BEYOND KNOWLEDGE: THE COMING SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION

Article by William E. Halal
Professor, George Washington University

With modern societies zooming through the Information Age, I often wonder what will happen next. My forecasts of emerging technologies show that even the more sophisticated information systems now envisioned will arrive in a decade or two, and so our current obsession with information and knowledge may soon yield to some new era of even greater possibilities. What exotic phase of social development lies ahead?

I’ve been studying this question for many years, and I see signs everywhere that a "Spiritual Age" is emerging to carry us beyond knowledge. As this article will demonstrate, medicine, business, politics, sports, religion, science, and other walks of life are now edging toward a spiritual perspective. Consider a few hot trends in this direction:

Popular Media

Culture is a sensitive barometer of change, and it is estimated that one-third of all books, music, and movies now reflect spiritual themes. Publishers call the '90s the "decade of the soul" because 1000 books appeared with the word "soul" in their titles. In 1996, the Pulitzer Prize in biography went to Jack Miles' personal narrative of -- God. The movie, "City of Angels," depicts a world in which spiritual beings like Nicholas Cage watch over our every breath, while in "Ghost," Patrick Swazy interacts with Demi Moore from the afterworld.

The Internet

Surfing the web provides much the same story. An examination of various themes at one of the most popular search engines produced the following numbers of hits:

Business 32,005
Mind 20,346
Sex 17,994
Spirituality 11,010
Soul 4,626

This is a rather crude indicator, but “mind,” “spirituality,” and “soul” attract almost the same attention as “business” and “sex.”

Business

As a matter of fact, business itself is embracing spirituality. Here’s an example of what’s happening. I attended a corporate meeting at which a dozen managers were seated around a small room, listening in silence to soft music. After several minutes, they invited each person to express whatever was foremost on their minds: a tense working relationship, problems at home, or anything they felt a need to air. They then took a few minutes to support one another and finally return to work. And this is not a unique incident. “Spirituality in the workplace is exploding,” noted Laura Nash, a scholar at the Harvard Business School.

It is a great irony that people are embracing spirituality – at the very time that the rational power of science is transforming life. Yes, a flight into spirituality usually occurs whenever society faces great change, but this is rather different. Unlike the Industrial Revolution, the Information Revolution is transforming our mental world, and so the essence of today’s change alters our minds, and even our souls. IT is advancing knowledge in all scientific fields, creating technological breakthroughs that thrust us into existential dilemmas never seen before. Biogenetic engineering, for example, now confronts humanity with the Godlike power of creating life itself – and we are all struggling with this moral burden.

This pivotal escalation of existential challenges largely explains the rise of spirituality. People living in advanced societies struggle through a bewildering maze of information overload, complex working relationships with scores of people, sheer confusion over the pace of massive changes, and enormously difficult new challenges. Today 60-90 % of all illness involves heart ailments, mood disorders, chronic body pain, and other conditions produced by stress and lifestyle. Suicide rates have increased 60% over past decades, even tripling among the young, and suicide is now among the top three causes of death for those aged 15-44.

Spiritual practices are spreading, therefore, because they can alleviate these unusually troubling ills of our time. People badly need some way to ease their turbulent lives, to gain clarity for tough decisions in the face of uncertainty, to maintain harmony with other equally troubled souls, and to find some measure of peace and meaning in a complex, changing world.

The managers I visited, for instance, felt their morning meetings allowed them to start each day cleansed of the emotional baggage that weighs us all down. They also gained a nourishing sense of community with their colleagues and clients, and they found an inner calm. Business is the most pragmatic institution in society, and so when managers find a compelling advantage in what are essentially spiritual practices, something important seems to be underway. Just beneath the surface of public life, there appears to flow a vast yearning for the transcendent. I speak to audiences on the Knowledge Revolution, and I often conclude by asking how many people consider some form of spiritual practice a central part of their lives. The vast majority always raise their hands. No, it's not scientific, but such responses confirm surveys showing that about 90 percent of Americans today hold spiritual beliefs. Nobel Laureate Robert Fogel forecasts that America is in the early stage of a "spiritual awakening."

