BRIDGING THE GREAT DIVIDE

A Rational Spiritualist View of Transcendence by Experience Rather Than Gnosis

© Ian Lawton 2005

Introduction

Since The Book of the Soul was published it has become increasingly clear to me just how much of a divide exists between a Rational Spiritual view of why we reincarnate and how we escape the 'earthly karmic round', and that of many of the more esoteric spiritual approaches. These include the majority of western mystical and alchemical traditions, and a number of eastern traditions - or at least modern western interpretations thereof.

On the one hand, based on modern evidence, Rational Spirituality holds that our primary aim as human souls incarnating in the physical plane of earth is to experience both sides of every coin over multiple lifetimes - that is, all aspects of pleasure and pain, of wealth and poverty, of power and subjugation, of love and hate, of acceptance and rejection, and so on. We might refer to this model as transcendence by experience.

On the other hand, many of the more esoteric spiritual traditions adopt various versions of a relatively consistent basic theme: that we are tied to the 'wheel of karma' - that is, destined to reincarnate - only for as long as we fail to recognise our true nature as part of the fundamental 'unity' of the entire universe. Once we see beyond the illusion of individuality, they say, we are free to 'reunite with the Source'. We might refer to this model as transcendence by gnosis (knowledge).

So in this paper I will examine the origins of the idea of transcendence by gnosis, and how well it fares when placed in the context of modern evidence.

Soul Individuality and Unity: Dichotomy or Duality?

Incarnate transcendent experiences universally involve glimpses of the underlying workings and complete unity of the true ‘unseen universe’. These 'visions of unity' are reported by committed meditators, psychedelic explorers, near-death experiencers and regression subjects alike. There can be little doubt that these profound experiences have objective validity, supported as they are by the modern scientific view of the holographic, energetic, conscious, nonlocally connected, quantum nature of everything in the universe.

It seems clear that these transcendental experiences of unity lie at the heart of the idea of transcendence by gnosis. They, arguably more than anything else, have shaped our more esoteric spiritual worldviews throughout the ages. Eastern approaches to transcendence, in the various forms of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Taoism and so on, are far too complex and varied for me to discuss in any detail here. But at least some of them are rather more subtle than the derivatives they have spawned in western culture. Although these too are many and varied, they seem to share one essential theme, which is the idea of transcendence by gnosis. And this theme has undoubtedly been fuelled in recent decades by a widespread increase in the number of people obtaining transcendent visions of unity by using psychedelics, and by the accompanying resurgence of interest in alchemy, Gnosticism and a variety of other ancient but primarily western mystery traditions.

On the one hand, all of this has been enough to convince many seekers that it is wrong to think of our human souls as individually reincarnating entities at all. And yet there is very strong modern evidence that this is the case. For example, past-life regression case studies show consistently individual karmic threads, and past-life therapy only works as well as it does because the past-life traumas that are worked through belong to that individual and noone else.¹ In addition, some of Ian Stevenson's child subjects have unusual birthmarks and defects that correspond exactly to the wounds that killed the previous personality they claim to have been, for which other independent verification is available.² Reincarnation of the individual soul, rather than tapping into some sort of universal memory, seems by some margin the most logical explanation for this evidence.

On the other hand, even when the idea of individual soul reincarnation is accepted, visions of unity are still sufficient to convince many spiritual seekers that transcendent unity is our true soul state, and one we can return to at any time once we achieve gnosis. Logically this attitude seems to include the presupposition that the incarnation of the individual soul in the physical plane is at best a somewhat trivial diversion, at worst something to be escaped at all costs and as soon as possible. But Rational Spirituality sees no dichotomy between the collective and individual 'states of soul being', because of the strength of evidence supporting the idea that both soul states exist for all of us at all times, and whether incarnate or discarnate. Indeed, it is somewhat ironic that most of the more esoteric spiritual traditions are based on a variety of dualities, and yet they have failed to appreciate this perhaps most fundamental duality of all, which is that we are both individual reincarnating souls and holographic representations of the unified Ultimate Source all at the same time. And this remains true even when we are discarnate, and probably long after we have escaped the earthly karmic round - indeed, this duality may only be fully nullified when the entire universe or Ultimate Source dissolves back into itself.

