Voyage of discovery

There is no theoretical or scientific reason that requires the birthplace of the universe to be fifteen billion light years away. It is an empirical discovery. The point here is that these numbers do not follow from some prior scientific or philosophical theory about the universe; they follow from an extremely sophisticated measurement of the universe.

When the astronomers Vesto Slipher, Edwin Hubble, and others first began gathering data on the motion of galaxies, they had no idea they had embarked on an empirical investigation that would lead to the discovery of the universe's birthplace. They were simply observing the universe and carefully attending to the movements of the galaxies.

Sense of bafflement
It is significant that the very people who discovered the birthplace were shocked by the discovery. Some were depressed by it. Rather than trumpet their great achievement, they reported it with a sense of bafflement. Hubble, the very scientist whose work was central for convincing the scientific community that the universe had a birthplace, refused to make any interpretations; he simply published what he found, however strange it might appear to him. And Einstein, whose theory provided the deepest interpretation of the data, began by actually altering some of his best ideas in order to avoid confronting their radical implications. At the very least, we need to understand that they were not projecting their mathematical theories nor imposing their philosophical perspectives on the universe. They were, rather, attending to the movements and structures in the universe. They were, rather, listening deeply to the patterns in the photons that came to them each night in their observatories.

The seemingly innocent phrase "came to them" hides yet another important truth that we need to bear in mind. Scientists, and everyone else as well, can experience only what the universe brings to us here. What we know about the universe is gotten by listening to and reflecting on the news the universe brings.

Reaching into, not out
Take the Andromeda Galaxy. Every night throughout all the millions of years of human existence new photons of light have arrived from Andromeda. But it was not until we had painstakingly developed all the necessary tools, including telescopes and mathematics, but more generally all the arts and languages and conceptual capacities of modern homo sapiens, that we could penetrate into the information these light particles carried. The story of Andromeda and its three hundred billion stars and its circling spiral structure has been present to Earth all along. And no one ever had to journey to Andromeda to learn her story. Rather, humans had to develop the sensitivities necessary to awaken to the story that has been here throughout our entire existence.

We scientists tend to use phrases that speak of our ability to "reach deep into space". We speak of our invention of instruments that "probe the farthest regions of the universe". These are certainly valid expressions, but they can also give the mistaken impression that we actually "reach out" in some literal sense. There is no reaching out. Rather, we reach into our immediate experience.

Alive to the universe
We reach into a droplet of the universe, and we find there photons with wondrous stories from the farthest regions of the universe. All the books on the distant galaxies, all the tomes on the dynamics of neutron stars, all the studies of super red giants are, strictly speaking, explications of the stories that exist in each cubic centimetre of the universe. These stories have been there for all of human history, but not until recently have we been able to read them. Optical telescopes, infrared detectors, x-ray diffractions, and spectroscopic devices - all such instrumentations of modern astronomy aims at becoming sensitive to the news of the universe contained in each drop of the universe.

The discovery of the birthplace of the cosmos, then, is the discovery of the story that has been present from the beginning. The universe's primordial origin has been here with us for millions of years. Our own generation is simply the one to emerge at the time when human consciousness has become subtle enough and complex enough to awaken to what the universe has been telling us from the beginning.

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Journey of self-discovery

Even as children, we dream. We try to realise our dreams all throughout our lives. However, when our

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Surround yourself with humour

 Laughter elevates mood, promotes creativity and give us energy, writes Robin Sharma

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A contemporary religion

Whether religion is science is a question that has occupied a central place in debates among believers and the

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Whether God exists or not

Talking of beginnings and endings makes no sense if there is no clarity in the way we regard what we don't yet know, writes Bharat Bhushan Padmadeo

Does God exist? This controversy has been raked up yet again, this time by legendary theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow in their new book, The Grand Design. "God did not create the Universe and the 'Big Bang' was an inevitable consequence of the laws of physics. The fact that there is a law such as gravity, the Universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the Universe exists, why we exist." The concept they talk about, which they have named as 'M-theory', makes 'Creator of the Universe' redundant.

The oldest debate
The debate on the existence of God is as old as human existence itself. In the Indian context, many schools of philosophy that do not accept the authority of the Vedas do not acknowledge the existence of God. Even the Sankhya system, which otherwise acknowledges the authority of the Vedas, does not accept God as Creator.

Be that as it may, questions about the existence of God only enhance the credibility of the Vedantic concept of Advaita or non-dualism. Advaita, like science, holds the view that the manifest plural world with all its enormity and diversity is a reflection of a singularity — that there is a singular source of all animate and inanimate objects.

Coming back to the main question: Are scientists saying that the universe sprang out of nothing? Doesn't contemporary physics begin and end with the Big Bang theory? Then why close a question that almost wills itself to remain: No rational mind must accept the argument that anything beyond one's mental comprehension is non-existent.

Importantly, most scientists from the West speak from a perspective that includes an exposure to a Christian concept of God. Christianity assigns God an exclusive identity, different from the manifest, and which is not and cannot be accepted as the material cause of creation. Physics, on the other hand, hypothesises that all fundamental forces in nature, responsible for the making of this universe, must have existed in a unified state before they came into play.

