NON-DUALITY
![Picture](/uploads/4/5/1/6/4516117/editor/67342704-416718945853778-6261226053075730432-n.jpg?1634419508)
The Enigma of All Enigmas: "Nothing has ever happened"
[This conclusion is consistent with Quantum Theory!]
“Nothing has happened” - to be able to understand this is very fortunate. If you can understand that nothing has happened, you have indeed been blessed with inner vision.” — Anandamayi Ma
This quote of Anandamayi Ma contains perhaps the deepest non-dual mystery that there is. And quantum mechanics points to this same truth of non-duality that the mystics have realized.
The Non-dual Wavefunction Ѱ
To understand this profound mystery in light of quantum mechanics, let me briefly explain what a wavefunction is in quantum theory as it is central to this understanding. Quantum physics tells us that each quantum system, regardless of the number of components, can be assigned a single wave function that contains all the information about the system as whole. The quantum system can contain one electron or a billion, even the entire Universe, but in ANY case one wave function is enough to describe the entire system. This holism is one of the central hallmarks of quantum mechanics that is not present in classical or Newtonian physics. Quantum mechanics treats its objects whether an atom of a galaxy, as a whole and not as composed of separate parts. There is an intrinsic connection, called entanglement, between the seemingly separate components of the whole of which quantum mechanics is aware.
Ѱ of the Universe
You might object and say quantum theory is a theory for the very small, how can there be a wavefunction of the Universe? While there is a debate on this issue, more and more evidence of quantum macroscopic occurrences, along with evidence from Loop Quantum Gravity, points to this shocking conclusion. All the quantum weirdness of the very small, extends to the entire Cosmos.
1) Correspondance Principle
2) Macroscopic Quantum
3) Dewitt's equation
In 1966, American physicist Bryce Dewitt combined quantum mechanics and general relativity to obtain what was the first quantum theory of cosmology. This was a monumental event, because it was the first time, the notion of a "wavefunction of the universe" entered scientific literature. What Dewitt found this wavefunction ONLY depends of spatial geometry, there is NO TIME!
This wavefunction describes a stationary universe with zero total energy. This model only gives a static picture of the Cosmos. To get anything to happen in this Universe, different wavefunctions representing different quantum states of space must be added together and put into superposition. But even with this Paradoxical Everything and Nothing, Static and Dynamic Quantum universe, the wavefunction of possibilities or superpositions must collapse for anything to happen.
When applied to the entire universe using DeWitt's model, it does reintroduce a time evolution, but only an evolution of the superpositions, so still nothing is happening until there is a measurement. Why? Because this superposition of possibilities is outside of space and time altogether, it is not like an electron is physically in many places at once, it literally does not exist in space time AT ALL until measured!
This brings us to another important feature of quantum systems that is counterintuitive is the idea of superposition. The wave function not only connects all the seemingly separate components in one Whole, but encodes a spectrum of possibilities or potentia as Heisenberg called them. This means a quantum particle can literally be many places at once, or many different frequencies at once, or any possible history or trajectory all at once limited only by the constraints of the experiment or system.
Literally nothing is happening until a conscious observer makes a measurement! What we observe as an actual measurement in reality is a collapse of this wavefunction of all possible states to a single particular state or observable, like position (where is it). This collapse pins down say an electron into one location (or outcome) of many.
Note: we could also measure momentum, energy, spin or other observables too, but position is easiest to grasp. But even this collapse of creating an electron into a particular location is an illusion. Nothing ultimately collapses only apparently so, just as the reality you see through you 5 senses is only apparently real, but not ultimately so as the non-dual mystics tell us.
Here is how we can explain why: Since any quantum system is given one wave function that collapses only upon interaction with an environment or conscious observer, what would happen if we defined our system to include the whole universe without leaving anything out? (Note: Stephen Hawking and many leading physicists have done this and it is not only allowable in quantum theory, but it is inevitable). So let’s define our quantum system to be the whole of the universe.
We assign to this whole system a single wave function, representing the largest possible universe or even multiverse that contains all that is. This leads us to the enigma of all enigmas:
The wavefunction of the ENTIRE universe can never collapse due to the way we defined the system. That is, there is nothing existing outside the entire wavefunction of the universe to measure or observe it, if it indeed contains everything, including the totality of consciousness. It never collapses into any actuality! This universe, our universe, as a totality, is always in a superposition state; it remains forever in a state of pure potentiality. To sum it up: Our universe cannot possibly be real; it cannot have come into existence.
NOTHING HAS HAPPENED!
Perhaps now you can better appreciate Richard Feynman's famous quote:
"I think it is safe to say that no one understands quantum mechanics"
But with a non-dual mystical realization this can be known, not as a theory or mental understanding, but as a direct perception or mystical illumination.
Knowing: To Know is to Collapse the wavefunction. But we can ONLY collapse a subsystem, never the WHOLE. We put a box around a certain region in space at a given time and we measure this quantum system by being outside of it, ONLY by being outside of it. The observation or measurement collapses all the possibilites encoded by this wavefunction (called a mixed state).
Its like we have to chop off all the entanglements with the rest of the universe to observe, well anything!
[This conclusion is consistent with Quantum Theory!]
“Nothing has happened” - to be able to understand this is very fortunate. If you can understand that nothing has happened, you have indeed been blessed with inner vision.” — Anandamayi Ma
This quote of Anandamayi Ma contains perhaps the deepest non-dual mystery that there is. And quantum mechanics points to this same truth of non-duality that the mystics have realized.
The Non-dual Wavefunction Ѱ
To understand this profound mystery in light of quantum mechanics, let me briefly explain what a wavefunction is in quantum theory as it is central to this understanding. Quantum physics tells us that each quantum system, regardless of the number of components, can be assigned a single wave function that contains all the information about the system as whole. The quantum system can contain one electron or a billion, even the entire Universe, but in ANY case one wave function is enough to describe the entire system. This holism is one of the central hallmarks of quantum mechanics that is not present in classical or Newtonian physics. Quantum mechanics treats its objects whether an atom of a galaxy, as a whole and not as composed of separate parts. There is an intrinsic connection, called entanglement, between the seemingly separate components of the whole of which quantum mechanics is aware.
