Schools for Humanity and Freedom in Education: Argument for Education for Understanding or ‘Cognition’ and the Cognitive Paradigm.

The paradigm of ‘freedom in education’ has larger scope which is more appropriate for adaptability to the 21^st century information age than the traditional paradigm of the 20th century industrial age. Since it is the individual who must process information then education which accomodates the learning needs of the individual will be more effective in accomodating the needs of the society. Accomodation of individual learning needs necessitates an education which is humanistic because it is true to the social nature of the human personality or ‘human nature'. Education for humanity is education for self-empowerment or ‘freedom’... freedom to contemplate... freedom to think... freedom to learn... freedom to work... freedom to grow... freedom to develop... i.e. ‘freedom in education’.

Freedom in education (‘natural education’) involves the individual’s instinctive responsibility for their own growth… development of the inherent spirituality and morality of their human personality or ‘human nature’… their ‘humaness’. The paradigm of ‘freedom in education’ is based on the principle of individual freedom as the ‘moral freedom’ of social responsibility which is foundational to a culture of true democracy, peace, sustainability and ecological literacy.

Conclusion of argument which follows:

The generic competences set out in the European Framework of Key Competences include the traditional competences such as mother tongue, foreign languages, basic competences in math and science, digital competences and in addition more transversal competences such as learning to learn, social and civic competences, initiative taking and entrepreneurship, cultural awareness and expression.

It is possible to set educational aims and formulate educational policy which provides each individual with the opportunity to develop the transversal as well as the traditional competences if this is done within the paradigm of ‘freedom in education’.

(Freedom in education implies the freedom to choose the conditions in which to engage in meaningful learning or ‘work’. This includes the freedom to choose between traditional education as ‘schooling’ and non-traditional education as non-schooling or ‘homeschooling’.)

Key points:

Introduction

Now is the time to consider the theoretical aspects of education i.e. ‘educational theory’. Moral educational theory results in moral practice or ‘praxis’. Educational praxis is based on the natural laws of human growth and development i.e ‘freedom in education’. Paradigm of ‘freedom in education’ is concerned with individual freedom as the basis for social responsibility which is foundational to true democracy

A Summary of Rational Argument for Freedom in Education or‘Natural Education’

The natural function of education is to provide the right conditions required to free the human spirit in order to cultivate natural creative intelligence required for adaptability to a changing environment.

Part I New Paradigm* for 21^st Century Schools:

Freedom in Education as ‘Natural Education’

Theme: The real problem is to clarify the features of the new paradigm of ‘freedom in education’ as natural education… humanistic because it is true to the social nature of the human personality or ‘human nature'... true to the natural function of the human brain... emphasis is on intrinsic motives for learning and the intrinsic rewards of knowledge and understanding which manifest as creative decision-making for effective adaptabilty i.e ‘intrinsic motivation’…requires teacher’s role as guide or ‘facilitator of learning’... and so forth.

*What is a paradigm? The word ‘paradigm’ derives from the Latin ‘paradigma’ for model. In science, a paradigm is a theoretical framework or worldview based on given assumptions. A paradigm is a worldview provides a working model or ‘theory’ for the direction of scientific activity. The workng scientist designs experiments and analyses experimental results within the framework of the given paradigm. Data which cannot be explained n the context of the paradigm initiate a ‘paradigm crisis’ followed by a ‘paradigm debate’ which eventually leads to a ‘paradigm shift’. During a paradigm shift the old paradigm is replaced by a new one. Examples of paradigm shifts in science include the replacement of Newtonian mechanics by quantum mechanics and the replacement of creationism by evolutionary theory. Just as in the history of science, there are paradigm crises, paradigm debates and paradigm shifts in the history of education as well.

1. In the discussion of social needs and demands of the 21^st century, it is important to clarify the meaning of the word ‘modernisation’.

2. In order to meet the criteria required for effective adaptation to the complexities of 21^st century society school communities and schools must WIDEN THE CONTEXT… change the philosophical framework or ‘paradigm’ within which they formulate education policies.

3. The aim of education in the paradigm ‘freedom in education’ is the cultivation of human intelligence as ‘creative intelligence’ as the basis for life long learning required for effective adaptation to rapidly changing social conditions.

The real problem is to clarify the features of the new paradigm of ‘freedom in education’.

