Ecospirituality connects the science of ecology with spirituality. It brings together religion and environmental activism. Ecospirituality has been defined as "a manifestation of the spiritual connection between human beings and the environment." The new millennium and the modern ecological crisis has created a need for environmentally based religion and spirituality.
Ecospirituality is understood by some practitioners and scholars as one
result of people wanting to free themselves from a consumeristic and
materialistic society. Ecospirituality has been critiqued for being an umbrella term for concepts such as deep ecology, ecofeminism, and nature religion.
Proponents may come from a range of faiths including: Islam; Christianity (Catholicism, Evangelicalism and Orthodox Christianity); Judaism; Buddhism and Indigenous traditions.
Although many of their practices and beliefs may differ, a central
claim is that there is "a spiritual dimension to our present ecological
crisis."
According to the environmentalist Sister Virginia Jones,
"Eco-spirituality is about helping people experience 'the holy' in the
natural world and to recognize their relationship as human beings to all
creation.
Ecospirituality has been influenced by the ideas of deep ecology,
which is characterized by "recognition of the inherent value of all
living beings and the use of this view in shaping environmental
policies" Similarly to ecopsychology,
it refers to the connections between the science of ecology and the
study of psychology. 'Earth-based' spirituality is another term related
to ecospirituality; it is associated with pagan religious traditions
and the work of prominent ecofeminist, Starhawk.
Ecospirituality refers to the intertwining of intuition and bodily
awareness pertaining to a relational view between human beings and the
planet.
Origins
Ecospirituality
finds its history in the relationship between spirituality and the
environment. Some scholars say it "flows from an understanding of
cosmology or the story of the origin of the universe." There are multiple origin stories about how the spiritual relationship with people and the environment began. In Native America philosophy,
there are many unique stories of how spirituality came to be. A common
theme in a number of them is the discussion of a Great Spirit that lives
within the universe and the earth represents its presence.
Ecospirituality has also sprung from a reaction to the Western
world's materialism and consumerism, characterized by ecotheologian Thomas Berry as a "crisis of cosmology."
Scholars have argued that "the modern perspective is based on science
and focused on the human self with everything else being outside,
resulting in the demise of the metaphysical world and the disenchantment
with the cosmos."
Therefore, ecospirituality originates as a rebuttal to the emphasis on
the material as well as Western separation from the environment, where
the environment is regarded as a set of material resources with
primarily instrumental value.
Ecological crisis
Ecospirituality
became popularized due to a need for a reconceptualization of the human
relationship with the environment. Terms such as environmental crisis,
ecological crisis, climate change, global warming all refer to an
ongoing global issue that needs to be addressed. Generally the
ecological crisis is referring to the destruction of the earth’s
ecosystem. What this encompasses is a highly controversial debate in scientific and political spheres.
Globally we are faced with pollution of our basic needs (air, and
water) as well as the depletion of important resources, most notably
food resources.
Annette Van Schalkwyk refers to the environmental crisis as “man-made”. It is arguably the result of a “mechanistic and capitalistic world view”.
Whether it is man-made, or as some argue, a natural occurrence, humans
are not helping. Pollution and depletion of resources play a major role
in the ecological crisis.
Bringing religion into the ecological crisis is controversial due to
the divide between religion and science. Ecospirituality is prepared to
acknowledge science, and work in tandem with religion to frame the
environment as a sacred entity in need of protection.
Mary Evelyn Tucker notes the importance of religion and ecology
connecting with sustainability. Due to the environmental crisis,
perceptions of sustainability are changing.
Religion and ecology, and the way people experience ecospirituality,
could contribute to this changing definition of sustainability.
Research on ecospirituality
Ecospirituality
has been studied by academics in order to understand a clearer
definition of what individuals label as ecospirituality and the
framework in which they create this definition. One study focused on holistic nurses,
who themselves characterize their profession as having a fundamentally
spiritual nature and a sense of the importance of the environment.
Researchers performed a phenomenological study where they assessed the
nurses' ecospiritual consciousness. For the purpose of their study, they
defined ecospiritual consciousness as "accessing a deep awareness of
one's ecospiritual relationship."
They then narrowed down their findings to the five principles of
ecospiritual consciousness, which are: tending, dwelling, reverence,
connectedness, and sentience.
Tending was defined as "being awake and conscious," with "deep, inner self-reflection."
Dwelling was defined as "a process of being with the seen and the unseen."
Reverence was defined as "rediscovering the mystery present present
in all creation and is embodied sense of the sacred," focusing on the
earth.
Connectedness was defined as an "organic relationship with the universe."
Sentience was defined as "a sense of knowing."
Another study looked at medical effects of ecospirituality by having
patients with cardiovascular disease practice "environmental meditation"
and log regular journal entries about their experiences. Researchers started out with the research question of, "What is the essence of the experience of ecospirituality meditation in patients with CVD?" CVD is an acronym for cardiovascular disease.
From analyzing journal entries of participants, researchers abstracted
four major themes of ecospirituality meditation: entering a new time
zone, environmental reawakening, finding a new rhythm, and the creation
of a healing environment.
Entering a new time zone was described by researchers as "the expansion of time during meditation."
Environmental Reawakening was described by researchers as "opened participants’ eyes to vistas not previously noticed"
Finding a new rhythm was described by the researchers as "enhanced
relationships with their family, friends, coworkers, and even their
pets."
The creation of a healing environment was described by the
researchers as "With raised consciousnesses, they became aware of the
choices they had regarding what types of intentions and energy that
wanted to put out in their environment"
This research was driven by the goal of raising awareness among
healthcare professionals about ecospirituality and the medical
importance of both self and environmental consciousness. Anecdotal
evidence showed a decrease in blood pressure. However, the psychological benefits of environmental meditation were the main focus for the researchers.
Dark Green Religion
Dark Green Religion is one way in which people, both secular and religious, connect with nature on a spiritual level. Bron Taylor
defines Dark Green Religion as "religion that considers nature to be
sacred, imbued by intrinsic value, and worthy of reverent care" in his
book Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future.Nature religion
is an overarching term of which Dark Green Religion is a part of. A key
part of Dark Green Religion is the "depth of its consideration of
nature." Dark Green Religion differs from Green Religion. Green Religion claims
that it is a religious obligation for humans to be environmental
stewards, while Dark Green Religion is a movement that simply holds
nature as valuable and sacred.
Spiritual types of Dark Green Religion include Naturalistic and Supernaturalistic forms of Animism and of Gaianism.
The diverse views within Dark Green Religion are not without the idea
that the earth is sacred and worthy of care. The perceptions of Dark
Green Religion are global and flexible. Taylor's use of the word 'Dark'
gestures toward these negative possibilities. According to Taylor, Dark
Green Religion has the possibility to "inspire the emergence of a
global, civic, earth religion."
Dark Green, Green and Nature Religions are arguably all a part of
ecospirituality. The term ecospirituality is versatile and overarching.
Ecofeminism and spirituality
The umbrella term "ecospirituality" covers the feminist theology called Ecofeminism. The term ecofeminism was first coined by the French writer Françoise D'Eaubonne in her book, Le Féminisme ou la Mort in order to name the connection between the patriarchal subjugation of women and the destruction of nature. In it, she argues that women have different ways of seeing and relating to the world than men.
These differences can give rise alternative insights on interactions
between humans and the natural world when women's perspectives are
considered. The suppression and control of woman and the natural world are connected. On the ecofeminist view, women are controlled because they are thought to be closer to primitive nature.
By understanding the connection between femininity and nature and by
exploring feminine ways of seeing and relating, ecofeminism asserts that
humans can realize positive ways of interacting with the natural world
and with each other.
Ecofeminism and Christianity on the ecological crisis
A significant figure in Christian ecofeminism is Rosemary Radford Ruether. Ruether argues that feminism and ecology share a common vision, even though they use different languages. In her work, Gaia and God: An Ecofeminist Theology of Earth Healing Ruether provides three recommendations on ways to move forward with repairing and "healing" the ecological crisis.
The first recommendation is that "the ecological crisis needs to be
seen not just as a crisis in the health of nonhuman ecosystems, polluted
water, contaminated skies, threatened climate change, deforestation,
extinction of species, important as all these realities are. Rather one
needs to see the interconnections between the impoverishment of the
earth and the impoverishment of human groups, even as others are
enriching themselves to excess."
The second recommendation is that "a healed ecosystem – humans,
animals, land, air, and water together – needs to be understood as
requiring a new way of life, not just a few adjustments here and there."
The third and final recommendation is that the need for a new vision is
necessary: "one needs to nurture the emergence of a new planetary
vision and communal ethic that can knit together people across religions
and cultures. There is rightly much dismay at the role that religions
are playing in right-wing politics and even internecine violence today.
But we need also to recognize the emergence of new configurations of
inter-religious relations."
Ecofeminism and Christianity in liberation theology
According to Ivone Gebara,
in Latin America, particularly in Christian Churches in Brazil, it is
difficult to be a feminist, but more difficult to be an ecofeminist.
Gebara explains ecology as one of the "deepest concerns of feminism and
ecology as having a deep resonance or a political and anthropolocial
consequence from a feminist perspective."
Gebara believes that it is the task of different groups of Latin
American women to "provide a new order of meaning including marginalized
people."
This task is both challenging and political. Gebara says: "We can
choose the life of the planet and the respect of all living beings or we
choose to die by our own bad decisions."