Ѱ of the Universe
You might object and say quantum theory is a theory for the very small, how can there be a wavefunction of the Universe? While there is a debate on this issue, more and more evidence of quantum macroscopic occurrences, along with evidence from Loop Quantum Gravity, points to this shocking conclusion. All the quantum weirdness of the very small, extends to the entire Cosmos.
1) Correspondance Principle
2) Macroscopic Quantum
3) Dewitt's equation
In 1966, American physicist Bryce Dewitt combined quantum mechanics and general relativity to obtain what was the first quantum theory of cosmology. This was a monumental event, because it was the first time, the notion of a "wavefunction of the universe" entered scientific literature. What Dewitt found this wavefunction ONLY depends of spatial geometry, there is NO TIME!
This wavefunction describes a stationary universe with zero total energy. This model only gives a static picture of the Cosmos. To get anything to happen in this Universe, different wavefunctions representing different quantum states of space must be added together and put into superposition. But even with this Paradoxical Everything and Nothing, Static and Dynamic Quantum universe, the wavefunction of possibilities or superpositions must collapse for anything to happen.
When applied to the entire universe using DeWitt's model, it does reintroduce a time evolution, but only an evolution of the superpositions, so still nothing is happening until there is a measurement. Why? Because this superposition of possibilities is outside of space and time altogether, it is not like an electron is physically in many places at once, it literally does not exist in space time AT ALL until measured!
This brings us to another important feature of quantum systems that is counterintuitive is the idea of superposition. The wave function not only connects all the seemingly separate components in one Whole, but encodes a spectrum of possibilities or potentia as Heisenberg called them. This means a quantum particle can literally be many places at once, or many different frequencies at once, or any possible history or trajectory all at once limited only by the constraints of the experiment or system.
Literally nothing is happening until a conscious observer makes a measurement! What we observe as an actual measurement in reality is a collapse of this wavefunction of all possible states to a single particular state or observable, like position (where is it). This collapse pins down say an electron into one location (or outcome) of many.
Note: we could also measure momentum, energy, spin or other observables too, but position is easiest to grasp. But even this collapse of creating an electron into a particular location is an illusion. Nothing ultimately collapses only apparently so, just as the reality you see through you 5 senses is only apparently real, but not ultimately so as the non-dual mystics tell us.
Here is how we can explain why: Since any quantum system is given one wave function that collapses only upon interaction with an environment or conscious observer, what would happen if we defined our system to include the whole universe without leaving anything out? (Note: Stephen Hawking and many leading physicists have done this and it is not only allowable in quantum theory, but it is inevitable). So let’s define our quantum system to be the whole of the universe.
We assign to this whole system a single wave function, representing the largest possible universe or even multiverse that contains all that is. This leads us to the enigma of all enigmas:
The wavefunction of the ENTIRE universe can never collapse due to the way we defined the system. That is, there is nothing existing outside the entire wavefunction of the universe to measure or observe it, if it indeed contains everything, including the totality of consciousness. It never collapses into any actuality! This universe, our universe, as a totality, is always in a superposition state; it remains forever in a state of pure potentiality. To sum it up: Our universe cannot possibly be real; it cannot have come into existence.
NOTHING HAS HAPPENED!
Perhaps now you can better appreciate Richard Feynman's famous quote:
"I think it is safe to say that no one understands quantum mechanics"
But with a non-dual mystical realization this can be known, not as a theory or mental understanding, but as a direct perception or mystical illumination.
Knowing: To Know is to Collapse the wavefunction. But we can ONLY collapse a subsystem, never the WHOLE. We put a box around a certain region in space at a given time and we measure this quantum system by being outside of it, ONLY by being outside of it. The observation or measurement collapses all the possibilites encoded by this wavefunction (called a mixed state).
Its like we have to chop off all the entanglements with the rest of the universe to observe, well anything!
![Picture](/uploads/4/5/1/6/4516117/editor/2ae6fe2608b32550002b07be66b89650.jpg?1634146485)
Quantum Physics in a Spiritual Framework
Quantum physics makes the most sense in a spiritually non-dual framework vs a materialistic and dualistic framework. Interestingly you can interpret Quantum physics from both paradigms, but it "fits" and makes much more sense embedded within a spiritual or metaphysical framework.
In the standard scientific materialism model, there exists two domains in the nature. The quantum world of the very small, and the large macroscopic world we see and experience through our five senses and perceptions. The quantum weirdness of non-locality, entanglement, wave-particle duality, superpositions, tunneling, quantum teleportation, etc., have no logical connection to the world we know if viewed with scientific materialism. What is worse is to know or learn about the quantum realm, the very acting of measuring, looking or observing it, changes it. That is, the wave function describing a quantum system collapses. So there are two discontinuous quantum theories. The first is the theory of the evolution of a quantum system guided by a wave function that contains all possibilities of the system. The second theory, called the measurement problem, involves the observation of the quantum system that causes a collapse or reduction to one outcome only. It is a problem because they have no connection to each other, and as such Quantum mechanics is taught in these two steps.
The crux of this measurement problem is the prevalent scientific materialism worldview, called scientism, that has particles as separated objects “out there” in space and time which are then further separated from the subjective observer. So you have separated objects in an objective reality, that exist in a different domain then our subjective reality of perceptions, feelings, impressions, thoughts etc. This mind-body problem is still very much a problem even to this day, and it is because of this split, that quantum mechanics makes no sense. But it only makes no sense, because it is embedded a worldview or framework for which it doesn’t fit.
By simply shifting the worldview or framework of quantum mechanics to a spiritual and non-dual framework, all these problems are resolved. And to be clear, it is the SAME quantum mechanical principles science has discovered, but these ideas are now nested in a spiritual framework where they find a much better home.
