INTRODUCTION
The current thought process
occurring in education all over the world is the sequential thought pattern.
The purpose of this critical and exploratory essay is to explore the nonlinear
thought pattern as well as elucidate its possible applications to such diverse
fields as education, psychology, philosophy, theology, humanities and the
social sciences.
DISCUSSION
We must understand that the
masses are used to thinking using a certain methodology. This method is called
serial processing. The two methods of processing are actually two ways by which
the brain is processing information. The left brain is the serial/analytical
processor while the right brain is the nonlinear/synthetic processor. The left
brain analyzes disparate information in stages because that is the way it
digests knowledge. Furthermore, the left brain cuts down a pattern into
different clues. The left brain is a destroyer of pattern matrices, in order to
comprehend them. The left brain is the primary tool of the scientist and
technocrat.
On the other hand, the right
brain apprehends disparate information as whole, for the right brain is the
chalice of the artist. Looking at a pattern as one, the right brain synthesizes
the pattern information matrix in one singularity and attempts to absorb its
data in one loop. This is obviously a higher order of processing, with the left
brain serial processing being a lower order of rung. Yet both have their advantages
and disadvantages.
Let
us start with a very simple exercise to illustrate these two different
informational processing realms. Collect twelve pebbles and arrange them in a
series from left to right, one after each other, in a straight pattern. You
could give them names like alpha, beta, gamma, delta and so on. Speak their
names out loud if you wish, to accentuate the exercise. Now, look at what you
have constructed. This is a serial or linear pattern, you called out the names
of the pebbles from a certain perspective, using a certain direction only. This
is how the human mind in the 3d universe thinks mostly.
Now, let us create another
pattern. Arrange the pebbles in a circle, taking care to make the distance from
each other similar as much as possible to effect maximum symmetry. Now, call
one of your friends and ask them to contemplate the pattern. Can they tell
which of the pebble came first in the order and which came last? Surely not, in
normal terms. This pattern you created is now what we call the nonlinear
pattern. It has no beginning nor ending, it is apprehended as holistic pattern
by the mind, and it is not ordered in a sequential way. This is the true
pattern of the universe, nonlinear reality. The sequential universe that we
currently comprehend is thus only a simple derivative of the true universe.
The seeds of understanding the
difference between nonlinear and sequential thought actually begins with the
study of light. Light is both a particle as well as a wave. Here is already the
difference. The particle property of light simulates the sequential universe
while the wave property of light simulates the nonlinear universe.
The sciences by their very
nature are exercises in the inexorable logic of the left brain, while the arts are
delicious adventures in the panoramic feast that is right brain nonlinear
processing.
WHEN
THE MAPS ARE LOST IN TRANSLATION
Calibration, prediction and
measurement are facets of sequential thought. They achieve their zenith in the
predictive sciences. Since sequential thought is about the step-by-step
processing of the mortal mind, then it makes sense for that mind to engineer
and contemplate a sort of predictive method whereby he can believe that he
controls the evolution of its worldsphere through space and time. Unfortunately,
every time the sequential mind contemplates this fact, the very polarities that
he wishes to control will now dance in his face, defying his well thought out
schemes. The polarities themselves supply the challenge to his very mindset,
and thus he rationalizes that use of technology for greater and greater mastery
of the known variables of each continuum arrayed before him. He patiently
categorizes all knowledge into the known and the unknown, and makes a
persistent effort to discover the unknown. Much to his dismay, however, he
finds that for every known that he masters, a new set of unknowns fly in his
face. This causes him mental suffering. Locked in sequential thought
processing, he wil continue to master every set of unknown variables thought
time and space. Why? Because there is no other way to solve his conundrum.The
sequential mindset is therefore locked in a vicious cycle of its own making.
The predictive power of the
sequential mind, in its own context, is awesome, for it seeks to create,
cultivate and propagate alphabets of understanding, which it uses to navigate
from the known to the unknown. These alphabets are all the languages, from the
linguistic forms to the mathematical worlds, to the computer languages and thence
into all the symbolic forms. These languages are powerful in their own right,
for they give rise to a certain kind of internal logic that arises out of their
syntax and coding. Like a game of chess or GO, these languages persist for they
can define protocols in their own worldspheres. Remember that all forms are
fractals of the Cosmos, and therefore partake of its power. In this sense, sequential
constructs have an abundance of order. Why? Because that is the part of the
cosmos that they express. The problem, however, occurs when the sequential mind
attempts to translate these languages and interpret the Cosmos as a whole. Here
the map fails. And it fails miserably! The Cosmos is too awesome to be
interpreted by any kind of mental map, however profound that map is. A map is
still a map. Thus, there are limits to what a map can understand. These limits
are defined by the nature of the fractal contexts of which the map is the
intended instrument of measure. Farther and farther away from this fractal
context, and the map loses intelligibility. The map “crashes” so to speak,
meaning it lacks translation protocols to define new ways of understanding the
terrain. It becomes “lost in translation.”
