A Holistic System Definition: Spirituality and Wisdom Grid

Wisdom is an abstract and elusive concept in a footnote under Fixing Mind, Life and Existence in that missing unprinted manual we're all longing for, much like the evasive spark of lucid consciousness defying our attempts to fully comprehend our own brain and cognition. I have come to equate spirituality with a quest for this elusive wisdom, a magical key for harmonizing the human situation.

This is a working draft for a generic definition and model on the dynamics of wisdom and spirituality in the human society. It is intended as a step towards parsing the totality of the human situation into a general model covering environment, society, universe, and the depths of the mind. Over time, it will evolve into an abstracted model for cross-referencing and contextualizing diverse fields of thought in generic terms.

We can distill abstract patterns of wisdom from diverse traditions by filtering away external elements derived from the human society. The clarity and energy of the sun of wisdom keeps the system well-powered and free of friction. The degradation of the system is in direct proportion to the amount of wisdom lost to confusion in the choice transitions along the life circuit.

Every individual paragraph in this paper focuses on an individual segment or relationship of the above system flowchart. They will be elaborated on in more detail as time permits, accompanied with more illustrative diagrams. In the meantime, if you have feedback or contributions to the big picture, please connect at www.SySpir.com and get in touch with the project facilitator or join our friendly and informative online discussion group.

12/Nov/2010 - Text updates in factor relation clarifications and better concept segmentation and flow. Some elaborations with parallels to the flowchart pointed out. I will splice up this paper and lay it over the flowchart as interactive segments to help take it in one mouthful at a time.

06/Feb/2011 - Flowchart and text updated to complete the Big Picture - Causality - Foresight - Introspection quad under Balance, the integrating element of the four fundamental perspectives.

Wisdom: The Patterns Behind Knowledge and Ignorance

Wisdom is neither ignorance nor knowledge. Wisdom is generated in the oscillation of knowledge and ignorance as a cognition of the emerging patterns. Arising from observation, introspection, analysis, and conquest of the finite mind, wisdom creates a platform for neutral and well-rounded assessment of situations. A holistic and symmetric understanding of the world, accumulated by attention and clarity of perception, are essential for the health and evolution of the human society.

When information and knowledge are absorbed and then applied in a holistic manner for the fair benefit of everyone and everything, we observe the external component of wisdom in action. When we see an individual at peace and above the urges of his mental patterns, we observe the internal component of wisdom in action. Wisdom is the art of turning life into a win-win scenario for yourself and everyone else at the same time.

Wisdom is active in understanding the factors of a situation and responding optimally to advance everyone's natural interests. Wisdom is broad systemic thinking with an agenda in tune with the interests of the collective system — increasing harmony, clarity and progress through the reconciliation or mitigation of all conflicting factors. Wisdom is also in understanding your ignorance, and in becoming adequately informed to be in a position to apply wisdom in tune with the needs of your environment.

Wisdom is neither good nor evil — regardless of how people with good and evil traits may perceive it. Wisdom is an apt and neutral observation of the natural course of existence, leading to the individual's behavior functioning as a symmetric and non-entropic part in the symmetric cycles of existence.

When these cycles are understood, both in the world of objects and the world within, the emerging course of action will naturally be good — because it does not seek to infringe, and carefully analyzes to avoid fundamental infringement on any other part of the system — which is the ultimate ethical code of every benevolent system.

The broader the perceived system, the greater and more universal the expanse of potentials and the available patterns of wisdom. The narrower the perspective, the greater the scope of ignorance and the capacity to inadvertently damage the system. The greater the difference between the expanse of perspective and the position of an individual, the greater his capacity to abuse and damage the system — in absence of a wholesome perspective, or in failing to exercise a universally fair model of ethics.

Kathleen Farago May: Celebrate
If the orchestra plays out of sync or stops playing, the celebration fails;
If the four tiers of the holistic system are out of balance, the systems of life fail.

A Four-Tier System: Nature - Society - Universe - Mind

Hard material sciences can explain the technical workings of the physical world in remarkable detail. Despite all these advancements — or possibly because of them — an excessive focus on the material and physical necessities has compromised the more holistic and natural way of living seen in the millennia of the past.

A human being with wisdom has a well-rounded and unbiased understanding of the dynamics of the mind-matter relationship and the role of the individual in a symmetric and harmonic totality of existence.

