Researches Relevant to Theosophy
Biology, Earth Sciences, Space Sciences
Source : arXiv.org
Date : Feb 2020
The theory of lithopanspermia proposes the natural exchange of organisms between solar system bodies through meteorites. This has become recently an active field of researches. This paper, based on latest findings from over 62,000 meteorites found on earth (The Meteoritical Society, 2020) describes the complete process of biological organisms transport back-and-forth between the Earth and Mars.
Read more : arXiv.org
Philosophy
Source : De Gruyter
Date : Feb 2020
The last Milesian philosopher, Anaximenes (585-525 BC) described the cosmology of the earth as emerging from what he called “Air” which can also be interpreted as “damp dark mist”. Earth was formed from it by “condensation”. This cosmogonic model is similar to the one proposed by one of his predecessor, Anaximandres (610- 546 BC) who said that “the Unlimited is the Principle and the Element of things which are. The nature of this Principle is to be moving and eternal. This article is analyzing the Anaximenes thought regarding this principle.
The Secret Doctrine (Proem, p.14) describes the One Absolute Reality as Absolute Abstract Space and Absolute Abstract Motion.
Read more : De Gruyter
Education, Philosophy
Source : SHS Web of Conferences
Date : 2020
” The nineteenth century was a period of great achievement, but it failed to produce men of learning with a sensitive appreciation of varieties of interest and potentialities . . . and the situation has not changed in the 21st century.”
Quoting A. Whitehead and others philosophers, the author of this article elaborate on the principle of understanding to introduce the ecological culture in education as the ethics of conservation. He concluded by saying : “The diversity and unity of the world are not limited to the empirical sphere – the sphere of the visible.”
Read more : SHS
Physics, Space Sciences
Source : Reader’s Contribution
Date : Jan. 2020
The values of the physical “constants”, like G, the Newtonian gravitational constant, or h, the Plank constant, or c, the speed limit of light, are still shrouded in mystery. Why do they have such a value ? Gilles Cohen-Tannoudji, one of the leading particles physicist, said that ” the universal constants express the inherent limitations of human knowledge.”
One of our reader has published a paper proposing a set of new hypothesis, as a continuation of Dirac’s and Eddington’s Large Number Hypothesis, linking constants and numbers. In that analysis, all the found relations have a common nature of the “power-of-two”. Such correlations provide with accurate calculation/prediction of some constants and measurements.
He wrote some additional comments : “Beside sevenfoldness, the proposed hypothesis has another interesting property that supports the thought of Mme Blavatsky (H.P.B.) on the existence of key-note in Nature which was mentioned by her in The Voice of the Silence – Glossary to Part, III, The seven Portals, 10, p. 89. : she gives Note F as the keynote of Nature. If one calculates exactly 68 octaves up from the Hubble constant given by the article’s expression, then the result is 673.37 Hz which is close to standard note F (698.45 Hz). The same result can be obtained by calculating 60 octaves down from the de Broglie frequency of the electron.”
Read more : pp-33-07, ResearchGate
Health & Medicine
Source : NeuroImage
Date : Nov. 2019
A new research, using dual electroencephalography, has recorded simultaneously a mother’s and her baby’s brains activities. It shows that the level of connectivity is linked to the mother’s emotional state. The study found that the parent-infant inter-brain network is strongly modulated by the emotional quality and tone of dyadic social interactions.
“Our emotions literally change the way that our brains share information with others – positive emotions help us to communicate in a much more efficient way,” said one of the study’s participant.
Read More : NeuroImage
Parapsychology, Physics, Space Sciences
Source : Electric Universe UK
Date : Jul. 2018
Scientific mind has crystallized his paradigm around mechanistic, reductionist approaches since the end of the XVIth century, and, since the beginning of the XXth century, materialistic-only philosophy is dominant in scientific communities. The last 15 years have witnessed a new movement – panpsychism – which reintroduces consciousness everywhere. Among the proponents of such theory, Rupert Sheldrake is talking about the Earth, the Sun, the galaxies, as self-organizing systems or conscious organisms. He proposed some mechanisms to explain how the Sun can be conscious of what is happening inside the Solar System, using electromagnetic fields which are connecting everything in the Universe. This talk is giving some clues and methods for testing the hypothesis that consciousness express itself through the Sun.
The Theosophist – Volume IV, N° 12, Sept. 1883 : “If the “Adepts” are asked: “What then, in your views, is the nature of our sun and what is there beyond that cosmic veil?.“ – they answer: beyond rotates and beats the heart and head of our system; externally is spread its robe, the nature of which is not matter, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous, such as you are acquainted with, but vital electricity, condensed and made visible.”
Watch : YouTube
Physics
Source : NewScientist
Date : Jan. 2020
The weirdness of quantum physics is still puzzling our rational, intellectual mind. Causality is one of the paradigms most difficult to challenge. A cause always preceding an effect seems so obvious that reversing the arrow of time would be more science-fiction than science. But quantum physics has encountered this phenomenon with the notion of quantum superposition which states that an object can be in two different states at the same time. Many experiments have been and are still currently being run to witness this phenomenon. One of the recent ones (Aug. 2019) has extended the range of the scenario up to a massive body in a spatial superposition state (thought experiment), which demonstrate again that : ” a classical notion of a causal structure is untenable in any framework compatible with the basic principles of quantum mechanics and classical general relativity.“
The Secret Doctrine – Volume 1 (3rd edition, p. 68) : “Time” is only an illusion produced by the succession of our states of consciousness as we travel through the Eternal Duration, and it does not exist where no consciousness exists in which the illusion can be produced, but “lies asleep”.“
Read more : NewScientist
Space Sciences
Source : ScienceAlert
Date : May 2017
A bridge between two of the neighboring galaxies (the Large and the Small Magellan Clouds) has been observed for the first time. It is made of neutral gas and it has a magnetic field component. Cosmic magnetic fields appear to be everywhere observations are made, and the scientists are (now) humble/honest about the root-causes of the generation and the action of these fields.
