A Fundamental Principle

Introduction

Absolute Unqualified Consciousness (Godhead, Nirguna Brahma, Absolute Being, Ein Sof, Alam-i Hahut), or whatever name you invent to describe the indescribable infinity of love and bliss, is totally beyond mind and comprehension. It is an undivided whole.

Creation is a transformation of a portion of the infinite love and bliss into the infinite life known as Saguna Brahma.  Our minds are totally at a loss to say anything more about Nirguna Brahma. According to many sages throughout history the proof of Nirguna Brahma is the infinite bliss you feel as you come back to waking consciousness from a Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Infinite Bliss (Ananda) experience is the only method of comprehension of Nirguna Brahma.

Those of us who have not experienced a Nirvikalpa Samadhi yet, we are sincerely searching for an understanding of the fundamental principles of creation to help us in our spiritual practice. Cultivation of love and beauty, cultivation of a peaceful and tranquil mind, meditation, ego training, personality development, observing the mind from a higher level, community service, and many other practices are considered spiritual practice.  Scientific work should be considered spiritual practice as well because it is service to humanity. A similar effort is the development of metaphysics models based on spiritual insights. These models help us see a unity behind the apparent multiplicity. Every time we discover a fundamental principle or a fundamental law of nature we see a bigger picture. We get more enlightened. The bigger vision leads to deeper insights and we make connections among the seemingly different phenomena. We hope this process of progressive enlightenment gets us closer to the Ananda experience.

In human history no philosopher or sage explained the cosmic mystery and the spiritual reality more rationally than Shrii Shrii Anandamurti (1921-1990) [1][2]. His rational outlook is truly inspiring. When we synthesize some of his hints with the scientific observations we come up with a principle that seems to be operating in all stages of creation down to the physical level.  Let’s refer to this as the subjectivation-objectivation principle which can be described in philosophical terms as follows.

Description of the Principle

Let’s define subjectivation as the identity forming process. When reality (qualified Consciousness) is mapped to a point by a limiting, binding, localizing, encircling, internalizing force a center is formed. This center is the identity. The center point cannot hold the reality. The reality will express itself in a different way as an orthogonal flow coming out from the center. Let’s refer to this flow or expression from the identity point as objectivation.  Subjectivation is always followed by objectivation. The internalized (subjectivated) reality at the newly formed center is expressed (objectivated) in stages or in time. If reality is infinite then the unfolding process will never end. The objectivation flow is a relative reality. The flow emerging from the nucleus is orthogonal to the nucleus-forming force (curvature).  That which emerges from the singularity (nucleus, center) is not contained in the singularity. The nucleus or singularity is a “reference” or a “name” of the reality. The objectivation comes with multiplicity. The flow from the nucleus forms multiple units or wavelengths. The flow from the nucleus can also be described as evolution. The objectivation flow does not dissipate the identity. The nucleus exists during objectivation. The flow continues as long as the nucleus exists.

Creation of Cosmos as Objectivation

When Nirguna Brahma activates (for lack of a better word) the binding principle (Prakrti), a portion of the infinite ocean of love and bliss is subjectivated (encircled, internalized).  This is the fundamental interaction/coupling. In mathematical terms we can say that the infinity is mapped to a point. The infinity represents the infinite possibilities of Nirguna Brahma. The point represents the dimensionless center. This point, this nucleus is known as Puruśottama.  How can the dimensionless point contain the infinite possibilities? No, the point cannot contain the infinite potential of Nirguna Brahma. The infinity of love and bliss cannot be limited. The infinite potential has to unfold (objectivate) from the identity point as a never ending flow. This cosmic flow/evolution is known as Saguna Brahma.  Here we see the first manifestation of the fundamental principle: internalized potential will always express itself as an energetic orthogonal flow coming out from the identity point. That which comes out of the point is not contained in the point. The point (Puruśottama) is a ‘reference’ to the infinite reality and as such it is the witnessing consciousness (Atman) (Cosmic Identity). Shrii Shrii Anandamurti used the term Parama Puruśa often in his books and lectures. The Parama Puruśa is sometimes translated as Cosmic Consciousness. My understanding is that Parama Puruśa, Atman and Puruśottama are synonymous and these terms ultimately refer to the infinity of love and bliss because the nucleus (identity point) is the ‘reference’ or ‘name’ of the ultimate reality.

More on Cosmic Subjectivation

Prakrti’s binding action operates as 3 tendencies (3 gunas):

• Sattvaguna (sentient guna): sentience, the tendency for straightness, the tendency towards limitlessness, symmetry, the force resisting curvatures
• Tamoguna (static guna): curving, localizing, internalizing, limiting, symmetry breaking, forming, structuring tendency
• Rajoguna (mutative guna): the principle that mediates the opposing forces of the sentient and static gunas, the principle of evolution, the principle of vibration or energy

To see the other aspects of the 3 gunas please see the article titled “Aspects of Rajoguna, Tamoguna, Sattvaguna“.