Part 2

Freedom in Education: Education for

Responsible Freedom or 'Self-Empowerment'

All children have the right to natural education or ‘freedom in education’. Freedom in education involves learning experiences which are meaningful because they engage natural curiosity, natural cognition and the wisdom of compassion i.e. ‘creative intelligence’. Meaningful work has psychological value because it builds self-confidence and self-respect, cultivates intuition and development of moral consciousness or 'conscience'. Developed conscience is the source of guiding human values… the moral courage required to master respect for one's own life and the lives of others… social responsibility… social cooperation or 'peace'. So-called ‘peace education’ is based on appreciation for human social values and allows for the creation of humane societies.

1.Critical to educational policy is the following question: “Which paradigm is shaping the goals of education?”

2. The traditional paradigm of education is based on the assumption that educational policy should be formulated in terms of what 'society' needs most.

3. The traditional paradigm is inappropriate as an approach for solving current problems of education and there is a need for a shift to a new paradigm from traditional education to a new paradigm for meeting the complex needs of post industrial society of the 21^st century information age in terms of what is good for the individual being good for the society

4. A more intelligent approach to the problems of education is to deal with them through implementation of policies which enable individuals to improve themselves through their own inner development as the basis for their success and well being or ‘happiness’. Happiness is a function of the recognition of the human potential for self-actualisation… recognition of the nature of the human personality or ‘human nature’.

Human nature is a social nature characterised in terms of the intrinsic motives for learning or 'human needs'.

5. There is a need for a shift to a new paradigm… one which has larger scope than the traditional paradigm… one which accommodates the needs of the society by accomodating to the needs of the individuals who make it up… one which emphasizes the individual’s inherent capacity for adaptability through the natural process of learning which is meaningful because it engages their instinctive sense of responsibility to their own growth and development… one which engages construction of moral consciousness or ‘conscience’ which is the basis for self empowerment or ‘freedom’.

What is ‘freedom’? The word ‘freedom’ tends to be used without much thought to its real meaning. True freedom is moral freedom or responsible freedom.

The aim of freedom in education is education as ‘true democracy’ democracy based on moral individual freedom.

Features of the paradigm ‘freedom in education:

(Freedom in education implies the freedom to choose the conditions in which to engage in meaningful learning or ‘work’. This includes the freedom to choose between traditional education as ‘schooling’ and non-traditional education as non-schooling or ‘homeschooling’.)

1. The paradigm of freedom in education has larger scope than the traditional paradigm because it accommodates to the learning needs of the individuals making up the society thereby accomodating to the needs of the society itself.

2. Freedom in education is true to the social nature of the human personality i.e. 'human nature'.

Human nature is a social nature which can be characterised in terms of human motives for learning or 'human needs'

3. Key to the new paradigm of freedom in education is emphasis on intrinsic motivation for holistic learning.

4. Freedom in education is freedom to engage in meaningful work.

5. Brain research provides the evidence for a rational basis… scientific rationale of so-called ‘brain-based learning’.

6. Brain-based learning is fostered by a quality of teaching which accomodates individual needs for complete intellectual and emotional development or… teaching which accomodates ‘freedom in education’. .

7. Facilitative teaching methods are effective because they comply with the natural holistic functioning of the brain. Teaching for effective learning is teaching to the brain's natural functioning while engaging the learner's personal development.

Antagonism between 'traditional' teaching methods and the natural learning function of the brain. "Recent findings in brain research suggest that it is possible to understand the functioning of the brain once there is sufficient explanation for the specific functions of individual nerve cells and their connections. The resulting patterns of nerve impulses, neural circuits and networks form the basis of the brain's functions. The knowledge gained from findings in brain research forms the basis for theories of brain-based learning and can be applied to educational philosophies and pedagogies. The findings confirm the antagonism between 'traditional' teaching methods and the natural learning function of the brain". (Conner, James Cutting Edge: Mind & Molecules, Journal of Developmental Education vol 16, number 3, 1993: 34)

Conclusion

The generic competences set out in the European Framework of Key Competences include the traditional competences such as mother tongue, foreign languages, basic competences in math and science, digital competences and in addition more transversal competences such as learning to learn, social and civic competences, initiative taking and entrepreneurship, cultural awareness and expression.

It is possible to set educational aims and formulate educational policy which provides each individual with the opportunity to develop the transversal as well as the traditional competences if this is done within the paradigm of freedom in education.

Features of the paradigm ‘freedom in education:

1. humanistic because it is true to the social nature of the human personality or ‘human nature'...

2. brain-based because it is true to the natural function of the human brain...

