FREEDOM WITHIN A DETERMINISM
We are bound by Karma – our destiny and yet there is a ‘free will’ which we are given – a freedom which shapes our destiny. There seems to be some dichotomy – an inherent confusion in this line of thought which claims to give a freedom within a determinism!
But then let us view this from the point of view of an electron. An electron moves in an orbit around the nucleus. But modern physics tells us that this electron is not moving along a fine line around the nucleus at an exact distance from the nucleus (as is normally shown pictorially), rather, there is a cloud around the nucleus within which that particular electron can be found at any given specific time. In fact in multielectron elements, where the first two electrons move in the first orbit, the next (upto a maximum of 8 electrons), all move in the second orbit, the next (upto a maximum of 18 electrons) move in the third orbit – and so on and so forth, the electrons keep jumping from one orbit to another, back and forth, the only rule being that there will be no more than 2 electrons in the first orbit, 8 electrons in the second,18 in the third orbit and so on at any given point of time. Each nucleus has a range depending on the number of protons within the nucleus – the more the number of protons, the more the range of the nucleus – and all the electrons of a particular atom remain within the range of its nucleus. Yet, they jump from one orbit to another in ‘quantum’ jumps – though how or why it decides to jump is still not very well understood – only – it jumps when it gets sufficient quanta of energy to make that jump. So we see that the electron has freedom – but not absolute freedom – meaning – it has freedom to jump – BUT – only in certain fixed quanta AND that too within the range of the atom’s nucleus. Thus the electron enjoys freedom within certain bounds. It is free to move in a particular way within the confines of the system of the atom!!!! This is true for any system – from the microscopic to the macroscopic-. Planets, stars, galaxies, clusters of galaxies and whatever else, all in this Universe are bound by this law. Now Man is also a constituent of this Universe and the same law holds sway over him also. In this light, one can now understand Man’s position – that though he is bound by his Karma, he can act according to his ‘free will’. He is always given a choice at every given point and depending on the choice that he makes (and because every action has an equal and opposite reaction) his future is keeps shaping and reshaping. The future is not a static line, but it is in a state of flux. The effort Man puts in depends on his own capacities which are again determined by his limitations (thus in similar situations some can put in more efforts and some cannot) – and depending on the quanta of effort (energy) he puts in he moves from one stage to another or back to from where he started if the input energy (effort) dissipates or stops. Again, his capacities and limitations are dependent on the previous effort on his part (his previous Karma). To put in the effort is his decision, not to put in the effort is also his decision. Thus Man has the choice or ‘free will’ to put or not put in the effort and also as to the amount of effort he/she puts in – however – whether the effort put in is of enough quanta to grant him/her the desirous fruit is not known to the person concerned. Hence, inspite of the prevailing ‘free will’, we can progress only in quanta. Therefore, instead of getting worked up and frustrated at the seeming injustices of life, Man should make full use of his/her free will and leave the rest to destiny or Karma. When his/her effort generates the requisite quanta of energy, he/she will automatically get the desired results according to the law of Karma! The law of Karma never fails – it is just a matter of time – AND – as in the case of the electron in the atom, if enough energy is provided it can be freed from the bounds of that particular atomic system, so also when Man’s efforts (through his free will) generate sufficient energy, he/she will be liberated from this cycle of birth and death!!!!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
Monday, March 16, 2009
THE FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER
We have all heard of the scientist Frankenstein who created the monster. Initially, he was very proud of his creation. But before the scientist realized, the monster started overpowering him – the maker – and dictating to its maker - because so tremendous was its power – its capabilities surpassed the limits of human capabilities! The moral of the story is that we cannot allow the created to rule the creator, even though its capabilities may be greater or stronger than the creator – because what has been created has been made to help the creator or make the life of the creator easier. Yet, what has been made will always be as close to perfection as possible - but not perfect - and - if that imperfect thing goes wild, or the creator lets it overpower his mind and body, then it can cause havoc. Another relevant case is the “Barbie doll”. Yes, the Barbie doll was made to be a pretty, smart-looking plaything for little girls, with ‘so-called’ perfect dimensions and looks. But somewhere along the way, the Barbie doll started becoming the ‘ideal’ or ‘idol’ for not only little girls but also teens and adult women! To attain the Barbie doll-like figure and looks have now become an obsession with them and they are ready to go to any lengths to attain those ‘unhuman’ dimensions – even at the cost of their health! In this case it seems, the created has become more perfect than the creator!!!! One cannot be so enamored by one’s own creation that one loses creativity – because what is created will always have some flaw – hence there will always remain scope for improvement in some respect or the other!