When Prakrti internalizes a portion of Nirguna Brahma forming the cosmic center (Puruśottama/Atman) an infinite number of balanced triangles of 3 gunas are formed.  These balanced triangles all share the same center because this is how infinity is mapped to a point. This is the only way infinity can be mapped to a point. Each one of those balanced triangles of gunas represents a possibility. There is infinite number of possibilities and they are all witnessed by Puruśottama/Atman. This ability to witness and control all possibilities makes Puruśottama/Atman the nucleus by definition. This is cosmic subjectivation. The geometric conceptions of triangles are used only as aides to comprehension.

More on Multiplicity

What does the balanced triangle mean? It means the symmetries are broken and restored; curvatures appear and disappear without actualization while all possibilities tend towards objectivation. As mentioned before, the balanced triangle cannot continue indefinitely. The infinite potential of Nirguna Brahma cannot be limited or encircled. The center (Puruśottama/Atman) objectivates thereby starting the  Saguna Brahma phase. The objectivation flow comes out as a straight line (Nada) from one of the vertices of the triangle. We don’t know whether each balanced triangle represents a different universe or a different possibility in our Cosmos. These two ways of thinking may be equivalent. I am more inclined to interpret each vertex flow as a different Cosmos within the Saguna Brahma.

The cosmic evolution starts as a straight line which can also be interpreted as infinite wavelength. The multiplicity of balanced triangles (in the previous stage) is reflected in a particular flow (objectivation stage) as multiplicity of wavelengths. The multiplicity would not have arisen if Prakrti’s 3 gunas did not act. The multiplicity is a consequence of the 3 gunas.

At this stage the physical universe does not exist yet, so what does wavelength mean? The wavelength is another analogy just like the triangle analogy. The wavelength is a measure of the sentient guna in the objectivation flow. The higher the sentiency the longer the wavelength. Prakrti’s binding action continues and the static guna increases. As the static guna increases the mutative guna increases and the sentient guna decreases. This is due to the fact that there is a conservation law regarding the 3 gunas. An increase in mutative guna implies a decrease in wavelength. This can also be interpreted as the manifestation of the energy (Shakti) aspect of Parama Puruśa.  In the physical universe the quantum mechanical wavelength or the electromagnetic wavelength is inversely proportional to the energy of the quantum exhibiting that wavelength. In the pre-physical cosmic flow/evolution we can still talk about a wavelength which is proportional to the influence of the sentient guna and inversely proportional to the influence of the static guna. We can also talk about energy or vibration which is proportional to the mutative guna.  Remember at this stage of the cosmic evolution the space-time is not manifest yet; therefore the concept of time and space do not exist. We cannot define a wavelength as a distance and we cannot relate the unit of “energy” to cycles per second.

Curvature

We referred to the the nucleus-forming force as curvature. The term curvature is a generalization of the effects of the binding (limiting, localizing, internalizing) action. The binding action implies an interaction/coupling which always leads to nonlinearity. In the language of mathematics the nonlinearity is described by the curvature concept. So, by curvature we are referring to the fundamental interaction/coupling which is the root cause of objectivation.

Dimensional Reduction

The number of coordinates (degrees of freedom) describing the curvature is always greater than the number of coordinates describing the objectivation flow. In other words, the number of dimensions in the realm where the subjectivation takes place is always greater than the number of dimensions in the objectivated (manifest) realm.In the case of Nirguna Brahma we cannot use the word dimension.  Even the expression ‘infinite dimensions’ will not do justice. Perhaps the expression ‘infinite potential’ or ‘infinite possibilities’ are better. The subjectivation of Nirguna Brahma creates the infinite number of dimensions which is Saguna Brahma.

Action-Reaction Principle

The principle  of action-reaction operates only in the limited (qualified) realms. Since the objectivation flow is limited (qualified) as a result of dimensional reduction, every action will have a reaction in the objectivated realm.

Emergence of External and Internal Space and Multiplicity

Immediately after the dimensional reduction, a subset of the dimensions in the objectivated realm expands and forms even a lower-dimensional external space. The reaction to the growth of the external space is the growth of the internal space. In the particular objectivation known as the physical universe these internal space dimensions correspond to the degrees of freedom of the vacuum.  Vacuum fluctuations start as soon as the external space emerges. Vacuum fluctuations are the basis of the quantum mechanical nature of the fabric of the physical universe. Force and particle fields and their quanta are created out of the vacuum fluctuations. In a way, the force and particle fields encapsulate the internal space dimensions. This implies that the elementary particles can be modeled using internal space variables.

The reaction to the expansion of external space is the creation of units which form the basis of multiplicity in the objectivated realm. The sum-total of the external and internal dimensions in the objectivated realm is still less than the total number of dimensions in the subjectivated realm.

The implication for the construction of unified physics theories is the following: when we try to achieve unification by modeling all physical quantities as geometric concepts we may succeed but this is equivalent to the unification using internal space dimensions. The theories based on the geometric concepts will necessarily use higher external dimensions to achieve unification. The theories based on the internal space variables will set the unified theory in a lower-dimensional external space.

