Wow, I just realized that I haven't written in this blog in forever. I haven't even looked at my last post here for months upon months, and that's very sad, since I had originally promised myself that this, of all things, would be my first serious blog. And I still mean for it to be so. Many people know me know that I think a lot, and that I have a lot of things to say. The problem, though, is that I honestly am afraid to say some of the things I want to say, even on a tiny, obscure blog like this...It's pointless to say why. I know why, and Blake and Felicia and Loren and those other people know why, and I guess that's all that matters. We have to keep our mouths shut, see. Because we're all scared that people will come after us if we don't, and you should be too. None of us are as brave as we may seem. If they decide that we're a threat, and they come for us, there's no way that we'll be able to elude them. No way at all.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Friday, July 27, 2007
Beginning With Cosmology
Cosmology, from the Greek cosmos, meaning "order" and logos, meaning "to reason" is a modern term given to describe the quantitative study of the universe and humanity's place in it. And by describing cosmology as being a modern word, I actually mean to say that the word in general has been around since about the year 1730, when the German philosopher Christian Wolff first used it in the rough draft of a scientific manuscript he wrote called the Cosmologia Generalsis. However, the study of the theory behind cosmology has been around almost since the beginning of mankind, always involving science, philosophy, religion and esotericism as its main elements.
In recent times (meaning the early 1800's on), the mathematical components of physics and astrophysics have come to be closely identified with theoretical cosmology. But because I'm absolutely no good at math, it would probably be pointless for me to try to delve too deeply into any of that, lest I make a complete fool of myself; right now, I'll only say that the kind of physics I'm talking about centers around the knowledge of nature, and is a rather complicated branch of science concerned with discovering and characterizing certain universal laws, which exist to govern the natural sciences of matter, energy, space and time. Physics is sometimes referred to as the "fundamental science" because of its basic origins and understandable theories, which are considered to be of a mostly independent nature in the world of science. Astrophysics, on the other hand, are physics having only to do with astronomy. I have to admit that even though I've been studing physics for quite a long time, I still have a very hard time understanding astrophysics and astrology. Astrophysics is basically the scientific study of the celestial matter, such as stars, planets, suns, comets and galaxies, existing throughout this universe. Astrophysics seems to be mainly concerned with the evolution of celestial physics, motion and chemistry, as well as with the formation and development of this universe.
Cosmology is also the study of the theory of cosmic inflation, more commonly known as the "big bang". As of right now, most scientists agree that the black and lifeless expanse of space from which our universe eventually emerged came into existance at some point around 13.7 ± 0.2 billion (109) years ago (please see this Wikipedia page for additional reference on this subject). And from its vastly rumored origins, until its various speculative ends, cosmologists theorize that the history of this universe (as well as several billion speculated others) has been governed entirely by physical laws. It's been said now, time and time again, that while science without religon may be every bit as good as atheism, religion without science is nothing more than pure superstition. But between the domains of religion and science has always stood the philosophical perspective of metaphysical cosmology. This particular field of study, which dates back even unto the earliest ages of mankind, has been there for no other purpose than to help draw conclusions about the true nature of the universe, and our place as humans therein. For thousands of years, and for thousands of years to come, cosmology has been a vastly important aspect of the world-origin beliefs of religion and mythologies, continuously seeking to explain the existence and nature of reality as they know it.
Cosmology deals with the world as the totality of space, time and all phenomena. Historically, cosmology has had quite a broad scope, and in many cases even became the foundation of various religious beliefs. The ancient Greeks did not draw a distinction between the use of cosmology and their model for the cosmos. In modern use cosmology addresses questions about the universe in which we reside, that are simply beyond the scope of science. This kind of cosmology is distinguished from religiously-based cosmology in that it approaches certain impossible-to-answer questions using philosophical methods. Such questions one might ask when learning for the first time about cosmology are, "Exactly what is the origin of the universe?" "Just what was its first cause?" And, if you're an emo-kid studying cosmology, you might very well find yourself asking something very close along the lines of, "Is our existance really even necessary?" I think you catch my drift. Cosmology is studied by those whose wish is to find out, for real, what the ultimate material components of the universe are, which may be materials so extremely basic that our human minds, as evolved as they seem to be, still wouldn't be able to properly grasp, even if we ever did in whatever way find out what those materials are/were; or, perhaps even more possibly, it might be that the materials responsible for the creation of this universe are/were so complex and utterly enormous (like God, for example, or Fate or some other kind of Supremely Concious Entity) that the picture of this entire thing would be too large to see without the benefit of at least one hundred additional generations of mindful evolution, and understand at all...
Which brings me to discuss, for a short while, religious cosmology. I'm planning to openly discuss my thoughts, opinions and theories on religion in general a bit later when I feel that this new blog has gotten itself a slightly better foundation to stand on, but for right now, a closing paragraph on religious cosmology seems to be appropriate enough. I can probably say, quite safely, that all world religions that actually are religions (meaning, that you really can't count things similar to atheism to be real religions) have "origin beliefs" that are there to explain the origins of all life and phenomena, universally speaking, of course. Often these beliefs are derived directly from so-called sacred scriptural writings which are the foundation of a faith's dogma and doctrine. But in some cases these doctrine-centered beliefs are allowed at least some slight degree of extention through the use of philosophical and metaphysical arguments. Both Christianity and Judaism rely on the Genesis narrative as a Biblical account of cosmology just as Islam relies heavily on the Qur'an as its explanation for cosmology. Many adherents of Buddhism and Hinduism, as well as Jainism, believe that this universe as we know it passes though endless cycles of uplifting creation and chaotic destruction, and that each cycle lasts for a period of trillions of years, complete with many different sub-cycles lasting 4.32 billion years. The Australian Aboriginal concept of "dreaming", which is what I'm really very intestested in, explains the creation of the universe as being an eternal continuum known without further regard as "everywhen". Through certain ceremonies, the entire past of the universe sort of "opens up" and bleeds directly into the present. Each geological feature, as well as everything else naturally existing on the face of the planet, is a manifestation of dormant creation spirits. Each individual has personal "dreamings" and ceremonial responsibilities to look after the spirits ingrained in the living landscape, which are determined at the moment of birth within this belief framework.
Many religions are in general acceptance of the main findings of physical cosmology, in particular the "big bang". And some denominations such as the Roman Catholic Church have embraced it as suggesting a philosophical first cause. Others have tried to use the singular methodology of science as a backup concept for their own religious cosmology, such as in intelligent design or creationist cosmology.
