"But physicalists are > so used to thinking that "most fundamental" means "most significant" > that they believe all higher branches of knowledge must be grounded > in least-depthed holons or not be grounded at all. Thus the constant > tendency to "extend physics" (however imaginatively interpreted) > directly to any and all domains."-
Nice naildown! I like what he says about physics. I am looking forward to hearing if he can deliver what he promises on the spiritual side. -- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > from a footnote (!) in Sex, Ecology, & Spirituality > > > Nowhere are the catastrophes of taking monological sciences and > trying to make them into a complete "new paradigm" more obvious than > in the "new physics and mysticism" writers and theorists, whose names > are simply too legend to begin even a short list. When reductionists > have a spiritual experience (not generally dealt with in physics > textbooks), it usually acts as an incitement to commit philosophy, > and the result is not for the faint-hearted. > > However wonderfully well intentioned, most of these theories—which > play on the theme that the "new physics" (quantum and relativistic) > supports/suggests/proves a mystically unified worldview—most of these > theories are totally crippled by trying to simply extend a flatland > monological paradigm into dialogical and translogical domains (more > of the flatland "bigger portions of bad food" approach). They > generally take certain mathematical formalisms (especially the > Schroedinger wave equation and its collapse upon measurement) and > give them a very wide interpretation (despite the fact that > physicists themselves are sharply divided over how to interpret the > formalisms), and they then wed this very loose and generous > interpretation with their often equally loose interpretation of > mystical spirituality, and the result is supposed to be something > like, the new physics supports or even proves a mystical worldview. > (Physics and mysticism are pronounced cousins, even though we all > know what happens when cousins marry.)This inbred marriage, of > course, is promptly called "the new paradigm," and absolutely > everything else is swept aside and the New Era announced. Danah > Zohar: "The idea of a 'quantum society' stems from a conviction that > a whole new paradigm is emerging from our description of quantum > reality and that this paradigm can be extended to change radically > our perception of ourselves and the social world we want to live in. > A wider appreciation of quantum reality can give us the conceptual > foundations we need to bring about a positive revolution in > society" (The quantum society).From formalisms describing the lowest, > shallowest, least conscious, least-depthed holons in existence, > "extended to a paradigm" that is supposed to cover dialogical, > intersubjective, cultural exchange based on mutual understanding and > mutual recognition: this is more than a quantum leap, it is a > Guinness Book of Records leap of faith, and bad faith at that. > Quantum formalisms cannot even account for the fundamentals of > biology and autopoiesis, let alone economics, psychology, literature, > poetry, morals and ethics, to name a vital few. But physicalists are > so used to thinking that "most fundamental" means "most significant" > that they believe all higher branches of knowledge must be grounded > in least-depthed holons or not be grounded at all. Thus the constant > tendency to "extend physics" (however imaginatively interpreted) > directly to any and all domains. (...huge snip) > ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Something is new at Yahoo! Groups. Check out the enhanced email design. http://us.click.yahoo.com/jDk17A/gOaOAA/i1hLAA/UlWolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