The totality of our system encompasses the ecosystem, the human domain, the broader universe, and the vast inner space within — the depths of the human mind and the many potential spheres of conscious existence.

As a consequence of the increasing external confusion and out-drawn focus of attention, our collective understanding of the human psyche has taken but infant steps in providing a platform of generally accessible and practicable holistic wisdom. Access to wisdom should be a basic human right — not a luxury hidden behind layers of obtuse and cryptic jargon, idioms, and idiosyncrasies.

The lack of available information and education on the essential patterns and principles of reality — whether a result of depriorization or an absence of understanding — has resulted in a situation where a sizable portion of the human society depends on diverse chemical medications to keep the ever-increasing cacophony and disarray in their minds at a blurred distance.

Escalating disarray in the surroundings leads invariably to an escalating state of internal disorder, especially when combined with the decreasing availability of natural and therapeutic environments. It's clear that the current system has failed to adequately facilitate and stimulate the psychological well-being of the humanity at large amidst the rush for industrialization, technology, and external creativity and enjoyments.

The narrow-sightedness and neglect over the totality of the system has resulted in countless human and natural catastrophes, throwing the world into an escalating spiral of disorder and internal disintegration. It's hard not to watch the news and notice the obvious signs of a system gone defunct — clearly a corporation well past its prime and on its way towards the bitter end of its natural life-cycle.

Only a holistic understanding of the entire four-tier system of nature-society-universe-mind can return Humanity Ltd Inc. — living true to its commercial suffixes: limited and incorporated — back to its energetic prime of mental, physical and spiritual evolution and journey deeper into the universe .

There's s an undeniable trend of deterioration despite advances, and without a doubt we humans have been quite efficient as the architects of the escalation of our own demise — for nothing but our screaming lack of a broader perspective in our thought, speech and action.

Kathleen Farago May: Find Your Way Home
Wisdom of the patterns of existence shrinks the system to the size of your palm,
making the grid of the world considerably easier and smoother to navigate.

Synthesis: Cross-Systemic Integration of Wisdom

Many systems and models of thinking and living, aiming for advancing individual equilibrium or a universal good, are formally labeled as spirituality. Many other systems of thought deal with similar variables, principles and patterns — directly or indirectly, knowingly or unknowingly — but are not normally considered within the domain of spirituality, owing to their focus on a specific and more narrow field of interest.

In reality, the sum total of our systemic spirituality can gain immense benefits from every field of thought that has ever sought to understand the patterns of existence, seeking to better relate to the future and the emerging situations. They can all be abstracted to patterns and generic models that are applicable across contexts. When information is available in a generic associative framework, it is faster to access and easier to put into practice.

Modern science has exposed us to a wealth of new phenomena and theories. Many of them run in parallel to the systems found in mystical and spiritual traditions that explore the domains of the subconscious mind, the inner dimensions of cognizance, and ultimately our deepest existential questions. Modern physics and the causal and existential models of mystic traditions deserve to be studied in tandem for new perspectives.

Modern philosophers have unveiled and formulated a vast array of new concepts and models of reality. Some have formulated new models in contradiction the older, others have synthesized existing views into a bigger picture, and yet many more have debated over existing views only to prove them wrong. Even so, the larger part of our modern wealth of understanding is well beyond the reach and capacity of less educated audiences.

The pages of history and the vast collective mythos of humanity also provide us with an ocean of universal patterns and demonstrative examples. Ancient and classical philosophical traditions have already invented a large array of conceptual wheels with remarkable functionality, all but forgotten to many a modern mind, as we race for innovation and reinvention in ignorance of the lessons and discoveries of our past.

If the calculations have already rolled on for millennia, starting the computations from a scratch is hardly an optimal way forward. Keeping the bigger picture in mind while moving into the future, we would gain the benefit of a vastly broader array of associative patterns and wisely handled precedents to work with as we struggle to solve the questions and problems of today.

The scientific validity or invalidity of the details in diverse systems of thought is irrelevant for this purpose. There's the fact that scientific opinion is in constant flux for one — and generic abstractions are the objective of universal systemization to begin with.

Analysis of marginal details is of trivial and supporting interest only. It is useful in terms of wisdom when it provides generic variants to a recognized pattern, and less useful when for all practical purposes it's an isolated idiosyncrasy in the larger patterns of reality.

