Chapter 28: The Sense of the Sacred

The Sense of the Sacred exploration delves into the inadequacy of the left hemisphere's analytical and reductionist approach for grasping ultimate reality, contrasting it with the right hemisphere's capacity for holistic understanding, context, and the sacred. The text emphasizes that intelligence alone is insufficient when confronting what exists, suggesting that a lack of humility prevents a clear view of the world's deep complexity,. Fundamental philosophical questions, such as why there is something rather than nothing, cannot be answered solely through physical processes but require looking to the Ground of Being, which must remain largely implicit and beyond analytical explanation. The chapter discusses theological and metaphysical concepts using the via negativa (apophatic approach), recognizing that God, or the ultimate source, is often best defined by what it is not, such as the Kabbalistic Ein-Sof (the infinite, boundless unknowable),. A key theological speculation offered is panentheism—the belief that God is in all things and all things are in God, contrasting with pantheism, and reflecting a preference for union over division,. This dynamic, relational view of reality aligns with process theology, where the divine is understood as eternally Becoming, not merely static Being,and is reinforced by the concept of holarchies, where every part contains the image of the whole, like a macrocosm in a microcosm,. The reconciliation of opposites is crucial, articulated through the coincidentia oppositorum (coincidence of opposites). The chapter critiques Western culture for its progressive sequestration of the sacred and its modern reliance on the limited, utilitarian perspective of the left hemisphere, which has led to an inversion of values, prioritizing use and pleasure over the holy and spiritual,. This imbalance is linked to societal issues like increased loneliness, depression, and a loss of the sense of wonder, which is an essential element of knowing, coupled with love and humility,. Ultimately, achieving a fuller understanding of reality—which is both complex and dynamic—requires the collaboration of both hemispheres, recognizing that reality is relational and includes both the factual and the ineffable,.