Welcome to “Healing From Within.” I am your host Sheryl Glick author of
The Living Spirit Answers for Healing and Infinite Love which shares
stories of spiritual awakening spiritual communication, healing
energies, miracles and a way to put together in your thoughts an
understanding of the physical and spiritual life for a clearer awareness
of the Oneness of our Being. I am delighted to welcome Steve Taylor
author of Spiritual Science a book that offers a new vision of the
world: one that is compatible with both modern science and ancient
spiritual teachings and is supported by the insights of philosophers,
physicists, mystics, as well as spiritual traditions and indigenous
cultures.
As listeners of the show are well aware Sheryl and her guests share
intimate stories and insights that guide us to remember the history of
creation, humanity, and eternal life forces, so we may access the laws
of nature man and spirit, to create our best version of life, here and
now, as we also refine the nature of our soul through self investigation
and self mastery of our emotions, thoughts, actions, and choices.
In today’s episode of “Healing From Within” I applaud Steve Taylor’s
approach to merging science and spirituality, as I believe, life cannot
be understood or lived in accordance for true personal growth without
putting the pieces of both disciplines together. Steve who is a
scientist himself, a psychologist based at Leeds Beckett University in
the UK, presents a great deal of evidence that psychic phenomena does
not contravene science, and will share how consciousness is not produced
by the brain and does not come to an end when our bodies die, helping us
be open to the possibility of some form of life after death.
Steve shares how his ordinary family of beer loving and soccer
enthusiasts weren’t really interested in the search for understanding
life in an intimate and intuitive fashion and he felt somewhat saddened
by this mediocre existence but he had a grandfather who was different
and loved music nature and had a softer sensitive side which appealed to
Steve. This grandfather encouraged Steve to explore his own thoughts and
to make choices that served his highest needs.
Sheryl shares with Steve that she often almost always, has loads of
synchronicity with her guests and tells Steve that her son’s dear friend
since childhood is Steve Taylor. Also the endorsements Steve has
received from Dr. Penny Sartori author of The Wisdom of Near Death
Experiences and Dr Julia Mossbridge author of The Premonition Code have
been guests on the show and listeners may go to Sheryl’s website
www.sherylglick.com to listen to their very interesting insights into
the world of eternal energy and Life.
Two wonderful quotes from these authors share a clear insight into the
true focus of Steve’s book Spiritual Science.
“In this important book, Steve Taylor convincingly argues that the
materialist paradigm has run its course and that the evidence from
anomalous experiences must be acknowledged. Taylor shows how a
panspiritist approach not only eloquently explains anomalous phenomena
but can lead to exciting possibilities for the evolution of humankind
and the planet. These issues affect each one of us; it is time we all
sat up and took note.” Dr Penny Sartori, author of The Wisdom of
Near-Death Experiences
“As I read this book, I kept sighing with relief. At long last, a
thoughtful and accessible treatment of the false divide between science
and spirituality. By exploring a series of puzzles, Taylor shows how the
pieces of our world fit together, if we are willing to take a breath and
look at it anew.”Dr Julia Mossbridge, author of Transcendent Mind and
The Premonition Code
Steve Taylor goes on to describe a common philosophy by most academic
thinkers and Sheryl admits that before she experienced mystical
happenings, became an energy healer/medium she was part of this
conglomerate of thinkers. Steve writes, “As an academic – a researcher
and senior lecturer at a university in the UK – people are often
surprised by my unorthodox views on the nature of life, and of the
world. For example, when I mention to colleagues that I’m open minded
about the possibility of some form of life after death, or that I
believe in the possibility of paranormal phenomena such as telepathy or
precognition, they look at me as if I’ve told them I’m going to give up
academia and become a professional footballer. It’s taken for granted
that if you’re an academic or an intellectual, you don’t entertain such
unusual views. The majority of my colleagues and peers – and most
academics and intellectuals in general – seem to have an orthodox
materialist view of the world. They believe that human consciousness is
produced by the brain, and that when the brain ceases to function
consciousness will end. They believe that phenomena such as telepathy
and precognition belong to a pre-rational superstitious worldview, which
has long been superseded by modern science. They believe that the
evolution of life – and most human behavior – can be completely
explained in terms of principles such as natural selection and
competition for resources. To doubt these beliefs is to be seen as
weak-minded or intellectually gullible. People are even more confused
when I tell them that I’m not religious. “How can you believe in life
after death without being religious?”
It’s my attempt to show that one can be an intellectual and a
rationalist without automatically denying the existence of seemingly
“irrational” phenomena. In fact, I will show that it is actually much
more rational to be open to the existence of such phenomena.
Steve also hopes to show that we don’t just have to choose between an
orthodox materialist view of the world and an orthodox religious view.
