There are many people who after years of ceaseless efforts, sacrifice and suffering find no change in their state of consciousness, and in the essential aspects of their personality continue to be the same as they were before. In their despair they either blame the teacher or the whole system which they followed or even question the justice of the divine Being toward whom all their devotion, sacrifice, and effort were directed.
Is it not an anomaly that while, in the intellectual sphere, out of millions who devote their lives to the various sciences and arts and make colossal sacrifices to win distinction in them, only an extremely few rise to the stature of a Shakespeare, a Kalidasa, an Omar Khayam or a Confucious? The rest reasonably attribute the rise to exceptional talent, based on some still unknown biological law. In the spiritual realm the seekers after God do not often take the same reasonable view and, instead of attributing their failure to a law of nature, assign other causes for it.
Kundalini - the Secret of Yoga G.Krishna. Publ: FIND Research Trust 1972
Why "Science and Religion", when religion seems so quaint to the jaded modern eye? But why does it still have such a firm hold on billions of believers? Religion deals with questions not answerable through the five senses. What happens to the soul? What is the nature of it, or the purpose of life? Is there a purpose to begin with? The race is still drawn to answers provided by religion and often cannot be shaken from them by criticism, even if some beliefs defy common sense, which is in itself very odd. Something instinctive in man seems to respond to the concept of worlds beyond the senses.
Agreement between religions
At the root, all religions agree, more or less, on the concept of an immortal soul, and a blissful state of awareness called "Heaven", "Nirvana", "Samadhi", etc., in which the mind makes contact with an immortal layer of its own true nature. Take away the dogma and you come down to the founders, all of whom had some kind of contact with what they considered a divine being, or a higher state, which they advised was only reachable by following a certain mode of life and code of conduct. But why? The answer is beautifully simple: because this is the mode of life natural to the ever-evolving brain. The brain responds either gradually over generations, or quickly in the case of individuals already biologically prepared in some way, and man becomes a co-operator with Nature's evolutionary processes, rather than a rebel, whose lifestyle invites resistance from Nature, and eventual degeneration.
A challenge for scientists everywhere
Science is now in a position to prove or disprove this, through a study of the brain! What is the gradual and immediate effect on the brain of a materialistic lifestyle? Study the characteristics of successive generations of wealthy families, or the prevalent mental condition of industrialised societies to see! We can't blindly adhere to rituals set out before man knew about electricity, bacteria, distant universes, and so on, because intellect has matured to the level of needing to understand such edicts. Hence the inbuilt downfall of a religion built on blind faith and ceremony. But there must be an essential truth in it somewhere: the roots of religions, to keep in mind the bond between all members of the race, and the duty owed to them, and the vast intelligence behind Nature, has a calming effect on the mind, and, therefore, on the activity of the brain. Powerful images and rituals can still be a stronghold against giving way to fear and doubt when struggling against adverse circumstances. For example, the peaceful Buddha with his hand raised, to dispel fear.
If the race is evolving to a higher state of awareness, there must be intermediary steps along the way, and everyone must be in a more or less advanced position along the path. This explains the difference between the mystic, the genius and the everyday mind. There's room for everyone. Is distorted evolution a cause of the frequent on-off mental anguish of the highly talented? Does such a brain require a more careful lifestyle? What is causing the springing up of psychopaths (simply put: a person born without moral conscience, estimated to number in 1 in every 200 individuals) in the western world? All of this and more can now be investigated by science...
It is this site's goal to bring this purpose in front of as many people as possible. I cannot think of a better task than to unite religions with science and with each other; to bring religion into the sphere of modern thought; to demonstrate that Nature is slowly trying to reshape the human brain for a multi-dimensional future consciousness, and that we should co-operate with this process, not damage our brains by defying it. All help, criticism, and contributions are very welcome.