The
Forces of History - 1
Question:-
On reading the Quran I understand that Creation,
the Universe, has a direction of development and a goal - a History.
"We did not create the heaven and the
earth and what is between the two in play." 21:16
"Do they not reflect within
themselves: Allah did not create the heavens and the earth and what is between
them but with Truth, and for an appointed term (or destined end)? But truly
most of the people are disbelievers in the meeting with their Lord." 30:8
And 46:3
"Blessed is He in Whose hand is the
Sovereignty, and He has power to do all things, Who created death and life that
He may try you as to which of you is best in conduct; and He is the Mighty, the
Forgiving." 67:1-2
"Allah originates creation, then
reproduces it, then to Him will you be returned." 30:11
"The Day when We will roll up the
heavens as a recorder rolls up the scroll. As We produced it at its first
creation, We shall repeat it - a promise binding upon Us; verily, We shall do
it." 21:104
Can you elaborate on this in some depth?
Answer:-
History is a matter of Time. As you see,
according to the Quran, the process of Creation is cyclic. All processes within
the Universe also tend to be cyclic, like Day and Night (2:164).
"Verily, in the creation of the
heavens and the earth, and in the succession of night and day, are signs for
those who possess understanding." 3:190
There are cycles within cycles. However, as
things do not return to exactly the same position, owing to accumulation of
experiences, the cycle is a spiral. This may itself form a cycle that forms a
spiral. There can be an ascent and a descent. It may be that both processes not
only alternate but also take place together, one balancing the other. This
balance can be shifting from one extreme to the other like a pendulum. But this
is a relative view because there is a contrast between one process and another.
From the point of view of the whole, of Allah, the Absolute, nothing changes
because the positive and the negative cancel out.
Also according to the Quran, Time is
relative:-
"He directs the ordinance (regulates all
affairs) from the heaven to the earth; then shall it ascend to Him in a Day the
measure of which is a thousand years of what you count." 32:5
"To Him ascend the angels and the
Spirit in a Day the measure of which is fifty thousand years." 70:4
"So He ordained them seven heavens in
two periods, and revealed in every heaven its affairs (duties and functions);
and We adorned the lower heaven with brilliant stars and made it inviolable
(guarded); that is the decree of the Mighty, the Knower." 41:12
"Say: What! Do you indeed disbelieve
in Him Who created the earth in two Days (periods), and do you set up rivals
with Him? He (none else) is the Lord of the worlds." 41:9
"And He made in it firm mountains
rising above its surface, and He blessed the earth and measured therein the
sustenance for all things in four Days (periods), alike (or in accordance with
their needs) for all seekers." 41:10
"What ails you that you fear not the
greatness of Allah, seeing that He has created you through various stages? Do
you not see how Allah has created the seven heavens, one above another (or in
harmony), And made the moon therein a light, and made the sun a lamp? And Allah
has made you out of the earth as a gradual growth." 71:13-17
"Surely We have created everything
according to a measure. And Our command is but one, as the twinkling of an
eye." 54:49-50
In a sense serial time does not exist. We do
not experience the past or the future, but only the "Now". This has a
certain extension depending on our consciousness. The present contains the past
because it is a product of it, and it contains the future because that results
from it. According to the Quran 54:50 quoted above creation took place in an
instant. This is like planting a tiny seed in which all the potentialities that
are to be actualised already exist. The Universe then unfolds gradually through
stages with all parts inter-connected. It is not, therefore, the case that
there is linear series of cause and effects at the same level. It is more like
zooming in onto a dot with a telescope so that gradually more and more details
become visible. The connection between one event and another may not be a
succession in time or space as we see it but in another dimension. An event
that takes place today in one spot on earth may be connected with one that took
place yesterday or a year ago because of the rotation of the earth and its
revolution round the sun and the inter-connectedness of things.
From the Scientific point of view Time is a
dimension like Space - the two are connected - and scientific laws do not have
any direction in time. Time does not pass but we pass through it. All points in
it co-exist. From the point of view of Allah the whole of it is a
"Now" because He is aware of all things (2:231, 6:102, 9:115, 17:55, 29:62, 42:12, 49:16 etc.).
