Intersection of science and faith

pic courtesy uen.org

As stated in my previous post I am supposed to dwell on the Vedic/Hindu stance on alternate universes....but I thought that before doing so some light should be thrown on ISLAM and CHRISTIAN (two other major faiths in India) view on the subject as Vedic view on the subject is quite detailed and will take couple of posts to cover the topic!

ISLAM’S VIEW

Considering the Islamic view of the subject, we read in the very first Chapter of the noble Quran of Allah Almighty as "the Lord of the worlds" (Al-Fatihah 1:2).

Indeed we see the same expression in several other places too, such as: 

O Moses! Verily I am Allah, the Lord of the Worlds....(Al-Qasas 28:30)

and, Blessed be Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds...(Al-A`raf 7:54)

In all these verses, the expression, "worlds" gives the idea of a plurality of worlds.

Prof. Faheem Ashraf writes:.......

“Allah is He Who created seven Firmaments (heavens) and of the earth a similar number. Through the midst of them (Allah) descends His Command: that ye may know that Allah has power over all things and that Allah comprehends all things in (His) Knowledge.” (At-Talaq 65: 12)

It should be noted that if the word samawat (heavens) is taken equivalent to universe then there are at least 7 other universes (one above the other like onion) each with its own sets of physical laws.

It is apparent from this verse that God created other world systems and God's commands descend (Keep in mind the use of present tense) in those systems. Use of present tense means that these systems exist today contrary to what Quantum Gravity theories suggest." ...........The concept of parallel universes certainly throws some light on the existence of beings like jinn and angels, and of the unseen world in general.”

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=d4f_1203879237

CHRISTIAN FAITH’S VIEW

While searching for the answer for what Christianity says on the existence of multiple universes I came across this interesting discussion forum...I picked up two interesting answers which provide food for thought...they are presented here for you (source mentioned)

Jesus said, "In my father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you."

John 14:2

A scientist with a Ph.D. in one of the applied biological sciences says:

“My understanding of Holy Scriptures suggests there are at least three parallel universes: the physical one we experience as humans, the divine universe where God, Christ, and the God-fearing angels and other spiritual beings exist, and the universe of evil to which Satan and his legions have been expelled. The interesting part is that, if one believes the Bible, then all three of those universes co-exist right now here on earth.” 

Admittedly, if I am correct in assuming from Scripture that God and Satan no longer inhabit the same spiritual universe, then some portion of the total creation is undoubtedly required to account for the parallel universe currently inhabited by Satan and his minions, but I suspect that it is a quite small dominion in comparison with the proportion of creation required to encompass love and its related attributes!”

http://www.thinkingthroughchristianity.com/2010/02/are-parallel-universes-heretical.htm

arjieorwell@yahoo.com says:

“The existence of parallel universes that cannot be seen in observatorial telescope had already been verified by NASA as a result of its 'magnetic survey' of the universe. Check it out.....I tried to seek understanding the insistence of Christ in loving enemies, praying for their success and turning the other cheek. When I assumed that I might have done greater evil to my enemies in a parallel world, Christ's gospel make sense..... I feel like being elevated to a 'state of grace' whenever I get the chance to respond as Christ had taught as I found the explanation in the 'parallel universe'.” 

  http://www.thinkingthroughchristianity.com/2010/02/are-parallel-universes-heretical.htm

I will present the Vedic perspective on the subject in the next post....will return soon!

Cosmic Corridor

pic courtesy meditationguidance.com

In the scientific community, the idea of alternate universes was first proposed in 1954 by Hugh Everett III, a young doctoral candidate at one of the most prestigious Ivy League Universities in the world. He called it the “Many-Worlds Theory”, and used it as an explanation as to why quantum matter behaves erratically. 

Nobel prize winners, professors, quantum physicists have made discoveries in the possibility of alternate universes, including the world-famous Professor Stephen Hawking, Professor Alan Guth, and even Albert Einstein himself.

For this Google can be searched for scientific theories like String Theory and M-Theory, or the film can be watched “What The Bleep Do We Know!?” 

There are some people who believe that jumping from one universe to another is already a possibility and claim to do it frequently. They say this is done through a process called thought transference. While this can’t be proven or disproven, some scientists have believed that in order to change where you are (your location), you merely need to change your thought pattern or frequencies. This is called quantum jumping. While the opportunities seem endless, the practice seems elusive to many people. Science is increasingly moving ahead with theories about alternate universes. While the data is inconclusive, many do believe that an alternate or parallel universe is not just made for science fiction. It is a true phenomenon that requires more study. (http://www.quantumjumping.com/articles/parallel-universe/parallel-universes-theory/)

Mankind has spent centuries speculating on the existence of alternate universes. The earliest known idea of this is found in the Puranas, an ancient collection of Hindu texts, which speak of an infinite number of universes—each with its own planets, inhabitants and gods. (http://www.quantumjumping.com/products#order). 

Was very happy to read the above-mentioned passage in a western website giving credit to the Vedic scriptures for being the first or earliest to give the idea of alternate universes. The next post of the blog is going to be on that only....So stay tuned!

