From: jimruttshow8596
Integrating spirituality with scientific rationalism is a core theme in Hanzi Freinacht’s work, particularly as a response to perceived cultural dead ends and the need for a progressive path forward beyond postmodernism. His approach, deeply rooted in metamodernism, seeks to reconcile seemingly opposing forces like science and spirituality, or sincerity and irony, to cultivate a more robust and coherent worldview.
Moving Beyond Postmodernism’s Critique
Hanzi Freinacht, a main developer of metamodernism ideas, aims to move past the critical perspectives of postmodernism, which extensively critiqued power relations, the social construction of reality, and knowledge’s subjection to power relationships [0:32:46]. While acknowledging the value of these critical elements [0:40:59], Freinacht felt a need to construct something new, integrating spiritual and developmental perspectives [0:40:59]. This involves supporting the inner growth of human beings to create sane and sustainable societies [0:49:15].
A Metamodern Response to Cultural Nihilism
Freinacht’s newest book, 12 Commandments for Extraordinary People to Master Ordinary Life, serves as a direct metamodern response to Jordan Peterson’s self-help literature [1:00:00]. While Peterson’s work, often seen as a manifesto for conservatism, is characterized as a “reactionary response” returning to “modern values” like responsibility and individualism, Freinacht argues it takes a “step back” [0:54:51]. This step back, while a timely critique of cultural nihilism that emerged from parts of postmodernism, does not carry forward the moral sensibilities gained [0:54:51].
Freinacht’s book offers a metamodern self-help philosophy that is “somewhat more laid back, somewhat more hopeful” [1:37:39]. It is simultaneously more secular and skeptical, yet “more deeply spiritual or religious” [1:52:00]. This approach aims to create an “embodied life philosophy that is congruent with being crazy, with being radical, or thinking outside of the box” [1:49:04]. The goal is to cultivate “sober radical people” who are equipped to navigate a complex and challenging world without resorting to regression [1:59:16].
Navigating the Meaning Crisis: Rejecting Magic, Embracing Phenomenology
A central tenet of Freinacht’s work is “radical enlightenmentism,” which posits a world “entirely devoid of all magic and all miracles” and rejects “two-world thinking” and the supernatural [1:11:06]. This stance addresses the “meaning crisis” that arises when people relinquish traditional religious frameworks but struggle to find new “solid ground” [1:16:39].
The Paradox of Magical Thinking
Paradoxically, Freinacht observes that “magical thinking shows up not less in highly developed people but more often” [1:17:16]. This is explained by the multi-dimensional nature of human development. When individuals experience a “richer fabric of the world” through “direct phenomenology”—a greater sense of wholeness, beauty, and mystery—their cognitive capacities may not keep pace with these enhanced spiritual or existential experiences [1:19:05]. This “gap” between felt experience and rational understanding is often “filled with magic” [1:29:29].
The Pathology of Reductionism
Conversely, if one’s mind can explain more than their phenomenology can sense, it leads to a feeling that the world is “dead matter or somehow dull or mundane” [2:11:03]. This opposite gap is filled with “reductionism,” a subtle anti-spiritual drive to “explain it away” and “dethrone” any sense of mystery [2:11:03].
Oscillation and Superposition: The Path to Integration
The core task is to bridge these gaps by learning to oscillate between opposing poles [2:27:27]. This “oscillation” is not merely compartmentalization, where one holds contradictory beliefs at different times (e.g., church vs. lab) [2:47:06]. Instead, it involves actively moving between “scientific skepticism” (corresponding to irony) and “spiritual experiences” (corresponding to sincerity) [2:27:27].
Initially, this oscillation is difficult, as each pole tends to “kill off the other” [2:47:06]. However, with practice, one becomes better at “straddling both positions” [2:52:23]. Eventually, the mind can make a “leap to a third position or into a superposition where both are true simultaneously” [2:52:23]. In this superposition, the more “ruthless” one’s scientific scrutiny of reality, the “farther you can safely travel into the magical realm and into spiritual experience” [2:52:23]. Similarly, deeper spiritual experiences (high states) align with more complex thinking, enhancing understanding and intuition [2:52:23]. This creates a direction that goes “beyond the Divide of Science and spirituality” [2:52:23].
Examples of Integration
Hanzi notes that a new wave of thinkers is working on this third stage of integration. He cites:
- Brendan Graham Dempsey: Author of Emergentism as a Religion of Complexity, who constructs a secular religion around complexity and emergence [2:48:48].
- John Vervaeke: Known for his “religion that is not a religion” [2:48:48].
Freinacht sees his own book as part of this tradition [2:58:00].
Living Sincerely Ironically
The concept of “sincere irony” is a practical application of this oscillation and superposition [5:00:23]. It means holding “two stances at once,” where reality is seen as hypothetical and capable of shifting perspective [5:05:01].
- Irony: Encompasses skepticism and the awareness that one’s beliefs, statements, or relationships may not always be correct or turn out as expected [5:11:53]. It is about “never getting caught,” like a Houdini [5:11:53].
- Sincerity: Requires “turning every stone” and examining the possibility of being wrong [5:43:03]. Without this ironic self-doubt, sincerity can become “hysterical” or dogmatic, leading to “cults” where people are “zero percent ironic” [5:43:03].
True sincerity necessitates being “ironic enough to check your facts,” to “leave a certain amount of doubt” [5:43:03]. This means acknowledging that, like most ideas throughout history, one’s own ideas are likely to be “wrong” to some degree [5:59:01]. “Ironic sincerity is just real sincerity, and sincerity without irony is just not real sincerity” [5:29:55]. This integrated stance allows for greater openness and a lack of defensiveness, enabling one to “be more real” and express thoughts without hesitation [5:57:03].
Burn Your Maps
The “Burn Your Maps” commandment encourages a radical reassessment of one’s fundamental worldview or “map” of reality [1:28:39]. Everyone operates with limited maps, and these maps can grow in complexity [1:29:52]. However, different maps (e.g., a sociologist’s vs. a quantum physicist’s) can be incongruent and describe different aspects of reality [1:30:16].
The danger lies in investing one’s entire life into a map that turns out to be fundamentally flawed or even harmful [1:31:51]. By doing the inner work of overcoming shame, guilt, and fear, one gains the “inner spaciousness” to hold their map less hysterically and “sincerely ironically imagine other possible worlds” [1:32:06]. This active practice of challenging one’s worldview is crucial for growth, preventing stagnation, and ensuring that even one’s pursuit of justice is based on the most comprehensive understanding [1:33:52]. It counters the innate human tendency to believe “our map is the best possible map,” which is “exceedingly unlikely” [1:34:15]. Regularly “burning” and rebuilding one’s map allows for continuous evolution and a deeper connection to reality [1:35:54].