Spiritual Psychology/Lecture 1. Molchanov’s discoveries as a basis for the course Introduction to Spiritual Psychology

1.1 Molchanov’s first encounter with trial and error method as an incentive to search for an alternative to this pseudo-scientific method

As already mentioned, this course is designed on the basis of unique discoveries of Evgeny Molchanov. As a result of his more than 40 years of research (in the last 20 years - with a group of disciples), the first serious step towards the development of unified science has been made through the convergence of science and religion. As the historical prediction of Karl Marx evidences, it’s the unified science that will be the greatest productive force and the potential for a radical transformation of the world. Therefore, Molchanov’s discoveries can be classified as a pioneering work, a breakthrough.

An unexpected turn in Molchanov’s quite successful scientific career became the starting point of the path that eventually led him to God. It should be emphasized that the Creator allowed the researcher first to be armed with scientific approaches and methodology so that he can apply this rigorous scientific approach to matters of faith too. It was just what helped him to solve the problem of primary importance for our civilization’s salvation and progress - to find a way to unite science and religion. Yet, this didn’t happen by magic. This problem took several decades of enormous intellectual efforts.

It all began with a challenging technological problem that the research institution, Molchanov was part of, set before him. He had to find a way of eliminating vibrations that arose in the process of machining a part on loathes of the new generation – numerical control machines. Evgeny Molchanov tried everything: he analyzed all the scientific literature on mechanical engineering starting from the epoch of Peter the Great, conducted thousands of experiments, visited the most famous scientists and eminent turners. But nothing would help - the problem remained unsolved. Back then, through his own experience, the scientist learned all the “beauty” of trial and error method, which was the main methodological approach for solving inventive problems (more information can be found in sections 1.1-1.3 of the book The New Revelation).

As is known, the trial and error method is founded on testing a variety of solutions for a problem (or on performing experiments) until a positive result is obtained. However, the specificity of this method is that the solution can be unfound at all, even after hundreds or thousands of experiments. According to scientific data, the efficiency of this method is only 0.01 percent. This means that, on average, only one of the 10,000 trials is successful.

Ultimately, Molchanov discovered the solution to the vibration problem. This happened after he had retaken a course on the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving. Genrikh Altshuller, the author of this theory, analyzed more than 40 thousand patents and identified 40 standard methods that help to significantly reduce the number of failed attempts. One of these methods is the use of “physical effects”. There are about five thousand known physical effects, but only 300-500 of them are used most often for solving technical problems. The “physical effect”, which aided Molchanov to solve the vibration problem, was the discovery of professor Alexandrov. It was number 13 on the list of discoveries, which Molchanov’s colleagues - staff members of the institute’s information department - prepared at his request. It should be emphasized that 13 is a strong number as it symbolizes Jesus Christ and His first twelve disciples – the Apostles.

Thus, Molchanov succeeded in solving the task assigned to him by the management; yet, it wasn’t the most significant achievement. The key outcome of this experience was that, while surviving in the environment of the total predominance of trial and error method, the researcher changed this environment. He declared war on this extremely inefficient and even vicious method and created an alternative to it.

1.2 Method of decision-making according to the unified science’s laws as an alternative to trial and error

In the process of solving the vibration problem, Molchanov changed his attitude towards the laws. He perceived their crucial importance. During this period, the researcher not only read a lot of books on mechanical engineering; he profoundly studied the authoritative works on philosophy, logic, psychology, political economy, other social sciences, and religion. He also familiarized himself with unusual theories - of invariance, relativity, fundamental forces and others.

Armed with this knowledge, the scientist first made his critical discovery in science. Ha named it a discovery about the sole form of manifestation of the material world. Molchanov proved that any phenomenon (effect) in the material world, being the result of the fundamental forces’ action, is a constantly recurring event. This allows us to describe it in the form of a law (verbal or mathematical). In fact, there are no casual (or random) phenomena in the material world. Nor is there a case when a phenomenon could be described by several laws at once.

As a result, the scientist made an important conclusion: the material world manifests itself only in one form – in the form of a law. This conclusion eliminates the need for an infinite number of tests and experiments. How to achieve this? When solving any problems in natural sciences, one must first determine what laws describe this problem and then propose a solution based on these laws. Then the right solution can be found immediately, at the first attempt. And the efficiency of such activities can be close to the efficiency of the laws themselves - to 100 percent.