Let us start from the beginning and put
things in a Universal context.
The Quran tells us:-
"Certainly the creation of the
heavens and the earth is greater than the creation of the men, but most of
mankind know not." 40:57
"And when your Lord said unto the
angels: I am about to place a Vicegerent (Agent, Successor, Inheritor) in the
earth, they said: Will you place therein one who will do evil therein and shed
blood? While we celebrate Thy praise and glorify Thee. Said (the Lord): I know
what you know not." 2:30
"(It is Allah) Who made good
everything that He has created, and He began the creation of man from dust.
Then He made his progeny of an extract, of a fluid held in low esteem. Then He
fashioned him and breathed into him of His spirit, and made for you the
faculties of hearing, and sight and heart; little is it that you give
thanks." 32:7-9
"Verily, in the creation of the
heavens and the earth, and in the succession of night and day, are signs for
those who possess understanding; such as remember Allah standing and sitting or
reclining, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth, (and say):
O Lord! Thou hast not created this in vain. Glory be to Thee; preserve us from
the torment of the fire!" 3:190-191
"Say: Travel in the land and see the
nature of the consequences for the rejecters (for those who called them
liars)." 6:11
"But nay! I swear by (or call to
witness) the Lord of all points of the rising and setting places East and West
that We are certainly Able to replace them with others better than them, and We
shall not be overcome." 70:40-41
"Do not you see that Allah created
the heavens and the earth in Truth? If He please He can remove you and bring
(replace you with) a new creation; That is for Allah no great matter."
14:19-20
According to a Hadith Qudsi, a tradition of
the Prophet Muhammad (saw):-
"Allah said: I was a hidden treasure.
I wished to be known. Therefore, I created the Universe."
The implication of these verses is that the
Objective Universe is certainly prior to and greater than man and has a
function and purpose beyond that of human being it is human beings that are
parts of the Universe and have a function that is part of the Universal purpose
for which the Universe was created. In conformity with this purpose the arising
of conscious beings was inevitable. If they did not fulfil their purpose they
would be replaced with other communities or even other creatures. A further
implication is that though the there is an objective God-made Universe, the
world man sees depends on the nature of man, which has arisen from the
materials and forces of the World and through interaction with the World. The
World they see is, therefore, partly of their own creation by their perception,
motives and actions. However, human beings also possess the spirit of God which
gives them some of the potentialities and powers of God that they must exercise
on behalf of God. It gives them consciousness, conscience and will. According
to a tradition: "He who knows his Self knows God" or vice versa.
The history of the Universe is connected in
several ways with the history of man and vice versa.
The Quran also tells us:-
"He is the First and the Last and the
Evident (or Outer) and the Imminent (or Hidden or Inner), and He is Aware of
all things. He it is who created the heavens and the earth in six periods, then
He firmly established Himself on the Throne (of authority); He knows that which
goes deep down into the earth and that which comes forth out of it, and that
which comes down from the heaven and that which goes up into it, and He is with
you wherever you are; and Allah is Seer of what you do." 57:3-4
"All praise is due to Allah, unto
Whom belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth, and His
is the praise in the Hereafter; and He is the Wise, the Aware. He knows that
which goes down into the earth and that which comes out of it, and that which
comes down from the heaven and that which goes up to it; and He is the
Merciful, the Forgiving." 34:1-2
"And certainly We created man, and We
know what his soul suggests to him, and We are nearer to him than his jugular
vein." 50:16
"Allah surrounds all things." 8:47
"To Allah belongs the East and the
West, and wherever you turn there is Allah's face (presence); for verily, Allah
is All-pervading and All-Knowing." 2:115
"Should He not know, He Who created?
And He is the Knower of the Subtleties, the Aware." 67:14
"They will ask you about the Spirit.
Say, "The Spirit is (or comes) by the command of my Lord, and you are
given but a little knowledge (or control) thereof." 17:85
"Thus Allah creates what He pleases.
