At first glance, an invisible divinity seems a convenient way to explain the unexplained, like garden fairies that steal spoons, but quantum theory also has an invisible cause, namely quantum waves. How can science dismiss the divinity premise out of hand when its own best theory also uses the unseen to explain physical effects? It is illogical to accept one theory but reject another for saying the same thing.
Recognizing this, the founders of quantum theory made their invisible cause imaginary, or non-existent. This let them calculate results but deny invisible causes, like eating apples while denying the existence of apple trees. They invented a theory of invisible waves then disowned it, so the most successful theory in physics is, according to physicists at least, a theory about nothing. Then physics became a hollow science, empty of meaning (1.1.2).
In contrast, scriptures at least propose a cause that exists, even though it transcends physicality:
- When asked if he was King of the Jews, Jesus replied: “My kingdom is not of this world.” (John, 18.36)
- The Buddha said: “Verily there is a realm where there is neither the solid nor the fluid, neither heat nor motion, neither this world nor any other world, neither sun nor moon.” (The Word of the Buddha, p32)
- The Vedas say: “His form does not exist within the range of vision; nobody sees Him with the eye.” (Katha Upanishad, II.iii.9)
- Lao-Tse says: “There is one thing in the universe that we cannot see with our eyes, nor hear with our ears, nor grasp by our perceiving mind … yet may be realized by meditation. When we look up, we cannot see its brightness, when we look down, we cannot perceive its existence. This mystery is always present but there is no adequate name for it.” (Tao, 14).
In scientific terms, the alternatives are that physical causes explain everything, or that they don’t. These are mutually exclusive, as if physical causes explain everything, then non-physical causes aren’t needed, or if they don’t, then they are. Given two mutually exclusive hypotheses, science should evaluate them based on evidence, not prefer one over the other based on tradition.
If all causes are physical, why can’t physical causes explain effects that quantum causes can? For example:
- A photon of light always finds the fastest path to any destination, which is physically impossible (3.6.3)
- Light waves vibrate at right angles to space (6.3.6), which physical waves can’t do (2.2.9)
- Light in delayed-choice experiments chooses a path after arrives, which is physically impossible (3.8.3)
- Light travels like a wave and arrives like a particle, which a physical wave can’t do (3.1.2)
- Non-physical detection occurs, yet it is physically impossible (3.8.4).
Physical causes can’t explain these effects and probably never will, so the hypothesis that they explain all physical events, even in theory, must be rejected because it can’t explain how light travels or vibrates, delayed-choice experiments, particle-wave duality, and non-physical detection. The claim that the physical universe is causally complete is a myth with no basis in evidence. Those who deny that quantum waves exist must explain their effects, which they haven’t, so it is reasonable to accept that they do. Nor is it unexpected that a universe born fourteen billion years ago isn’t all there is, as that it made itself from nothing is ridiculous.
Quantum reality not only explains all physical events, it also has divine properties, like:
1. Tirelessness. According to quantum theory, quantum waves never stop, as physical events just restart them, and likewise the divinity of scriptures never tires, stops, or slows down, as physical things do:
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- “Brahman is birthless, sleepless, dreamless, nameless, formless, ever-effulgent, everything, and a knower.” (Mandukya Upanishad, 3.36).
- “Tao is invisible but permeates everywhere; no matter how one uses it or how much, it is never exhausted.” (Tao, 4).
- “Hast though not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is he weary?” (Isaiah, 40.28).
According to scripture, divinity doesn’t tire, sleep or fade, just as quantum reality is always active. Both predict that if either stopped, our universe of events would have to restart from the beginning.
2. Encompassing. Based on quantum theory, quantum waves vibrate in a dimension outside space (6.3.16), and divinity is likewise said to surround all things everywhere:
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- “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.” (Psalms, 139.7).
- “Lo! Is not He (Allah) surrounding all things?” (Koran, 91.54).
- “For in him we live, and move, and have our being;” (The Acts, 17.28).
According to scripture, divinity surrounds physical reality everywhere, just as quantum reality does. Both generate physical events locally, at specific points, but aren’t contained by our space at all.
3. Invisible.According to quantum theory, quantum waves can’t be observed, and scriptures also claim that divinity can’t be seen:
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- “Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” (Exodus, 33.20).
- “Vision comprehends Him not, but He comprehends (all) vision.” (Koran, VI.104).
- “By higher knowledge the wise realize that Brahman can’t be perceived or grasped; is without source, features, eyes or ears; has neither hands nor feet; is eternal, multi-formed, all-pervasive, subtle and undiminishing; and is the source of all.” (Mundaka, I.i.6).
According to scripture, divinity can’t be observed and neither can quantum reality because they cause observation itself.
4. Eternal. According to quantum theory: “In the beginning was the wave function.” (Zeh, 2004), p19, so what began our universe will eventually reabsorb it (5.6.6). Quantum reality is eternal just as divinity is:
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- “… there has always been an eternally abiding Reality.” (Lankavatara, p348).
- “But thou, O Lord, shall endure forever.” (Psalms, 102.12).
- “In the beginning this was but the absolute Self (Brahman) alone. There was nothing else whatsoever that winked (was active). He thought: Let me create worlds.” (Aitereya Upanishad, I.i.1).
- “For I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” (Revelations, 22.13).
- “He is the First and the Last, the Outward and the Inward; He is the Knower of everything (Sura 57:3)”.
According to scripture, divinity remains as physical events come and go just as quantum reality does, so both existed before our universe began and will remain when it is gone.
These similarities suggest that the scriptures of old and quantum equations of today describe the same thing in personal and abstract ways, so the divinity premise equates to the statement that quantum reality exists. Obviously, physics doesn’t worship quantum reality but Buddhism doesn’t worship its divine reality either. It’s hard to find a feature of divinity that quantum reality doesn’t support, whether it is power, mystery or universality. If no distinction can be drawn, the evidence for quantum reality given in Chapters 1-3 gives the divinity premise an operational base. How then does the next premise of scriptures fair?