Introduction:
Spiritual inquiry is the third inquiry methodology to study the human phenomenon. Human science, the study of the human phenomena, has three basic inquiry methods to study human beings:
1. Empirical/Analytical Inquiry
2. Psychological/Philosophical Inquiry
3. Spiritual/Transcendental Inquiry
Spiritual inquiry is a study in the human contemplation of their being. It is a personal inquiry that provides insight into the individual human experience. It is the human's opportunity to explore within them self, what their purpose and place is in this life. The human experience has generally been studied using an empirical and psychological inquiry methodology but adequate study into the "internal" functioning of the human being is now beginning to be researched. In the study of thanatology, which is my particular area of interest, the spiritual inquiry is important. As the dying person makes peace with their physical and psychological death, he or she begins to look more closely at the spiritual aspects of his or her life and wrestles with the questions of his or her purpose, contribution to life, and afterlife. The use of meditation for spiritual inquiry can provide the individual with a more fulfilled life by developing a harmony between the body, mind, and spirit.
Spiritual inquiry provides for the looking into one self and the centering of the self on the personal experience of the spiritual side of life. The spiritual side of life is the part of life that can not be experienced using the five human senses, touch, taste, hear, see, and smell or cannot be explained through rational reasoning and discourse. Spiritual inquiry provides for "a 'transcendental paradigm,' meaning an overall knowledge quest that would include not only the 'hard ware' of physical sciences but also the 'soft ware' of philosophy and psychology and the 'transcendental ware' of mystical-spiritual religion (Wilber, 1983).
In this paper I will address:
1. What human sciences is and how the methodology of spiritual inquiry supports this discipline of science.
2. The definition and purposes for the three methods of inquiry used in human sciences.
3. The criteria associated with defining and measuring what is learned through spiritual inquiry.
4. The differences between the three methods of inquiry in human sciences.
5. The benefits of spiritual inquiry in the study of human sciences.
Human Sciences:
Science is any discipline that conscientiously follows three
basic methods of data inquiry and collection:
1. Empirical fact or irreducible fact
2. Descriptive reasoning or self-evident/axiomatic truths
3. Intuition or revelatory insights
Human science collects and analyzes data using these methodologies.
Human sciences is the study and interpretation of the experiences, activities,
synthesis, and artifacts associated with human beings. The study of human
sciences attempts to expand and enlighten the human being's knowledge of
his or her existence, its interrelationship with other species and systems,
and the development of artifacts to perpetuate the human expression and
thought. Spiritual inquiry provides a method to permit the human being
to study the essence of self. Human science is the study of the human phenomena.
The study of the human experience is historical and current in nature.
It requires the evaluation and interpretation of the historic human experience
and the analysis of current human activity to gain an understanding of
the human phenomena and to project human evolution. Spiritual inquiry does
not focus on the past or the future. It is an inquiry into the present.
It is focus on the individual learning more about him or her self. In order
to better study human sciences, the researcher must know his or her self.
The new awareness that human science study is a human activity in which
the subject, as the researcher is central, relates to the fact that knowledge
is developed in a historical context of the human experience and that the
researcher, being human, shares his or her experiences as part of the subject
being studied. To provide an accurate, objective analysis of the human
experience, the researcher must be bias free in the performance of the
research. Learning and understanding about self provides support to the
human being, the researcher, to be an objective observer of life and to
interpret the human experience with greater clarity and realize the uniqueness
of the human being.
The Three Methods Of Inquiry In Human Sciences:
1. Empirical/Analytical Inquiry
Empirical studies of the questions of science have been the predominate method of investigating, evaluating, formulating scientific theories. The empirical approach uses deductive and pragmatic systems of inquiry.
