https://issuu.com/aneisdevida/docs/april_2017/72
Monday, April 3, 2017
Monday, March 13, 2017
Psychic and self-development
Psychic and self-development
Dr. Jimmy Henderson
Introduction
I know that there are many
people who are very cautious or are ‘sitting on the fence’ when it comes to
topics like psychic development and metaphysics, and I think this is due to the
fact that these fields have received bad press by using their own jargon such
as ‘connecting’, ‘channeling’ and ‘5th dimensional portals’ which sound
very mysterious and strange to those who are not part of such groups or circles.
So what I really want to do is de-mystify some ideas on psychic development and
metaphysics by linking them to the normal process of human self-development and
the scientific and psychological research which underlies this development.
A simple
definition of metaphysics would be the study and
practice of principles relating to the mind and reality which extend beyond our
everyday understanding. This means a more universal and expanded framework of
thinking than is currently taught in learning institutions.
I have made the statement
that psychic or ‘spiritual” growth could be seen as linked to a natural process
of self-development, having a gradual learning curve and being part of a
continuum of growth which involves mastering new skills relating to feelings, thinking
and perception. If we accept that we all have a higher, more spiritual and
moral side (sometimes called the higher or authentic self in psychology), this
could be seen as similar to a process of self-actualisation, and both personal
growth and metaphysics could be seen as having the aim of achieving this
self-actualisation.
Of course, metaphysics does
present teachings which contain a number of ‘different’ views or ideas on life,
death and what supposedly happens after death, some of which may seem radical,
and you may argue that these ideas are simply another set of dogmatic beliefs.
However, there is an important difference, in that metaphysics encourages free thought and provides
an open-ended exploration of self and reality directed at the development of
consciousness, in which each person is urged to find his or her own path. Truth
is discovered in the heart by those who are sincere in their search, and each is
allowed to decide this for him or herself.
To substantiate my earlier
statement that psychic development can be linked to self-development, it will
be seen that in most metaphysical teachings, similar to courses or coaching in
personal development, each person is encouraged to deal with important emotional
and psychological obstacles to growth, including repressed emotions, self-defeating
thoughts and beliefs and closed paradigms of thinking. I personally do not
believe that it is possible to achieve self-actualisation when one is caught in
a web of fear-based thoughts and habits based on unpleasant experiences and memories
from the past.
Self-exploration
(IQ) (Intelligence Quotient)
Metaphysical practices are
aimed at self-introspection, emotional and psychological change and the
learning of new skills designed to unleash the true creative power of the mind,
build new levels of confidence and self-understanding and develop the latent
abilities which we all have.
It is a well-known fact
that meditation improves mindfulness and increases creativity. At the beginning
of the development curve or continuum, metaphysics introduces practices such as
meditation and visualisation for the purpose of self-exploration and self-empowerment,
radically increasing mindfulness, producing a greater depth of understanding,
deeper self-knowledge and the improvement of one’s self-image and self-esteem
through self-acceptance. In this way these practices fulfill the same role as
coaching or counselling.
Emotional
development (EQ) (Emotional Quotient)
The next part of the curve
would involve achieving a degree of emotional
wellness, or emotional intelligence, which means developing empathy for
others, identifying and managing our own emotions, and attaining a degree of emotional
resilience to day-to-day challenges which may be stressful. A period of emotional
healing is also necessary, during which we let go of lingering emotions from
the past such as anger and resentment, and learn to forgive others as well as ourselves for past mistakes. This would
apply to normal human development as well as training in metaphysics.
When it comes to emotional
wellness, meditation is a recognised practice in some forms of therapy. It has
also been shown to be useful as a means of de-stressing, as well as increasing
the sense of control and self-mastery, which is certainly related to
self-development.
Heightened
levels of empathy that accompany an improved emotional intelligence (EQ) would
correspond to an increased moral sense, which could also be related to
metaphysical practices, which emphasise the brotherhood of man and the aspect
of service to mankind.
The
development of the mind
.
Metaphysical practices also
demand a clear and open mind. This means having to deal with outdated ideas,
self-limiting beliefs and unwanted emotional ‘debris’ from the past, and ‘shifting
gears’ to more universal or holistic patterns of thinking. Both self-development
and metaphysics encourage this clearing or healing process, as well as the
adopting of a more flexible framework of ideas which allows us to process and assimilate new insights and experiences.