The Secret Doctrine – Volume 1 (3rd edition, p. 169) gives some hint at this phenomenon : “The Seven Son-Brothers, however, represent and personify the seven forms of cosmic magnetism, called in Practical Occultism the “Seven Radicals,” whose cooperative and active progeny are, among other energies, Electricity, Magnetism, Sound, Light, Heat, Cohesion, etc.”
Read more : ScienceAlert
Health & medicine, Psychology, Parapsychology
Source : IJTS
Date : Sept. 2018
Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga Philosophy was published, starting August 1914, in an Indian review, the Arya. It offered a synthesis of some of the main yoga philosophies from India, the Bhakti (adoration), Karma (action), and Jnana (knowledge) yoga. This synthesis is presented as a path to perceive, understand and to live the One Life.
Modern integrative medicine has brought trans-personal themes inside the mainstream of contemporary healthcare. This article provides with an overview of Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga in clinical practices. It encompasses topics as reincarnation, the chakra’s system, parapsychology and mind-body healing.
Read more : IJTS
Physics, Psychology
Source : ScienceDirect
Date : Jul. 2019
Scientists are exploring interactions/relationships between mind and brain. Mind’s effect on matter is scientifically studied and a new model/mechanism is proposed, using and extension of the Bohmian Quantum Mechanics, combined with Avicenna’s philosophical ideas. This study try to demonstrate the causal effect of the mind on the brain, as an incorporeal essence.
Mme Blavatsky often wrote comments on the functions of the brain. Here are two excerpts of her articles :
“The fact is that the human brain is simply the canal between two planes – the psycho-spiritual and the material – through which every abstract and metaphysical idea filters from the Manasic down to the lower human consciousness. Therefore, the ideas about the infinite and the absolute are not, nor can they be, within our brain capacities.” (Lucifer, Vol. V, N° 26, October, 1889)
“The special organ of consciousness is of course the brain, and is located in the aura of the pineal gland in the living man. During the process of mind or thought manifesting to consciousness, constant vibrations of light take place… What consciousness is can never be defined psychologically. We can analyze and classify its works and effects – we cannot define it, unless we postulate an Ego distinct from the body.” (The Theosophist, Vol. XLVI, N° 11, August 1925 )
Read more : ScienceDirect
Religion
Source : MDPI – Journal of Religions
Date : Dec. 2019
The core of monotheistic religions, like Sufism, the mystics of Christianity, and the kabbalists of Judaism have a lot of common values as their foundations. This mystic hybridity has been studied and a paper was published in Dec. 2019, describing “shared space and common ground” between them. One of the key conclusion is that “love is the moral seed from which the spiritual traditions emanate“, and that “the concept of love finds its roots in the theosophies of Gregory of Nyssa and of the medieval theologian known as Pseudo-Dionysos“.
Biology, Earth Sciences, Health & Medicine
Source : NEW SCIENTIST
Date : Dec. 2019
Million of people are giving a try to a vegan diet during the month of January 2020. Researchers at the University of Oxford are running a pilot experiment to assess the value of veganism for the environmental impacts aspect. Veganism is considered better for the planet than other diets. A 2018 Science study has quantified the today’s food supply chain impact at the global scale – feeding 7.6 billion people : meat and dairy contribute about 60 percent of agriculture’s greenhouse gas emission, and provide only 18 percent of our calories. The alternative of veganism starts to gain some momentum, and some coaching is available on the Vegan Society Web Site.
Parapsychology, Health and Medicine
Source : IONS
Date : Oct. 2019
Meditation researches have been focusing so far on neural or physiological correlates of meditative states. A task Force was launched at IONS (Institute of Noetic Sciences) to explore further the field of meditation researches. Meditation has been identified as one of the key practices for cultivating positive transformations in consciousness. The findings and recommendations of the study were published and are available here, together with an online training course on meditation.
Read More : IONS
Health & Medicine, Parapsychology
Source : Science Focus, Oxford Academic
Date : Dec. 2019
Near-Death experiences may have been depicted in the 16th century (Ascent of the Blessed, painted by Hieronimus Bosch). The today scientific community is trying to identify explanations for this phenomenon, using comparisons with drug-induced trances. The materialistic paradigm which underlines most of the researches lead to a purely physical account for it. To date, no theory has been able to fully account for the whole NDE phenomenon. A recent scientific study (March 2019), reported by the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness, gives a good mapping of the contents of such experiences.
Read More : Science Focus, Oxford Academic
Physics, Space Sciences
Source : Science Alert
Date : Nov. 2019
Recent astronomical observations (since 2014) are showing “strange” synchronized galaxies movements and “abnormal” alignments of supermassive black holes at the core of quasars. This discovery indicates that large-scale structures in the universe are influencing the dynamics of galaxies and supermassive black holes, even when they are separated by billion light years. It looks as if they are connected by a vast unseen force. There is currently no scientific explanation and this observed behavior may jeopardize the current basic assumption about the physical universe model (the cosmological principle). More observations are required before drawing any conclusion.
Read More : Science Alert, Vice