"There is but One Mind in this Universe that is the creating principle behind each individual mind."
~ Dr. Paul Leon Masters
What is Metaphysics?
The word "metaphysics" derives from the Greek words μετά (meta, "beyond" or "after") and φυσικά (physika, "physics"). Originally this word indicated the part of Aristotle's work which came after the chapters which dealt with physics. Later, this was misinterpreted by Latin scholiasts, who thought it meant "the science of what is beyond the physical." So over time, the word has been adopted to refer to studying that which transcends physics. However, this confusion probably was not "accidental" as it is easy to see the appropriateness of this definition as it relates to the subjects studied by Metaphysics.
Metaphysics is defined in most dictionaries as a branch of philosophy that concerned with the nature of being, existence, and reality.
In today’s world, however, the word metaphysics is used to describe many fields of interest and can refer to any of the following: Meditation, Mindfulness, Personal Development, Yoga, Psychology, Transpersonal and Theocentric Psychology, Astrology, New Thought, Self-Help Studies, Spiritual Healing, Positive Thinking, Life After Death, ESP, Science of Mind, Law of Attraction, Dreams, Transcendentalism, Mysticism, Philosophy, Religion, and many other subjects. Sometimes this is referred to as special metaphysics.
In its absolute sense, Metaphysics explores the basic questions of life, such as the relationship of a human, consciousness, and the Universe; and attempts to answers the fundamental questions such as: “Who am I? Where am I coming from and where am I going? What is the nature of Reality? What is the purpose of life? Is there God? In this context metaphysics is synonymous to spirituality and mysticism, and sometimes these words are used interchangeably.
Metaphysics is defined in most dictionaries as a branch of philosophy that concerned with the nature of being, existence, and reality.
In today’s world, however, the word metaphysics is used to describe many fields of interest and can refer to any of the following: Meditation, Mindfulness, Personal Development, Yoga, Psychology, Transpersonal and Theocentric Psychology, Astrology, New Thought, Self-Help Studies, Spiritual Healing, Positive Thinking, Life After Death, ESP, Science of Mind, Law of Attraction, Dreams, Transcendentalism, Mysticism, Philosophy, Religion, and many other subjects. Sometimes this is referred to as special metaphysics.
In its absolute sense, Metaphysics explores the basic questions of life, such as the relationship of a human, consciousness, and the Universe; and attempts to answers the fundamental questions such as: “Who am I? Where am I coming from and where am I going? What is the nature of Reality? What is the purpose of life? Is there God? In this context metaphysics is synonymous to spirituality and mysticism, and sometimes these words are used interchangeably.
How can practicing Metaphysics improve our lives?
Metaphysical living, as described in this work is based on the truth of the spiritual reality of our Existence. Meaning that there is an inherent intelligence in the creative dynamics of the Universe, which is referred to in different traditions as God, Divine Cosmos, Universal Mind, the Tao. This means that we humans possess this innate intelligence within ourselves - seen in the workings of our body and experienced as consciousness in our mind. As we recognize our essence as spiritual beings having
a "physical" experience as part of the ever-morphing substance of the cosmos, we start to live from this awareness. This realization gives us the freedom to live the full potential of our soul. While acknowledging the limitations of our human expression, we no longer define ourselves based on the shape of our body, the color of our skin, our history, our status in the society, or any beliefs we inherited from people around us. Becoming free of these falsities, we start living from the Truth.
a "physical" experience as part of the ever-morphing substance of the cosmos, we start to live from this awareness. This realization gives us the freedom to live the full potential of our soul. While acknowledging the limitations of our human expression, we no longer define ourselves based on the shape of our body, the color of our skin, our history, our status in the society, or any beliefs we inherited from people around us. Becoming free of these falsities, we start living from the Truth.
By studying and implementing the metaphysical principles in our daily lives, we more easily release distorted perceptions, limiting beliefs, and inefficient behaviors to create a more joyful and satisfying life. This applies to all dimensions of our being - mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual: and all the areas of our human expression - health, relationships, finances, and spirituality. Once we start living from our Truth, we align ourselves with and open the channels to the infinite divine intelligence, so it can work through us, unimpeded. We realize that life is not happening to us, but is being expressed as us. This is the art and science of Authentic Living.
Metaphysics and Neuroscience
Neuroscience studies the structure and the function of the nervous system and the brain. It deals with the anatomy, biochemistry, neurons, and neuronal circuits, as well as their cognitive and behavioral functions. With the emergence of new powerful technologies such as fMRI, PET, and SPECT, the scientists are now able to get a glimpse into the workings of the most complex piece of equipment in the known universe. It contains 1.1 trillion cells, including 100 billion neurons, which communicate with each other by sending signals (bits of information) using neurotransmitters telling them to fire or not. Each neuron receives about 5000 connections and fires from 5 to 50 times a second. Unquestionably, this 3-pound organ, with a consistency of tofu, is the most sophisticated machinery we ever encountered, and according to scientists, is responsible for all of our life experiences. Or is it?