A PERSONAL FORM OF SPIRITUALITY

We know so little about spirituality, however, that this new frontier is contested territory. For instance, spirituality is often dismissed as ignorance or fantasy -- but that’s because the very nature of spirit transcends rational logic. I'd like to clarify this controversy by focusing on the “human spirit,” although later I'll try to explain the connection to “universal spirit.” Let's start by thinking of “human spirit” as that state of mind we all experience daily. Webster's Dictionary defines "spirit" as "Will, consciousness, frame of mind, disposition, mood. As in high spirits."

This prosaic form of spirituality constantly changes as we pass through varying states of consciousness every day. It’s the shifting mood created by interacting with people, major news events and intellectual ideas, the high produced by alcohol and drugs, meditation and prayer, psychotherapy, social rituals and ceremonies, powerful symbols like the flag, the impact of art and music, dreams, the influence of weather and seasons, physical activity like jogging, bodily rhythms – almost anything, really, that can affect the mind.

I experienced a good example of how ordinary events can alter the human spirit when visiting London. Strolling through Berkeley Square, I was struck by the moving inscriptions on plaques attached to 50 or so benches circling this lovely old park. The plaques told about fond memories of life in that English capital, love for a deceased spouse/child/parent, gratitude for close friends and teachers, and countless other themes touching the common soul of humanity.

What impressed me most was the special meaning the inscriptions assigned to Berkeley Square. These diverse people from around the globe spoke of how the park had played a prominent role in their most intimate relationships. They considered it a “sacred place,” a “quiet oasis of peace” within the “crucible of a bustling world center,” where they “felt protected by lush plants” under a “canopy of 500 year-old sycamores.” I left with a warm sense of having shared the lives and loves of these people whose essence continues to dwell in this spiritual enclave. When I returned to London, I headed straight for Berkeley Square.

To get a vivid sense of this personal type of spirituality, listen in Box 1 to how a variety of people experienced highly personal moments of heightened awareness:

Personal Accounts of Heightened Consciousness

A young man meditating: “Slowly, the mind quiets. I float. Then, all my energy seems to draw into a ball. I am conscious of being this ball, moving a foot or so above the floor. Then the ball bursts, turns liquid, and rises upward, becomes pure fluid energy. I am now in the center of a flower as it blooms. Up and up until I erupt into an open space filled with music and joy and love. The sweetness of it is exquisite, almost unbearable.”

A woman crying over loss in her family: “I suddenly felt like a little girl again, asking my mother if she missed my dad after their divorce. All at once, I was crying. It was as if an infected area lay inside me where I had for years been stuffing my loneliness, vulnerability, and loss. I grieved openly and unashamedly for my mother and father, and for myself as a wife and a mother. This went on for 45 minutes. When it was over, I felt complete, cleansed, healed.”

A young girl dancing: “I didn't know him, and we started out tentatively. But soon we were making great loops around the room. I closed my eyes for a few moments, and it seemed that we weren't dancing at all; we were flying. We had risen a few inches off the floor, and we existed somewhere outside the law of gravity. The music, the other couples, none of these were there, as I danced in perfect joy and grace.”

A soldier's experience of war: “It is only now that I realize what a frightening experience I had been through. At the time, I was so completely wound up and braced for war that everything was taken in stride. Fear and disaster can be faced without too much difficulty in the heat of battle if one subdues the senses and emotions. It’s like entering a narrow tunnel with close horizons. But when it is over, then it is possible to emerge with full consciousness of the real world.”

A woman’s discovery of faith: “ I had the sense that something spiritual was coming into my life. There was no doubt -- everything had shifted. I attended a Quaker meeting, and the rest is history. When I walked into that peaceful room set among great old trees and gravestones, the silence spoke to me. Quakers believe that God is Inner Light. At worship, we seek this Light together. Sometimes the silence is so profound that we all have become one, and one with God.”

SOURCE: Quoted from The Sun (November 1989); “A Memoir of War,”Washington Post (July 13, 1986); and “Right At Home,” Washington Post (November 14, 1998)

These quotes don't prove much, but they remind us of those special times when joy, grief, or crisis cause profound shifts of consciousness. Similar but less dramatic shifts occur constantly. Our typical day starts when we leave the dreamy haze of sleep, then take a shower to refresh the senses, use coffee to stimulate our attention for work, spring to battle over a challenge, enjoy the relaxation of a drink before dinner, or allow sex to carry us off into the Nirvana of sleep. In short, life's daily cycle is a sequence of small but important changes in consciousness.