The shift is this: instead of separate material objects (including quantum particles) existing objectively and dualistically separately from subjective awareness, these objects are now seen to be made of only One Substance, as spatial reflexive relations that exist within this one universal awareness, or also if you like being, consciousness, emptiness, or whatever word you like. But this universal one substance, is radically non-dual and unified. The intimate awareness we experience subjectively is also the same awareness that is the source and ground of all creation. That is, space, time, matter, energy, light, emotions, thoughts, are all made of this One primordial awareness. And to be clear, I am using the word awareness in a non-dual fashion. There is no “other” to be aware "of". There is only awareness. And as such the apparent collapse of the wave-function in quantum mechanics is an illusion. And there is no collapse, if quantum entanglement is properly understood, even within standard quantum theory, because you can always look at any isolated subsystem from a greater system or perspective (see my article I wrote on this - link in comments). And ultimately creating ANY SORT of an isolated system or subsystem is totally an illusion. Everything always remains quantumly entangled. Besides, how can you separate ANYTHING from oneness? You cannot.
It takes quantum mechanics to really see and understand this non-duality scientifically because our five senses operating in the macroscopic domain paint the illusory picture of subject/object duality very convincingly and Newtonian Physics only reinforces this illusion. It really takes peering all the way down to tiny fundamental particles, for awareness to see awareness scientifically. It really is amazing to me having this revelation!
Meditation and spiritual practices allow us to have this powerful realization subjectively, which unfolds objectively into a non-dual understanding from the inside out. Quantum mechanics is going the other direction by seeing it objectively which then points to the non-dual understanding from the outside in. I strongly feel by really “getting this”, if can really change your life! Science and spirituality are not-two, they are radically One and the same if we choose the spiritual framework or worldview to place them both in!
Quantum physics makes the most sense in a spiritually non-dual framework vs a materialistic and dualistic framework. Interestingly you can interpret Quantum physics from both paradigms, but it "fits" and makes much more sense embedded within a spiritual or metaphysical framework.
In the standard scientific materialism model, there exists two domains in the nature. The quantum world of the very small, and the large macroscopic world we see and experience through our five senses and perceptions. The quantum weirdness of non-locality, entanglement, wave-particle duality, superpositions, tunneling, quantum teleportation, etc., have no logical connection to the world we know if viewed with scientific materialism. What is worse is to know or learn about the quantum realm, the very acting of measuring, looking or observing it, changes it. That is, the wave function describing a quantum system collapses. So there are two discontinuous quantum theories. The first is the theory of the evolution of a quantum system guided by a wave function that contains all possibilities of the system. The second theory, called the measurement problem, involves the observation of the quantum system that causes a collapse or reduction to one outcome only. It is a problem because they have no connection to each other, and as such Quantum mechanics is taught in these two steps.
The crux of this measurement problem is the prevalent scientific materialism worldview, called scientism, that has particles as separated objects “out there” in space and time which are then further separated from the subjective observer. So you have separated objects in an objective reality, that exist in a different domain then our subjective reality of perceptions, feelings, impressions, thoughts etc. This mind-body problem is still very much a problem even to this day, and it is because of this split, that quantum mechanics makes no sense. But it only makes no sense, because it is embedded a worldview or framework for which it doesn’t fit.
By simply shifting the worldview or framework of quantum mechanics to a spiritual and non-dual framework, all these problems are resolved. And to be clear, it is the SAME quantum mechanical principles science has discovered, but these ideas are now nested in a spiritual framework where they find a much better home.
The shift is this: instead of separate material objects (including quantum particles) existing objectively and dualistically separately from subjective awareness, these objects are now seen to be made of only One Substance, as spatial reflexive relations that exist within this one universal awareness, or also if you like being, consciousness, emptiness, or whatever word you like. But this universal one substance, is radically non-dual and unified. The intimate awareness we experience subjectively is also the same awareness that is the source and ground of all creation. That is, space, time, matter, energy, light, emotions, thoughts, are all made of this One primordial awareness. And to be clear, I am using the word awareness in a non-dual fashion. There is no “other” to be aware "of". There is only awareness. And as such the apparent collapse of the wave-function in quantum mechanics is an illusion. And there is no collapse, if quantum entanglement is properly understood, even within standard quantum theory, because you can always look at any isolated subsystem from a greater system or perspective (see my article I wrote on this - link in comments). And ultimately creating ANY SORT of an isolated system or subsystem is totally an illusion. Everything always remains quantumly entangled. Besides, how can you separate ANYTHING from oneness? You cannot.
It takes quantum mechanics to really see and understand this non-duality scientifically because our five senses operating in the macroscopic domain paint the illusory picture of subject/object duality very convincingly and Newtonian Physics only reinforces this illusion. It really takes peering all the way down to tiny fundamental particles, for awareness to see awareness scientifically. It really is amazing to me having this revelation!
Meditation and spiritual practices allow us to have this powerful realization subjectively, which unfolds objectively into a non-dual understanding from the inside out. Quantum mechanics is going the other direction by seeing it objectively which then points to the non-dual understanding from the outside in. I strongly feel by really “getting this”, if can really change your life! Science and spirituality are not-two, they are radically One and the same if we choose the spiritual framework or worldview to place them both in!
![Picture](/uploads/4/5/1/6/4516117/editor/2021-10-09-13-11-34.png?1633888035)
**Why Quantum Mechanics is Non-dual**
What has amazed me is quantum mechanics FINALLY makes total sense in a non-dual framework, something which can seem nonsensical if viewed from a dualistic mindset that science and society at large seems to be stuck in. The simple and sad reason for this pervasive duality, is that it is sadly hard-wired into our sensory awareness and conditioning. We see a separate world of Nature, people and things "out there" that seems convincingly separate from our subjective thoughts, feelings, and perceptions "in here".