World Religions and ecospirituality
Ecospirituality and paganism
Paganism is a nature-based religion that exists in a multitude of forms. There is no official doctrine or sacred text that structures its practice.
Due to its lack of structure, many Pagans believe that it should be
used as a tool to combat the current ecological crisis because it is
flexible and can adapt to the environment's needs.
Ecospirituality advocates contend that an ecology-based religion that
focuses on the nurturing and healing of the earth is necessary in
modernity. As paganism is already based in nature worship, many believe it would be a useful starting point for ecospirituality. In fact, neopagan
revivals have seen the emergence of pagan communities that are more
earth-focused. They may build their rituals around advocacy for a
sustainable lifestyle and emphasize complete interconnectedness with the
earth. Paganism understands divine figures to exist not as transcendent beings, but as immanent beings in the present realm, meaning that their divine figures exist within each of us, and within nature. Many pagans believe in interconnectedness among all living beings, which allows them to foster moments of self-reflection before acting.
These pagan ideals coincide with ecospirituality because pagans
understand the environment to be part of the divine realm and part of
their inner self. Therefore, in their view, harming the environment
directly affects their wellbeing. Pagans have already recognized the importance of incorporating environmental ideologies with their own religious beliefs.
The Dragon Environmental Network is a pagan community based in the UK.
They are committed to practicing "eco-magic" with the intention of
recognizing the earth as sacred and divine. Their four goals are as follows:
Increase general awareness of the sacredness of the Earth.
Encourage pagans to become involved in conservation work.
Encourage pagans to become involved in environmental campaigns.
Develop the principles and practice of magical and spiritual action for the environment.
Paganism combines religion with environmental activism. Pagans
organize protests, campaigns, and petitions with the environment in mind
while staying true to their religious beliefs. Bron Taylor, argues that their core Pagan beliefs greatly improves their environmental activism. Additionally, the Pagan community has recently released a statement on the ecological crisis.
It explains that Pagans lead lives that foster “harmony with the
rhythms of our great Earth" and that they view the Earth as their equal
in stating “we are neither above nor separate from the rest of nature”.
It states that we are part of a web of life, and are fully
interconnected with the biosphere. This connection to all living beings
is seen as spiritual and sacred. And in turn it provides a framework
that Pagans can use to combine their religious beliefs with
environmental activism. It calls for a return to ancient understandings
of the earth by listening to ancient wisdom. It asks Pagans to practice
their religion in all aspects of their lives in order to give the Earth
room to heal. The statement concludes by stating “building a truly
sustainable culture means transforming the systems of domination and
exploitation that threaten our future into systems of symbiotic
partnership that support our ecosystems”.
Ecospirituality and Christianity
Most Christian theology has centered on the doctrine of creation. According to Elizabeth Johnson, in recent years, this has led to growing ecological awareness among Christians.
The logic of this stance is rooted in the theological idea that since
God created the world freely, it has an intrinsic value and is worthy of
our respect and care. In 1990, Pope John Paul II wrote a letter on ecological issues. He concluded the letter with a discussion of Christian belief and how it should lead to ethical care of the earth.
He ended the letter with the principle "respect for life and the
dignity of human person must extend also to the rest of creation."
The doctrines of Christ that Christians follow also have the
potential for ecological spirituality for they support interpretations
that are consistent with ecospirituality. According to Elizabeth Johnson, Jesus' view of the Kingdom of God included earthly wellbeing. According to Thomas Berry, Christians recognize a need for an Earth Ethic.
The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, leader of the Greek Orthodox
Church, has organized major religion and science symposia on water
issues across Europe, the Amazon River and Greenland.
He has issued statements – including a joint statement with John Paul
II in 2002 – calling destruction of the environment "ecological sin."
Bishop Malone, president of the National Conference of Catholic
Bishops has said: "The Church stands in need of a new symbolic and
affective system through which to proclaim the Gospel to the modern
world." In the ecotheology of the late Thomas Berry,
he argues that Christians often fail to realize that both their social
and religious wellbeing depend on the wellbeing of Earth. Earth provides sustenance for physical, imaginative and emotions, and religious wellbeing.
In Thomas Berry's view, the Christian future will depend on the ability
of Christians to assume their responsibility for Earth's fate.
An example of such responsibility-taking can be seen in the founding of
an association called "Sisters of Earth," which is made up of nuns and
laywomen.
This network of women from diverse religious communities is
significant, both for the movement of general concern for the natural
world and for the religious life in Christian contexts.
Ecospirituality and Hinduism
Many teachings in Hinduism are intertwined with the ethics of ecospirituality in their stress on environmental wellbeing. The Hindu text called the Taittariya Upanishad refers to creation as offspring of the Supreme Power, paramatman. Thus, the environment is related to something that is divine and therefore deserves respect.
Since the late 1980s when the negative effects of mass
industrialization were becoming popularized, India instituted
administrative policies to deal with environmental conservation. These
policies were rooted in the ways that the Hindu religion is tied to the
land.
In the Hindu text Vajur Veda (32.10), God is described as being present in all living things, further reinforcing the need to show respect for creation. Passages such as this lead some Hindus to become vegetarian and to affirm a broader type of ecospiritual connection to the Earth. Vishnu Purana
3.8.15. states that, "God, Kesava, is pleased with a person who does
not harm or destroy other non-speaking creatures or animals." This notion is tied in with the Hindu concept of karma. Karma means that the pain caused to other living things will come back to you through the process of reincarnation.
Ecospirituality can also be seen in the Prithivi Sukta which is a "Hymn to Mother Earth."
In this text, the Earth is humanized into a spiritual being to which
humans have familial ties. Through ecospirituality, the notion of
praising and viewing the Earth in this way brings about its strong
connections to Hinduism.
Ecospirituality and Jainism
Contemporary Jaina fatih is “inherently ecofriendly.” In terms of the ecological crisis, Jains are “quite self-conscious of the ecological implications of their core teachings.”
Jain teachings center on five vows that lead to reverse the flow of or release karma. One of these vows is ahimsa
or non-violence. Ahimsa “is said to contain the key to advancement
along the spiritual path (sreni). This requires abstaining from harm to
any being that possesses more than one sense”
The principles of the Jaina tradition are rooted in environmental
practices. The Jaina connection to nature is conducive to
ecospirituality.
Ecospirituality and Islam
Some scholars argue that while looking at the scriptural sources of Islam, you can see it is an ecologically orientated religion. Looking at textual sources of Islam, the shari'a
preach a number of environmentally focused guidelines to push
environmentalism, in particular, "maintenance of preserves, distribution
of water, and the development of virgin lands." Much of Muslim environmentalism is a result of the Qur'anic stress of stewardship which is explained through the Arabic concept khilafa. A quote translated from the hadith states, "verily, this world is sweet and appealing, and Allah placed you as vice-regents thereinl he will see what you do."
Within the Islamic faith, there is a set importance to following the
messages set forth in scripture, therefore the environmentalism spoken
through them has led to a spirituality around the environment. This
spirituality can also be seen with Qur'anic concept of tawhid, which translates to unity. Many Muslim environmentalists see this meaning spiritually as "all-inclusive" when in relation to the Earth.
A majority of Muslim writers draw attention to the environmental crisis as a direct result of social injustice. Many argue that the problem is not that, "humans as a species are destroying the balance of nation, but rather that some humans are taking more than their share." Muslim environmentalists such as Fazlun Khalid, Yasin Dutton,
Omar Vadillo, and Hashim Dockrat have drawn a correlation between the
capitalist nature of the global economy to being un-Islamic and
essentiality leading to ecological crisis.
The issues of environmental degradation are especially important
to Muslims as majority of Muslims live in developing countries where
they see the effects of the ecological crisis on a daily basis. This has led to conferences discussing Islam and the environment to take place in Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as the introduction of environmental nongovernmental organizations.
Ecospirituality and Buddhism
Buddhism has been around for hundreds of years, however with the modern knowledge on topics such as global warming,
many Buddhist scholars have looked back at how Buddhist teaching would
respond to the environmental crisis and created what is called Green
Buddhism. One of the key players in this introduction was Gary Snyder who brought to light where Buddhist practice and ecological thinking intertwine.
Green Buddhism made waves in the 1980s when they publicly address the
ecological crisis to create awareness and in 1989 when the Dalai Lama won a Noble Peace Prize for the proposed introduction of Tibet as an ecological reserve.
Buddhism has been open to working with other world religions to combat
the environment crisis seen at an international conference for
Buddhist-Christian studies that addressed the environment.
Although Green Buddhism has not commented much on technical issues such
as air and water pollution, they use their spirituality to focus
heavily on "rich resources for immediate application in food ethics, animal rights, and consumerism."
Secular spirituality is the adherence to a spiritual philosophy without adherence to a religion. Secular spirituality emphasizes the personal development of the individual, rather than a relationship with the divine.
Secular spirituality is made up of the search for meaning outside of a
religious institution; it considers one's relationship with the self,
others, nature, and whatever else one considers to be the ultimate. Often, the goal of secular spirituality is living happily and/or helping others.
According to Robert C. Solomon,
an American Professor of Philosophy, "spirituality is coextensive with
religion and it is not incompatible with or opposed to science or the
scientific outlook. Naturalized spirituality is spirituality without any
need for the 'other‐worldly'. Spirituality is one of the goals, perhaps
the ultimate goal, of philosophy."
