What holds the universe together? … does anyone know?
When I came across this quote, I felt a sense of melancholy and buoyancy all at once.
It’s unlikely I’m alone with those moments when I feel I’m holding the universe together. The responsibility of it can be overwhelming. But when I see the power in it – it’s liberating.
Even science doesn’t know this mystery.
Einstein died seeking a unifying theory. In the 70’s, physicists at CERN identified the substance gluon which carries “the strong force that “glue” quarks into protons, neutrons and other particles known collectively as hadrons.”
High school science teaches us about atoms and electrons; and the neutron/proton within its nucleus. What physicists learned 40 years ago and continue to study today is that “Inside the proton lies the deep, unsettling truth: Stuff is made of nothing, or almost nothing, held together by glue, lots of glue.” And these gluons are “massless and evanescent” and carries “most of the proton’s energy.”
“The closer you look, the more you find the proton is dissolving into lots of particles, each of which is carrying very, very little energy,” . . . “If you really study the equations, it gets almost mystical.”
So, what holds the universe together? Is it gluon? Is it Leah as she leans on the balcony? Maybe Leah is gluon and we’re all Leah. Maybe collectively we hold the universe together.
When I watch and pay attention the universe reveals connections. I especially enjoy seeing random, unrelated topics dovetail elegantly.
Recently I heard Neville Goddard truisms in the pop-rock song “Elemental” by Tears for Fears: “.. this race is already run ..”
Neville continues with: “Creativeness is only a deeper receptiveness, for the entire contents of all time and all space, while experienced in a time sequence, actually coexist in an infinite and eternal now.” He recommends:
“Live your life in a sublime spirit of confidence and determination; disregard appearances, conditions, in fact all evidence of your senses that deny the fulfillment of your desire.”
“Ignore the present state and assume the wish fulfilled. Claim it; it will respond.”
So, is the world finished – deterministic? What of Free Will – these desires and wishes? Or is creation done and Free Will still exist?
Physical reality, the mechanics of cause and effect and our linear experience of time don’t allow for Free Will. Perceptions of destiny are be found here; “if it’s meant to be, it will be.” Deterministic.
Yet I perceive my personal experience as real, genuine and intuitive; my choices independent. Free Will feels fundamental.
Holding these two contradictory positions as true is challenging: but worth pursuing. When I consider the principles introduced by quantum physics – the paradox becomes plausible. For the curious and analytical, check out this YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2UE7tp7oSw
Things don’t happen in a vacuum. We’re interconnected parts of a whole; a whole that feels tangible and certain. This can be helpful or harmful.
The damage is seen when too many people operate on autopilot. Habit, society and family conditioning create an unnecessary deterministic way to live. The cliché “same shit, different day” is thought normal and acceptable. Consistency is called reliability. Being capricious is fickle. Consider instead that consistency may be tedious and dry; and that whimsey and fancy enhance and enrich our spirit.
It seems people flip flop between the contractions depending on what suits them in the moment. The idea of destiny may alleviate my sense of responsibility for what’s in front of my face. A rote life is safe; until it’s not.
“Man is condemned to be free. Condemned because he did not create himself, yet is nevertheless at liberty, and from the moment he is thrown into this world he is responsible for everything he does.”
Thoreau observed that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” My responsibility is to step outside my comfort zone. Push past the fear and discomfort about what other people think or believe.
The desires of my consciousness exist – here in the infinite, eternal now. I AM that. This is my real world.
“Ignore the present state and assume the wish fulfilled. Claim it; it will respond.” – Neville Goddard
“For the first time, she did want more. She did not know what she wanted, knew that it was dangerous and that she should rest content with what she had, but she knew an emptiness deep inside her, which began to ache.” ― Iain Pears, The Dream of Scipio