And it turns out, upon careful analysis of quantum mechanics, science is ALSO telling us that the universe as a whole is radically non-dual as well. All the energy, every particle, and all of spacetime is quantumly entangled and it is this phenomenon that connects all that is in a unity of divine being. You could say consciousness or spirit underlies and is one with all matter and energy. But there is only One ultimate substance, this is something science and spirituality agree upon in the final analysis, even if disagreeing on terminology. The evidence in science is the Grand Unifying theories that trace all matter and energy back to one super force or unified equation. Even though science has not found that equation (and maybe never will), their goal is still to unify all the forces and particles.
So here is what I realized in quantum mechanics that makes it non-dual at its core. I promise if you really "get this", your life will change!
Hopefully you are familiar with the basics of the double slit experiment, polarizer experiments or the Schrodinger's Cat. Basically the gist is this: A quantum system of any kind remains in a strange superposition of all possible states encoded in a wave function that evolves all these possible states until a measurement is made by a conscious observer with a detecting instrument or apparatus of some kind. For example, in the double slit experiment, we look at the wave function of one electron and the two slit setup, and rather shockingly, we see one electron is spread out like a wave and goes through BOTH SLITS AT ONCE! This is absolutely something that matter is not supposed to be able to do (be in two places at once). This is seen on a detector screen if we shoot one electron at a time and take a large sample, the end result pattern is identical to spread out wave interference patterns.
But, if an experimenter, let's call him Bob, puts a detector at one of the two slits and tries to "look" at it, it collapses to what seems to be a very real and solid electron in the "watched" slit detector. That is, it becomes the little particle "out there" we think we all know. But how can that be? It makes no sense that electrons, which are particles, should spread out like waves, and only become (almost magically) particles when we "look" at them? This collapse of the wave function, also called the measurement problem, has baffled scientists and physicist even up to this very DAY!
Nonduality to the rescue!
What is happening upon the "illusory" collapse of the wavefunction is we are creating a duality that is really not there. There is ONLY the non-dual ONE that could be encoded in a sort of wavefunction of the universe. It is purely an illusion that we are seeing the electron as a particle SEPARATE from us, and OUTSIDE of us.
Why am I so confident? Because you can show the wave function actually did NOT collapse but simply became entangled with the detector. From this very correct perspective of quantum mechanics, the pure nondual wave function safely avoids collapse. But wait a minute, you might say, that is all fine and good, but say a scientist Bob, as an observer "looks" at the new entangled state of detector and electron and sees for himself (consciously) that the detector indeed registered a location of the electron (say the left slit). But seen from the non-dual quantum perspective (and again very correct), now Bob, the detector and the electron are now all three in an entangled state. Again quantum mechanics works fine and no collapse is needed, which means no duality. But hold on, you might say, perhaps someone else, say Alice can walk in and see that Bob is indeed viewing the electron in the detector at a precise location. So alas, the wave function does collapse and we see our electron "out there" in the "real world" as a particle with a location. Right?
But not so fast, quantum mechanical entanglement says NOW the electron, the detector, Bob AND Alice are all four now entangled. Again quantum mechanics works fine and no collapse or duality is necessary. Then Charlie can come in, and on and on we can go with an endless number of lookers that can ALL in the end remain in one large entangled state, the wave function of the Universe. In this ultimate wave function no collapse ever happens, only non-dual wave function continuously and wondrously evolves throughout spaceless space and timeless time giving rise to the apparent manifest universe, whose ultimate nature is both real and unreal, but certainly NOT dual, just as we are non-dual too!
There is no last looker that can collapse anything, for that would require something outside of Oneness, and there is nothing that is outside of oneness, not even God! There is only the Non-dual mystery and feel free to call it what you like, but it most certainly is not part of any duality, because all duality in the universe, without exception is an ILLUSION!
----
You can play this game with the Schrodinger Cat Paradox too, as Eugene Wigner did by invoking Wigner's friends (which is just Alice, Charlie, and an endless line of lookers ad infinitum). But could God or a universal consciousness be the ultimate or final Looker? Up until recently I thought this was the case. That is, God is the final looker that collapses the wave function of creation into the Universe we all know. But this doesn't work because the wave function of the universe cannot have any sort of "other" to look at it. It remains pure and non dual, never collapsed, not even by God. But things get a little tricky trying to explain this, because the wave function itself is a mathematical tool or probability calculus that can be used to see the evolution of the wave function, and possible experiment outcomes if we evoke the dualistic collapse. And we do not have a wave function of the Universe, but this is a possibility in the framework of quantum mechanics. God or ultimate consciousness as Source is beyond all such descriptions. But there is one thing quantum mechanics points to, and that is this Ultimate Reality is itself a radically whole, interconnected, and entangled non dual ultimate reality.
But you might be saying, but at some point there must be a LAST LOOKER that could finally sees the electron manifest in the real world. And in saying this you would be WRONG in the ultimate sense, because no matter HOW MANY lookers gaze upon this, quantum mechanics can always entangle each sub-system or looker in a larger system all the way up to the entirely of the multidimensional multiverse.
What has amazed me is quantum mechanics FINALLY makes total sense in a non-dual framework, something which can seem nonsensical if viewed from a dualistic mindset that science and society at large seems to be stuck in. The simple and sad reason for this pervasive duality, is that it is sadly hard-wired into our sensory awareness and conditioning. We see a separate world of Nature, people and things "out there" that seems convincingly separate from our subjective thoughts, feelings, and perceptions "in here".
And it turns out, upon careful analysis of quantum mechanics, science is ALSO telling us that the universe as a whole is radically non-dual as well. All the energy, every particle, and all of spacetime is quantumly entangled and it is this phenomenon that connects all that is in a unity of divine being. You could say consciousness or spirit underlies and is one with all matter and energy. But there is only One ultimate substance, this is something science and spirituality agree upon in the final analysis, even if disagreeing on terminology. The evidence in science is the Grand Unifying theories that trace all matter and energy back to one super force or unified equation. Even though science has not found that equation (and maybe never will), their goal is still to unify all the forces and particles.
