GEE 6: SOCIAL SCIENCES AND PHILOSOPHY

LESSON 1. MEANING AND NATURE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES; DISCIPLINES

UNDER SOCIAL SCIENCES; CURRENT PERSPECTIVES USED IN
THE SOCIAL SCIENCES; RELEVANCE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

A. The Social Sciences

- Social Science is, in its broadest sense, the study of society and the manner
in which people behave and influence the world around us.
- Social Science is a major category of academic disciplines, concerned with
society and the relationships among individuals within a society.
- Social Science is a branch of science that deals with the institutions and
functioning of human society and with the interpersonal relationships of
individuals as members of society.
- Social Science is the study of society and the way in which people behave.
- The Social Sciences are a group of academic disciplines that study human
aspects of the world.
- Social science is any discipline or branch of science that deals with human
behavior in its social and cultural aspects.

B. Nature and Fields / Branches

- The term social science is sometimes used to refer specifically to the field of
Sociology, the original 'science of society', established in the nineteenth
century. Social Science has many branches, each of which is considered a
"social science". The main social sciences include economics, political
science, human geography, demography and sociology. In a wider sense,
social science also includes among its branches some fields in the humanities
such as anthropology, archeology, history, law, and linguistics.

- Social Sciences tell us about the world beyond our immediate experience,
and can help explain how our own society works - from the causes of
unemployment or what helps economic growth, to how and why people vote,
or what makes people happy. They provide vital information for governments
and policymakers, local authorities, non-governmental organizations and
others.

- For historical reasons, the social sciences are often defined as the
disciplines that are in between the humanities and the natural sciences.
As a result, the decision on which disciplines are parts of social sciences and
which are not varies a great deal from one country to another and over time
(Françoise Caillods and Laurent Jeanpierre).

1
 - The Social Sciences, help to explain how society works, exploring everything
from the triggers of economic growth and causes of unemployment to what
makes people happy. This information is vital and can be used for many
purposes. Among other things, it helps to shape corporate strategies and
government policies.

- Social science as a field of study is separate from the natural sciences,

which cover topics such as physics, biology, and chemistry. Social science
examines the relationships between individuals and societies, as well as the
development and operation of societies, rather than studying the physical
world. These academic disciplines rely more heavily on interpretation
and qualitative research methodologies.

Most experts and scholars, however, consider the following as the main social sciences:
- Anthropology - Internet
- Communication - Law
- Criminology - Linguistics
- Cultural Studies - Media
- Economics - Politics
- Education - Psychology
- Environment - Social Psychology
- History - Social Work
- Human Geography - Sociology
- International Relations

Common Characteristics of the Social Sciences

1. Collaboration with colleagues to gather data and publish research.
2. Reliance upon raw data such as statistics, survey results, observations, and
interviews.
3. A need for current information that leads to heavy use of journal articles and
conference papers, although book-length studies are also important sources.
4. Findings are often reported in the popular media, so it is vital to differentiate
between scholarly publications and general-interest or popular magazines. 

Focus of Some Social Sciences

Demography and Social Statistics, Methods and Computing

1. Demography is the study of populations and population changes and trends,
using resources such as statistics of births, deaths and disease.
2. Social Statistics, Methods and Computing involves the collection and analysis
of quantitative and qualitative social science data

2
Development Studies, Human Geography and Environmental Planning

1. Development Studies is a multidisciplinary branch of the social sciences which

addresses a range of social and economic issues related to developing or low-
income countries.
2. Human Geography studies the world, its people, communities and cultures, and
differs from physical geography mainly in that it focuses on human activities and
their impact - for instance on environmental change.
3. Environmental Planning explores the decision-making processes for managing
relationships within and between human systems and natural systems, in order
to manage these processes in an effective, transparent and equitable manner.

Economics, Management and Business Studies

1. Economics seeks to understand how individuals interact within the social

structure, to address key questions about the production and exchange of goods
and services.

2. Management and Business Studies explores a wide range of aspects relating

to the activities and management of business, such as strategic and operational
management, organizational psychology, employment relations, marketing,
accounting, finance and logistics.

Education, Social Anthropology, and Linguistics

1. Education is one of the most important social sciences, exploring how people
learn and develop.
2. Social Anthropology is the study of how human societies and social structures
are organized and understood.
3. Linguistics focuses on language and how people communicate through spoken
sounds and words.

Law, Economics and Social History

1. Law focuses on the rules created by governments and people to ensure a more

orderly society.
2. Economics and History / Social History looks at past events to learn from
history and better understand the processes of contemporary society.

3
Politics / Political Science and International Relations

1. Politics / Political Science focuses on democracy and the relationship between

people and policy, at all levels up from the individual to a national and
international level.
2. International Relations is the study of relationships between countries,
including the roles of other organizations.

