The “Soul Hypothesis”

Deepak Chopra salvo’s another interesting round of points on religion, science, God, Einstein, and such.

• The “Soul Hypothesis”, Part 1
• The “Soul Hypothesis”, Part 2
• The “Soul Hypothesis”, Part 3
• The “Soul Hypothesis”, Part 4
• The “Soul Hypothesis”, Part 5

Make room for thougth. A couple of key points:

• Atheism is a weak position in terms of science simply becasue it lacks any system of proof—trying to prove that something doesn’t exist is nearly impossible.
• What would it be like to experimentally prove that the soul exists? If you believe in it, start collecting evidence.
• The list of soul qualities is a familiar one:
  • The soul is your connection to God or the divine—test: Are you connected to God and the divine?
  • The soul is the source of existence—test: Have you experienced your source?
  • The soul is the seat of bliss or eternal happiness—test: Can happiness be reached beyond everyday pleasure and pain?
  • The soul exists beyond death; it is the seed of immortality—test: Is there such a thing as inner being that is beyond death? Am I going to live beyond the body?
• Faith and doubt, the two forced choices that millions of people make, turn out to be almost equally fruitless.

Make some progress, where spiritual progress is defined more simply and clearly if the following conditions are met:

1. Your soul becomes more real.
2. Your soul becomes more useful.
3. Your vision of transformation is coming true.

And some key differences between the ego and the soul:

1. The ego seeks temporary satisfaction, the soul offers permanent satisfaction.
2. The ego seeks happiness through externals, the soul through inner unfoldment.
3. The ego wants constant sensation, the soul provides silent peace.
4. The ego desperately wants to survive, the soul knows it will never die.
5. The ego competes, the soul cooperates.
6. The ego sees a world of lack, the soul a world of abundance.
7. The ego struggles, the soul awaits.
8. The ego seeks protection because of its deep insecurity, the soul needs no protection because it is secure already.
9. The ego knows how to take, the soul how to receive.
10. The ego feels separate and alone, the soul identifies with wholeness.
11. The ego longs for love, the soul is love.
12. The ego puts the material world first, the soul puts consciousness first. (How “Goswami“)

At this moment, your allegiance is to “I, me, and mine,” and shifting your allegiance to the soul must replace ego demands with something new.

Reminds me of Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche’s videoclip “What About Me?“: