Are spiritual people ‘irrational’? Is spiritual wisdom inferior to modern science? Does believing in ‘energy’ or a ‘soul’ make you somehow ‘less than’ or more foolish than people who do not? In this article, I address the false divide between science and spirituality by addressing how modern research is validating spiritual wisdom. It also talks about links between modern wisdom and spiritual practice that are often left unseen.

Being spiritual means that you believe you have a soul and that energy exists. I am here to tell you: Believing that taking care of your soul and taking steps to do so does not make you ‘less than’, ‘woo woo’, or ‘irrational’. In fact, research suggests that being engaged in ‘spiritual’ activities like meditation, nature connection, and auric field maintenance is good for us in ways that is now being validated by science.

In the past decade there has been an explosion in research where science is validating spirituality and specifically, the traditional path. As a social anthropologist who is also a spiritual guide and teacher – this excites me. Science, YES SCIENCE, is validating much of the underlying knowledge of personal biological adjustment that underwrites spiritual approaches to self-connection and healing.

Having said that – this validation is not being addressed as often as I would like it to – and the tension between science and spirituality still exists. In fact – the divide between science and spirituality serves as a veil. Despite these groundbreaking findings, the stereotype that spiritual people or spiritual beliefs are both ideologically inferior and opposed to more ‘masculine’ forms of knowing like science continue to persist.

While I am PLEASED that we have made it to the place where this conversation can happen. I also recognize that we have much conceptual ground to cover in order to reduce stigma around spiritual practitioners and practices. Read on for some thoughts on emerging connections between science and spirituality and how we, as people who understand both realms, have a more holistic understanding of what it means to be human.

Taking a more ‘spiritually’ oriented path to wellness does not mean you are irrational. It means you are cutting edge but also, walking the line of tradition.

1. It is possible to be spiritual while also believing in science – some of the founding fathers of our society did and so can we

One of the tension points that many of us has encountered is the idea that you cannot be ‘scientific’ whilst also believing in ‘spirituality’. In fact, on the hierarchy of knowledge ‘science’ is ‘superior’ to metaphysical knowledge and the two are understood as having no relation or bearing on one another. This is one of the key pillars upon which modern society, science, and the Enlightenment into the post-modern era have been defined.

Herein lies a rub

Though it sometimes seems ‘separate’ the truth is – a good number of the scientists and explorers who were ‘founding’ our world and indoctrinating certain forms of ‘belief’ and ‘rigor’ where themselves practicing metaphysicians. An easily verifiable example includes belief in the salience of astronomical alignment to the settlement of the modern world: take for example that the Capital Building Washington, DC, is famously aligned to Virgo. Or how about how the voyage of Captain Cooke to Australia which was happening in the name of studying an occultation of Venus.

In the Western world, we cannot step away from the impact of thinkers associated with major world religions such as the Pope and Papal representatives in the drawing of the modern world map (Treaty of Tordesailles), or how practicing Freemasons and Rosicrucians became some of the early leaders of Canada, USA, Portugal, post-Revolution France and bore powerful influence on the formation of what became scientific thought. Not to mention how the Renaissance itself was deeply associated with the occult.

• Check out these names for your own interest: John Locke (father of science), John Dee (first aide to Queen Elizabeth, ‘owner’ of Canada in the colonial mission), John A. McDonald (Father of Canadian confederation, creator of the residential school program), George Washington (President of the USA, powerful military leader), Francis Bacon (father of science and explorer), Napoleon Bonaparte (first President of France) and the list goes on.
• When it comes to the Renaissance, Theurgy (or the study of ‘Angels’ )was a preliminary form of science, people associated with the highly influential Medici and Borgia families were known to dabble in the occult (and by dabble, I mean heavily participate).

This in itself is its own research topic. I bring it forward, now, to say: being spiritual has never been separated from science. Nor has it been separated from power. Though in some circles a veil on spiritual power has emerged and a taboo on certain forms of belief have been brought. I view those more as forms of social control and holdovers from colonialism than resultant from fact.

I mention this to provide context for our contemporary moment but also, to show how all along the divide between ‘science’ and ‘spirituality’ has been more of a veil than an actual reality.

• Read the article “When Humans Lost Our Wildness” for more on this conversation. Prefer a video? I recorded a presentation and affixed it to that article, as well.