As Swami Chinmayananda says, “Materialism is certainly acceptable and can be a blessing to us. The comforts of the scientific age, a life made easier by the use of machines, the profits gained by harnessing natural forces – all are ours by heritage. To decry them is to insult the intelligence of humanity. But when technology becomes our master and persecutes us, we must protest”.
In the same vein of thought comes the usage of nuclear power. Its monitored and controlled usage is a boon for man, but if let loose; it will bring about his nemesis. The same is true for the usage of researches and studies in the field of genetic engineering and its allied branches. But with half-baked knowledge and the half-truths that he has access to - Man on seeing the injustices around him, is so filled with a misplaced sense of compassion for himself and his fellow beings – that he wants to set right all the wrongs that he sees around him, like poverty, disease etc. He does not understand the true reasons for all the seeming injustices of life - he just wants to eradicate what seems an injustice to him. Someone once said, “Man has not created himself”, implying that there is a Power greater than Man that has created Man. But without the full knowledge of the why’s and how’s of the system, he is becoming like the Frankenstein monster. Does he realize that what seems justice to him, may be injustice in the eyes of another. Man grinds wheat to make flour which he uses to make savories to satisfy his hunger. But does he realize the excruciating pain he causes to that corn of wheat that he is grinding – isn’t that injustice to the corns of the wheat? The Power that is beyond us understands the entire picture – but Man with his limited vision is all set to correct all the wrongs! He, in his ignorance is trying to dictate to the Creator, trying to create the perfect Creator! Ultimately, like the Frankenstein monster, the Creator will be forced to get into damage control mode and destroy the ‘created’! So, let us be alerted and instead of being reckless let us move forward cautiously on these untrodden paths asking that Unseen Power to be our guiding light – and to give us patience and forbearance to endure the injustices of life – till the light of complete Truth dawns on us - and then only take corrective action against the ‘injustices’ meted out to us and our fellow beings.
Dr. Poonam Mehra
We have all heard of the scientist Frankenstein who created the monster. Initially, he was very proud of his creation. But before the scientist realized, the monster started overpowering him – the maker – and dictating to its maker - because so tremendous was its power – its capabilities surpassed the limits of human capabilities! The moral of the story is that we cannot allow the created to rule the creator, even though its capabilities may be greater or stronger than the creator – because what has been created has been made to help the creator or make the life of the creator easier. Yet, what has been made will always be as close to perfection as possible - but not perfect - and - if that imperfect thing goes wild, or the creator lets it overpower his mind and body, then it can cause havoc. Another relevant case is the “Barbie doll”. Yes, the Barbie doll was made to be a pretty, smart-looking plaything for little girls, with ‘so-called’ perfect dimensions and looks. But somewhere along the way, the Barbie doll started becoming the ‘ideal’ or ‘idol’ for not only little girls but also teens and adult women! To attain the Barbie doll-like figure and looks have now become an obsession with them and they are ready to go to any lengths to attain those ‘unhuman’ dimensions – even at the cost of their health! In this case it seems, the created has become more perfect than the creator!!!! One cannot be so enamored by one’s own creation that one loses creativity – because what is created will always have some flaw – hence there will always remain scope for improvement in some respect or the other!
As Swami Chinmayananda says, “Materialism is certainly acceptable and can be a blessing to us. The comforts of the scientific age, a life made easier by the use of machines, the profits gained by harnessing natural forces – all are ours by heritage. To decry them is to insult the intelligence of humanity. But when technology becomes our master and persecutes us, we must protest”.
In the same vein of thought comes the usage of nuclear power. Its monitored and controlled usage is a boon for man, but if let loose; it will bring about his nemesis. The same is true for the usage of researches and studies in the field of genetic engineering and its allied branches. But with half-baked knowledge and the half-truths that he has access to - Man on seeing the injustices around him, is so filled with a misplaced sense of compassion for himself and his fellow beings – that he wants to set right all the wrongs that he sees around him, like poverty, disease etc. He does not understand the true reasons for all the seeming injustices of life - he just wants to eradicate what seems an injustice to him. Someone once said, “Man has not created himself”, implying that there is a Power greater than Man that has created Man. But without the full knowledge of the why’s and how’s of the system, he is becoming like the Frankenstein monster. Does he realize that what seems justice to him, may be injustice in the eyes of another. Man grinds wheat to make flour which he uses to make savories to satisfy his hunger. But does he realize the excruciating pain he causes to that corn of wheat that he is grinding – isn’t that injustice to the corns of the wheat? The Power that is beyond us understands the entire picture – but Man with his limited vision is all set to correct all the wrongs! He, in his ignorance is trying to dictate to the Creator, trying to create the perfect Creator! Ultimately, like the Frankenstein monster, the Creator will be forced to get into damage control mode and destroy the ‘created’! So, let us be alerted and instead of being reckless let us move forward cautiously on these untrodden paths asking that Unseen Power to be our guiding light – and to give us patience and forbearance to endure the injustices of life – till the light of complete Truth dawns on us - and then only take corrective action against the ‘injustices’ meted out to us and our fellow beings.