But what about all the "psi" phenomena that this model does not explain? Typically these are dismissed as impossible, ridiculed, or completely ignored by mainstream science: telepathy, clairvoyance, remote viewing, psychic healing, ESP or extrasensory perception, psychokinesis, and other related phenomena, such as poltergeist, reincarnation, OBE or out-of-body experience, NDE or near-death experience, etc. In addition to that thousands of experiments have been done in laboratory settings to investigate the "paranormal" phenomena with consistent, positive results. Is modern science missing something really important?
Linking the infinite and the finite
What if our brain is more like an instrument, an interface between the infinite nature of our being - our soul or spirit and our "physical" body? Many prominent scientists proposed similar ideas. David Eagleman in his book "Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain," after describing the finest details of workings of our brain from the purely scientific viewpoint, suggests considering the idea of a "radio theory." He invites us to imagine a Kalahari Bushman who stumbles upon a transistor radio in the desert. He picks it up, turns the knobs, and suddenly, a voice starts streaming out of the strange little box. Curious about how this happens, he opens the cover and finds several colored wires. He starts pulling the wires, looking for the source of the sound. Disconnecting one of the wires makes the voice stop, and reconnecting makes it start again. Pulling out another wire causes the voice to get distorted while removing the other one reduces it to a whisper. After playing with the strange little box for awhile he comes to a conclusion: the wires cause the voices. Inspired by his discovery, he decides to spend his life studying the wires that magically cause voices. He accepts this to be the only possible reality as the fact that there are radio towers somewhere transmitting radio waves signals that are being captured by the little box is not even something he can imagine. So he becomes a radio materialist, never even realizing the whole picture. Eagleman concludes that, while this may or may not be true, there is nothing in our current science to rule this out.
Theoretical physicist Tom Campbell in his trilogy "My Big TOE" (My Big Theory of Everything), in which he describes the universe as a virtual reality, compares our existence to a multi-player video game where our soul is the "player" and our temporary physical body is the "avatar" in the game. In this model our brain will be seen as the instrument - the remote control, the keyboard or the joystick, with which the player operates the character he or she is playing. Continuing this analogy, we can hypothesize that if something happens in the mechanism of the technology (our brain) to distort or interrupt the flow of information, it may have detrimental consequences for the character, but the "player" will stay intact. In other words, when the game is over for the avatar, the player moves on to starting a new game with a new avatar, as for him or her this was just another experience. Very much like reincarnation. Unlike the remote control that is working only in one direction - feeding information/direction for action to the avatar, our brain also gathers data from the world through our senses. This is a full feedback/feedforward loop that is an essential aspect of any intelligent, self-organizing system.
Theoretical physicist Tom Campbell in his trilogy "My Big TOE" (My Big Theory of Everything), in which he describes the universe as a virtual reality, compares our existence to a multi-player video game where our soul is the "player" and our temporary physical body is the "avatar" in the game. In this model our brain will be seen as the instrument - the remote control, the keyboard or the joystick, with which the player operates the character he or she is playing. Continuing this analogy, we can hypothesize that if something happens in the mechanism of the technology (our brain) to distort or interrupt the flow of information, it may have detrimental consequences for the character, but the "player" will stay intact. In other words, when the game is over for the avatar, the player moves on to starting a new game with a new avatar, as for him or her this was just another experience. Very much like reincarnation. Unlike the remote control that is working only in one direction - feeding information/direction for action to the avatar, our brain also gathers data from the world through our senses. This is a full feedback/feedforward loop that is an essential aspect of any intelligent, self-organizing system.
What does this nature of communication between the infinite and the finite mean in metaphysics? Here, in this teaching, we describe the Universe as one mind, implying that it is conscious, intelligent, and aware. In their recent paper "The Unified Spacememory Network: from Cosmogenesis to Consciousness" Nassim Haramein and William Brown from Resonance Science Foundation proposed that the Universe is made of information bits - Planck Spherical Units (PSU) which are the "pixels" our reality is made of. This information is holographically connected through the entire Cosmos non-locally by micro wormholes, creating one intelligent self-organizing system, constantly evolving to higher levels of complexity and order. It is done by exchanging information through feedback/feedforward interactions on many scales in a holographic and fractal manner
In their book "Why God Won't go Away," Andrew Newberg, M.D. and Eugene d'Aquili, M.D., after conducting numerous experiments with participation of long-time meditators, such as Buddhist monks,
Franciscan nuns, and other religious and spiritual practitioners, came to the inescapable conclusion that "God is hard-wired into the human brain."