When He decrees a matter He only says: BE! And it is." 3:47
"He created the heavens and the earth
with truth! Exalted is He above all that which they join with Him!" 14:3
"His word is Truth." 6:74
The sequence of events in creation can be
regarded as being as follows:- We first have Allah, the fundamental
self-existing Reality. He transcends all things but is also imminent in all
things and is also personal. Then we have His Word or Command which is the
Creative force. It is Truth, information, that which creates order. The
Universal Spirit proceeds from it and carries Truth. It is the progressive organisation
through several levels that accounts for creation. The Spirit of Allah can be
regarded as Universal Consciousness, Consciousness and Will that surrounds all
things. It is not the case, therefore, that consciousness emerges from physical
matter, but the reverse - the physical world arises from the Universal Spirit
or Consciousness. No absolute distinction between spirit and matter is,
therefore, recognised, except of degree. Spirit, life and matter are aspects of
things that appear in different combination, but these names can be understood
as referring to the dominant characteristic - e.g. inertia describes matter,
motion describes energy and life and order describes spirit.
There is a range of
things which we could see as follows:- The Material objects we see are composed
of cells or crystals, which are composed of molecules that are composed of
atoms. These are further divisible into sub-atomic particles that are further
divisible and so on until we come to a substance where there is no separation between
particles and we have field in which all parts are connected. At the most
fundamental level, we have the Absolute from which all other levels derive and
in which they exist. Each level can also
be regarded as a Field containing organised objects. We have only a fundamental
ground state and various levels of organisation. Each successive level is
formed from particles belonging to the higher subtler level in which it exists
as a subset. Phenomena at every lower level can be caused by causes originating
in any of the higher, more fundamental levels. Thus at the level called “earth”
where gross physical objects exist, events could happen because of forces
coming from any of the levels denoted by the 7 heavens or even directly from
the Absolute. It is well known that phenomena on earth depend not only on local
conditions, but also on forces coming from the sun and planets and even from
beyond them, from the rest of the Cosmos.
Here on earth we
have all kinds of forces that are connected with those of the rest of the
Cosmos – mechanical, chemical, biological (bacteria etc), electronic,
electromagnetic, physiological, psychological, sociological and no doubt,
spiritual ones as well. Consider the fact that Airplanes exist on earth. They
are certainly physical objects and we can explain their arising physically.
Materials are gathered by human beings, purified shaped and assembled in
factories. But this is certainly not the whole of the story. At one time they
did not exist. Now they do. How did they come to be invented and what is the
history of their development? How did the science arise that enabled them to be
invented? Who financed the development and manufacture and why? Who organised
the manufacture and how did it fit into the rest of Society? What were the
economic, political and cultural factors that caused them to multiply? There are mostly certainly several levels of
causes though they may interact. They could reinforce each other or oppose each
other or divert each other.
There is also a gradation between solid,
liquid, gas, plasma (fire), radiant matter (light), a subtler form (ether) and
spirit. The Word of God can be understood as referring to fundamental
vibrations that could be called Transcendental Sound. The science of Physics
reduces matter to the Quantum level where numerous mysteries are to found that
defy ordinary reason. But there may well be many more levels of divisibility.
As we see things by light, it is the characteristics and speed of light that
sets a limit to scientific knowledge. In fact if mass is localised trapped
energy then we can well have materials that are invisible. Indeed, according to
Astrophysics about 90% of the mass of the Universe is unaccounted for. Notions
such as Dark Matter and even Dark Energy are invented to explain the mysteries
of the Universe. While thought may well consist of electromagnetic events,
consciousness must be regarded as connected with the field of the more
fundamental particles.
The Seven Heavens can be regarded as
representing seven levels of Reality, each having its own phenomena, laws,
characteristics and possibilities. They can be represented by concentric
circles, larger ones containing smaller ones. The lower levels arise by
progressive restriction to the possibilities that exist at the higher level.