By extracting the patterns and principles from amidst the external specifics of bodies of categorized knowledge and demonstrative narrations, we improve our signal to noise ratio and gain increased clarity over its exact generic contexts. Imagine if every country in the world had used diverging protocols and standards in information technology networks — our dream of a global free information society would hardly be an option!

This same process of informative globalization and universalization is long overdue in the world of religion and ideological traditions. As long as science and spirituality remain unreconciled and desynchronized, so long the system has to struggle with the stress of conflicting prime imperatives. The better the shared patterns and dynamics of the diverse fields of human interest are understood and reconciled, the smoother our lives here on earth will be.

Like clouds envelope a mountain and become a very real part of its dynamics, so the clouds of religion envelope spirituality, decreasing availability and clarity of actual wisdom in the process.
Dhading valley, Nepal, July 2008.

Mountain ∝ Clouds = Spirituality ∝ Religion

Religion is an umbrella for diverse fields of activity, and nothing in particular on its own. Religion can include holistic spirituality — for example in teaching about:

• A) the upholding of a natural equality and symmetry (balance). 
• B) the greater picture of our human situation and relations (big picture).
• C) the adverse effects of actions infringing on the rights of others (causality),
• D) the need for foresight and goal beyond one's immediate needs and desires (foresight), 
• E) the self-analysis and abandonment of harmful attitudes (introspection).

Most religions are initially founded to act as practical vehicles to a concept of wisdom and spirituality.

Causal understanding, broad foresight, symmetric balance and honest introspection are obvious elements of wisdom. They are crucial both to the attainment inner peace, and to the formation of well-rounded and symmetrically benevolent systems of ethics. Wisdom is also the source of the primary solace one finds in religion.

The greater part of religious art and narrative is dedicated to depicting situations expressing the archetypal wisdom of the prophet, the guru or the messiah. The history is full of remarkable men and women who taught a system of larger holistic symmetry in an attempt to heal both the human world and the human mind and spirit.

Spirituality is to religion like a mountain is to clouds. Religion can also include ritualism, politics, culture, nationalism, industrialism, administration, commerce, and many other fields of activity, exchange, and influence.

When spirituality is combined with other fields of interest under the collective label of a branded system of beliefs or an organized religion, the original components of wisdom often become diluted, and even shunned in practice from the broader public in the interest of advancing accessory agendas.

Whenever this conglomeration of diverse fields of interest gains enough momentum to assume clear structures and hierarchies, organized religion is formed. Formal religion is therefore by definition a mixed bag of goods, advancing a number of accessory agendas.

These supporting agendas frequently undergo apotheosis and are elevated on a pedestal equal or exceeding the original wisdom. In metaphorical terms, the devil has then taken control of the religion, enticing and confusing the minds of its leaders with the pleasures of flesh and power.

Errae humanum est: "To err is human." This is an universally accepted principle. Considering the history, it's fair enough to then conclude that "religions are human", as are everyone of forming them — pending an assembly of perfectly enlightened systemic entities. Hieronymus continues, et confiteri errorem prudentis — "...and to admit the error is prudent." Seneca completes the cycle, sed perseverare diabolicum — "but to persist in doing it would be diabolical."

This is a good working formula for evaluating the balance of wisdom and wickedness in a collective of people, whether religious or otherwise. To err is human, to grow wiser is divine, and to persist with mistakes is patently evil. Depending on how much wisdom your local "spiritual grocery" holds, and how influenced it is by interests conflicting with wisdom, you may or may not have a spiritually rewarding encounter with a religion or while living as a religious adherent.

Whatever the current wisdom demographics of a given religion may be, we have much to learn from the heritages of wisdom they have preserved over the millennia. This is particularly the case with textually rich religions, where countless scholars and scribes have sought to systematize and reconcile the original wisdom of the tradition, often elaborating at great length based on their subsequent ponderings.

While religion has undeniably oppressed science and culture on countless occasions in advancing their accessory agendas independent of the original wisdom of the faith, it has also given immense and undeniable support to cultures and sciences throughout the course of the better part of known human history. Monastic traditions in particular have provided a cultural and spiritual benefits in carrying wisdom across the ages.

A spiritual seeker climbing the mountain of wisdom to comprehend and master
the ultimate system. Arunachala, Tiruvannamalai, South India, March 2008.

