Mindfulness, spirituality, science

Mindfulness, a state of awakened awareness, is the goal of many meditative practices. It is claimed to help you see the true nature of the universe. Concentration on the present moment and non-judgemental observation are also key to see things as they are.

Differentiating between things and events and your reactions to them, creating a space between your emotions and your self may help better understand the world around you.

These ideas are promoted by Eastern spiritual traditions living their revival in Western culture today. Many of their practitioners contrast meditative observation with modern science. They claim that Western science cannot grasp the true nature of things. Why? Because it lacks the non-judgemental observational approach of the East. I believe they miss the point of both spirituality and science.

Western thinking today links the notion of mindfulness and the practice of meditation to Buddhism. But we forgot that meditation has always had a place in Western sacred practices. This disregard of our own spiritual roots blended with our passion to seek meaning turned us towards Eastern spirituality.

The same ignorance leads many people to a false conclusion. They regard the wholistic way of the East as superior to the scientific method of the West. Mindfulness, they say, goes beyond science. Rational thinking has its limits. But people achieving awakened awareness can see clearly.

But this approach confuses mindfulness with mysticism. It replaces enlightenment with a religious ecstasy and euphoria. Mindfulness is being able to see things as they are. Being aware of our limitations and biases and separating our environment and our reactions to it is the essence of mindfulness.

How can we understand the world better? How can we be less judgmental and more correct in our observations of our inner or outer world? First, we need to be aware and understand our biases. Francis Bacon grouped our biases into four categories, which he called idols. The four groups of idols are idols of the tribe, idols of the cave, idols of the market place, and idols of the theater.

Idols of the tribe lie deep in human nature itself. They are related to our false belief that human sense is the measure of things. Idols of the cave are biases specific to an individual and related to our earlier experiences, education, and beliefs we developed over the years. Idols of the market place are coming from human interactions including language and our limitations to describe things with words having ambiguous and differing meanings to each individual. The final group, the idols of the theater are biases coming from philosophical dogmas and faulty reasoning we hold true often without questioning.

Bacon’s idols should sound familiar to mindfulness practitioners. These are the same biases we pursue to drop when practicing non-judgemental observation of the self or the outside world.

Francis Bacon introduced these idols in his main opus, The Novum Organum. It was the book considered lying the principles of the modern scientific approach. Bacon argued that because of the flaws of human mind, we need a framework of discipline. We need to base our discoveries on observations. We can make theories, but we need to prove them by experiments. He contrasted this approach with the classical approach based on reasoning and deduction.

Bacon’s approach is interchangeable with what we call mindfulness today. So if mindfulness is spiritual than science is the quintessential spirituality. In science, you leave your ego behind to see things as they are instead of how would you like them to be. The goal and role of the scientific method is to push the idols away to sharpen your vision. If spirituality is seeing clearly, then science and spirituality are the same.

There is an inconvenience in this truth. If the mindful way and the scientific approach are the same, how can you achieve mindfulness without understanding nuclear physics? This question misses the point. No human being can excel in all sciences and achieve enlightenment by understanding the universe that way. The key idea of enlightenment is being able to leave your ego behind and be humble when you look at the universe. The key insight is that even though you are the same and you create your own universe in your mind to model reality, complete comprehension is beyond you.

Enlightenment is the recognition of two facts. First, you cannot rule the universe as you cannot fully comprehend it. Second, you can always understand your problem at hand by observation and pushing your false beliefs, your idols aside.