The Scientific and Medical Network recently introduced Dr. Marianne Rankin as a speaker at one of their Consciousness Perspectives Forums.
Dr Rankin has written on hospice, illustrated a book on Zen and is the author of An Introduction to Religious and Spiritual Experience (Bloomsbury, 2008). She was Chair for 11 years of the former Alister Hardy Society that archived mystic and other metaphysical experiences and AHT’s Director of Communications.
Dr Rankin asked “Is Altruism a Principal Fruit of Spiritual Experience?”
In my experience the answer is no.
Altruism might be one of the collateral fruits but certainly not anywhere near being one of the principal fruits.
The principal ones, in my experiences, are:
- Knowledge of all things (though not always immediate understanding of the particularities).
- Immense joy beyond all human expression.
Being accepted and revealed as part of all things from the beginning of all things – then, now and forever. (An experience in itself of a never ending love and companionship).
Nowhere in any of my experiences throughout every year for over 15 years was there any reference to any particular part of existence, including humans, or even human experiences such as ‘altruism’.
My conclusion was and still is that humans take themselves too seriously. They are not a principal part of creation.
All Is Well.
Mystical Experiences of Reality 