Cornel W Du Toit, head of the Research Institute for Theology and
Religion at the University of South Africa, suggests secular
spirituality is unique in that it adapts so well to modern world views,
and is therefore compatible with other modern beliefs and ways of life,
building community through shared experiences of "awe". Peter Van der Veer
also argues an important aspect of secular spirituality is its
promotion of community, creating solidarity through shared universal
truth. This 'universal truth' can be experienced through a secular or non-religious world view, without the need for a concept of 'higher power' or a 'supernatural being'.
Instances of secular spirituality are mediated differently, as
instances of awe can be encouraged through a diversity of unique
environments and situations. In the 21st century, individuals increasingly connect with the secularly spiritual through technology. As follows, the connection between contemporary spiritual practices and technology is deepening profoundly.
Some traditionally religious practices have been adapted by secular
practitioners under strictly spiritual understandings, such as yoga and mindfulness meditation. Secular spirituality affects education, relationships to nature, and community togetherness.
Definition
Secular spirituality emphasizes humanistic qualities such as love, compassion, patience, forgiveness, responsibility, harmony and a concern for others. Du Toit argues aspects of life and human experience which go beyond a purely materialistic view of the world are spiritual; spirituality does not require belief in a supernatural reality or divine being. Mindfulness and meditation can be practiced in order to cherish, foster, and promote the development of one's empathy
and manage selfish drivers of behavior, with solicitude and
forgiveness. This can be experienced as beneficial, or even necessary
for human fulfillment, without any supernatural interpretation or
explanation. Spirituality in this context may be a matter of nurturing
thoughts, emotions, words and actions that are in harmony with a belief
that everything in the universe is mutually dependent. Scholar Daniel Dennett suggests spirituality as connected to "awe and joy and sense of peace and wonder,"
explaining "people make a mistake of thinking spirituality... has
anything to do with either religious doctrines... or the supernatural,"
instead claiming spirituality can be and is often entirely secular. However critics
suggest that because 'secular spirituality' does not reference
theistic, supernatural or any 'other-worldly' constructs it cannot be
truly considered spirituality — without some non-ordinary /supernatural
element, the dissenters argue that spirituality boils down to being
nothing more than a synonym for humanism.
Theorists
Cornel W Du Toit
Cornel W Du Toit is a professor at the University of South Africa, who completed his studies at the Institute for Theology and Missiology. Du Toit defines "secular spirituality" as a contemporaryphenomenon of spirituality experienced in spheres separate from structured, institutionalized religion. Du Toit cites Alister E. McGrath's definition of spirituality in his
discussion of the secularly spiritual, arguing that spirituality
generally concerns: "the quest for a fulfilled and authentic life,
involving the bringing together of the ideas distinctive of ... [some]
religion and the whole experience of living on the basis of and within
the scope of that religion."
Du Toit argues that, as a contemporary phenomenon, secular spirituality
is different than earlier spiritualities. A number of changes in
prevailing worldviews have affected the concept of spirituality. The
concept of spirituality means something different in the current
techno-scientific world than it did in a world of phantoms, magic, gods,
and demons, in which humans believed themselves to be at the mercy of
forces they could not control.
Du Toit believes that the increase in scientific explanations for what
were previously seen as spiritual, "unexplainable" instances of awe,
has increased individuals' tendency to call any experience that seems
special "spiritual." Du Toit argues that any realm can evoke an
experience of spirituality whether it may be reading a novel, watching a
movie or going on a hike.
Secular spirituality is not a new religion, but rather the potential for all experiences to assume a spiritual quality, not limited to any one religious or transcendent
realm. Du Toit argues that industrialism has led to an increase in
materialism in the West. Du Toit further argues that materialism has
contributed to a more individualistic Western culture, which underpins
secularism. In saying this, though Du Toit connects secularism to
individualism, Du Toit maintains that secular spirituality is inherently
communal, as he argues that while instances of awe can be experienced
individually, they ultimately contribute to the collective – as these
instances of awe can motivate people to influence others and nature. Du
Toit argues that if they do not meaningfully contribute to the
collective, they can not be considered secular spiritual experiences. Du
Toit argues that "the spiritual experiences was never an end in
itself... [as] any spirituality that does not produce service is false.
Peter Van der Veer
Peter Van der Veer
suggests secular spirituality began with the emphasis on forming group
identities, both national and political, and the need for these
communities to share a spiritual identity. For Van der Veer, secular
spirituality arose in communities through the simultaneous rise of secularism and spirituality, as well as their interaction in the context of nineteenth century globalization.
He identifies spirituality, the secular, and religion as three
interacting but independent concepts that create frameworks for
different systems of belief. For Van der Veer the combination of the
spiritual and the secular allows the bridging of discursive traditions
in the global-historical context which preserves identities of the
communities who share spiritual beliefs across national boundaries.
Van der Veer suggests the phenomenon of secular spirituality
develops as many different expressions of belief because of the
inconsistent integration of spirituality into secular society within
social, market and political spaces. Secular spirituality reflects individualism
and self-reflexivity through forming group identities outside of a
modern geopolitical context. Secular spirituality does not imply
rejecting modern ideas of liberalism,
socialism or science, but instead exists as a parallel reading of the
discourse with contemporary society. For Van der Veer, secular
spirituality uses these contemporary ideas to create communities of
individuals who have a shared secular interest written into their system
of awesome belief. Van der Veer identifies the use of these
contemporary ideas to create communities of individuals who share
secular interests in a system of awesome belief as instances of secular
spirituality.
Kim Knott
Kim
Knott focuses specifically on the secular sacred, in her discussion of
secular spirituality. More specifically, Knott focuses on the
possibility of experiencing the sacred outside the context of
institutionalized religion. She believes that the sacred functions both
within and outside of a theological context through the beliefs of
individual persons.
Knott deconstructs the common conceptional separation of the sacred
from the profane. She argues that the concept of religion should not be
conflated with the concept of the sacred, and that the concept of the
secular should not be conflated with the concept of the profane.
Throughout the enlightenment this separation between religion and the
spiritual has occurred, as wilderness sites, marshes, coves, and other
sites have been called sacred or spiritual places, without having
religious influence or belonging to a religion.
In this understanding the sacred is based in nature as these sacred
sites serve in an individuals spatial sacred experience. This is how
Knott breaks down the sacred experience, as it is achieved through the
individuals embodiment, spatiality, and the awareness of ones the body
and the spaces inside and around it.
As these the sacred as the basis of the sacred as it becomes an
operative connection within boundary crossing situations taking place
inside and outside the human body and the inhabited territory.
Technology
Online spirituality
Religions and religious movements have strong online presence, which are often sorted into two categories: "religion-online" and "online-religion."
As coined by Christopher Helland, "religion-online" is understood as
"importing traditional forms of religion online", while
"online-religion" is uniquely secularly spiritual, in that it "[creates]
new forms of networked spiritual interactions," promoting discussions
of ritual and 'awe'-filled moments within a secular, online community.
Because of the Internet's ability to "cross social and cultural
borders", Helland argues that this has created "non-threatening
environment" that is ideal for anonymous users to engage in "spiritual
searching."
Online spiritual discussion outside of the aegis of any particular
religious movement is often thought to have begun with and have been
most influenced by "Communitree", a "California-based online social
networking system".
The "Origins" board on Communitree promoted "open-ended forms of
religious discussion", resulting in an unofficial "set of religious and
quasi-religious beliefs and practices that is not accepted, recognized
or controlled by official religious groups."
Scholars often associate Communitree with personal religiosity and
individualized spirituality, as this entirely secular platform allowed
for conversation to occur without a "set doctrine, code of ethics or
group of religious professionals to regulate belief and practices".
Outside of Communitree, the Internet contains countless forums,
websites, and messaging systems. These platforms allow for information
regarding spiritual ideas to be accessed, and connections to be made
between those who are offering or seeking spiritual advice.
Techno-spirituality
A
defining feature of secular spirituality is that instances of secular
spirituality can occur in any realm. In the present techno-scientific
age, spiritual practices are increasingly mediated through technology. For many religious people, technology can be seen as an alienating force – "the encapsulation of human rationality" – that competes with religion and spirituality as opposed to mediating or facilitating religion and spirituality.
The recognition of a spiritual dimension of technology represents a
recent shift in the discussion. According to philosopher Jay Newman,
"technology's very success is contributing to the realization of ideals
such as freedom, knowledge, happiness, and peace."
This may lead people to believe that "technology is a proper successor
to religion", but this is certainly not the case in sociological trends.
General levels of religiosity in the West have barely declined since
the Enlightenment period.
The current "attribution of spiritual meaning to the digital realm"
represents a remarkable change in how spirituality has traditionally
been mediated. Secular spirituality is a phenomenon that recognizes the
link between technology and spirituality, as opposed to viewing
technology as in competition with spirituality.
Yoga
The popularity of the 'Yoga' in the West is integrally linked to secularization. This secularization began in India
in the 1930s, when yoga teachers began to look for ways to make yoga
accessible to the general public who did not have the opportunity to
practice yoga as part of the Hindu faith.
As such, yoga began to move from the realm of religion to the realm of
secularity, promoting Yoga as a non-Hindu practice both within the West
and East. Yoga has undeniably Hindu roots, first mentioned in the Katha Upanisad. Despite these roots, yoga has been secularized, and often referred to as being "ancient Indian," "Eastern," or "Sanskritic," rather than as Hindu due to a desire to avoid any religious connotations. Modern Western yoga is thought to "not require adoption of religious beliefs or dogma," despite Hindu origins. In the West, yoga has been "modernized, medicalized, and transformed into a system of physical culture".