SPIRIT IN VARIOUS WALKS OF LIFE

Our growing understanding of these altered states of consciousness is having a profound impact throughout life today. The following summaries highlight evidence and trends toward spirituality in medicine, business, politics, sports, religion, and science:

Discovering the Mind-Body Connection

More than 200 medical studies have amply demonstrated the effects of mental attitudes on health. Consider the following relationships that have been demonstrated:

• The classic example is the placebo effect, which is so well established that all good medical research controls for its influence. The mere belief in a medical treatment, therefore, creates a strong tendency toward healing.
• Social studies make it clear that "control over life," feeling "connected to others," "optimism," and "joy" are statistically related to health. For instance, people without close relationships die three times more frequently than those with social supports.
• Studies show that those practicing some form of religion live longer, have lower blood pressure, less arterial damage, less depression, and other health benefits. These effects hold even after controlling for smoking, drinking, exercise, and other lifestyle differences.

Dr. Steven Locke at Beth Israel Hospital called this new understanding a "revolution" akin to the advent of surgery and penicillin, while Dr. Sandra Levy at the Pittsburgh Cancer Institute claims the evidence is now "indisputable" and "could change the entire face of medicine."

Spirituality is Productive

Another body of evidence is appearing in management circles. Business Week reported "A spiritual revival is sweeping across Corporate America." Here are a few examples:

• Executives at Aetna, Silicon Graphics and other companies meditate daily to calm the mind. A woman executive put it best: “I feel plugged into the fundamental power of the universe."
• AT&T, Boeing, Xerox, and Lotus established programs to examine and shape company values. At Lotus, it was called "The Soul Committee."
• Spiritual practices are being integrated into business life. One organization starts every meeting with a minute of silence. An executive lights a candle when a visitor comes to talk.

Such practices are not common, of course, and they raise questions of religious indoctrination. But spirituality is entering the workplace because it can produce results. Lawrence Perlman, CEO if Ceridian Corporation, said, "Ultimately, the combination of head and heart will be a competitive advantage." A "spiritual audit" of 200 corporate leaders found "spirituality is one of the most important determinants of performance."

The Link Between Spirit and Politics

Sprit is closely related to politics because spirituality confers power -- the very currency of politics. This was nicely illustrated when politicians attended a rally held by evangelist Billy Graham: "We think of ourselves as being in the business of trying to motivate people. But that! That was power." Here's how Jesse Jackson described speaking to a large audience: “After I start talking, the audience shoots electricity through me. Then my lights come on. And then their lights come on! They give it to me. I give to them. It's reciprocal.”

This natural affinity between spirit and politics is heightened today because the public increasingly hungers for a sense of community and moral guidance. That's why the 2000 presidential campaign was marked by pledges to support family values, moral conduct in office, and religious beliefs – not only from the “religious right.” Joseph Lieberman, the democratic candidate for vice president, promised: “Al Gore and I want to bring the truth of faith and the power of values … to this moral renewal.”

Playing the Mind Game

In sports, a move away from the former tough model of coaching was highlighted when Indiana University’s basketball coach, Bobby Knight, was fired for being abusive. Brenda Bredemeir, a coach at Notre Dame, described the new approach: "We use words like ‘holistic’ and ‘spiritual’ to describe our programs. We consider players to be people who are spiritually hungering." The new model is coach Phil Jackson of the Los Angeles Lakers who helps players achieve their best by reading Nietzsche.

This approach recognizes that strength, timing, and other athletic skills emanate from the mind. That's why athletes, such as Michael Jordan, Jack Nicklaus, and Nancy Kerrigan, "practice" by going through hundreds of mental repetitions in which they visualize perfect executions in vivid detail. Tiger Woods forms a mental image of each stroke being played out. "Mental practice increases strength and performance," says neuroscientist Ian Roberston.

The New Religiosity

The pervasive nature of religion is especially striking. All societies have observed some form of belief system throughout history, and, even now in high-tech America, religiosity is widespread. One may not share these views, but religious behavior is an observable, enduring, and universal aspect of social life.