Psychology and Sociology

1. Psychology studies the human mind and try to understand how people and
groups experience the world through various emotions, ideas, and conscious
states.
2. Sociology involves groups of people, rather than individuals, and attempts to
understand the way people relate to each other and function as a society or
social sub-groups.

Science and Technology Studies

1. Science and Technology Studies is concerned with what scientists do, what
their role is in our society, the history and culture of science, and the policies and
debates that shape our modern scientific and technological world.

Social Policy and Social Work

1. Social Policy is an interdisciplinary and applied subject concerned with the

analysis of societies' responses to social need, focusing on aspects of society,
economy and policy that are necessary to human existence, and how these can
be provided.
2. Social Work focuses on social change, problem-solving in human relationships
and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance social justice

3. Current Perspectives in the Social Sciences

1. Historical and Social Science Perspectives on the Role of Risk

Assessment and Science in Protecting the Domestic Economy:

There is hardly any policy problem on this nation's agenda that does not require
the collaboration of the social sciences, the biological and natural sciences, and
engineering to devise suitable policy choices for society. The design of policy is
essentially the design of institutional arrangements for our society. That cannot
be done effectively without the participation of multiple disciplines.

4
Although the need for multidisciplinary collaboration might be obvious once one
gives the problem a moment's thought, it is not an easy objective to achieve.
Differing perspectives on important problems make it easy to fall into disciplinary
stereotyping and quarrelling that can be quite counterproductive. It takes a
special effort to understand the specialized language we all tend to use and to
understand the perspectives offered by disciplines other than our own. Yet both
efforts are needed if we are to capitalize on the insights offered by various
disciplines. The search for understanding the perspectives of other disciplines
can in particular be hard intellectual work.

Both our students and the public deserve the best we can give them from
multidisciplinary collaboration. Students who can observe and participate in
multidisciplinary endeavors will develop open and inquiring minds. On policy
issues, the public will gain insight into the complex and complicated world in
which policy is shaped. Moreover, our citizenry will benefit from the best that
science can offer in policy alternatives from which to choose. In effect, although

2. A Perspective on Risk Assessment

Although the collaboration of biological and natural scientists with social

scientists is important in almost all dimensions of international trade policy, it
becomes especially important in making risk assessments and designing risk
management strategies. The biological and natural scientists have important
contributions to make in assessing the technical dimensions of the risks, and
social scientists need to take their assessments into account. The social
scientists contribute important insights when they estimate costs and benefits of
the innovations or risks, and the biological and natural scientists need to
understand the social scientists' perspectives. One important issue in making risk
assessments and in designing policies to manage that risk is that there appear to
be cultural differences in perspectives toward risk. For example, Europeans
seem to be much more averse to some food safety issues, such as hormones,
than are Americans. Americans, on the other hand, are more averse to
carcinogens. If these differences are real and significant, the next issue is
whether international trade regulations should take such differences into account.
Moreover, there is the issue of how they should be taken into account.

An important empirical issue in this context is that in the post-World War II

period, the Europeans have been much more protectionist toward their
agriculture than has the United States. The issue thus becomes whether what is
perceived as a food safety issue is not just a subterfuge for plain old economic
protectionism.

There is a great deal in the literature to assure us that different people have
different tastes for risks. A study done by the North Central Farm Management
Committee in the 1950s showed that beef producers, for example, tended to
have a greater taste for economic risk than producers of commodities such as
5
 the grains, for which price stabilizing government programs were in effect (Halter,
1961). Similarly, common observation tells us that many people are willing to
gamble at unfair odds, which means that they are willing to take the risk even
though they know the chances are good that they will lose. On the other end of
the perspective, we know that some people are willing to insure against some
kinds of losses, whereas other people will not insure against the same losses.

4. Professors Friedman and Savage clarified some of these issues many years ago.
They showed, for example, that it would be rational behaviour for people to
gamble at unfair odds for possible gains that would change their socioeconomic
status. Similarly, they would pay to insure against losses that would lower their
socioeconomic status (Friedman and Savage, 1948).

5. An important issue is whether the rules of trade need to take account of the risks
to the food supply posed by new technology in the production and distribution
system, and if they do, then how should these risks be taken into account? That
is, how should the rules be structured and defined?

Relevance / Importance of the Social Sciences

1. The Social Sciences enable humans (or students for this matter) to be aware of
the surroundings (sociology, psychology, economics, political science, etc.) and
the events that happened in the past (history).

2. It has significance to develop an international viewpoint.

3. It is also important for the moral progress of society. It helps to form the human
social character.

4. Study of Social Sciences makes us efficient citizens of a democracy, and it also

helps us to solve the practical problems in our daily life. It is essential for
communities and organizations.