Dr. Poonam Mehra
A RANDOM THOUGHT
It is said that the macrocosm is reflected in the microcosm and microcosm is in the macrocosm. Just as (according to our scriptures say) the atman is surrounded by five sheaths, (viz., the ananmaya kosh, the pranmayakosh, the manomaya kosh, the vijananmaya kosh and the anandmaya kosh), so also we can say (to extend the argument further) that mankind lives on land, which is surrounded by the water sphere, the biosphere, the atmosphere and finally by space. In the same vein of the argument, it can be said that the Earth is part of the solar system, which in turn is part of the Milky Way galaxy, which is a part of a cluster of galaxies, which again is a part of the Universe - and – there are so many Universes!!!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
It is said that the macrocosm is reflected in the microcosm and microcosm is in the macrocosm. Just as (according to our scriptures say) the atman is surrounded by five sheaths, (viz., the ananmaya kosh, the pranmayakosh, the manomaya kosh, the vijananmaya kosh and the anandmaya kosh), so also we can say (to extend the argument further) that mankind lives on land, which is surrounded by the water sphere, the biosphere, the atmosphere and finally by space. In the same vein of the argument, it can be said that the Earth is part of the solar system, which in turn is part of the Milky Way galaxy, which is a part of a cluster of galaxies, which again is a part of the Universe - and – there are so many Universes!!!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
SEEING THE LARGER PICTURE
Modern science (or knowledge) feels that knowledge can be improved and better understood if we compartmentalize its different aspects like physics, biology, chemistry, medicine – and – then further subdivided into, say, biophysics, biochemistry, nuclear physics, molecular biology, microbiology, genetic engineering and so on and so forth. But these subdivisions have brought us to a point where each branch has become so alienated from the other that a biophysicist understands little of the science of a molecular biologist, or, a heart specialist understands only how to set right a heart problem with practically very little knowledge of how his treatment may affect the kidneys of the patient! The specialist in a particular field today has such minute, specialized and focused knowledge about his field that knowledge of other related fields mostly goes out of focus. In the bargain he/she loses sight of the overall picture. To add to this is the fact that he/she neither has the time not the inclination in to try to see the larger picture.
But in the field of spirituality, they are more concerned about integrating the knowledge of various and diverse fields. They have a holistic view of all fields of knowledge. After all, the truth of one science cannot go against or falsify the truth of another field of knowledge. In fact they not only work towards the betterment /happiness of the individual, but they work towards a goal where the welfare of the individual is such that it is in sync with the welfare of society as a whole – and – this harmonious society not only exists in harmony, but works towards bettering the entire biodiversity!!!! They work with the view that man’s welfare (even if just on a physical level) is guaranteed if the entire society, the entire biodiversity (e.g. the various food chains) and all of Nature work in complete harmony. One cannot have society (or man) growing at the expense of individual interests and vice versa. Thus one finds that a spiritual person may be a doctor, a poet, an environmentalist, a leader in society and so on, - all rolled into one.
This shows that true knowledge unifies rather than divides. Thus from a specific point of view we can say that inspite of the differences at various levels that pollute society today, it is slowly moving towards that unifying goal where barriers of race, language, caste, creed, country, religion etc.,, are breaking down and we are steadily moving towards being global men in a global village!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
Modern science (or knowledge) feels that knowledge can be improved and better understood if we compartmentalize its different aspects like physics, biology, chemistry, medicine – and – then further subdivided into, say, biophysics, biochemistry, nuclear physics, molecular biology, microbiology, genetic engineering and so on and so forth. But these subdivisions have brought us to a point where each branch has become so alienated from the other that a biophysicist understands little of the science of a molecular biologist, or, a heart specialist understands only how to set right a heart problem with practically very little knowledge of how his treatment may affect the kidneys of the patient! The specialist in a particular field today has such minute, specialized and focused knowledge about his field that knowledge of other related fields mostly goes out of focus. In the bargain he/she loses sight of the overall picture. To add to this is the fact that he/she neither has the time not the inclination in to try to see the larger picture.
