One of the most commonly asked questions in modern times is, "Which will win in the end: Science or Spirituality?"
Most of the people involved in practicing spirituality believe that modern science will give up at one point of time and surrender to spirituality. And most of the scientists don't have much regard for spirituality. So, there seem to be two disparate opinions and there is no reason to believe one to be superior to the other.
In my humble opinion, the debate between science and spirituality is completely baseless. It is important to understand that what science wants to achieve is very different from what spirituality has to offer. Science is all about understanding the material world that we live in. Spirituality is all about making us better individuals and making our lives better. What is required is not a debate between these two, but a fine balance. Let us give our heads to science but let our hearts be ruled by spirituality.
The reason why the debate originated is that in the process of understanding the material world, scientists falsely start believing that the material aspect is all that is there to the world. The human being is also seen as a mere machine. It is this mechanistic view of life that leads to a problem. There is much more to life than what a machine can experience. Life is all about loving ourselves and the people around us. Love is something one feels deep within the heart. It is not the outcome of a mere combination of chemicals.
And the mistake most spiritually minded people do is that they assume that the aim of science is to explain "everything". This is a misconception. Even the Grand Unified Theory of physics aims at merely explaining the four physical forces of nature. No physicist claims this to be the Theory of Everything.
And even if there are a few scientists who aim at explaining "everything" based on mathematical equations, there number would be very few. And this is not all that is there to science. Applications of basic Newton's Laws, e.g. Turbulence, are as difficult to understand as the abstract questions about waves and particle and the wave-particle duality. For every scientist who is working towards understand the basic structure of the world, there are at least ten who are working on things that relate to our daily lives.
And scientists must also realize that spirituality is not some other-worldly thing or some arbitrary collection of ideas. Spirituality is something that gives a deeper meaning to our lives and a sense of purpose. It makes us better individuals. It not only makes us happier on the inside but also increases our efficiency on the outside. Spirituality makes a scientist into a better scientist, a doctor into a better doctor, an engineer into a better engineer. Spirituality does not say that all material aspirations are wrong. It just shows a better way of framing our goals and a better approach towards achieving them. It gives direction to life. In fact, spirituality is as scientific as any theory of physics or other sciences..!!
So, there is no real clash of ideas between science and spirituality. What is required is a fine balance between the two. In the marathon of life, spirituality without science is like a man with a great sight but without legs to run. And science without spirituality is like a blind man who can run very fast.
We need both: Eyes to see and Legs to run.
Most of the people involved in practicing spirituality believe that modern science will give up at one point of time and surrender to spirituality. And most of the scientists don't have much regard for spirituality. So, there seem to be two disparate opinions and there is no reason to believe one to be superior to the other.
In my humble opinion, the debate between science and spirituality is completely baseless. It is important to understand that what science wants to achieve is very different from what spirituality has to offer. Science is all about understanding the material world that we live in. Spirituality is all about making us better individuals and making our lives better. What is required is not a debate between these two, but a fine balance. Let us give our heads to science but let our hearts be ruled by spirituality.
The reason why the debate originated is that in the process of understanding the material world, scientists falsely start believing that the material aspect is all that is there to the world. The human being is also seen as a mere machine. It is this mechanistic view of life that leads to a problem. There is much more to life than what a machine can experience. Life is all about loving ourselves and the people around us. Love is something one feels deep within the heart. It is not the outcome of a mere combination of chemicals.
And the mistake most spiritually minded people do is that they assume that the aim of science is to explain "everything". This is a misconception. Even the Grand Unified Theory of physics aims at merely explaining the four physical forces of nature. No physicist claims this to be the Theory of Everything.
And even if there are a few scientists who aim at explaining "everything" based on mathematical equations, there number would be very few. And this is not all that is there to science. Applications of basic Newton's Laws, e.g. Turbulence, are as difficult to understand as the abstract questions about waves and particle and the wave-particle duality. For every scientist who is working towards understand the basic structure of the world, there are at least ten who are working on things that relate to our daily lives.
And scientists must also realize that spirituality is not some other-worldly thing or some arbitrary collection of ideas. Spirituality is something that gives a deeper meaning to our lives and a sense of purpose. It makes us better individuals. It not only makes us happier on the inside but also increases our efficiency on the outside. Spirituality makes a scientist into a better scientist, a doctor into a better doctor, an engineer into a better engineer. Spirituality does not say that all material aspirations are wrong. It just shows a better way of framing our goals and a better approach towards achieving them. It gives direction to life. In fact, spirituality is as scientific as any theory of physics or other sciences..!!
So, there is no real clash of ideas between science and spirituality. What is required is a fine balance between the two. In the marathon of life, spirituality without science is like a man with a great sight but without legs to run. And science without spirituality is like a blind man who can run very fast.
We need both: Eyes to see and Legs to run.
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