3. emphasis on intrinsic motives for learning or ‘intrinsic motivation’…

4. teacher’s role defined as ‘facilitator of learning’...

natural ethics or 'secular ethics'

Crucial factor of quality education... The learning must be personally meaningful to the learner so that it engages the natural development of moral consciousness or 'conscience'. As a result of the engagement moral development in the learning process, the person is becomes knowledgable and ethical at the same time and can apply their knowledge with the intuition which is derived from the wisdom of compassion. (See 'holistic education')

Unconditional love is a biological need which must be met for spiritual growth which involves complete moral development. Lack of love results in stunted growth and the result is human dysfunction or 'evil'. Punishlment is not the solution. Provision of humane environments for children to develop should be a priority for all of us.

I believe that the word 'God' refers to our own moral consciousness (god-consciousness) or 'conscience'. The conscience is a function of moral intelligence and must therefore be cultivated with the right education. Only then can we depend on it for guidance and direction.

Parents can help children with their moral or ‘ethical’ development by being mature, recognizing their children’s emotional needs, respecting their intelligence, appreciating their ideas and opinions and providing them an education which allows for the development of their potential.

Empathy is the result of successful completion of all stages of moral or 'spirtual' development. Empathy cannot be taught... it must be allowed to emerge.

Not to forget that we are a species of animal. We are a social species and we need a social ethics to ensure our survival. Thanks to evolution we owe our survival to the natural selection of a biologically based natural ethics (evolutionary ethics) or 'secular ethics'. Without it our species will become extinct.

Participate in bigger things which concern us all. Not to forget that we are a social species and we are happier when we live in alignment with our social nature.

Compassion increases intuitive insight necessary for accurate evaluation of the social environment.

It is extremely useful in ensuring effective and authentic living including professsional life.

text from center for us center for citizen diplomacyMy experiences as student, teacher and parent have taught me to respect the natural human right to growth through learning in freedom: "freedom" as in the absence of religious or political dogma which nurtures ignorance, fear, hatred and thus conflict. So-called "˜spiritual' freedom or "˜inner freedom' is moral freedom because it implies responsibility and thus contrasts with irresponsible freedom or "license". Moral freedom allows for insight into the interconnectedness between all people and respect for one's own humanity and respect for the humanity of others. In this way moral freedom or "true freedom" translates to outer freedom which is foundational to a culture of peace.

World peace depends on each person's respect for their own humanity as well as the humanity of others. Therefore it is necessary to have a universal education which aligns its foundational a culture of peace. philosophy with the understanding of human nature as a social, compassionate and therefore peaceful nature. Inner peace - a function of moral or 'spiritual' development - translates to moral action and social cooperation or 'outer peace'. Consequently education for peace is a function of learning which is meaningful because it engages the person's natural motivation for complete human development. So-called 'peace education' or 'holistic education' provides the conditions for world peace because it provides the conditions which are right for complete human development. We must learn to trust human nature and educate children in such a way that they can develop their human potential. This is the only way we can bring real peace to the world.

''There is only one problem, and it is human development in its totality; once this is achieved in any unit - child or nation - everything else follows spontaneously and harmoniously.'' (Maria Montessori. To Educate the Human Potential )

http://www.uscenterforcitizendiplomacy.org/blog/entry/a-gentle-reminder/

Not to look past the awfulness in the world but integrate it into a view of life which must be compassionate if it is holistic.

website www.HolisticEducator.com

The paradigm of holistic education promotes conditions of responsible freedom which allow for complete development of human potential as naturally moral and therefore 'spiritual' beingness.

FUTURE SCHOOL

www.HolisticEducator.com

Today there is urgent need for positive social change and we need to create a better world. Many of our social and political problems originate when human development is inhibited with the resulting lack of intelligence as 'creative intelligence'. Personal inner conflicts and fears result in irrational thought which translates into inadaptive and destructive behaviour. Resolution of our human problems depends on freedom from inner conflicts and fears - 'inner freedom' - and subsequent openness of mind and cultivation of intelligence. Consequently the intelligent resolution of our human problems depends on our ability to set ourselves free and open our minds. This depends on education which opens the mind and cultivates human intelligence. We must stop conditioning children for mediocrity We must stop trying to educate them to be what we would like them to be. Instead we must trust them to trust themselves. We must trust them to trust their own needs to develop their human personality and potential. We must provide the right conditions and allow them to grow up to be who they really are - spiritual beings with the natural right to become integrated, intelligent, ethical and therefore mature, responsible and civilized adults able to cooperate peacefully and effectively in their efforts to resolve their human problems. In effect, we must provide universal education for complete human development or 'holistic education'.

We must learn to trust human nature and educate children in such a way that they can develop their human potential. This is the only way we can bring real peace to the world. ''There is only one problem, and it is human development in its totality; once this is achieved in any unit - child or nation...