Often it is assumed that these are the only two options. Either you
believe in heaven and hell, or you believe that there is no life after
death. Either you believe in a God who overlooks and controls the events
of the world, or you believe that nothing exists apart from chemical
particles and the phenomena – including living beings – that have
accidentally formed out of them. Either God created all life forms, or
they evolved accidentally through random mutations and natural
selection. But this is a false dichotomy. There is an alternative to the
religious and materialist views of reality, which is arguably a more
rational option than both. Broadly, this alternative can be termed
“post-materialism”.1 Post-materialism holds that matter is not the
primary reality of the universe, and that phenomena such as
consciousness or life cannot be wholly explained in biological or
neurological terms.
Steve writes, “Although this is a simple idea, it has a lot of important
corollaries and consequences. Since all things share this common
spiritual essence, there are no separate or distinct entities. As living
beings, we are not separate from each other, or from the world we live
in, since we share the same nature as each other and the world. It also
means that the universe is not an inanimate, empty place, but a living
organism. The whole cosmos is imbued with spirit-force, from the tiniest
particles of matter to the vast, seemingly empty tracts of darkness
between planets and solar systems. Spirituality isn’t often thought of
in an “explanatory” context. Most people believe that it is the role of
science to explain how the world works. But in this book we’ll see that
this simple notion – that there is a fundamental spirit or consciousness
that is ever-present and in everything – has great explanatory power. We
will see that there are many issues that don’t make sense from a
materialist perspective, but which can be easily explained from a
spiritual point of view. I have no wish to criticize the many scientists
– such as marine biologists, climatologists, astronomers or chemical
engineers – who work diligently and valuably without being particularly
concerned with philosophical or metaphysical issues. Science is a method
and process of observing and investigating natural phenomena, and
reaching conclusions about them. It’s a process of uncovering basic
principles of the natural world, and of the universe, or of the biology
of living beings. It’s an open-ended process whose theories are –
ideally – continually tested and updated. And I completely agree that
science has given us many wonderful things. It’s given us amazingly
intricate knowledge of the world and of the human body. It’s given us
vaccinations against diseases that killed our ancestors, and the ability
to heal a massive array of conditions and injuries that would also have
been fatal in the past. It’s given us air travel, space travel and a
whole host of other incredible feats of engineering and technology.
Steve feels immense gratitude to the scientists throughout history who
have made our present understanding of the universe and the world
possible. So why am I so critical of science? you might ask. The answer
is that I’m not critical of science or scientists. I am critical of the
materialistic worldview – or paradigm – that has become so intertwined
with science that many people can’t tell them apart. (Another possible
term for this is scientism, which emphasizes that it is a worldview that
has been extrapolated out of some scientific findings.) Materialism (or
scientism) contains many assumptions and beliefs which have no basis in
fact, but which have authority simply because they are associated with
science.
Steve Taylor goes on to share that we saw that materialist ideas can be
traced back to ancient Greek philosophy, and the same is true of
panspiritism. In fact, panspiritist views were much more common in
ancient Greek thought than materialist ones. The first Greek philosopher
is usually considered to be Thales, who believed that “all things are
full of Gods” and that “the soul is intermingled in the whole universe”.
Another early Greek philosopher, Anaximander, used the term apeiron for
spirit-force, which literally means “boundless” or “infinite”. He
described apeiron as the source from which all forms arise, and to which
they all return. The Stoic philosophers saw mind and matter not as two
different things but as two aspects of the same underlying principle,
which they called logos. Logos – sometimes translated as “God” – was
therefore inherent in all material things.
However, it is important to remember that panspiritism is much more than
a philosophy. More fundamentally, it is experiential. An all-pervading
spirit-force is not just an abstract idea – it is a real quality that
can be directly perceived. Almost every indigenous group in the world
has a term that describes a spiritual force or power that pervades all
things, and constitutes the essence of all things As a medium Sheryl
senses shifts in energy and when in meditation and detached from her
thoughts and worldly interests receives much information that helps
people understand their thoughts and actions in a clearer way as this
connection to Universal energy helps her maneuvers this physical reality
with greater respect for our spiritual gifts of clairvoyance telepathy
psychic knowledge and all things considered to be spiritual gifts.
Steve and Sheryl discuss a known phenomenon of how terminally ill people
can sometimes postpone the time of their passing.Studies show that rates
of mortality decrease prior to culturally significant events like
Christmas or Passover and then increase afterwards.In fact, this
phenomenon has been known for some time. Several studies since the 1980s
have found strange patterns in mortality statistics. One found that
death rates among Jewish men dropped by 25 per cent before Passover, an
event in which they take a lead role. Similarly, researchers looking at
death rates in Chinese women found a 35 per cent decrease in the days
leading up to the Harvest Moon festival. In both cases, there was a
corresponding peak in death rates in the days after the holidays.
