Brief introduction to my system
My system is based on a set of fundamental assumptions and a number of definitions, observations, arguments, and models. It can be classified as substance-priority monism and pantheism.
Three Fundamental Assumptions:
Metareality consists of a single substance and an unlimited number of different forms that it takes.
Substance is sophisticated.
Forms reflect the nature of the substance.
Definitions, Observations, Arguments, and Models:
1.
Substance in my system is infinite, powerful, and sophisticated—this aligns it with at least some attributes that have historically been assigned to God. I also find the substance deeply mysterious and sacred. That is why I use the terms “substance” and “God” interchangeably.
2.
Substance is completely fundamental and prior to any of the forms it takes. Because of that, substance is beyond any categories and dichotomies like causality, morality, reason, space, time, and logic.
3.
The universe exists in a greater, all-encompassing hierarchical context similar to how a building exists in the context of a city, country, continent, and planet. I call this context “metareality.” For views that reject the existence of a greater context, I prefer to formulate them as postulating an empty metareality, except for the Universe. Fundamentally I consider metareality to be equal to substance.
4.
Energy in itself is an abstract concept, and physics doesn’t explain what energy is. We don’t experience it directly, but indirectly through various forms that it takes, such as kinetic, gravitational, or thermal energy. When energy takes one of these forms, it becomes observable and explainable.
In that sense, substance is very similar—in itself, it is completely abstract and can’t be observed or explained. But when it takes a form—like our Universe—it becomes less abstract, observable, and susceptible to explanation.
Note that this is only an analogy. Substance can’t be equated with energy, as energy is a measurable quantity—even in the abstract.
5.
Why does the Universe take an unlimited number of forms, rather than a limited number? It is because there is only one substance, and there is nothing external that could limit it.
6.
Substance is not a person—it doesn’t plan, have motivations, or wants. Because of that, the existence of intelligent life can’t be explained as part of some grander plan or as having a deep reason behind it. Rather, intelligent life is an epiphenomenon—an accidental side effect—of substance taking an unlimited number of different forms, all of which reflect its powerful and sophisticated nature.
7.
Why postulate that substance is sophisticated and that its forms reflect that part of its nature?
One of the greatest puzzles regarding the Universe is its harmonious structure, by which I mean that its tremendous complexity arises from a simple, elegant order—one laden with symmetries, internal consistency, and ingenuity.
One might try to explain this harmony via the law of large numbers—if there are infinitely many universes, some will be harmonious, and we just happen to be in one. That logic works once, for the fine-tuning necessary for the existence of intelligent observers (we “won” the cosmic lottery), but it falls apart when you also try to explain harmony the same way. Life doesn’t strictly require harmony; you’d expect far more fine-tuned yet messy universes than fine-tuned and harmonious ones. So, if you invoke the cosmic lottery to explain both, you’re saying we “won” twice, which is implausible.
Because I couldn’t explain harmony anthropically or in any other way, I assumed that its source is the most fundamental layer of existence—the substance. Einstein believed something similar, famously saying: “I believe in Spinoza’s God, who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists.”
Sophistication is reflected not only in the harmonious quality of the Universe’s structure but also in its complexity. Substance could take an unlimited number of different forms, all of them sophisticated, but if they were too simple, intelligent life wouldn’t exist. Consider a substance that only takes forms of geometric figures—there would be an unlimited number of different and sophisticated forms, but there would be no humans. So, sophistication is also reflected in the relatively high complexity of structures that emerge from substance.