These are not necessarily separated in space or time but can be regarded as
interpenetrating. This is like a solid that is soaked with a liquid such as
water and lying in it, and a liquid permeated by a gas in which it lies. We
exist in a field of cells and micro-organisms that surround us but also exist
within us. There is, therefore, an interaction between all levels. The causal
force descends down these levels, causing transformations and evolution and the
effects rise. (Quran 34:2, 15:16, 32:5, 35:10, 65:12, 70:3-4 and 97:4). If the
creative Word of Allah refers to a fundamental vibration in the Universe, then
these levels can be regarded as arising by the progressive reduction in
vitality or speed and increase in density and inertia. The cause of phenomena
at a lower level is not prior in time to the effect but lies in the level
above. Evolution at the physical level on this planet can, therefore, be
regarded as a series that takes place not because of temporal causes at the
physical level but because of interactions at different higher levels. The
evolution of Aeroplanes, for instance, is a physical sequence in time, but the
fact is that it takes place owing to causes in the human mind. There are
physical experiences translated into intellectual ideas where they are
processed and returned to the physical sphere. Biological Evolution is not
different from this, except that it is not taking place in human minds but in a
field of Reality in which human minds also operate.
Human beings have the same levels within them
as the Universe has. The Soul is organised Spirit and all individuals arise
from a Collective Soul. The soul can be regarded as the information or order
that describes the person. It can atrophy or grow. Though Religion deals with the
whole of man, the soul should not be confused with the body or mind. It can be
withdrawn from both.
"O mankind! Be careful of your duty
to your Lord, who created you from one soul, and created there from its mate,
and scattered from the twain a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your
duty towards Allah, in whose name you claim rights of one another, and the
wombs that bore you; verily, Allah is Watcher over you." 4:1
"And the soul and Who fashioned it, and
enlightened it with (conscience of) what is wrong and right for it! He indeed
is successful who causes it to grow (or purifies it)! And he indeed is a
failure who corrupts it!" 91:7-10
"Allah takes the souls at the time of
their death, and those that die not during their sleep; then He withholds those
on whom He has passed the decree of death and sends the others back till an
appointed term; most surely there are signs in this for a people who
reflect." 39:42
The verses Quran 32:7-9 indicate that man can
be divided into three aspects:- (1) The Physical Body, which is made of the
materials of this earth - Sensation, instinct and motor action are connected
with this. (2) The Soul, which is organised Spirit and is therefore, something
much more fundamental connected with Universal Reality - Consciousness,
conscience and will are connected with this. (3) The Mind, which refers to Life
and its faculties and behaviour - Intellect, Emotion and Volitional Action are
connected with this.
These three aspects can be generalised and
regarded as forming three Fields or Worlds, each having its own entities,
processes and relationships. There is no reason to believe that they are not
equally real. (i) The fact that there is often a tension and conflict between
the desires of the body and the mind and both may differ from the conscience of
the soul indicates that these are different things. The soul is said to enter
the body at various times, often months after conception and its connection
with the body varies in strength between people and in the same person at
different times. (ii) It may also be more or less identified with the mind.
This accounts for the existence of different types of people who can be
described as Physical, Mental (e.g. Intellectuals, Artists, and Men of Action)
and Spiritual or Mystic types. (iii) As bodies are separate from souls, it is
possible for souls to enter several bodies at different times and possibly in
different places at the same time. They may also have different minds
displaying different kinds of behaviour depending on the environment in which
they find themselves.
Physically, human beings consist of materials
that circulate in and through all entities in the field connecting them
together. New entities keep arising and dissolving in the field. Mentally,
human beings collectively form a culture and each generation is mentally formed
by the culture which is gradually modified by accumulating experiences. Each
generation can be regarded as a reincarnation of the generation before though the
elements of culture are differently mixed in each individual. This is so
physically also as the new generation is formed from the same genes as the
previous one, though modified by mutations in connection with the rest of the
environment. Spiritually, the individual human soul is part of the collective
soul and can and does moves down through the levels to the physical body in
order to experience and develop and returns again. It can grow or atrophy.
Though human beings may have all the seven
levels, they may be organised to different degrees at different levels or not
organised at higher levels in a stable manner. That is, they may or may not
have "bodies" at higher levels. Physical death may mean complete
destruction such that all the material is dispersed and recycled. That is, it
becomes part of other entities. Some people are said to be spiritually dead
though mentally and physically alive. Others though physically alive are both
mentally and spiritually dead. It may be possible that a person can be mentally
dead but still be spiritually and physically alive. Others, who are organised
at higher levels, may remain alive at higher levels. On the other hand there
may well be beings that are adequately organised at higher levels and do not
have one or more of the lower level bodies. Martyrs, saints and prophets are
said to be alive at higher levels and the Prophet Muhammad (saw) is said to
have met several beings in the various heavens.