5. It also helps especially the students to know how different societies are
managed, structured and governed.

Another way of looking at the importance of the Social Sciences can be drawn
from Audrey Osler, a British social scientist himself. Here are some reasons he
gave as to why we need the Social Sciences.

1. Social scientists help us imagine alternative futures.

Social science can open up debate and give us a say in shaping our collective
future. The social sciences developed as a field of study during the nineteenth
century. Social science helped people understand the consequences and
application of the new technologies of the age, such as steam power.

6
The growth of railways and factories not only transformed the economy and the
world of work, but also changed forever the way people organized their family
lives and leisure. Today nanotechnology and advances in medical research will
have a significant impact on the way we live.

They present us with a bewildering range of ethical, legal and social issues. But it
isn’t enough to rely on the scientists. We also need social scientists to analyze
and critique what’s going on. That way we will make informed choices that shape
the future.

2. Social scientists contribute to our health and well‐being.

From sports sociologists to public health experts, from those interpreting medical
statistics to those evaluating policies for our care in old age, social scientists are
working hard to make sure that our health, leisure and social care services work
to best effect.

3. Social science can improve our children’s lives and education.

All societies and all governments want to show they are doing the best for
children. Yet too often education reform seems to take place without regard for
the best interests of the learners. Education research shows that many parents,
particularly parents of younger children, are more concerned that their children
enjoy school, than that they are academic stars.

4. Social science can change the world for the better.

We can generally agree that world needs to be a safer place where all people
can enjoy basic dignity and human rights. This is the case even when we can’t
always agree on what we should do to make this happen. Social scientists
working in interdisciplinary teams have made their mark in the area of human
welfare and development.
They are concerned with the social and economic advancement of humanity at
large. They work with government institutions, UN organizations, social services,
funding agencies, and with the media.

They are influencing the work of strategists, planners, teachers and programme
officers in developing and growing economies, like India, to influence
development so that it impacts on the lives of the poorest members of society.

5. Social science can broaden your horizons.

For debates about feminism, peace, ecology, social movements, and much
more, social science offers each of us new perspectives and new ways of
understanding. Whether your idea of relaxation is visiting a museum, watching

7
 soaps, or chatting online, social science encourages a fresh look at our everyday
activities and culture.

LESSON 2. MEANING AND NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY; BRANCHES OF

PHILOSOPHY; CHARACTERISTICS OF PHILOSOPHY

Nature of Philosophy

Man is an inquiring animal. Since the day he developed the power of reflection, he has
always posed questions about himself, the world around him, and the purpose and
meaning of his existing. Driven as through by a curiosity to know, man has never
stopped searching through the ages for an answer to his fundamental queries, to his
doubts and perplexities. It was out of these persistent questionings and never ending
quest for knowledge and truth that the spirit of philosophy was born.

Philosophy is for everyone.  In fact, although most people may be vague about what
philosophy is, we all engage in philosophy whether we are aware of it or not.  We all
have some ideas concerning free will, human nature, morality, the meaning of life, and
the like.  Everyone, at one time or another, either because of startling events or simple
curiosity, asks philosophical questions like:  "Does God exist?"  "Is there life after
death?"  "Are there any absolute or universal moral principles?"  "What do ethical terms
like good, bad, right, and wrong mean?"  "What is beauty?"  "What are the
characteristics of a 'good' work of art?"  "From what sources do we gain our
knowledge?"  "Does sensory experience provide indubitable knowledge?"

Definition / Meanings of Philosophy

The word Philosophy comes from the Greek words, philo (love) and sophia (wisdom)
and thus, it signifies “love of wisdom”. This notion of Philosophy has always been
understood since time immemorial as the serious quest for knowledge of the material
world and endeavor to live “the good life”. The quest for knowledge in the philosophy
was never meant to be the easy acceptance of, or conformity to, traditional views or
practices. Philosophic knowledge is acquired, as the great philosopher Socrates
suggested, through critical inquiry and independent reflection. Thus if one hopes to
have a philosophical understanding of the world and man’s place in it, one must appeal
to reason rather than to authority, be it tradition or revelation. The search for truth in the
realm of philosophy is such a radical venture, that in the process, it may summon to the
bar of reason even time honored beliefs, assumptions and practices of the society.