This statement can be interpreted in two ways: that mystical experiences are nothing more than a consequence of biochemical processes that
were given a meaning in a spiritual context (standard model); or indeed, our desire to connect with God, the Creator or Universal Intelligence is inherent in our consciousness as the emanations from that source (Metaphysics, new science).
Franciscan nuns, and other religious and spiritual practitioners, came to the inescapable conclusion that "God is hard-wired into the human brain."
This statement can be interpreted in two ways: that mystical experiences are nothing more than a consequence of biochemical processes that
were given a meaning in a spiritual context (standard model); or indeed, our desire to connect with God, the Creator or Universal Intelligence is inherent in our consciousness as the emanations from that source (Metaphysics, new science).
Our Subconscious Mind
If everything is information and our brain is an information processing and transmitting equipment, how are the two connected? Raymond Charles Barker calls our subconscious mind the function of the Universal Mind. Our mind does not only communicate with our body, telling it what to do but also constantly interacts with the Mind of the Cosmos. As the subset of that One Mind, it is a part of its feedback/feedforward loop and always "participates" in its process of creation. Why is our subconscious mind crucial in creating our life? Our subconscious beliefs make up 90-95% of all our thinking. They determine not just our thoughts, but also our emotions and actions, and we don't know what most of them are. As Carl Jung said "Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life, and you will call it fate." While our conscious thoughts are more easily managed, it's not enough. That's why many people who are trying to change their thinking are doing it from this level only with little or no success. If we are not satisfied with the life we create for ourselves we need to look deeper into our mind for the reasons. Our conscious mind is only "on" when we are focused or aware of our thinking, which in neuroscience is called meta-cognition; while our subconscious (in some models called the unconscious) is never "off" and is perpetually broadcasting our thought-information, even while we are asleep.
How do we change our subconscious? "Rewiring" our brain is possible because of neuroplasticity - the ability of the adult brain to generate and integrate new brain cells (neurons) and remodel pre-existing neural circuits. Everything we think, feel, and do is transmitted via neural circuits in our brain. Our thoughts, feelings, experiences, and actions have the ability to change and mold the very circuits they travel along. In a sense, our mind shapes our brain. When we repeat thoughts or perform certain behaviors over and over again, new synapses are formed, and existing synapses in particular brain circuits become more efficient and powerfully connected. As neuroscientists say: "neurons that fire together wire together." This is how habitual thinking and habitual behavior is created.
When we consciously choose to think different thoughts and do it repeatedly, we take charge of this structure-building process, changing the neural pathways in our brain - this is self-directed neuroplasticity.
There are many tools and techniques we can implement to achieve this. Visualization is one of the most powerful ways to utilize our imagination for this purpose. The reason visualization works so well in establishing new habits is that the brain does not recognize the difference between the real and the imaginary. It reacts in the same manner, firing the same synapses, reinforcing the same pathways in either case. Done correctly it can lead to incredible results. This is why this technique is so popular with success-oriented people, athletes, businessmen and businesswomen, and performers.
When we change our subconscious beliefs about ourselves, life, and the Universe, and align them with our Truth, it creates harmony and coherence between our thoughts, emotions, and behavior. We start living a vision-driven life. When the thoughts we hold in our subconscious, actions we take in the physical reality, and the vibrations we emanate everywhere we go align with the purpose that Universe "has" for us, our life becomes magical!
How do we change our subconscious? "Rewiring" our brain is possible because of neuroplasticity - the ability of the adult brain to generate and integrate new brain cells (neurons) and remodel pre-existing neural circuits. Everything we think, feel, and do is transmitted via neural circuits in our brain. Our thoughts, feelings, experiences, and actions have the ability to change and mold the very circuits they travel along. In a sense, our mind shapes our brain. When we repeat thoughts or perform certain behaviors over and over again, new synapses are formed, and existing synapses in particular brain circuits become more efficient and powerfully connected. As neuroscientists say: "neurons that fire together wire together." This is how habitual thinking and habitual behavior is created.
When we consciously choose to think different thoughts and do it repeatedly, we take charge of this structure-building process, changing the neural pathways in our brain - this is self-directed neuroplasticity.
There are many tools and techniques we can implement to achieve this. Visualization is one of the most powerful ways to utilize our imagination for this purpose. The reason visualization works so well in establishing new habits is that the brain does not recognize the difference between the real and the imaginary. It reacts in the same manner, firing the same synapses, reinforcing the same pathways in either case. Done correctly it can lead to incredible results. This is why this technique is so popular with success-oriented people, athletes, businessmen and businesswomen, and performers.
When we change our subconscious beliefs about ourselves, life, and the Universe, and align them with our Truth, it creates harmony and coherence between our thoughts, emotions, and behavior. We start living a vision-driven life. When the thoughts we hold in our subconscious, actions we take in the physical reality, and the vibrations we emanate everywhere we go align with the purpose that Universe "has" for us, our life becomes magical!