This system of physical culture has transformed yoga "into an
individualized spirituality of the self", creating an activity that is
very popular within secular societies, drawing off portrayals of yoga as
"mystical, experiential and individualistic." Western yoga students cite health, fitness, and stress reduction as
reasons for yogic practice, rather than traditional Hindu motivations
and goals such as enlightenment.
However, many practice in order to reach "contemplative states of
consciousness and spirituality", a goal that falls within the realm of
secular spirituality. In a study of Ashram
residents, researchers found residents were more likely to respond they
had an "experience of oneness" during or after a yoga class and felt
more "in touch with divine
or spiritual" after a class than control groups, leaving researchers to
believe yoga practice enhances transformational processes, including
spiritual states.
Meditation
Meditation has transformed into a secular, spiritual experience that promotes a sense of community.
While meditation is traditionally considered a component of Buddhism, mindfulness meditation has become a way to exercise secular spirituality, particularly in the West. Meditation is considered a "spiritual alternative" to conventional values and goals, such as those found in traditional Western religions. Mindfulness-based stress reduction, while traditionally linked to the Buddhist understanding of Samadhi,
has become medicalized in the secular aim of reducing illness, rather
than the traditional Buddhist goal of liberation from the suffering that
occurs in worldly experiences.
As such, this medicalized, secularized version of meditation has been
allowed into secular institutions within Western society, such as
hospitals and schools.
Research done at Bowling Green State University has shown that
mindfulness practitioners who identify as spiritual, as opposed to
non-spiritual, benefit more fully from mindfulness practice, and more
significantly decreasing their anxiety, increasing the positivity of
their moods and increasing their ability to tolerate pain. The Dalai Lama has promoted global exportation of meditation as a "human practice," rather than strictly religious.
As such, the secular nature of meditation "for the goal of universal
human benefit" is emphasized, allowing for secular, spiritual but
non-religious participation.
An additional human benefit occurring as a result of meditative
practice is a sense of community between practitioners. While meditation
is entirely individual, it also relies on and creates social
connection, building community through shared spirituality despite
secular contexts.
Education
Marisa Crawford points to the importance of including secular spirituality in the Canadian curriculum.
Crawford argues that a push for a secular public education system
deprives students of the opportunity to explore life's "ultimate
questions of heart and soul." Crawford believes that there is a way to integrate spirituality into the secular sphere without indoctrination. She advocates allowing students to investigate how individuals and cultures have addressed spiritual concerns and issues. Public schools in Canada generally exclude the spiritual or transcendent
dimension of human life from their explanation of religion and have
thus bought into a brand of secularism that has excluded spirituality,
giving students the false impression that spirituality has never been an
important part of the human experience.
Crawford argues that the deflection of students' questions about
religion or spirituality is commonplace and contributes to
misunderstandings and ignorance about religion and spirituality.
According to Crawford, knowledge about religion and spirituality is essential for understanding and living in a pluralistic society.
While textbooks include explanations of the rituals and practices of
certain religious groups, textbooks rarely discuss religion's role in
shaping human thought and action. In British Columbia, the School Act states that public schools must be conducted on "strictly secular and non-sectarian principles," thereby alienating young people to "questions that both enliven and vex the human spirit."
Lois Sweet argues that "public schools must begin to examine ways to
include the spiritual dimension of human existence in a
non-indoctrinating way," by teaching worldviews that are sensitive to
religious differences and by emphasizing the features of religion and
spirituality that overlap.
Sweet points to the fact that the requirement for secularism in
Canadian public schools simply signals the need for "educational
decisions and policies, whatever their motivation, to respect the
multiplicity of religious and moral views that are held by families in
the school community," not to ignore their discussion.
According to a UNESCO
report on education: "It is thus education's noble task to encourage
each and every one, acting in accordance with their traditions and
convictions and paying full respect to pluralism, to lift their minds and spirits to the plane of the universal and, in some measure, to transcend themselves."
According to Crawford, excluding religion from the curriculum endorses a
passive hostility towards all religious points of view. According to
Thomas Groome, by nurturing a sacramentalcosmology
– an awareness that each aspect of life manifests visible signs of
invisible grace – educators can promote an attitude of reverence and
gratitude for the world.
He argues that doing so can encourage students to "bring light to the
thousands of wonders and transcendent signals in the ordinary things of
life ...contemplating the world with a gaze of faith that encourages
seeking meaning and celebrating instances of awe."
Through integrating a sacramental cosmology into the Canadian Public
Education system, Groome argues that students will have more
opportunities to understand and appreciate the web of humanity –
including love, friendship, and "the intricate and consistent designs
and patterns of science ... leading to contemplative wonder that is
rooted in compassionate and loving relationships that embrace meaningful
knowing."
Crawford argues that the curriculum will have to avoid promoting one
particular religious or irreligious point of view. The curriculum would
have to introduce students to a diversity
of worldviews and spiritual options "allowing them critical access to
alternative traditions so that informed insight and wisdom may flourish
through the development of spiritual literacy."
Spirituality and nature
Kathleen
Fischer argues secular spirituality is inherently linked to nature, and
can be found in the beauty of "the delicate mist that arises from the
spray of a waterfall, a hummingbird hovering at a flowering bush, white
beaches bordering turquoise waters."
Nurse and researcher Kathleen Fischer notes that nature
is a common context for a secular spiritual experience. In her view,
individuals can foster a connection to the sacred through experiencing
nature with an openness to joy and wonder.
According to Fischer, spirituality is the broader reality, the search
for meaning and purpose for those who long to discover a deeper
dimension to their lives.
She characterizes spiritual experience as being rooted in the feeling
of awe in nature, which, in her words, may be inspired by sensing "the
intricacy, majesty, and beauty of creation: the delicate mist that
arises from the spray of a waterfall, a hummingbird hovering at a
flowering bush, white beaches bordering turquoise waters."
Fischer's work is intended to affirm that not only that the lives of
human beings, but all aspects of nature, are filled with a sacred
mystery or power.
In Fischer's own experience, the sacred power of spirituality has
deepened and extended her spiritual practices, such as meditation or
deep reflection to maintain strong mental wellbeing.
Through researching Aboriginal Australian groups, Vicki Grieve's
has begun using research on their spiritual lives as a method for
analyzing and interpreting the contemporary development of Australian
Aboriginal groups.
Australian Aboriginal spirituality while diverse seems to attend to
similar themes on the sacredness of nature that is seen in Fischer's
work. Australian Aboriginals are often taught that life is a sacred hoop
in which everything has a place. All elements of nature, whether
plants, animals, or insects, should be treated with the same respect as
humans. Grieves believes that Aboriginal Australian spiritualities deep
connection to nature builds a strong community belief system which has
the potential to unite all living beings.
Through researching Australian Aboriginal spirituality Grieves has
noted how "spirituality stems from a philosophy that establishes the
wholistic notion of the interconnectedness of the elements of the earth
and the universe, animate and inanimate."
As part of her research, Grieves conducted a focus group with an
inter-city contemporary Aboriginal group in Australia to better
understand the impact spirituality has on their lives. This inter-city
group described spirituality as a feeling of interconnectedness to their
people's past, of community and a connectedness with land and nature.
It is through spirituality that these inter-city aboriginals attained
"knowledge, inner strength, and a better understanding of their cultural
roots" contributing to feelings of "acceptance, balance and focus" as
well as an overall sense of "deep wellbeing".
In communities
Chicano spirituality
Chicano spirituality is a form of Mexicanism;
a nationalist spiritual ideology that developed in Mexico and the
Southern United States in the 1960s as a response to political and
cultural mistreatment by both Mexican and American law.
Chicano spirituality uses a combination of rituals from the Mexica,
popular Catholic traditions, and secular Mexican traditions to forge an
identity for the Chicano people. Chicanos understand their identity to
be that of an independent ethnic minority in between Indigenous and Hispanic people, as such blending secular ethnic positionality with a variety of spiritual traditions. The Chicano identify as heirs to the Aztec lineage, and use this genealogy to justify their demands for territory and recognition in civil rights.Aztlán is the imagined territory that is the centre of the Anhuac tribes of whom the Chicano claim to be descendants. Aztlán is identified by the Chicano as the first settlement of the
Anhuac people in North America before their southern migration to found
the Aztec Empire. Chicano spiritual practice includes the celebration of
Mexican civic holidays, and uniquely Chicano-Mexicanist rites of
passage. One ritual, called Xilonen, is a rite of passage celebrated by
fifteen-year-old Chicano girls that symbolically teaches them the place
of women in the social order and in families.
In the context of the modern Chicano movement, the Chicano
identity is used to transcend the modern national boundaries of Mexico
and the United States as a distinct population. The territory of Atzlán
allows the Chicano to justify their separation from other ethnic and
cultural groups in these countries by providing them with Aztec
ancestors, and a historical connection to territory in what is now the
southern United States.
The idea of the Aztlán homeland is imaginary, but supported by factors
in pre-Hispanic history, allows the Chicano to more firmly stake their
position to be recognized as a form of secular spirituality occurring in
communities in both Mexico and the United States that desires political
recognition of their minority identity as a tool to engage in
contemporary society.
The three main arguments that the Chicano use in their fight for a
distinct political identity are that the origin of the Chicano
ancestors, the Nahua tribes were in North America, that until 1848 the
modern national boundaries between Mexico and the United States were not
set, and that there is a history of transient Mexican workers in the
United States. By claiming a historical link to territory in both
countries, the Chicano distinguish themselves as developing a cultural
identity separate from either. Chicano spirituality is a combination of
American and Mexican encounters with modern politics of human rights.