8
Nature of Philosophy

Here are some descriptions, which can give you a better understanding as to the nature
of Philosophy. These do not, however, necessarily reflect a consensus of philosophical
opinion.
1. Philosophy analyzes the foundations and presuppositions underlying other
disciplines.  Philosophy investigates and studies the underpinnings of science, art, and
theology.  Philosophers do not ask "Are Pablo Picasso's paintings 'good' works of art?"
(as art critics do) but "Is aesthetic judgment a matter of personal taste, or are there
objective standards that we can apply to evaluate a work of art?"  Philosophers do not
ask "Is the theory of evolution true?" (as biologists and physical anthropologists do) but
"How do we distinguish truth from error?"
2. Philosophy attempts to develop a comprehensive conception or apprehension
of the world.  Philosophy seeks to integrate the knowledge of the sciences with that of
other fields of study to achieve some kind of consistent and coherent world view. 
Philosophers do not want to confine their attention to a fragment of human experience
or knowledge, but rather, want to reflect upon life as a totality.  In speaking of this
particular function, Charlie Dunbar Broad, an English twentieth century philosopher,
says: "Its object is to take over the results of the various sciences, to add to them the
results of the religious and ethical experiences of mankind, and then to reflect upon the
whole.  The hope is that, by this means, we may be able to reach some general
conclusions as to the nature of the universe, and as to our position and prospects in it." 
(Scientific Thought, New York: Harcourt, 1923, p. 20)
3. Philosophy studies and critically evaluates our most deeply held beliefs and
attitudes; in particular, those which are often held uncritically.  Philosophers have
an attitude of critical and logical thoughtfulness.  They force us to see the significance
and consequences of our beliefs, and sometimes their inconsistencies.  They analyse
the evidence (or lack of it) for our most treasured beliefs, and seek to remove from our
perspectives every taint and trace of ignorance, prejudice, superstition, blind
acceptance of ideas, and any other form of irrationality.
4.  Philosophy investigates the principles and rules of language, and attempts to
clarify the meaning of vague words and concepts.  Philosophy examines the role of
language in communication and thought, and the problem of how to identify or ensure
the presence of meaning in our use of language.  It is a method--a practice--which
seeks to expose the problems and confusions which have results from the misuse of
language, and to clarify the meaning and use of vague terms in scientific and/or
everyday discourse.

9
Branches of Philosophy

These branches of Philosophy originate from basic questions. What do I know? How do

I know it? Where do we come from? What is good? What is beautiful? How do we act?

 Aesthetics. This is the branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty,
art, taste, and the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically
defined as the study of sensory or sensory-emotional values, sometimes called
judgments of sentiment and taste . The Philosophy which deals with the beauty
and what make things beautiful.

 Logic. This branch originates from basic questions. What do I know? How do I

know it? Where do we come from? What is good? What is beautiful? How do we
act? is the branch of philosophy which deals correct reasoning.

 Epistemology. It is the branch of philosophy, which is concerned with the

nature and scope (including limitations) of knowledge. It addresses four main
questions. 1) What is knowledge? 2) How is knowledge acquired? 3) What do
people know? 4) How do we know what we know?  discusses the nature of
knowledge and knowing.

 Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy which seeks

to address questions about morality; that is, about concepts like good and bad,
right and wrong, justice, virtue, etc. is the branch which deals with moral
questions and dilemmas.

 Political Philosophy is the study of concepts such as liberty, justice, property,

rights, law, and the enforcement of a legal code by authority: what they are, why
(or even if) they are needed, what makes a government legitimate, what rights
and freedoms it should protect and why, what form it should take and why, what
the law is, and what duties citizens owe to a legitimate government, if any, and
when it may be legitimately overthrown, if ever. Three central concerns of
political philosophy have been the political economy by which property rights are
defined and access to capital is regulated, the demands of justice in distribution
and punishment, and the rules of truth and evidence that determine judgments in
the law. Studies governments and deals with questions of justice, power and the
rights and obligations of citizens.

 Metaphysics is concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and

the world. Cosmology and Ontology are the two traditional branches of
metaphysics. Cosmology seeks to understand the origin, evolution, structure,
and ultimate fate of the universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it
in order. Ontology is the investigation into what types of things there are in the

10
 world and what relations these things bear to one another. Ontology deals with
questions concerning what entities exist or can be said to exist, and how such
entities can be grouped, related within a hierarchy, and subdivided according to
similarities and differences. Before the development of modern science, scientific
questions were addressed as a part of metaphysics known as "natural
philosophy." The scientific method, however, made natural philosophy an
empirical and experimental activity unlike the rest of philosophy, and by the end
of the eighteenth century it had begun to be called "science" in order to
distinguish it from philosophy. Thereafter, metaphysics became the philosophical
enquiry of a non-empirical character into the nature of existence.is a branch of
philosophy which deals with questions regarding reality and existence.

CHAPTER 2 RELIGION; RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCES; SPIRITUALITY

INTRODUCTION

In this Chapter, you will be introduced to an understanding of religion, spiritual

experiences and spirituality.

We read in the Book of Genesis, how God created man in his own image and likeness
(Gen. 1:26, 27) from the dust of the ground and put him in a garden east of Eden
(Gen.2:7) to dress it and to keep it, and had given him commandment to freely eat of
every tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2: 15,
16).

As a creature after the image and likeness of God, we can see that man is a spiritual
being, possessing some qualities and attributes proper to God, the very reason that
God had fellowship with man, walking in the garden in the cool of the day.