What is the lesson here for
the sequential mind? Savor the various maps and languages and instruments for their
own purposes. But remember, all maps have limits. Know when it is time to
discard them. And never make the mistake of thinking the map is Infinite
Reality itself.
THE
ARTIFICIALITY CALLED TIME
We shall use this knowledge of
the two informational processing realms and bear them on to a deeper
understanding of the phenomenon called time. The arrow of time seems to be
moving forward all the time. But this is an illusion. When consciousness
singularities are experiencing the three dimensional universe, they are
automatically delimiting their multi-dimensional selves into special vehicles
that can assimilate a limited informational worldsphere, in this case the 3d
universe. What we call time is really a special focus of attention whereby a
consciousness form tracks the presence of certain worldsphere events and
arranges its vector dynamics to travel that worldtrack in a specific fashion.
The consciousness singularity is, of course, aware, that he can traverse the infinite
manifold of the cosmos in many different worldtrack permutations. But, to
maintain consistency in his 3d universe worldtrack, he prefers to traverse it
using a specific vector frequency. This is called spacetime. And it appears to
be flowing in one direction only, though of course, that is an illusion only.
Since the consciousness is mainly using a serial processor biological mainframe
to traverse the worldtrack, it makes sense to delimit his multi-dimensionality
and focus only in one direction, otherwise the serial processor will not
comprehend the data that he is exposed to.
Thus, spacetime in the 3d
universe is configured to be assembled by the serial processor. They are made
for each other. In order to comprehend the higher order data from higher order
realms, another distinct information retrieval system should be manufactured or
discovered or utilized.
Enter the nonlinear processor.
The nonlinear processor
apprehends multi-dimensional realms simultaneously. It is like looking at an
art form, or listening to a piece of music, or watching a dance number. The
whole is assimilated completely, not part by part like the one in sequential
thought. The learning style is holistic, and the learner assimilates a large
amount of data.
SYMBOLIC
SIGNATURES
The triangle or pyramid is the
symbolic flag or rune signature of the sequential processing aspect of reality,
while the circle or sphere is the symbolic flag or rune signature of the
nonlinear processing aspect of reality. The triangle shouts its linear
allegiance, and demands worship from its adherents. This is a way for the
triangle simulated thought worldview to make its presence felt. Adhering to
sequential processing, it must attempt to warp and force its native
consciousness forms to partake of its feast. This process is almost a form of
cruelty, because it uses coercion to manipulate the mind to become its slave. The
mind is the direct child of consciousnesses, thus it is apt to be spontaneous
in the beginning. The triangle attempts to surpass this nativity, by bringing
the mind into full control. It wrestles with the mind, it seduces the mind, and
when all else fails it coerces the mind through direct manipulation. When the
mind surrenders, it surrenders itself to the machinations of the sequential
universe. It begins to process in a linear fashion, delimiting itself and
surrendering its full powers. It becomes heavy. It falls prey to gravity. It
becomes enmeshed in the planes of matter. It becomes lost in the maze of its
own making.
When sown in this manner, all
the systems of thought are derivatives of the sequential worldview. The
sciences, once powerful and objective, become slaves to it. They are quickly
seduced by its twisted logic. And they come to believe that there are
limitations to the unknown set of variables in the universe itself. They now
begin to quest to master these unknown variables. Sadly, the sciences
themselves become egocentric, refusing to countenance the possibility of
paradigms that do not suit the tastes of the sequential universe. Science now
becomes an adept at manipulation. It dictates the fashionable paradigms, it
dictates the way to transmit these paradigms, and it dictates the way to deal
with bifurcations in the road. The result is the glorification of the vehicle of
the technosphere, for it represents the current mastery of its sequential
paradigm. The hardware is glorified, the software is suppressed. The dream is
under way…..
Being a slave to the
sequential worldview, the sleeping soul trapped in the planes of matter holds
fast to whatever tool is present at the moment that can ease its suffering. The
sleeping soul itself become addicted to control and controlled environments. It
reeks of sequential processing also. It desires to know, yet uses only the
sequential thought process. It is trained by its master, the sequential mind. It
comes to abhor all forms of nonlinear processing. They occur only to him as
diversions, hobbies suited for playing in its leisure hours. It does not imagine
that leisure itself may supply the answer to its quest……
Art becomes only a diversion
now.