From the Esoteric point of view the whole of
Reality has several layers - First, at the most fundamental level we have the
self-existing Reality we call Allah, the One the Absolute. Then, there is the
Word or Command of Allah, from which proceeds the Spirit, the characteristic of
which is Universal Consciousness, from which the Souls derive, and then we have
Creation, including Physical Existence. A > W > S > P. Existence can
be regarded as having 8 layers, of which the Created world has 7, each
succeeding level being a restriction of the level before and lying within it as
a small part and interacting with it. These could perhaps be described
something as follows:- (1) The Essence of Allah, (2) The Word, the First
Manifestation or Ground State (3) The World of First Principles, (4) The World
of Potentialities, (5) The World of Causal forces, (6) The world of Processes,
(7) The World of Entities, (8) The perceived or Physical World.
Allah is the fundamental Reality who
transcends all things but also pervades all things. He is not like any created
things and though the pronoun "He" is used, He is neither male nor
female. That word refers to the fact that He is the bestower or quickener with
respect to the Universe which is the receiver. He is Absolute, Infinite,
Eternal, Omnipresent, Omnipotent and Omniscient. His Spirit is in man. To say
that someone is near or far from Him does not refer to distances in space or
time but to degree of consciousness. People are not normally conscious of God
but the purpose of life is spiritual growth to become increasingly more
conscious of Allah.
The lowest Heaven is the sky we see from
earth (Quran 67:5). At level 2, the Word refers to Truth, Order or Information.
All events are produced by "Truth Transactions". An Experience can be
said to be true if it corresponds to a real event produced by the Word.
Knowledge can be defined as Consciousness of Truth. The Word could refer to the
fundamental vibrations sometimes called the Primordial Universal Sound. It is
carried by the Spirit, the Fundamental substance. In some systems of thought
Allah, the Word and Spirit are thought of as a Trinity that constitutes the God
head. But it is evident that the Word and Spirit are dependent on Allah and
cannot be separately Gods. However they emanate from Allah and connect Allah
with the Created World.
At level 3 certain fundamental principles
arise and the Attributes of Allah could refer to this. Numerous Universes could
well be created, each with a different set of forces, laws, phenomena and
creatures. One of these at level 4, is the World of Potentialities. But the
possibilities are limited as for instance, the chance of a dice falling with a
particular face up is limited to 1 in 6. This is because the dice has only 6
faces. This restriction is determined by the previous level. The World of
Potentialities could be compared to a Field of dots connected by numerous
converging and diverging forces. These dots, when connected with each other
create numerous pathways each of which can be described as a History. There
are, therefore, several alternative paths, but the choice of one path
actualises it, creating the subsystem at level 5. It may be possible to return
to this level and chose another path to make amends, especially in thought if
not physically.
Even in the Physical world we find that there
is always great variety so that whenever changes take place there are always
some individuals that can adapt best among a range of adaptations. There is a
range for every characteristic or ability and they also have degrees of
flexibility that allows adaptation. Though someone or some species becomes
successful or prominent it is not the case that others do not have similar
talents, but that there may be something about them or their environment that
makes them less successful. Thousands of seeds are created so that some may
grow. The others are not wasted but serve as fertiliser for the others. Similar
analogies can be made between other levels. There is, therefore, a reflection
at lower levels of what exists at higher levels. It becomes possible to use
phenomena at lower levels as symbols for things at a higher level and vice
versa.
We do not of course know what is external to
us - we only know the effect of things on our consciousness which is a faculty
of the soul. Examination of our experience shows that there are three kinds of
experience:- (a) Physical sensations that we attribute to external matter
though we cannot know this. (b) Feelings - emotions, motives, desires that
concern interactions between ourselves and other things and people, and this
probably gives rise to the notions of life, behaviour and energy. (c) Thoughts
and images that give us the notions of order, information and knowledge. There
is a degree of interaction between these and we can think of sensations and
feelings, and mistake one for the other. There is a degree of correspondence
between these and the ideas of Body, Mind and Soul. But they are not Objective
Realities - they are equally real Experiences. They also form three Fields or
Worlds. However, we can call something false or a hallucination if an object,
event or relationship that belongs to one field is attributed to another. The
characteristics of consciousness are (i) awareness of external experiences (ii)
awareness of memories (iii) awareness of the connections and relationships.