But man had disobeyed God’s only commandment, not to eat of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 3:11), so much so, that man’s spiritual link with God
had been severed and man had been banished from the garden of Eden, lest they
might partake of the tree of life and live forever (Gen. 3:22) with a sinful nature.

From that time on, man had contrived ways and means on how to return back to God,
how to reconnect the severed relationship with God. Hence religion - from the Latin
word re- meaning again and ligare- meaning to bind.

Man found his way back to God in his own term “Because that, when they knew God,
they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their
imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:21). According to the
Apostle Paul, man exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the
creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever (Romans 1:25).
11
As man put into practice his religious experiences, mostly based on the worship of
things in nature and the heavenly bodies (Deut. 4:16-19), the more he was convinced of
his spiritual renewal through his own understanding which resulted from his partaking of
the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and not from what God himself
had promised in Genesis 3:15.

VALUES / THRUSTS INTEGRATION

Valuing relationships with the Supreme Being and human existence

Definition of Terms

 Religion - Religion refers to the pursuit of transformation guided by a sacred

belief system. It is defined as “people's beliefs and opinions concerning the
existence, nature, and worship of a deity or deities, and divine involvement in the
universe and human life” (“Religion,” 2009).

 Religious Experience – John Edwin Smith defines religious experience as a

specific experience such as wonder at the infinity of the cosmos, the sense of
awe and mystery in the presence of the sacred or holy, feeling of dependence on
a divine power or an unseen order, the sense of guilt and anxiety accompanying
belief in a divine judgment, or the feeling of peace that follows faith in divine
forgiveness.

 Spirituality – Zehavit Gross, in his article A Quest for the Realm of Spirituality,

defines spirituality as an expression of human longing to approach a supreme
entity or power situated beyond human control and grasp, thereby expressing the
existential uniqueness of humans or animals.

 Philosophy of Religion - The Encyclopedia Britannica describes Philosophy of

Religion as a discipline concerned with the philosophical appraisal of human
religious attitudes and of the real or imaginary objects of those attitudes, God or
the gods. The Philosophy of Religion is an integral part of Philosophy as such
and embraces central issues regarding the nature and extent of human
knowledge, the ultimate character of reality, and the foundations of morality.

 Theology - The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines theology as the study of

religious faith, practice, and experience; the study of God and of God's relation
to the world.

 Belief System or Worldview - Belief systems are often deemed as convictions,

often in the form of supernatural or religious beliefs, though they may also take
12
 the form of scientific views, or any philosophical belief relating to the sphere of
daily life. A ‘worldview’ is a theory of the world used for living in it, serving as a
mental model of reality, a framework of ideas and attitudes about ourselves, the
world, and life. Belief system is often interchangeable with the term ‘worldview,’
hence, the two are predominantly used as synonymous terms.

Components or Basic Elements of Religion:

 Belief in Supernatural Power

Every religion believes in some supernatural power i.e. powers outside of man
and the present world. The supernatural powers are believed to influence human
life and conditions.

 Man’s adjustment to Supernatural Powers

As man is dependent on these supernatural powers hence he must adjust
himself to the powers. As a result, every religion provides for some external acts
or rituals such as prayer.

 Acts defined as Sinful

Every religion defines some acts as sacred and some other as sinful which are
supposed to destroy the harmonious relationships between man and god.

 Method of Salvation
Man needs some method by which he can attain salvation or Nirvana or by which
harmony between man and god will be re-established by the removal of guilt or
bondage. Because every religion consider salvation as the ultimate aim of life.

 Belief in some sacred things

Every religion believes on some holy or sacred things which constitute the centre
of religion. These sacred or holy things are symbolic. But this belief based on
faith. For example, Cow is sacred for Hindus.

 Procedure of Worship
Every religion has its own specific procedure of worshipping. The follower of
religion worships the supernatural power either in the form of a statute or in a
formless manner.

 Place of Worship
Every religion has its own definite place of worship in which its followers offer
their prayer to the supernatural power.

Worldview of the World’s Major Religions

13
  All is one (Monism)

Monism is a philosophical, cosmological, and metaphysical stand which proposes an

ultimate unity of all things, and that all seeming differences, distinctions, divisions, and
separations are ultimately only apparent or partial aspects of an ultimate whole. It is a
theological stance that “all is one, that there are no fundamental divisions, and that a
unified set of laws underlie all of nature.
 Many Gods (Polytheism)

Polytheism’ refers to the worship of or belief in more than one deity, especially several
deities usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own
religions and rituals. Especially in a sociological perspective, the emergence of
polytheism has been attributed to the desire to pacify the uncontrollable forces of
nature, the need for supernatural moral sanctions, and the attempt to justify
specialization and class distinctions.
 One God (Monotheism)

Monotheism is the “belief in single God: the belief that there is only one God”
(“Monotheism,” 2009). The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church defines it as the
“belief in one personal and transcendent God.”
 No God (Atheism)

‘Atheism’ stands for the disbelief, denial of, or lack of belief in the existence of God or
gods. The term comes from the Greek prefix ‘a-,’ meaning ‘without,’ and the Greek word
‘theos,’ which means ‘god.’

