Phenomenology – Mystical or mystifying?

Phenomenology is one of those words that crops up in undergrad sociology and philosophy courses. Whenever I heard it I felt sort of dumb, like when you hear a big word and don’t know what it means. And I think … Continue reading →

Meno

The Meno is Plato‘s celebrated dialogue in which his theory of knowledge as “recollection” is forwarded. Plato believed in reincarnation and the idea that individuals possess an all-knowing, immortal soul. According to Plato, the trauma of being born causes amnesia … Continue reading →

Looking through a glass darkly – The paranormal, normal and bias

The Latin prefix para means beside or beyond. Like the word supernatural, paranormal refers to any phenomenon that eludes explanation through normal science or conventional wisdom. Paranormal can be a misleading term because what is ‘normal’ is open to debate … Continue reading →

Ramanuja – Hindu sage likened to St. Thomas Aquinas

Ramanuja (1017-1137 CE) was a leading Hindu philosopher born in the Brahmin caste. Legend has it that he learned the Vedas when he was a baby, only eight days old.¹ Ramanuja was influential to the Bhakti movement, which favors devotion over … Continue reading →

Plato’s Republic – A far-reaching attempt to understand life and eternity

The Republic is a political, philosophical and literary work by the ancient Greek Plato. Written in dialog form around 380 BCE, it reads more like a play than a dry treatise on philosophy, maths, political theory or the arts. Plato writes … Continue reading →

Representation – A subtle power for good or ill

In the literary and artistic sense, representation refers to depicting a psychological, social, natural, political or spiritual idea or condition through language, music, visual art, multimedia, CGI or dance. In the sciences, abstract ideas like numbers and their interrelationships are represented … Continue reading →

The Belief in Reincarnation – Man-Made Theory or Sacred Truth?

Also called metempsychosis and transmigration, reincarnation is a man-made theory usually presented as fact or sacred law by believers. Elements of the theory can be found in diverse religions and philosophies, including ancient Greek, Egyptian, Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, Jain, African … Continue reading →

Reaction Formation – A neurotic response to fear

In Sigmund Freud‘s psychoanalytic theory, reaction formation is a defense mechanism in which a repressed, socially unacceptable impulse is expressed in an exaggerated, opposite way. The original impulse, perceived as bad or anxiety producing, remains unresolved in its unconscious, infantile form. This … Continue reading →

Remote Viewing – True, False or Underground?

The term ‘Remote Viewing’ (RV) was coined by Russell Targ and Harold Puthoff. RV is the alleged ability to internally perceive objects and events at a distance beyond the range of the normal senses. Remote Viewers (RVers) usually say they … Continue reading →

Synchronicity – A concept that may become increasingly important in our emerging quantum worldview

Synchronicity is a term coined by the Swiss psychiatrist Carl G. Jung to represent the idea of meaningful coincidence. Implicit to Jung’s idea of synchronicity is the belief that all of creation is somehow interconnected, not only through space but also … Continue reading →