Science Without Bounds
A Synthesis of Science, Religion and Mysticism
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For a quick idea of what
"Science Without Bounds"
is about, here's the table of contents.
- Preface xiii
- Introduction xvii
- Ways of Knowing xxii
- Science's and Religion's Ways of Knowing xxv
- A Scientific/Religious Comprehensive World View xxvi
- Odds and Ends xxvii
- Part I: Fundamentals 1
- 1 Religion's Way of Knowing 2
- The Revelational Way of Knowing 3
- Claim 1: External Consistency 5
- Claim 1: Truthfulness 7
- Claim 1: Internal Consistency 9
- Mistakes Perpetuated 11
- Consistency versus Truthfulness 12
- The Erosion of Truthfulness 14
- Claim 2: Attaining Completeness and Finality 15
- Claim 2: Completeness 17
- Claim 2: Finality 20
- Claim 3: Necessity for Salvation, Enlightenment 23
- Claim 4: Reasons for Believing in Divine Authorship 24
- Society's Ways of Knowing 26
- Shortcomings of Divine Authorship 27
- "Dionysius" 28
- Separating Truth and Lies, Wisdom and Nonsense 30
- Reason Inadequate? 32
- 2 Science's Way of Knowing 34
- The Origin of the Scientific Way of Knowing 34
- The First Element: Observation and Experiment 38
- The Second Element: Hypothesis 40
- Inductive Logic and Deductive Logic 42
- The Third Element: Law 43
- The Fourth Element: Theory 45
- Theoretical Constructs 47
- Kinds of Sciences 49
- Shortcomings of the Scientific Way of Knowing 52
- Science and Divine Authorship 54
- Science and Consistency and Truthfulness 56
- Science and Completeness and Finality 58
- Science and Salvation, Enlightenment, Liberation 59
- Summary 60
- 3 Science's Domain Of Knowing 62
- What Science Studies 63
- Basis of the Physical Universe 64
- The Table Illustration 67
- Creation? 69
- Turning to Philosophy 71
- The Eternal Substance 73
- The Eternal Substance 74
- Historical Bounds 78
- Independent, Uncontingent, Unconditional, Uncaused 80
- The Cyclic Method 82
- The Eternal Substance 82
- Summary 85
- 4 Religion's Domain Of Knowing 87
- Personhood and God 88
- Monotheism and Religious Monism 89
- Hinduism 91
- Buddhism 93
- Taoism 95
- Sikhism 96
- Christianity 96
- Judaism 98
- Islam 101
- Zoroastrianism 103
- Being, the Great Chain of Being, Absolute Being 104
- Two Ideas of Gods 106
- Pantheism 107
- Summary 108
- 5 Knowers 111
- Types of Knowledge 111
- What They Don't Know 113
- Experience of Uncreated Light 114
- A Modern, Secular Seer 115
- Western Christian Seers 116
- Eastern Christian Seers 119
- Uncreated Light 121
- Essence and Energies 123
- Jewish Seers 124
- Islamic Seers 125
- Hindu Seers 126
- A Sikh Seer 127
- Buddhist Seers 128
- Degrees of Intimacy 128
- Symbols of Intimacy 130
- The Many Meanings of Union 132
- Participatory Union and Illusory Union 134
- Literal Union 136
- Understanding Union 138
- Transcending the Triad of Knower, Knowing, Known 139
- The Unreal Self 141
- The Tragedy of Hallaj 143
- Summary 144
- 6 Science Plus Religion 147
- Mysticism: Proper, Improper and Counterfeit 147
- Traditional Measures of Mystical Truth 153
- The Scientific Way of Knowing as the Standard 154
- Religion Without Dogma or a God Who Is a Person 156
- The Domain of Knowing 159
- The Data 159
- The Data: Agreement and Objectivity 161
- The Data: Observability 163
- The Data: Replication 164
- Hypothesis, Law, and Theory 165
- Uniqueness? 166
- Fundamental Premises 170
- Looking Back, Looking Ahead 171
- The Tale of the Scientific Alchemists and Religious Newtonians 172
- Part II: World View 177
- 7 The Universe 178
- Modes of Light 179
- The Kingdom of Heaven 182
- Dualiam: The Fall from Eden 183
- Illusory Dualism 185
- Apparent Dualism 186
- Dependent Dualism and the Problem of Evil 187