Origins of Religion

 Ancient Foundations

The origin of religion can generally be traced to the ancient Near East and classified in
three basic categories: polytheistic, pantheistic and monotheistic. Atheism is really a
modern belief that resulted from the "Enlightenment" period of the 18th century.

 Polytheism
Polytheism (a belief in many gods) is thought to have originated
with Hinduism in about 2500 BC. Hindu beliefs were recorded in the Bhagavad
Gita, which revealed that many gods were subject to a supreme Brahman
god. Polytheism was also the religion of many other ancient cultures, including
Assyria, Babylonia, Egypt, Greece and Rome. The ancient polytheistic belief
systems viewed gods as being in control of all natural events such as rainfall,
harvests and fertility. Generally, polytheistic cultures believed in sacrifices to
appease their gods. For instance, the Canaanites sacrificed to the male god,
14
 Baal, and his female counterpart, Ashteroth. Baal controlled the rain and the
harvest, while Ashteroth controlled fertility and reproduction. The Greeks and
Romans developed polytheism to a highly structured pantheon of gods and
goddesses.

 Pantheism
Pantheism (a belief that all is God) prevailed in numerous ancient cultures. The
belief that the universe itself was divine was typified in the Animism beliefs of the
African and American Indian cultures, the later Egyptian religion under the
Pharaohs, and Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism in the cultures of the Far
East. Pantheistic beliefs are also finding resurgence among various New Age
movements. Generally, pantheism is the principle that god is everything, and
everything is god. Therefore, nature is also part of god. We must be in harmony
with nature. We must nurture it and be nurtured by it. Mankind is no different than
any other animal. We must live in harmony with them, understand them, and
learn from them, focusing on the relationship between mankind and the elements
of nature.
 Monotheism
Monotheism (a belief in one God) is the foundation of the Judeo-Christian-Muslim
line of religions, which began with a man named Abraham in about 2000 BC.
From this point in history, God began revealing Himself to the world through
the nation of Israel. The Jewish Scriptures record the journey of the Israelites
from slaves in Egypt to the "promised land" in Canaan under the leadership of
Moses. During a period of about 1500 years, God revealed what became the Old
Testament of the Bible, relating the history of Israel with the character and laws
of God. During the period of the Roman Empire, Jesus Christ was born in
Bethlehem as the long-awaited Messiah. The ministry of Jesus ended in about
32 AD with His crucifixion and resurrection. After Christ's ascension into heaven,
the Christian church grew in His name and the New Testament was written.
About 600 years later, Muhammad began preaching in Mecca. Muhammad
believed he was the ultimate prophet of God, and his teachings became
the precepts of Islam as recorded in the Qur'an.

Lesson 2. RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE

As mentioned earlier, John Edwin Smith defines religious experience as a specific
experience such as wonder at the infinity of the cosmos, the sense of awe and mystery
in the presence of the sacred or holy, feeling of dependence on a divine power or an
unseen order, the sense of guilt and anxiety accompanying belief in a divine judgment,
or the feeling of peace that follows faith in divine forgiveness.
Many religious and mystical traditions see religious experiences (particularly that
knowledge which comes with them) as revelations caused by divine agency rather than
ordinary natural processes. They are considered real encounters with God or gods, or
real contact with higher-order realities of which humans are not ordinarily aware.

15
Inculcating Concepts:

Religious Experience The concept originated in the 19th century, as a

defense against the growing rationalism of Western
society. William James popularised the
concept.Many religious and mystical traditions see
religious experiences (particularly that knowledge
which comes with them) as revelations caused by
divine agency rather than ordinary natural processes.
They are considered real encounters with God or
gods, or real contact with higher-order realities of
which humans are not ordinarily aware.
Photo: Wikipedia
William James
Psychologist and philosopher William James described four characteristics of mystical
experience in The Varieties of Religious Experience. According to James, such
experiences are:

• Transient – the experience is temporary; the individual soon returns to a

"normal" frame of mind. Feels outside normal perception of space and time.
• Ineffable – the experience cannot be adequately put into words.
• Noetic – the individual feels that he or she has learned something valuable from
the experience. Feels to have gained knowledge that is normally hidden from
human understanding.
• Passive – the experience happens to the individual, largely without conscious
control. Although there are activities, such as meditation (see below), that can
make religious experience more likely, it is not something that can be turned on
and off at will.

