Personal Note: Acknowledgements

This is an entirely original work, inspired by decades of prayer and meditation upon a variety of sacred and secular texts. Here is a sampling of the books and thinkers that have most influenced me in the past:

• The Holy Bible, various versions

• The Tao Te Ching, various translations and commentaries

• The Bhagavad Gita, translation and commentary by Paramahansa Yogananda

• The Second Coming of Christ, by Paramahansa Yogananda

• The Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment, by Thaddeus Golas

• A number of popular physics books, including Geometry, Relativity, and the 4th Dimension by Rudolf Rucker; Dancing Wu Li Masters by Gary Zukav; and The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra

• And assorted works by Carl Jung, Fritz Perls, Baba Ram Dass, Echkart Tolle, Wayne Dyer, Aristotle, Plato, Cicero, and Kenneth Burke

I have also “sat at the feet” of dozens of inspired individuals who did their best to satisfy my insatiable intellectual and spiritual hunger. These teachers came in many guises, from university professors to preachers to my 7th grade homeroom teacher, Mr. Bond.

Lastly, I would like to thank my favorite philosophical sounding boards—my infinitely patient and loving husband, Gary Ropp; and my brothers, David Puett and Dr. Bill Puett, with whom I have shared a lifetime of inquiry, faith, and love.

Cyd Ropp, Ph.D.
November, 2009
Ashland, Oregon

12 Random Thoughts Concerning the Simple Explanation

For all the apparent variety of creation, there is really only one simple shape and one ongoing mechanism—a spherical echo of God’s mind that constantly flows inward from future potential through the here and now, emerging at the far side as the past.

We humans are not in control of the universe. We cannot predict the future, for the variables and patterns are beyond our ability to fully anticipate and control, and the past is out of our hands and cannot be undone. The only thing we can control is our own, personal, moment-by-moment decision-making: here and now we have the potential for full control.

We hold on to the things we love, and love is love, no matter the object of affection.

The meme bundles we choose to hold on to have a huge impact on our decision-making. Therefore, it would be wise to review one’s meme bundle and make a conscious decision which memes and chords to hold and which to discard.

Methods for discarding memes include simple disuse; identifying with a different meme or meme bundle that is incompatible with that meme; developing relationships with those holding memes incompatible with the memes you wish to discard; and having a change of heart regarding the desirability of that meme.

A meme that is especially intense is more difficult to set down because of the associated chords of memes that go along with it and that also must be set down.

Every UC has a job to do. To “live in God’s will” means to lay aside your UC’s egoic desires and selflessly instantiate for the greater good. When all of creation performs the jobs they were instantiated to perform, the machinery of our universe runs smoothly. Doing one’s job brings joy and fulfillment. When UCs, instead, use their free will to deviate from the pattern of the greater good, all of creation suffers.

If this model is in any sense “true,” one would expect to find it everywhere. I have found this theory works to illuminate both sacred texts and worldly knowledge domains with which I am familiar. I invite you, dear reader, to consider this Simple Explanation in light of what you believe and personally know to be true. Such application of this Simple Explanation will be a welcomed step in the evolution of this model.

11 Putting It All Together

• Our universe is a self-contained toroidal bubble of space afloat in the infinite metaversal sea.

• Our God is wrapped around our expanding universe, holding us in, holding infinity out.

• We experience the holding force of coherence as love.

• Every thing in this universe comes equipped with its very own echo of God’s mind—a unit of consciousness (UC).

• No matter the size or complexity of the material to which the UC is attached, our units of consciousness are all the same no-size and occupy the same no-place.

• Units of consciousness make decisions on behalf of the material to which they are attached.

• Life forms consist of the aggregated units of consciousness of the material forming their bodies, plus the governing UC of self-awareness.

• Organizing principles flow inward from the metaverse, collapsing from all possible courses of action to a single course of action at the point of here and now.

• For any observer, all that exists is here and now. Decisions may only be made here and now.

• Karma is the mechanism through which the consequences of behavior informs future potential.

• Memes are energetic waves of cultural patterns produced by units of consciousness. Memes are fueled by repetition or starved by lack of usage.

• “I” am the aggregate UCs of my material body, from the subatomic particles all the way up through the self-aware unit of consciousness that thinks of itself as “me.”

• I influence and am influenced by the karmic record generated by my choices and the choices that others have made.

• I am also influenced by the bundle of memes I and others choose to hold onto.

• I am free to pick and choose the memes I hold onto.

• Although I am influenced by many forces, I always retain my ability to freely choose which decision I will make here and now.

• Every unit of consciousness in the universe is a self-aware “I.”

• Subatomic particles, universal forces, and UCs can all be modeled as a torus:

10 Love

Units of consciousness gather their systemic patterns and the universal operating laws required to “get the job done” from the metaversal information constantly flowing into and throughout our universe. The phenomenon known as “coherence” ensures the compatibility and integrity of these universal patterns and laws. What we call “love” is the felt experience of coherence.