Thus, this strategy promotes a tremendous increase in human’s efficiency in comparison with the trial and error method, up to 100:0.01 = 10,000 times! Large amounts of money and time can be saved in addition to that. By the way, the right solution, which an individual finds by chance in the process of testing out his hypotheses, following trial and error, is just the result of the experiment performed in accordance with a certain law.

Molchanov named this new approach objective activity method. By the time the discovery was formulated, God had already given extraordinary abilities - spiritual gifts - to the scientist. He was able to see the spiritual world and the events taking place there. Yes, the spiritual world not only exists - it determines what happens in our visible - material world.

The researcher found out that both the spiritual world and social sciences possess their own sets of laws. Yet, even in these spheres, a man still makes decisions using trial and error, that is, his ideas, views and experience rather than objective laws. These observations allowed Molchanov to conceptualize unified science and define it as the totality of laws of spirituality, social sciences and natural sciences. The laws of unified science are the only true knowledge worth studying. Therefore, the aim of science is to create a bank of laws - the laws of spirituality, social and natural sciences. All other subjective hypotheses and concepts have no practical value and thus aren’t worth spending money on their development and time to study them.

Ultimately objective activity method acquired its complete form - it requires a man to rely on all 3 groups of laws of God’s unified science in every endeavor. Then he will be able to make the highest-level decisions that are on a level with thoughts and ways of God. And His thoughts and ways are higher than man’s thoughts and ways “as the heavens are higher than the earth” (Is 55:8-9). Certainly, it’s God that is the source of faultless solutions. That is where the potential for unprecedented spiritual, intellectual, technological, and economical breakthroughs lies - it is in the Creator’s intellect, unattainable for humans.

The laws of spirituality are of primary importance among the laws of unified science. They determine how efficiently a person applies the laws of social and natural sciences in dealing with any issues of public or private life. These laws therefore require more careful consideration and detailed analysis.

1.3 Laws of spirituality

While the spiritual laws play a determinative role in society, our knowledge about them is negligible. John Templeton, the famous American-born British investor, philosopher and philanthropist, confirmed “our present ignorance” in spirituality: “We know very little - probably less than 1 percent of what can be discovered - about God and fundamental spiritual principles.” To change this negative situation, he set a task to create a “dynamic” and “innovative” experimental theology through “dialogue between science and religion.” Molchanov managed to come close to solving this issue exactly as John Templeton projected - through “rigorous empirical scrutiny” and “concentrating on observable data resulting from spiritual experiences.” Then this can be “an appealing notion even for skeptics.”

God revealed to Molchanov that the spiritual laws are none other than the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven (Mt 13:11; Mk 4:11; Lk 8:10). They are the secret knowledge that is hidden in the parables of the Bible. The Creator has demostrated how the most imoprtant of these laws work to the scientist, and allowed him to test them by his own experience. Consequently, Molchanov succeeded in unraveling many problems posed by John Templeton; in particular, he was able:

• to examine and test “the basic laws or principles for leading a “sublime life” just as science examines and tests natural laws of the universe;”
• to conduct “rigorous, verifiable research, especially on those neglected basic invisible realities such as love, purpose, creativity, intellect, thanksgiving, prayer, humility, praise, thrift, compassion, invention, truthfulness, giving, and worship;”
• to discover “what personalities are achieving heaven while on earth;”
• to “devise tests to discover which are the happier people and why.”

Molchanov’s research also answers the most complicated and essential questions without which we can never form a true knowledge about the psychology’s subject:

• What is the purpose of the universe created by God?
• What is a man in his entirety, as a complex system composed of his spirit, soul, and body (1 Thess 5:23)?
• What forces act in the spiritual world and how do they affect an individual’s or group’s behavior?
• What is the purpose of human life and the final stage of human evolution (at least in the foreseeable future), as well as the ways for achieving this purpose and this stage?

Knowledge and use of these laws enables a person to activate his latent spiritual potential and form a new type of thinking. Only after such a spiritual transfiguration, a man will be able to efficiently use a new method of making decisions and their implementation – he will be able to do this in cooperation with God, thus joining to the Creator’s infinite intelligence. That is exactly why we are going to study the laws of spirituality in the first place. They are described in detail in the book The New Revelation: A Scientific Alternative to the “End of the Age” (more information about the book can be found at http://unifiedscience.club-neformat.com/). Since this book was conceived as the first textbook on spirituality by its author’s team, we plan to publish it on Wikibooks platform. Until then, the book can be send to anyone interested via e-mail by request.