2. Psychological/Philosophical Inquiry
The psychological/philosophical inquiry method utilizes the existential-phenomenological
and hermeneutic methods to define and understand human beings. The research
and evaluation of the structures that make up the human experience towards
the world are interpreted by the existential-phenomenological systems of
inquiry. Space-time and embodiment make up the two basic structures of
the existential system. Existential-phenomenological systems of inquiry
rely on the descriptive method of interpretive understanding to evaluate
the human phenomena. The hermeneutic approach to inquiry supports and enhances
the existential-phenomenological approach by seeking to understand the
human experience by interpreting the experiences in order to better understand
the human phenomena. The hermeneutic approach supplements the descriptive
approach of existential-phenomenological system of inquiry by focusing
on the linguistic and nonlinguistic activities in order to understand the
meaning of the human experience. Hermeneutics focuses on the historical
meanings of human experience and its developmental and the cumulative impact
on on the individual and society. As a result of these methods, philosophies
of human experience are formulated and developed. The psychological/philosophical
inquiry method utilizes deductive reasoning to understand the human experience.
3. Spiritual/Transcendental Inquiry
Spiritual inquiry is a study in the human contemplation of their being. It is a personal inquiry that provides insight into the individual human experience. It is the human's opportunity to explore within them self what their purpose and place is in this life. The study of the human experience consists of more than a study of behavioral responses to stimuli. It also includes the analysis of the human's sense of meaning, values, subjectivity, consciousness, unconsciousness, and intentionality of human life. Spiritual inquiry involves the researcher being in touch with who he or she is and how he or she relates to the rest of the world. "I exist only in relationship to people, things and ideas, and in studying my relationship to outward things and people, as well as to inward things, I begin to understand myself. Every other form of understanding is merely an abstraction and I cannot study myself in abstractions. I am not an abstract entity; therefore I have to study myself actively - as I am, not as I wish to be." (Krishnamurti, 22). By being in touch with one self, one is better equipped to analyze the human phenomena.
Criteria For Effective Inquiry:
In the pursuit of knowledge, in the empirical, psychological, and spiritual realms, there are three fundamental components that validate information which is developed.
1. Instrumental or injunctive component: A set of instructions or directions to perform a function or activity.
2. Illuminative or apprehensive component: The proving that a truth exists. Proving a hypothesis.
3. Communal component: The sharing of the illuminated information with others.
This paper is an example of the instrumental or injunctive component of the science of inquiry. Within this paper is a set of general guidelines of how to perform, evaluate the effectiveness, and share the results of spiritual inquiry.
Science does not begin with a series of facts or assumed knowledge. It begins with a perception of a problem and the belief that an answer can be found to the problem. There is not a precise set of scientific methodology to find the answers to questions proposed for scientific inquiry. Each question or hypothesis presents its own unique set of scientific methodology to isolate the facts associated with the question. The hypothesis is a tentative map, which includes suggested injunction methods to prove the hypothesis. A fundamental spiritual inquiry question is, "What is it?" The feature that separates science from other methods of understanding is its reliance on the authority of the experimental test. In spiritual inquiry, the experimental testing must be performed by the researcher through the practice of meditation. The consensus of opinion between the meditation teacher, guru, and other practitioners of meditation provide additional experimental truth to accept a hypothesis as being true.
Although there is not a precise scientific method to prove a hypothesis,
using the spiritual inquiry method, the following general steps will provide
a reliable, repeatable scientific method to acquire knowledge:
1. Perceive that there is a problem and that there is an answer to
the problem. Have the desire to learn more about one self in order to know
more about others.
2. Gather facts associated to the problem. Discuss the issue(s) in question with a spiritual teacher or guide.
3. Form a hypothesis.
4. Experimentally test the hypothesis. Learn how to meditate and practice meditation on a consistent basis, asking the question, "What is it?"
5. Refute the findings of the experiment by having other researchers also meditate on the issue(s) and compare insights with spiritual teachers and practitioners.
6. Confirm the hypothesis.
These steps are similar to the steps used by the empirical and psychological techniques of inquiry into the human sciences.