The
development of spiritual development or spiritual intelligence (SQ)
(Spiritual
Quotient)
However, by its very
nature, metaphysics extends beyond normal day-to-day self-development to include
building a relationship with our subconscious minds, which will provide the
underlying power for advanced new skills such as heightened sense perception, intuition,
psychic sight and realisation of the higher self or soul. This meeting/ merging
with the true human identity could be viewed as self-actualisation, and be seen
as the apex of the developmental curve, or end of the self-development
continuum.
Conclusion
The process of psychic and spiritual
development as introduced in metaphysics follows a path similar to normal human
self-development, but extends this process to include the highest possible levels
of self-realisation. In this way it could be seen to have a foundation in human
psychology and developmental processes.
Dr Jimmy Henderson is a cognitive scientist,
philosopher and metaphysician. He has been involved in the study of the Mind
and Spirit for over thirty years as a member of the Rosicrucian Order (AMORC),
and has written a number of books and e-books on self-development and the power
of the mind. His website is www.discoveringyourself.co.za
Sunday, March 5, 2017
A new view of spiritual development
A new view of spiritual development
Jimmy Henderson (Ph.D) F.R.C
In
my previous article I proposed a new theory of the human soul as the complete
and perfect essence of each human formed (created) in a Universal Mind. In this
case, the existence of a Universal Mind I derived from the idea of a collective
unconscious described by Carl Jung, as well as the notion
of a universal consciousness, which, according to some quantum physicists,
is said to be at the basis of the entire universe. The perfection of the soul
itself I linked to Plato’s idea of the world of ‘ideal forms’,
which he believed provides the templates for everything in existence. As a
result, I expect some questions as to what would be the point, purpose and
process of spiritual development if human souls are already, in essence, perfect
and complete.
I
also mentioned that the soul brings with it, the principle of consciousness, which,
in this case, is severely limited by biological and instinctual structures set by
the DNA of the human body. In other words, spiritual evolution could be linked
to an unfolding consciousness, and seen as the gradual mastery of the human
soul over basic animal (even reptilian) drives, instincts and destructive urges
derived from earlier evolutionary stages of the human body. In religious terms,
this could be seen as the metaphorical “battle between good and evil”.
An analogy for this process would be that of an insect which has a larval stage during which it struggles for survival and later emerges from a chrysalis having evolved into an adult. It is interesting to note that in the larval stage the insect is very primitive and destructive. Only later, as it matures and the outer casing (chrysalis) falls away, does the inner being emerge, which is more perfect.
However, dealing with the primal urges is not the end of the process. Once we have learnt to manage the early irrational energies to some extent, (this would probably take us into adulthood), we are still left to undo the many years of conditioning linked to outdated modes of education and societal ‘programs’, and also challenge our own fears, misperceptions and the many misguided beliefs which have led to the creation of the false sense of self commonly known as the ‘ego’. This programming has so entangled the pathways of our adult minds as to block the emergence of the soul, the authentic human self.
To conclude, if viewed in this manner, spiritual development is actually quite a natural and practical process, being simply the attempts of the authentic self (soul) to ‘reform’ the lower state of being.
However, we also know that the lower human drives and instincts have been imbedded in our DNA for millennia, and the question now arises as to how the final emergence of the soul could ever be possible. Fortunately, there is new scientific evidence that DNA can actually be altered by powerful emotional experiences, and hopefully we can evolve to a fuller expression of the soul by consciously releasing destructive emotions such as hatred, selfishness and greed and replacing them with emotions such as compassion and love.
Dr Jimmy Henderson is a cognitive scientist, philosopher and metaphysician. He has been involved in the study of the Mind and Spirit for over thirty years as a member of the Rosicrucian Order (AMORC), and has written a number of books and e-books on self-development and the power of the mind. His website is www.discoveringyourself.co.za
Friday, February 3, 2017
Soul evolution; a fallacy or a reality?
Dr. Jimmy Henderson
Introduction
Many ancient metaphysical texts
maintain that the soul or spiritual essence of a person passes through stages
of evolution in the mineral, vegetable and animal kingdoms to emerge only later
as a human soul. As a cognitive scientist and a metaphysician, this idea seems
outdated in the light of human psychology. This article looks at arguments
against the ancient view of the evolution of the soul and introduces a new
theory based on recent research in the human sciences.