Spirituality ∝ Wisdom = Climber ∝ Mountain

Spirituality and wisdom are inherently interconnected, vital components in holistic systemic thought that advances the collective interests of the humanity. Spirituality is a quest for wisdom, and wisdom is the action (or inaction) of mature spirituality. When I speak of systemic spirituality, this is the definition of spirituality I intend to convey — not the peculiarities of the countless colorful, curious and idiosyncratic traits that spiritual systems are fond of upholding as a part of their heritage.

A climber at the foothills of the mountain of holistic spirituality, the systemic seeker is on a quest to live in harmony with the four-tiered totality of existence. Aiming for the wisdom of universal and complete patterns at the wisdom peak of the mountain, the ultimate systems seeker navigates through countless layers of clouds,

These layers are the obfuscation of organized religion, the society at large, and finally the intertwined layers of the conditioned human mind. Unraveling the mind's compulsive patterns and emerging with a clear and perceptive awareness, one would be in a real position to understand the big picture and act accordingly.

Research into systemic spirituality must be done in freedom from the corollary agendas introduced around the core principles of wisdom and spirituality by religion and the externally evolving society. Where they offer natural synergy, they are welcome to join for the ride powered by wisdom.

When ulterior agendas infringe with the symmetry and natural harmonics of the systemic wisdom of natural good practice, they are better kept confined within their respective individual domains. Battling with the interfering externals of spirituality for the better part of my adult life, I am fundamentally allergic to a spirit of stagnated dogmatism and adulterated agendas.

The objective of systemic spirituality is in examining and cross-systematizing the insights of all noteworthy and beneficial holistic models of thought. These patterns and principles of existence should be cross-contextualized and presented in as abstract terms as possible to allow extensive room for generic application of wisdom. Otherwise, we have but the lost and buried treasures of ages bygone to show as the assets of our past.

With an increased grasp of the movements of the human mind and the dynamics of the flux of its external environment, our perception becomes brighter in understanding what was, what is, and also what's likely to be — for a part of the future is heard as an echo of the past and the actions of the present, the remainder written in the practically invariable basic patterns of humanity and existence at large.

Revisiting some of the assumed basics of our current system may be in place.
If the premises of an equation neglect sets of fundamental principles and variables,
the underlying basic errors will cast a destructive reflection over future results.

Pondering: Modeling the Big Picture, Its Causality and Its Balance

This is an attempt at a working abstract definition and general model on the big picture. I have intentionally omitted mention of any particular affiliations of thought to better illustrate these principles on their own. They will each be studied in due time in more detail, both individually and comparatively, and placed to a larger grid allowing automated online comparisons, abstractions and two-way derivations.

These verbal expression in these texts is for the most part segmented into clear data-logical objects and relations to ease systematic and structured concept-formation and make them directly convertible into diagrams and databases. While this has been a relatively free-form draft for a definition, I intend to be more algebraic in the future — definitions need to be formulaic, well categorized and typed to allow for maximum ease of comparability and further computation.

The exact systems and models developed for this initiative revolve in perpetual state of beta, so expect the charts to grow, squeeze, bob and weave as they reach into the yonder sky. Further essays, schemas and flowcharts will be published in this journal whenever I find further time to commit into expressing abstract patterns and concepts in intelligible and universal terms and structures.

Let's collect every available wisdom pattern known to mankind on a universal and cross-referencing grid — towards a tomorrow with less confusion and conflict, equipped with a more universal access to the massive totality of our collective wisdom.

For more information and feedback, please post a comment, send an e-mail, join the LinkedIn Group, like the Facebook Page, follow us on Twitter, visit SySpir.com / Systemic Spirituality, and remember to forward this text to friends and colleagues who share an interest in holistic thinking and the role of broader wisdom and spirituality in the larger systems of life and reality. 

The God Who Created the God Who Created the God

Religious philosophers tend to argue in favor of an original intelligent cause as an answer for the question of our origins. It stands to reason, they argue, that an original cause be accepted to avoid the paradox of beginninglessness. The original cause being of course a monotheistic god, who is assumed perfect and benevolent.

From these roots come the marked difference in the linear and finite versus cyclic and infinite models of the Occident and the Orient, along with some wildly varying concepts of god or its equivalent. When it comes to god and gods, much is assumed and little is certain.

The pursuit for an original cause is much like a walk in Escher's paradox.

