FROM SPACE AND TIME TO SPACETIME
QUEST UNIVERSAL LEVEL FOUR PAPER
By Serge Mondjii
INTRODUCTION
In the Newton model, time and space (and whatever happens within them) are considered as separate and seen independent of any observer. Einstein significantly departed from this view as he introduced the notion of spacetime which describes a dimension where events are, unlike in classical physics, influenced by the observer. Hence we moved from a universe where time and space were seen as absolute to one where they were defined as relative.
Scientists in their attempt to explain our universe sensed there was something special about space and time The different theories they have elaborated have been credited to be at the origin of reality which in this context can be defined as the way we perceive the world at a given moment in time. Yet even when their application is very practical, few people seem to be truly aware of the scope of the impact that these different theories has had on our lives. Can we, should we be blamed for that? After all, is that necessary to think about the speed of sub atomic particles when switching the light on or to ponder on absolute or relative time when looking at a clock? Most likely it is not but in this essay we may see it would be beneficial to consider both aspects. Going back to early civilizations, we realize that space and time were viewed as sacred. The early views focused on a physical-emotional relation to space and time, often through the medium of several deities. It is difficult to understand today the psychology of these past eminently ritualistic cultures for whom, the time and place we ate, warred or reproduced, obeyed some form of ceremonial punctuated by religious beliefs (I suspect that the over dominance of rites served to anchor the evolution of a humanity which had emerged from an animal like instinctual conception of time). Today, in our everyday life, our experience and concerns about time and space revolve around specific issues such as:
What time is breakfast?
What is today’s timetable?
or
How far away is my promotion?
How wide is my office?
Where can I park my car and for how long?
In fact, for most of us, our approach to space or time is quasi as ritualistic as that of our ancestors, most people not having the means to become aware about the philosophical or scientific evolution that has impacted that field. The major difference is that the way we see time and space today reflects the materialist way we have grown to see the world and that along the centuries this relation has significantly grown in strength. I am not here trying to say that today people are worse than were our ancestors but at best that the right to become materialist has been democratized. Necessarily, the precision with which we measure time and space today when it comes to managing our daily lives is an example which reflects the impact of our obsession with the material aspect of life. As pointed out earlier, while modern man still relies heavily on ritual ( see paper the meaning of ritual, serge mondji, Morya 2010) these are not turned anymore towards the sacred but mostly honor the intense money oriented preoccupations of the “homo_kama_manasic “. In this essay I propose to look at the different causes of the evolution of. the concept of space time from the antiquity to today and see how they have impacted some of the way we relate to the world.
PRESCORATIC APPROACH
It seems that in the western hemisphere the first evolution of the concept of space time were driven by the need to mature and break away from the early emotional approach and develop a rational theory of cosmology. This approach initiated by the pre Socratic thinkers (Greece around 6oo BC) was (in this part of the world) the first conscious attempt to explain physical phenomena in scientific terms instead of appealing to the actions and desires of willful gods. However, in spite of their good will they failed to significantly break away from the mainly “circumstances specific system” of their forefathers and for the most part, the views developed by this school of thought were judged dogmatic and mostly arbitrary. For instance a critic of Parmenides, a pivotal figure among the pre-Socratics, was that by defending the view that what is real is permanent, he denied the reality of change. Among the many important later contributions, one that was remarkable is that of the 4th century Greek philosopher Aristotle, whose theory about cosmology dominated the thinking about space, time and the physical universe until the scientific revolution in the 1600's.
NEWTON THEORY
After a period of scientific obscurantism dominated by heavy and dogmatic religious beliefs, concerns about time and space resurfaced from the thirteenth through the sixteenth centuries, when European philosophers unearthed the then forgotten Aristotle’s metaphysics and natural philosophy to develop an integrated account of everything that was thought to exist. Unfortunately this attempt to propose a general theory of space and time bear no possibility to enlighten mankind as it was driven nor by reason and even less heart but by the sole attempt to glorify Church beliefs. Thus all the result of the “scientific” investigations needed to be favorable to Christian creed. It is in the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, at the dawn of the scientific revolution, first in astronomy and then, later, in physics, that a more balanced conception of time and space began to emerge. At last science broke away with a tradition of theories which worked only for few particular cases or worst, solely based on devotion . Of course the transition from the old to the new was gradual, but by 1687, with the publication by Isaac Newton (1642-1727) of his Principia Mathematica, the replacement was all but complete. Modern physical science had fully arrived, and it was said to be secular.
