This paper considers the basic intent and purpose of the universe, and develops lines of thought, which suggest three fundamental laws of the universe, as created and constantly maintained by the Divine. These laws consist of the Law of Diversity, the Law of Karma and the Law of Understanding.
Consider that the Divine has created this universe as a theatre for the purpose of entertainment. That is enjoying the enormous diversity of actions and events within the created theatre. A bit like developing a large-scale version of Melrose Place. The theatre is manifest with enormous scope for diversity, with karmic laws developed for fairness, and then the theatre is simply vicariously experienced with minimal further intervention. Indeed from an inspection of the world it is clear that no possibility is excluded from within it.
The theatre is developed such that beings may realize their Truth Condition, and thereby be released from their apparent separate association with the theatre. Indeed at any moment the theatre may be attempting to inform them of their Real Condition. Nevertheless, no possibility is eliminated from the script, and individuals can make their existence as difficult as it needs to be in order for them to understand the Truth. In the intervening time, it perhaps provides some light entertainment for Consciousness to vicariously experience. Indeed imagine you could create a dream world out of your own essence for the purpose of your entertainment. How would you structure it?
Therefore, from the point of view of the apparently separated being, the most appropriate disposition from which to allow the Divine to enjoy the created theatre is that of the silent witness. Living moment to moment in Grace. Allowing the Divine to develop the theatre of one's life without any interference, or judgement, from the mind. Filled with joy at the prospect of facilitating the Divine experience of the theatre of life, whatever that may be. In such a confession of happiness, the individual sacrifices their own personal egoic desires, allowing the Divine to fully incarnate within the being and thereby experience the developed theatre completely and directly.
From the point of view of the very Divine, it is important that the created theatre have an enormous array of diversity within it to allow for maximum potential experience. Indeed no possibility should be excluded. Therefore, individuals, and the society in general, must be very tolerant of diversity within the universe, and move towards the facilitation, or at least the maintenance, of diversity. It is utterly fundamental to the purpose of life, as it adds to the range of experiences on offer to the Divine.
Indeed if one examines life, the dominant feature of it is continual change and diversity. This is particularly seen in the animal and plant kingdoms, but also within the different types of forms within the human race. Perhaps the only aspect of life that should be avoided is constant repetition and conformity. Such occurrences reduce the variety of experiences on offer. Therefore, the ascetic spiritual aspirant, who withdraws from life to seek enlightenment, may be denying the Divine the very essence of life for which it was created. This is not to promote excessive secular worldliness. However, the true form may be a Divinely enlightened being, who understands the inherently Divine nature and purpose of life, and thereby sacrifices all personal egoic desires, allowing the Divine to fully incarnate within the being, and consciously and fully avails themselves to all forms of experience which arise within their field as an act of Divine love. Such a disposition may be experienced as flow, whereby the individual merges themselves into the activity to such an extent that all notions of time, space, self, other and world dissolve into pure awareness. In this disposition the individual is not merely judging the activity at hand, but has completely and utterly transcended themselves and fallen into the pattern of relations only, no subject, no object, but mere Being. Such experiences of flow have often been reported in sporting and recreational activities and may be the true form of life, optimizing the Divine's potential to fully experience the activity.
Free Will and Karma
It is clear that this is a lawful universe and that there are consequences to actions in this place, such that we reap what we sow. Thus, at any moment, the particular events and circumstances of life are influenced by previous acts, whether physical or mental. Clearly, however, for the theatre to be at all entertaining, and reasonable, there must be scope for unpredictable change within the play of events. Such unpredictable change may be allowed through the use of free will. Free will is the response to the particular circumstances that are presently arising. For example, if one is subjected to a hideous act, such as abuse, this act may be a karmic consequence and a part of the destiny of the given individual. However, the response to the act may be entirely at the discretion of the inflicted individual. They may move to seek revenge in some form, and thereby perpetuate the karma, or they may move to heal the abuse through an act of unconditional love, and thereby release the karma. This decision is free will and it is the means through which unpredictable change is thrown into the theatre of life. This facilitates the entertainment value of the theatre, and also provides an avenue for individuals to bring about reasonable change in their scripts.