So here is what I realized in quantum mechanics that makes it non-dual at its core. I promise if you really "get this", your life will change!
Hopefully you are familiar with the basics of the double slit experiment, polarizer experiments or the Schrodinger's Cat. Basically the gist is this: A quantum system of any kind remains in a strange superposition of all possible states encoded in a wave function that evolves all these possible states until a measurement is made by a conscious observer with a detecting instrument or apparatus of some kind. For example, in the double slit experiment, we look at the wave function of one electron and the two slit setup, and rather shockingly, we see one electron is spread out like a wave and goes through BOTH SLITS AT ONCE! This is absolutely something that matter is not supposed to be able to do (be in two places at once). This is seen on a detector screen if we shoot one electron at a time and take a large sample, the end result pattern is identical to spread out wave interference patterns.
But, if an experimenter, let's call him Bob, puts a detector at one of the two slits and tries to "look" at it, it collapses to what seems to be a very real and solid electron in the "watched" slit detector. That is, it becomes the little particle "out there" we think we all know. But how can that be? It makes no sense that electrons, which are particles, should spread out like waves, and only become (almost magically) particles when we "look" at them? This collapse of the wave function, also called the measurement problem, has baffled scientists and physicist even up to this very DAY!
Nonduality to the rescue!
What is happening upon the "illusory" collapse of the wavefunction is we are creating a duality that is really not there. There is ONLY the non-dual ONE that could be encoded in a sort of wavefunction of the universe. It is purely an illusion that we are seeing the electron as a particle SEPARATE from us, and OUTSIDE of us.
Why am I so confident? Because you can show the wave function actually did NOT collapse but simply became entangled with the detector. From this very correct perspective of quantum mechanics, the pure nondual wave function safely avoids collapse. But wait a minute, you might say, that is all fine and good, but say a scientist Bob, as an observer "looks" at the new entangled state of detector and electron and sees for himself (consciously) that the detector indeed registered a location of the electron (say the left slit). But seen from the non-dual quantum perspective (and again very correct), now Bob, the detector and the electron are now all three in an entangled state. Again quantum mechanics works fine and no collapse is needed, which means no duality. But hold on, you might say, perhaps someone else, say Alice can walk in and see that Bob is indeed viewing the electron in the detector at a precise location. So alas, the wave function does collapse and we see our electron "out there" in the "real world" as a particle with a location. Right?
But not so fast, quantum mechanical entanglement says NOW the electron, the detector, Bob AND Alice are all four now entangled. Again quantum mechanics works fine and no collapse or duality is necessary. Then Charlie can come in, and on and on we can go with an endless number of lookers that can ALL in the end remain in one large entangled state, the wave function of the Universe. In this ultimate wave function no collapse ever happens, only non-dual wave function continuously and wondrously evolves throughout spaceless space and timeless time giving rise to the apparent manifest universe, whose ultimate nature is both real and unreal, but certainly NOT dual, just as we are non-dual too!
There is no last looker that can collapse anything, for that would require something outside of Oneness, and there is nothing that is outside of oneness, not even God! There is only the Non-dual mystery and feel free to call it what you like, but it most certainly is not part of any duality, because all duality in the universe, without exception is an ILLUSION!
----
You can play this game with the Schrodinger Cat Paradox too, as Eugene Wigner did by invoking Wigner's friends (which is just Alice, Charlie, and an endless line of lookers ad infinitum). But could God or a universal consciousness be the ultimate or final Looker? Up until recently I thought this was the case. That is, God is the final looker that collapses the wave function of creation into the Universe we all know. But this doesn't work because the wave function of the universe cannot have any sort of "other" to look at it. It remains pure and non dual, never collapsed, not even by God. But things get a little tricky trying to explain this, because the wave function itself is a mathematical tool or probability calculus that can be used to see the evolution of the wave function, and possible experiment outcomes if we evoke the dualistic collapse. And we do not have a wave function of the Universe, but this is a possibility in the framework of quantum mechanics. God or ultimate consciousness as Source is beyond all such descriptions. But there is one thing quantum mechanics points to, and that is this Ultimate Reality is itself a radically whole, interconnected, and entangled non dual ultimate reality.
But you might be saying, but at some point there must be a LAST LOOKER that could finally sees the electron manifest in the real world. And in saying this you would be WRONG in the ultimate sense, because no matter HOW MANY lookers gaze upon this, quantum mechanics can always entangle each sub-system or looker in a larger system all the way up to the entirely of the multidimensional multiverse.
“In the gap between subject and object lies the entire misery of humankind.”
–Jiddu Krishnamurti
Two Competing Philosophies of East and West
1) Scientific Materialism or Scientism - Matter Primary, Upward Causation (Consciousness Epiphenomenon or Emergent quality of Matter)
2) Monistic Idealism or Consciousness Only - Consciousness Primary, Downward Causation (Matter is Mindstuff, dense and concentrated consciousness but Ideas only).
The Non-dual worldview - There is only Oneness (Ultimate Reality)
In the authors deep experience and understanding all the aforementioned worldviews are partial at best or simply wrong. They are all inherently dualistic that keeps us Stuck in the duality of observer and observed, subject and object, seer and seen, etc. And it is not just the author's opinion, all the great non-dual traditions like Vedanta Hinduism and Dzogchen Buddhism (as two examples), most assuredly tell us the world is "not two" or non-dual. That it, there is a radical Oneness, that permeates both our subjective and objective senses of reality. But even the word non-duality is but a conceptual pointer to something that cannot be conceptualized and concepts are inherently dualistic. Quantum mechanics also points to this non-dual reality when view with a right understanding. That is, when we put science in a non-dual and spiritual framework, it all makes sense. Religion/Spirituality and Science are also "not-two" in their mystical essence.