Surveys continually report more than 90 percent of Americans believe in a supreme being whom they pray or talk to, and roughly one-third have had a mystical experience: feeling touched by a spiritual force, contact with dead loved ones, out of body trips, or being bathed in light. Andrew Greeley, a Catholic priest who holds a PhD in sociology and is a well-known author, summed up the evidence: "To pretend that [spiritual experiences] do not occur in everyday life is like Victorians pretending that sex does not occur."

Today's trend is away from the dogma of old-time religions, however, and toward "Private Spirituality" – personal faith and practice involving care for family, community, and the environment. Richard Cimino and Don Lattin have studied this new form of religiosity, and they conclude that “Spirituality and religious faith are increasingly viewed as private matters.”

Science Meets God

Physical scientists are especially skeptical because science is based on a conservative epistemology that places the burden of proof on new ideas. Today, however, 100 new courses on "Science and Religion" are being introduced each year, in addition to dozens of conferences, books, research centers, and journals.

This is occurring because science is coming up against phenomena with mystical origins, such as recent discoveries about the nature of the universe. The size, mass, composition, expansion, and everything else being learned about the universe are so precisely perfect that it is inconceivable the Big Bang could have originated randomly. British cosmologist Fred Hoyle claims the laws of physics appear so contrived that the universe is a "put up job."

Max Plank, one of the fathers of modern science, saw this long ago: "For religion, the idea of God is at the beginning; for science, the idea of God is at the end. Those who go deep enough to see the marvelous relationships among universal laws also recognize a creative power."

WHAT REALLY IS SPIRIT?

The evidence summarized above certainly seems to confirm the rise of a personal form of spirituality. I understand that some may find this troubling, but they should note that this analysis has been firmly rooted in observable facts and practical consequences. As we’ve seen, the human spirit is simply that sense of awareness we strive to enhance for coping with various walks through life: maintaining a sense of mind-body wholeness, working effectively with others, participating in politics, directing our energy to perform well, practicing some type of devotion, and trying to understand a mysterious universe.

Now let’s attempt a rigorous definition of spirit, focusing on the relationship between this human spirit and what I call “universal spirit.” What really constitutes the miracle of human consciousness that we take for granted? Are the effects noted here simply a playing out of the brain's normal thought processes, or is something more involved? In short, what distinguishes humans from that other sapient species we have come to respect so much -- the computer?

If we polled scientists today, the majority would probably agree that human intelligence, the mind, and consciousness are simply manifestations of the physical brain. For instance, Box 2 summarizes arguments supporting this “biological” view held by respected scientists in related fields. Human thought may be exceedingly complex from this view, but everything we experience can in principle be explained as a logical outcome of our "wet computer" -- the brain.

Support for the Biological View

• Marvin Minsky, arguably the world’s most famous computer scientist, thinks human thought, consciousness, and even emotions are produced by a vast array of brain structures, body chemistry, and mental programming, all interacting in subtle ways that we do not understand. “Consciousness is a big suitcase,” he said.
• This biological explanation has recently been buttressed by findings from neuroscience showing that a particular region of the brain is activated during spiritual experiences. Michael Persinger, a neuroscientist working in this field, said “Religion is a property of the brain, only the brain, and has little to do with what’s out there.”
• Edward Wilson, the zoologist who established the field of sociobiology, won two Pulitzer Prizes for his research tracing the biological origins of social behavior. Wilson expressed the conclusion drawn from his work as follows: “Scientific knowledge holds that the powerful emotions of religious experience are entirely neurobiological.”
• Bill Gates, Microsoft’s famous chairman, claims we are basically machines: “I don’t think there’s anything unique about human intelligence. All the neurons that make up perceptions and emotions operate in a binary fashion. We can someday replicate that on a machine.”
• Ray Kurzweil, another famous computer scientist, backs up Gates. Kurzweil’s studies have extrapolated the well-established trends of increasing computer power (Moore’s Law) to forecast that computers will surpass human intelligence at about 2020 AD.

Now, it is clearly true that human consciousness depends on all this marvelous biological machinery. But that does not mean life is reducible to the machinery. Daniel Bateson, a psychologist, sees the issue differently: “The brain is the hardware through which religion is experienced. To say the brain produces religion is like saying that a piano produces music.” The question is thereby raised, Who is running the machinery? Box 3 summarizes some arguments from the opposing point of view that attributes consciousness to some form of “universal spirit.”