Modern Evidence

There appears to be no trace of elitism about who can obtain visions of unity. For example, nearly all of what are now thousands of near-death and regression subjects report the experience, irrespective of their background and prior spiritual or materialist leanings. The same is true of the many thousands of psychedelic experimenters who have discussed their experiences either informally or in writing. The latter immediately recognise that they and all of us are all part of this unity at all times. So this seems to be a universal experience, available to all, and at any time. But does this mean that anyone who has this experience is ready to escape the karmic round, as the gnosis model would suggest?

To answer this question, let us look at the testimony of subjects who have been regressed into the interlife between incarnations. Although this has not received the recognition it undoubtedly deserves from many more advanced spiritual seekers - who often prefer to maintain their faith in interpretation of ancient revealed wisdom - it is arguably the most reliable and objective source of spiritual wisdom that humanity has ever had.³ This is because hundreds of ordinary people, from all walks of life, with no fixed religious or spiritual preconceptions, have entered the interlife state and consistently reported the same experiences.

In summary, this evidence suggests that when we are in the 'repetitive' karmic stage of soul development, we tend to be inactive for long periods between incarnations, or otherwise to hurry back into incarnate life; either way, we do little to understand our successes and failures in our past lives, and little to plan what we might do to rectify any recurrent problems. But once we move towards a more 'progressive' karmic stage, we engage fully in reviewing our past lives and planning our next ones during the interlife, readily accepting the advice of spirit guides or other elders trying to help us.⁴

The key to the planning of this more progressive interlife activity is that we each need to experience both sides of every coin in order to reach the point where we have learnt everything we can from physical incarnation. So even when we plan to face difficult, and on the face of it adverse, circumstances - such as physical or mental disability, or severe financial or emotional deprivation - we do so to learn, to gain more experience, and to move towards greater balance. But I already indicated at the outset that modern evidence definitively supports the experience model. Nevertheless, does it provide any support for the gnosis model at all?

Of course, by definition we never come across interlife regression subjects who have achieved transcendence because such souls do not - at least in the main - come back. But might we not, if the gnosis model was correct, expect interlife subjects to receive advice that it is the way to go if they want liberation, and to have discussions about how they might achieve it? Or would this be too easy? Then perhaps we should at least expect them to report the types of trials and tribulations described in sacred texts such as the Ancient Egyptian and Tibetan Books of the Dead. Forks in the ethereal path, perhaps? Or demons to be overcome, and tests to be passed? Or anecdotal reports of other souls that had passed the tests, taken the transcendent path and been joyfully reunited with the Source?

But no. Not once do we obtain any interlife testimony that backs up these ideas. Not only that, but at least as far as any traditional religious dogma about hellish realms is concerned, this is actively described as misguided and often politically motivated. Any hellish experiences are reported to be purely projections imbued with psycho-spiritual force by individual or collective expectations, and to have no permanence or underlying validity.⁵ Indeed, the evidence suggests that all except the most advanced souls project varying levels of quasi-physical form onto the light realms and its inhabitants, especially during the initial transition after physical death, based on their conditioning and expectations. But more advanced souls are able to tell us that the only underlying validity of these realms is their basis in pure energy, and the fact that, however many facets they might have both real and imagined, they are essentially all one. Is it possible that much of our sacred wisdom of the past may have been developed from visions of heaven and hell, and of gods and angels and demons, that were entirely based on incarnate human conditioning and psychological constructs, and had no underlying validity?

To sum up, modern evidence does indicate that a number of options are possible after physical death. Some of us might occasionally remain stuck in the intermediate plane, refusing to enter the light realms. Some of us might occasionally have a merely blank interlife experience. Some of us might even occasionally have some sort of hellish interlife experience. But most of us will have a full and rich interlife experience. And all of these options, even the first three, are only ever temporary states. Sooner or later, the wheel of karma continues for us all.

Except, of course, for those of us who have genuinely arrived at the point of transcending the physical and escaping the karmic round. So how do we really go about this, and can we ever know how close we are to achieving it?

The Practicalities of Escaping the Karmic Round

Perhaps it should come as no surprise that modern evidence suggests it is impossible to tell whether an incarnate soul is 'ripe for escape' from the karmic round. Some of the most karmically advanced souls are some of the most apparently deprived, and indeed reserved. Nor does it seem, from the evidence, that souls who appear completely spiritually bereft in their current incarnation are necessarily karmically retarded, and vice-versa. So the worst mistake we can make within a Rational Spiritual framework is to wear our spirituality too overtly on our sleeve, and to assume that we are karmically advanced and 'definitely on our last visit' to earth.

