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The Integrative Principle

The Integrative Principle. TRUTH IS ONE, But PERSPECTIVES MANY Therefore, look for the common thread in the various perspectives Barrier to integrative insight: Stress. Knowledge Perspectives. Natural, life and social sciences and Spiritual Heritage of Humanity. The Purpose of Education.

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The Integrative Principle

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  1. The Integrative Principle TRUTH IS ONE, But PERSPECTIVES MANY Therefore, look for the common thread in the various perspectives Barrier to integrative insight: Stress

  2. Knowledge Perspectives Natural, life and social sciences and Spiritual Heritage of Humanity

  3. The Purpose of Education TRUTH And Nothing but the TRUTH

  4. What is Truth • Our senses perceive individual beings or things in the universe • Truth explores underlying commonalities • Truth exploration takes us from individual beings to classes of individuals • The truth takes us further from classes of individuals to the One sub-stratum of them all. • The search for the truth is reason based.

  5. Truth, Science and Spirituality • Science explores in the material domain and science looks for the underlying truth in this domain • The domain of spirituality is the universe and it looks for the underlying truth in this domain • The spiritual domain is more comprehensive and includes the domain of science

  6. Why explore the scientific truth? • Remember the domain of science is material • We all know how the exploration of the scientific truth has served humanity in the material domain

  7. What is the scientific truth? • There is one sub-stratum of all matter • That sub-stratum is called energy • Everything in the material domain is from that sub-stratum as its final source • Energy is the cause and matter its effects • Energy expresses itself thru matter or Energy creates matter • Energy pervades all matter

  8. What is the spiritual truth? • There is one sub-stratum of all beings, animate and inanimate • That sub-stratum is called the spirit • Every being in the universe is from the spirit as its shared sub-stratum • The spirit is the cause and all beings its effects • The spirit expresses itself thru all beings or It creates the universe • The spirit pervades all beings in the universe

  9. Whence the spiritual truth? • Summit of spiritual insights of prophets, sages, seers and mystics of the world • Core spirituality of human religion • Major secular disciplines • Underlying cause of natural love and compassion

  10. Common Features of the Truths • The spiritual and scientific Truths have the following features in common : • Ineffable, indefinable, and abstract • Infinite, pervasive and subtle yet capable of finite, individual and gross expression • First principles in their respective domains expressing as successively gross and concrete principles

  11. Differences • The spiritual Truth is the underlying truth both of matter and consciousness, both the inanimate and the animate • The spiritual Truth is therefore, more comprehensive than the scientific truth as its domain includes the domain of the scientific

  12. Why explore the spiritual truth? • The domain of spirituality is the universe, animate and the inanimate • To the inanimate, common sub-stratum does not mean anything • To the animate especially the humans, shared sub-stratum means how we live and relate with each other

  13. The Effects of Consciousness • Stimulus, • Response, • Relationships, • Ethics • Meaning and • Purpose

  14. How We BehaveandHow Our Understanding Affects Our Behavior

  15. Stimulus Perception (Cognitive Senses) Feelings (Mind) Thoughts, Understanding and Decision (Intellect)

  16. Response Thoughts, Understanding and Decision (Intellect) Emotion (Mind) Action (Active Senses)

  17. Behavior in the Light of Education Education in the Truth Truthful Stimulus Response Consistent with the Truth

  18. Bhaviour in Ignorance Education lacking in the Truth Ignorant interpretation of the Stimulus Corresponding Response

  19. Immediate and Ultimate Multiplicity(Inconsistent with the Truth) Multiplicity (Spiritual Ignorance) Stimulus inconsistent with the Truth Ignorant Response Two levels of expression in the next two slides:

  20. Total Spiritual Darkness Unconnected Individual Beings Perception (Senses) Diverse Beings Multiplicity Understanding (Head) Diverse Beings Multiplicity Emotion (Heart) Narcissism Me First, Selfishness Action (Hands) No Love & Compassion, Struggle, No Community Survival and natural extinct effectively eliminates this condition.

  21. Partial Spiritual Ignorance Individual Communities, Fragmented Humanity Perception (Senses) Diverse Beings Multiplicity Understanding (Head) Piecewise Unity Different Groups Emotion (Heart) “Us” and “Them” Tribalism Action (Hands) Piecewise Order Struggle bet Communities Current human condition.

  22. Spiritual Truth Global Minds, Integrated Humanity Perception (Senses) Diverse Beings Multiplicity Understanding (Head) Different on the surface Underlying Oneness Emotion (Heart) All is One, Love Unbounded Love Action (Hands) Limitless Compassion, Service to All The Ideal education can help achieve.

  23. Why current human fragmentation? • Incommunicability of the sub-stratum except thru metaphors and pointers • Mistaking of metaphors as the truths • Emphasis on faith to the exclusion of all reason and believability • Spirituality veiled by dogma and untaught • Historic lack of knowledge of secular disciplines affirming commonalities & shared sub-strata in diverse domains

  24. Challenges and Rewards • Inter-religious and inter-disciplinary education – easier to teach specifics • Teaching of subtle, abstract, and infinite principles – easier to deal with the finite and the concrete • Availability of suitable faculty • Contribution to the building of harmonized communities in a global village • Helping humanity to deal with grave crises of global proportions we face today

  25. Courses and Skills • Basic math and language skills • Natural, Life Sciences and Social Sciences • Core spirituality of religion • Spiritually relevant literature • Integrating multi-disciplined and multi-religious knowledge and understanding • Skills and knowledge to manage stress and balance removing barriers to physical and mental health and personal insight

  26. Applications of Integrative Skills Bridging building roles such as: • Integration of diverse groups eliminating strong “us” vs “them” feelings • Communications: inter-discipline, inter-religious and inter-personal confronting common problems; counseling • Promotion of physical and mental health thru stress management

  27. Job Opportunities for graduates • Education in core spirituality and human values • Teaching mental and physical health maintenance, and learning to learn • Social and community services • Using knowledge integration skills in international marketing, human and public relations in the corporate and government sectors • Citizenship and immigration • Foreign relations • Inter-religious ministries and relations • Unforeseen

  28. Conclusions • Education needs to include integrative education as a specialist discipline and as components to enrich skills education to minimize the feelings of “us” and “them” in order to build harmonized communities living in a global village • There are job opportunities for people with skill in integrative studies • The resulting understanding is personally enriching and meaningful to all

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