Indian national spirituality
English rhetorician I.A. Richards has argued that the lack of a word for spirituality in Sanskrit makes it possible for the concept to be used in a nationalist capacity that transcends individual traditions. Mohandas Gandhi's
principle in establishing Indian National Spirituality was that each
person could discover a universal truth in the Indian struggle with
British colonialism. His vision of Indian National Spirituality
transcended the bounds of individual religious traditions, to enact a
shared nationalist fervour in the fight for independence. Gandhi's
Indian National Spirituality was an adaption of Hindu tradition in light
of Western thought proposed an independent India to operate within. Gandhi used the Hindu principle of Sarva Dharma Sambhava
which argues that all religions are equal as a way to invite
participation of minority communities in his vision of a politically
independent India.
Gandhi's national spirituality relied on the entire population of India
presenting themselves as a united front against colonialism. After the Lucknow Pact
of 1916 Gandhi was forced as an act of Indian congress to give separate
political representation to Muslims, and later to Sikhs. Gandhi felt
that separating them from the political whole was a "vivisection" of
Indian National spirituality as formed a shared ideology for fight for
Indian Nationalism.
In addition to arguing for religious equality in India, Gandhi's
ideology called for the equality of humankind, a secularly spiritual
demand based on peace and kindness for the betterment of all. He
believed that Indian National Spirituality would allow the East to be an
example to the West in promoting national communities tied by belief. Gandhi saw the endemic oppression of the Dalit
or untouchable population by the caste system of Hinduism as a heinous
institution. He promoted embracing the Dalit population as also being Harijan
or children of God, and the British programs implemented to raise Dalit
status through educational and employment opportunity programs.[5]:1111
Responses to Indian national spirituality
Gandhi's
proposed universalist national spiritual identity for India faced
criticism by both religious and secular nationalist groups. Hindu
Nationalists opposed an all-encompassing spiritual tradition that
accepted Muslims. They believed that being forced to share an identity
with a group of the population that they saw as foreign would be another
form of colonial emasculation.
Another response to the universalism of Indian National Spirituality as proposed by Gandhi was by B. R. Ambedkar
in the fight for the Dalit. Ambedkar criticized the use of Hinduism as a
basis for a universal spirituality because of the implied inequality of
the embedded caste system.
He saw the lack of mobility between castes and the systematic
oppression of the Dalits, the lowest caste in the Hindu system, as
necessitating a political separation from their oppressors in a
contemporary Indian legal situation.
Ambedkar believed that the community of the Dalit had to divorce itself
from Hindu tradition in order to escape caste based oppression,
explaining that Dalit problem "would never be solved unless [the Dalit]
got political power in their own hands."
Ambedkar's method for achieving the goals of the Dalit meant that their
identity needed to be reimagined as secular, separate from the Hindu
caste system.
Ambedkar used conversion to Buddhism as a means to promote the
Dalit cause through a different spiritual framework than Gandhi's Indian
National Spirituality.
In 1956 Ambedkar and a number of his Dalit followers converted from
Hinduism to Buddhism. The conversion was symbolic shift for the
untouchable community to escape the implications of the Hindu caste
system on the Dalit population in a secular realm.
The tradition of Buddhism was seen by Ambedkar as "a guide for right
relations between man and man in all spheres of life," embodying the
egalitarian character missing from Indian society.
He hoped that converting the Dalit population to a religion that lacked
a caste system would help to create a situation in which they had equal
human rights in India as a minority group. Ambedkar's interpretation of
Buddhism was based on a secular and this-worldly reading, wherein
suffering was defined as the oppression of one culture by another, and
freedom from suffering, and nirvana defined as righteous behaviour on earth between all people.
Albert Einstein's religious views have been widely studied and often misunderstood. Einstein stated that he believed in the pantheistic God of Baruch Spinoza. He did not believe in a personal God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings, a view which he described as naïve. He clarified however that, "I am not an atheist", preferring to call himself an agnostic, or a "religious nonbeliever." Einstein also stated he did not believe in life after death, adding "one life is enough for me." He was closely involved in his lifetime with several humanist groups.
Religious beliefs
Einstein used many labels to describe his religious views, including "agnostic", "religious nonbeliever" and a "pantheistic" believer in "Spinoza's God".
Einstein believed the problem of God was the "most difficult in the
world"—a question that could not be answered "simply with yes or no." He
conceded that, "the problem involved is too vast for our limited
minds."
Early childhood
Einstein was raised by secular Jewish parents, and attended a local Catholic public elementary school in Munich. In his Autobiographical Notes, Einstein wrote that he had gradually lost his faith early in childhood:
. . . I came—though the child of entirely
irreligious (Jewish) parents—to a deep religiousness, which, however,
reached an abrupt end at the age of twelve. Through the reading of
popular scientific books I soon reached the conviction that much in the
stories of the Bible could not be true. The consequence was a positively fanatic orgy of freethinking
coupled with the impression that youth is intentionally being deceived
by the state through lies; it was a crushing impression. Mistrust of
every kind of authority grew out of this experience, a skeptical
attitude toward the convictions that were alive in any specific social
environment—an attitude that has never again left me, even though, later
on, it has been tempered by a better insight into the causal
connections.
It is quite clear to me that the religious paradise of
youth, which was thus lost, was a first attempt to free myself from the
chains of the 'merely personal,' from an existence dominated by wishes,
hopes, and primitive feelings. Out yonder there was this huge world,
which exists independently of us human beings and which stands before us
like a great, eternal riddle, at least partially accessible to our
inspection and thinking. The contemplation of this world beckoned as a
liberation, and I soon noticed that many a man whom I had learned to
esteem and to admire had found inner freedom and security in its
pursuit. The mental grasp of this extra-personal world within the frame
of our capabilities presented itself to my mind, half consciously, half
unconsciously, as a supreme goal. Similarly motivated men of the present
and of the past, as well as the insights they had achieved, were the
friends who could not be lost. The road to this paradise was not as
comfortable and alluring as the road to the religious paradise; but it
has shown itself reliable, and I have never regretted having chosen it.
Personal God
Einstein expressed his skepticism regarding the existence of an anthropomorphic God, such as the God of Abrahamic religions, often describing this view as "naïve" and "childlike".
In a 1947 letter he stated, "It seems to me that the idea of a personal
God is an anthropological concept which I cannot take seriously."
In a letter to Beatrice Frohlich on 17 December 1952, Einstein stated,
"The idea of a personal God is quite alien to me and seems even naïve."
Prompted by his colleague L. E. J. Brouwer Einstein read the philosopher Eric Gutkind's book Choose Life,
a discussion of the relationship between Jewish revelation and the
modern world. On January 3, 1954 Einstein sent the following reply to
Gutkind, "The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and
product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honourable, but
still primitive legends…. For me the Jewish religion like all other
religions is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions."
On 22 March 1954 Einstein received a letter from Joseph Dispentiere, an Italian immigrant who had worked as an experimental machinist in New Jersey.
Dispentiere had declared himself an atheist and was disappointed by a
news report which had cast Einstein as conventionally religious.
Einstein replied on 24 March 1954:
It was, of course, a lie what you
read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically
repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied
this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be
called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure
of the world so far as our science can reveal it.
In his book Ideas and Opinions Einstein stated, "In their
struggle for the ethical good, teachers of religion must have the
stature to give up the doctrine of a personal God, that is, give up that
source of fear and hope which in the past placed such vast power in the
hands of priests."
In December 1922 Einstein said the following on the idea of a saviour,
"Denominational traditions I can only consider historically and
psychologically; they have no other significance for me.
Pantheism and Spinoza's God
Einstein had explored the idea that humans could not understand the nature of God. In an interview published in George Sylvester Viereck's book Glimpses of the Great (1930), Einstein responded to a question about whether or not he defined himself as a pantheist. He explained:
Your question is the most difficult in the world. It is
not a question I can answer simply with yes or no. I am not an Atheist. I
do not know if I can define myself as a Pantheist. The problem involved
is too vast for our limited minds. May I not reply with a parable? The
human mind, no matter how highly trained, cannot grasp the universe. We
are in the position of a little child, entering a huge library whose
walls are covered to the ceiling with books in many different tongues.
The child knows that someone must have written those books. It does not
know who or how. It does not understand the languages in which they are
written. The child notes a definite plan in the arrangement of the
books, a mysterious order, which it does not comprehend, but only dimly
suspects. That, it seems to me, is the attitude of the human mind, even
the greatest and most cultured, toward God. We see a universe
marvelously arranged, obeying certain laws, but we understand the laws
only dimly. Our limited minds cannot grasp the mysterious force that
sways the constellations. I am fascinated by Spinoza's Pantheism. I
admire even more his contributions to modern thought. Spinoza is the
greatest of modern philosophers, because he is the first philosopher who
deals with the soul and the body as one, not as two separate things.
Einstein stated, "My views are near those of Spinoza: admiration for
the beauty of and belief in the logical simplicity of the order which we
can grasp humbly and only imperfectly. I believe that we have to
content ourselves with our imperfect knowledge and understanding and
treat values and moral obligations as a purely human problem—the most
important of all human problems."