Spiritually, these Non-dual traditions, point out that there is only One all-pervasive non-dual Ultimate Reality, spirit, cosmic consciousness, pure being, God, Brahman, Tao or whatever word you want to use to point to this Ultimate ground of all being. The non-dual teachers further tell us, that the perceived duality through our body, mind, senses and conditioning is an ILLUSION and that in reality we are truly all One and THIS direct realization is the source and summit of all the great religious and spiritual traditions!
Asking Questions in both Frameworks
Materialistic framework: of thought (questions), we will ask: what are the ultimate building blocks? how do they interact? and how do they combine to form the objects of everyday experience?
But even so, one may adopt a materialistic framework of thought, and ask questions that arise in this framework, and then try to make sense of the answers one obtains which is what science as a whole does. OR, one may instead adopt a spiritual or non-dual framework of thought, ask questions that arise in this framework, and try to make sense of Nature’s answers to these questions.
Spiritual framework of thought (questions): we will postulate an Ultimate Reality. Because this exists independently of anything else, we may call it “Pure Being.” The question we will then ask is: how does Pure Being manifest the world? And to this question quantum physics offers an exceedingly simple answer: Pure Being manifests the world by entering into reflexive spatial relations. “Reflexive” means that the relations are self-relations: Pure Being enters into relations with itself. “Spatial” means that the relations have the character of relative positions — positions that things occupy in relation to each other.
–Jiddu Krishnamurti
Two Competing Philosophies of East and West
1) Scientific Materialism or Scientism - Matter Primary, Upward Causation (Consciousness Epiphenomenon or Emergent quality of Matter)
2) Monistic Idealism or Consciousness Only - Consciousness Primary, Downward Causation (Matter is Mindstuff, dense and concentrated consciousness but Ideas only).
The Non-dual worldview - There is only Oneness (Ultimate Reality)
In the authors deep experience and understanding all the aforementioned worldviews are partial at best or simply wrong. They are all inherently dualistic that keeps us Stuck in the duality of observer and observed, subject and object, seer and seen, etc. And it is not just the author's opinion, all the great non-dual traditions like Vedanta Hinduism and Dzogchen Buddhism (as two examples), most assuredly tell us the world is "not two" or non-dual. That it, there is a radical Oneness, that permeates both our subjective and objective senses of reality. But even the word non-duality is but a conceptual pointer to something that cannot be conceptualized and concepts are inherently dualistic. Quantum mechanics also points to this non-dual reality when view with a right understanding. That is, when we put science in a non-dual and spiritual framework, it all makes sense. Religion/Spirituality and Science are also "not-two" in their mystical essence.
Spiritually, these Non-dual traditions, point out that there is only One all-pervasive non-dual Ultimate Reality, spirit, cosmic consciousness, pure being, God, Brahman, Tao or whatever word you want to use to point to this Ultimate ground of all being. The non-dual teachers further tell us, that the perceived duality through our body, mind, senses and conditioning is an ILLUSION and that in reality we are truly all One and THIS direct realization is the source and summit of all the great religious and spiritual traditions!
Asking Questions in both Frameworks
Materialistic framework: of thought (questions), we will ask: what are the ultimate building blocks? how do they interact? and how do they combine to form the objects of everyday experience?
But even so, one may adopt a materialistic framework of thought, and ask questions that arise in this framework, and then try to make sense of the answers one obtains which is what science as a whole does. OR, one may instead adopt a spiritual or non-dual framework of thought, ask questions that arise in this framework, and try to make sense of Nature’s answers to these questions.
Spiritual framework of thought (questions): we will postulate an Ultimate Reality. Because this exists independently of anything else, we may call it “Pure Being.” The question we will then ask is: how does Pure Being manifest the world? And to this question quantum physics offers an exceedingly simple answer: Pure Being manifests the world by entering into reflexive spatial relations. “Reflexive” means that the relations are self-relations: Pure Being enters into relations with itself. “Spatial” means that the relations have the character of relative positions — positions that things occupy in relation to each other.
The BIG Problem with Scientific Materialism
Scientism is a branch of the philosophical doctrine of Realism. This philosophy holds that the fundamental elements of reality are independent of our subjective consciousness (perceptions, linguistic practices, beliefs, etc). This is the standard philosophical stance of science and academia which is epitomized in Carl Sagan’s famous remark that “the Cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be”. And by Cosmos, Carl Sagan (a professed atheist), was talking about the physical Cosmos. Scientism is inherently atheistic and considers matter (and it's extensions, energy and fields) to be the only fundamental reality. All else, including consciousness, are secondary phenomenon and are ultimately reducible to matter. As such, scientism is sometimes referred to as scientific materialism to emphasize this strong objective and atheistic stance and is in direct contrast to consciousness being the primary and fundamental reality (which is the correct view).
The Scientific Method Falsifies Scientism
Science does not take place in a conceptual vacuum. It operates within a metaphysical framework or philosophy that formulates the questions it seeks to answer, and than interprets the answers it obtains through experiment and observation. But this framework is not testable by the methods of empirical science. You cannot use the scientific method to test the validity of the scientific method! I think a lot of scientists don't realize this glaring oversight.
That is, do we know for certain, that science does or can give us complete knowledge of reality? Or is this merely an assumption? If it is an assumption then, obviously, there is no guarantee that it is true. Unfortunately, for proponents of Scientism, it does not seem possible to determine through scientific experiment that the scientific method can give us complete knowledge of reality.
How do you set up a scientific experiment to demonstrate that science or a particular scientific method gives an exhaustive account of reality? The problem is that since science can only obtain knowledge about reality by means of scientific method, we must use those methods whose scope is in question to determine the scope of these very same methods. If we used non-scientific methods we could never come to know the answer to our question. This leads to circular arguments.