1.4 Application of Molchanov’s discoveries: Long-term and short-term objectives

Molchanov’s discoveries are the unique tools. With their help, the international community can make a dramatic breakthrough in solving its highly complex problems. The best minds, brilliant preachers, global strategists and philanthropists were endeavoring to attain these goals through the centuries and thousands of years, but with no success. If we talk about the fundamental tasks that have become solvable due to the new discoveries, the following four ones can be highlighted:

1. Spiritual transfiguration of the human race. This will allow us, on the one hand, not only to proclaim and establish God’s moral principles and standards of conduct, but also to follow them – to make them a common practice. On the other hand, this will promote the essential improvement of man’s abilities through activating his extraordinary potential. We can get a new generation of people - highly moral and super-efficient, capable of ensuring common prosperity, welfare and peace.
2. Filling all the “blank spots” on the map of our knowledge about the universe and a human being. New discoveries make it possible to solve this problem much more efficiently (by an order of magnitude or more) than this is done today. Objective activity method opens up a new horizon for the development of science. Researchers will be able to complete such a very complex challenge as describing the mathematical model of the universe, and even to understand the process of materialization, that is, unravel the mystery of the origin of life. This will provide new tools not only for the development of a new generation of clean technologies, but also for the scientifically grounded space exploration. The collective endeavors of modern scholars and philanthropists in space exploration and their scientific programs like the Breakthrough Initiatives, certainly, deserve respect. But before communicating with other civilizations beyond earth (if they exist), we have to establish contacts with God and His assistants. This does not require a multi-million dollar investments, super complex hardware and software. To do this, we should start to master the Unified Science’s laws. Otherwise that is, if we continue our activities in outer space by trial and error, we expect the very serious risks. These fears of the Breakthrough Initiative’ founders are valid.
3. Development of new educational programs. First, it’s necessary to audit all of the existing scientific theories and separate true knowledge from false. After that, specialists will be able to develop new educational programs free from any subjective theories and concepts. Then the total study period - from elementary school to a master’s degree – can be shorten to 10 years, as predetermined by God.
4. Establishment of a new socio-economic system on earth - the Kingdom of Heaven. A global enormous effort is required to achieve this ultimate aim. We have to develop new standards for all spheres of human living: science, politics, education, economy, technology, culture, family relations, healthy lifestyles, parenting, etc. But a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. If God agrees to accompany us on this journey, if we take our first and all other steps together with Him we will certainly reach the finish.

It is evident that attaining the fundamental objectives outlined above will require more than a dozen years. However it shouldn’t be an obstacle for the practical application of new discoveries right now, for short-term goals.

1. Firstly, Molchanov’s discoveries are applicable for the development and implementation of breakthrough clean technologies that can ensure global prosperity. Here, as with the Breakthrough Initiatives, a strategic vision of the Breakthrough Energy Coalition’s founders is commendable and worth supporting. Their efforts to “invent and scale the innovative technologies that will limit the impact of climate change while providing affordable and reliable energy to everyone” are consistent with the God’s vision. But the Creator has already revealed one of such technological ideas to Molchanov. This hydropower technology is dramatically more efficient than available analogues and doesn’t require such aggressive investments as the initiators of the Breakthrough Energy Coalition expect to attract. God is a Great Inventor. He has got many such technologies – more efficient, cheaper and with great potential for rapid scaling. They are intended for the new economic system. The only thing that we need to do is to learn to take in the Creator’s information having understood how His spiritual laws work.
2. Secondly, the new knowledge can be used by those who seek self-improvement and are ready to help God in His epoch-making transformations on the planet.
3. Thirdly, they are relevant for those who want to learn making decisions under conditions of great uncertainty, which takes place in the world and will only grow. This is applicable to both individuals and companies. Our experience has shown that the presence of at least 2-3 experts who are skilful in making decisions in cooperation with God can significantly reduce the risks and improve company’s performance. This experience is also illustrated in the book The New Revelation, in section 8. Indeed, every company interested in using the innovative approaches could start doing this within a short time - after training two or three of its most talented employees.

1.5 Application of Molchanov’s discoveries: Some examples

Since we are addressing the issue that may not always be clear to not well-informed people, I have decided to add examples from our own practice to this course. Not to tell about ourselves, but rather to open up God as we know Him to people.