Laws of physics
Can we deploy the laws of physics to discover answers to questions about how the universe came into being? The laws of physics continue to evolve, and often they are at complete variance with past findings. Physics has undergone several tectonic shifts since Newton gave us the laws of gravitation and Einstein, his theory of relativity. The laws underwent further changes when it emerged that the laws defining motion of gross bodies in the cosmos do not apply to the flight of energy particles at the sub-atomic level.

And now physics has added a new twist with its disagreement with Einstein's equivalence principle, which states that the laws of physics are the same everywhere. John Webb of the University of New South Wales in Australia presents evidence to suggest that the laws of physics are not the same everywhere. Seen in practical terms, so far the laws of physics stand out as partial theories — these are still in search of a closure that Hawking seems to be thrusting upon his readers.

The laws of physics may be able to partly explain the cosmos. But, so far, physics has not been able to establish a correlation between the primal source and man. Science fails to establish a continuum between the source and the manifest in practical terms; findings of physicists become abstract academic exercises.

Vedantic non-dualism
Perhaps an insight into the Vedantic concept of non-dualism, read along with the energy principle within the concept of Aum, may suit scientific minds better. For, it conforms to the three postulates of physics: Beginning from a singularity, Spontaneity and Chaos. The Vedantic concept acknowledges the existence of one and only primordial source — the boundary-less singularity, with no beginning or end — which remains the efficient and material cause of creation. In unmanifest state, it is perceived as being without form or perceptible attribute, but not without content. Evidently, such a state could be possible within the energy framework alone, so the primordial source is something of an energy-whole.

Vedanta describes Aum as pranava or primal sound associated with the first motion at primal source, following causal stress thereon. Causal stress increases, and becomes dense, and centralises the energy trinity — identified with 'A', 'U', and 'M' constituting Aum — gets excited with a roaring sound "Hum", a concept close to scientific perception; physicists acknowledge sound vibrations along with matter and light at the core of the universe. If the primordial source is taken as an energy whole, then it has to be a gigantic pool of unknowable quantities of energy particles. And with causal stress, because of mutual attraction among energy particles, the physical universe — very much in accordance with the laws of physics — is set into motion.

The primal source
The constituents at the primordial source, with their respective attributes, are so evenly balanced in their unmanifest form that they do not reflect any perceptible attribute. A particular mix of these constituents is evident in a person, and accounts for his individual specific traits. Second, the "consciousness element" emanating from the primal source, acting upon the particular energy platform identifiable with an existence, defines the varied dynamism of all beings.

In fact, the energy constituents and the consciousness element together hold the key to unity underlying all existences, and hence the continuum between the source and its manifest. In this light, the world becomes intensely interlinked; no individual component has an identity independent of the whole. With the power of free will, man can guide his actions by moral and ethical choices and even influence the environment through his efforts.

As the Mother, the spiritual associate of Sri Aurobindo, wrote, "Without Him, I exist not; without me, He is unmanifest." Such is the continuum between the primal source and man. Evidently, therefore, a knowledge that does not fully explain the complex inter-play between the two can never satisfy the searching mind.

Who or what is God?
In such a complex set-up, who or what is God? It is not a person. However, God is ever-personalising in the form of all individual things in the world. Or it can be called the aggregate of all such personalities everywhere in the Universe. And, it can be said to have a persona in the sense that the energy constituents emerging therefrom find reflection in terms of varying attributes in a man.

God is the phenomenon called the world. God is completeness, constituting the source, the manifest, and the laws driving this mechanism individually and collectively, including the functionalities of man. And, godliness is exploring the unity underlying all existences. In pursuing this line of gnosis, one realises that the world is an organic whole, where all constituents discharge their tasks in support of each other, and that the efforts of all put together carry forward this dynamic world. It then becomes possible to realise that we need to be in harmony with our internal as well as external worlds. The domain of God is, therefore, far wider than the abstract laws of physics, vital to our qualitative existence in holistic terms.

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Let conscience reign

There might have been many exceptions to Freud's view suggesting, the nicest person has the nastiest thought. One premise that still remains debatable is concerning nicety and self-control. Nicety is not sufficient for self-control. When we do not have self-control, there is a nagging frustration in our subconscious mind, which prompts us to designate others as indecent. This is an easy mechanism for deriving self-satisfaction. Fortunately the law of nature is just and impartial: sooner or later the truth comes out.

Evil never dies: it is as intrinsic as the good is. The twin co-exists in us. It is constant introspection and self-analysis that makes us aware of our thought process and helps us control the mind. The left toe of goddess Durga presses down on asura - an imagery representing conscience over-powering the evil in us. Evil can arise anytime, it cannot be killed, it can only be made subservient to our conscience.

All of us have a conscience. To what extent we are able to accept its command is a critical question. Religion, by making us god-fearing, brings clarity and stability necessary in the initial stages. It enables us to analyse and understand. We become mature enough to experience realisation. Without realisation, the knowledge that we acquire is useless. Ramakrishna says one has to delve deep in the ocean to find gems. Waves on the surface yield nothing. If you have a good memory, you may remember all the scriptures but if you don't practise what they preach, why waste time in learning them.