Brethren units of consciousness need information and they need love in order to join together and work toward a common goal. Particles cohere in familiar and necessary atomic patterns through information and love. Atoms arrange themselves and then cling together as molecules through information and love. Cells work together for the greater good of their organisms through information and love. Families and societies get the job of social order and cohesion done through information and love.

In order for human units of consciousness to join and work together for the greater good, they need relevant information (including shared meme chords), they need to be willing to channel coherence from the metaverse, and they need to love one another.

The metaverse vibrates with organizational principles. Our God dwells in this informational sea. God’s mind wraps around our space-time continuum and directs organization inward toward our universe. This inward flowing force of coherence is what we call love.

9 Who Am "I"?

     “I” am the aggregate UCs of my material body, from the subatomic particles to molecules to cells, all the way up through the UCs of the body’s organ systems.

     “I” am also the self-aware unit of consciousness generated at conception.This capital-letter “Self” came into this universe as a perfect echo of God’s mind. The job of this Self UC is to oversee the body’s aggregate UCs and to join with other UCs to build things.
 
     “I” am influenced in my decision-making by many forces acting upon me as I approach the here and now. These forces include the karmic records and meme bundles of my Self and my body’s aggregate UCs, and the karma and memes of those around me. Despite these influences acting upon me, it is always within my power to make a free-will decision at any particular moment.

8 Bundles of Memes

     We are not all affected by the same memes. Most memes pass us by unnoticed. A meme must be either instinctually acquired or learned in order to be invoked by a unit of consciousness. Once a UC does acquire a meme, it becomes a part of that UC’s unique vibratory bundle. If the UC does not wish to continue holding that meme’s string in its personal bundle of strings and chords, it must detach the string from its grasp through disuse.

     Some memes are easy to detach because they do not fit in with the UC’s overall bundle of strings and chords. One may, for example, forget a foreign film as soon as it is over because its memes do not bond well with the observer’s meme bundle.
     Some memes are very difficult to detach once they are acquired because their vibratory pattern is so intense—the glamorous seduction of the cigarette or the chemical allure of the crack pipe, for example. Emotionally evocative memes such as victimhood or jealousy are difficult to detach due to the intense synergistic coupling of thoughts and emotion. Unwanted memes must be detached through an effort of will, either through conscious disuse or by acquiring a competing, more desirable meme. The Alcoholics Anonymous meme chord, for example, has successfully replaced alcoholic meme patterns for many drinkers.
     A unit of consciousness may pick up entire chords of associated memes, but it is also common to pick and choose among individual strings. “Happy Marriage” is a complex meme chord that means different things to different people, depending upon their selection of particular strings. One prospective couple may resonate to the “Big Wedding” meme and so expect to invoke that meme at the outset of the Happy Marriage. Another couple may not be holding on to that memetic string and so do not need or want a big wedding. For most couples, the Happy Marriage chord includes a house full of children; other couples do not resonate to the offspring meme, so no children are necessary. For many couples, the “Bouncing Baby” meme may be adequately invoked by the “Man’s Best Friend” dog meme.

Every unit of consciousness holds on to a unique bundle of memes that informs their every decision.

7 Memes and Chords of Memes

     Memes are the cultural expressions of societies. In human societies, memes are most often propagated through mass media such as magazines, films, and the internet, although they may also be spread by word of mouth and tradition. The Beatles is a meme. Andy Warhol’s poster of Marilyn Monroe is a meme. Archetypal figures like the Trickster or the Shadow are memes. Football is a meme. Patriotism is a meme--all “ism”s are memes. Every discrete cultural concept, mythology, or icon is a meme.
     Some memes are held in common by most human cultures—the ideal model of a caring family; archetypal heroes and villains; universal human values such as honesty and loyalty. Other memes are exclusive to their particular culture. This especially applies to memes dealing with local traditions, religions, politics, and regional myths.
     Humans are not the only units of consciousness affected by memes. All cultural aggregations of UCs propagate and utilize memes. Cats, for example, bury their waste because there is a strong waste-burying meme that resonates in all cats. “Dog is man’s best friend” is a shared meme chord continually re-propagated by both humans and dogs. “Flying in formation is awesome” may well be a duck meme.
     Memes are energetic waves of cultural patterns fueled by repetition or starved by lack of usage. As wave forms, each meme has a distinct vibratory signature, akin to a musical note. Each individual meme is like a string on society’s harp.

6 We Are All Here Now

     There is only one time and one place in the universe for any given observer. That place is always right here, right now, at this moment of conscious awareness. All units of consciousness realize their decision-making potential only in the crucible of here and now.

     The future is ungraspable, for no UC can fully know and control the multitude of variables approaching here and now.

     All units of consciousness are inwardly resonating waves propagated within the shell of God’s mind, therefore all UCs are standing exactly in the same no-place. I am exactly where you are, where we all are. I am exactly where God is, where the UC of a quark is, where the UC of a skin cell is. I am no bigger or smaller than any other UC because size is irrelevant where there is no space, and there is no space in the metaverse. No matter the size or complexity of the material to which the UC is attached, from quanta to human to star system, our UCs are all the same no-size in the same no-place.