In a discussion on near death experiences people who are clinically dead
can apparently witness specific and unusual events later verified by the
medical professional who treat them. Steve and Sheryl are both familiar
with Anita Moorjani author of Dying to Be Me was at the last stage of
life after being treated for cancer and during her near death experience
was able to interact with her father who expressed that she had a choice
to return to life and be healed or continue with him into the higher
realms. Moorjani chose to return to life and work to help others
understand how to heal and live a truthful existence as eternal souls
creating the best physical life possible for themselves. Her doctors
were amazed to see her return to a normal state of health and a full
remission of the cancer.
As a medium Sheryl was called on to download whatever information
possible from a recently departed young 19 year old man Michael and in
her book The Living Spirit she wrote how Michael showed me the
experience of his passing.
Sheryl wrote, “ I began a meditation hoping to connect to Michael’s
energy. For the next hour I received images and sensory perceptions from
the young man beginning with the sensation of extreme heat pulsating
throughout my entire body. It felt like an embrace accompanied by a
tingling at my root and sacral chakras. What I was feeling wan an almost
overwhelming wave of love Michael had for his life, his parents and for
Jessica….Soon I received an image of Michael showing me his memory of
the accident. I sensed that he was catapulted over the handlebars of his
motorcycle much like an athlete in the pole vault event who lifts
himself high into the air, twisting and turning up over the bar. But
while the athlete falls into a pit of soft foam mat. Michael’s plunge
was met by hard pavement. He hit headfirst and died quickly without any
awareness of physical pain. I then sensed the concern of passerby’s
followed by the professionals who responded to the 911 calls. They were
carefully cushioning Michael’s head with tenderness and respect.
Michael had so wanted to stay and live out his physical life. After
leaving his body, he had looked over his shoulder, deeply aware that his
mother father and Jessica would be devastated by this loss. But the
souls above ad ahead were calling him and their irresistible beauty
lifted him up. Despite his sadness for those he was leaving behind, he
knew it was his time to go.
Steve discusses in his book the amazing self-healing and painkilling
effects of hypnosis and Sheryl confirms his findings as years ago before
she studied Reiki energy healing she studied hypnotherapy and found that
some of what she learned is utilized in creating a state of relaxation
for my clients when they experience a hands on healing session. Many
benefits and higher consciousness can be accessed by Hypnosis and other
energy modality treatments.
One of the strange things about the placebo effect is that it doesn’t
work consciously. We can’t simply will ourselves to change. We can’t
simply think: “I wish I wasn’t ill – I think I’ll try to make myself
better.” The power of the mind to change the body can only be activated
at a subconscious level, through the belief that a change is taking
place (in most cases, pain relief or healing). Belief seems to uncover a
strange capacity of the mind to alter the physical structures and
processes of the body. These powers can also be activated in a state of
hypnosis. The suggestions of a hypnotist can connect to the subconscious
mind in the same way that our own beliefs can. The hypnotic state is
still mysterious – there is no clear explanation of what happens when a
person becomes hypnotized, or how the state is different from normal
consciousness. But the essential aspect seems to be that, under
hypnosis, the normal conscious ego becomes immobilized. Ego functions
such as volition and control are taken over by the hypnotist. And with
the ego in abeyance, the hypnotist has direct access to the person’s
subconscious mind. This is the principle of hypnotherapy – the hypnotist
can work directly with the subconscious, addressing the fears and
phobias that are rooted there. And by the same means the suggestions of
a hypnotist can bring about changes not only to the form and functioning
of the brain but also the body as a whole, creating, at times, healing
of physical symptoms.
Hypnotism has been shown to be effective in many other areas besides
pain management. In the first half of the 19th century it was used by
physicians as a treatment for illness, and found to be effective against
conditions such as epilepsy, neuralgia and rheumatism. However, the area
where it has been found to be most effective is skin conditions. In
highly suggestible people, hypnosis has been used to rapidly heal wounds
and burns, to make warts and blisters disappear and to control the
bleeding of hemophiliacs. Conversely, highly suggestible people may
produce blisters or burn marks if they are told by a hypnotist that
their skin has been burned, or if they are blindfolded and the hypnotist
pretends to touch them with a red hot poker or another object.
Steve also shares with us some new thinking that the brain is able to
adapt to injury. The phenomenon of neuroplasticity also highlights the
indeterminate nature of the relationship between the mind and brain.