On 24 April 1929, Einstein cabled Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein in German: "I believe in Spinoza's God,
who reveals himself in the harmony of all that exists, not in a God who
concerns himself with the fate and the doings of mankind." He expanded on this in answers he gave to the Japanese magazine Kaizō in 1923:
Scientific research can reduce superstition by
encouraging people to think and view things in terms of cause and
effect. Certain it is that a conviction, akin to religious feeling, of
the rationality and intelligibility of the world lies behind all
scientific work of a higher order. [...] This firm belief, a belief
bound up with a deep feeling, in a superior mind that reveals itself in
the world of experience, represents my conception of God. In common
parlance this may be described as "pantheistic" (Spinoza).
Agnosticism, atheism, and deism
Einstein called himself an agnostic rather than an atheist, stating: "I have repeatedly said that in my opinion the idea of a personal god
is a childlike one. You may call me an agnostic, but I do not share the
crusading spirit of the professional atheist whose fervor is mostly due
to a painful act of liberation from the fetters of religious
indoctrination received in youth. I prefer an attitude of humility
corresponding to the weakness of our intellectual understanding of
nature and of our own being." In an interview published by the German poet George Sylvester Viereck, Einstein stated, "I am not an Atheist." According to Prince Hubertus,
Einstein said, "In view of such harmony in the cosmos which I, with my
limited human mind, am able to recognize, there are yet people who say
there is no God. But what really makes me angry is that they quote me
for the support of such views."
In 1945 Guy Raner, Jr. wrote a letter to Einstein, asking him if it was true that a Jesuit
priest had caused Einstein to convert from atheism. Einstein replied,
"I have never talked to a Jesuit priest in my life and I am astonished
by the audacity to tell such lies about me. From the viewpoint of a
Jesuit priest I am, of course, and have always been an atheist. ... It
is always misleading to use anthropomorphical concepts in dealing with
things outside the human sphere—childish analogies. We have to admire in
humility the beautiful harmony of the structure of this world—as far as
we can grasp it, and that is all."
In a 1950 letter to M. Berkowitz, Einstein stated that "My position concerning God is that of an agnostic.
I am convinced that a vivid consciousness of the primary importance of
moral principles for the betterment and ennoblement of life does not
need the idea of a law-giver, especially a law-giver who works on the
basis of reward and punishment."
According to biographer Walter Isaacson, Einstein was more inclined to denigrate atheists than religious people.
Einstein said in correspondence, "[T]he fanatical atheists...are like
slaves who are still feeling the weight of their chains which they have
thrown off after hard struggle. They are creatures who—in their grudge
against the traditional 'opium of the people'—cannot hear the music of the spheres."
Although he did not believe in a personal God, he indicated that he
would never seek to combat such belief because "such a belief seems to
me preferable to the lack of any transcendental outlook."
Belief in an afterlife
On 17 July 1953 a woman who was a licensed Baptist
pastor sent Einstein a letter asking if he had felt assured about
attaining everlasting life with the Creator. Einstein replied, "I do not
believe in immortality of the individual, and I consider ethics to be
an exclusively human concern with no superhuman authority behind it." This sentiment was also expressed in Einstein's book The World as I See It,
"I cannot conceive of a God who rewards and punishes his creatures, or
has a will of the type of which we are conscious in ourselves. An
individual who should survive his physical death is also beyond my
comprehension, nor do I wish it otherwise; such notions are for the
fears or absurd egoism of feeble souls. Enough for me the mystery of the
eternity of life, and the inkling of the marvellous structure of
reality, together with the single-hearted endeavour to comprehend a
portion, be it ever so tiny, of the reason that manifests itself in
nature."
Einstein was averse to the Abrahamic conception of Heaven and Hell,
particularly as it pertained to a system of everlasting reward and
punishment. In a 1915 letter to the Swiss physicist Edgar Meyer Einstein
wrote, "I see only with deep regret that God punishes so many of His
children for their numerous stupidities, for which only He Himself can
be held responsible; in my opinion, only His nonexistence could excuse
Him."
He also stated, "I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the
objects of his creation, whose purposes are modeled after our own —- a
God, in short, who is but a reflection of human frailty. Neither can I
believe that the individual survives the death of his body, although
feeble souls harbor such thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotisms."
Part of Einstein's tension with the Abrahamic afterlife was his belief in determinism and his rejection of free will.
Einstein stated, "The man who is thoroughly convinced of the universal
operation of the law of causation cannot for a moment entertain the idea
of a being who interferes in the course of events —- that is, if he
takes the hypothesis of causality really seriously. He has no use for
the religion of fear and equally little for social or moral religion. A
God who rewards and punishes is inconceivable to him for the simple
reason that a man's actions are determined by necessity, external and
internal, so that in God's eyes he cannot be responsible, any more than
an inanimate object is responsible for the motions it goes through."
Cosmic spirituality
In 1930 Einstein published a widely discussed essay in The New York Times Magazine about his beliefs. With the title "Religion and Science," Einstein distinguished three human impulses which develop religious belief: fear, social or moral concerns, and a cosmic religious feeling. A primitive understanding of causality
causes fear, and the fearful invent supernatural beings analogous to
themselves. The desire for love and support create a social and moral
need for a supreme being; both these styles have an anthropomorphic
concept of God. The third style, which Einstein deemed most mature,
originates in a deep sense of awe and mystery. He said, the individual
feels "the sublimity and marvelous order which reveal themselves in
nature ... and he wants to experience the universe as a single
significant whole." Einstein saw science as an antagonist of the first
two styles of religious belief, but as a partner in the third.
He maintained, "even though the realms of religion and science in
themselves are clearly marked off from each other" there are "strong
reciprocal relationships and dependencies" as aspirations for truth
derive from the religious sphere. He continued:
A person who is religiously enlightened appears to
me to be one who has, to the best of his ability, liberated himself from
the fetters of his selfish desires and is preoccupied with thoughts,
feelings and aspirations to which he clings because of their
super-personal value. It seems to me that what is important is the force
of this superpersonal content ... regardless of whether any attempt is
made to unite this content with a Divine Being, for otherwise it would
not be possible to count Buddha and Spinoza
as religious personalities. Accordingly a religious person is devout in
the sense that he has no doubt of the significance of those
super-personal objects and goals which neither require nor are capable
of rational foundation ... In this sense religion is the age-old
endeavor of mankind to become clearly and completely conscious of these
values and goals and constantly to strengthen and extend their effect.
If one conceives of religion and science according to these definitions
then a conflict between them appears impossible. For science can only
ascertain what is, but not what should be...
An understanding of causality was fundamental to Einstein's ethical
beliefs. In Einstein's view, "the doctrine of a personal God interfering
with natural events could never be refuted, in the real sense, by
science," for religion can always take refuge in areas that science can
not yet explain. It was Einstein's belief that in the "struggle for the
ethical good, teachers of religion must have the stature to give up the
doctrine of a personal God, that is, give up that source of fear and
hope" and cultivate the "Good, the True, and the Beautiful in humanity
itself."
Catholic Cardinal William Henry O'Connell spoke about Einstein's perceived lack of belief, "The outcome of this doubt and befogged speculation about time and space is a cloak beneath which hides the ghastly apparition of atheism."
A Bronx Rabbi criticized both the Cardinal and Einstein for opining on
matters outside their expertise: "Einstein would have done better had he
not proclaimed his nonbelief in a God who is concerned with fates and
actions of individuals. Both have handed down dicta outside their
jurisdiction." The Catholic priest and broadcaster Fulton Sheen—whose intellect Einstein admired, even calling him "one of the most intelligent people in today's world"—described Einstein's New York Times Magazine article "the sheerest kind of stupidity and nonsense".
In his 1934 book The World as I See It,
Einstein expanded on his religiosity, "A knowledge of the existence of
something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest
reason and the most radiant beauty, which are only accessible to our
reason in their most elementary forms — it is this knowledge and this
emotion that constitute the truly religious attitude; in this sense, and
in this alone, I am a deeply religious man."
In 1936 Einstein received a letter from a young girl in the sixth
grade. She had asked him, with the encouragement of her teacher, if
scientists pray. Einstein replied in the most elementary way he could:
Scientific research is based on the
idea that everything that takes place is determined by laws of nature,
and therefore this holds for the actions of people. For this reason, a
research scientist will hardly be inclined to believe that events could
be influenced by a prayer, i.e. by a wish addressed to a supernatural
being. However, it must be admitted that our actual knowledge of these
laws is only imperfect and fragmentary, so that, actually, the belief in
the existence of basic all-embracing laws in nature also rests on a
sort of faith. All the same this faith has been largely justified so far
by the success of scientific research. But, on the other hand, everyone
who is seriously involved in the pursuit of science becomes convinced
that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the universe—a spirit vastly
superior to that of man, and one in the face of which we with our modest
powers must feel humble. In this way the pursuit of science leads to a
religious feeling of a special sort, which is indeed quite different
from the religiosity of someone more naive.”
Einstein characterized himself as "devoutly religious" in the
following sense, "The most beautiful emotion we can experience is the
mystical. It is the power of all true art and science. He to whom this
emotion is a stranger, who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe,
is as good as dead. To know that what is impenetrable to us really
exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant
beauty, which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their most
primitive forms—this knowledge, this feeling, is at the center of true
religiousness. In this sense, and in this sense only, I belong to the
rank of devoutly religious men."