A fundamental assumption of classical physics of which Newton was a leader is that the objective world exists independently of any observations that are made on it. This does not mean that observations cannot affect it but it does mean that they do not necessarily affect it. Classical scientists used a popular example: a tree may fall in the forest whether or not it is observed to fall. Another fundamental assumption of classical physics is that both the position and velocity of an object can be measured with no limits on their precision except for those of the measuring instruments. In other words, the objective world is a precise world with no intrinsic uncertainty in it. Hence, time and space are absolute. That is, they measure and unfold the same way everywhere.( We will see further that the contestation of these assumptions about the observer and the relative/absolute conception of time and space are foundational to the development of post Newtonian physics). Clearly, Newton’ s ideas heralded the birth of a new age in physical theory, as he established the foundation of classical mechanics until the 20th century and the advent of Einstein theory of relativity and its later developments.
QUANTUM PHYSICS
It is such an injustice to Newton, Parmenides, Einstein and all the scientists mentioned (and those forgotten) in this paper to sum up these brilliant theories in such an over simplistic and often time inaccurate manner. But if I can just draw the attention of the reader to the hypothesis I am attempting to formulate that the above shift in conception of time is indeed a consequence of an evolution of spiritual beliefs then I hope to be partially forgiven. Indeed in an era dominated by the worship of the very rational scientific method, this link between science and religion could seem odd. However it is believed that, although Newton’s ideas thrived in the midst of the positivist movement, he nonetheless seemed to have been very religious. The truth may have been more nuanced . “In fact Newton is claimed to have adopted a positivism qualified as methodological because it recognized the autonomy of the scientific discourse without the renouncement when dealing with epistemology, metaphysics and theology. Thus although the universal law of gravitation is his most famous discovery, Newton warned those who would be tempted to see the universe as a simple machine that while gravity explains the movement of planet, it cannot explain whatever has set them in motion. God rules all and knows all that is or can be (2 ).
Newton position suggests to me that certain concepts in physical or other sciences, have such a wide universal breadth that their study cannot be separated from spirituality. There is a great range of possible combination. However,, in this area of the world, the concept of a biblically-inspired omnipotent and transcendent creator seemed to have been so entrenched in everyone’ s mind at that time that it is not surprising that among many possible other sources of spiritual inspiration it remained, even without the church ‘s constraint, the favored one. As far as time and space is concerned Newton seems to have simply replaced the word “God” by that of “the absolute”. That is Newton‘s constant references to an absolute time and space recalls the existence of a universal, omnipotent God. “Hence by proposing the idea of Absolute Space Time he was influenced by the Absolute concept in religion. Perhaps it was the influence of Monotheism that influenced Newton to replace a Monotheistic concept by a Mono-atheistic concept of Absolute Space Time”.(3) While the idea that spirituality and science are or should be deeply interconnected is not new, its expression has never been officially part of any formal intellectual process be it scientific or religious.. Scientific (and unfairly more rarely spiritual) materialism has been identified as one of the main causes which prevented science and spirituality to truly unfold as one. However, the truth seems more subtle; and could also involve the “schizophrenic split in humanity’s spiritual beliefs ( at lest in the western or westernized world). Indeed, the idea of a “Newtonian like” transcendent creator-God seems to have been consistently opposed to the idea of its possible immanent presence . There seems to exist irreconcilable differences between the Christian belief that god is outside creation, above all that exist and the idea that god was in the material world, in all that lives as it is the case in other religions and/or other epochs. Within the realm of western science, it could be that the problems observed were simply caused by the substitution of a transcendent omnipotent god to the benefit of a transcendent omnipotent science and scientists. Nature abhor vacuum we say. A more balance conception of religion may not have lead to the over exploitation of science for instance.
One should also ponder on the pitfall that would arise from a science led by the belief in a god viewed as solely immanent. Given the predominance of western science today, I lack the materials to conduct a superficial analysis. But I can imagine that a glamour arising from such science will be linked to mankind’s domination and prostitution of the inner aspect of the world.
