The Scope of Dianetics

The opening chapter lays the groundwork for what is to come.

The human race has looked for answers as to what the mind is, what the human is, but I would disagree with the degree that the book lays this down; "No quest has been more relentlessly pursued or has been more violent. No primitive tribe, no matter how ignorant, has failed to recognise the problem as a problem, nor has it failed to bring forth at least an attempted formulation." stating that armies and civilizations have perished for the lack of a, "science of mind." This, I can not accept. The human race looking for answers, yes. As to the perishing of civilisations, I would put that down to religious wars and human greed rather than a concious want of understanding of the self. Any attempt to put it down to an, "unconscious," want is, in my humble opinion, an argument that is on shaky ground. Survival seems to be the strongest and most common thread behind the human psyche, with a sense of self coming after the most critical needs of food in the stomach, a roof over the head and a warm fire have been secured.

The chapter takes issue firmly with the psychiatric treatment of old; techniques that were stopped a few decades ago like electric shock treatment and frontal lobotomies. I remember beginning some of my own counselling in the late 1980s, the building bore the scars of heavy duty electrical cabling, not that long removed. I know of people who were treated with electric shock therapy; it didn't work. Psychiatry has moved on but L Ron Hubbard died in 1986 and psychiatry no longer uses the techniques rightfully highlighted as barbaric in this chapter. To hold a valid stance now, Dianetics would have to re-evaluate modern psychiatry but I believe it is correct in the application of lobotomies and electric shock as being barbaric at the time. There is discussion about the, "crimes," of psychiatry and that is a deeper issue; certainly psychiatry is not without blood on its hands but each, "crime," would have to be investigated and as I have already highlighted, the organisations own word on what psychiatry did, holds little weight these days. Only facts can sort that issue out.

The science of the mind is therefore to deal with the person, the soul. It bears no link, according to this chapter, with the physical body. It lists, "The cause and cure of all psychosomatic ills, which number, some say, 70 percent of man's listed ailments." however there is no reference as to who the, "some say," are or any texts as to where this percentage actually comes from.

There is some anecdotal evidence that the state of the mind can affect the state of the body; commonly observed with people in hospital who have lost the will to live. I can accept this to a point. I have been close enough to various people to have knowledge of some fairly odd things, like a good friend of mine, who's word I trust; accounting one of his childhood playmates making the statement, in their teens, that he would be dead before he was fifty. Indeed, at the age of 49, in hospital, suffering from osteoporosis, that person never did see their fiftieth birthday. The question is validly asked, did the mind have thirty plus years knowledge of when the body would fail, or did the strength of the mind cause the bodies failure? A question to which we will never know the answer. We will never actually know whether osteoporosis was actually diagnosed as a child and an accurate of estimated life span given. We can postulate all we wish, but like the existence of God, we will never know the answer for a full, outright fact and it is things like this which do not help in clearing the waters of understanding.

The chapter ends with some fairly strong claims, the very mention of them leaves me with sincere doubts, that scientology helps various forms of human study and the field of cytology is specifically mentioned.

So, here we are with a repeat of my previous reading; statements which have no external references to back up the claims made; the reader being expected to accept them as fact. This is immediately not registering as a very scientific work.

I interpret what I have read so far as being that dianetics aims to bring self-understanding to the mind and, by that knowledge, better self control and access to the minds own abilities and freedom from becoming caught up in situations which are of the minds own making. If I remember of what is to come further in the book, the issue of two people talking through a persons troubles may actually be close to modern psychiatry ... I dare say I will find out in time.

As of yet, I see nothing which purports to deal with the health of the physical body, so that puts one anti-scientology claim on the sidelines; but only for the time being as the next chapter is on the Clear and will answer a number of arguments as to what benefits being, "clear," should bring to a persons life. This, I feel, will be a critical chapter.