Norman Habel defines religious experiences as

Norman Habel the structured way in which a believer enters into a
relationship with, or gains an awareness of, the
sacred within the context of a particular religious
tradition (Habel, O'Donoghue and Maddox: 1993).
Religious experiences are by their very
nature preternatural; that is, out of the ordinary or
beyond the natural order of things.
They may be difficult to distinguish observationally
from psychopathological states such
as psychoses or other forms of altered awareness
(Charlesworth: 1988). Not all preternatural
experiences are considered. to be religious
16
experiences.
 Photo: Moralground.com

Following Habel's definition, psychopathological states or drug-induced states of

awareness are not considered to be religious experiences because they are mostly not
performed within the context of a particular religious tradition.

Moore and Habel identify two classes of religious experiences: the immediate and the
mediated religious experience (Moore and Habel: 1982).

 Mediated – In the mediated experience, the believer experiences the sacred

through mediators such as rituals, special persons, religious groups, totemic
objects or the natural world (Habel et al.: 1993).
 Immediate – The immediate experience comes to the believer without any
intervening agency or mediator. The deity or divine is experienced directly.

In his book Faith and Reason, the

philosopher Richard Swinburne formulated five
categories into which all religious experiences
fall:

• Public – a believer 'sees God's hand at

work', whereas other explanations are
possible e.g. looking at a beautiful sunset

• Public – an unusual event that breaches

natural law e.g. walking on water

• Private – describable using normal

language e.g. Jacob's vision of a ladder
Photo: Wikipedia

Richard Swinburne

• Private – indescribable using normal language, usually a mystical experience

e.g. "white did not cease to be white, nor black cease to be black, but black
became white and white became black."

• Private – non-specific, general feeling of God working in one's life.

17
Swinburne also suggested two principles for the assessment of religious experiences:

• Principle of Credulity – with the absence of any reason to disbelieve it, one
should accept what appears to be true e.g. if one sees someone walking on
water, one should believe that it is occurring.
• Principle of Testimony – with the absence of any reason to disbelieve them,
one should accept that eyewitnesses or believers are telling the truth when they
testify about religious experiences.

The German thinker Rudolf Otto (1869–1937) argues that there is one common factor
to all religious experience, independent of the cultural background. In his book The Idea
of the Holy (1923) he identifies this factor as the numinous. The "numinous" experience
has two aspects:

• mysterium tremendum, which is the tendency to invoke fear and trembling;

• mysterium fascinans, the tendency to attract, fascinate and compel.

The numinous experience also has a personal

quality to it, in that the person feels to be in
communion with a holy other. Otto sees the
numinous as the only possible religious
experience. He states: "There is no religion in
which it [the numinous] does not live as the real
innermost core and without it no religion would
be worthy of the name" (Otto: 1972).

Otto does not take any other kind of religious

experience such as ecstasy and enthusiasm
seriously and is of the opinion that they belong
to the 'vestibule of religion'.

Photo: Wikipedia
Rudolf Otto

18
Lesson 3. SPIRITUALITY
In his article, A Quest for the Realm of Spirituality, Zehavit Gross defines spirituality as
an expression of human longing to approach a supreme entity or power situated beyond
human control and grasp, thereby expressing the existential uniqueness of humans
over animals.

Spirituality usually involves the belief in a higher form of intelligence or consciousness

running the universe, as well as life after death. It exists to satisfy the deeper human
thirst for meaning, peace, mystery, and truth.

In simple terms, spirituality is a worldview and a way of life based on the belief that
there is more to life than what meets the senses, more to the universe than just
purposeless mechanics, more to consciousness than electrical impulses in the brain,
and more to our existence than the body and its needs.

Inculcating Concepts

1. Elements of Spirituality

a. Holistic - Holistic means the whole system or being. This is the belief that the
parts of something are interconnected and explicable only by reference to the
whole. These beliefs are primarily orientated toward the attainment of
wholeness, health, and the well-being of “body, mind, and spirit.” Holistic
spiritualities place an emphasis on self-realization, connectivity, and personal
experiences of God, the supernatural, or the sacred.

b. Quest for meaning - Spirituality is a philosophy and personalized system of

principles and beliefs. It is universal, yet is customizable. The American
Academy of Family Physicians states, spirituality is the way you find meaning,
hope, comfort and inner peace in your life. Many people find spirituality through
religion. Some find it through music, art or a connection with nature. Others find
it in their values and principles.

c. Quest for the sacred - Spirituality is an expression of human longing to

approach a supreme entity or power situated beyond human control and grasp,
thereby expressing the existential uniqueness of humans over animals.
Spirituality can be described as “the recognition of a feeling or sense or belief
that there is something greater than oneself, something more to being human
than sensory experience, and that the greater whole of which we are part is
cosmic or divine in nature”.