- The Problem of the Origin of Evil 189
- Independent Dualism 190
- Recognizing Evil 192
- The System of "Good" and "Bad" 193
- Yang and Yin 195
- Inseparable Interactive Invocation, an Inseparable Dualism 197
- A Symbol of Yang and Yin 199
- Inseparable Dualism and the Problem of Suffering and Pain 202
- A Solution? 204
- Ignorance of the Real 205
- 8 Personal Identity 207
- Landmarks: Ancient and Contemporary 207
- Relative Personal Identity 210
- Absolute Personal Identity 211
- Identity as Body, Heart or Mind 213
- Hierarchy of Body, Heart, Mind and Awareness 216
- A Unitary Psychophysical Language? 217
- Awareness as Absolute Personal Identity 220
- Consequences of Awareness as Absolute Personal Identity 223
- No Absolute Personal Identity 225
- Two Views of Absolute Personal Identity 227
- The Ego as Possession 229
- A Living, Conscious Absolute 231
- 9 The God Who is a Person 232
- Monism and Gods who are Persons 232
- The Religious Monist 235
- The Optional Principle 236
- The Power of the Personal Aspect 238
- Actual and Operational Monotheism 240
- The Dual Aspects 241
- Confusion of Actual and Operational Monotheism 242
- Unrecognized Experience of the Personal Aspect? 245
- Advantages of Monism and Operational Monotheism 248
- 10 Kinds of Existence 252
- Component Entities and Relative Existence 253
- Actions 256
- The Universe as an Action 257
- Voidness and Emptiness 259
- Absolute Existence 261
- Discrimination 264
- Identity or Self 265
- Looking Back, Looking Ahead - II 268
- Part III: Consequences 273
- 11 Goals 274
- Common Goals and the Afterlife 274
- Afterlife Goals 276
- Afterlife and Personal Identity 278
- Reincarnation 279
- Between Death and Birth 282
- A Third Kind of Goal 284
- Entirely and Partially Transcendent Goals 286
- Desire for Unchanging Reality 286
- Escape from Suffering 287
- Escape from Desire 288
- Realization of Self 289
- The Art of Dying 291
- Immortality 293
- The New Birth 295
- Universal Love 296
- Following a Spiritual Teacher 298
- Summary 299
- 12 Values 300
- Common Value Systems 300
- Afterlife Value Systems 302
- The Bottom-up Approach to Morals 303
- The Value of Religious Practices 305
- Mystical Value Systems 306
- Helps and Hindrances 307
- Reward and Punishment 308
- Concerning Theoretical Explanations 309
- The End of Drama 310
- Renunciation and Monastic Withdrawal 312
- Poverty and Detachment 315
- Passionlessness And Thoughtlessness 316
- Detachment from the Ego, Detachment from World 317
- The Negative and Affirmative Ways 318
- Attitudes towards Others 321
- The Rightful Use of Things 322
- The Two Ways Compared; Transcendence and Immanence 324
- Summary 326
- 13 Paths And Pitfalls 327
- The Path 327
- Right Views, Right Goals 328
- Right Actions, Right Effort 329
- Attitudes Toward Things and Events 330
- Physical Actions and Efforts 334
- Drugs 336
- Emotion Actions and Efforts 341
- Intellectual Actions and Efforts 344
- The Best Motivation 346
- The "Path" 349
- 14 Union 351
- Right Mindfulness 351
- Centering 352
- Mantra 354
- Merging 355
- Benefits of Centering and Merging 357
- Right Concentration: Self-Referential Awareness 359
- Rene Descartes 361
- The Location of Awareness 362
- Right Concentration 363
- Union 365
- The Result of Union: Annihilation or Return 367
- 15 Towards An Exact Science 369
- Teachers and Guides 369
- Physical Effects of Gnosis 370
- The Significance of Signs 374
- Holism and Measuring Inner States 376
- Measures of Meditative Mental States 379
- An Exact Science? 381
- Conclusion 383
- Conclusion 384
- Looking Back 384
- Looking Further Back 386
- Science and Religion 388
- Science and Mysticism 389
- Bibliography 392
- Index 407