The Irish writer, George Bernard Shaw said, "Progress is impossible without change."

Shaw lived through a time where he witnessed much change. This was the time when Albert Einstein's theories of Special and General Relativity were published. These forever altered the way we look at physics, and elevated science to an even higher level of respect and esteem in the eyes of the average person. During this time, starting in the late 19th century, Shaw also witnessed massive changes in medicine and technology. The changes happening around the turn of the century were world-altering for those who live through them. In a short handful of decades inventions emerged that reshaped reality. Things we take for granted today…. The flush toilet, electricity, the automobile. These were amazing. Like all significant technologies, they literally changed the way life was lived. So, when Shaw said, "Progress is impossible without change." He understood that change happened when we break out of the old way of being and open to something new. 

Sometimes a shift happens in an instant, which has ripple effects across all of humanity. Changes that are so powerful, there’s no way to resist the changes that will follow. As an example, consider plastic. One team of people figured out how to make plastic from petroleum. Today you’ll be hard pressed to find a piece of inhabited earth without some form of plastic. I’ll leave it to you to determine the goods and bads of that. But it shows how an idea can become a reality on the entire globe. We can think of this in the category of ‘innovation.’ A technology that changes the way we live. And then there are ideas which change the way we think. 

One person came to an understanding of how germs effect the human body. This understanding forever altered in the way humans see their journey. Before this discovery, diseases seemed mysterious and even the work of unseen entities. Scientific thought brought us into understanding. Now we knew the truth of the power of germs. Life seemed much less mysterious. It wasn’t long ago that it wasn’t unusual for a person to attribute (what we now recognize as) an infection, to the work of a vengeful God. Now we treat an infection with a pill. Our minds have been expanded beyond the belief that a vengeful god would take a life in such a mysterious way. The way infection progresses, was never the work of a vengeful god. This simple shift in understanding altered the way we see the world. And it also reduced the amount of awe we have. Was it possible there was no such things as a vengeful God? And so, religion itself, shifted for many people…based on a new understanding of biological science. All it took for this massive shift was an acceptance that reality was different than we’d been taught. 

The last wave of science brought us into a new understanding of the human journey. It shined light into the dark corners. It illuminated spaces ignorance once filled with fears. It created understanding around the world. Understanding which shaped the way we see our place in the world. The results from this are so massive it is impossible to even consider trying to calculate the ripple effects. It had altered the way humanity thinks. And changing thinking, changes worlds. 

The changes were so profound that Science (as a discipline) takes great pride in patting itself on the back for new, provable discoveries. And rightly so. Proven truths further humanity. Our understanding of physics (for instance) has given us the ability to do things our grandmothers grandmother would have believed to be possible only through a miracle or magic. Discoveries are worthy of praise. Every person on Earth benefits from these. Ripple effects. Ripple effects.

And science (as a discipline) has created hard tests to assure that when we discover something we must prove it before we accept it. As a discipline, science askes the members of its community to challenge any new idea that’s shared. In this way, flaws in thinking which lead to wrong conclusions can be addressed. Bad ideas can get disqualified. In the end, hopefully only truth remains. But what about the things we cannot prove? The things we cannot deny are there, yet can’t be explained, within the limitations of our brains? There are still great mysteries in science. And countless smaller ones. Here are a few of the great mysteries:

Consider the mystery of the origin of the universe… What caused the Big Bang? Was there anything before it? We don’t know and we don’t know how to answer this question. Our brains don’t seem capable of creating a way to answer it. The mystery is bigger than our ability to create a test that would allow us to solve it. 

Now consider the mystery of the origin of life: How did life start from non-living matter? We can theorize, but there is no way to come to any acceptable conclusions we can reasonably call proof. 

How about the mystery of time… What exactly is time? Why does it seem to move in one direction (the arrow of time)? That’s right. We can’t answer this one either. It is a great mystery. It is too big for our brains to explain. 

And now consider the great mystery of consciousness…

How do physical processes in the brain give rise to subjective experience of consciousness? And is that even the right question to ask? Does’s consciousness come from the brain, or from somewhere else? Is it possible that the brain is essentially no different than an antenna… not creating thoughts as much as receiving them? The truth is, we don’t know. 

Max Planck was a German theoretical physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918. He is considered the founder of quantum theory, which revolutionized our understanding of atomic and subatomic processes. Planck's work laid the groundwork for much of modern physics, including quantum mechanics. So, a scientific mind. And a very smart man. Planck said,

"I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness."

He said, “Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness." Planck felt that not only was consciousness a thing, but that some of the mysteries of the universe could be explained by the idea that consciousness is real. Planck’s implication suggests that consciousness might be a foundational aspect of the universe, not just an outcome of complex neural processes in the body.

This is especially interesting to me, coming from a deeply scientific mind like Max Planck. Here he suggests that the unexplainable can be best understood when applying an idea that our brains don’t yet have the ability to test. If we apply the assumption that at the core of the universe is consciousness, everything we can’t explain suddenly makes sense. I could give examples for hours, but I won’t. The topic is too vast. It’s a potentially endless rabbit hole. But consider this... We cannot prove the idea true or prove the idea false. But if it were provable… if it were… it would solve vast mysteries of the universe. It would show that we are all connected through consciousness. The consciousness of the source we all came from. 

