Mysticism Hits the Mainstream

Christmas of '04, I read a book called The Biology of Transcendence : A Blueprint of the Human Spirit. This book discussed the author's encounters with peak experiences, and offered one possible explanation for them. Namely, he believes that the human mind eminates from the three part brain (the reptilian, limbic, and neocortex) as well as from the most recent manifestation, the heart. He went on to postulate ways to become healthier and enlightened through a method devised by the Institute of HeartMath.

At the time, I thought the idea was really cool, but I never would have guessed it would hit the mainstream. Yet today, as I looked through my e-mail, I found an article on nothing less than the Today Show on NBC discussing HeartMath. Hm, you don't get much more mainstream than that. What's most exciting about this is the truly integral approach this institute is taking. In the video on the site, Dr. Erminia Guarneri,the representative from HearthMath, talks about how the heart isn't a one dimensional physical entity, but rather a physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual manifestation. Holy shit! She just talked integral on national television.

Needless to say, I find this all very exciting. I suppose it further proves the quote by Schopenhauer that "all truth passes through three stages: First, it is ridiculed; Second, it is violently opposed; and Third, it is accepted as self-evident."

This idea may upset the reductionists around us, but I say down with reductionism! They've had their 300-year reign. It's about time we start excepting the whole Cosmos, not just the small part we can see.

Namaste.