Support for the Spiritual View

• We’ve all heard moving stories about the power of prayer, but now empirical data is emerging. A large medical study found that praying for patients produced health effects 3-5 times greater than a control group -- even though the patients were unaware of the study! Other experiments seem to confirm this finding.
• Rupert Sheldrake, a biologist at Cambridge University, has spent years testing a theory of “Morphogenetic Fields,” postulated as some form of energy organizing all life. Sheldrake and others have shown, for instance, that learning occurs more easily after others have mastered the task, and that pets can sense the unexpected return of their masters.
• More than 35 studies published in mainstream journals by scholars at Maharishi University report improvements in social indicators when groups are mediating; there even appears to be a correlation between the size of the meditating group and the strength of the social effects.
• Intuition, creativity, and vision seem to originate from an external source. Creative people are usually mystified by their work, often attributing it to a “muse.” Einstein said a “sense of the infinite” guided his insights. And J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, described her inspiration this way: “It feels as if someone zapped the ideas into my head.”
• Parapsychology remains highly controversial, yet the U.S. and Russia devoted two decades to “remotely viewing” enemy activities, often with great success. Warrant Officer Joe McMoneagle, one of the best “psychics” in the U.S program, was first to identify the existence of Russia’s Typhoon submarines.
• Studies of those who returned from death reveal intense spiritual experiences. Eight million Americans have had been to the brink and back, consistently speaking of “souls” passing to the afterlife and seeing intense light: “The light is the brightest ever seen,” said a sergeant who was wounded. “It’s like a mother’s love for her child, only a million times stronger.”

These two sets of supporting evidence and arguments are hardly definitive, but they illustrate how vastly different views are commonly proposed to explain the origin of human spirit. Both are appealing in their own way.
The biological view claims that the higher-order mental functions we puzzle over – emotion, religiosity, and spirituality -- are a result of physical phenomenae that science simply does not yet understand. There is an assuring quality to this view because it suggests that science will somehow allow humankind to gain control over these troubling “inner” spheres of life. But this may be a touch naïve, as we’ll see in a minute.

In contrast, the spiritual view envisions a far more subtle, complex universe in which behavior is guided by some unknown form of spiritual energy. Philosophers like Willis Harman, Jeremy Narby, and Robert Rabbin, for instance, all describe an ethereal plane of reality suffused with the animating force of spiritual awareness. The universe is created and held together by this spiritual energy pulsing through all life, and humans both transmit and receive it. Asian philosophers called this spiritual energy “chi,” Western scholars once thought of it as “elan vital,” and for the Catholic Church it is “grace.”

These two theories are not mutually exclusive, and they support one another quite nicely. Freeman Dyson, a famous scientist, said: “Speaking as a physicist, scientific materialism and religious transcendalism are not incompatible.” Other scientists, such as psychologist Roger Sperry, claim the mind is a higher-order “emergent” system that arises out of our genetic programming, sensory input, learning, and other lower-order systems where it then assumes control of the body and the mind itself. In short, yes, the human spirit is produced by the physical brain, but it then goes on to exert higher powers beyond the material world.
A similar hierarchy pervades the universe. Cells are organized into bodies, people are organized into societies, and stars into galaxies. Likewise, life seems to be stratified into a hierarchy of power ascending from physical matter, to social behavior, to intelligence, and finally spirit. Many philosophers claim this hierarchy operates from the top-down. For instance, Emmanuel Kant concluded that “will” and “idea” form the basis of reality, while the Buddha summed it up in his famous aphorism, “With our thoughts, we make the world.”
This self-control vested at higher levels of all systems accounts for the remarkable freedom humans enjoy. Unlike machines, we possess the free will to act autonomously. Patients choose thoughts that affect their health, business executives decide which practices to adopt, athletes strive to train mentally, and so on. The philosophical basis of the American Constitution hinges on the claim that we are endowed with rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

The hierarchical nature of life also seems to explain why the biological and spiritual views are so strongly held in opposition to one another. A central feature of hierarchy is that the consciousness of a higher level can comprehend lower levels, but the reverse is not true. In other words, the biological view is limited because it is based on a bottom-up form of determinism, while the spiritual view from the top-down is more encompassing. For instance, we humans possess the power to understand the intricate workings of that wondrous colony of cells we call our bodies – but these cells have no conception of the larger system they comprise. That’s why those who’ve had transcendent experiences are rarely satisfied with the biological view thereafter.