In December 1952, he commented on what inspires his religiosity,
"My feeling is religious insofar as I am imbued with the insufficiency
of the human mind to understand more deeply the harmony of the universe
which we try to formulate as 'laws of nature.'" In a letter to Maurice Solovine
Einstein spoke about his reasons for using the word "religious" to
describe his spiritual feelings, "I can understand your aversion to the
use of the term 'religion' to describe an emotional and psychological
attitude which shows itself most clearly in Spinoza. (But) I have not
found a better expression than 'religious' for the trust in the rational
nature of reality that is, at least to a certain extent, accessible to
human reason."
Einstein frequently referred to his belief system as "cosmic religion" and authored an eponymous article on the subject in 1954, which later became his book Ideas and Opinions in 1955.
The belief system recognized a "miraculous order which manifests itself
in all of nature as well as in the world of ideas," devoid of a
personal God who rewards and punishes individuals based on their
behavior. It rejected a conflict between science and religion, and held that cosmic religion was necessary for science. For Einstein, "science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." He told William Hermanns in an interview that "God is a mystery. But a
comprehensible mystery. I have nothing but awe when I observe the laws
of nature. There are not laws without a lawgiver, but how does this
lawgiver look? Certainly not like a man magnified." He added with a smile "some centuries ago I would have been burned or hanged. Nonetheless, I would have been in good company." Einstein devised a theology for the cosmic religion, wherein the
rational discovery of the secrets of nature is a religious act. His religion and his philosophy were integral parts of the same package as his scientific discoveries.
Jewish identity
In a letter to Eric Gutkind dated 3 January 1954, Einstein wrote in German, "For me the Jewish religion like all others is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people
to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity
have no different quality for me than all other people. As far as my
experience goes, they are also no better than other human groups,
although they are protected from the worst cancers by a lack of power.
Otherwise I cannot see anything 'chosen' about them."
In an interview published by Time magazine with George Sylvester Viereck, Einstein spoke of his feelings about Christianity. Born in Germany, Viereck supported National Socialism but he was not anti-semitic. And like Einstein he was a pacifist. At the time of the interview Einstein was informed that Viereck was not Jewish,
but stated that Viereck had "the psychic adaptability of the Jew,"
making it possible for Einstein to talk to him "without barrier."
Viereck began by asking Einstein if he considered himself a German or a
Jew, to which Einstein responded, "It's possible to be both." Viereck
moved along in the interview to ask Einstein if Jews should try to assimilate, to which Einstein replied "We Jews have been too eager to sacrifice our idiosyncrasies in order to conform." Einstein was then asked to what extent he was influenced by Christianity. "As a child I received instruction both in the Bible and in the Talmud. I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene." Einstein was then asked if he accepted the historical existence of Jesus, to which he replied, "Unquestionably! No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life."
In a conversation with the Dutch poet Willem Frederik Hermans
Einstein stressed that, "I seriously doubt that Jesus himself said that
he was God, for he was too much a Jew to violate that great
commandment: Hear O Israel, the Eternal is our God and He is one!' and not two or three."
Einstein lamented, "Sometimes I think it would have been better if
Jesus had never lived. No name was so abused for the sake of power!" In his 1934 book The World as I See It
he expressed his belief that "if one purges the Judaism of the Prophets
and Christianity as Jesus Christ taught it of all subsequent additions,
especially those of the priests, one is left with a teaching which is
capable of curing all the social ills of humanity."
Later in a 1943 interview Einstein added, "It is quite possible that we
can do greater things than Jesus, for what is written in the Bible
about him is poetically embellished."
Einstein interpreted the concept of a Kingdom of God
as referring to the best people. "I have always believed that Jesus
meant by the Kingdom of God the small group scattered all through time
of intellectually and ethically valuable people."
In the last year of his life he said "If I were not a Jew I would be a Quaker."
Views of the Christian churches
The only Jewish school in Munich had been closed in 1872 for want of students, and in the absence of an alternative Einstein attended a Catholic elementary school.
He also received Jewish religious education at home, but he did not see
a division between the two faiths, as he perceived the "sameness of all
religions". Einstein was equally impressed by the stories of the Hebrew Bible and the Passion of Jesus. According to biographer Walter Isaacson, Einstein immensely enjoyed the Catholic religion courses which he received at the school.
The teachers at his school were liberal and generally made no
distinction between student's religions, although some harbored an
innate but mild antisemitism.
Einstein later recalled an incident involving a teacher who
particularly liked him, "One day that teacher brought a long nail to the
lesson and told the students that with such nails Christ had been
nailed to the Cross by the Jews" and that "Among the children at the
elementary school anti-Semitism was prevalent...Physical attacks and
insults on the way home from school were frequent, but for the most part
not too vicious."
Einstein noted, "That was at a Catholic school; how much worse the
antisemitism must be in other Prussian schools, one can only imagine."
He would later in life recall that "The religion of the fathers, as I
encountered it in Munich during religious instruction and in the
synagogue, repelled rather than attracted me."
Einstein met several times and collaborated with the Belgian priest scientist Georges Lemaître, of the Catholic University of Leuven. Fr Lemaitre is known as the first proponent of the big bang theory
of the origins of the cosmos and pioneer in applying Einstein's theory
of general relativity to cosmology. Einstein proposed Lemaitre for the
1934 Francqui Prize, which he received from the Belgian King.
In 1940 Time magazine quoted Einstein lauding the Catholic Church for its role in opposing the Nazis:
Only the Church stood squarely across the path of
Hitler's campaign for suppressing truth. I never had any special
interest in the Church before, but now I feel a great affection and
admiration because the Church alone has had the courage and persistence
to stand for intellectual truth and moral freedom. I am forced thus to
confess that what I once despised I now praise unreservedly.
The quotation has since been repeatedly cited by defenders of Pope Pius XII. An investigation of the quotation by mathematician William C. Waterhouse and Barbara Wolff of the Einstein Archives in Jerusalem
found that the statement was mentioned in an unpublished letter from
1947. In the letter to Count Montgelas, Einstein explained that the
original comment was a casual one made to a journalist regarding the
support of "a few churchmen" for individual rights and intellectual
freedom during the early rule of Hitler and that, according to Einstein,
the comment had been drastically exaggerated.
On 11 November 1950 the Rev. Cornelius Greenway of Brooklyn wrote
a letter to Einstein which had also quoted his alleged remarks about
the Church. Einstein responded, "I am, however, a little embarrassed.
The wording of the statement you have quoted is not my own. Shortly
after Hitler came to power in Germany I had an oral conversation with a
newspaper man about these matters. Since then my remarks have been
elaborated and exaggerated nearly beyond recognition. I cannot in good
conscience write down the statement you sent me as my own. The matter is
all the more embarrassing to me because I, like yourself, I am
predominantly critical concerning the activities, and especially the
political activities, through history of the official clergy. Thus, my
former statement, even if reduced to my actual words (which I do not
remember in detail) gives a wrong impression of my general attitude."
In 2008 the Antiques Roadshow
television program aired a manuscript expert, Catherine Williamson,
authenticating a 1943 letter from Einstein in which he confirms that he
"made a statement which corresponds approximately" to Time
magazine's quotation of him. However, Einstein continued, "I made this
statement during the first years of the Nazi regime—much earlier than
1940—and my expressions were a little more moderate."
William Hermanns conversations
Einstein's
conversations with William Hermanns were recorded over a 34-year
correspondence. In the conversations Einstein makes various statements
about the Christian Churches in general and the Catholic Church in
particular: "When you learn the history of the Catholic Church, you
wouldn't trust the Center Party.
Hasn't Hitler promised to smash the Bolsheviks in Russia? The Church
will bless its Catholic soldiers to march alongside the Nazis" (March
1930).
"I predict that the Vatican will support Hitler if he comes to power.
The Church since Constantine has always favoured the authoritarian
State, as long as the State allows the Church to baptize and instruct
the masses" (March 1930).
"So often in history the Jews have been the instigators of justice and
reform whether in Spain, Germany or Russia. But no sooner have they done
their job than their 'friends', often blessed by the Church, spit in
their faces" (August 1943).
"But what makes me shudder is that the Catholic Church is silent.
One doesn't need to be a prophet to say, 'The Catholic Church will pay
for this silence...I do not say that the unspeakable crimes of the
Church for 2,000 years had always the blessing of the Vatican, but it
vaccinated its believers with the idea: We have the true God, and the
Jews have crucified Him.' The Church sowed hate instead of love, though
the ten commandments state: Thou shalt not kill" (August 1943).
"With a few exceptions, the Roman Catholic Church has stressed the
value of dogma and ritual, conveying the idea theirs is the only way to
reach heaven. I don't need to go to Church to hear if I'm good or bad;
my heart tells me this" (August 1943).
"I don't like to implant in youth the Church's doctrine of a personal
God, because that Church has behaved so inhumanly in the past 2,000
years... Consider the hate the Church manifested against the Jews and
then against the Muslims, the Crusades with their crimes, the burning stakes of the inquisition,
the tacit consent of Hitler's actions while the Jews and the Poles dug
their own graves and were slaughtered. And Hitler is said to have been
an altar boy!" (August 1943).
"Yes" Einstein replied vehemently, "It is indeed human, as proved by Cardinal Pacelli (the future Pope Pius XII), who was behind the Concordat with Hitler. Since when can one make a pact with Christ and Satan at the same time?" (August 1943). "The Church has always sold itself to those in power, and agreed to any bargain in return for immunity." (August 1943)
"If I were allowed to give advice to the Churches," Einstein continued,
"I would tell them to begin with a conversion among themselves, and to
stop playing power politics. Consider what mass misery they have
produced in Spain, South America and Russia." (September 1948).