Original Cause as a Non-Solution

Proposing that there is an original cause is philosophically unsatisfactory, inasmuch as the original cause always remains incomprehensible to us smaller units, its originality unproven in the face of the possibility that our original cause is but the a link in a chain of causation. The concept of a greater creator merely begs the question whether there might be more creators at work somewhere up the pyramid of creations.

If there is one creator god for the existence we know, it is in fact entirely plausible that there may be any number of other, more compassive gods further up the line of creations, the extent of which we'd never be able to decipher as either infinite or finite. The seemingly definitive solution of an original cause now effectively returns to square one, once again face to face with the paradox of infinity and beginninglessness.

Brahma, the Hindu demiurge, is born from a lotus growing from Vishnu's navel.

Hierarchy of Creator Gods in Indic Lore

The Vaishnavite mythology, found throughout the Puranic lore, posits the existence of a single eternal transcendent deity, Vishnu, who dwells beyond the world of creations, and also permeates the creation as its supporting substratum. At the dawn of creation Vishnu, lying at the bottom of each of the universes he created, let a lotus sprout from his navel, atop which awoke Brahma, the creator god of the Hindu trinity, set to organize the elements of the cosmos provided by Vishnu.

This prime creator, in turn, set forth a number of Prajapatis, progenitors of mankind and diverse species, along with a number of sages to impart wisdom to the creation. In a fair number of epics the lesser gods, created by Brahma, mistake their immediate creator to be the supreme creating deity and the original cause, and in fact he is found to be so deluded on a number of occasions himself.

The god Brahma also features in early Buddhist lore as one among a number of Brahmas, each presiding over their own Brahma-worlds, fancying themselves as creator gods, frequently original causes in their own right. These Brahmas feature in a number of legends from the Buddha's cosmic adventures, and it was in fact Brahma Sahampati who urged the Buddha to go forth and preach the dharma in the wake of his enlightenment.

The theology of some Vaishnavas, most notably the Gaudiya tradition and the Hare Krishnas, further posits that Krishna is, rather than an avatar of Vishnu, in fact the original source god, of whom Vishnu is an extension for purposes of creation. Yet they are in some respects identical, one deity and one mind, and yet again different in some minute manners. Overall, I get the effect of calling to an office for the person responsible, only to be routed around in circles until the line breaks. No wonder some prefer speaking face to face, whether it's gods or service personnel.

Not surprisingly, adherents of the Shaiva school likewise claim Shiva to be the supreme god, as again the Shaktas insist that Shakti is the ultimate mother-godhead, of which Shiva, Vishnu and the rest spring forth. Faced with the immense plurality and conflicting opinions of the Indic gods, good old Christian monotheism might begin to seem like a welcome breeze of fresh air. If so, please breathe to your liking before starting the following section.

David Tarleton: The Aeon Sophia at the Birth of the Demiurge

Gnostic Demiurge and Judeo-Christian Creator God

I recall a lively conversation I once had with an elderly Jehovah's Witness. He was adamant that the mainstream Christian Church was wrong in claiming that Jesus was God, while he was in fact the first creation, as also god's instrument for the making of the creation that sprang forth — all standard Jehovah's Witness theology.

Incidentally I was also once filled in into the higher secret of the Church of the Latter Day Saints, again by an elderly gentleman somewhere in northern Finland. All was fine with my theology, but the fact that I was a monk at the time. Skipping the preliminaries, he related how we, as married couples, are to evolve and one day become creator gods and goddesses of our own universes.

To make things even more confusing on the Judeo-Christian front, we are confronted with the question of their god being perhaps a legion of gods, as the plural address Elohim and covenants to "not have any other gods" indicate. How much do the Elohim have in common with the gods of the Olympos mountain, the Egyptian Pantheon and the Hindu gods of Himalaya?

It was the Gnostic tradition that first identified the Judean God as a so-called Demiurge, an inferior and imperfect deity responsible for the creation of an imperfect world. Gnostic estimates of the lesser deity span from an embodiment of evil to merely an imperfect yet benevolent being. The Gnostics view the birth of the Demiurge as an accident that was never meant to happen, in effect describing an unplanned pregnancy leading to the birth of a defective god.

