Contents |
We believe that life is, first and foremost, a learning experience. A few simple, rational observations support this conclusion. Namely, the fact the only constant of life is change. Thus, the finest and most useful ability to develop to face this constant change is flexibility, adaptability. The ability to learn. Other "rules" of the living are described through the methodical observation of scientists like Charles Darwin. Species tend to grow. The fitter the members of a species are to their ecological niche, the more they thrive and grow; thus, evolution elects the fittest individuals to a given environment. Additionally, from the perspective of biology, a living being is defined by seven standard criteria or rules, also derived from the works of Charles Darwin. Those rules tend to define a living entity as a "responsive" entity, able to perceive its environment and react to it, thus, suggesting an association between consciousness and life.
Please note, also, that Darwin observed the Creation as a tribute to the divine : he decided to classify and organize a Tree of Life to honor the harmony of the living.
More compelling, hard facts : life tends to appear and thrive as much as it can, anywhere it can. In fact, chemistry knows that organic compounds and molecules have been found in the most unusual places, in space for example - read "Two Highly Complex Organic molecules found in space". It is easy for life, a complex phenomenon, to just "catch on" out of very few elements. Assumedly, four, since all organisms on planet Earth derive from Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, and Nitrogen (in many spiritual schools, the fundamental elements are Earth, Water, Air and Fire, as well as "akasha" or Spirit, a fifth element which would fuel and supervise the activity of all others).
In current physics, namely, quantum physics, super string theory, and other theoretical models and practical applications, life is perceived with an observer/observable paradigm. In quantum physics, events (and even the placement of particles) are considered to exist within a state of latent probability, with no determined outcome until a measurement has been made. Matter, interchangeable with energy and electromagnetic radiation, is said to conserve a waveform state until such a measurement has been made, possibly by a conscious observer aware of the act of measuring. Light is regarded as both particle and wave, simultaneously matter and energy, until observed. We believe that, underlying these waveforms of unobserved matter in a state of potentiality, is a field of "consciousness". Superstring theory further expands on this and proposes a synthesis of the classic quantum mechanics model and the perception of matter and reality as a manifestation of consciousness observing itself.
Many spiritual schools also support the idea of life as being an individual learning experience on all levels of consciousness, from physical to spiritual. This is the Buddhist notion of reincarnation, and consistent with many oriental philosophies. A study of the symbology of life reveals connections between the Caduceus of Hermes, the spiraling double-helix snakes of the Hindu Kundalini, the Sumerian God of health and life Ningishzida, and other similar symbols such as the Rod of Aesclepius - which all suggest the shape of DNA strands entwined in a spiral, and all represent life, healing, and the forces of nature. Furthermore, in a model where perceived reality is consciousness, it is remarkable to observe that this pattern of a spiral is repeated in many natural constructs, such as shells, some plants, horns, galaxies, etc. Incidentally, the spiral has become a symbol of evolution and creative process in most cultures, and is a sort of natural "echo" of the fundamental "units" which support and define all the life forms we have been able to observe to this day.