In response to a Catholic convert who asked "Didn't you state
that the Church was the only opponent of Communism?" Einstein replied,
"I don't have to emphasise that the Church [sic] at last became a strong opponent of National Socialism, as well." Einstein's secretary Helen Dukas added, "Dr. Einstein didn't mean only the Catholic church, but all churches."
When the convert mentioned that family members had been gassed by the
Nazis, Einstein replied that "he also felt guilty—adding that the whole
Church, beginning with the Vatican, should feel guilt." (September 1948)
When asked for more precise responses, Einstein replied: "About
God, I cannot accept any concept based on the authority of the Church.
[...] As long as I can remember, I have resented mass indoctrination. I
do not believe in the fear of life, in the fear of death, in blind
faith. I cannot prove to you that there is no personal God, but if I
were to speak of him, I would be a liar. I do not believe in the God of
theology who rewards good and punishes evil. My God created laws that
take care of that. His universe is not ruled by wishful thinking but by
immutable laws." William Miller of Life Magazine who was present at this meeting described Einstein as looking like a "living saint" and speaking with "angelic indifference."
Philosophical beliefs
Einstein believed that when trying to understand nature one should engage in both philosophical enquiry and enquiry through the natural sciences.
From a young age he had an interest in philosophy. Einstein said
about himself: "As a young man I preferred books whose content concerned
a whole world view and, in particular, philosophical ones.
Schopenhauer, David Hume, Mach, to some extent Kant, Plato, Aristotle."
Relationship between science and philosophy
Einstein believed that epistemology
and science "are dependent upon each other. Epistemology without
contact with science becomes an empty scheme. Science without
epistemology is—insofar as it is thinkable at all—primitive and
muddled."
Free will
Like Spinoza, Einstein was a strict determinist
who believed that human behavior was completely determined by causal
laws. For that reason, he refused the chance aspect of quantum theory,
famously telling Niels Bohr: "God does not play dice with the universe." In letters sent to physicist Max Born, Einstein revealed his devout belief in causal relationships:
You believe in a God who plays dice, and I in complete
law and order in a world which objectively exists, and which I in a
wildly speculative way, am trying to capture. I firmly believe,
but I hope that someone will discover a more realistic way, or rather a
more tangible basis than it has been my lot to find. Even the great
initial success of the quantum theory does not make me believe in the
fundamental dice game, although I am well aware that some of our younger
colleagues interpret this as a consequence of senility.
Einstein's emphasis on 'belief' and how it connected with determinism was illustrated in a letter of condolence responding to news of the death of Michele Besso,
one of his lifelong friends. Einstein wrote to the family: "Now he has
departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That signifies
nothing. For us believing physicists the distinction between past,
present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion."
Einstein had admitted to a fascination with philosopher Spinoza's deterministic version of pantheism. American philosopher Charles Hartshorne, in seeking to distinguish deterministic views with his own belief of free will panentheism, coined the distinct typology "Classical pantheism" to distinguish the views of those who hold similar positions to Spinoza's deterministic version of pantheism.
He was also an incompatibilist, in 1932 he said the following:
I do not believe in free will. Schopenhauer's words: 'Man
can do what he wants, but he cannot will what he wills,' accompany me
in all situations throughout my life and reconcile me with the actions
of others, even if they are rather painful to me. This awareness of the
lack of free will keeps me from taking myself and my fellow men too
seriously as acting and deciding individuals, and from losing my temper.
Moral philosophy
Einstein was a secular humanist and a supporter of the Ethical Culture movement. He served on the advisory board of the First Humanist Society of New York. For the seventy-fifth anniversary of the New York Society for Ethical Culture,
he stated that the idea of Ethical Culture embodied his personal
conception of what is most valuable and enduring in religious idealism.
He observed, "Without 'ethical culture' there is no salvation for
humanity." He was an honorary associate of the British humanist organization the Rationalist Press Association and its journal was among the items present on his desk at his death.
With regard to punishment by God, Einstein stated, "I cannot
imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation,
whose purposes are modeled after our own — a God, in short, who is but a
reflection of human frailty. Neither can I believe that the individual
survives the death of his body, although feeble souls harbor such
thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotisms."
"A God who rewards and punishes is inconceivable to him for the simple
reason that a man's actions are determined by necessity, external and
internal, so that in God's eyes he cannot be responsible, any more than
an inanimate object is responsible for the motions it undergoes. Science
has therefore been charged with undermining morality, but the charge is
unjust. A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on
sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is
necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained
by fear of punishment and hopes of reward after death. It is therefore
easy to see why the churches have always fought science and persecuted
its devotees."
On the importance of ethics he wrote, "The most important human
endeavor is the striving for morality in our actions. Our inner balance
and even our very existence depend on it. Only morality in our actions
can give beauty and dignity to life. To make this a living force and
bring it to clear consciousness is perhaps the foremost task of
education. The foundation of morality should not be made dependent on
myth nor tied to any authority lest doubt about the myth or about the
legitimacy of the authority imperil the foundation of sound judgment and
action."
"I do not believe that a man should be restrained in his daily actions
by being afraid of punishment after death or that he should do things
only because in this way he will be rewarded after he dies. This does
not make sense. The proper guidance during the life of a man should be
the weight that he puts upon ethics and the amount of consideration that
he has for others."
"I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the
actions of individuals, or would directly sit in judgment on creatures
of his own creation. I cannot do this in spite of the fact that
mechanistic causality
has, to a certain extent, been placed in doubt by modern science. My
religiosity consists in a humble admiration of the infinitely superior
spirit that reveals itself in the little that we, with our weak and
transitory understanding, can comprehend of reality. Morality is of the
highest importance—but for us, not for God."
Teleology
In a
conversation with Ugo Onufri in 1955, with regards to nature's purpose
he said, "I have never imputed to Nature a purpose or goal, or anything
that could be understood as anthropomorphic." In a 1947 letter he stated, "I feel also not able to imagine some will or goal outside the human sphere."
Epistemology
Naïve realism
Einstein believed naïve realism was "relatively simple" to disprove. He agreed with Bertrand Russell that humans observe the effects objects have on them (greeness, coldness, hardness etc) and not the actual objects themselves.
Positivism
Einstein declared that he was no positivist, and maintained that we use with a certain right concepts to which there is no access from the materials of sensory experience.
Einstein considered that Kant’s "denial of the objectivity of space can (...) hardly be taken seriously".
He also believed that "if Kant had known what is known to us today of
the natural order, I am certain that he would have fundamentally revised
his philosophical conclusions. Kant built his structure upon the
foundations of the world outlook of Kepler and Newton. Now that the
foundation has been undermined, the structure no longer stands."
Opinions on philosophers
David Hume
Einstein was an admirer of the philosophy of David Hume;
in 1944 he said "If one reads Hume’s books, one is amazed that many and
sometimes even highly esteemed philosophers after him have been able to
write so much obscure stuff and even find grateful readers for it. Hume
has permanently influenced the development of the best philosophers who
came after him."
Immanuel Kant
Albeit
some sources maintain that Einstein read the three Critiques at the age
of 16 and studied Kant as a teenager, Philip Stamp points out that this
is contradicted by some of his own claims. For example, in 1949,
Einstein said that he "did not grow up in the Kantian tradition, but
came to understand the truly valuable which is to be found in his
doctrine, alongside of errors which today are quite obvious, only quite
late."
In one of Einstein's letters in 1918 to Max Born, Einstein said that he was starting to discover this "truly valuable" in Kant: "I am reading Kant’s ”Prolegomena”
here, among other things, and I am beginning to comprehend the enormous
suggestive power that emanated from the fellow, and still does. Once
you concede to him merely the existence of synthetic a priori judgements,
you are trapped. Anyway it is nice to read him, even if it is not as
good as his predecessor Hume’s work. Hume also had a far sounder
instinct."
Einstein explained the significance of Kant's philosophy as follows:
Hume saw that concepts which we
must regard as essential, such as, for example, causal connection,
cannot be gained from material given to us by the senses. This insight
led him to a sceptical attitude as concerns knowledge of any kind. Man
has an intense desire for assured knowledge. That is why Hume’s clear
message seems crushing: the sensory raw material, the only source of our
knowledge, through habit may lead us to belief and expectation but not
to the knowledge and still less to the understanding of lawful
relations. Then Kant took the stage with an idea which, though certainly
untenable in the form in which he put it, signified a step towards the
solution of Hume’s dilemma: if we have definitely assured knowledge, it
must be grounded in reason itself.
Arthur Schopenhauer
Schopenhauer's views on the independence of spatially separated systems influenced Einstein, who called him a genius.
In their view it was a necessary assumption that the mere difference in
location suffices to make two systems different, with the two states
having their own real physical state, independent of the state of the
other.
In Einstein's Berlin study three figures hung on the wall: Faraday, Maxwell and Schopenhauer. Einstein described, concerning the personal importance of Schopenhauer
for him, Schopenhauer's words as "a continual consolation in the face of
life’s hardships, my own and others’, and an unfailing wellspring of
tolerance." Although Schopenhauer's works are known for their pessimism, Konrad Wachsmann
remembered, "He often sat with one of the well-worn Schopenhauer
volumes, and as he sat there, he seemed so pleased, as if he were
engaged with a serene and cheerful work."
Ernst Mach
Einstein liked Ernst Mach's
scientific work, though not his philosophical work. He said "Mach was
as good a scholar of mechanics as he was a deplorable philosopher".
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