Quite logically, the subsequent evolution of science needed to be able to reconcile transcendence and immanence. That is the point where space and time become spacetime . The birth of a holistic modern science can be credited to Einstein (and I am sure on many other of like-minded contemporary scientists) whose theories unlike that of Newton did “permit God to be (also) immanent”, that is, the possibility that it “interacts with the created order without interrupting the physical cause and effect system.” (4) Einstein does not seem to have said much on his religious belief, he seems to have preferred to keep that subject private. However while he may have been shy about it an evidence in his belief in a holistic vision of reality is clearly highlighted by his initial formulation of the special theory of relativity which produced the now famous equation e = mc2, which very broadly means that all mass, or matter, is nothing more than energy. This is exactly what the esoteric science suggests when it describes matter as being energy (spirit) in its lowest possible form. However while Einstein’s theories held the promise of consolidating a bridge over the long chiasm between immanent and transcendent conception of the universe, the surge of quantum theories highlighted the limitation of his theories. It came from the pioneers of quantum physics who unlike him had made very early their coming out about their spiritual background in the ancient Greek and eastern philosophers”.
QUANTUM PHYSICS AND ESOTERIC SCIENCE
A chain of correlated events are credited to have facilitated the emergence of a “post Einstenian” conception of the universe. Bell’s theorem and other experiments proved that any set of particles such as two or more atoms, electrons or photons that have interacted in a way that causes a coupling between them, can influence each other. The measurement on one particle will cause an instantaneous change in the other They demonstrate correlated properties even at distances where no communication is possible between them before, during or after the experiment. It seems an interpretation is that particles in opposite ends of the universe can momentarily influence each other provided they have had a coupling experience even if it is but for a mere few minutes. This of course was a major blow to Einstein’s theory. Indeed, If one wanted to invoke a signal to explain things, the signal would have to be travelling faster than light — more than 10,000 times the speed of light, in fact. To those who know that ” Einstein's relativity” sets the speed of light as a universal speed limit, the idea of signals travelling 10,000 times as fast as light already sets alarm bells shrieking. While some scientists have attempted to produce an explanation which could preserve Einstein’s ‘diktat’, to consider that the two particles are part of a common dynamical system appeared the most credible explanation. “These developments are so far said to be the most important developments in the history of physics and perhaps in the whole of science. “Non locality” as this physical phenomenon is called, gave rise “ to the idea of the interconnected wholeness of the world and non-local interactions in contrast to the separate identities with local interactions.” (6). Otherwise said, Quantum physics here supports one of the pillars of esoteric science that proposes the unity and interconnectedness of all things; under this schema the enlightened realize that their own physical and spiritual being is not separate from, or independent of, anything and everything else in the physical or ethereal worlds, but rather that ‘all are one’
The importance of the observer in both quantum physics and esoteric science also deserves to be mentioned. The observer determines our reality: Quantum theory, and its experiments confirm that space and time measurements are influenced by the relation of the observer with respect to what is being measured. The presence of the observers underlines the importance of consciousness. It thus confirms the findings of esoteric science, the idea that there is a subjective, inner world within and that consciousness (the observer) is the indispensable function of mind needed to illuminate it. This is in sharp contrast both with the predictions of Newtonian physics (where reality is seen to exist independently of consciousness (and its evolution) and with our everyday experience. We do not normally notice these ”quantum or esoteric” effects because, until today, we are trained to see the world only in a Newtonian fashion, in objective or again absolute terms, without the magnifying lens of our consciousness. Hence most of the real word remains outside the range of whatever we are able to experience. The way we apprehend space time seems to indicate that most of us are closer to a kind of physical-emotional relation to life not so different to that of our ancestor. This conclusion may come as surprising in an era when quantum technology is revolutionizing our way of life. Technology may improve our lives but it, does not tell us how to live it. Moreover, there seems to exist a lag time between the introduction of technology and its effect on our consciousness. That would explain why Newtonian space time is still probably the point of reference for many of us. A good example to me is how a great deal of humanity today is able to obtain information in real time and yet find difficult to react at a equivalent speed unless it is about material issues. To me this inertia is of definite Newtonian or pre Newtonian fragrance. For instance, few years ago the link between cancer and smoking was challenged by many including the tobacco industry. Today nobody would dare contest smoking is bad for health. It is probably the same kind of reasoning which denies the link between some of the environmental disasters we are heading to and the misuse of earth resources. The weakness of the revolution in society’s living patterns belies the over conspicuousness of easily accessible information on this subject. If anything it proves that the advent of humanity ‘s quantum brain and body is far ahead of us.
