Universal Matrix

Holism in Mind, Body, and the Universe

Throughout mankind's cultural history there has existed the metaphysical concept that man and cosmos are interconnected by a ubiquitous, all-pervasive sea of energy that undergirds, and is manifest in, all phenomena. This pre-scientific concept of a cosmic energy goes by many names in many traditions, such as ch'i, ki or qi (Taoism), prana (yoga), mana (Kahuna), barakah (Sufi), élan vital (Bergsonian metaphysics), and so forth.

Complementary to the above metaphysical concept, contemporary physics similarly posits an all-pervasive energetic field called quantum vacuum energy, or zero-point energy, a random, ambient fluctuating energy that exists even in so-called empty space. (The adjective zero-point means that such energy or activity exists even at a temperature of absolute zero where no thermal agitation effects remain.) Thus, even in the absence of matter, in the modern view empty space or vacuum is never truly particle or field free, but rather is the seat of continuous virtual particle-pair creation and annihilation processes, as well as so-called zero-point fluctuations of such fields as the electromagnetic field. Originally thought to be of significance only for such esoteric concerns as small corrections in atomic emission processes (e.g., the Lamb shift), it is now understood that vacuum fluctuation effects play a central role in large-scale phenomena of interest to technologists as well, such as the enhancement or inhibition of the spontaneous emission of light in atomic processes, the generation of short-range attractive forces between closely-spaced materials, and the possibility of extracting useful energy from vacuum fluctuations, the "Holy Grail" of energy research.

Should we further consider the possibility that such random vacuum energy might be subject to influence by consciousness or intention, then, given that it is well understood by physicists that a restructuring or "cohering" of vacuum energy would have physical consequences for matter, animate or inanimate, such could provide a rational basis for healing or other processes that are part and parcel of the pre-scientific view. In such fashion the similarities, differences and possible synthesis of the prescientific and modern concepts of an all-pervasive energy field can be considered.

As a physicist specializing in fundamental quantum physics and yet interested in these issues, I have an abiding interest in "pushing the envelope" with regard to the present scientific paradigm. This includes the issue as to whether what we know of the life process itself can find rapprochement with modern quantum physics, or whether and how it needs to be extended. Given my own earlier decade-plus background as Director of the Cognitive Sciences program at SRI Intern'l in the '70's and early '80's, investigating remote viewing and other so-called "paranormal" phenomena, the life-science data I have to integrate all by themselves push the envelope . . .

Unfortunately, as it now stands, mainstream physics reductionism is leading to an evermore complex picture of nature involving a proliferation of particles, the possibility of yet more "fundamental" forces, the implications of incorporating additional dimensions as in superstring theory, and so forth. Thus, in spite of efforts to develop a grand unified theory to simplify our picture of nature, the actual day-to-day work on this effort is complexifying faster than the hoped-for simplification. Therefore, not only are we missing holism on the grand scale, but a gratifying holism just for the physical sciences alone appears to be a rapidly accelerating goal post.

—Hal Puthoff, Searching for the Universal Matrix in Metaphysics (.pdf)