5 The Role of Karma

     Karma is the mechanism through which the consequences of behavior inform future potential. Karma is a force of influence that arises out of the decision-making history of every unit of consciousness in the universe. Each UC generates its own karma.

     We are all affected by one another’s karma. The more a unit of consciousness has in common with another UC, the more it is affected by the other’s karma. Our aggregate karma affects all of creation.

     Like the mythical ouroboros, karma is a snake that eats its own tail. Karma emerges at the far side of here and now as history, and then feeds back around to influence the pool of potential futures.

Karma reads the historical record and feeds back around to influence the future. 

4 One Simple Model

     Sustaining the matter in this universe requires an uninterrupted stream of organization and intention funneling inward from the spherical border that separates our space and time from the metaverse at large. Like pure potential pouring down the gravitational well of a great black hole, our possible futures become increasingly limited as they funnel toward the crucible of here and now at the heart of creation. Here and now, all potentials collapse as only one course of action is realized.

THE METAVERSE

3 Traits of Units of Consciousness

 Each UC is a pale echo of God’s mind.  Or, to put it another way, each UC is a fractal replication of the Universal Unit of Consciousness.

 Each UC is capable of using the organizing principles that inform and sustain its existence in our universe.

 Each UC is fully capable of doing the job put to the material it governs.

 Every UC makes decisions affecting the material it governs. (A photon’s UC, for example, decides whether to go left or right according to various optical and physical laws of the universe and its relationships with other photons.)

 The more complex the UC, the more sophisticated its decision-making abilities.

 The more complex the UC, the more opportunities it has to exercise free will.

 Most UCs perform as expected—they “do their part,” they “work according to plan.”

 Every UC has the free will to fulfill or contradict its responsibilities.

 UCs are social and additive in number—they tend to work together in harmony with others like themselves.

 All UCs of the same level of complexity are linked laterally to one another in common purpose.

 The more UCs of the same level of complexity that are laterally linked, the greater their shared perception of here and now.

 All UCs aggregate hierarchically under more complex UCs.

 The degree to which any UC comprehends the universe is dependent upon the complexity of its aggregate UCs.

 Distribution of UCs is hierarchical—the more complex the UC, the fewer instances of it exist.

 Life forms consist of the aggregated UCs of the material forming their bodies, plus the governing UC of self-awareness.

 The more complex the organism, the more UCs it possesses.

 Each functional organ system within the organism possesses its own UC that governs that organ.

 God’s mind is the most complex UC of all, consisting of all potential as well as actual UCs of our universe, plus its own metaversal omniscience.

 As complex systems die and disintegrate, their aggregated UCs are released from the responsibility of supporting that particular life or material instantiation and revert to their simpler states of molecular consciousness.

2 Units of Consciousness

     As our universe expanded, over and over and over again, pale echoes of God’s mind attached themselves to the particles streaming out of the Big Bang.

God’s mind pulses with concentration at the birth of every thing in our universe. These pulsations send spherical waves of consciousness inward from the border of God’s mind toward creation, informing each new piece of material with its own unit of consciousness as it emerges from the portal of here and now.

     Time passed and creation became more complex as subatomic particles reached out to one another according to metaversal principles of organization. And particles made atoms, atoms made molecules, molecules made single-celled organisms, single-celled organisms diversified into the full panoply of life, and every one of these material building blocks came equipped with its own unit of consciousness (UC). Each tiny unit of consciousness knew what role it needed to play in order to help the universe create and sustain itself, for every UC could decode and instantiate its own special piece of the metaversal ideal.

quanta UC     

atomic UC

molecular UC

cellular UC

organism UC

societal UC

global UC

At each stage along the way from simple to complex, units of consciousness are increasingly sophisticated in their ability to regulate and manage their existence.

1 Before the Beginning...

     Before the beginning, before space and time, there was nothing but pure consciousness. And consciousness had neither pattern nor form, only awareness. Then consciousness had a thought which unfolded into countless dimensions. This multi-dimensional metaverse still lacked space and time but it now quivered with limitless mathematical potential.
     Then consciousness had a particular thought. In a twinkling, our entire universe was imagined in the fullness of its complexity, from the tiniest quanta through the greatest astral body; every animal, vegetable, and mineral; every element; every thing. At the moment this thought occurred, the metaverse vibrated with every organizing principle needed to shape and sustain space and time, energy and mass.
     All was in ideal balance. Every system was theoretically in tune; every function perfectly performed; the consequence of every action anticipated, understood, and plotted to the nth degree. And it was all good.
     Having had this thought, the metaversal consciousness focused inward, and that concentrated thought became a singular point of limitless energetic potential—enough to seed our universe. On this day that time began, consciousness wrapped itself around the expanding space of our universe, forming a border between us and infinity. God’s mind took on a shape.