Consider the source of our existence. Whether you choose to call it The Universe, Spirit, God (or nothing at all) simply believing that consciousness is at the core of it all would massively alter the way you see your human journey. And this shift would be gigantic in comparison to the way our understanding of germ science changed things. Germ science changed the way we see the journey of the body. A shift in how we view consciousness (and the universe) would change the way we see the journey of the spirit. It changes everything. 

This shift in belief would forever change the way we treat every other person on the Earth. If we are all connected through consciousness, then we are all a small piece of the same whole. Buddhist teachings explained the way we are all connected this way, “If you hold up a cup of the ocean, you have the ocean in a cup." We are all a cup of the same ocean. But we forget. Our human experience leads us to believe we are just the body. We forget we are part of the great and vast consciousness of the universe. We are part of the great perfection. Imagine a world where we all believed this? To hurt another would be to hurt yourself… to hurt us all. This would expand our embrace of empathy. How could it not?! You are me and I am you. Your struggle is mine and mine is yours. We are all connected. 

No remember, all it took for a massive shift in the way we see the journey of the body (and how germs are not the work of a vengeful God), was a shift in belief. Someone told us something and we believed it. All change comes from accepted and agreed upon belief. 

A change in belief comes from new information. New information comes from the willingness to look at things from a different angle… a different perspective. To be open to big questions like Planck considered. ‘What if consciousness is fundamental’, he wondered. Today, science (as a discipline) has become rigid. There’s an area at the edge of what can be proven and what we struggle to prove or understand. Consciousness is one of these things. What should we do about something that our minds don’t have the ability to fully understand? Should we ignore it, or should we keep working to understand it? 

In 2014 over 550 doctors, scholars, scientists, professors, and thought leaders. Signed and published a document called the "Manifesto for a Post-Materialist Science.”

The aim of this group is to change the way the scientific world operates. They question the idea that everything can be explained through the old scientific approach. What’s known as materialism. Is it all just about physical stuff? Or is there another layer which is outside of our ability to measure or explain, yet is just as true as those things provable? They suggest that consciousness might be more than just a side effect of brain activity—it could be a basic part of how the universe works. The manifesto pushes for scientists to look into weird but real experiences like ESP, near-death experience, measurable telepathic capabilities, and other mind-bending stuff that doesn't fit the old-school materialistic view. It's all about encouraging science (as a discipline) to be more open-minded and willing to look at data which might not be explainable, is none the less undeniable… or at the very least… intriguing. This approach hopes to achieve a fuller picture of what nature and human life are all about. 

Now notice, the core of much of this is consciousness. ESP, near-death experience, measurable telepathic capabilities. All based in consciousness. Consciousness is a great frontier of science. It is right there on the edges of what we understand and prove. And it’s where many (if most) of the answers to this human journey can be found… if we’re brave enough to push into that wilderness. 

As we se from the example of Max Planck, scientists have understood this for a long time. And Planck is certainly not alone.

David Bohm was an American-born British theoretical physicist born in 1917. He developed an interpretation of quantum mechanics known as the "Bohmian mechanics" 

Bohm wrote, "Consciousness is much more than the 'ghost in the machine,' it is in fact the ground of all being. Consciousness is what the universe is made of; matter is just a derivative of consciousness." 

To get what Bohm is saying you need to understand that science as a discipline looks at everything from the perspective that matter is the foundation of it all. Imagine a pyramid.

At the base is matter. The second later is energy. The next layer up is chemistry. Each layer up relies on the layer below to make it make sense. The fourth layer is biology. And at the top is Consciousness (or mind). In scientific thought matter is the base and everything we explain can explain in science is based in matter (or material). This is the Materialist Model of science. It works well. Until it doesn’t. Where it falls apart id when it relates to consciousness. When Bohm wrote, "Consciousness is much more than the 'ghost in the machine,' it is in fact the ground of all being. Consciousness is what the universe is made of; matter is just a derivative of consciousness." He’s saying consciousness is not the top layer of the pyramid. It is the foundation. 

If we approach science from the idea that consciousness is fundamental, it doesn’t erase any of the findings we’ve found to be true using the old model. It only helps us understand that we’ve been looking at it all wrong. Our failure..? We don’t like to admit that we’re not smart enough to explain the things we don’t understand… namely Consciousness. 

The post-materialist science movement represents a significant shift in scientific philosophy, challenging the traditional materialist model. The movement advocates for a scientific discipline that is free from the constraints of materialism, promoting an open, non-dogmatic inquiry into all aspects of nature, including those that might seem anomalous or paranormal from a materialist viewpoint. While not rejecting the scientific method, post-materialists argue for its expansion to include phenomena that traditional science might overlook or dismiss.

By emphasizing the interconnectedness of mind and matter, this movement has the potential to influence not just science but also cultural narratives, potentially fostering values like compassion, environmental awareness, and peace.

There's an ongoing effort to incorporate post-materialist perspectives into scientific education and research, aiming to bridge science, spirituality, and society. What changes will come from this different approach? What ripple effects will echo through society when we start to understand that we’re all connected through consciousness? 

I opened with a quote from George Bernard Shaw, who said, "Progress is impossible without change." We are at a frontier of progress that may be greater than anything ever experienced. But we can’t get there without change. A change in how we think. A change in how we do research. The research that comes from this shift may change the way we see our place in the universe. But it all starts with changing the materialist model of scientific inquiry. 

I’ll share a link in the show notes to the "Manifesto for a Post-Materialist Science.”