In contrast to demiurge are the eternal Pleroma, self-manifest beings transcending our dimension, ascension among whom is the final destination of the humans. As fascinating as it is, one can't help but wonder whether there might be yet another layer of causation beyond the supposedly eternal Pleroma, who as a matter of fact sound remarkably similar to the residents of the Immaterial Realms of the Buddhist cosmology, who are again superceded by the cryptic nirvana.

The Judeo-Christian God's wrath in the Genesis incident over Adam's acquisition of classified knowledge is interesting in its own right. We even find the following admission in God's own words (3.21): "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." Interestingly, the serpent was right over the fruit's effects, while God was in fact trying to prevent access with threats of death upon eating. Now that ought to get the conspiracy theorists running!

Left: Intimidating Jaffa servant of an Egyptian Goa'uld. Right: The Ori grant supernatural powers to their Priors.

Evil Gods of Science Fiction

The well-documented traits of the God Institution have also found their way into popular entertainment. For an example, the popular TV-series Stargate features two separate races of malevolent beings posing and worshiped as gods, only to be overthrown by their subjects in due course.

The Goa'uld, evil and technologically advanced power-hungry parasites, used humans for slavery for millennia in the guise of various Egyptian, Greek and Oriental gods, posing as immortal lords and the creators. The Goa'uld were snake-like creatures who bonded with human hosts, integrating themselves with the hosts' spinal cord and the brain. (Incidentally the often-controversial kundalini-energy of Hindu Tantrics literally means "female serpent" and, when activated, rises up the spinal cord and yields psychic powers.)

Again the Ori, an ascendend incorporeal species, inspired massive crusades to have everyone worship them, for they gained power through the energy sapped from lower sentient beings. For them, the religion is a conduit for transferring upwards the energy expended by the worshipers. In return for worship and absolute dedication, they offered their followers a false promise of ascension, unwilling as they were to share of their power. Really, exactly how many of the available promises of afterlife are guaranteed real deals? It's a pity religions don't come bundled with a money-back guarantee.

While there would be a number of other juicy examples to illustrate the concept, let's focus on the gist of the idea, namely the assumed integrity and benevolence of the said god or gods. There is no reason to assume that a more powerful being would have also evolved in benevolence, even if the religions of the world do tend to take the goodness of their gods for granted. Hey, the gods of the Zoroastrians being the demons of the Brahmanas and vice versa, one or other of the gods out there has got to be evil! And evil or not, faithfully worshiped by devout followers.

Something is fundamentally wrong with the above scenario.

Final Thoughts

The final day of reckoning pending and yet to be proven, there are few compelling reasons for worshiping one authoritarian god or the other. Given the insubstantiability of the said claims of absolute originality, omnipotence and omniscience, there is little reason to accept demands of allegiance. Neither claims of rightful ownership of our souls or threats of damnation or annihilation can serve as a basis for a healthy, working relationship. If there's one thing that puts me off on so many levels, it is intimidation.

If some choose to voluntarily pursue the worship of a god or several gods or goddesses, whether it be for solace, pleasure, profit or wisdom, I don't see it as objectionable as long as the relationship remains non-abusive. If a god or the gods are real, existing and sentient beings, it stands to reason that our free will ought to be respected, and all forms of life, regardless of evolutionary level, ought to have certain rights. Just like we also treat nature and animals, eh? Do unto them as he did unto us...

Coming from a god who created hell, a promise that he can save me from going to hell isn't exactly playing it fair. You cannot create a threat and then play the good guy for alleviating the threat! When a threat is produced to gain advantage from the object of threat, it is called coercion. Use of coercion with self-produced ultimatums spanning infinity cannot be the work of a a truthful, loving and benevolent being.

Not that I'm an atheist. Atheism as a concept is far too limited, as is theism along with its bretheren ideologies. Pantheism and monistic nondualism are high on my chart of working elements for a coherent overall picture of existence. No single theory in itself seems to be adequate for capturing the essence of existence, and a comprehensive Theory of Everything is yet to be written. Be that as it may, it seems evident that the era of authoritarian creator gods is nearing its inevitable end.

Further Reading

Brahma (Buddhism): A fascinating gloss on the role of the god Brahma in Buddhist lore, little known to many Hindu adherents who fancy Brahma as a Hindu deity. Ironic as it is, the god of the Brahmanas was identified as one of the Brahmas known to the Buddha long before the Puranas began to grow into their current renditions!