We cannot use scientific experimentation to know that “the only reality that we can know anything about is the one science has access to.” As such scientific materialism and its atheistic baggage collapses under its own weight. Also, if we are able to know some things independently of science then scientific materialism is falsified. And there are things rooted in consciousness we can all know apart from science. These include (but are not limited to):
Memory
Observational knowledge,
Introspective knowledge,
Linguistic knowledge,
Intentional knowledge.
Truth and Non-contradiction
(The hard problem of consciousness laid out by David Chalmers provides many more examples).
As the above makes clear, the activity of science, at least when it is understood in the scientific materialistic way, presupposes a certain framework. And elements of this framework such as the concept of truth and the principle of non-contradiction cannot be investigated or justified through the scientific method (even though truth and non-contradiction are its very foundation). As such, the scientific method needs the discipline of philosophy or metaphysics to be investigated and justified properly.
Metaphysics is inescapable, then, because a scientific materialism conception of truth inquiry requires a philosophical foundation, part of which must be metaphysical. So this shows very poignantly that there must be more than the physical universe known through the five senses. Scientific materialism MUST be only a portion of reality, and a small portion at that. Metaphysical dimensions are more fundamental and as this article shows, an essential foundation to explore the physical realms via the scientific method.
This problem goes away when we realize non-dual consciousness is the foundation, source and summit of creation. All the aforementioned problems are resolved when we see all matter, energy, terrestrial and universal objects, and life itself as all made fundamentally of consciousness. And we as conscious human beings have the potential to AWAKEN to this truth Oneness and see directly the non dual beauty of all that is!
Scientism is a branch of the philosophical doctrine of Realism. This philosophy holds that the fundamental elements of reality are independent of our subjective consciousness (perceptions, linguistic practices, beliefs, etc). This is the standard philosophical stance of science and academia which is epitomized in Carl Sagan’s famous remark that “the Cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be”. And by Cosmos, Carl Sagan (a professed atheist), was talking about the physical Cosmos. Scientism is inherently atheistic and considers matter (and it's extensions, energy and fields) to be the only fundamental reality. All else, including consciousness, are secondary phenomenon and are ultimately reducible to matter. As such, scientism is sometimes referred to as scientific materialism to emphasize this strong objective and atheistic stance and is in direct contrast to consciousness being the primary and fundamental reality (which is the correct view).
The Scientific Method Falsifies Scientism
Science does not take place in a conceptual vacuum. It operates within a metaphysical framework or philosophy that formulates the questions it seeks to answer, and than interprets the answers it obtains through experiment and observation. But this framework is not testable by the methods of empirical science. You cannot use the scientific method to test the validity of the scientific method! I think a lot of scientists don't realize this glaring oversight.
That is, do we know for certain, that science does or can give us complete knowledge of reality? Or is this merely an assumption? If it is an assumption then, obviously, there is no guarantee that it is true. Unfortunately, for proponents of Scientism, it does not seem possible to determine through scientific experiment that the scientific method can give us complete knowledge of reality.
How do you set up a scientific experiment to demonstrate that science or a particular scientific method gives an exhaustive account of reality? The problem is that since science can only obtain knowledge about reality by means of scientific method, we must use those methods whose scope is in question to determine the scope of these very same methods. If we used non-scientific methods we could never come to know the answer to our question. This leads to circular arguments.
We cannot use scientific experimentation to know that “the only reality that we can know anything about is the one science has access to.” As such scientific materialism and its atheistic baggage collapses under its own weight. Also, if we are able to know some things independently of science then scientific materialism is falsified. And there are things rooted in consciousness we can all know apart from science. These include (but are not limited to):
Memory
Observational knowledge,
Introspective knowledge,
Linguistic knowledge,
Intentional knowledge.
Truth and Non-contradiction
(The hard problem of consciousness laid out by David Chalmers provides many more examples).
As the above makes clear, the activity of science, at least when it is understood in the scientific materialistic way, presupposes a certain framework. And elements of this framework such as the concept of truth and the principle of non-contradiction cannot be investigated or justified through the scientific method (even though truth and non-contradiction are its very foundation). As such, the scientific method needs the discipline of philosophy or metaphysics to be investigated and justified properly.
Metaphysics is inescapable, then, because a scientific materialism conception of truth inquiry requires a philosophical foundation, part of which must be metaphysical. So this shows very poignantly that there must be more than the physical universe known through the five senses. Scientific materialism MUST be only a portion of reality, and a small portion at that. Metaphysical dimensions are more fundamental and as this article shows, an essential foundation to explore the physical realms via the scientific method.
This problem goes away when we realize non-dual consciousness is the foundation, source and summit of creation. All the aforementioned problems are resolved when we see all matter, energy, terrestrial and universal objects, and life itself as all made fundamentally of consciousness. And we as conscious human beings have the potential to AWAKEN to this truth Oneness and see directly the non dual beauty of all that is!
***The Universe is Recreated Fresh Moment by Moment***
“The universe is, instant by instant, recreated anew. There is in truth no past, only a memory of the past. Blink your eyes, and the world you see next did not exist when you closed them. Therefore, the only appropriate state of the mind is surprise. The only appropriate state of the heart is joy. The sky you see now, you have never seen before. The perfect moment is now. Be glad of it.”
― Terry Pratchett
If you are skeptical of this idea, consider this. If we view the universe as a quantum WHOLE, that is assign a wavefunction to the entire universe, than all possibilities are playing out in a gigantic superposition. Our observation in the NOW is collapsing this into a particular reality.
The fact we all share the same collective consciousness explains why we all seemingly perceive the same world, but even this is an illusion. How do we really know we are all seeing the same world? I take the position that we are all seeing it differently based on many factors such as genetics, ethnicity, education, family upbringing, beliefs, past life samskaras, level of awareness consciousness, and other forms of conditioning.
The saying we create our reality really applies moment to moment as a truth, we only have to change the way we look at our world and it will change. This CAN happen ANY moment, which is really an exciting revelation. Enlightenment happens in a flash, epiphanies happen in a flash, even healing can happen in a moment.