The sharing of illuminated or learned information using the empirical, psychological, and spiritual inquiry methods focus on several key issues to evaluate and communicate what has been learned through the process of inquiry. These issues are:
1. How the observation of the human phenomena are to be made.
2. The form that the theoretical descriptions are presented to the scientific community.
3. How understanding is defined and what its purpose is in the study of human sciences.
4. How the theories of human sciences are validated and verified.
Through spiritual inquiry, the observation of the human phenomena is made through the experience of meditation and internal focusing of the mind and spirit. The practice of meditation has instructions to properly facilitate an effective meditative state. Meditation is the act of achieving a non-reasoning, thinking state of mind. The practitioner is in an active state of contemplation and reflection within the present, not utilizing past or future as points of reference for his or her contemplation and reflection. There are various methods to practice meditation. The individual should chose a method of meditation that meets their personal needs.
The form that the theoretical descriptions are presented to the scientific community are similar to the methods that the empirical and psychological inquiry methodologies report their findings. This can be an oral or written documentation of the studied event. However, the most effective way to understand the theoretical descriptions is through the actual practice of meditation.
"Understanding is not an an intellectual process. Acquiring knowledge about yourself and learning about yourself are two different things, for the knowledge you accumulate about yourself is always of the past and a mind that is burdened with the past is a sorrowful mind...learning about yourself is always in the present and knowledge is always in the past." (Krishnamurti, 23). In the study of human sciences, the researcher is the subject of study; therefore, it is important to have a clear understanding of self. This understanding will help to avoid the personal biasing or slanting of the data developed by the researcher. By having experienced the spiritual insight that meditation brings to the human being the researcher and clinician can appropriately give guidance to other human beings.
The validation of the spiritual inquiry methodology is realized by actually meditating. It is not an experience that can be empirically validated and verified. However, the consensus of opinion of a teacher of meditation and other practitioners of meditation can provide validity to the "findings" or "insights" developed through spiritual inquiry. "When someone asks, 'Where is your empirical proof for transcendence?', we need not panic. We explain the instrumental methods of knowledge and invite him or her to check it out personally. Should that person accept and complete the injunctive strand (component), then that person is capable of becoming part of the community of those whose eye is adequate to the transcendent realm." (Wilber, 36).
On a recent long journey I practiced a form of meditation. The following is a short commentary on the experience:
My Meditation Experience:
My normal meditation practice is to spend a little time in prayer, reading, and reflection on the readings and prayer time. I attempt to spend this quiet time at least once a day. However, due to the daily pressures of life and occasional lapse in habit, I do not take the time on a daily basis.
As a result of my change in employment, I have had the occasion to spend a great deal of time driving long distances in an automobile. These long drives have been type of meditative experience. I have had the occasion to drive to and from Richmond, Virginia to Orlando, Florida. This is a distance of about 775 miles, which takes twelve and a half-hours to travel. The travel is 98 percent interstate highways so there is not a great deal of distractions and the main events of the trip are the refueling stops.
On my trip back to Richmond, Virginia, following the Christmas holidays, I left feeling emotionally low. I was leaving my family, friends, and the community that I had been a part of for over fifteen years. I was returning to a new community, no friends or family, and to a job I was not sure I liked. My meditation practice consisted of focusing on the monotony of the interstate highway driving, the constant sound of the automobile engine, and the lack of external distractions. It was a rainy, grey day so I kept myself positively focused listening to music, listening to football games, freely thinking about the future and its possibilities, and meditating using the monotony of open road travel as the focus of my attention. By the time I reached Richmond, I was physically tired but I was mentally and spiritually stimulated to start back to work and my new life in Richmond with vigor and a positive attitude.
I think that the time in the car alone, with minimal distractions, allowed my mind and spirit to reach a state of neutral activity. My mind achieved a state where it was able to sort through many of the feelings and intellectual queries I had been dealing with when I left Florida. The time of meditation was a positive experience helping me to harmonize myself by centering my mind on what was to be my focus and by strengthening the faith and hope of my spirit.
Fortunately, as a result of my mediation period and my positive attitude, I was able to clearly see that the job was not working out to be what I had anticipated and wascausing disharmony within myself. Regardless of what my personal desires were to stay in Virginia, it was clear that the job was not right and it was time to pursue other options.
