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Others suggest that we need a sort of revolution of consciousness in which people move to a more enlightened state of being.
But there is another path that could lead to social progress that is more practical than either politics or enlightenment, and this involves,
In this video, we explore the nature of philosophical materialism and how this paradigm dictates the way we perceive reality and our place within it.
We then look at the flaws of this paradigm and
how relinquishing it will expand the horizon of human potential,
transform our perspective on death, reshape the practice of
medicine, alter our views on morality, and make life more
meaningful.
It is composed of a set of ideas and beliefs that dictate how we navigate the challenges of existence and how we relate to ourselves, other people and the world around us.
Our worldview sets the bounds on what we believe is possible and it provides answers to fundamental questions such as,
And as the philosopher Bernardo Kastrup writes:
One of the primary elements of the Western worldview is philosophical materialism.
This metaphysical theory holds that reality, at its most fundamental level, is composed of inert and lifeless particles of matter. It is from the mechanical interactions of these particles that every phenomenon in the universe - including life and consciousness itself - arises.
Or as Chris Carter writes in Science and Psychic Phenomenon:
The vast majority of us implicitly accept the basic tenets of materialism and the conclusions that follow from them.
For example, most people believe that life and consciousness are by-products of exclusively biological processes and that when the physical body stops functioning life ends and our subjective experience stops.
While most of us look at the world through the lens of the materialist paradigm, materialism is a deeply flawed theory.
In fact, while materialism reached its peak of influence among scientists and philosophers in the mid-20th century it has since experienced a precipitous decline.
Or as Robert Koons and George Bealer write:
What are the flaws that make materialism an untenable account of reality? Why have more scientists and philosophers rejected the theory in favor of alternatives?
Simply put,
The attempt to account for the emergence of consciousness has proved to be such a challenge within the materialist paradigm that it is known as the hard problem of consciousness.
Materialists contend that consciousness is an emergent property, or an epiphenomenon, of brain activity.
Or as Kastrup explains, according to materialists:
This assertion, however, is merely a hypothesis and a weak one at that, something Carl Jung recognized nearly a century ago:
The materialist's hypothesis that consciousness is an emergent property of the physical brain violates our understanding of the idea of emergence in complex systems.
For a property to be considered an emergent possibility of a complex system, it must be deducible from the properties of the lower-level components of the system.
However, there is nothing about neurons, or any other physical components of the brain that allow us to deduce the conscious experience that supposedly emerges from their interactions.
Or as Kastrup explains:
Another problem with materialism is that it cannot account for the origins of life.
Again, materialism fails to offer a coherent answer, or as Kastrup writes:
Due to the failures of materialism many philosophers and scientists are gravitating towards metaphysical theories that hold consciousness as a primary component of reality.
Some philosophers argue that consciousness, or some form of experience, is inherent in all physical entities, a position known as panpsychism or panexperientialism.
Others suggest that all of reality is a mental phenomenon, and that what we interpret as matter is a manifestation of mind.
This position is known as idealism.
While materialism is declining in influence among those who study the ultimate nature of reality, it remains a core component of the Western worldview.
The metaphysical theories which
grant consciousness a primary role have not yet infiltrated the
cultural zeitgeist. When they do, however, the changes will be
radical and re-orient human life in many important ways.
The materialist doctrine has us believe that consciousness is an emergent property of the physical brain and so when the brain stops working, our experience ends, and we cease to exist.
However, if we believe that consciousness, or mind, is primary, the possibility of some form of life after death, or at least a continuation of our subjective experience, is no longer out of the realm of possibility.
Reports of near-death experiences, which have been studied for decades, offer anecdotal evidence of some form of conscious experience continuing after physical death.
Or as Kastrup writes:
A second change that would accompany the abandonment of materialism relates to the innate capacities of man.
Currently, due to materialism's influence, it is assumed that man's powers are limited by the laws of Newtonian physics.
Action at a distance, which is called psychokinesis, perception without the use of sense organs, or what is called clairvoyance, or the direct communication between minds unaided by the sense organs, which is called telepathy, are viewed as impossible under the materialist paradigm.
But if materialism is rejected we are not bound by the physical laws that tell us these phenomena are impossible.
Instead, if consciousness is viewed as primary, these so-called paranormal phenomena can no longer be dismissed out of hand, and as Kastrup writes:
A third way the world would change if the materialist dogma was abandoned involves the field of medicine, which is currently dominated by the materialist paradigm.
Most doctors view the body as a machine and believe that curing a disease requires interventions that fix its broken parts - be it through surgery or drugs.
Many doctors are so tied to the materialist paradigm they even consider mental illnesses, such as depression or anxiety, to arise primarily from problems with the chemical composition of the brain.
If consciousness is considered fundamental to the nature of reality, rather than a mere epiphenomenon of the brain, our approach to healing would dramatically change.
It would no longer be logical to focus exclusively on fixing the physical symptoms of an ailment. Instead, the psyche, or consciousness, would be recognized as a primary force in both the cause and cure of disease and healing would involve changes at the level of the psyche.
This idea is already supported by phenomenon such as the nocebo and placebo effects but would be taken even more seriously if panpsychism, panexperientialism, or idealism entered the cultural zeitgeist.
An abandonment of materialism, in other words, would likely give rise to a more integrative approach to medicine, or as Kastrup explains:
But perhaps the most profound consequence of transcending materialism would be a resurgence in meaning and a new moral weight placed upon the shoulders of man.
Under the materialist doctrine, we are merely transient configurations of matter, and our subjective experience completely vanishes with the end of our physical life – a belief that easily leads to nihilism.
If consciousness is fundamental, the meaning of our life changes. If our subjective experience can somehow continue beyond our physical death, then how we live in the here and now may be far more important than we realize.
This possibility adds a cosmic significance to our existence and can motivate us to live in a more virtuous manner in the recognition that our actions, thoughts, and behaviors may have consequences that echo for eternity.
This idea is
embodied in many of the great religious traditions - for example in
the idea of Karma in the Eastern religions or in the Abrahamic
concept of divine judgment and the immortality of the soul.
Planck was one of the originators of quantum mechanics and one of the founders of modern physics.
After decades of studying the ultimate nature of reality and probing deeply into the properties of matter, he came to the conclusion that spirit, not matter lies at the foundation of reality.
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