What, then, of the spiritual seekers who put their faith in the gnosis model? On the face of it they are far more accepting of their role as just a tiny cog in the universal wheel. But they cannot be blamed for sometimes adopting a certain air of superiority because, even though it may not be voiced explicitly, their worldview contains the inherent assumption that they are not far from release and transcendence because they have seen the light - or at least are working hard to see it. Nor can some gnosis seekers avoid charges of elitism, when they work so hard to unlock the mystical secrets of transcendence by poring over archaic texts and manuscripts. What of the majority of the population of the world, who are likely to continue for many centuries to be far too lacking in education, or too busy supporting their family, to indulge in such esoteric pursuits? Are they doomed to remain lashed to the karmic wheel, just like their majority counterparts in Ancient Egypt who could not afford a copy of one of the Books of the Dead to take on their journey into the afterlife?

So, on a pragmatic level, adherents of Rational Spirituality accept that they cannot really know where they are on the karmic ladder, and instead focus themselves on trying to experience and learn. They also accept that they cannot make judgments about anyone else's level of advancement, that we are all on the same path, that we are all destined to escape the karmic round sooner or later because there is no magical formula save experience, and above all that karmic progression is not a race. They recognise that the experiences of the physical realm - however much they may involve their share of pain and disappointment - are not an aberration, and are there to be enjoyed. So they do take regular time out to contemplate and meditate, and they also try to moderate their emotions and reactions in order to rob them of excessive karmic charges that could lead to repetitive cycles. But they also recognise the need to balance this out by actively engaging in physical life, and by feeling emotions to a healthy degree, because it is only in this way that we gain the bulk of our experience.

By contrast, the gnosis model acts as an umbrella for a number of approaches that risk the possibility of upsetting this balance. For example, those who adhere to the principle that they must actively avoid generating any more karma, either supposedly 'good' or 'bad', are likely to refrain from involvement in the physical world to an unhealthy degree - and this is a prime example of misinterpreting the dynamics of karma as a process of 'action and reaction' rather than of learning and experience. And the risk is even greater for those who follow the genuine Gnostic doctrine that the physical world is an aberration and abhorrence.

Of course no long term harm will come to those who adopt such practices - save for the fact that if they repeated them over many incarnations they might find themselves in a somewhat repetitive karmic loop, and failing to make much progress in terms of variety of experience. But still, however much they may believe they are practising 'the art of death' while still incarnate, they are likely to be in for something of a shock when they enter the light realms proper. Here they will undoubtedly experience the wonder of being part of the Ultimate Unity with far greater clarity, depth and majesty than anything they were able to glimpse while incarnate - but at the same time they are likely to be confronted by the unexpected fact that they are still an individual reincarnating soul with a great deal of experience to gain.

The Ultimate Question: Why Does the Source Manifest at all?

Apart from the modern evidence, there is another major source of support for the experience model. And that is the ultimate question of why does the Ultimate Source bother to manifest the physical and nonphysical realms and all their forms at all, during that part of the never-ending universal cycle that we might refer to as the 'Dawn of Brahma', or Big Bang in more modern terms?

This ultimate and crucial question is rarely addressed, and of course it is so profound that we can only hazard a guess. But the most sensible and rational answer I have ever heard is that the Source wants to grow by experience. And since we are all just small holographic representations of this Source, at the same time as being individual souls on our reincarnatory journey, then surely our job is to experience in full as well?

What do we Mean by Reuniting with the Source?

Interlife regression evidence also forces us to reconsider exactly what we mean by reuniting with the Source. The gnosis model is normally underpinned by the relatively simplistic idea that, once we have finished with earth, reunification immediately awaits us. But by contrast interlife subjects report that there is a huge, rich and varied amount of activity occurring in the light realms.⁶ So after we escape the earthly karmic round – or even beforehand as part of our advanced training – we might engage in a variety of specialist work, ranging from acting as a spirit guide to other souls, through to training as 'intelligent designers' who nudge evolution in certain directions on inhabited planets throughout the universe by adapting existing blueprints for different environments. Or we might decide to obtain experience in a different planetary environment – for example, perhaps, a more nonphysical one.

So this evidence suggests that, from one perspective, we are a long, long way away from properly reuniting with the Source even after we escape from the earthly karmic round. Indeed, the Source will only be fully reintegrated, and reabsorb all aspects of the universe back into its own essential Unity, when the next night of Brahma is upon us.