And yet, hope prevails for a
solution is embedded in the soul matrix itself. This is the quest motif. It is
a feature of all consciousness forms, whether solitary or collective, whether
playing in the sequential or nonlinear universes. The quest motif is the
desire, deep within every consciousness, to know the truth about itself and the
universe. It begins as a form of restlessness, or a yearning, or a desire to
study, or a penchant to travel, or an inclination to inquire from others, or
merely curiosity, or any permutations of the aforementioned. This small fire
can be fanned into a larger steady blaze by a constant barrage of synchronistic
and enlightening set of circumstances. Let us call this Serendipity. Serendipity
arranges the events in the life of the consciousness singularity in order to
awaken the potential within that soul to access the Truth. The querent now
begins to truly travel, immersing himself in the world of the quest paradigms.
And, whether formulated consciously or not, it begins to mould its inquiry
along the lines of the fundamental metaphysical questions: Who am I? Why am I
here? Where am I going?
The quest will carry the
consciousness, let us call him the Fool, through mountains and valleys and
caves of thought. He will encounter thousands upon thousands of thought
systems, all clamouring for the attention of his foolish sequential mind. Initially,
he will begin to question the system of thought which is its nativity. Its
native system of thought, a child of the sequential universe, possesses the
Truth in a distilled form, palatable only to the sequential mind, and consisting
of various control parameters which make it hard for the seeker to embrace the
nonlinear path. In addition, the doctrines of such a system has its own
polarities, inconsistencies and dichotomies, which are the legacy of the
sequential universe. Every system of thought in the sequential universe, being
its child, possesses polarities at every level, in every dimension, and
occurring in every construct. So, an added burden to the seeker is the unravelling
of such polarities. This may even distract him from the true Quest itself. Thankfully,
its Higher Self has the quest motif prepared in advance. The seeker will now have
a life best by a continuous train of contradictory and challenging events which
serve to awaken him to Absolute Truth. Such events may center, but not be
limited, to various forms of existential dilemmas which challenge his loyalty,
whether to the lower or the upper planes. As his consciousness begins to
awaken, the inertial forces will in turn, become stronger and stronger and the
querent must fight for the quest to continue.
It appears that the seeker is
all alone in his quest, a lonely traveller in a dark road, where twilight and
night entice him to rest from his quest. But, thankfully again, his Higher Self
has prepared well in advance. Companions in his quest shall appear from time to
time. These may take the form of actual people, or events, or books, or
peculiar experiences, or even distressing occurrences. Environments may also
become “companions” on the path. And so the quest continues.
One day, it all comes
together. One lucky event, which appears to be random. But it is not random.
And the traveller awakens. This is the awakening process, which shifts the
consciousness of the seeker from sequential to nonlinear. And the drama returns
full circle, and restores the symmetry. And the ending becomes the beginning…
The old paradigm is static,
sequential and reductionist. The new paradigm is dynamic, nonlinear and
holistic.
The eyes of the soul are
opened once more, to the realities of the nonlinear cosmos. The veils of
illusion are parted, the bars of the prison are broken. The seeker is awakened!
CONCLUSION
The nonlinear model of
reincarnation is the greatest possible teaching for consciousness singularities
traversing the breadth, height and depth of the Cosmos. For it encapsulates the
nature of the cosmos itself. It is the very expression of cosmic life. Let us
enjoy its priceless jewels:
The cosmos is nonlinear.
The
cosmos is holistic.
The
cosmos is one, the Oneness.
The
cosmos is the supreme form of art.
The
cosmos is infinite.
The
cosmos is eternal.
The
cosmos is interconnected, holographic and recursive.
The
cosmos is absolute Love, in absolute permutation.
About The Author:
Sensei
Erwin Rimban was born in the Philippine Islands. Since a young age he has been
fascinated by the esoteric realm and avidly read books on world history,
philosophy, astrology, mythology, the social sciences and similar fields.
Educated at the University of the Philippines, where he graduated Cum Laude, he
added Evolutionary Biology to his plethora of interests. After graduating from
college, he spent many years in the tourist destination of Baguio City where he
pursued a career in writing and teaching, while at the same time finding time
to be a meditation teacher. Currently, he is active in organizational work,
where he is promoting advocacy programs in educational philosophy, spiritual counselling,
wisdom, metaphysics, mysticism, psychology, history, educational philosophy,
ecology and alternative medicine. (He can be reached at this email:
mentorpath@gmail.com).