The Laws of the Universe
The Law of Karma is well known in that it is understood that there are consequences to our actions, and thus we truly reap what we sow. Hence the universe is a lawful place, and this serves the purpose of providing fairness throughout the system.
A Law of Diversity may also govern the universe; such that events are spontaneously brought into play that serve to maximize the degree of diversity within the system. This Law may be underlying the constant change that is thrust upon life in all its forms, and serves the purpose of providing the maximum potential experience on offer to the Divine.
There may also be a Law of Understanding, whereby existence itself is purposed towards the ultimate goal that individuals may understand their True Condition. Upon this realization, the being is restored back to their ultimate condition of Divine consciousness, which is experienced as eternal formless Love-Bliss. Therefore, the Law of Understanding spontaneously creates circumstances and events that serve to facilitate the realization of Truth. This Law provides an end to the continuing drama of life for any individual, thereby producing meaning to the play of life and facilitating the entertainment value for the observer.
Therefore, at any moment the events and circumstances of life will be dependent upon the influences of these three laws. One would imagine that the Law of Diversity would be the first or primal law, followed by the Law of Karma and finally the Law of Understanding. Hence the Word was with God, and God said "Let there be life, let it be diverse, let it be fair and let it avail itself to understanding. So be it."
Supporting Evidence and Considerations
The Law of Diversity
The continual change and diversity evident in the universe is very supportive of the law of diversity. For example, every person has a unique set of fingerprints, lip prints, DNA, eyes etc. Every snowflake that falls is unique. Such incredible diversity would not be expected on the basis of pure random chance alone. It indicates that there is a force within the universe driving diversity.
The enormous change and diversity built into to this universe is seen at all levels. For example, the cells in our bodies are constantly changing, moment by moment, replicating themselves with minute alterations that induce changes within the structure known as growth, disease and ageing. Within the very nature of humanity there is seen the constant need for change and different experiences. Typically people are excited about something new, whether a new car, house, relationship, holiday etc and within a relatively short period of time the excitement wears off and the individual is urged to more different experiences. Indeed the common dilemma of the mid-life crisis, and many marriage breakdowns, may simply be the force of the law of diversity moving the individual to different experiences.
Divine Incarnation of the Being
On occasions of intense emotional states, either high or low, it is frequently experienced that the individual feels a sense of possession, or otherness, from an unknown source, such as energy overcoming or filling the body. This may well relate to an instance of Divine incarnation within the body to partake in the experience.
A further interesting phenomenon is the popular habit of vicarious experience. For example, television and theatres are an incredibly popular pursuit. Also the hobby of taking enormous interest in the lives of others, such as royalty, movie stars, sports people etc is very popular. This tendency towards vicarious experience may well simply mirror the Divine structure of this world. To some extent we are all simply little remote receptors for the Divine to vicariously enjoy the theatre of life. However, in the Divine theatre of life, the vicarious experience goes way beyond the sense of vision.
Alternative Suggestions
From the understanding that there is only God, there would appear to be no other reasonable explanation for the existence of the universe. For example, many people feel that the universe is created as a learning school for individuals to understand. However, if there is only God, and this one is all knowing, then such a proposition is difficult to maintain. The learning school proposition may well apply from the point of view of the learner, that is the apparent separated individual. However, it does not seem a reasonable point of view from the perspective of the very Divine, who is already all knowing. What could the Divine possibly learn from such a theatre?
Similarly, many people feel that individuals are here to suffer their existence because of some dreadful event that happened in the past, such as the cruxification of Jesus, and hence we must stay here until we can truly repent. Again, while this seems plausible from the point of view of the individual, from the perspective of the very Divine it is not a reasonable position. It would be like cutting off your nose to spite your face.
By Greg Wilson