19
 d. Self-reflective existence - “The true purpose of self-reflection is to correct our
mistaken thoughts and actions, and learn from them, thereby creating a more
constructive life. Self-reflection is not just the simple act of discovering past
mistakes and making up for these mistakes, like resetting a negative to zero. The
ultimate objective of self-reflection is the development of a more positive self and
the realization of a utopia on earth as the fulfillment of God’s will.”

2. What is Spirituality?

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, refers to spirituality as a religious process of

re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape of man", oriented at "the image of
God” as exemplified by the founders and sacred texts of the religions of the world. The
term was used within early Christianity to refer to a life oriented toward the Holy
Spirit and broadened during the Late Middle Ages to include mental aspects of life. In
modern times, the term both spread to other religious traditions and broadened to refer
to a wider range of experience, including a range of esoteric traditions and religious
traditions. Modern usages tend to refer to a subjective experience of a sacred
dimension and the "deepest values and meanings by which people live", often in a
context separate from organized religious institutions, such as a belief in
a supernatural (beyond the known and observable) realm, personal growth, a quest for
an ultimate or sacred meaning, religious experience,[16] or an encounter with one's own
"inner dimension". (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirituality)

3. What is True Spirituality?

For a Christian, true spirituality involves a daily trust in the One that created us.
“[Jesus Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by
him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,
whether thrones or power or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for
him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:15–17). 

“It is not a religion that holds us to a set of rules or traditions. It is not attained
through any human worthiness. It is about a relationship that God offers us, an
eternal life with Him.”

4. The Goals of Spirituality

Having a greater clarity on what is the drive behind your search can be helpful
when choosing which path or practices to take. Some of these things may not speak to
you at all, while you feel a great attraction for others. It’s all good – that is why there
are different paths out there, to match seekers of different temperaments, stages of
development, values, and goals.
In a way, all these drives have one thing in common: they show we are not
satisfied with only the material side of life, and we wish to move beyond this limitation.

20
 PURPOSE / DIRECTION. Whether you are on the top of the wheel of material
life or on the bottom, there is an underlying sense of dissatisfaction, limitation, and
emptiness. There is some form of existential anxiety. Some people are sensitive to this,
others aren’t, or they try to fill this up by chasing external goals endlessly. Spirituality is
a search for meaning, for purpose and direction in life. It fulfils our need to have a
foundation for living, a path or way of life in the light of a larger context. It speaks to the
need to be “aligned” with something bigger than our ego and individual life.
 ONENESS / LOVE / CONNECTION. This speaks to our sense of separation and
incompleteness. Because it is painful, we seek connection and love – either in a
community, or in being one with the universe, or connecting with the Divine (whatever
shape this may take). To feel complete, we crave to receive and give unconditional
love, which brings a sense of total acceptance and of happiness in being alive. This
search can also manifest as returning to the source, to God, or to a sense of
sacredness.
 GROWTH. There is an innate drive in many of us to evolve, to improve, to push
the boundaries, and reach our full potential. The drive to continuously grow and learn,
live a life authentic to our truth, develop our mind, cultivate virtues, and expand our
consciousness.
 ANSWERS / TRUTH. Questions like “Who am I?”, “Why are we here?”, and
“What else is there?” together with a drive to understand how life works and to learn
about ourselves. For some this takes the form of understanding, absorbing, and
becoming one with the absolute Truth.
 HAPPINESS / PEACE / OVERCOME SUFFERING. Suffering is the initial door of
spirituality for many people (usually in the form of anxiety, grief, or fear). When our
mind depends on external things for happiness, its experience of happiness will be
unreliable, impermanent—just like external causes are. It has been rightly coined as
“stock market happiness”. Since suffering is a mental phenomenon, and spiritual
practices are a means to transform one’s mind, it is a wise way of seeking a better life.
Hence, there is a drive to seek happiness and peace internally. Or to at least to
diminish the suffering that we are experiencing. Spirituality helps us gain balance,
independence from external cases, and a greater appreciation of life.
 TRANSCENDENCE/ENLIGHTENMENT. Different traditions
describe enlightenment differently. But the common theme is that it is a state of
transcendence from the human condition, beyond all possibility of further suffering.
There is a radical and permanent shift in our perception and experience of the world,
and a moving beyond the sense of being an individual, or a person. It’s the urge to
experience ultimate peace or freedom, to find the ultimate reality of who we are,
transcend the ego, or “merge with God”.
 EXPLORATION / MYSTERY. Diving into one’s own consciousness and
exploring other aspects of reality is something that speaks to our thirst for knowledge,
experience, and adventure. Learning the mysteries of life and nature, exploring the
sacred, and living with a sense of wonder.

21
 SERVING. The urge to serve people in a deeper level, making a big difference in
their life, and helping the upliftment of humanity.

22