Posted inBooks Consciousness Free will

Modern science is more mystical than ancient mysticism

For many years, about 37, I was deeply attracted to mysticism. One of the reasons was that I loved how mystic teachings taught the self was an illusion and our sense of free will masked God's overarching control over all things, including human actions. But gradually I realized the downsides of mysticism. There was no demonstrable evidence that God or anything supernatural existed. And my love of science eventually led me to embrace reality, rather than religion -- of which mysticism is an offshoot. Now, though, I've come to a pleasing conclusion: modern science actually is more mystical than ancient…
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Posted inAtheism Reality Religions

Join the godly, supernatural, mystical “I Don’t Know For Sure” club

It gives me great pleasure to invite not only visitors to this blog, but everybody in the whole freaking world, to join a non-exclusive club I've just formed: The I Don't Know For Sure club.  Admission is free. There are no dues. Also, no meetings. Nor any sort of organization. This club exists only in the minds of those who answer "no" to a simple question. Are you 100%, completely, absolutely, without-a-doubt confident that what you believe about god, the supernatural, and mystical experiences is objectively true? Now, though this question is simple, I still feel a need to explain…
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Posted inConsciousness

“I’ is consciousness itself, not a conscious being

I'm pleased to share another email message from JB, a frequent commenter on this blog who has an outstanding ability to write cogently about profound topics.  I was tempted to say "philosophical topics," but as you will read below, JB's thoughts about consciousness really have little to do with philosophy -- at least, as most people regard this field. The ancient Greeks considered philosophy (literally, love of wisdom) to be a way of life, not an academic exercise. So in that sense, what JB writes about is indeed philosophical, since there is nothing more intimately connected with life than our…
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Posted inConsciousness

Can there be consciousness without conscious content?

In regard to the question I asked in the title of this post, I'd say "No." For one thing, how could someone know that they are conscious without an extra something-or-other besides supposedly pure consciousness?  I talked about this in "My (only) big problem with Sam Harris' 'Waking Up' book." Let's be clear: Sam Harris considers that the brain produces consciousness. He doesn't show any sign of believing in a transcendent non-physical consciousness (like soul or spirit) which exists apart from the brain. So I have no problem with this aspect of Harris' view of consciousness. But as I said…
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Posted inScience

Reality pushes back. This is how science succeeds.

It's taken me a while to write another blog post about Adam Becker's fascinating book, "What is Real? The Unfinished Quest for the Meaning of Quantum Physics."  My first post was "Reality requires a broad scientific look, not narrow mystic visions." This reflects the central theme of Becker's book: observations require an interpretation to make them truly meaningful.  The "shut up and calculate" view of quantum physics, which is embraced by many, if not most, of those working in this field, is roundly criticized by Becker -- and other like-minded scientists. As you'll read below in a lengthy excerpt from…
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Posted inFree will

Free will is a religious delusion, not an atheist one

After writing a recent post about the illusion of free will, "Simple task shows why free will is an illusion," a comment on the post included this: Mind blown because I assumed atheists believed in free will too. Thought the whole notion of not having free will was part of a mystical “everything is karma” sort of ideology. Sam Harris, who thought up the simple task I described in the post, is both a noted atheist and a strong advocate for free will being an illusion. Or delusion. Harris published "The End of Faith" in 2005. In 2012 he published…
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Posted inFree will

Simple task shows why free will is an illusion

Just to polish up my enlightened state of being, which already was at a very high stage after listening to a guided "Daily Calm" meditation on my iPhone's Calm app for the last couple of years, about a week ago I decided to download Sam Harris' "Waking Up" app. But after listening to the Free Will - Part One talk, I'm now convinced that the reason I just gave for getting the Waking Up app almost certainly isn't what caused me to do this.  Which isn't really a surprise, since I've been fascinated by the notion of free will, especially…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas

More Zen-like talk from Gurinder Singh Dhillon

Even though I no longer belong to Radha Soami Satsang Beas, I know that many people who visit this blog are still interested in the RSSB philosophy, and how the current RSSB guru, Gurinder Singh Dhillon, is taking that philosophy in a new direction. Here's a message I got today from Osho Robbins, who enjoys speaking with Gurinder Singh, a.k.a. "Baba Gurinder," about subjects few, if any, people raise at RSSB meetings, or satsangs. As I've noted in previous posts, it's good that Gurinder Singh is acting less like a traditional RSSB guru and more like a Zen master. However,…
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Posted inDeath/Rebirth

Atheism has made me more comfortable with death

Often religious people wrongly consider that atheists are more afraid of dying than believers in God, which usually entails a belief in an afterlife. That hasn't been the case with me. And it isn't the case with the many atheists I know. In fact, I've found that actually the opposite has occurred. During the 35 years I was a devotee of an Eastern religion that taught the soul survives one's death, I was more afraid of dying than I am now.  Here's an excerpt from a previous post, "We'll die the way we have lived." My wife and I prepared…
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Posted inPersonal/Stories

Tomorrow I’ll be 70. Tonight I wrote a blog post about what I’ve learned.