How does objective activity method help Molchanov, for example, in his invention practice? He is often faced not only with the necessity of selecting optimal components for some complex composition, but also with determining the best percentage of each component. In such cases, God can narrow down the search range. And sometimes, in case of heavy time pressure, He even can suggest both the exact components and the exact proportions.

In my practice (I am an economist by profession), I was also often faced with the need to be quick in my decisions because of lack of time. In perfect harmony with Parkinson’s law, the world really succeeds in creating this “urgency.” And the lack of data only complicated matters. I was forced to construct simple mathematic models: I took some unknown parameter as a unit (1) and the rest – as coefficients (factors) to this unit, and solve a simple equation. My intellect, experience, and intuition was sometimes enough to guess the value of any coefficient with an accuracy of one decimal place - 0.7 for example. God usually supported my guess or corrected me. But one day, he said something like: 0.7138 ... I like such stories. I pay attention to the details - they encourage me to think about God - His character, His capabilities. He can calculate to any numbers of decimal places, and He needs neither calculators nor mathematical models. He is very intelligent.

And He is the only one Who knows the future. I once was listening to an expert in the field of oil prices. Amazing erudition! For half an hour he talked about the factors influencing the price: political and economical, internal and external, and many others. Not only did he know the subject very well, but he was a good talker. As I was listening to him, different thoughts were crossing my mind, triggering mixed feelings. I was asking God in embarrassment: Father, You want us to communicate something clever to the world? What I am as compared, for example, with this expert?... But at the end of this TV program it became a little clearer. When its host finally asked which of the indicated scenarios would occur and what the oil price would be, the expert answered: “No one knows that…”

Well, the whole department is engaged in forecasting (note: only in one organization, and how many might be around the world!?), but no one can confidently predict the future events. People don’t have such an algorithm.

Dear scientists and all others who believe that “the people have created God in their own image and likeness and they use God in order to formalize the moral principles which they are predisposed to!” Indeed, God extraordinarily surpasses man in intelligence: God’s mind is higher than man’s mind as the heavens are higher than the earth and still higher. Science cannot even fully understand what God created and how. And you say “A man…” Draw near to God and He will draw near to you (Jas 4:8). It is very breathtaking to communicate with Him. Nobody can be compared to Him…

They say, “God is in the details.” For me, God is literally “in the details.” It’s important for me not only what He says, but also His intonation, His gestures. He can be serious and thoughtful, and even seem preoccupied. This makes me more concentrated and cautious. He can be “very very calm,” as Evgeny Molchanov once described God’s state. How I do love the moments when God is “very very calm!” I may relax a little. God can shake His finger and throw up His hands, wearily sighing. This gesture was very surprising. Can you imagine God Who throws up His hands wearily? But in these moments, He is so dear and precious, so close and clear. We must be somewhat alike. He is the same as we are… Or we are the same as He is...

Describing his relations with God, archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov), who I love very much, wrote that there was no his initiative in that communion. God revealed Himself to father Sophrony as He desired - as was “good and acceptable in the sight of God” (1 Tim 2:4). Father Sophrony couldn’t imagine anything like that. I have to say the same - God Himself chooses one or another psychological approach to educate me. There is no my initiative here. I only try to notice the details. I would like to ask the people who believe in God: Why do you believe in Him? For what? What is your motivation? After analyzing the lives of many believers, William James confirmed in some measure my concerns about this matter. In his book The Varieties of Religious Experience, he wrote: “The pivot round which the religious life … revolves, is the interest of the individual in his private personal destiny. Religion … is a monumental chapter in the history of human egotism.” Referring to Professor Leuba, William James goes so far as to say that “so long as men can use their God, they care very little who He is, or even whether He is at all:”

The truth of the matter can be put,” says Leuba, “in this way: GOD IS NOT KNOWN, HE IS NOT UNDERSTOOD; HE IS USED - sometimes as meat-purveyor, sometimes as moral support, sometimes as friend, sometimes as an object of love. If He proves Himself useful, the religious consciousness asks for no more than that. Does God really exist? How does He exist? What is He? are so many irrelevant questions. Not God, but life, more life, a larger, richer, more satisfying life, is, in the last analysis, the end of religion. The love of life, at any and every level of development, is the religious impulse

I also see such an attitude to God often enough - simplified or superficial and, to some extent, consumer. But if people were more eager to know Him and His plans, not only the lives of some individuals could be “larger, richer, more satisfying.” The quality of life of people across the globe could be changed radically. In this course, we are going to talk a lot about God, His purposes and ways to achieve them.