If some of the great thinkers and scientists of our era were aware of the metaphysical connections to material world, why should we not be? 

2. Energy is everywhere and It Does Impact Our Wellbeing

Believing in energy is one of those things that some people do ‘secretly’. They feel almost ashamed that they ‘feel’ it or that they are aware that it exists. This derives from the ‘5 senses’ perspective of the human body that says we are the body, we sense through these limited ways, and that is all there is.

ONE OF THE VERY BEST WAYS TO GET STEREOTYPED IS TO USE THE WORD ENERGY or to SAY THE WORD SPRITIUAL IN PUBLIC

We have all been there – in deep conversation and we happen to make the mistake to let the word ‘energy’ or an idea about wellness slip. All of a sudden, the person we are speaking to starts to treat us as though we are intellectually inferior or check out of the conversation. I myself have experienced an almost automatic presumption that I am ‘New Age’ or that I am somehow less valuable when I was when I was addressed as a social anthropologist. Yet, the work I do as a psychopomp and soul guide helps people infinitely more than standing in front of a classroom talking about culture ever would (or did).

You likely have your own story where this has happened or where you felt you had to cover up being spiritual or believing in energy to be accepted. A lot of us have.

This is a form of ideological colonialism that is an overhang from the days of high modernism. That shut-off is a switch that is part of the patriarchal system of meaning we were born into that colors how we see the world. This is an example of how that system of meaning works:

This is something that we are working on overcoming. My work sits squarely at the intersection of science and spirituality, as does that of others. Wether they realize it or not.

How Science Validates Different Aspects of Spirituality

I have personally recently performed a literature review of about 300 research papers that engage different layers of how ‘spiritual’ and ‘energy’ based themes are being validated by modern research. Add that to the pile of books I read in my life as a social anthropologist that engaged the salience of space, place, and identity; life as an Acadian living the role that forced relocation plays on social and cultural continuity; and have taught how reconnecting to the land is spiritually healing just as much as it is culturally so.

What I have found is that there is rich and ample room connections between biology, anthropology, psychology, and even epigenetic science with spiritual, traditional beliefs. I tend to outline a different part of the connection in every article, video and class! (*If you are new here, be sure to sign up to my email list to get new articles as they come out.*)

For now, here are three articles that link to three different ways that science engages and validates different layers of traditional wisdom:

• Biophilia studies, for example, explore the connection between well-being and nature connection: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9186521/;
  
• recent psychological interventions are measuring the positive impact of nature exposure to enhance focus, feelings of wellbeing, and other factors of wellness; https://e360.yale.edu/features/ecopsychology-how-immersion-in-nature-benefits-your-health
  
• biofield science examines that part of us called the ‘auric field’ – direct impact on inflammation, chronic experiences like IBS, ionic flow, and biological function:
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4654789/

• Anthropology of space place and identity: importance of https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780853157755

Each of these studies relates back to one of the key tenants of traditional knowledge: that nature heals, that when you disconnect humans from Earth they become unwell (aka Earth connection is key to wellness), and that you have a spiritual energy body whose cleanliness impacts your state of biological wellbeing.

Beyond just validating certain parts of what traditional knowledge and medicine has taught, academic research helps us to understand how things work in new and different layers. I examine this topic bit by bit, piece by piece in articles and videos. I also weave this information into my classes – if you like hearing these layers together – please read more of them and come study with me.

3. Science and Academic Research Helps Us Understand Spiritual Tools and States of Being, Better

One of the hallmarks of a scientific method is that there is a defined question, measures of quantification, and standards of recording how one variable (or more) influences a state of being. By observing different responses in the biological body, sense of wellbeing, or state of performance over a course of time or in relation to a variable – researchers are able to track whether any themes or patterns emerge.

Stated differently – by observing how a part of the body works (or changes) or how an emotional state of being exists (or changes) – researchers are able to say how something like exposure to nature connection or participating in an activity like meditation, impacts us. Sometimes, these scientific explanations help us to understand or see more clarity in something that happens in what spiritual people experience as the ‘energy realm’ of explanation.

