|
Awareness, Will, and Reason, (formerly "Your Paradigm is Too Small!") The Paschen Paradigm is based on Aristotelian logic and provides a rational foundation for science, religion, and psi phenomena. It is a philosophical alternative view of reality, mind, the universe as a mind, creation, worlds, metaphysics, parapsychology, idealism, noumenalism, spirit, perception, psi phenomena, probabilities, possibilities, undefined objects, avatar, and virtual reality. | Home Page (frames)______________ |
The laws come first. The details come into being as a function of those laws.
The reality of our universe is in the laws, not in the details. The details are simply the way that we perceive the workings of the original laws.
Science explains the universe by observing the details and creating mathematical models which attempt to imitate the original laws. It cannot explain how the original laws came into being.
The following paradigm is an attempt to provide a rational basis for both scientific analysis and spiritual insights.
INTRODUCTION
A paradigm is a model that you hold in your mind to help sort out all the
things and events that you come across in your universe. If your paradigm can only
offer a model of physical things like matter, energy, and force-fields in space-time, then
your paradigm is too small. Science offers a paradigm which is a set of models (usually
mathematical models) which simulate physical reality. Some are highly accurate and are
useful while others are not so accurate. They are based on data from the five senses or
from data from instruments which translate data to the five senses. But are all the data
of reality translatable to the five senses? We should keep a healthy respect for that which
we do not know. We should realize that science is not complete in itself. It needs to
be complimented by other views of reality such as through religion which offers another
kind of paradigm of reality which uses metaphorical models. The problem, however, is
that the various paradigms based on science or various religious viewpoints tend to
conflict with each other. We need a paradigm that can offer a rationale to both science
and religion.
A NEW PARADIGM
What is real? You don't need to ask anyone because you already have the
answer! Are you aware? If you are aware of these words then you are aware and
awareness is real. Do you have a will? (not the legal kind but the one you use when
you create a masterpiece or when you choose something) If you can choose to be aware
of these words or choose not to be aware of them then you have a will and will is real.
Can you reason? If you can add one and one then you can reason and reason is real.
We do not know what awareness, will, or reason are derived from or what causes them
but we know that they exist. We can create a paradigm in which they remain undefined
as the primary building blocks of all of reality. To do this we need to define all other
aspects of reality in terms of these three primary "substances". In the following
description of defined terms the primary substances will be capitalized as Awareness,
Will, and Reason. Aristotelian logic is used to form a paradigm based on these three
primary, undefined, "substances."
MIND
Mind is defined as Awareness, Will, and Reason interacting. At this point
space and time have not been defined. Mind simply exists as the interaction of
Awareness, Will, and Reason. There is only one Awareness, one Will, one Reason, and
one Mind transcending our concepts of time and space.
IDEAS AND CREATION
Ideas are generated by the Mind and are separated from each other only by
their intrinsic characteristics. No two ideas are identical. The number of ideas is finite
but infinitely expandable. Creation is the process of idea generation by the Mind. Ideas
can also form links between two or more other ideas to form entities. An entity can be
defined here as a set of linked ideas. No two entities are identical but they can share
ideas. An idea can be incorporated in any number of entities. An entity is sentient if
it is linked to Mind.
An idea, created by Mind, is a permanent part of the universe. It was
created, therefore it exists. It cannot fall out of the universe. It does not have a
beginning or end in time because it transcends time. Time itself is an idea or set of
ideas.
SPACE-TIME, MATTER-ENERGY, AND FORCE-FIELDS
Space-time, matter-energy, and force fields are models in which science
simulates the basic building blocks of our physical universe. In this paradigm these are
entities or sets of ideas. These scientific models are valid as a sub-set within the
paradigm. The paradigm, however, allows the models to be seen from a broader
viewpoint. They simulate the building blocks of our particular physical universe, one
of an essentially infinite number of possibilities. Space-time is a set of ideas, or entity,
which forms a matrix in which dynamic relationships can occur between other entities.
An entity can appear at multiple points within space-time through links between that entity
and points within the space-time matrix. An example is the electron. The electron is
a unique entity but it appears at multiple locations within the space-time matrix through
multiple links. Each electron appearing within the space-time matrix is a separate entity
only because it has different coordinates and no two electrons, manifesting within space-
time, can share the same coordinates. In other words all electrons manifesting in space-
time share the properties of the one electron except the individual coordinates and
energies.
Space-time, matter-energy, and force-fields and their interactions are
models reflecting our perception of our physical universe. In this paradigm they represent
the ideas or entities which make up the universe in which we find ourselves. They are
probably not the only building blocks of our universe but they are the ones that we have
found so far.
The purpose of space-time, in the context of this paradigm, is to allow the one to manifest as many. One electron manifests as many individual electrons. One mind manifests as many individual minds.
