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The "BIGGER PICTURE" Web Site
PAUL VON WARD
Interdisciplinary Cosmologist and Independent Scholar
DO WE KNOW WHO HUMANS ARE, REALLY? With over six billions of us on Earth, you'd think we should know. But, the fact is that we don't know where we came from, what we're doing here, or how we fit into the "big picture." Some think humans are accidents in a chance-driven universe. Others think this universe is a natural result of activities in another universe or cosmos, but have no idea of how that one got started. Others believe we and our universe are the results of causative force, but attributions of "purposefulness" to this "causative force" reflect an almost infinite diversity of worldviews. Different groups assert that they have The Truth about reality and defend it, often even with force and to their death. Long-standing personal and inter-group conflicts result from these belief systems that are only based on tenuous scientific or religious assumptions. The violent chaos in the present global society exists because such belief systems do not evolve on the basis of real-world experience:
Scientists avoid dealing with anomalous aspects of human experience and nature.
Believers fear to examine the origins of their doctrines.
Educators indoctrinate instead of helping students to become self-learners.
Institutions defend beliefs with arrogance and force.
Paul challenges us to question the orthodox (wherever it is found) and to test our assumptions against the evidence that seems to deny them. His work promotes:
(1) An interdisciplinary cosmology including all human epistemologies.
(2) Awakening to the multidimensional nature of human consciousness and subtle senses.
(3) Re-examination of our religious and scientific views about the nature of nature.
(4) Public dialogues about the assumptions that underly our divergent belief systems.
Paul intends this site to challenge his own thinking and that of others to maintain skeptical, but open minds about basic existential questions like the following:
- What do I really know about the birth of life and the origin of my species?
- Does my life experience to-date suggest that it has a larger purpose?
- What do I assume about reality beyond my physical senses?
- What do I believe about the possible existence of nonhuman life-forms?
- If they exist, how do their lives relate to my own?
- If the universe has multiple dimensions, how do they affect my life?
- What is my
personal role in the apparently self-evolving universe?
DO ANY OF THESE QUESTIONS INTEREST YOU? Paul believes a cosmology based only on a single discipline (whether physics, astronomy, biology, mathematics, evolutionary theory, or metaphysics) does not cover all areas of the human experience of the universe.
Such cosmologies, whether scientific or religious, leave out much of what and who humans really are. (Click on the buttons to the left to learn more about Paul's books Gods, Genes, &
Consciousness and Our Solarian Legacy.) His books, based on as many fields of knowledge as possible, bring a profoundly new perspective to questions that most people have been culturally conditioned NOT to ask.
The comments of one 2007 reader captured the importance of confronting uncomfortable ideas:
"As I began reading your book my mind put up numerous barriers to what you were saying. More than once I decided to put the book down and label you a "crackpot" but for some reason I kept picking it back up and have since completed it. I realize now that it was my earlier "brainwashing" by my parents and society that at first made your book repulsive to me. I found your book enlightening and logical. Thank you for helping me to break down my mental barriers so that the light of reason could finally shine through." Warm Regards, Jon C. Gilbert.
HOW
MUCH DO WE REALLY KNOW?
Paul believes any credible attempt
to develop a viable worldview for the 21st century must fully integrate all aspects of human knowledge and all epistemologies. Consequently, he works
systematically with quantum theory, subtle energies, biological
evolution, string theory, genetics, creationism, religion, spirituality, history,
archaeology and anthropology, consciousness studies, mind-body
interactions, UFO/ET studies, frontier and esoteric science, and other
areas of research to synthesize the emerging new human
story.
Paul first took on the role of a cosmic puzzle master in researching his book Our Solarian Legacy. The results suggest that ours is a self-learning universe where all life reflects the conscious, purposeful, adapting, and evolving nature of its Source. A valuable overview of this "bigger picture" can be found at Tom Nielsen's website on Our Enfolded Universe
AB-INTERVENTION HYPOTHESIS
Paul analyzes evidence for the "intervention hypothesis," the theory that beings more advanced than humans (ABs) have been, and to some extent still are, involved in human development. He explores the "ancient astronaut" theory as a plausible explanation for the existence of artifacts that suggest civilizations more advanced than the Neolithic Era people existed prior to the Earth-wide cataclysm of 11,500 BP. His areas of research include the two new disciplines of exobiology and exopolitics, respectively the search for extraplanetary life forms and nonhuman cultures.
An interview with Tony Pratt of Nashville's community access television's channel 19 on Paul's views and research on the intervention hypothesis gives a half-hour overview of the material in his book Gods, Genes & Consciousness.
While quite a number of writers and researchers now focus on this hypothesis, the group at OpenSETI stands out in taking a highly professional, scientific, and interdisciplinary approach. Their site maintains open forums (including one on Paul's work) on the evidence for nonhuman intelligence.
REINCARNATION HYPOTHESIS
Another major area of Paul's current research focuses on evidence for successive reincarnations of individual, transcendent souls. He has developed an Integral Model to test the reincarnation hypothesis. His (professional or self-administered) multi-factor evaluation tool assesses confidence-levels for possible identification of individual past-life connections. One self-developed cases illustrates a strong, multifaceted case for present-day artist Peter Teekamp and Michelle Moshay being the reincarnations of Paul and Mette Gauguin. See their website at Teekamp/Gauguin.
Paul's new book, The Soul Genome: Science and Reincarnation, based on primarily self-identified and objectively evaluated cases of possible linear reincarnation was published in March 2008. The book contains robust case studies that illuminate areas of the human personality and behaviors that have not been previously thought of in terms of reincarnation. It can be ordered at Amazon.com, or at Wheatmark Books, other online booksellers and through your local bookstore. Individuals interested in learning how to be a part of his ongoing research in this area may contact Paul at the email address below. If you have a sense of a possible lifetime, whether associated with a specific identity or not, the evidence you have may help with scientific testing of the reincarnation hypothesis. Other recommended books describing the collection of empirical data related to reincarnation are Life Before Life by Jim B. Tucker, M.D. and Marilyn Monroe Returns by Adrian Finkelstein, M.D.
See descriptions of Paul's books and his
speaking schedule at Hampton Roads Publishing or on the Reincarnation Experiment website.
To purchase Paul's books Shop at Amazon.com.
Email Paul
with your questions or comments through
paul@vonward.com. |