Brahma (Hinduism): A good overview of the Hindu lore of creation, the birth of Brahma, who was to become one of the popular Hindu trinity, and the subsequent gods he created for the sake of expanding his domain. Path to Deification: How we evolve into gods, as understood in the theology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Gnosticism: Pleroma and the Demiurge. Goa'uld and Ori: Two fictive races of false gods in the Stargate universe.

The Banishment of the Watch-Maker

"You can't talk about karma without God, for every law needs a law-maker!" Or so I was told by someone who had read my earlier article discussing universal and Buddhist concepts of karma. Do we really need to have an intelligent designer for each and every minuscule aspect of existence, or does the world turn every bit as well without a cosmic architect?

Despite my sincerest efforts, it just didn't add up in the end.

Foundational Fallacy

It is quite meaningless for someone to just say that every law or principle requires a law-maker. A hypothesis employing deductive analogy is far from a conclusive standard of evidence. Analogy meaning the hypothesis that the principles of our human world would be identical to those of any second dimension, of which we may deduce that just as every law of human world is made by a human maker, so every principle in existence requires an intelligent designer.

Does this make sense? Is it logical? Of that, we have little evidence. Our experiences in the human world may be manifold, but the human world is not an archetype from which to derive and reconstruct any and all higher dimensions of existence. After all, in the human world all things come to an end, and grief is inherent in existence, but the supposed god and his domain are invariably in breach of these fundamental principles.

It is really rather naive to assume that our form of existence would be the only extant form of conscious life, thence creating the myth of how exceptionally rare a coincidence it is that we should exist as we do. This ill-assumed exceptionality again gives rise to theories of intelligent design, and culminate in concluding that the great intelligent designer must be akin in principle to those now considering themselves the created. Ladies and gentlemen, the anthropomorphic creator god is now seated on his throne.

Had god had a sense of humor, two plus two would equal five.

Self-evident Principles

When a man opens his palm holding an apple, the apple falls. Do you need a law-maker for that? The intrinsic properties of the variables bring about a certain conjoint effect by their own natures. Gravity exists in a situation where objects with mass attract each other. Where these conditions don't exist, the said phenomenom does not occur. We happen to be in a place where objects with mass attract each other, hence the apple invariably falls to the ground. Should we shift our location to outer space, for example, the apple would no longer fall owing to different coefficients.

You don't need a law-maker to decide whether 2+2=4 or not. The intrinsic values of two identical variables add up to a combined result of twice their value, automatically and without need for divine design or intervention. Everything is the way it is in the human world because the variables happen to be right for a particular variety of existence. In other conditions, the variables would either create a foundation for a different variety of existence, subject to the effects of the interacting variables, or none at all if their current synergy would be too weak to effect such, in which case they would remain latent pending a change in surrounding effectors.

Moreover, causes and effects require no will of their own to interact. Any given effect is the only possible outcome of the exact interacting causes in the exact environment of variables. Theoretically, knowledge of each intricate aspect contributing to a situation would give a passive observer, who knows the potentials of each aspect, the ability to foresee any given event or series of events with perfect accuracy. Advanced capacity in recognizing variables and patterns is what the ancients called omniscience, while omnipotence was the derived capability for intricate manipulation of variables to effect the desired outcome.

Why would you possibly need a watch-maker, a compassionate watcher, a passionate interventionist or a dutiful maintenance man for any of the above to function as it already does?

The beginningless dance of infinite co-efficent factors

Beginningless Redundance of Creator

The concept of an original law-maker-cum-creator is every bit as flawed in the light of Vedanta as it is before plain logic. The Brahma-sutra states that existence is anadi or beginningless. Beginningless by its very definition indicates that there has never been a dawn of existence where principles of interaction would have first been established, rendering the necessity for a god or a law-maker entirely redundant. If the wheel of existence has been turning without a beginning, the concept of an original creator becomes a paradox by its very definition.

The principle of causality, then, is a beginningless field of coefficient exchange requiring no designer or supreme intelligent coordinator for its functioning. Everything is in a constant state of flux, each factor in motion and shaping the other, two causes giving birth to a new effect that naturally follows. The momentum of each factor escalates its contacted surroundings, giving rise to infinite new causal chains, even as the sum total of energy remains constant. I call it the dance of the universe, as also the great weaving of cosmic fields. If there must be a god, let him be the symmetric caleidoscope of the universe.

Continued: The God Who Created the God Who Created the God »