13.
Has science opened the door to a new world view?
NOTE:
This is an excerpt from the book The
Least You Should Know About Life.
When you consider the history of how people acquire knowledge, no other
system of thought has expanded as rapidly as science. New theories and
new types of instruments are constantly being developed. Scientists
can now detect subatomic particles and cosmic rays from far-away galaxies
that former generations of scientists did not know existed. This rapid
progress is a clear indication that it is unwise to set boundaries for
what can be known through science. Nor is it wise to say that what cannot
currently be proven by science could not possibly exist. Who can tell
what new capabilities could be discovered tomorrow?
Scientific knowledge is growing so rapidly that most scientists, let
alone non-scientists, find it difficult to keep up. In fact, most scientists
have become specialists and focus on a narrow field. Few have time to
consider the big picture, let alone the philosophical consequences of
the latest scientific discoveries. This explains why most people (even
Western society as a whole) have not developed a new world view based
on the latest discoveries of science. Fortunately, one does not have
to be a scientist or a philosopher in order to start this process.
In the late 1800s most physicists believed their world view was complete,
with only a few minor details left to explain. Yet in 1905 Albert Einstein
obliterated this belief with his famous equation, E = mc2. The old world
view was based on Newton’s laws, and the theory of relativity
did not prove these laws to be wrong. Instead, it proved that there
was a deeper level of reality than the one in which Newton’s laws
work. Therefore, the world view that was based on Newton’s laws
was proven to be incomplete. A new world view had to be developed, but
unfortunately the philosophical implications of this new view have not
filtered down to people’s everyday beliefs.
Before Einstein, scientists had a dualistic view of the world. They
thought the material universe was made of two elements, namely solid
matter and vibrating energy. The two could interact, but one could not
be converted into the other. There was a realm of matter and it was
separate from the realm of energy. With one stroke of the pen, Einstein
obliterated this world view. He proved that the world is not dualistic,
but is made from only one substance. So-called solid matter is simply
vibrating energy that has been captured in a matrix or field that makes
it appear solid to the senses and to most scientific instruments.
Most people know that by splitting the atom, solid matter can be converted
into energy. Yet what most people have not incorporated into their world
view is that solid matter is made from vibrating energy. Thus, below
the level of matter that is visible to your physical senses is a deeper
level of reality. Matter does not appear out of nowhere. The creation
of matter starts in an invisible realm in which is found only vibrating
energy. This vibrating energy then coalesces into what people call solid
matter.
Science has discovered laws that work only in the realm of matter. Yet
it has also discovered deeper laws that work in the realm of energy.
And because matter is made from energy, these deeper laws also have
an effect on matter. The properties and behavior of matter are defined
within the framework of the deeper laws of energy. This is similar to
laws in society. A country has laws that only deal with traffic, but
they exist within the larger framework of the country’s constitution.
What could this possibly have to do with your potential to improve your
life experience? According to the old world view, there was an impenetrable
barrier between the realm of matter and the realm of energy. Your outer
circumstances are clearly in the realm of matter and your inner circumstances,
your thoughts and feelings, are clearly in the realm of energy. If there
was an impenetrable barrier between the two realms, there would be no
possibility that you could improve your outer circumstances by improving
your inner circumstances. There would be no connection between mind
and matter and thus no potential for controlling your life by controlling
your mind.
Clearly, many people – including many scientists – still
hold on to the dualistic world view and deny any connection between
mind and matter. However, since Einstein published his theories, this
denial has not been scientifically sound. Einstein’s simple equation
broke down the barrier between matter and energy and thus it also broke
down the barrier between matter and mind. Einstein made it theoretically
possible that there is a connection between mind and matter.
He also proved that the realm of energy is a more fundamental level
than the realm of matter. Therefore, the laws that work in the realm
of energy are more powerful, and thus can potentially override, the
laws that work in the realm of matter. This opens the possibility that
if you can learn how to use the laws of energy, your mind can potentially
influence your circumstances in the material world. At first, this might
sound far-fetched, but as we will see, science itself has made discoveries
that support this claim.
14.
Why science can no longer ignore mind
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Copyright
© 2007 by Kim Michaels |