Islam is concerned primarily with the soul as
it is the seat of consciousness, conscience and will. Consciousness provides
awareness; Conscience provides motives; and Will enables action. To grow
spiritually is to grow in these. These three can be regarded as different
aspects of the same thing. A person is as free and as much in control of
himself and his environment as he is conscious. According to some systems of
thought a person chooses everything that he does and everything that happens to
him, but not from the Islamic point of view. He cannot be said to be in control
of his subconscious or unconscious levels, but these affect his behaviour
without his consciousness. The actions of other things and people, who might be
free to different degrees or equally free, would certainly affect him. However,
human beings do have great potential for development and such they do have a
greater Self, an Overself that encompasses the conscious, sub-conscious and
unconscious parts. Techniques are required to contact this. The Individual Soul
is part of the Collective Soul which is part of the Divine Spirit. He can gain
control by expanding his consciousness by identification of his Self with Allah
- by true surrender to Allah. But even theen he would behave according to the nature
made by Allah.
"…….Allah, He is Truth (or the only
Reality), and because what you call on beside Him is the False, and because
Allah, He is the Sublime, the Great." 31:30
"Then set your purpose for religion
as a man upright by nature - the nature made by Allah in which He has made men;
there is no altering (the laws of) Allah's creation; that is the right
religion, but most people do not know - turning to Him only, and be careful of
your duty to Him and keep up prayer and be not of those who ascribe partners to
Him (polytheists). 30:30-31
Physically there is a constant flow of matter
and energy through the body and the substance of which it consists is gradually
replaced so that in about 7 years there is nothing of the previous substance
remaining. It is not, therefore, possible to speak of a person as a physical
entity. He who is not conscious, for him nothing can be said to exist, not even
himself. The mind, which can be regarded as the behaviour of a person is not
always conscious, and can, therefore, be regarded like the body, a vessel or
vehicle through which the soul manifests. There are however, different degrees
and kinds of death. There is spiritual, metal or physical death and these do
not coincide. A person can be physically alive while he suffers from mental or
spiritual death. He may be mentally competent but still be spiritually dead. He
may be physically dead but be mentally or spiritually alive or be both
physically and mentally dead while being spiritually alive. Even physical death
is a matter of degrees - organs and cells, which have their own life and
consciousness, can die gradually one by one.
It should be possible, therefore, that the
Personal and Collective Consciousness of human beings by interaction with
Universal Consciousness can affect Creation - the person himself, the society
and the whole environment, at any or all these levels to various degrees.
There is a similarity between Universal
Creativity and Human creativity. The Creative Sequence could perhaps be
explained by the following series:- (1) Allah > (2) Word > (3) Spirit
> (4) Consciousness > (5) Ideas (thought) > (6) Motives (force) >
(7) Action (energy) > (8) Entities (objects). But ordinary human Conditioned
Behaviour tends to be the reverse of this. They react to objects including
their own bodies. This produces the feelings and emotions that constitute their
motives, which form their thoughts. These come into their consciousness and
affect their soul. This restricts the fundamental principles by which they
operate and, therefore, their Reality. Repentance is a re-orientation that
requires the reversal of this sequence. Religion that deals with the process of
living is justified by the Creative Sequence. But the sequence by which
Knowledge is acquired is also the reverse of the sequence of Creation. While
Creation proceeds from the whole to the parts, science and all knowledge
proceed from the particular to the Universal, from the parts through several
levels to the whole.
As the process of living requires an interaction
between a person and his environment, we can distinguish between the real world
R, the experience E and the actions of the person A which are creative. R >
< E > < A. There are three kinds of creative actions:- (i) where
something real is created e.g. cars or an organisation or event. (ii) Where an
experience is created such as an image in the mind. (iii) A verbal or symbolic
description is also a creation. We can denote these by Ar, Ae and Ad. Usually
an idea in the mind leads to a description which is then translated into an
invention. Ae > Ad > Ar. Sometimes something is created or modified by
interaction. Ae > Ar >Ae.
