Tart, Charles T. “Some Fundamental Perspectives on Religion and Philosophy Provided by Modern Parapsychology.” August 1990 [Conference Paper].

Abstract

Modern views of neural functioning hypothesize that we live in a largely automatized simulation of reality rather than being in direct contact with the world. Scientism, a view that distorts the scientific process to make it compatible with a materialistic philosophy, is an important component of the modern world simulation process. Some of its psychologically deleterious effects are discussed in relation to a belief experiment for discovering them on a personal level. Scientism cannot be dismissed simply because it is dis-spiriting, however. The facts of science cannot be rejected out of hand. Parapsychological research thus plays a critical role in the transition from a modern to a postmodern view of human life, for using the best kind of genuinely scientific method, its findings undermine scientism’s claim to providing a total picture of life and open us to serious consideration of a spiritual side to life. The most solidly established parapsychological findings force us to consider a view of the mind that includes the possibility of mind sometimes reaching out directly, without using the physical senses, to touch other minds; to sometimes “perceive” the state of the physical world and sometimes materially affect it through volition alone; and to sometimes foretell a future that is materially unpredictable. Other parapsychological findings, less solidly established but still demanding consideration, suggest a view of the nature of mind that includes its ability to heal the in a psychic fashion; to observe the world from a location other than where the physical body is located; and possibly to survive physical death in some form.