What we call matter, whether an atom, molecule, mountain, river, or human body, is ultimately condensed energy. Matter is simply energy existing in a compact and organised form. Modern physics has gradually moved towards this realisation. The difference between a stone and a beam of light is not that one is completely different from the other, but that energy manifests itself in different states and patterns.
By discovering laws of energy, we have generated electricity, built machines, explored space, and unlocked the hidden structure of atoms. A scientist is one who understands workings of matter through the language of energy. Yet an important question remains unanswered: Is energy the final truth of existence?
If the universe is nothing more than a collection of particles and forces, where did consciousness come from? How did thought, feeling, imagination, love, memory , and the sense of ‘i exist’ suddenly emerge from lifeless matter? Something cannot arise from absolute nothingness. If consciousness exists in human beings today, then its possibility must have been present from the very beginning of creation.
Billions of years ago, when the Earth had no plants, animals, or human beings, only subtle forms of energy existed. Yet hidden within those primitive forms was the dormant potential of consciousness. Gradually, through the long movement of evolution and the operations of nature, that latent awareness began to express itself. First came the faint stirrings of life in plants, then instinct and sensation in animals, and finally the self-awareness and reflective intelligence seen in human beings.
This process may be compared to a seed. A tiny seed appears lifeless and insignificant, yet within it lies the possibility of a vast tree. Under proper conditions, hidden life within the seed slowly unfolds. In the same way, consciousness existed in a dormant form within the earliest states of energy and gradually awakened through evolutionary process of nature.
Indian spiritual philosophy describes this cosmic relationship through the concepts of Shiv and Shakti. Shakti represents energy, movement, and the dynamic force of creation. Shiv represents pure consciousness, the silent witnessing presence behind all activity. Just as a dance cannot exist without a dancer, energy cannot be fully understood without consciousness. The movements of nature, formation of stars, growth of life, and emergence of human awareness all unfold within a deeper field of consciousness.
Electricity flowing through a wire cannot always be seen directly, yet its presence becomes evident through its effects. Similarly, consciousness manifests in varying degrees throughout existence. Reducing existence entirely to atoms and particles oversimplifies the mystery of life. A machine may process information with extraordinary speed, but it does not experience joy, sorrow, wonder, or the feeling of being alive.
In moments of deep meditation, contemplation, or spiritual realisation, people sometimes experience a state in which the ordinary boundaries of time, space, and individuality begin to fade. Awareness expands beyond the narrow sense of the individual self and feels connected to something vast and universal.
Indic spiritual traditions describe this awakened state as the realisation of Brahmn, Shiv, or Cosmic Consciousness. Matter is condensed energy, but energy itself moves within the embrace of consciousness.
Ananda Marga is conducting Dharma Maha Sammelan at Ananda Nagar, WB, till May 31
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the author’s own.
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