Bezielde kosmos: nieuwe wetenschappelijke visie op leven en bewustzijn in het universum

by Ervin Laszlo, Gerard Grasman (Translator)

Wetenschappers komen tot het opmerkelijke inzicht dat het heelal een levend en samenhangend geheel is, een concept dat de herinnering oproept aan een oeroude visie die onderdeel was van alle traditionele beschavingen: die van heen 'bezielde kosmos'. Dat beeld doet recht aan iets waar in deze moderne tijd weinig plaats voor was, zeker niet in de wetenschap. Het is de overtuiging dat wij een deel zijn van de ander en van de natuur: Alleen zijn wij een bewust deel van de kosmos, een wezen waardoor de wereld zichzelf kan leren kennen. Dit inzicht is de basis voor een diep besef van de zin van ons leven en een goede richtingwijzer nu we op een belangrijk kruispunt staan in de geschiedenis van de mensheid.

Genres: Spirituality, Science, Philosophy

199 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Ervin Laszlo is a systems philosopher, integral theorist, and classical pianist. Twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, he has authored more than 70 books, which have been translated into nineteen languages, and has published in excess of four hundred articles and research papers, including six volumes of piano recordings.

Dr. Laszlo is generally recognized as the founder of systems philosophy and general evolution theory, and serves as the founder-director of the General Evolution Research Group and as past president of the International Society for the Systems Sciences. He is also the recipient of the highest degree in philosophy and human sciences from the Sorbonne, the University of Paris, as well as of the coveted Artist Diploma of the Franz Liszt Academy of Budapest. Additional prizes and awards include four honorary doctorates.

His appointments have included research grants at Yale and Princeton Universities, professorships for philosophy, systems sciences, and future sciences at the Universities of Houston, Portland State, and Indiana, as well as Northwestern University and the State University of New York. His career also included guest professorships at various universities in Europe and the Far East. In addition, he worked as program director for the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). In 1999 he was was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Canadian International Institute of Advanced Studies in Systems Research and Cybernetics.

For many years he has served as president of the Club of Budapest, which he founded. He is an advisor to the UNESCO Director General, ambassador of the International Delphic Council, member of both the International Academy of Science, World Academy of Arts and Science, and the International Academy of Philosophy.

Reviews

[Abner Rosenweig · Rating 3 out of 5]

When making maps of the world, the ancients projected their imagination into unknown lands, filling the gaps with all kinds of mythical beasts. So it goes with Laszlo's book: he fills the unknown (and probably unknowable) territory of modern science, namely the quantum vacuum, with all kinds of wild speculation, suggesting that this field retains records of not only everything that has ever happened in this universe but in every universe that has ever or will ever exist. Further, Laszlo speculates that universes can somehow draw on this information to inform their evolution. He takes Sheldrake's outlandish notion of morphic resonance to mindbogglingly in-credible proportions, reasoning by almost pure intuition and near-zero evidence to support his claims.

I don't care how great a child piano prodigy Laszlo is or how many honorary Ph.D.s he has, it doesn't give him a license to claim wild speculations as truth. Yet, that's what he does time after time in this book. The level of scholarship is disappointingly low. Where is the evidence for the claims about twin-pain studies? Where is the evidence for consciousness without brain activity? Evidence for claims about the soul and reincarnation? For the role of the quantum vacuum in the evolution of our universe?

I appreciate this book in spite of its lack of evidence because I believe Laszlo has a good general sense of the direction of cosmology, and he brings attention to some fascinating aspects of existence which the conventional scientific worldview does not adequately address. Some of his speculations may turn out to be true. But when fantastic conjectures aren't recognized as such and accompanied with great modesty, this severely damages credibility.

The second half of the book consists of a "round table discussion" of other "scientists." These are mostly superficial paeans to Laszlo. I do appreciate Jane Goodall's entry, as she supports the flavor of Laszlo's thinking without kowtowing to all the giant leaps.

A fun, provocative read and my introduction to Laszlo. Too head-in-the-clouds and not enough feet-on-the-ground for me.

[Marina Quattrocchi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book of contributions by several prominent scientists, psychologists, and mystics explaining the link between science and spirituality. Many of the essays talk about Ervin Laszlo's theory of the A-field or Akashic field the energetic field that connects everything in the universe. Each essay is illuminating, enlightening and fascinating. Very readable even if you don't have a scientific background.

[Jody Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laszlo's books are always worth reading, and this one is a new pinnacle of his thought. If you're interested in a grand understanding of reality, the cosmos, the Divine, and us, this is a terrific book. His thinking always informs my writing, and will continue to do so.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was hard for me to get through but our book club discussion around it was very good. It is always good to look at the universe in a different way and this book made me do just that.