But then again, and from another perspective, perhaps the whole idea of reuniting with the Source is misguided in the first place. After all, how can we reunite with something that we are already, and at all times, a part of?

Conclusion

Of course there are no guarantees that the interlife regression evidence on which much of this analysis is based is totally reliable. However there is every reason to suppose that it is at least as reliable as the revealed wisdom of old, and arguably far more so. At the very least, therefore, it should be properly acknowledged, analysed and discussed.

Adherents of the gnosis model have a proper appreciation that we are all one and all 'part of  God', and that we are responsible for our own destiny. This is far superior to the occidental religious approaches that externalise God as an all-powerful controller of our fates. But it just may be that the gnosis model, too, has had its day. And that a new, Rational Spiritual worldview of transcendence by experience, which is based on a full analysis of all the modern evidence, will now prove crucial to our individual and collective spiritual development.

Postscript (added 20/2/06)

Further consideration and discussion of these issues has led me to believe that there is an important additional implication of the fundamental duality of our simultaneous soul individuality and unity. On the one hand, Rational Spirituality suggests that the individual reincarnating soul should appreciate that their primary objective is to learn and experience - over successive incarnations that will provide them with all the different types of circumstance required to obtain a balance of experience in the physical plane.

But, on the other, we should also appreciate that recognition of the fundamental unity of everything in the universe in all its planes, or in other words our oneness with each other and everything else - which is at least partly what gnosis is - brings an important added perspective. How can we judge the plight or actions of others, or fight to gain material or political supremacy over them, when they are us and we are them? How can we threaten and wipe out other species, or decimate our rainforests, or wreak havoc on our planet's delicate ecological and atmospheric systems, when all of these things too - whether animate or supposedly inanimate - are us? Once we appreciate that everything is one, it gives us a whole new and vital perspective.

Now, it may appear that all this is obvious, and that I am merely restating things that many people take for granted. But there seems to be a beautiful spiritual symmetry in the extension of Rational Spirituality's fundamental duality into its dualistic implications. Because, for example, while recognition of unity implies that we should not judge or oppress or attempt to dominate others because we are all one, the corollary implication from the individual reincarnation perspective is that we should not engage in such activities because, in broad terms at least, we have all been in the situations that others face at some point in a past life - or if not we will be at some point in the future. Of course, the full achievement of such an ideal in our daily lives is extraordinarily difficult if not impossible, and even our failures add to our experience. But this does not lessen the importance of attempting to pursue this ideal both individually and collectively. And from both perspectives the notion of 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you' takes on a whole new meaning and depth - and not because of selfish concern about karmic retribution, or as part of some spurious and subjective moral code, but because we achieve a far more profound appreciation of the way things are from both the individual and collective soul perspectives.

Under Rational Spirituality's fundamental duality, the contrasting sets of experiential evidence for soul unity and individuality are given equal weight and prominence. And so too must their implications, which is why I regard this additional perspective deriving from an appreciation of unity as a crucial one. But by the same token, any spiritual model that continues to stress the primacy of soul unity, and to imply from this that our only objective should be to achieve gnosis of this, will still fail to take into account the equal primacy of individual soul experience over many lifetimes in the physical plane and then, thereafter, in other realms - albeit that ultimately all such individual experience will be remerged into the Source. To illustrate this, let us hypothesise about what would be the ideal under a gnosis-dominated model. It would surely be that all souls would achieve gnosis as soon as possible and remerge with the Source? But that would actually serve to minimise the collective experience gained. And, as long as the only rational answer to the ultimate question of why the Source manifests in the universe in the first place is to experience, such a model remains internally inconsistent.

That having been said, if this proper extension of Rational Spirituality serves to render it more inclusive for, and attractive to, those of a gnostic or Buddhist persuasion, it may serve as another important step forward in helping us to unite under a modern spiritual worldview.

Source References

1. Lawton, The Book of the Soul, chapter 4, pp. 82-4.

2. Ibid., chapter 3, pp. 50-8.

3. For a discussion of why it should be thought of as at least reasonably objective and reliable, and certainly far more than the revealed wisdom of the past, see ibid., chapter 4, pp. 90-2. For details of the consistent main elements of the experience, including past-life review and next-life planning, see chapters 5 and 6.

4. Ibid., chapter 7, pp. 157-8.

5. Ibid., chapter 7, pp. 182-8.

6. Ibid., chapter 5, p. 105 and chapter 10, pp. 273-4.