Neuroscientists used to believe that once an adult human being stops
growing their brain remains in the same static state throughout their
life, at least until deterioration in old age. In a similar way,
scientists used to believe that after a stroke or brain injury a
person’s brain would remain permanently damaged, and be unable to repair
itself. However, it has now become clear that in reality the brain is
plastic, and has a great capacity for change and recovery. It is not
“hard-wired”. We can form new connections in different parts of the
brain, and even generate entirely new brain cells. (We will look at some
examples of this shortly.) One of the most interesting aspects of
neuroplasticity is that functions can sometimes shift to different parts
of the brain. This often happens during recovery from a stroke or other
brain injuries. If the part of the brain that used to be associated with
a particular activity is damaged, a new uninjured part of the brain will
now become linked to it.
This flexibility seems to suggest that the mind utilizes the brain in a
similar way to how a musician uses an instrument. For example, imagine a
guitarist who is playing a concert when one of his strings breaks in the
middle of a song (which happened to me many times when I played music).
If they are playing individual notes, they will simply transfer the
notes to a different string, played on higher or lower frets. If they’re
playing chords, they’ll probably play the same chords in a different
shape, higher or lower up the fretboard, in a way that makes the missing
note less noticeable. But they will find some way of adjusting so that
the music continues.
Steve and Sheryl believe that the worldview of conventional materialist
science is bleak and barren perhaps without the color of imagination and
Spirit so we make a compelling case for a spiritual vision of reality.
Steve presents a vision of a sacred and interconnected world and of a
meaningful and purposeful human life.
As Plotinus long ago wrote: “Each being contains in itself the whole
intelligible world. Therefore All is everywhere… Man as he is now has
ceased to be the All. But when he ceases to be an individual, he raises
himself again and penetrates the whole world.” Plotinus initiated a new
wave of panspiritist philosophy, usually referred to as Neoplatonism,
which flourished until the middle of the first millennium AD. The
Italian philosopher Francesco Patrizi suggested in a book called New
Philosophy of the Universe, published in 1591, that there was a soul of
the universe that pervaded all things, including the human soul, so that
in a sense every soul contained the whole universe.
Steve might like readers to take away with them after reading Spiritual
Science that to all these peoples – and to indigenous peoples in
particular – this force is not a metaphysical speculation but a tangible
reality. It is not a belief but a perception. It is not an abstraction
but part of their everyday experience. This spiritual perspective
pervaded their lives, just as the materialist perspective pervades our
lives.
“What is the indigenous spiritual perspective? Whereas materialism sees
living beings as biological machines and non-living things as inert
objects, indigenous peoples’ awareness of spirit-force meant that, to
them, the whole world was alive. All things were animate in the sense
that they were pervaded with spirit-force, and inhabited by – or
associated with – individual spirits. From the materialist perspective
the world consists of empty space inhabited by inert or biologically
alive objects, whereas from the indigenous spiritual perspective there
is no empty space because everything is filled with spirit force and
individual spirits. As the anthropologist Tim Ingold has described it,
to hunter-gatherer groups the environment is “saturated with personal
powers of one kind of another. It is alive.” In another sense, all
things are alive because they are manifestations of spirit. Spirit is
the ground out of which all things grow, and in which they always remain
rooted. This is a metaphor that is often used in the Indian Upanishads –
the ancient spiritual texts that describe the world as pervaded with
brahman, or spirit.”
In summarizing today’s episode of Healing From Within, To many modern
academics and intellectuals, belief in psychic phenomena like telepathy,
precognition and clairvoyance holds the same status as belief in an
afterlife – or in fairies or alien abductions. Surely – so many of our
peers seem to feel – we should have progressed beyond such irrational
nonsense?
Steve shows us that when science meets spirituality and an understanding
of higher consciousness, universal energy and the fact that we are both
soul spirit and physical human life, we hope to convince you that this
intellectual or scientific view of psychic phenomena is misguided. It is
not at all irrational to accept the existence of psychic phenomena –
indeed, we suggest that there is so much evidence for their existence
and such a sound theoretical basis for them that it is actually
irrational not to accept their existence. It is only from the
perspective of materialism that psychic phenomena appear to be
impossible. From the panspiritist perspective, there is nothing
anomalous about them at all. By knowing we are consciousness, and can
step outside ourselves and observe it as if it’s something “other” to
us. In view of this, the best way to understand consciousness is in
terms of experience, rather than definition. In developing a spiritual
practice, a sort of meditation, one is able to connect to the realms of
higher consciousness. We are all part of past, present, and future
experience happening simultaneously, and once you reach this level of
awareness and interaction with the universe or divine source, we find
ourselves able to tap into our many spiritual psychic, precognitive and
dream state abilities. Steve and Sheryl would have you know that merging
the many questions and thoughts we have about the connection between
science and spirituality actually lays the pathway to finding true
answers to who we are, and why we are having a physical life. The great
potential within you to explore your human, physical and soul essence
realities with help from higher spiritual energy will bring you
unimaginable gifts and joys and a connection to eternal life.
Today’s Guest