Abstract Phenomena in Our Lives, Part II

By Robert Ringer

In Part I of this article, I discussed the major role abstractions play in our day-to-day lives. I pointed out that even though we cannot see, hear, or grab hold of an abstraction, firsthand experience assures us that certain abstractions definitely do exist.

Now, I’m going to focus on an abstraction – mind power – that makes it possible for you to alter the events that shape your life. It is self-evident that human beings, unlike animals, are “conscious of consciousness.” Or, put another way, an animal may be aware, but a human being is aware that he’s aware.

If we do not have the power to manifest our destiny, we are the victims of a bad cosmic joke. It would mean that our awareness is a Catch-22. We would be conscious, yes, but conscious of the fact that we are on autopilot and have no say-so in the way our lives play out. It would be the ultimate nightmare – being conscious of our impotence.

But to me – and, I hope, you – it is obvious that we do have that power. Which brings us to the concept of “metaphysical world.” Technically speaking, all the examples I pointed to in Part I of this article – e.g., time, negative numbers, ideas, love, fairness, and axioms – are part of the metaphysical world in that they do not have form or substance.

When people use the term metaphysical world, they generally are referring to more weighty phenomena, such as the soul, afterlife, and – the ultimate abstraction – God. The problem many have with abstractions such as these is that their existence cannot be proven.

Which is why, from the viewpoint of secular reasoning, none of these things make any sense. But after you’ve lived on this earth for awhile, experience teaches you that there are “reasons beyond reason” for things that have no secular explanation.

As the ultimate abstraction, God certainly falls into this category, which is why it is not surprising that He is the abstraction most often denied. After all, you cannot see God. You cannot hear God. And you certainly have no tangible way of knowing whether God considers an action to be righteous or sinful.

Thus, the atheist’s primary case against God is: That which can neither be seen nor scientifically proven does not exist. While I have intellectual respect for many atheist arguments, this one does not stand the test of logic.

The Dalai Lama sums it up well in The Universe in a Single Atom when he says, “There is a fundamental difference between that which is ‘not found’ and that which is ‘found not to exist.’ If I look for something and fail to find it, this does not mean that the thing I am seeking does not exist. Not seeing a thing is not the same as seeing its non-existence.”

In other words, there’s a lot more to reality than the material world we are able to see. Clearly, we ignore intangible realities at our peril. We cannot see gravity, but firsthand experience teaches us not to attempt to defy it.

Results of the Hubble Telescope project have scientifically underscored the Dalai Lama’s position. Hubble scientists long ago discovered that not only is all matter moving away from all other matter at unfathomable speeds, but that those speeds are accelerating. This indisputable scientific evidence forced them to conclude that there is an invisible power in the universe – which they refer to as “Dark Energy” – that is greater than the gravitational pull of all matter in the universe combined.

It therefore stands to reason that if you are able to tap into this infinite power source, your own power is theoretically unlimited. And if your power is unlimited, it logically follows that you should be able to have a great deal of control over your destiny. I refer not only to the power of the mind here, but also to a deeper power within us.

The question then becomes: What is the best way to access the Universal Power Source? We have been led to believe that the great teachers and prophets throughout history were able to maintain an extraordinarily high level of awareness. But rank-and-file human beings like you and me do not have the capacity to live in a perpetual state of high awareness, chiefly because we are distracted by the background chatter that constantly bombards our minds. As a result, our mind power is underutilized.

Which is why you have to make a conscious effort to connect with the Universal Power Source on a regular basis. This is not a learn-it-once-and-you’ve-got-it-for-life proposition. It’s a lifetime project, but one that not only can pay big dividends, but becomes easier with age.

Previous: Abstract Phenomena in Our Lives, Part I.