THE UNIVERSE AND NATURAL LAW
Natural law is an entity linked to space-time which controls the interactions
between all other entities which manifest within the space-time matrix. The natural laws
of our particular physical universe are simulated by the models of science which are based
on observed phenomena. Our universe is a particular set of entities such as space-time
and natural law linked to form a unique system. Any number of universes can exist.
Universes can share ideas and entities. If two universes are identical except for one idea
they would be two separate universes but everything would be shared between them
except that one idea. Ideas and entities are never duplicated but they can be shared.
TIME
Time is an axis in the space-time matrix. Changes occurring in the universe
are subject to natural laws and take place along the time axis. All changes in the entire
universe take place in the present moment. If we define the present moment as t=0,
then the universe is static for negative time and undetermined except as probabilities for
positive time. "Now" is your eternal dwelling place. "Time", as we perceive it, is an illusion. The "future" is a sea of probabilities and possibilities. The "past" is a record of what you have done with your possibilities and probabilities.
PHYSICAL SUBSTANCE AND LIFE
Physical substance is a set of entities which are subject to the natural laws
of the universe. These are simulated by science as models involving matter-energy and
force-fields as they interact within the space-time matrix. Life is a special set of entities
in which form is determined by DNA code as described by current science models. The
process of generating life forms through evolution and reproduction is a function of
natural law. It is a system which results in a large diversity of life forms. Each living
entity is linked to the Will and evolution is driven forward through each living entity's
will to survive in a universe which is hostile to the survival of life forms. We, at least
us humans, are linked to the Awareness and Reason in addition to the Will so we can
be aware of ourselves and our environment in addition to having a will to survive. Our
ability to be aware and to reason and our ability to perform willful acts are tempered by
our sense organs and nervous systems so we each experience life in a unique way as
individuals.
INDIVIDUALS
An individual is a life form linked to Mind. The end result of our world
system is the creation of a large diversity of individuals through the processes of
evolution and reproduction. We are each individuals because we each have access to
Awareness, Will, and Reason from a unique viewpoint. An individual is formed through
processes of reproduction as defined by natural law. Each birth results in a new
individual with no previous experience in the universe. Just as evolution results in a
diversity of species, a diversity of individual types within each species is the result of
reproduction. Each individual's nervous system develops as part of a learning process.
Through the interplay of awareness, will, and memory the individual becomes aware of
self as an independent individual.
Our viewpoint is determined by our physical body structure, our position
in space-time, and the memories which we have access to. The process of becoming an
individual begins at conception and proceeds through the development of sensual
awareness, experimentation, and accumulation of memories. We each must learn how to
be an individual. This process is facilitated in a hostile environment where opposition
from ones surroundings forces development. The main driving force is the will to
survive. In the process of learning to be an individual, one is also learning to interface
with other individuals. One learns that survival is easier by cooperating with immediate
family or clan members. This is the next main learning experience; learning to respect
other individuals.
NERVOUS SYSTEM
The nervous system is an autonomous part of an individual entity and it is
the vehicle in which individuality is formed. It has two functions; to provide automatic
responses as an aid to individual survival and to modify the link between the individual
and Mind. A certain balance is maintained between the individuals use of free will and
the constraints imposed by automatic response. The individual's primary contact with the
universe is through physical senses which are linked to the nervous system.
Individuality is formed and nurtured within the constraints imposed by the nervous
system but, once formed, it also exists as an entity linked to Mind and will continue to
exist even when the nervous system terminates.
MEMORY
As the individual evolves after birth their is a constant interplay between
sense input, automatic response and free will. All of this activity is "frozen" in the past-
time existence of the universe. (see "time") If an individual had instant access to all that
information, it would be chaotic. The nervous system, specifically the brain, filters the
awareness of this memory so that the individual is not overwhelmed with irrelevant data.
The brain can effectively block irrelevant data because an individual's awareness is
normally focussed on functions of the physical body including the brain and the physical
senses. The individual remembers by willfully opening the channels which are accessible
through the nervous system. Memory is usually confined to the individual's own
experiences. It should be emphasized that the brain does not store memory but it filters
data which exists permanently in past-time. If part of the brain becomes defective, the
individual may actually become aware of a larger amount of data but much of it may be
irrelevant or confusing. When part of the brain is in a sleep state, data may be partially
filtered along with unfiltered extraneous data resulting in dreaming.
An individual remembers through association. A healthy brain filters
past data into awareness only if the data can be associated with current experience
including belief systems, education, environment, and current activities. The brain also filters the individual's links to Awareness, Will, and Reason. The filtering insures that the individual has the mental facility consistent with the individual's current reality.
CONSCIOUSNESS
Consciousness is the interaction of an individual's awareness, will, and memory. Will is required to focus the awareness onto a specific target, and memory is required to give meaning to the result.