Our species is a naturally social species and human nature is a naturally social nature. The survival of our species depends on our capacity to raise our consciousness level so that we can communicate with each other on the highest level which is the moral or 'spiritual' level. We need a universal education which provides the right conditions for growth of the whole person through meaningful learning i.e. integral or 'holistic education'.

.....

A Scientific Rationale for Holistic Education (‘scientific’ in the sense of systems science or ‘holistic science’).

‘The website http://www.holisticeducator.com/ constitutes an ongoing process of exploration and discovery. The work integrates personal experiences as student, as teacher and as parent with strong convictions concerning the natural human right to learn and grow in freedom as freedom from dogma, ‘spiritual’ freedom or ‘inner freedom’. Inner freedom is moral freedom because it implies responsibility and translates to outer freedom which is responsible thus contrasts with irresponsible freedom or ‘license’. Inner freedom is 'true freedom' because it enables perception of the interconnectedness between the various aspects of a human situation i.e. ‘holistic perception’.

The website is significant because it aims to highlight the interconnectedness between different aspects of the biological basis of the moral or ‘spiritual’ dimension of the human psyche, human personality or 'human nature’. Human nature is a social nature which depends for its development on moral freedom and its translation to authentic outer freedom or ‘true freedom’. True freedom is a function of complete human development and is therefore the basis for the natural educational philosophy foundational to peace and democracy which therefore depends on universal education for development of the person as a whole i.e. 'holistic education’.

In the paradigm of holistic education, the meaning of learning shifts from motivation by external rewards (‘extrinsic motivation’) motivation by intrinsic rewards drives (‘intrinsic motivation’). Holistic education involves fulfillment of the 'higher psychological needs' for 'metamotivation' - the spiritual needs or 'metaneeds' - as well as the so-called 'lower psychological needs' for self-esteem - the 'ego needs'. Ego needs are the driving force behind motivation for education with a view to purely mechanical intelligence and its fear based ego-centric world of competition and its material rewards. Although education for mechanical intelligence predominates in our culture, educational philosophy must be taken seriously or else we risk failure to adapt to a changing world and a threatened planet. We risk the ultimate extinction of our species. We urgently need an education which cultivates not only mechanical intelligence but a universal education of much wider scope. We need an education which cultivates moral intelligence, fosters human creativity and productiveness (creative intelligence) because it is based on compassion and cooperation and therefore involves motivation based in the dimension of human nature which is beyond the ego level of consciousness… that is in the ‘transpersonal’ dimension.

The function of the teacher is to provide resources, to facilitate learning and therefore to act as a moral agent… to allow for education which is meaningful because it is learner directed. On this basis holistic education is meaningful education because it depends on the freedom to create meaning or 'learn' and the freedom to create or 'work' making it possible to construct a personal sense of responsibility which is needed for adapting intelligently and effectively to the demands and the problems of life... aims for development of the person as a whole, as an integral being, a person of integrity and acute sense of responsibility. Cultivation of a mature sense of responsibility involves personality integration necessary for harmonious living on all levels - personal, social, global and environmental. It is therefore based on respect for the person’s psychic needs, their yearnings, their aspirations, their talents, their capacities and their interests but in addition on the development of their potentialities in all aspects - emotional, psychological, intellectual, artistic, moral or 'spiritual' and therefore social. Universal holistic education is a necessary prerequisite for the proper stewardship of our planet earth required for the preservation of our species.

holistic education

Consider article 26 paragraph 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights... "Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and human freedoms". The aim of education, in the fullest and deepest sense of the word, is to provide the conditions to free the human spirit in order to cultivate naturally meaningful human intelligence or 'creative intelligence'. Cultivation of creative intelligence is a function of the integrated development of the person as a whole or 'holistic education'. Holistic education is based on respect for the instinctive motives for growth through learning... not only the basic psychological needs for security, self-esteem and belongingness ('ego-needs') but also the spiritual needs or 'metaneeds' which define the human personality or 'human nature’…a function of the proper development of rational conscience which is is essential for self mastery and intelligent social adaptability.

In the paradigm of holistic education the role of the teacher is defined in terms of the 'facilitation of learning'. As a 'facilitator of learning' the teacher understands the psychological value of creativity and productiveness or 'work' and facilitates the construction of conscience through development of human poten......tial. The facilitative teacher designs learning environments which are compatible with respect for the instinctive motives for human learning behaviour i.e. 'human needs'. These include so-called 'soul needs' for ego-transcendance as well as the ego needs for security, self-esteem and belongingness.