But in the field of spirituality, they are more concerned about integrating the knowledge of various and diverse fields. They have a holistic view of all fields of knowledge. After all, the truth of one science cannot go against or falsify the truth of another field of knowledge. In fact they not only work towards the betterment /happiness of the individual, but they work towards a goal where the welfare of the individual is such that it is in sync with the welfare of society as a whole – and – this harmonious society not only exists in harmony, but works towards bettering the entire biodiversity!!!! They work with the view that man’s welfare (even if just on a physical level) is guaranteed if the entire society, the entire biodiversity (e.g. the various food chains) and all of Nature work in complete harmony. One cannot have society (or man) growing at the expense of individual interests and vice versa. Thus one finds that a spiritual person may be a doctor, a poet, an environmentalist, a leader in society and so on, - all rolled into one.
This shows that true knowledge unifies rather than divides. Thus from a specific point of view we can say that inspite of the differences at various levels that pollute society today, it is slowly moving towards that unifying goal where barriers of race, language, caste, creed, country, religion etc.,, are breaking down and we are steadily moving towards being global men in a global village!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
THE UNBROKEN WHOLENESS
Physics starts with parts and shows how everything works together as a whole. Hinduism (our scriptures) says everything emanates from Lord Narayana (God) and everything ultimately merges into Him. He is the starting point. In fact Bell’s theorem implies that apparently ‘separate parts’ of the Universe could be intimately connected at a deep and fundamental level. This is similar to the fact that though every member of the family acts independently, yet, the family is single unit at another level, stringed together by a particular commonality among its members – or – a nation is one single entity yet it is made up of different states – or – the nine planets are individuals at one level and yet it is our solar system - a single unit at the level of the Milky Way galaxy, - and - so on and so forth. Thus inspite of the multifaceted diversity of the various components of the Universe and yet it acts as a single organism! Probably it is this idea that David Bohm, Professor of Physics tries to describe when he asserts in one of his lectures “that the most fundamental level is an unbroken wholeness”, - meaning “that-which-is”, the truth that our rishis had declared ages ago – “TAT TVAM ASI”!!!! – A CONSCIOUSNESS THAT IS FOUND IN EVERYTHING THAT CONSTITUTES THIS UNIVERSE! It is finally this “unbroken wholeness” which at a deep and fundamental level connects Science and Spirituality – Science says that everything is ultimately made up of THAT smallest particle – whereas Spirituality says, THAT is contained in everything and everything is contained in THAT. Science and spirituality are only using different words to define the same idea – both are searching for the same – only – the paths taken to complete their journey are different – rather if both went hand-in-hand, the journey would be more easier, more pleasant and more fruitful for both!!!!!!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
Physics starts with parts and shows how everything works together as a whole. Hinduism (our scriptures) says everything emanates from Lord Narayana (God) and everything ultimately merges into Him. He is the starting point. In fact Bell’s theorem implies that apparently ‘separate parts’ of the Universe could be intimately connected at a deep and fundamental level. This is similar to the fact that though every member of the family acts independently, yet, the family is single unit at another level, stringed together by a particular commonality among its members – or – a nation is one single entity yet it is made up of different states – or – the nine planets are individuals at one level and yet it is our solar system - a single unit at the level of the Milky Way galaxy, - and - so on and so forth. Thus inspite of the multifaceted diversity of the various components of the Universe and yet it acts as a single organism! Probably it is this idea that David Bohm, Professor of Physics tries to describe when he asserts in one of his lectures “that the most fundamental level is an unbroken wholeness”, - meaning “that-which-is”, the truth that our rishis had declared ages ago – “TAT TVAM ASI”!!!! – A CONSCIOUSNESS THAT IS FOUND IN EVERYTHING THAT CONSTITUTES THIS UNIVERSE! It is finally this “unbroken wholeness” which at a deep and fundamental level connects Science and Spirituality – Science says that everything is ultimately made up of THAT smallest particle – whereas Spirituality says, THAT is contained in everything and everything is contained in THAT. Science and spirituality are only using different words to define the same idea – both are searching for the same – only – the paths taken to complete their journey are different – rather if both went hand-in-hand, the journey would be more easier, more pleasant and more fruitful for both!!!!!!
Dr. Poonam Mehra
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