The
earlier view
Very early teachings on what is
sometimes called ‘the transmigration of
the soul’, maintain that the human soul (as the true spiritual essence of a
human being), can pass through a variety of forms, both human and animal. These
texts suggest that the human soul had an embryonic stage during which it passed
through earlier levels of consciousness represented by the mineral, vegetable
and animal kingdoms. In other words, they maintain that the human consciousness
could, at an earlier stage, have been submerged in lower forms of life.
However, philosophically, as well as
in terms of the natural and human sciences, this view leads to a number of
serious problems. :
For instance, apart from the ludicrous
implication that a human being could earlier have been a piece of rock, a
carrot or even the rabbit eating the carrot, the concept of a ‘human’ soul
applies to a human form. When
discussing other lower forms of life, it would be more accurate to rather speak
of mineral, vegetable or animal souls
than to use the concept of a human soul. However, even this is a misnomer, as
one of the attributes of a soul in metaphysics is that it brings with it the
dimension of consciousness (or
self-awareness), which, in terms of natural science, applies more to humans
than to the other natural ‘kingdoms’.
Then there is the issue of separate
and distinct personalities, which takes place only at the level of complex life
as represented by humans and some higher animals. As it is clear from the
natural sciences that plants and insects have more of a collective mind or
hive-mentality, we have problems explaining what how a separate human soul with
a specific, complex personality can evolve from a collective consciousness.
However, these inconsistencies disappear
if the idea of evolution is applied only to the development of the human body
itself, as the problems only emerge when we link evolution to the human soul
itself, which, according to metaphysics, is the higher, authentic essence of a
human being.
Being more authentic (that is, closer in form to its origin), and higher up on
the ‘consciousness scale’ than the body, it stands to reason that the soul
should be more perfect and complete, and be a sort of a ‘template’ for the
human being. As a result, I believe that the notion of the soul evolving from
an earlier embryonic stage through the different natural ‘kingdoms’, is a very
limited and outdated view.
A new view based on science
and human psychology
A new approach based on current
research in cognitive science can resolve many of these inconsistencies.
The first clue is provided by the
Jungian notion of archetypes,
which exist within
the human unconscious mind as collections of energies representing certain
aspects of personality. For example, the archetype of the ‘inner child’
represents the original childlike innocence often repressed during adulthood,
and the ‘nurturer’ archetype encompasses
the protective feelings of compassion, nurturing and the mothering instinct
normally found in women.
These archetypes often find expression in human
behaviour.
Another area of psychological research
has identified cognitive (mental) structures called schemas, pre-existing patterns derived from earlier experiences
which are active during thinking and perception. Different types of schemas
exist, and research has shown that object-schemas
provide templates for the recognition, classification and categorisation of
objects in the mind.
At this point we need to consider the
view of reality as suggested by quantum physicists, in which we are all said to
live in a universe of consciousness
and our individual minds represent ‘quanta’ derived from this single
consciousness. From this information we can see that it is quite possible that,
if our own minds mirror the universal consciousness, archetypes and schemas
could also exist in a universal ‘Mind’, including ‘human‘ archetypes or ‘schemas’
representing the original template for human beings. Being archetypal, these
forms would represent the whole of
which they are a part, and could thus be seen in terms of philosophy as ‘ideal
forms’ (Plato[H1] ), in metaphysics as human souls, and
even in religious terms as (creations in) the image of God. These ‘souls’ would
all differ, as does the content of archetypes in the human mind.
This theory of human templates or
souls being formed from one universal essence means that any evolution of these
forms is unnecessary, as they are ideal and complete, awaiting only the birth
of human physical forms which are sufficiently complex and matched so as to act
as vehicles for their incarnation.
According to this approach, evolution
would apply only to the human body, thus eliminating all the logical problems
associated with the idea of the evolution of the soul through the earthly
mineral, vegetable and animal kingdoms. This theory also supports the idea that
the human soul does not evolve, but is complete and perfect when formed, and
only experiences a loss of consciousness when entering the human physical and
cognitive systems, as is already argued in most metaphysical teachings.
Dr. Jimmy Henderson is a
cognitive scientist, philosopher and metaphysician with a holistic and
integrated view of life. His books are available on Amazon.com and are also
available through his website www.discoveringyourself.co.za
Thursday, February 2, 2017
The development of religious concepts and ideas
My latest article in the Aneis de Vida magazine
https://issuu.com/aneisdevida/docs/february_2017/60
The development of religious concepts and ideas
Thursday, December 1, 2016
Synesthesia
Here is the link to my latest article on Synesthesia
https://issuu.com/aneisdevida/docs/december_2016/58
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
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