Another Plane(t)

                                                                   pic courtesy theshiznit.co.uk

In link with the previous post (http://www.crustruck.blogspot.in/2012/06/reflector-specific-space.html), the mention of the Hollywood movie, Another Earth becomes imperative. This sci-fi movie, speculating on life beyond our planetary horizon, deals fictitiously with the concept of parallel universe.

This sci-fi is about our 'mirror' planet.

When we talk of 'mirror' in the context of a planet it comes through as a concept in accordance with the Janna Levin's theory of 'Mirrors in the Sky' or 'Kaleidoscope'. As luck would have it I saw this movie while I was going through the book, "How Universe Got Its Spot" by Janna Levin. Those of you who have not seen the movie, a brief synopsis of the movie is presented here.

Right out of the blue, one day, a new planet appears really close to Earth. It looks exactly like Earth: same-shaped continents and oceans, and when our scientists make contact, it becomes worryingly apparent there is an exact double of everyone down here, up there, on the planet they're calling "Earth 2". (But as someone points out, that's not what they call themselves; they call us "Earth 2".)

Rhoda Williams while listening to the story on the radio about the above-mentioned planet that looks just like Earth gazes out her car-window at the stars and inadvertently hits a stopped car at an intersection, putting John Burroughs in a coma and killing his wife and son....after a few years Rhoda enters an essay contest sponsored by a millionaire entrepreneur who is offering a civilian space flight to the mirror Earth

Rhoda hears in a telecast a scientist postulating that the citizens of the mirror Earth might be identical to those on her Earth in every way until the moment they learned of the others' existence. From that point on, the mirror is broken and the identical people on the different Earths probably began to deviate in small ways, changing their actions. Rhoda hopes her identical self on the other Earth did not make the mistakes she made on the night of the accident.

Rhoda returns to John's house and leaves him the ticket to the other Earth, telling him that there is enough information to give him a small hope that his wife and son might be alive on that planet. John accepts the gift and becomes one of the first civilian space travelers to the other Earth.

Four months later, Rhoda looks up at the sky where Earth 2 is now hidden in fog. She approaches her back door and sees her twin from Earth 2 standing in front of her.

After seeing the movie I wondered if the screenplay writer of the movie read Janna Levin....I looked into the credits minutely (as I watched it on DVD) but could not see Janna Levin's name....but what a parallel thought :-))))

Reflector-specific Space

"A compact cosmos creates a kaleidoscopic pattern of ghost astronomical images"-Janna Levin in " How the Universe Got its Spots" (pic courtesy meritnation.com)

The author of the book, “How Universe got its Spots”, Janna Levin comes up with an amusing theory of “finite universe”....In her own words,

“So what did she (Mother nature) choose for the global shape of space? Which is it, and why that shape? I can argue on aesthetic grounds that the universe should be finite.............If nature had made space as small as a room, we’d always have known the world was finite. If I stand in the middle of the compact universe with a light bulb that never burns out and space is as small as a room, the light from bulb would transit around the space.

Some of that light will make it back to me after winding once round the space. Some of

that light will nearly take forever before it just happens to scratch past me again. If I wait

long enough, I”ll see a copy of myself in all directions,so that space is filled and bright with

ghost images of me and my light bulb at different ages, a haunting kaleidoscope of images.I could watch myself growing up and growing old. There’d be no need of my photo

albums,I could watch your life before me beyond images of my own.”

pic courtesy assisted-living-phoenix.carebuzz.com

view of a compact flat universe

Mirrors in the Sky

Janna Levin’s says that the universe is wonderland in 3D.

I thought that before we dwell more into the theory of parallel universes, this take of Janna

Levin on finite and flat universe should be shared. Without using the term ‘parallel universe’, author explains that the device behind parallel universes....see you soon!!!

Co(smos)ordinate

Had been studying a lot about parallel universes and that was the reason for the delay of the post. Stumbled upon something very interesting about the subject....thought it was worth sharing with my readers on my blog.

                                                                        pic courtesy-mytumblingthoughts.blogspot.com

Alan Guth, a physicist (Professor of Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology) believes that when the universe began, instead of a gravitational pull to keep things together, there was a reverse type of gravitation working and instead repelled everything from it, which he coined a “false vacuum.” As scientists have proven our world is constantly expanding, this theory seems plausible.

 According to his theory, the universe is much larger than anyone had predicted. If this theory is true, it would prove the existence of many universes, all of which would appear to have the same properties and abide by the same law of physics. 

While these ideas are plausible, the first allows for the belief in parallel universes, the idea that any given person can exist at the same time in more than one place. If, as humans, we were able to tap into the power of traveling to these other universes, we would be able to ‘meet’ our other selves. While this is a truly powerful thing to think about, one can imagine the possibilities it holds. If your own individual beings could meet and each one had different experiences, think of the intelligence and knowledge you could pass from one to another. Each one would have different experiences and different outcomes. In one world you could be a doctor, in another world a politician, in another world a drug addict. The options would be virtually limitless. (http://www.quantumjumping.com/articles/parallel-universe/parallel-universes-theory)

But my question to this theory is one meaning of the term "parallel" is "never meeting"...then how the meeting with your own self possible?

Will be presenting more matter {theories on parallel universes} and spirit :-) [spiritual take on the subject] in my next entries.