The Fields of
Knowledge
What are the fields of knowledge? Why is there such an impasse
between scientists, theologians and philosophers? Why are not all of the fields
of knowledge recognized by everyone?
What are the methods of study? Can Science be fully
trusted? Can
religion be fully trusted? Why seek answers at the Institute of Applied Metaphysics?
One of the clearest and best guides written for man’s understanding can be found in,
A Guide For The Perplexed, by E.F.
Shumacher. Shumacher does not attempt to reveal new insights, but to assist the searcher for truth in how
to gage what can be found in existing scripture, and provides a road map to those who really want to
understand.
The First Field of
Knowledge
The First Field of Knowledge and the one the Great Masters and teachers have revealed as most
important is “INNER KNOWLEDGE” or knowledge of ourselves. Philo Judaes, in the first
century said, “For pray do not spin your fairy fables about moon or sun or the other objects in the sky and in
the universe so far removed from us and so varied in their natures, until you have scrutinized and come to know
yourselves.”
The problem scientists have with this inner field of knowledge is that they have already ruled
out inner knowledge as unscientific, and unworthy of consideration. Shumacher says, “The paradox
exists only for those who insist on believing that there can be nothing higher than or above this everyday
consciousness and experience.”
The Second Field of Knowledge
The Second Field of Knowledge Shumacher identifies as THE KNOWLEDGE WE CAN ACQUIRE OF THE
INNER BEING OF OTHERS. This field of knowledge pertains to The Law of Relativity – our relation to all things, and
especially to other human beings.
George Leonard, in The Silent
Pulse, notes, “At every step along the way, every entity is
connected to the great web of information that is the universe. At the most fundamental level,
the connection is not sensory but structural, for we are not in but of the web of
relationship.” He goes on to say, “For now, it is enough to say that we are completely, firmly, absolutely
connected with all of existence, and that the next evolutionary step will involve, at the least, our realizing
that connection.”
The Third Field of
Knowledge
KNOWING ONESELF AS KNOWN BY OTHERS - This field requires detached and objective
observation. What would you see if you could see yourself as others see you? If you do not know yourself -
if you cannot know the inner man who is really you, how could you possibly know how others perceive
you
The Fourth Field of
Knowledge
This field of knowledge pertains to THE APPEARANCE OF THE WORLD AROUND
US. This
is the only one of the four fields of knowledge that most scientists consider legitimate for
observation. This is the field in which one utilizes the five senses. Here we experience, and
observe outward appearances.
In this field we have learned more about what we observe than about people or
ourselves.
Shumacher warns, “The claim that “science” brings forth truth - certain, unshakable, reliable
knowledge which has been scientifically proved, and that this unique ability gives it a status higher than that
of any other human activity, this claim on which the prestige of “science” is founded needs to be investigated
with some care.” Who will investigate this claim? Shall the scientist who limits
himself to The Fourth Field of Knowledge, based primarily on observable facts, and his five senses, be our final
source of knowledge? Shall the religious leaders of our day, especially in the West, wrapped in doctrines and
dogmas, preaching the mantra of “uselessness” of man’s effort and total dependence upon God, be the final
arbiters? Should the searching for the inner man be blocked? Shall we allow them to close
the door that leads to the foundation of all Fields of Knowledge? Man faces a crisis today
because all avenues to the Law of Evolution and Unfoldment now have road blocks; all but one, and that is in
fact the only one, our own capability to look within as Jesus and the Great Masters have
taught. To go
within, to question and contemplate, the coming to know based upon life experiences, is the
process.
Summary
If you want to know “how to” do business, practice Law, Medicine, be an Engineer or serve as a
Minister of some religious organization, you must attend a school that teaches these disciplines and
professions. If your objectives are more oriented to specific skills for earning a living as opposed to the
so-called professions, you need to go to a vocational school that teaches welding, electrical work or plumbing
to learn the trade. There is actually no difference except in the content, degree, the potential earning
capability and prestige. All of these schools provide a form of certification that you have completed your studies with
them to their satisfaction and because they are who they are, industry, the government and the general public
should consider you as worth hiring.
Heller notes, “Yet education is more than a path to earning
power. It is
the highway to a more vital and meaningful life.”
Universities today are very much involved in politics, so what is new? We have noted that it has been
a political instrument since the word “Universitas” was first used in reference to a center of learning and
probably before. Etymologically the word “University” means “the whole”, which is the ultimate reason for the
establishment of the Institute of Applied Metaphysics. The modern University is about multi-ethnicity, multiple disciplines and above all, the fourth
field of knowledge. It is about certifying students so that they can begin their career with a certain level of
income.
Our view is that colleges and Universities are good places to learn how to
study. You
get the rudiments but you do not really begin to learn until you are in the arena. In other words, it is where you
learn to learn. Heller wrote, “Even the doctoral degree, now taken as the highest educational mark of
achievement, represents only a certification of minimal competence at a given level in some specified
field. Courses taken long after I had passed the normal Ph.D. level proved far more meaningful than
those taken before because the broader background already acquired gave insight into interconnections and
potentialities that would have been impossible to grasp without the additional
knowledge.”
The Institute of Applied Metaphysics does not sell certification in metaphysics. It is not interested in
providing minimal competence in anything. The Institute is where one comes to KNOW. It is where one comes to
recognize the fields of knowledge and the importance of a strong base in the first field of
knowledge. It
is the same one Aristotle called, “The First Philosophy”. It is about being “WHOLE”, the real meaning of the
word “University”. It is about understanding the invariant principles – the Universal Laws that do not change
regardless of how much law, medicine, engineering or plumbing might change. It is about the basic rules of
the game of life that will make it possible for you to function more effectively regardless of your profession
or vocation.
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