We translate the things in the real world
into our experiences. There is a correspondence between Reality R and our
Experience E of it. We also translate the experience into language in order to
communicate with each other and try to make description D correspond to
experience. But R, E and D are not the same thing as each requires a different
medium. The experience can be independent of the reality when it is recalled in
the mind as memory. Description can also be independent of experience. As Truth
refers to the Reality, an experience is true if it corresponds to reality and a
description is true if it corresponds to an experience that is true. But not
all experiences or descriptions are true. There are many different ways of
experiencing Reality and many different ways of describing experiences. R >
E > D - i.e. D is smaller than E which is smaller than R.
The world we experience is created in our
consciousness. There is a degree of reciprocity between R, E and D. Description
can lead to experience and to action that changes the reality. We can invent
things both in thought and reality. Human thought certainly affects behaviour
and that certainly affects the environment. But the relationship at the
fundamental level is much more direct. Experience, though different from
Reality, is also real - it exists, but is a subset of Reality. Description is
also real - it also exists, but is a subset of Experience. We therefore, have
to distinguish between three kinds of Realities that can be denoted by Ra, Re
and Rd. We can not only have an experience of something real, but we can recall
the experience in our minds and have an image of things. We can also experience
a description. We can therefore, distinguish between Er, Em and Ed. In the same
way a distinction can also be made between a description of something real, a
description of an experience and a description that has been created such as a
character in a novel. Descriptions are not necessarily about what is factually
true but may be made for some purpose. It could even be a concept or technique
that has scientific value such as "centre of Gravity" or graphs.
Myths exist in order to enable certain useful experiences, ways of thinking,
motivation or actions. We have Dr, De and Da. Descriptions can be Factual
statements Df, Value Statements Dv or Instructions Di. Myths can be regarded as
Value Statements and Instructions. Further subdivisions can be made:- Factual
statements can be divided into (i) Objective ones that refer to physical,
mental or spiritual facts; (ii) Subjective expressions of what a person thinks,
feels or does; (iii) Abstract ideas. Similar distinctions can be made in value
statements and instructions. All these affect individual and mass behaviour.
Corresponding to R, E and D there is a
difference between saying, doing and being. A person can profess to be a
Muslim, he can behave as a Muslim and he can be a Muslim, one who has
surrendered to Allah. A Society can be organised so that its affairs are
governed by discussion and debate, which in the public arena consists mainly of
speculation and prejudices and can be harmful or useless, but in scientific
circles is essential and beneficial; and/or it can be based on experience, on
trial and error; and/or it can leave matters to natural human differences so
that the successful features replace the unsuccessful ones.
There is often an interaction and parallelism
between the spiritual, mental and physical levels. Religious teaching stories
or Myths, though they teach us spiritual truth, usually refer to psychological entities
and process. As in the case of the story of Pharaoh and Moses, for example, the
personalities in the story represent certain features in the psyche of most
people, and the events connecting them represent certain mental processes. But
it is perfectly possible to find persons in any age in whom the same
characteristics dominate and who generate the same kind of physical events.
This can be seen if the event is seen not as a particular one exact in all
details, but as illustrating a type. It will be seen that way when the Myth is
absorbed first as an experience and then as a pattern in the psyche forming
what is sometimes called an Archetype. Spiritual states can lead to mental and
physical events and real physical events can become Myths. Conversely, Myths
can become physical events. Physical and Mental events can lead changes in each
other and to Spiritual changes.
We can also distinguish between conscious,
sub-conscious and unconscious experiences:- Ec, Es and Eu. But there is
interaction between these levels and behaviour is affected in thought, motive
and action. The memories we can recall into our consciousness Mc, are a small
part of what we have experienced E. So Mc < E. Most of these memories Ms lie
in our sub-conscious and can be recalled under certain techniques. These,
however, are only a small part of what the whole person experiences in his
interaction with the rest of Reality, the memory of which lies in our
unconscious Mu. This is a small part of the collective human memory Mh, which is
a small part of the Memory incorporated in the Biosphere Mb. This is a small
part of the Total Memory that result from all interactions in the Universe, Mt,
which can be regarded as a small part of Absolute Memory Ma. So we have:- Ma
> Mt > Mb > Mh > Mu > Ms > Mc. There is interaction between
all these levels.