Education for competitiveness is destructive unless it accounts for complete human development which involves not only the ego needs for self-esteem and belongingness but also the higher psychological needs - the spiritual needs or 'metaneeds'. Effective education - education for cooperation and collaboration - is based on complete trust in the natural development of the human potential for creative intelligence i.e. 'holistic education'. The paradigm of holistic education calls for provision of natural learning environments characterised by conditions of freedom to engage one's instinctive responsiblity for the development of one's human potential.

The paradigm of traditional education as 'schooling' is essentially ineffective because it is ultimately based on an intrinsic mistrust of the human personality or 'human nature'. The innaccurate perception of human nature translates into the fallacious assumption that the interests of the individual and those of society are mutually exclusive. This dichotomous view of the social reality perpetuates suffering, oppression and destruction because it creates unresolvable social problems. These 'pseudo-problems' can only be dealt with effectively if approached from a more accurate holistic perspective. So what is human nature? In truth, human nature is a social nature with natural instincts for social adaptability - the 'social instincts' - which must be cultivated through a process of moral or spiritual growth i.e. 'socialization'. Human socialization is a function of awareness or 'consciousness'of the moral values for living or 'human values' ('knowledge' or 'gnosis'of 'spirit')... such as 'empathy' as compassionate wisdom, 'love' as universal unconditonal love or 'lovingkindness', 'truth' as freedom from conditioning, 'justice' as social responsibility, 'peace' as understanding , beauty ... Human values are the core values of moral consciousness or 'morality' of rational conscience of the self beyond persona or 'ego'... i.e. the 'transpersonal self', 'authentic self', 'higher self' or 'Self' . Rational conscience of the Self is the source of personal power or 'self-empowerment' which is prerequisite to the ability to adapt intelligently to changing social conditions And what are the implications for education? In view of the fact that the development of a civilised society depends on development of conscience and therefore rational or 'civilised' human beings, then the needs of the individual and of the society are mutually dependent and interrelated. Consequently the function of education is to provide optimal conditions for the development of each person as a ratioanl and integrated whole through cultivation of their human potentialities - physical, cognitive, intellectual, artistic, psychological, emotional and moral or 'spiritual' . Spiritual development is a function of engagement of the person's instinctive sense of responsiblity for their own development of their human potential. Such education for the person as a whole is 'holistic education'. Holistic education is based on respect for human dignity as manifest in creativity and productiveness or 'work' which is meaningful because it invoilves motivation for growth through learning or 'intrinsic motivation'. It calls for the planning and provision of natural learning environments which are characterised by conditions of freedom to learn. The role of the teacher is described in terms of facilitation for learning i.e. 'facilitator'. The teacher as facilitator is required to understand that human nature as a social nature depends on the cultivation of creative intelligence for responsible, compassionate and therefore intelligent living. Consequently holistic education is effective as the foundation of a peaceful , democratic and humane society.

Natural Selection of 'Schizophrenia' Genes

Spiritual emergency and human nature…

The combination of Western scientific research with Eastern psychologies such as Buddhism has resulted in new concepts which shed light on the nature of the human personality or 'psyche' i.e. ‘human nature’. Human nature can be defined in terms of the biological needs for growth of the human organism as a social organism. Human growth is described in terms of socialisation which is a function of the development of moral consciousness or 'conscience'. Complete development of human conscience depends on fulfillment of motives for natural human behaviour i.e. 'human needs'. As well as the obvious physiological needs, human needs include so-called 'lower' psychological needs for self-esteem - the 'ego needs' - and the so-called 'higher' psychological needs for spiritual development - the spiritual needs of the transpersonal dimension of human nature i.e. 'metaneeds'. Fulfillment of metaneeds results in heightened intuition and increased awareness necessary for effective adaptation to changing social conditions i.e. ‘social intelligence’. Human adaptability depends on spiritual growth involving the person's evolution from the egocentric perspective of emotional immaturity to the transpersonal perspective of emotional maturity. Spiritual growth of normal development is gradual and fluidand results in spiritual awakening or 'spiritual emergence'. If the process of 'spiritual emergence' is very rapid and dramatic, the sensory and psychic experiences become so intense, chaotic and overwhelming that it is too distressing for the person to bear and so they experience psychic overload and spiritual emergence becomes ‘spiritual crisis' o 'spiritual emergency - also known as transpersonal experience, psycho-spiritual transformation, transpersonal crisis, psycho-spiritual crisis, the spiritual journey, hero's journey, dark night of the soul, spiritual opening, psychic opening, psychic awakening, spiritual awakening, enlightenment, kundalini awakening,kundalini process, kundalini crisis, shamanism, mysticism, gnosis, the psychotic-visionary episode, dark night of the soul, the alchemical process, positive disintegration and so on. Spiritual emergency is a sign of health and a part of the human condition characterised by spontaneous alternative consciousness states or ‘realities'. The person learns to grow beyond cultural conditioning and the expectations of others… beyond fear based ego-consciousness to a new level of awareness or 'higher consciousness state' of spiritual renewal or spiritual rebirth.With spiritual rebirth the person experiences an inner sense of emotional liberation and discovers ideas and behaviours which promote growth and the affirmation of life which is characteristic of total well-being or 'high level wellness'. As a healing or renewal process involving the positive transformation of the self, spiritual emergency is a concern of'transpersonal psychology'.

