Taking the Woo-Woo Out of It.

 As a physicist, and therefore as a man who spent his whole life in the service of the most down-to-earth science, namely the exploration of matter, no one is going to take me for a starr -eyed dreamer. After all my exploration of the atom, then, let me tell you this: there is no matter as such. All matter arises and exists only by virtue of a force that sets the atomic particles oscillating, and holds them together in that tiniest of solar systems, the atom...we must suppose, behind this force, a conscious, intelligent spirit. The spirit is the ultimate orgin of matter. 

Max Planck, 1944

I know I talk about things here that many would deem as woo-woo and me crazy, blasphemous, or silly for speaking about such things. I consider myself to have a scientific mind...I like to reason, and come up with rational answers for why things are occuring. Yet, here I am pulled by some invisible force to explore and understand this "conscious, intelligent spirit" from which all matter originates.

Yeah, I have some deep seated conditioning in me as well...I still question if it is all pretty woo-woo too.  My ego tells me that I am absolutely crazy for doing this.  Yet, I am compelled to write and explore these ideas I share here. Why?

 Sometimes, I think I come here with the somewhat reluctant and involuntary  mission of taking the woo-woo out of a truth we are failing to see. 

Let's look at the history of the "woo-woo". ( Will focus on European and North American "Woo-woo") 

At one point of human existence the connection to that which could not be seen was natural and expected.  It was the most important element in life for our ancestors. Spirituality directed people to act and live a certain way.  It was "normal".  There was nothing "woo-woo" about it.  

Churches came in to control that blind faith, creating blind obedience, not to that direct connection we once had but to the system directing that faith. 

Though there were people experimenting  from the beginning, exploring the natural world with scientific thought...science  was considered "woo-woo" and even worthy of being put to death for, up until a few centuries ago. Then as time evolved, scientific thought continued to evolve and it began to pull people from that "blind" belief...and got them to question and to focus more  on the materiality of existence than the etheral. Societies were slowly but surely being  pulled from their remaining direct connections with the spiritual, and the blind adherence to their religions...just a bit. One without the other, however, was considered "woo-woo".  

Emotionality and art...contemplation of the personal mind became a thing. We see amazing artists, poets, and philosophers emerging with these wonderful representations of the individual  human experience, arising from the divine with their art and ideas. These leaders worked with both faith and science. ( Look at Michelangelo and da Vinci...both were amazing artists and amazing scientists). Blind faith was then considered woo-woo...science by itself was considered  woo-woo; art by itself was  considered woo-woo...but if it all worked together (under the direction of the church)  than it wasn't.

Then came this greater pull of science (after Newton, than Darwin) into a deeper state of materialism pulling the collective thought away ( to some degree) from what was taught by religious organizations. Darwinian thought was at first considered very, very "woo-woo" when it first developed but slowly but surely it was accepted by the scientific community and then by society at large ( to some degree...never completed accepted by certain religions). The church, religion, and spirituality lost its grip, to some extent, on society.  

Industry was developed.  The industrial age pulled people into this blind need for productivity above the old devotion to forces that could not be seen. Religion was still there, controlling state and human minds to some degree, but the "spirituality" seemed to be stripped from it. There was also little room for emotionality, artistic expression and creativity (which are facets of spiritual connection) because they  got in the way of what we could produce in terms of product and capitol. The physical body...needed to produce...became the be all and the end all. Meeting its needs, keeping it pleased and happy etc  was promoted as the thing to do and humans began to identify themselves with their bodies at the exclusion of emotion and spirit. Physicians became the mini-gods and artists, emotional beings, those who still saw or were connected to the spiritual were locked away. (Bedlam)

Even the mind and the emotional heart was excluded from the picture. It was "woo-woo" to be inspired by something deeper than the body, that collective need for productivity. Being pulled into your artistic inspirations, being expressive with your emotions especially your vulnerable ones that might get in the way of your productivity, and connecting to the invisible realm that once guided all humans so directly was  still "woo-woo"...was very, very woo-woo. Even psychology, up to a few years ago was a "woo-woo" science.  It  still is to some degree. People were, and still are,  ashamed of the need for emotional and mental support...for recognizing those dimensions of being within themselves. There was a "woo-woo" stigma attached to seeking help in these areas. It was perfectly okay to go to a doctor for the body but to go to a "shrink" for the mind or emotion..."woo-woo". Imagine, then. what it was/is like to seek help for the spirit.

Religion has lost so much of its control to science and industry over the years. People who are connected to their faiths now, who push aside the findings of science, or the need for productivity, who are said to be very religious or those that put their faith first are also considered "woo-woo". 

There were always people who remained directly connected, for one reason or another, to the spiritual realm as the societies of the world changed over time, even if they didn't practice a particularly acceptable religion.  These people were not only ridiculed for their connection to the  "woo-woo" but were punished over the centuries for that connection, even put to death. Yet, there were always spiritual people who seen beyond the cultural beliefs of their times...who were directly connected to something bigger that could not be seen by most. Yes...when they shared what they were understanding or even experiencing to be truth...they and what they shared were definitely slapped with big "woo-woo" labels.

Society was terrified of the unknown.

 In the late 1800's and 1920's we see a subtle shift away from condemning ...to a questioning and a wanting to believe. We have Vivekananda and then Yogananada teaching yoga in Europe and North America, Allan Kardec and then Edgar Cayce  researching and sharing the findings of their research. Something shifted, albeit not greatly, with the "spiritualism movement." 

Then in the 1970's we have a physician (a scientist and researcher)  Raymond Moodie with his findings on near death experiences blowing away main stream thought. We have an American Physicist by the name of David Bohm exploring consciousness. We have Edgar Mitchell coming back from a space expedition an awakened human and starting IONS- the Institue of Noetic Sciences. We have a psychiatrist, Brian Weis,  accidently uncovering the past lives of a client and a whole field of Past Life Regression therapy beginning.  

In the 1900's a field of science  emerged called Quantum Physics or Qauntumn Mechanics. We have so many "scientists" now exploring the invisible realms of existence, and some delving into consciousness and this spiritual connection. Most importantly we have science discovering that all matter emerges from the invisible...from wavelets of energy.  Hmm! 

Is this really woo-woo then?

Think about it!

All is well.