Rulers of the Universe – Part One
It is safe to say that almost everyone alive on earth today believes in an objective universe. That is to say they believe they live in a world of real physical objects that exist separately from themselves. These objects are believed to be a part of nature, and as such are things over which they have little or no control.
Yet for thousands of years spiritual masters known as Rishis have taught that our views of ourselves, and of the universe, are mistaken. They claim that we do not know who we really are or what we can become. They point out that the universe that we think of as real does not exist outside of ourselves at all. It is in fact a projection of our minds. It exists only within our world of consciousness.
Because the world we see around us is a subjective phenomenon and not an objective reality, they teach us that we are actually the creators of everything that exists. Not only are we the creators of this universe, but each one of us has the power to change it if we wish. The miracles referred to in earlier instalments are merely examples of people who have done exactly that. They have done things that others have believed to be impossible.
In determining what is real and what is not, modern men and women have turned to science. Ever since Galileo challenged the teachings of the Church regarding objects that moved around in space, science has come to be accepted as the final arbiter in all matters regarding the outer world, leaving the Church to preside over our inner world of thoughts, emotions and desires.
Yet as we have seen from previous instalments, modern scientists have been unable to prove that the universe exists as a physical reality outside of ourselves. In fact the recent pronouncements of physicists have begun to sound more and more like the teachings of the ancient Rishis.
Let us return again to the example of the oak tree. Standing tall in our world of common experience, an oak tree appears to have undoubted existence and reality. Not only do we see it as an object separate from ourselves, but each one of our senses yields specific information about the tree which contributes to our overall assessment of the tree. We can see its size, feel its strength, taste and smell its texture, and hear it creaking in the wind.
But when we examine this oak tree in the cold light of scientific analysis, we find that the tree itself is composed of long, wooden fibres that are densely packed together. Upon closer study these wooden fibres are found to consist of tiny cells which are in turn composed of specific molecules. But these molecules are not solid bits of matter, for they themselves can be broken down into constituent atoms.
Even these atoms are are not basic indivisible units of matter, for they consist of yet smaller particles. These particles ultimately resolve themselves into complex patterns of energy that are constantly in motion. Not only is this energy always in motion, but it continually sparkles into existence and vanishes out of existence again into nothing. This empty void is referred to by physicists as the “quantum field”.
Far from clarifying the true nature of the oak tree, science seems to have robbed it of all meaning. For if this magnificent tree ultimately resolves itself into a flickering dance of particles, then the tree no longer has form, objectivity or strength, for all of these features have disappeared, for the particles that make up the tree are no different from the particles which make up all the other objects of the world, including our own bodies.
Nature as illuminated by science turns out to be a meaningless affair. The perfume exuded by the flower, or the song that can be heard in the murmuring of the surf cannot be found in the movement of the particles themselves, especially as science tells us that they move according to the random laws of chance. In fact, despite what our senses tell us, the latest findings of quantum physics tell us that the oak tree does not exist as a separate object at all. As Fritjof Capra explains:
“In the new world view, the universe is seen as a dynamic web of interrelated events. None of the properties of any part of this web is fundamental; they all follow from the properties of the other parts, and the overall consistency of their mutual interrelations determines the structure of the entire web.” (The Tao of Physics)
The oak tree is linked through an interplay of energy with each one of us, and also with the farthest star clusters of galactic space. Whatever action troubles the tree will, in some strange but inevitable fashion, come to trouble all of created life. The discoveries of quantum mechanics (the motions of these tiniest of particles called quanta), have borne out the intuition of the mystics. For as the English philosopher and poet William Blake wrote: “For not one sparrow can suffer and the whole universe not suffer also in all its regions.”
And, as we shall discover, it is this very interelatedness of life that endows us with the power to change the world around us, and be what we were destined to become, and that is the true rulers of the universe.
