Monistic idealism

Monistic Idealism is a metaphysical theory which states that consciousness, not matter, is the ground of all being. It is a monistic theory because it holds that there is only one type of thing in the universe, and a form of idealism because it holds that one thing to be consciousness.

Monistic Idealism is a variety of the theory of Pantheism which asserts that the term god is equivalent to the entirety of existence.

Idealism is opposed philosophy to that of “material realism,” which holds that consciousness is an emergent phenomena. Idealism asserts that consciousness is the fundamental entity of the universe.

Both of these are monistic ideals. Monism is opposed to dualism which asserts that consciousness and the physical world are mutually exclusive.

Monistic idealism rejects any notion of consciousness being an emergent phenomena. Instead, consciousness creates matter; it is the fundamental wellspring from which reality is created.

Noted Proponents

Amit Goswami

In the words of physicist Amit Goswami  :

The current worldview has it that everything is made of matter, and everything can be reduced to the elementary particles of matter, the basic constituents — building blocks — of matter. And cause arises from the interactions of these basic building blocks or elementary particles; elementary particles make atoms, atoms make molecules, molecules make cells, and cells make brain. But all the way, the ultimate cause is always the interactions between the elementary particles. This is the belief — all cause moves from the elementary particles. This is what we call "upward causation." So in this view, what human beings — you and I think of as our free will does not really exist. It is only an epiphenomenon or secondary phenomenon, secondary to the causal power of matter. And any causal power that we seem to be able to exert on matter is just an illusion. This is the current paradigm.
Now, the opposite view is that everything starts with consciousness. That is, consciousness is the ground of all being. In this view, consciousness imposes "downward causation." In other words, our free will is real. When we act in the world we really are acting with causal power. This view does not deny that matter also has causal potency — it does not deny that there is causal power from elementary particles upward, so there is upward causation — but in addition it insists that there is also downward causation. It shows up in our creativity and acts of free will, or when we make moral decisions. In those occasions we are actually witnessing downward causation by consciousness.

Amit Goswami's claims have been refuted for a number of reasons. The most obvious is that he is basing his claims on a Straw man argument which claims unaccepted or outdated physics. The most accepted theory of fundamental interactions is Standard Model of particle physics which is based on the idea of Quantum Field Theory not classical particle physics. Quantum mechanics is at its core objective so similar claims could be extended from it instead of classical particles. Such extensions often fall under the term Quantum mysticism.

Philosophers such as Daniel Dennett reject the idea that that free and realism are incompatible.

Varieties

There are several varieties of Monistic Idealism, many of which are the basis of religious practices. It is unclear if there is a clear difference between Monistic Idealism and Spiritual Naturalism.

In India this concept is central to Vedanta philosophy and is similar to Jainism . It is also common in Hindu philosophies and Consciousness-Only schools of Buddhism.

Some New Age writers such as Deepak Chopra support this philosophy.

Panpsychism

In philosophy, panpsychism is the view that all physical reality has a mental aspect. Panpsychism can be understood as a form of idealism in that the fundamental constituents of reality are mental. However it can also be interpreted as a form of dualism — either property dualism or substance dualism. It is therefore unclear if Panpsychism is Monist idealist Pantheism or Dualist Pantheism.