The medical model of so-called ‘schizophrenia’ is fallacious. A great deal of progress could be made in a very short time not to mention financial savings as well as alleviation of needless human suffering. Schizophrenia is not an illness but a crisis of psychospiritual transformation. The fac that it becomes more common is an indication of present social trends to ignore the workings of the human psyche and especially of the moral or ‘spiritual’ dimension. Genes for so called 'schizophrenia' have been favored by evolution because high sensitivity (characteristic of the 'schizophrenia' prone) is necessary for human sociability and therefore for human survival.

So-called ‘Schizophrenia’ as a Process of Uncontrolled
Spiritual Emergence or ‘Spiritual Emergency’

The psychiatric profession has created one of the greatest myths of our time by describing so-called 'schizophrenia' as a nonspecific disease or ‘mental illness’. It was German psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin (1856-1926) who originally coined the Latin name 'dementia praecox' meaning 'prematurely out of one's mind' because he believed that this supposedly devastating condition resulted from irreversible mental deterioration. Later it became clear that the term was a misnomer and in 1910 a new term was provided by the kind and humane Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler (1857-1939), teacher of Carl Jung and professor of psychiatry at the University of Zürich where he headed the famous Burghölzli Clinic. Bleuler coined the term 'schizophrenia' for 'splitting of the mind' since the condition seemed to involve a mental separation between thought and emotion.The term is derived from German 'schizophrenie' from Greek 'skhizein' meaning 'to split' and 'phren' of unknown origin meaning 'heart or mind' so that ‘schizophrenia’ actually means 'broken soul' or 'broken heart’. Although there is still no universally accepted definition of the term, it has been applied to various conditions including a set of socially and culturally unacceptable thinking and behaviour patterns thus making it a model of ‘unwanted conduct’.

In fact so-called ‘schizophrenia’ is not a disease nor is it a hopeless condition. It is a brilliant condition which is the concern of the psychology of the transpersonal or spiritual dimension of human nature i.e. 'transpersonal psychology'. In this light schizophrenia is a personal 'story' of a natural and temporary self-healing and self-organising process involving the dissolution and removal of illusions and false beliefs which originate from social conditioning. In this sense schizophrenia is a transformative process, a crisis of transformation or ‘psychospiritual crisis’. Furthermore it can be understood as a part of the human condition and as a process which reveals information about the nature of the human psyche or ‘human nature’. Much needless suffering results from ignorance of the multidimensional nature of the human psyche, human personality or 'human nature'. Insights into the workings of human nature are revealed by combining Western scientific research with concepts provided by Eastern psychologies concerned with the dimension of human nature beyond the persona or ‘ego'. The transpersonal or ‘spiritual’ dimension is defined in terms of the divinity of humanness and universal moral values. Human values are the social values of social intelligence.… ‘beauty’ as truth, ‘truth’as knowledge, 'knowledge' as understanding, ‘understanding’ as love, ‘love’ as unconditional lovingkindness or ‘compassion’, ‘justice’ as morality, ‘morality’ as freedom of conscience or peace, ‘peace’as social responsibility, ‘wisdom’ as intelligence, ‘intelligence’ as creativity and productivity or ‘creative intelligence’. Awareness of human values results in spiritual awareness, spiritual insight or ‘intuition’. Intuition allows for accurate evaluation of the complexities of changing social conditions and is therefore necessary for effective adaptation to the social environment or ‘social adaptability' and human survival. The human species is a social species, the human organism is a social organism and human nature is a moral, spiritual or ‘social’ nature with instincts for social cooperation and social harmony i.e. ‘social instincts’. Social instincts must be cultivated in a process of development of moral consciousness or ‘conscience’. The function of the conscience is to preserve the integrity or ‘wholeness’of the personality. Rational conscience is the product of moral, spiritual and social development resulting in transformation of the self and the knowledge of one’s human nature or ‘self-knowledge’. Self-knowledge is prerequisite to social or spiritual intelligence required for effective social adaptability. The process of moral or spiritual development is also known variously as 'individuation', 'self-realisation', 'self-actualisation', 'spiritual renewal', 'spiritual awakening', 'spiritual rebirth’, 'enlightenment' or 'spiritual emergence'.

