TheQuantumBrain,Spirituality,AndTheMindOfGod
Posted:05/24/20105:12amEDT

Updated:05/25/20113:55pmEDT

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Gettopstoriesandblogpostsemailedtomeeachday..
Theexperienceofconnectionisalsoasourceofspirituality.Thegreatteachers
enteredadeeplyalteredstate,hadaspiritualexperience,andwhentheyreturnedto
theirwakingstate,theyendeavoredtocaptureitinwords.Theirwordsbecamethe
scripturesveneratedbytheirfollowers.
Thespiritual/religiousexperiencehasbeenbasicallythesameinallepochsand
cultures.Ithasalwaysbeenanexperienceofonenessandbelonging.WilliamJames
describeditasthesenseofenteringintounionwithsomethingdeeperandlargerthan
oneself.TheexperienceofpeopleinallepochsandwalksoflifeconfirmsthatJames
wasright:wearelikeislandsonthesea,separateonthesurfacebutconnectedinthe
deep.
Althoughthebasicsubstanceofthespiritualexperiencehasalwaysbeenthesame,
teachersexpresseditindifferentwaysbecausetheywereonlyabletoapproximate
theirexperiencethroughthewordsandsymbolsoftheirtimeandplace.Ineachtime,
andineachplace,thesesymbolsandexpressionswereuniqueanddifferent.
Overthecenturiesthesedifferencesintensified.Groupsandcommunitiesof
followers,intentonmaintainingtheiridentityandensuringtheircoherence,frozethe
originalpronouncementsintosacreddoctrines,andmadethedoctrinesintoholy
dogmas,sometimesfurtherhonedtoservetheirfollowers'socialandpoliticalaims
andambitions.
Inthefinalcountthedifferencesbetweenthedoctrines,religions,andtheinsightsof
spiritualtraditionsarenotdifferencesinthesubstanceoftheexperiencethatinspired
them.Theyareonlythedifferencesinthewaythatsubstancehasbeenexpressedand
communicated.

Buthowdoesthespiritualexperienceitselfcomeabout?Todaywehaveabetter
answertothisquestionthanweeverhadbefore.Aspiritual/religiousexperiencecan
happenatanytimeandinanyplace,butitusuallyoccursinanalteredstateof
consciousness.Inthatstate,aspsychiatristStanislavGrofnotes,wecanapprehend
anythingthatexistsintheuniverse.Wecanevenapprehenduniversalarchetypesand
mythicalbeings.
Thealteredstatesthatgiverisetothespiritualexperiencecanbepurposefully
induced.Astraditionalcultureshaveknownandpracticedformillennia,the
experiencecanbetriggeredbydancing,drumming,rhythmicbreathing,andalsoby
theuseofpsychedelicsubstances(althoughthesecanbedangeroustohealth).Prayer
andmeditationistheroyalroad,andtheirdepthandefficacycanbeenhancedwhen
practicedonalteredstateconducive"sacred"sites.
Churches,temples,mosques,andsynagogueswerebuilttofacilitatethespiritual
experienceofthefaithful.Traditionalpeoplehaveoftengonefurther:theyhave
soughtspiritualtransformationeventhrough"templesleep."Thismeantspendinga
nightinaveneratedlocation,tryingtoincubatedreamsforinitiation,divination,or
healing.DynasticEgypthadspecialtemplesforsuppliantswhowouldfastandrecite
prayersimmediatelybeforegoingtosleep,andJewishseerswouldspendthenightin
agraveorsepulchralvault,hopingthatthespiritofthedeceasedwouldappearin
theirdreamandofferguidance.InGreecetherewereover300dreamtemples
dedicatedtoAesculapius,thegodofhealing,andinChinathetempleswherestate
officialssoughtguidancewereactiveuntilthe16thcentury.
Thespiritualexperienceusuallycomesaboutinalteredstates,butwhatdoesthe
recurringsubstanceoftheexperiencesignify?Whatisthat"somethingdeeperand
largerthanourselves"towhichtheexperienceseemstoconnectus?
Ananswertothisquestionisgivenbyeveryreligion,andtodayitcanalsobegivenby
science,ifonlyhypothetically.Sciencesuggeststhatthespiritualexperienceopensthe
brain,withwhichourconsciousnessisassociated,toanextendedrangeof
information.Thisinformationisreal,butit'snotalwaysreceived.Hereby
"information"Idon'tmeantheinformationweproducewhenwetalk,write,oract.I
meanthekindofinformationthatscientistsnowdiscoverunderlieseverythinginthe
universe.
Informationisentirelybasicintheuniverse.Inthelatestconceptiontheuniverse
doesn'tconsistofmatterandspaceitconsistsofenergyandinformation.Energy
existsintheformofwavepatternsandwavepropagationsinthequantumvacuum
thatfillsspaceinitsvariousforms,energyisthe"hardware"oftheuniverse.The
"software"isinformation.Theuniverseisnotanassemblageofbitsofinertmatter
movingpassivelyinemptyspace:it'sadynamicandcoherentwhole.Theenergythat
constitutesitshardwareisalwaysandeverywhere"informed."It'sinformedbywhat
DavidBohmcalledtheimplicateorderandphysicistsnowregardasthequantum
vacuumorzeropointfield(alsocalledphysicalspacetime,universalfield,or
nuether).Thisisthe"information"thatstructuresthephysicalworld,the
informationwegraspasthelawsofnature.Withoutinformationtheenergywaves
andpatternsoftheuniversewouldbeasrandomandunstructuredasthebehaviorof
acomputerwithoutitssoftware.Buttheuniverseisnotrandomandunstructuredit's
precisely"informed."Woulditbeanythelesspreciselyinformed,complexsystems
couldnothaveemergedinit,andwewouldnotbeheretoaskhowthisonfirstsight
highlyimprobabledevelopmentcouldhavecomeabout.
Science'sanswertothe"what"questionreferstoanentangled,holographic,non
locallyconnectinginformationfieldinthecosmos.Inmybooks,ingreatestdetailin
ScienceandtheAkashicField(http://www.amazon.com/ScienceAkashicField
IntegralEverything/dp/1594770425),Idiscusstheevidenceforthisfieldandnote
thattheHinduseersreferredtoitasAkasha,thefundamentalelementofthecosmos.
Inrecognitionofthisfeatofinsight,Iamnowcallingtheinformationfieldofthe
universetheAkashicField.
Buthowdoesscience'sanswertothequestionregardingthefundamentalsignificance
ofthespiritualexperiencerelatetotheanswergivenbyreligion?
Fortheworld'sreligionsthelargeranddeeperrealitytowhichthespiritual
experienceconnectsusisanuminous,divinereality.It'seitheraspiritor
consciousnessthatinfusesthenaturalworld(the"immanentist"view),oraspiritor
consciousnessthat'saboveandbeyondit(the"transcendentalist"claim).Traditional
polytheisticreligionswereleaningtowardtheformer,whiletheAbrahamic
monotheisticreligions(withsomeexceptions)embracedthelatter.
Thedifferencebetweenadivineintelligenceimmanentintheworldandonethat
transcendsitisnotnegligible,butitisstillonlyadifferenceininterpretation.The
"rawdata"forbothpositionsisthesame:it'sthespiritualexperience,aquantum
communionwithuniversaloneness.IntheWesternreligiousperspectivethisis
communionwiththespiritthatinfusesthecosmos,identifiedasGod.DeepakChopra
writes,"Spiritualityistheexperienceofthatdomainofawarenesswherewe
experienceouruniversality.Thisdomainofawarenessisacoreconsciousnessthatis
beyondourmind,intellect,andego.Inreligioustraditionsthiscoreconsciousnessis