The unified theory has to explain the stages of the physical creation too. How did the external space grow? Did all N dimensions of the objectivated realm expand externally leaving no room for internal space dimensions? That would not be logical because we know that the vacuum (internal space) fluctuations existed from the beginning of the universe (objectivated realm).

It seems that the most logical sequence is the following:

1. The fundamental interaction/coupling forms the nucleus/identitiy

2. The nucleus/identity objectivates

3. The objectivated realm is a lower-dimensional reality

4. The dimensional reduction activates the action-reaction principle

5. Within the objectivated realm an “external space” expands rapidly

6. The vacuum (internal space) fluctuations and their subsequent manifestations as fields, particles and time appear as reaction to the growth of the external space

7. Fields and particles are attracted to each other as a consequence of the time effects

8. Organisms are formed as a result of the attractive forces

Creation of the Physical Universe

• Big-Bang is an example of objectivation.
• Big-Bang emerged from a higher dimensional realm (String/M-theory spacetime, or the ‘bulk’ mentioned in Brane theories, or the Cosmic Citta mentioned in Eastern philosophy)
• During Big-Bang a subset of the ‘bulk’ dimensions expanded and became large dimensions. Brane cosmologies would describe these large dimensions as a ‘3-brane within the bulk’.
• Dimensions of the objectivated realm separated into external space and internal space. The internal space is a reaction to the emergence of the external space.
• The quantum mechanical vacuum is the internal space.
• When the virtual quanta of the internal space (vacuum) become real quanta they are observed as point particles moving in the 3 large and 6 compact external space dimensions. The external space starts out as 3 large dimensions. When the virtual quantum transitions into a real quantum the 6 small dimensions of the external space grow into existence. We can say that 6 of the internal dimensions convert into external. In the transition from virtual to real there is dimensional reduction in the internal space and dimensional expansion in the external space.
• The dimensions of the internal space are very relevant in the mechanism of particle creation. Particle and force quanta jump into existence when closed loops are formed within the internal space.
• Each closed loop formation is followed by an objectivation from the loop center. This is the mechanism that explains how a virtual quantum becomes a real quantum. An elementary particle or a force quantum such as a photon is an objectivation from the closed loop formation within the internal space.
• As the particle transitions from virtual to real as a result of the objectivation from the closed loop formation within the internal space the quantum numbers emerge. Spin, electrical charge and color charge manifest. These intrinsic properties reflect the internal space dimensions. Since the internal space dimensions are ontologically separate from the external space dimensions, they cannot be explained by the external space dimensions. The intrinsic properties have to be modeled using internal space variables.
• Another outcome of the objectivation from the closed loop formation within the internal space is the appearance of time. The time is most probably quantized just like the other objectivations mentioned above. The time quantum must be closely related to spin and electrical charge. The collective behavior of time quanta give us the macroscopic time.
• In summary, when the virtual quantum becomes real as a result of objectivation from a closed loop formation within the internal space the real quantum will be observed as a point particle moving within the 10-dimensional objectivated realm (3 large, 6 compact external space dimensions plus the macroscopic time). The physics of this point particle will have an equivalent description in terms of the internal space variables.
• The concept of curvature is very relevant in the external space. In the internal space, the variables derived from 3 gunas are more relevant. We mentioned the law that the ‘bulk’ (Cosmic Citta) resists distortions and wants to preserve its super-symmetry. There may be a similar law within the external space. We may refer to this law as the conservation of curvature. The theory known as CTE tries to build the foundations of physics based on the law of conservation of curvature.
• In the internal space the conservation law of 3 gunas is the relevant one.

An example from the later stages of the Cosmic Flow

The fundamental principle of “subjectivation is always followed by objectivation” manifests at many levels and many contexts. Here’s an example in a diffent context. What happens when a human ovum internalizes (subjectivates) a sperm? A baby is born. The baby grows up and becomes a scientist who contemplates the mystery of life and Cosmos. The human who develops from that fertilized ovum is a magnificent being who writes poetry, falls in love, appreciates music and deeply feels the beauty of life in the Cosmos. How is this possible? What is it in that embryo that expresses itself so magnificently? Surely, it is not just the genetic code.  Genes do not contemplate the Cosmos. Genes do not write poetry. Genes do not compose music.  There is a deep mystery here. The human mystery does not unfold instantaneously, however. The embryo becomes a poet in stages. The human potential unfolds in time. The objectivated reality we call human being emerges (flows) from the nucleus (embryo) in time.  This is an example of objectivation. The embryo is the ‘reference’ or ‘name’ of the human potential.

References

[1]  Books of Shrii Shrii Anandamurti (Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar):

https://www.anandamarga.org/store/

[2] Avadhutika Ananda Mitra Ac., The Spiritual Philosophy of Shrii Shrii Anandamurti: A Commentary on Ananda Sutram, 2nd Edition, Ananda Marga Publications, ISBN 81-7252-119-7