The “scaling-up” problem concerns radical embodied cognition’s (REC) supposed inability to extend its explanatory reach beyond simple cognitive phenomena. This paper questions the problem’s main assumption, that is, the possibility of sorting phenomena according to their inherent cognitive complexity or representation-hunger. To do so, I focus on a class of phenomena whose degree of...
The study of the novel Ifigenia. (Diario de una señorita que escribió porque se fastidiaba) by Teresa de la Parra, allows us to propose a debate over the representations of gender (woman, the feminine) and the body in the character of María Eugenia Alonso and her relationship with representation and phenomenal consciousness (Ned Block). The narrative structure of the novel (epistle and diary)...
This paper develops a quadripartite panpsychist theory of shamanism(s). This fourpart framework revives and combines four theories: (i) mystical constructivism, (ii) role-taking theory, and (iii) mental imagery cultivation as a cultural practice founded upon (iv) a panpsychist philosophy of ultimate reality. I argue that this quadripartite model allows for the recognition of something ‘real’ in...
Inhalational anesthetics are currently believed to cause unconsciousness by acting on multiple molecular targets including neural ion channels, receptors, mitochondria, synaptic proteins, and cytoskeletal proteins. Inhalational anesthetics including isoflurane bind to cytoskeletal microtubules (MTs), potentially contributing to causing unconsciousness. This possibility is supported by our...
This paper examines the interrelationship between embodied consciousness and neoliberal ecology in David Szalay’s Flesh (2025). Drawing upon the philosophical frameworks of Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Michel Foucault, the study explores how the human body functions not merely as a biological entity but as a lived site shaped by socio-economic forces, power relations, and cultural structures. The...
This essay articulates a distinction between my formal theological work—which engages the scholarly apparatus of Elliot Wolfson's phenomenology, Jonathan Eybeschütz's radical mysticism, and the Lubavitcher Rebbe's teachings on divine concealment—and my personal, experiential understanding of 'higher power' as it functions in spiritual practice. While my academic writing explores the objective...
This study investigates the effectiveness of contemplative pedagogy in cultivating spiritual awareness among students in Islamic primary education. Addressing the limited empirical evidence on pedagogical approaches that foster students’ inner spiritual development, this study employed a quasi-experimental design using a non-equivalent control group pretest–posttest model. The participants were...
Al-QamarMarch 31, 2026Dr. Muhammad Shah, Dr. Muhammad Akram Rana
Multan has historically remained one of the most significant centers of Islamic spirituality, Sufism, and intellectual culture in South Asia. Renowned as the “City of Saints,” the region developed a distinctive spiritual and cultural identity under the influence of various Sufi orders whose khanqahi institutions played a vital role in religious instruction, moral refinement, social reform, and...
Near death experience (NDE) reported as supernatural and emotional feelings with episodes involving a special state of consciousness, including several special elements and these experiences typically occur with often grouped contents commonly observed in life-threatening conditions. Participants were provided with an Arabic version of the Near-Death Experience (NDE) scale via mail and social...
HRMARS - China has the traditional Five Animal Exercises for health preservation, while India has Hatha Yoga. Under the guidance of the Chinese government, the Five Animal Exercises have gained increasing attention domestically, whereas Hatha Yoga has become popular worldwide with numerous practi- tioners. The Five Animal Exercises and Hatha Yoga, as cultural products of China and India—two...