It freaks me out to think that tomorrow I'll be 70. So tonight I rummaged though my aging brain, looking for some (possible) wisdom to share with a (possible) waiting world. I came up with this post that I wrote for my HinesSight blog: "Regret and hope are luxuries for the young."  Hey, at least the title sounds kind of philosophically profound. I readily admit my "live for the moment" advice is cliched. But sometimes cliches are wonderfully true. Here's an excerpt from the post: In fact, I'm becoming increasingly convinced that after a certain age, and I feel that I've…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas Religions

Radha Soami Satsang Beas admits it is a religion

Religions often come in for well-deserved criticism. They're dogmatic, judgmental, holier-than-thou, and divisive -- since every religion considers that it knows the truth about God, while all those other religions are false.  (This is why atheists like to say, as Ricky Gervais put it to Stephen Colbert: "There are about 3,000 gods to choose from… Basically, you deny one less God than I do. You don’t believe in 2,999 gods. And I don’t believe in just one more.") Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) is an Indian group that traditionally has denied it is a religion, but rather a "science of…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas

RSSB book shows why there’s no such thing as a “perfect” master

Thanks to the Great God Amazon, who answers my prayers by delivering to my doorstep pretty much whatever I desire, I'm the possessor of two books published in 2016 by Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB): "A Wake Up Call: Beyond Concepts and Illusions" by Sabina Oberoi and Beverly Chapman, and a similar book by Sabina Oberoi, "Concepts and Illusions: A Perspective." Since I no longer believe in the RSSB teachings, after being a devotee of this Indian spiritual organization for 35 years, I figured that I wouldn't agree with much in these books. Still, since I'm interested in the general…
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Posted inChristianity/Jesus Religions Spiritual practice/meditation

Wise observations about spiritual experiences and religious craziness

One of the pleasures of having this blog is being able to read comments from blog visitors that make me think, "Wow! That was beautifully and wisely said." Sometimes when this happens I share a comment in a blog post so it will be more visible. Such is the case with two comments from "JB" that you can read below. Each was left on a recent post, "Meaning comes from us, not God." This comment by JB relates to the supposed truthfulness of spiritual/mystical experiences. I agree with what JB says, though these experiences often have more to them than…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas

Forbes story about Singh brothers and RSSB guru shows danger of “honor cultures”

Someone sent me another story about the long-running Indian financial drama involving the Singh brothers and the Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB)  guru -- Gurinder Singh Dhillon, a relative of Shivinder and Malvinder Singh. Malvinder and Shivinder Singh What's interesting about this Forbes story, "How To Lose a $2 Billion Family Inheritance: The Tale of the Singh Brothers of India," is that it is written by an American, Dennis Jaffe. Download How To Lose A $2 Billion Family Inheritance: The Tale Of The Singh Brothers Of India So Jaffe looks upon the tangled web of the Singh brothers' business dealings…
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Posted inGod Morality

Meaning comes from us, not God

Many religious people wrongly believe that atheists, secular humanists, and others who don't believe in a personal God (most Buddhists and Taoists fit this category) lack meaning in their lives. Actually, we do. Most of my friends and relatives are atheists. They live deeply meaningful lives.  In his book, "Finding Purpose in a Godless World," psychiatrist Ralph Lewis explains how an unguided universe contains people who lives caring, loving, purpose-driven lives. Below is a summary of key themes in his book from the final chapter. I've written a couple of other blog posts about Lewis' book:"Why God is an illusion,…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas

Here’s a message from Sheena for RSSB devotees

Sheena (a pen name) wrote a compelling book, "Memoirs of a Seeker." Though Sheena describes the guru to whom she was once devoted only as "Guruji," and doesn't name the center headed up by Guruji, it is clear that the guru is Gurinder Singh Dhillon, the leader of Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), a spiritual organization headquartered in India at a place commonly known as the Dera. I've written several blog posts about Sheena's book. I liked how she wrote so honestly about losing faith in Gurinder Singh after coming to the Dera and doing volunteer work that brought her…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas

Update on reported September 17 meeting of Indian RSSB secretaries

UPDATE: Well, now I've heard from somebody in India that the meeting did happen on September 17, and that it happens every year around this time. It's strange that, if I recall correctly, only one commenter on this blog said it was an annual meeting. Just goes to show that when it comes to RSSB, it's difficult to get straight answers about what is happening with this rather secretive spiritual organization. Anyway, it's good to have a confirmation that my original blog post on this subject wasn't "fake news." ----------------------- Juan just left the comment below, indicating that the September 17…
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Posted inPersonal/Stories Radha Soami Satsang Beas Spiritual practice/meditation

A pleasing message about me, and honesty about RSSB

Some people like this blog. Some people don't like it. After 14 years of regularly writing here on the Church of the Churchless, I've come to expect both praise and criticism.  Not surprisingly, I prefer hearing good things about me and this blog. So when I got the following email message today from someone in India I've been corresponding with, it made me feel good.  I'll explain why after the message. I've corrected some typos and made the formatting easier to read. Otherwise the message is as written. "Sewa" means service, or volunteer work. The Dera is the Indian headquarters…
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Posted inPersonal/Stories

My death is prematurely celebrated

This is one of the pleasures of blogging -- being celebrated. Since I'm writing a blog post about this comment, obviously the commenter was celebrating prematurely. Naturally I was curious about where my fan lives, so I looked up the IP address of the commenter. It came from the Punjab, in India.  Nice! I'm being celebrated from halfway around the world! The meaning of this pithy comment is open to discussion, of course. Another commenter was a bit generous in this regard, given the historical comparisons, but I did agree with the remark about the need for us to connect…
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Posted inBooks Radha Soami Satsang Beas

My response to someone who doubts “Sheena’s” stories about Gurinder Singh Dhillon

It's fitting that yesterday I heard from someone who had skeptical questions about a book I wrote about last month, "Memoirs of a Seeker," by Sheena (a pen name, not her real name). Fitting, because the United States, where I live, currently is embroiled in a fierce debate about a reported sexual assault by a Supreme Court nominee, whose female victim has said she is willing to testify at an open hearing next week.  Christine Blasey Ford kept silent about the attack for many years. Now she's being criticized for waiting so long to speak out. But it is widely…
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