One more piece of evidence of this idea, is the quantum delayed choice experiments. These experiments demonstrate we can change the entire history of a quantum particle by our observation RIGHT NOW. There is no real past that exists AT ALL! Quantum physics shows us this startling conclusion very convincingly! This points to the reality of our Universe being re-created moment by moment, which means YOU are as well!
Be careful the beliefs you hold, and how think, feel, talk, and act because that all contributes to the world you are seeing and experiencing RIGHT NOW. If you don't like what you see, change your BELIEFS, change the way you create your life/world moment by moment!
“The universe is, instant by instant, recreated anew. There is in truth no past, only a memory of the past. Blink your eyes, and the world you see next did not exist when you closed them. Therefore, the only appropriate state of the mind is surprise. The only appropriate state of the heart is joy. The sky you see now, you have never seen before. The perfect moment is now. Be glad of it.”
― Terry Pratchett
If you are skeptical of this idea, consider this. If we view the universe as a quantum WHOLE, that is assign a wavefunction to the entire universe, than all possibilities are playing out in a gigantic superposition. Our observation in the NOW is collapsing this into a particular reality.
The fact we all share the same collective consciousness explains why we all seemingly perceive the same world, but even this is an illusion. How do we really know we are all seeing the same world? I take the position that we are all seeing it differently based on many factors such as genetics, ethnicity, education, family upbringing, beliefs, past life samskaras, level of awareness consciousness, and other forms of conditioning.
The saying we create our reality really applies moment to moment as a truth, we only have to change the way we look at our world and it will change. This CAN happen ANY moment, which is really an exciting revelation. Enlightenment happens in a flash, epiphanies happen in a flash, even healing can happen in a moment.
One more piece of evidence of this idea, is the quantum delayed choice experiments. These experiments demonstrate we can change the entire history of a quantum particle by our observation RIGHT NOW. There is no real past that exists AT ALL! Quantum physics shows us this startling conclusion very convincingly! This points to the reality of our Universe being re-created moment by moment, which means YOU are as well!
Be careful the beliefs you hold, and how think, feel, talk, and act because that all contributes to the world you are seeing and experiencing RIGHT NOW. If you don't like what you see, change your BELIEFS, change the way you create your life/world moment by moment!
Scientific Method is More Universal than People Think
I want to briefly point out that not only is the scientific method dependent upon a metaphysical analysis to determine its truth and validity, it can ALSO be used to investigate the metaphysical realms. So I am in no way dismissing the scientific method, in fact I think it is the best way to seek knowledge! The reason for this is you can seek truth for yourself, have it verified by your peers to test its validity. And as a 'truth' it remains fluid and open to better truths to replace it. This is unlike religion or cults that basically have you blindly believe scripture as holy and infallible gospel. This is a poor way to accept knowledge because you cannot investigate the truth for yourself and worse as gospel, it can never be falsified and allow for a better truth.
Because the scientific method is so important for accumulating wisdom, I want to go over it here with three examples of truth from 3 different domains: physical truths, mental truths, and spiritual truths. I'll use the example of the moons of Jupiter, the square root of -1, and God respectively.
Here is how the scientific method works if you want to know if God exists, if a dog exists or the square root of -1 exists in our examples.
1) First, there is an injunction or experiment—“if you want to know this, do this.” Activity. if you want to know if the moons of Jupiter are real, you need to look through a telescope; if you want to know what the square root of -1 is, you need to learn math; if you want to know if God is real, you need to sit on a meditation cushion or take up some other spiritual practice.
2) Second, there is a collection of data, an experience, an apprehension or illumination (evidence, empirical evidence)— This would be actually seeing the moons for yourself; actually calculating the square root of -1 and understanding imaginary numbers, or actually experiencing a state of satori, kensho, enlightenment, etc. Get data, experience or illumination of God.
3) Third, (check it to make sure) there is a verification of the data with experts, a “community of peers”, who can tell you whether or not your observations were real or just a flight of fancy. Must be capable of being rejected to be called Science (is it falsifiable). Teacher, lineage, community of peers. This is my experience, this is what is happening, is this real.
I want to briefly point out that not only is the scientific method dependent upon a metaphysical analysis to determine its truth and validity, it can ALSO be used to investigate the metaphysical realms. So I am in no way dismissing the scientific method, in fact I think it is the best way to seek knowledge! The reason for this is you can seek truth for yourself, have it verified by your peers to test its validity. And as a 'truth' it remains fluid and open to better truths to replace it. This is unlike religion or cults that basically have you blindly believe scripture as holy and infallible gospel. This is a poor way to accept knowledge because you cannot investigate the truth for yourself and worse as gospel, it can never be falsified and allow for a better truth.
Because the scientific method is so important for accumulating wisdom, I want to go over it here with three examples of truth from 3 different domains: physical truths, mental truths, and spiritual truths. I'll use the example of the moons of Jupiter, the square root of -1, and God respectively.
Here is how the scientific method works if you want to know if God exists, if a dog exists or the square root of -1 exists in our examples.
1) First, there is an injunction or experiment—“if you want to know this, do this.” Activity. if you want to know if the moons of Jupiter are real, you need to look through a telescope; if you want to know what the square root of -1 is, you need to learn math; if you want to know if God is real, you need to sit on a meditation cushion or take up some other spiritual practice.
2) Second, there is a collection of data, an experience, an apprehension or illumination (evidence, empirical evidence)— This would be actually seeing the moons for yourself; actually calculating the square root of -1 and understanding imaginary numbers, or actually experiencing a state of satori, kensho, enlightenment, etc. Get data, experience or illumination of God.
3) Third, (check it to make sure) there is a verification of the data with experts, a “community of peers”, who can tell you whether or not your observations were real or just a flight of fancy. Must be capable of being rejected to be called Science (is it falsifiable). Teacher, lineage, community of peers. This is my experience, this is what is happening, is this real.