For self-analysis, being truthful is of paramount importance. Your ego should not interfere in the thought process, the mantra should be 'let me be truthful, at least to myself.' Once you start practising this sincerely, you will be able to take a big step towards being perfect. On the other hand, by believing that we are perfect, we only allow ignorance to dominate us. Justifying a wrong action to the self is perhaps the biggest crime on earth. On the other hand, repentance, as every religion preaches, is the greatest tool for correcting wrong actions.

We have only one life at our disposal. Why not take full advantage of it and be at peace and bestow peace on others around us? If we don't scrutinise our own thoughts and actions, we become set in our ideas and justify our thoughts. The inability to analyse the self makes one adamant and self-justifying. On failing to convince everybody, most people become vindictive. It kills the self, gradually, unknowingly. One day the person realises that he has become a liability.

Spiritual master Sharada Devi recommends productive activity to keep the mind constantly engaged and to avoid negative thoughts.

Creative activities, meditation and social service help us in emptying out the mind so that it can hold newer things.

According to the Bhagavad Gita, no action is perfect: so withdrawal from karma, fearing criticism is not the solution. The role of conscience, in this regard, is important. It creates a positive impact and minimises social evil. If we are conscious of this fact, a better world, with less strife, can emerge. With greater possibility of convergence, an efficient system will emerge to ensure greater welfare. The mind will acquire the ability to rise above dogmas. It will think creatively, from which will emerge new discoveries and paradigms.

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Return to innocence

Live from the heart; with an open heart, you can feel things as they are without the burden of past conditioning, writes Paula Horan.

Happiness is something we all unconsciously seek and more so when times get tough. Ironically, I have discovered, after many years of trial and error, that happiness is not the ideal objective. Life is fraught with ups and downs, even in the best of times. There will always be periods of happiness and periods of pain, comfort and discomfort. Thus the equanimity which fosters contentment is perhaps a wiser aspiration which when pursued, requires us to wake up to who we are, minus the veil of ego.

It is eminently more practical, to get in touch with and anchor ones attention with the true self — the awareness within us which is unaffected by life's ups and downs — than to try and "fix" the mind and make it happy. Fixes are always only temporary. It behoves us to discover the 'beingness' that we are, which rests in a perfect state of equanimity, no matter what outer circumstances may be; whether they are good or bad.

Shed your ego
It is ultimately who we are, minus ego identification. This presence is always with us, for it is our essential nature, yet while we are identified with a busy mind, we fail to notice it. A certain shedding of mental burdens has to happen so that it can be felt and directly experienced. The most direct way to do this is to shed the burdened one with all of its various masks. For this to occur, the illusory experiencer (ego) has to be unveiled.

From this perspective, the problems and challenges of everyday life take on a whole new meaning. All at once, nothing changes and yet everything changes. We cease to take life so personally because we realise there is no "personal" self to begin with. Instead, we begin to perceive the vastness of who we are: wholly indefinable, wholly unknowable.

As we begin to feel and experience this vastness, it is clear that we can never know with the intellect the unlimited spaciousness of That. You begin to notice what quantum physics has made very clear, that there is only one vast continuum of energy. There are no real boundaries between us. Even the body's sack of skin, which seems to set us apart and separate us from other similar bodies, is ultimately a formless vibrating frequency of energy when viewed with a subatomic microscope.

Ignore past conditioning
As we begin to peek through the boundaries of the conceptual mind, our previous comfort zone, bound by our encyclopaedic memory of the past, with continued noticing, loses its hypnotic quality. The freshness of living a true present, unaided by past programming, gradually becomes more appealing.

To remove the veil of ego is not easy. All of samsara and its fantasies beckon us to remain complacent and to settle for far less. It requires fortitude and a kind of fierceness which is willing to surrender again and again to the will of the heart and cut through the slothful meandering mind, to make it through the mire of conditioned thought. Ultimately, an intense degree of vigilance, a willingness to stay open and present with what is, is necessary to regain our sanity. No less than a fierce sort of innocence is needed to cut through the bewilderment of an ego identified with what isn't really so.

Live from the heart
What is called for now, is a return to innocence, an innocence which must be intensely present with what is. Fierce energy keeps us in the present. The fierceness is not to protect our innocence, for it needs no protection, but to make it come alive, to fuel an open heart. Contrary to what we normally think, true strength lies in the vulnerability of an open heart; not in a heart which is closed. With an open heart, we can feel things as they are without the burden of past conditioning.

When we are fully present in our heart, we cannot be fooled. Unlike the ego-automatic mind which can easily be conned because it cannot feel; it can only think dualistically. The heart can easily tune in with the hearts of others and feel their motivation and their real need. When we can feel the motivation behind others' actions, which are often, fear based, we are less likely to fall prey to the same fear ourselves. Instead, we can choose to react in a loving way which often disarms fear, or if needed, we can use tough love which can also produce the desired effect. Either way, a return to innocence enables us to circumnavigate the illusory ego's clever roadblocks and live from the heart.

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