Although I find the evidence fairly convincing that human spirit flows out of a universal form of spiritual energy, let us frankly acknowledge that the issue is far from settled. True believers were humbled in 1979 when a world-wide experiment applied massive “psychic energy” in a failed attempt to boost the Skylab satellite into higher orbit. Even the NASA project director went along, saying “I hope they can help us out.” Yet despite this enormous effort by millions of well-intended souls focusing their thoughts skyward from the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, and Australia -- the satellite didn’t budge. “I have a feeling of failure,” said the radio announcer who coordinated this 7 _ minute meditation over 42 radio stations.

This reminds us that nothing beats reality, and the universe is a very complicated place. On the other hand, a few decades ago who would have believed that living images accompanied by sound would be transmitted through space and displayed with utter clarity on screens in our homes? Yet now we all know that the universe is alive with invisible radiomagnetic energy used to convey information. One more step in this unbroken line of intellectual progress may carry us to a universe pulsing with spiritual energy.

THE COMING SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION

Regardless of endless such debates, the Information Revolution is almost certain to raise profound spiritual issues. The relentless growth of IT seems destined to mature into human-like forms of computer intelligence, as Ray Kurzweil and many others forecast. In a decade or two when broadband networks circle the globe, when computational power has increased another million-fold, when hunching over a keyboard is replaced by talking to life-sized images on intelligent wall monitors – these far more sophisticated systems will behave with as much intelligence as people, raising profound questions about human identity.

And this may be a mere hint of the turbulence that the Information Revolution will leave in its wake. As I have argued elsewhere, knowledge is rather mysterious because it increases infinitely, and so this unlimited power incurs equally unlimited dilemmas that transcend knowledge: finding our way through this endless overflow of information, struggling to protect a fragile society from the failures of computer systems, searching for the wisdom to make difficult choices posed by these awesome new powers, figuring out who we are and what we really want, and instilling purpose and meaning in our short lives. We can’t possibly understand what turmoil lies ahead, but a wave of such challenges seems likely at the personal, social, and global levels.

One of the greatest challenges is to help people manage their increasingly complex lives. Spirituality may allow us to feel good and experience divine bliss, but it’s essential function is to provide insight, social cohesion, and the moral will needed to make tough personal choices. The evidence summarized above shows that we can guide the course of our lives more skillfully through prayer, meditation, therapeutic drugs like Prozac, Yoga and exercise, and an expanding range of other spiritual practices, including electronic devices that alter brain waves. Think of "technologies of consciousness" – spirit-shaping interventions for mastering our inner life.

This growing ability to gain control over our inner lives is urgently needed. Many claim the biggest problems today -- crime, drug abuse, sexual promiscuity, conflict, etc. – stem from the stress of hectic change, an irresponsible culture of self-interest, rampant consumerism, and other failures of spirit. The columnist, William Raspberry, notes “A growing sense that America’s major failings are not political or economic but moral. The most successful social programs are those that are driven by moral or religious values.”

Allow me to illustrate the illusive way such problems can be resolved by describing a recent experience that affected me profoundly. Although my life would be considered a success by most standards, for many years I’ve agonized, prayed, meditated, and used everything else I could lay hands on to resolve nagging doubts about my work and tensions in my family.

I was in Amsterdam on business recently, and I was surprised to find that this visit brought clarity to my confusion. I can’t really explain why this happened, but it has something to do with being in a civilized, modern society that has mastered the art of living with comfort, style, and meaning. Few cities can compare with the beauty and charm of Amsterdam, with its graceful canals and streets. Cell phones and PCs are used everywhere, but inconspicuously blend into the background. And a joyous celebration of life is manifested in great art and fine restaurants, as well as tolerance for a wide diversity of lifestyles.

