A Purposeful Universe

This world has within it many different individual souls, personalities, beings, creatures, plants—living things—each with its own set of values, assets, and particular liabilities. None have a worth greater or lesser than the other in the broad scope of life. All living things have a disparate measure of worth. Humans sometimes feel that theirs is a greater place, but all life exists at various levels of sophistication and talent. Species of every sort on this planet occupy their own unique niche, some with various cognitive capacities and others with distinctive, species-specific levels of intelligence. Some species are equipped with similar abilities to our own, but to a different extent. No matter how we parse it, there is more than sufficient cause to posit, that underneath it all is a unique manifestation of what we call “consciousness.”

Before there was a place that we describe as a “universe,” there was a great void—nothingness. Through some sort of mysterious forces or pre-existent potentials, about which we currently know very little, we can only charitably suggest that we possess what might be an inkling at best, and more likely just a guess, as to what may exist at the heart of our universe that could explain its creation. 

At some point, whatever the cause might have been, what we now refer to as the “Universe,” sprang into existence. Was it the only one? Was it the third or fourth iteration which finally coalesced into a stable state of physical existence? Is it only one of many? Does everything which exists take place in a multiverse?    

We simply do not know and cannot say definitively.

I would suggest that it really doesn’t make that much of a difference, no matter what the actual explanation might be. It doesn’t seem to matter much if there are many universes or just the one we know, when you consider that we are bound temporally to this one.  The existence of other universes or of other dimensions, within which those other universes might be possible, would be a moot point if they are inaccessible temporally as physical beings. Inter-dimensional travel or transportation between universes seems even more unlikely than any sort of significant inter-galactic travel in this universe, given the limitations of our current technologies and even with eventually achievable advancement, getting there simply may not be physically possible.

In order to understand what might allow us to overcome our physical limitations in pursuit of some alternate path, which might facilitate such travels, it seems clear to me at least that whatever the totality of the nature of our universe might be, it’s very likely that any method of accessing such a path will require a “quantum leap,” beyond our current capacities of discernment.  We may ultimately be required to “transcend” the physical limitations as we know them, and reach beyond the known, and enter realms not explicable by any temporal scientific principles.

Regardless of what possibilities exist outside of our understanding currently, it has always seemed to me that there must be a purpose to the existence of at least THIS universe. It’s certainly possible that other universes existing might be a prerequisite for the existence and sustainability of this one, but all of our observations and discoveries in the whole history of humanity present us with a physical universe governed by a host of predictable and reliable laws which must exist in order for what we observe to be possible in the first place.

Philip Goff, Ph.D., a British author, philosopher and currently a professor at Durham University, has written a book entitled, “Why? The Purpose of the Universe,” in which he posits that “materialism is incoherent,” and that “dualism leads to complexity, discontinuity and mystery,” and so he proposes a third alternative, positing that “consciousness is a fundamental, ubiquitous feature of the physical world.” There is a wealth of material within the pages of this publication which challenges our presuppositions about what might constitute a legitimate purpose to our existence, and he deftly parades through a litany of objections and alternate arguments supporting his premise that we may actually be living in a “Conscious Universe.”  I can recommend this book to anyone with a serious interest in the subject of a “purposeful universe,” and found it fairly straightforward and accessible.

I also can fully appreciate the need for a genuine interest in the subjective experience of being and the role which consciousness plays in coming to terms with our existence as sentient creatures, in order to benefit from Goff’s musings, but as anyone who visits here regularly knows, these sorts of subjects frequently appear on my blog, and I have enjoyed conducting conversations and writing about these ideas for more than a decade now.

I have read many of the great writers of human history.  I have gradually absorbed some of the wisdom of ages gone by, as well as that of my own epoch. Doing so has informed my own efforts to understand the complex issues about which I write.  And yet, I continue to remain unsatisfied to a degree that has, so far at least, prevented me from abandoning the work outright. There are areas of darkness and uncertainty that press me to continue moving forward—to pursue the illumination of the darkness and the elimination of the uncertainty.

I remain hopeful that by engaging in this pursuit, I may inspire others to consider these ideas also, and to examine their own inner worlds, and to share in the richness of the human spirit within each of us. This world of ours in the 21^st century clearly needs to give greater attention to the world within, and to embrace what unites us, rather than what divides us.

Looking forward to continuing to share with all who visit here in the coming year.

All best wishes…John H.