Yet all of us, intuitively, sense the importance of radically transcending the limitation of space and time. So far it remains in most cases the expression of the desire of the angry or spoiled children within us which we sometimes express under the following form: “right here, right now”. The contemplatives have brought what seems the appropriate answer to this compelling need. On the path we learn that it is through the development of our consciousness (through the sublimation of our lower desires) that we can transcend the illusion of time and space and escape the otherwise unending cycle of reincarnation. Unfortunately the training remains so arduous for most people that only some choose to complete it. Recent scientific breakthrough have been of great help to most of the modern aspirant but obviously the question about whether science can contribute better in helping the majority of the general public access the wider strata of their consciousness is of paramount importance. Some of the new directions that modern science is taking are encouraging.
SCIENCE TOMORROW
Indeed, anyone attempting to explore the universe with his mind can be struck by the parallel between what is revealed to his consciousness and what science is discovering. For instance we learn that only 4 percent of the universe is known (Hence we can draw the same conclusion about our consciousness). The overcoming of the limitation of space and time is necessarily linked to our ability to uncover the remaining 96 percent which we learn are made up of what science calls dark matter (23% of the universe) and dark energy (73% of the universe). Dark energy is the mysterious substance that scientists believe is pushing the universe apart, driving up the rate at which the cosmos expands. Whereas dark matter seems to be its opposite pushing effect which apparently helps to keep galaxies from spinning apart at the speeds at which they whirl. The push /pull effect is not without reminding me of Newton’s first law whose intimacy with the law of karma I had explored in a earlier essay(Science of Meaning, student paper , topic 25, year 2010 ) I also presented the law of karma from the perspective of quantum physicists. Today some scientists with a spiritual education or contemplatives with knowledge of physical science seem to believe that This dark matter and energy is the energy-matter of the higher planes. “We are aware that spirit is matter and matter is spirit in its densest form. Correspondingly we note that the light of matter, the material atom, is esoterically understood to be “dark light”, the inherent light of the material sheath. On a higher level, to those who recognise not the blazing light of Shamballa, this spiritual light is occultly referred to as “the dark light of Shamballa”. Therefore we have two opposite references to “dark light” or energy, provided for by occultism. Science calls dark energy the “vacuum energy” as its energy radiation is equivalent to that of an empty vacuum.” (7)
While esoteric science easily correlates dark light/energy to the highest expression of life, it was difficult to find the latter exact equivalent in modern science or at least not in a form that was “aspirant- friendly”. However, in esoteric literature (8) the scientific equivalent of the monad is a Black hole if we are to believe the above article. (A black hole is an extremely massive concentration of matter, created when the largest stars collapse at the end of their lives. Astronomers theorize that a point with infinite density—called a singularity—lies at the center of black holes. If we imagine that the internet, the radio, the TV and countless of other wonders of this century are a direct application of quantum physics, can we just begin to imagine the impact on humanity’ s consciousness when among other wonders of the universe, science manages to unveil the mysteries of a black hole ? I suspect that scientific applications will make it easier for a larger part of humanity to come closer to the gates of initiation.
Today, the scientific process of investigation requires the conjunction of many conditions of which luck plays no small part. It is another reason that supports the introduction of contemplative sciences in education‘s curriculum, including of physical sciences. The example drawn from this essay where the evolution in the spiritual beliefs of a small number of people is bringing radical change in some aspect of society also strongly supports this argument.
REFERENCES
1) Bradie, Michael and Duncan, Comer. The Evolution of the Concepts of Space and Time. The Birth of Rational Cosmology chap 2, http://physics.bgsu.edu/~gcd/Spacetime2.html.
(2 ) Friedman, M. From Theology to Transcendental Philosophy ww.rehseis.univ-paris-diderot.fr/IMG/.../Friedman_NewtonKant.pdf.
(3) Shama, Subhash. Quantum Vedanta: Towards A Future Convergence of Science and Spirituality* Dr. Subhash Sharma Indus Business Academy, Bangalore, www.shunyacreations.com/Quantum_Vedanta.pdf
(4) Andrews, L.E. Albert Einstein and Scientific Theology, Department of Philosophy, Liberty University Lynchburg, VA http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1205/1205.4278.pdf
(5,6) Vasavada, Kashyap. Modern Physics and Hindu Philosophy. Department of Physics, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) http://physics.iupui.edu/~vasavada/ModernPhysicsandHinduPhilosophy.pdf
(7) Condick, Jeremy P. Dark Light and the Monad. __http:%%//%%makara.us/04jpc/Dark%20Light%20and%20the%20Monad.htm__
(8) Lyon, Bruce. The Black Hole God, __www.esotericquarterly.com/issues/EQ01/.../EQ010104-__Lyon.pdf.