This visit culminated after I had completed my presentation to a large international group and went out to celebrate. There was something about being in Amsterdam that night that pulled the loose strands in my psyche together and tied them into a brightly colored bow. At one point I found myself seated at a sidewalk café where a mime had 30 or so patrons like me falling out of our chairs with laughter as he engaged passersby with his delightful antics. Events like this helped clear the sludge from my soul. I grasped the significance of the work I had labored over for decades. I found a loving place in my relationship with my family. It was liberating, glorious.

The initial excitement has faded a bit since then, but the great value of this precious gift remains clear and enduring. The interesting thing is that I don’t understand why or how it happened. Perhaps that’s the essential meaning of this experience. We may struggle to solve the problems facing us, search for personal understanding, and appeal to higher powers – but the resolution of life’s dilemmas seems to arrive in its own mysterious way, in its own time and place. That does not mean our efforts are meaningless. As the union of human and universal spirit implies, our actions are contributions to a far greater process than we can comprehend.

At the social level, the rise of spirituality could transform business, government, medicine, and other institutions. Current protests over global capitalism are likely to grow, pressuring corporations to broaden their mission to include the public welfare; will progressive CEOs summon the moral vision to create a collaborative form of business that better serves both economic and social interests? Modern governments increasingly struggle with unusual problems that resist normal solutions -- persistent pockets of poverty, environmental decay, conflicts between ethnic groups, etc; can politicians move beyond bureaucracy to help people find the courage and resources needed to form viable communities? And as health care tries to apply a growing arsenal of high-tech medicine to soaring numbers of overwhelmed people with limited success, will practitioners be forced to unify the treatment of body, mind, and soul?

The biggest challenge is presented at the global level. Globalization is tearing at the social fabric of nations, while industrialization of the developing world is increasing the load on the environment by a factor of 5 or more. Managing this fractious global order of 10 billion people demanding modern lifestyles will require a fundamental leap in our collective consciousness -- or the occasional collapse of an ecosystem and its human population will serve to prod us along.

Life seems to be evolving as it should because the same spirit driving these diverse crises is also driving the promising trends we saw earlier. Results of my GW Forecast show the Information Age will be fully developed by about 2020, and so I estimate that the crossover point to a Spiritual Age will occur at about 2010 +/- 5 years. It may be called something else, such as a “Crisis of Maturity” or an “Age of Wisdom,” but it’s coming. The great historian Toynbee observed a long-term trend toward the "increasing etherealization of life."

This approaching frontier will hardly be Utopian because spirituality is easily misused, like anything else. Religious and political zealots, for instances, have always forced civilization through endless wars, ideological conflict, and other forms of mischief. And many will remain intent on self-destructive fantasies of sexual gratification, drug abuse, and gratuitous violence. It may even be that the future will pit more intense moral differences against one another, creating biblical-like battles between good and evil.

Spirit is not necessarily “goodness,” therefore, but a higher state of being that can take almost any form. This revolution is not going to be easy, pious, or universal. But the great challenge now facing civilization is to accept this mysterious power and use it to guide our complex lives more carefully and with greater meaning. This humble but all-important task, I submit, will constitute the great new frontier beyond the Information Age. The Information Age provides unbounded knowledge, but the coming Spiritual Age promises values, wisdom, meaning, purpose, beliefs, vision, and other intangibles we use to organize knowledge, much the way an information architecture organizes the data in a computer system..

Transformations of this type abound today, but we simply do not recognize them because the concept of spirit remains somewhat taboo. The president of the United States himself, George W. Bush, is the product of a spiritual transformation, and many claim the former president, Bill Clinton, has been forced to change as well. A historic shift in ecological consciousness has appeared in the past decade, such that 90 percent of people around the world now want to protect the environment at all costs. Russia’s collective soul went through a massive upheaval when Marxist beliefs were overthrown for free markets and democracy. And what about the abrupt change in perspective caused by the puncturing of the dot.com bubble?

Such cases make it clear that sudden changes in highly abstract beliefs can dramatically alter our basic assumptions, logic, and values. In short, spirit can change the entire structure of human cognition because it transcends knowledge – rather like installing a new operating system in your computer. Spirit gives knowledge meaning and purpose by defining what we choose to do, thereby heightening the significance of our acts. By clarifying these limits to knowledge, ironically, the great unforeseen consequence of the Information Age is to magnify our need for all those transcendent qualities we have long resisted but – deep in our heats – always longed for.

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