One of the options I pursued was to return to my home in Florida. This required another twelve and a half-hour drive of 775 miles along interstate highways. It was another opportunity to reorient myself for future life adventures. To detract from my meditation practice, I was physically sick with a head and chest cold. The initiation of the trip was difficult. I could not get my mind and body to coordinate with each other. Feeling poorly was having an adverse impact on getting my mind to focus. I initially kept thinking how difficult the trip was going to be feeling so badly. However, as the day broke and I watched the day pass, I was able to get my mind focused positively and the trip began to passed quickly. The weather was pretty. I was able to watch the clouds pass by, changing shapes and consistency. As the day wore on, the color of the sky changed. I felt a oneness with the world around me. It was a pleasure to watch the day pass. I do not normally take the time to watch an entire day pass. The watching of the changes in the placement of the sun, the formation of clouds, and the different colors of the sky can be peaceful and harmonizing. The return trip seemed to take considerably less time than the initial trip to Richmond. The pleasantness of the day and the monotony of the drive again helped me to achieve a harmony within myself.
The ability to commune with nature, the ability to neutralize how poorly
I physically felt, to focus on the positive opportunities that I was moving
towards, and the attainment of a prolonged meditative state, helped my
mind to sort and classify my emotions, thoughts, and attitudes so that
I felt congruent and in harmony with myself when I arrived home.
Differences Between The Methods Of Inquiry:
The empirical, psychological, and spiritual methods of inquiry provide for better insight into the human experience. The human experience can be defined as the actual participation and direct contact with the events of human life and the human response to these events and other humans. Through the participation in human events, the direct contact with other humans, and the development of insight into one self, the human being can develop knowledge and skills which will form judgements and reactions with regards to human life. These methods of gaining insight into being human are the foundation for the study of human sciences and although their methodologies may be somewhat different, they provide a panorama analysis of the human phenomena.
Some basic differences between the empirical, psychological and spiritual methods of inquiry are:
1. Empirical inquiry is performed by a researcher on a specific subject; psychological inquiry is performed by the researcher interacting with the subject; spiritual inquiry is performed by the subject on the subject.
5. In communicating information, the empirical inquiry method is a monologue of facts and figures; the psychological inquiry method is a dialogue connecting information to other pieces of information through reasoning and philosophy; in the spiritual inquiry process of communicating information, some level of information can be communicated verbally or in a written format, however, the most effective way to communicate the findings of the spiritual inquiry method is for the inquiring party to practice meditation and listen and learn from him or her self.
6. Empirical inquiry accepts data that is sensory or tangible in nature;
psychological inquiry accepts data that is intellectual in nature; spiritual
inquiry accepts data that is intuitive and contemplative in nature.
Benefits Of Spiritual Inquiry:
Spiritual inquiry allows the researcher to look within his or her self in order to know the self better. This will help the researcher to understand his or her biases, opinions, and attitudes regarding the human subject they are studying in human sciences. The minimization of personal biases, opinions, and attitudes will enhance the validity of spiritual inquiry and its development of human science knowledge. Since the researcher and the object of study are the same, it is important for the researcher to understand his or her personal foundation for what he or she considers to be truth. Spiritual inquiry, which delves into the mysteries of self, is performed by the meditation and contemplation of human experience. A teacher of meditation practices states, "...the mysterious lies at the heart of our lives, not at the periphery. And its presence is only felt to the extent that a meditative attitude still lives within us. Unlike a problem, a mystery can never be solved. A mystery can only be penetrated. A problem once solved ceases to be a problem; but the penetration of a mystery does not make it any less mysterious. The more intimate one is with a mystery, the greater shines, the aura of its secret." (Batchelor, 40)
The art of spiritual inquiry completes the requirements to fully understand the experience of being a human being. It allows the human being, and the researcher, who are one and the same, to experience, evaluate, know what it is to be a human. The use of this inquiry method provides knowledge where the inquiry methods of empirical knowledge and psychological/philosophical knowledge do not reach. Spiritual inquiry provides the researcher with a grounding in self-knowledge. It provides insight to the cardinal and theological virtues of human existence.
"I must become aware of the total field of my own self, which is consciousness of the individual and of society. It is only then, when the mind goes beyond this individual and social consciousness, that I become a light to myself that never goes out." (Krishnamurti, 22).