It is necessary to understand that the
translation of events in one of these Fields into another (from R to E to D)
takes place according to certain principles that create a Framework of
Interpretation within which things are seen and understood. Scientific
Description, for instance, requires a certain Conceptual Framework or Language
and other systems of thought have their own. These Frameworks can differ
between people and gradually change. The Scientific Framework has certainly
changed from the Newtonian, to the Relativist of Einstein to the Quantum view
of the physical world. The Religious Framework has also changed according to
the place and times. Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam describe the
same world in different ways. There are also several different kinds of Reality
and each being a self-consistent system has its own Framework.
However, Human Consciousness is a small part
of Universal Consciousness that can be represented as a small circle within a
great circle (but without borders). There is an interaction between them. This
smaller circle can be of various sizes and can expand or contract. It can
contain several still smaller circles or be contained in greater ones and
different circles can overlap each other to various degrees. There are,
therefore, several levels of subordinate parts of consciousness. These lesser
Consciousness are circumscribed and restricted by the number of laws, rules or
habits that they are subject to. All things in the Universe must be regarded as
containing various degrees of consciousness.
We cannot ordinarily know the Absolute Whole,
the ultimate Unity because all our knowledge is relative - that is, we compare
and relate one thing to another and we have to analyse to do so. But if
knowledge is relative then Relativity is also relative and it must be relative
to an Absolute. We call this "Allah". He is known by
self-identification, by surrender known as "Islam".
Relativity requires three factors, two relata,
and a relating factor which together create the Unity from which they derive.
X1 > X2(A-B-C) > X3. That we start with a Reality X1 outside our minds,
analyze it as X2 and produce an Image X3 that hopefully corresponds to X1. Our
knowledge, X3 is not the same as the Reality X1 nor is it the same as the
experience X2. We usually see two factors the opposition of which constitutes a
problem and we wish to provide the third factor as a solution.
According to the Quran:-
"Surely We have created everything
according to a measure. And Our command is but one, as the twinkling of an
eye." 54:49-50
"Allah is He Who created seven
heavens, and of the earth the like of them. The Commandment continues to
descend among them slowly, that you may know that Allah has power over all
things and that Allah indeed encompasses all things in knowledge." 65:12
The Universe starts from a Unity and expands
and differentiates, and it remains a unity like an organism that grows from a
fertilised egg, having part that are also systems having parts. All parts of it
are inter-connected with feed back mechanisms, are inter-dependent, interact
and have a function with respect to the whole, and arise because of that. The
parts are affected by the higher systems they belong to and have to adjust to
them and this ability to adjust and adapt is called Intelligence. The parts can
only be understood in terms of the whole and in relation to the Absolute. As
there is nothing outside the Absolute Whole, all causes are Intentions and the
sequence of events is Purpose > Cause> Effect. There are three levels, of
which the physical Universe is the effect.
As changes in nature are attributed to
intelligence, there is no notion of either Determinism or Chance, but of
flexibility and tolerance. Determinism is something that arises in the
artificial conditions of a Laboratory where the environment is strictly
controlled to exclude all variables except those under consideration and Chance
is only a name given to ignorance about causes. Religion has to deal with the
natural environment where all variables interact. Change is not caused only by
external forces but all things have their own nature and will and it is the
interaction between the outer and inner that determines behaviour. According to
modern scientific research into the fundamental particles things are
fundamentally unpredictable and therefore non-deterministic. However there is a
range of probabilities so that some events are highly probable. That is, pure
chance is restricted, and it the restriction of chance that has to be explained
by causes. This is much more compatible with the Islamic view. If the Universe
is so constructed that instead of complete determinism there is always a
certain probability that something unpredictable by known laws can arise then
we must suppose that miracles can happen. Indeed, as the cause of the known
laws and forces is unknown, it is not known that other laws and forces might
not exist or arise.
(Continued in Part 2)
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