referredtoasthesoulwhichispartofacollectivesoulorcollectiveconsciousness,
whichinturnispartofamoreuniversaldomainofconsciousnessreferredtoin
religionsasGod."
Ourexperienceofthecoreconsciousnessoftheworldisultimatelyanexperienceof
theuniversaldomainofconsciousnessWesternreligionscallGod.Theexperience
itself,ifnotitsinterpretation,isthesameinallreligions,andinallreligionsit
inspiresasenseofonenessandbelonging.MichaelBeckwithaffirmsthat"whenyou
stripawaytheculture,history,anddogmaofeveryreligion,theteachersofthose
religionswereteachingverysimilarprinciplesandpracticesthatledtoasenseof
oneness,thatendedasenseofseparationfromtheWhole."
Science'sanswertothequestionofwhatthespiritualexperienceconnectsustois
immanentist.Theinformationthatunderliestheuniverse,theAkashicField,ispartof
theuniverse.Thisdoesn'tmeanthattheimmanentistpositionnecessarilystatesthe
ultimatetruthitonlymeansthatsciencecanonlytakeanimmanentistposition.
Scientistsarelimitedtospeakingaboutthenaturalworldtheymustleavespeculation
abouttranscendentrealitiestopoets,philosophers,andspiritualmasters.
It'stimetoconclude.Ifthesubstanceofthespiritualexperienceisalwaysand
everywherethesame,differencesinitsexpressionandinterpretationaresecondary
andnotavalidcauseforconflictandintolerance.Theworldtowhichourquantum
brainconnectsusisfundamentallyone,whetheritsonenessisduetoaninformation
fieldwithinthenaturalworldortheworkofadivinetranscendentintelligence.To
enterintocommunionwiththisonenesshasbeenthequestofallthegreatteachers
andspiritualmasters.Andtounderstandthenatureofthisonenesshasbeen,andis,
theultimatequestofallgreatscientists.Stilltoday,physicistsseektheoneequation
thatwouldanchortheirfamous"TheoryofEverything,"thetheorythatwouldaccount
forallthelawsofnatureandexplaineverythingthateverhappenedinourintegrally
wholeuniverse.Einsteinsaidthatknowingthisequationwouldbereadingthemind
ofGod.
FollowErvinLaszloonTwitter:www.twitter.com/ErvinLaszlo
(http://www.twitter.com/ErvinLaszlo)
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