When it comes to nature immersion, for example, the studies I listed above talk about how nature has a calming, focusing, and restorative impact on the psychological and biological systems. While going outside and meditating is something spiritual people have been teaching and doing for a very long time, the biological reaction and psychological reactions that are brought up in these studies show me parts of how this works that I or perhaps another reader coming from the ‘spiritual’ realm did not know, before.

One of the things that we do not see as much in more contemporary research is the concept of ‘soul’ or ‘spiritual wellbeing’ as being another layer to what is happening. ‘Soul’ is still a word that is taboo to academics. As the Chair of the Department of Religious Studies in my last University once said, “I study people who believe in religion. I don’t actually believe in it.” The staunch implication being that those who believe in some form of metaphysical world are somehow ‘less than’ those who objectively view the world through the lens of science. Being fair – spiritual writers do not often include Western research in their approach.

That does not mean that the two ways of knowing are oppositional. What it does mean that they are not speaking to each other, yet.

4. Anthropology, Earth Connection and Deep Soul Healing

Anthropology (my discipline), has long recognized the importance of nature and the spiritual power of a place ft the wellbeing of different groups like ethnic communities, migrants, and indigenous peoples.

In my own method of speciality, Earth connection – there is a rich discourse on how being with the land and in places meaningful to our people is good for us. Often coming up in dialogues of ‘space, place, and identity’, Participating in activities like tilling your traditional community garden, cooking the food of your people, and going to the places of your past (or ancestors) has the power to evoke meaning that is more than just ‘feeling relaxed’ or ‘less stressed’. It is deep rooted and transcends into feeling a deeper sense of self; a more strong connection with those who came before us; and for many people of us, feeling ‘rooted’ in and connected to their community, the culture, and/or Earth.

While the concept of soul healing is still considered fringe in anthropology, I do believe that qualitative research and the ethnographic method are particularly well suited to being able to record the profound and very real transformations that spiritual connection creates. I also believe that spiritual wisdom holders like myself who are trained in research methods can be valuable co-creators in the research process. We live and experience this layer of reality, and therefore, have useful insights into how we might ask questions that could in any way be measurable in the way that we do for academic investigation.

Whether this will happen at all, or when, is hard to say. As a formally trained anthropologist who was teaching in universities – I have been discriminated against for having spiritual beliefs. Particularly by other anthropologists and department figures who believe it is ok to ‘study’ the spiritual, but not to ‘be’ it. This divide was so heavy that I wound up retiring from my academic life to pursue this soul based work and do my service to humanity. Since that time, I have seen a drastic shift in how others treat me, my ideas, and this work. Which is ironic because if I were inside of an institution, it would now be considered revolutionary.

Science and spiritual ways of knowing are complementary

Science and spirituality are not systems of knowledge that are opposed to one another. Rather, I view them as complementary. Taken together – the knowledges help us to understand how the biological system acts + measure how quality of life shifts + how metaphysical intervention and participation shapes this.

Within this, we must remember that just because science measures it does not mean that science gets to claim it. Currently, there is a tendency for researchers to claim ‘discovery’ of a certain practice, divorcing it from the long-standing cultural embedding in traditional pathways to medicine. Take grounding, for example While research certainly has given grounding its name and significantly helped us to understand some layers of why connection to Earth is good for the body – researchers in the 90’s did not ‘start’ this practice.

One of my main objectives for doing this work, publicaly, is to bring the ceremonial voice into the picture, to say that it exists, and to start conversations about how to respectfully incorporate these ways of knowing to bolster and build our overall understanding of who we are and how we work.

For more on our history as Earth Connected beings and some of the historical processes through which we lost our wildness, check out this article: https://crow-medicine.com/when-humans-lost-our-wildness/

About me: Katie is a social anthropologist who is also a psychopomp which is another world spiritual self-development specialist. I have spent the last decade facilitating medicine circles amongst Indigenous and non-Indigenous persons in Canada, United States, England, Ireland, France, Mexico, Spain, Australia, and beyond.

This website is a collection of my recent wellness and self-connection materials. All content is copyright protected. Please visit my other articles, videos, and training programs for more Earth based, research supported wellness material.

The Soul + Body + Earth Connection: https://crow-medicine.com/the-secret-to-spiritual-growth-the-body-soul-earth-connection/

Visit IndiCrow Academy: https://indicrowacademy.learnworlds.com/