DEATH
The physical body, through natural law, eventually dies. The apparent
purpose of life appears to be the creation of diverse types of individuals. The individual,
as an independent entity, is permanent as a set of memories linked to mind and there is
no reason to believe that it terminates along with the physical body.
EXTENDED MEMORY
There has been some evidence that an individual, under rare circumstances,
can experience memories belonging to a different individual. In cases like this when the
memory apparently belongs to a deceased individual the term "reincarnation" has been
used as though the deceased individual was reborn as the current individual. This,
however, would not be the simplest explanation when considering this paradigm. It is
simpler to assume that an individual's memory has somehow bypassed the brain and has
made contact with the static universe in past time. A similar explanation may also apply
to cases of "psi" phenomena. This extended memory may not be totally reliable,
however, because without guidance through the brain one may confuse the past of this
universe with the past of alternate universes.
EMOTIONS
The emotions are automatic responses to sense input and memories. They
are one of the automatic functions of the nervous system.
SENTIENT ENTITIES
A sentient entity has been defined as an entity, a set of ideas, linked to
Mind (Awareness, Will, and Reason). An individual is a sentient entity. A group of
individuals can also be a sentient entity. As an example: a husband is a sentient entity
and a wife is a sentient entity but the husband and wife, as a couple, is also a sentient
entity. The "couple" is an individual entity possessing the characteristics of both the
husband and the wife and can wilfully act through either husband or wife through mental
suggestion. The suggestion would occur on an unconscious level in the recipient but
would manifest as a thought or urge. Group entities occur at all levels: families, clans,
nations, companies, organizations, etc. or wherever there is a common set of ideas shared
by a group of individuals.
These group, or collective, entities can act as individual entities. For more on collective entities, see: __ENTITIES__
Each of us is a group entity. Our so-called physical
bodies are made up of individual entities as cells, organs, etc. Each of these entities,
or sets of ideas, function both as individuals and as constituents of the whole body. We
function as group entities with very tight control over our individual cells because each
cell shares the same unique pattern which determines our individuality. This pattern
manifests as the configuration of genes in our chromosomes; each chromosome
manifesting in every cell of our bodies. The set of ideas represented by our
chromosomes is fixed in our universe and cannot be erased.
POSSIBILITIES, PROBABILITIES, AND REALITY
Ideas are possibilities. Every idea exists as a possibility independently of
space and time. Possibilities are the building blocks of universes. The configuration of
a universe, however, depends on probabilities. Every idea, every possibility, has a given
probability of occurrence. The probabilities are governed by the natural laws of each
universe.
Reality is the direct experience of a sentient entity within a given
universe. Since an entity can be either an individual or a group of individuals, there are
many levels of reality depending on the nature of the entity. The entity uses awareness,
will, and reason to navigate through the sea of probabilities of it's universe. Through
direct experience, the probabilities become reality. In the case of an individual, there is
a personal reality based on the individual entity; a family reality based on the entity
formed by the family members; a community reality; a national reality; a world reality;
etc. These realities are all intertwined as alternate realities forming a universe. The future
is a sea of probabilities. The past is a set of alternate realities. The present is your own
direct experience.
Without the intervention of will, direct experience would simply
follow the most probable path. In our universe this default path is called the law of
entropy. Individuals and collective entities can exercise a degree of will, or power of
choice, to alter the experienced reality and thus form a unique, personalized world.
Every individual sees the world differently because each has a unique
viewpoint based on past choices. Two individuals of a family share, in common, a world
based on the will of the family entity. Two individuals of the same world share, in
common, the experience of the world entity. All individuals of a universe share the
experience of the universal entity. Each entity can alter probabilities as they become
reality through the power of choice to a degree determined by its links to Will. The
universal probabilities are reflected in natural law such as the laws of physics. The
past is fixed in universal memory but there are many alternate universes, each with a
fixed past. Each universe has a different set of probabilities but all can share the same
possibilities. That which is very probable in one universe may be very improbable in
another universe however.
ANAGOGE
The paradigm is a map. It is not the territory. When you find your place in it you no longer need it. It is an anagogic metaphor pointing towards a higher understanding.
DISCLAIMER: The paradigm rests, or falls, on its own logic. Any resemblance to other philosophies or belief systems is purely coincidental.
Copyright (c) 1997 by Kenneth W. Paschen. This document may be copied and distributed freely only in its entirety, including this copyright notice, and without modification. The document is not to be used for any commercial purposes.
:
Come philosophize with us in the Philosophy Webring Forum |
---|
[Skip Prev] [Prev] [Next] [Skip Next] [Random] [Next 5] [List Sites] |
LinkExchange Member | Free Home Pages at GeoCities |