The
Western world loves to compartmentalize, creating boxes of separation
so that the complexities of life are easier to comprehend and simpler
to cope with. Such separation orientation worked well under the old scientific
models, wherein, at the macro level (a scale large enough to encompass
galaxies), Isaac Newton’s classical mechanics defined time and space as
absolute and at the subatomic quantum level, matter (in the form of
particles) and energy (as waves) were understood to be the tiny,
distinct building blocks of physical reality.
Integrating Your 4 Freedoms
Separation or Unity – What is the Nature of Reality?
The
Western world loves to compartmentalize, creating boxes of separation
so that the complexities of life are easier to comprehend and simpler
to cope with. We separate work from family life, spiritual practice
from sexuality, social policy from corporate profit, and art from
infrastructure. We manifest these divisions not only in society at
large but also within ourselves, separating our minds from our hearts
and our bodies from our souls.
Although there are many who
have helped instill this pattern of separation, one of the most
influential was the seventeenth-century French mathematician and
philosopher René Descartes. Descartes divided everything into two
mutually exclusive but interacting categories, “res cognitans” (the
subjective realm of consciousness and thought) and “res extensa” (the
objective realm of the material world). His distinction was very
useful, clearing the way for science to progress rapidly, free of
interference from the dogma of religious doctrine.
However,
since the time of Descartes, scientists considering consciousness have
primarily explored it from the perspective of “Where does consciousness
come from?” This question assumes that consciousness is dependent on or
derived from something else, usually material reality. In addition,
because science endeavors to be objective, focusing on the observable
and measurable and avoiding the subjective, the study of consciousness
(pure subjectivity) is often dismissed as outside the realm of natural
science altogether, thereby perpetuating separation of mind and body.
Such separation orientation worked well under the old scientific
models, wherein, at the macro level (a scale large enough to encompass
galaxies), Isaac Newton’s classical mechanics defined time and space as
absolute and at the subatomic quantum level, matter (in the form of
particles) and energy (as waves) were understood to be the tiny,
distinct building blocks of physical reality. With the birth of quantum
theory, and most recently string theory, this dualistic approach to
reality no longer neatly fits. Modern physics is entering a phase that
many of today’s best scientists describe as weird. Consider these
examples:
Matter can be converted into energy in
nuclear reactors, and energy can be converted into matter in
accelerators—they are interchangeable.
Subatomic
particles through “superposition of states” can be in many states at
once. Until an observer tries to measure the particle, it can be
located anywhere and have any speed. It is only the act of observation
that forces the particle to collapse into a particular state.i
Through
“quantum entanglement,”ii the condition of one particle can influence
the condition of another particle instantaneously at any distance.
All
subatomic particles exhibit a property known as “wave-particle
duality.”iii Inside the atom is the nucleus, inside the nucleus are
protons and neutrons, and inside the protons and neutrons are quarks.
When scientists want to study something too small to see even with the
most powerful microscopes, they will often look for and record evidence
that what they are studying leaves a trail behind. The trail left by
particles (matter) is different than the trail left by waves (energy).
However, this tiny thing they are observing will sometimes leave a
trail as if it were a particle and at the next observation will leave a
trail as if it were a wave. For example, light, most commonly assumed
to be a wave, is also a particle (the photon), while electrons,
generally considered particles, can also behave as waves. Whether
something behaves like a wave or a particle depends on the observer and
the type of observation. The observer and the observed cannot be
arbitrarily separated, even for the convenience of the scientist
attempting to remain objective.
