Science and Occultism: Outline

Overview: The fundamental question to be addressed in these modules is: What is a FACT?

These modules will sequentially address --from a scientific perspective-- the three major categories of knowledge as considered in the AAB-DK books. These books will not be considered as the touchstone of truth, but rather as maps to it.  Once the DK Teachings are shown to be in agreement with the accepted principles of observation as practiced in science, then the DK maps will be used as hypotheses to be tested through experiment and experience in order to assist us in "observing, recognizing and revealing" FACTS. 

Resources: http://ngsm.org/agni-yoga/science.htm 

Syllabus: http://ngsm.org/agni-yoga/syllabus.htm

I. Introductory level

Overview: This course will introduce the student to the three major categories of knowledge as considered in the AAB-DK books: theoretical, discriminative and intuitive knowledge. 

A. Semester 1, Bimonthly Section 1

Unit 1: Introduction to science and the scientific method. Five postulates.
     Q: What is science? What is the scientific method? How is it useful?
    
Unit 2: Categories of knowledge.
     Q: What is knowledge? How is knowledge ascertained?

Unit 3: The role of the observer in the scientific method?
     Q: Is the "attitude of the Observer" an instance of the scientific method at work? How?

Unit 4: Limitations of the scientific method.
     Q: Is "scientism" another dogma? Is "subjectivity" always biased (as claimed by the orthodox scientific method)?


B. Semester 1, Bimonthly Section 2

Unit 1: Scientific research methods
     Q: How is a research study designed? Types of studies? Measures of association? Ethical concerns?

Unit 2: Statistical and methodological considerations in scientific research
     Q: How many types of error? How to control for error in a study?

Unit 3: Astrology as a science, esoterically and statistically considered
     Q: Can scientific research be conducted on esoteric astrology? How? 

Unit 4: Esoteric mathematics
     Q: Can spiritual discernment be mathematically formulated? What is the esoteric correspondence of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle?


C. Semester 1, Bimonthly Section 3

Unit 1: The esoteric scientific method
     Q: Is there an esoteric scientific method? How would you define it? Is etheric vision an instrument of scientific research?

Unit 2: Validation criteria of subjective truths
     Q: How is faith different from cultism? How is conviction different from fanaticism?

Unit 3: The scientific method and occult meditation
     Q: How is the scientific method related to occult meditation and its stages?

Unit 4: The mind as a sixth sense.
     Q: If the mind is a sixth sense, what's the seventh? How does the abstract mind relate to the intuition? Can the fact of the soul be proved?