Spiritual emergence is a gradual and controlled transformation process which results in the understanding of the ultimate connectedness or ‘unity’of all things."In the most general terms, spiritual emergence can be defined as the movement of an individual to a more expanded way of being that involves enhanced emotional and psychosomatic health, greater freedom of personal choices, and a sense of deeper connection with other people, nature and the cosmos. An important part of this development is an increasing awareness of the spiritual dimension in one's life and in the universal scheme of things. Spiritual development is an innate evolutionary capacity of all human beings. It is a movement towards wholeness or 'holotropic state', the discovery of one's true potential." (Stanislav Grof) Spiritual emergence is a gradual dynamic, fluid, naturally ordered and integrated on-going process of personal development into greater maturity and spiritual awareness. The process involves personal evolution from the limited sense of self … the false self or 'ego' and its egocentric perspective to the expanded sense of self beyond ego, the ‘higher self’, the ‘authentic self’ or 'Self' and its transpersonal perspective. Transcendance of the ego or ‘ego-transcendance’ allows for expansion of consciousness and heightened awareness resulting in an inner sense of emotional liberation. Intuition is purified and sharpened thus allowing for a clearer more accurate perception of reality and the discovery of ideas and behaviours which are effective for social adaptability. Spiritual emergence is the source of personal power because it allows for the attainment of knowledge of one's true nature (‘self-knowledge’) as the source of motivation for personal productiveness and creativity or ‘work’ (‘self-empowerment’). Complete spiritual development takes place over a period of years and depends on conditions of freedom and an education which allows for the complete development of the person as a whole i.e. 'holistic education'. Holistic education is based on respect for the biologically based motives for learning and behaviour i.e. ‘human needs’. Human needs include both 'lower' psychological needs for security and self-esteem - the 'ego needs' - and 'higher' psychological needs for moral development, the instinctive yearnings for human values, the spiritual needs or ‘metaneeds’. Motivation by the metaneeds ('metamotivation') allows for the discovery of one’s true potential. Each person is at a different stage of spiritual emergence depending on the level of their moral or spiritual development. If in highly sensitive individuals the process of spiritual emergence is blocked for any reason then they might undergo a period of crisis or ‘emergency’ involving the rapid formation of essential adjustments for effective adaptation.

The transformation process of spiritual emergence can be so dramatic as to become uncontrollable ‘spiritual emergency’, also known as transpersonal experience, transpersonal crisis, psycho-spiritual transformation, psychospiritual crisis, spiritual journey, hero's journey, dark night of the soul, spiritual opening, psychic opening, psychic awakening, spiritual awakening, enlightenment, kundalini awakening, kundalini process, kundalini crisis, shamanic initiation, shamanic crisis, psychotic-visionary episode, ego death, ego loss, alchemical process, positive disintegration, post traumatic stress disorder with psychotic features, night sea journey, psychosis, shamanism, mysticism, gnosis, inner apocalypse, and so on. Spiritual emergency is characterised by spontaneous alternative consciousness states or ‘realities' in which the person experiences unbearably distressing psychic overload involving chaotic and overwhelming sensory experiences which in fact offer invaluable opportunities for personal growth and positive transformation. Spiritual emergency is a process of healing and renewal which involves the dissolution and removal of illusions and false beliefs originating in the programming of social conditioning. The conditioning leads to the formulation of aberrant thought complexes and these prevent the person from making accurate evaluations of their social environment. Inaccurate evaluations lead to inappropriate decision-making and non-adaptive behaviour patterns. In a period of crisis, the person instinctively surrenders to the organismic process which involves the temporary separation of thought and emotion (‘ego-loss’) which is necessary for the reassessment of their thoughts without having to deal with the emotional implications. The apparently bizarre speech and behaviour patterns reveal the passage from lower to higher consciousness states in which the person experiences a series of varying stages or ‘episodes’. These can be frightening and confusing to onlookers because they appear to be out of context with everyday reality and as a result they are often misunderstood. They are mistakenly believed and discredited to represent ‘symptoms’ of disease or ‘mental illness'. Perceived as pathological they are considered to be medically ‘treatable’. In fact the apparent 'symptoms' are manifestations of a spontaneous healing effort by the organism as a whole. The person eventually learns to grow beyond fear based ego-consciousness, beyond cultural conditioning and the ‘conditioned self’, beyond the expectations of others and towards the new transpersonal, moral or ‘spiritual’ dimension of awareness which allows for development of personal potential and effective social adaptability.

