In the universe of New Age inspiration and philosophy, there are many voices. Some even talk about astrophysics and speculate about the application of intuitional knowledge about the universe to the scientific realm.
Power of Tradition in Science
Keep in mind, though, that the scientific realm has its own communal methods for validation, the main one of which is mathematics. Scientists, being human, do tend to go with what has worked in the past until they are sufficiently challenged mathematically to invoke the open mind inherent in the scientific method. For example, Einstein’s theories were ignored for some time after he published them in a traditional peer-reviewed publication; he had to get buy-in from Max Planck in order to gain any traction, and it took many years and experimental developments to prove his theories (so far) in the real world (the recent gravity wave sightings being the latest).
You can find out more about how the scientific community favors the status quo and how humans process scientific innovations in Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.
Your Superpower of Discernment
For all situations, including science, it comes down to human judgment calls and an agreed belief in the validity of the tools of analysis to get changes in our worldview. A lot of New Age physics theorists don’t bother with this kind of rigor in their speculations and get slammed pretty regularly by many members of the scientific community. Their intuitive understanding of how the universe works may be scientifically correct, but if they don’t use the scientific method and mathematics to prove them, they will remain speculative. That doesn’t mean we can’t believe that they will ultimately be proven, but we need to use careful discernment. It’s important to distinguish genuine leaders in seeking the truth about how things work from folks who have personal power-trip motivations.
Discernment can be an important superpower for us in our own spiritual journeys. We need to do our homework at the level of intuition and experiential observation first. Then we can decide if it’s worth supporting someone’s ideas and transformational methods.
Separating the Guru Wheat from the Chaff
Here are my criteria for supporting the inspirations of New Age-style thought leaders. I hope you find them useful as you explore different approaches to spiritual healing and growth.
- They are open to criticism and new perspectives on their beliefs and ideas.
- They insist on the empowerment and independence of thought of their followers rather than focusing on their own material or psychological advancement through the sacrifices of others.
- They allow for an appropriate energy exchange for the products or services they offer without exploiting others purely for their own benefit. They provide excellent transformational value for their followers.
- They focus on a message that is primarily about love and individual empowerment and one that avoids motivating other humans with a fear-based message.
- They offer genuine understanding and empathy for the challenges of the human experience and do not dismiss human suffering out of hand.
Above all, an intuitive sense of love for and empowerment of others is key for me in respecting the contributions of a “New Age” thought leader or healer. In the end, though, you are in charge of your own path in the spiral, your own healing. Never give that power away.