zbob

Thank you Shon for your thoughtful response. I also do a mindful "meditation" whereby I allow my perceptions of the leaves of trees blown by the wind to flow through my consciousness without actively perceiving any "time" as my mind is altered by the changes of form. Peace, joy and happiness are the products of this "meditation". Peace to you, zbob

Hello Sifu Wolf. Thank you very much for your response to my post. I also believe that the sciences function apart subjectively to function as parts of the One objectively. For there to be a part there must be a whole. Is it also true that for there to be god there must also be no god? And vice versa. Clearly, modern theoretical physicists have reached the conclusion that mystics have known for millenia: for there to be time (subjective, relative), there also must be timelessness (objective, absolute). (they are contained within each other, although each is a separate part of the whole) Peace in every moment, zbob

Thank you for responding. I am amazed that even "materialistic" science is beginning to discover that the nature and basis of the fabric of reality is timelessness. Unfortunately, however, the materialistic super paradigm of modern science hinders its adherents from the ultimate understanding that the ground of being is consciousness. (as your monk's flag example so perfectly illustrates) But with theoretical physicists such as Amit Goswami at the leading edge of monistic idealistic thought, the super paradigm may eventually fall and be replaced by a scientific view very much in concordance with taoism.

As someone who is very interested in the amazing similarities between Taoist thought and modern theoretical physics, I wanted to comment on the subject of the illusory nature of time from the perspective of absolute spacetime: Albert Einstein stated that "since there exists in the four dimensional structure (space-time) no longer any sections which represent "now" objectively, the concepts of happening and becoming are indeed not completely suspended but yet complicated. It appears therefore more natural to think of physical reality as a four dimensional existence, instead of, as hitherto, the evolution of a three dimensional existence." Einstein went on to state that there is not a true division between past and future, but rather a single existence. In other words, the distinction between past, present and future is an illusion. Since all subjective time is relative depending on the observer's speed through space relative to another observer and their relative position in the universe, there is no objective, absolute time or absolute space as Newton proposed. Instead, since there is no objective "now" due to the relative, subjective observation of space-time, the only thing that is real is the whole of space-time. As theoretical physicist David Bohm stated: "Ultimately, all moments are really one. Therefore now is eternity" Or as theoretical physicist Brian Greene says: "Just as we envision all of space as really being out there, as really existing, we should also envision all of time as really being out there, as really existing too." And for a different view of the second law of thermodynamics and the nature of order and timelessness go to: http://www.everythingforever.com/

Since I read the Tao of Physics a few years ago I have been attempting to integrate the essences of the various spiritual traditions and experiences with the radical new theories emerging through theoretical physics and consciousness psychology. Having accidentally discovered this site today, I look forward to increasing my experiences of life from the interesting commentary contained in these forums.