The successful outcome of spiritual emergency depends on the correct understanding, respect, encouragement and support which allow it to reach full completion.

new 'religion'

The English word 'God' is identical with the Anglo-Saxon word for 'good' as 'divine goodness' of the human personality or 'human nature'… also ‘god consciousness’ or moral consciousness of developed conscience, the source of human values or 'virtues'. Awareness of virtues provides the guide for living. The real understanding of the meaning of God based on trust of human nature results in social responsibility and ability to resolve our human problems. Misunderstanding based on mistrust of human nature results in social irresponsibility and inability to resolve human problems.This is all a function of biology. We are a social species endowed with spiritual dimension of our nature. In order to resolve our human problems, to ‘adapt’ for survival, we depend on moral consiousness or ‘morality’.Understanding of the essential 'goodness' of human nature or 'divinity' of human nature unites people while misunderstanding based on mistrust of human nature divides people and results in conflict. This is all a function of biology. We are a social species which depends for survival on complete development ... awareness or consciousness of moral values or 'morality'. Communion with god represents connection with one's divine source or 'essence'. Each human being is potentially capable of living by human values of conscience… provided that right conditions ( or ‘education’) were offered as individual grew to adulthood.

Concerning the questions about Christian religion today, it is interesting to contemplate the original myth of resurrection etc. on which the institution is built. According to scholars and research, Jesus survived the crucifixion and went to India where he continued his life as teacher and healer St. Issa. He had already spent sixteen or so years in India from age about twelve to age about twenty nine and attended the only university in the world where he studied Buddhist teaching etc. His parables were about meditation and enlightenment and his concept of divinity as the fullness of complete humanity was misinterpreted and so it goes on.... See the websites on 'Jesus in India'. See also Eckhart Tolle.

Deepak Chopra is probably talking about the organized religions in the sense that they have become corrup...ted as a result of misinterpretation by non-enlightened people who had/have little or no understanding of the original teachings. When people's minds are closed then this misinterpretation of the religions makes them obsolete, quarrelsome and idiotic. All religions originate with the same evolutionary impulses. The problem is really people who identify with them. For that reason it is important for each person of whatever religion to reach an understanding of the divinity of their own humanity. This would represent the 'new spirituality' or the new 'religion'.

Education and spirituality... The aim of education is the cultivation of intelligence as a function of moral or 'spiritual' development i.e. 'creative intelligence'. Consequently the transpersonal vision is vital to intelligent education for human development and survival of the human species.

spiritual evolution

The preservation instinct in evolution is not to be denigrated as 'primitive'. Homo sapiens is a social species which is able to survive because of its one survival oriented biological characteristic and that is 'spiritual intelligence'. Without that we threaten the existence of not only our own species but that of all other species as well. So we are again being driven by that so-called 'primitive' drive for self-preservation when we want to participate in the evolution of consciousness. We have discovered that collective ego consciousness is destructive and threatens our very survival so we need to evolve our collective consciousness to a higher spiritual level. There is nothing 'primitive' about this. That's just the way it is.

Planetary transformation and human survival depends on the human capacity for creative intelligence which is the unique capacity of our species. The human species is a social species and human nature is a social nature which must be cultivated by way of education for complete development of the individual as a whole or 'holistic education'. Holistic education is a function of intrinsic motivation based on human needs... not only the needs for self-esteem and belongingness - the 'ego needs' but also the needs for development of moral consciousness ('conscience') - the 'metaneeds' or 'spiritual needs'. Complete development of conscience is a function of complete moral or 'spiritual' development.

Planetary transformation and human survival depends on the human capacity for creative intelligence which is the unique capacity of our species. The human species is a social species and human nature is a social nature which must be cultivated by way of education for complete development of the individual as a whole or 'holistic education'. ... See MoreHolistic education is a function of intrinsic motivation based on human needs... not only the needs for self-esteem and belongingness - the 'ego needs' but also the needs for development of moral consciousness ('conscience') - the 'metaneeds' or 'spiritual needs'. Complete development of conscience is a function of complete moral or 'spiritual' development. Lets educate our children with respect for their human nature as an integral part of all of Nature. We can change our relationship with our world and ensure the survival of our species.

We need universal education for human development... development of the whole child i.e. 'holistic education'. We need education which will guarantee the mental health of all people. Those who are unfairly labelled as 'mentally ill' are misunderstood and mistreated. They are very valuable people undergoing spiritual crises and should be properly understood and protected so that they can continue working through their process which is a part of the human condition. http://www.holisticeducator.com/