Absolute Infinite One
Before the beginning, there was One. Absolute Infinite One. No Time. No Space. No Entities or Beings with which to Relate. Only Absolute Infinite One Existing as Pure Awareness for One Eternal Instant. Absolute Unity. Absolute Isolation.
Most people intuitively believe that Oneness and Unity are the ultimate state of Being and that God (or Allah or Tao or Yahweh or Ja or the Great Spirit or whatever you choose to call it) is that One. There are certainly a significant number who feel otherwise — that there is no Great Spirit at all. And of course there are countless nuanced beliefs in between. But it should be clear that the prevailing Belief is in this All Powerful Source — The One.
We describe that One as Absolutely Infinite — omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. That is the very definition of the ultimate deity according to every major religion.
And throughout the ages, humans have been seeking, striving, yearning to experience those fleeting moments when they feel that elusive sense of Oneness that helps them know that this Belief is based on Truth.
The ISIT Awareness System (ISITAS) begins with The Absolute Infinite One, or AIO, as we will refer to it for short.
But at this point, we are compelled to admit that ISITism will inevitably fall short of explaining the full meaning of this most Fundamental of Concepts.
The Truth is that for all our collective contemplation, meditation and prayer over the millennia, as Creatures existing in a Relative Reality we can never even begin to comprehend Absolute Infinite One, nor can we ever hope to define it in words or any other form of expression.
Of course, ISITAS isn’t unique in facing this Truth. The very first line of the Tao Te Ching is
“The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal name.”
It doesn’t get any more straightforward than that.
The Hindu Vedas go on and on about it.
“He is without any form, yet dwells inside and outside all things with form and shape”
“Whatever exists and wherever it exists is permeated by the same divine power and force. “
“He is far beyond anything a human body can comprehend.”
For those who prefer Western religions, when Moses specifically asked the God of Abraham his name, the only response was “I Am that I Am”. No name. No label. Just “I Am”.
According to the Kybalion, Trismegustus—the Master of Masters I mentioned in the prologue— taught that …”THE ALL is SPIRIT, which in itself is UNKNOWABLE and UNDEFINABLE, but which may be considered and thought of as AN UNIVERSAL, INFINITE, LIVING MIND”.
The idea of mere mortals understanding Absolute Infinite One is analogous to fish conceiving of walking around on land. Actually, that analogy falls far short. Perhaps a better analogy would be a bacterium mastering Einstein’s Theory of Relativity.
And that analogy is really no better than the fish analogy, is it?
We are talking about the Infinite, after all. The whole notion of Absolute Infinite One existing in a State of complete Isolation and Unity for One Eternal Instant is Infinitely Abstract. No matter how Enlightened we may become, we will never, ever be able to conceive of that level of Abstraction.
Even the term ‘level of Abstraction’ emphasizes the point. There can be no ‘level’ of Abstraction when discussing AIO. The word ‘level’ implies some kind of Relative comparison, as if you could keep getting more and more Abstract until you finally reach the Absolute. But again, we are discussing the Infinite. So no matter how close you get, you will always be Infinitely far from the goal.
The term ‘Absolute Infinite One’ actually consists of three words with effectively the same meaning, though they aren’t words that we generally think of as being synonymous.
Consider this: The word Absolute means, ‘Not Relative’. There is no frame of reference. It is complete and unbounded — without limitation of any kind. The Infinite is an Absolute concept. You can’t have a certain amount of Infinity. It’s either Infinite, or it is not. Infinity is Absolute.
The word One means ‘whole’, ‘everything’, ‘All’. No fractions. No multiples. In this sense, One is an Absolute concept as well.
One is Absolute. Absolute is Infinite. Infinite is One.
And it is beyond our experience or comprehension.
Am I saying that because AIO is beyond our comprehension that it is irrelevant in our lives and we should just forget about it?
Not at all! On the contrary, we believe that Oneness is the ultimate aim. However, we use the word ‘aim’ rather than ‘goal’ on Purpose, because while we should always hold that concept of Oneness in our hearts and minds and aim for it as best we can, we must understand that we will never, ever reach it.
And that is Good! Because if we could achieve such a State, it would mean we had become Absolute Infinite One, existing as Pure Awareness for One Eternal Instant — and Reality as we know it would cease to exist. And we are very grateful that Reality Exists!
Now, if you’ve been getting the impression that this book is a high-minded study of arcane and ultimately useless philosophical concepts, think again! Before this book is over we are going to get very, VERY Real. We’ll be digging into the dirt and stirring up all kinds of shit that will make people laugh and cry, shake their heads and grind their teeth. Some people will get really pissed off by this book!
Oh, yes. It will be entertaining. But I am not doing this simply for the Purpose of entertainment. My goal is to help you attain a level of Awareness and Enlightenment that will allow you to truly Appreciate the entertainment. And in order to achieve True Awareness, we must begin at the beginning—with Absolute Infinite One.
By the way, you have no doubt noticed by now the unusual capitalization I use in this book where I uppercase certain words like ‘Abstract’, ‘Absolute’, ‘Relative’, and so on. This is also intentional.
These are profound words that convey Abstract concepts underlying the ISIT Awareness System, as they do all of Reality, and I will Expand on all of these in due course throughout this book to complete the picture of this wholistic Theory of Everything. For the time being, just note that whenever you see a capitalized word in mid-sentence, it isn’t because I don’t understand the rules of capitalization, but rather that the word represents an important concept that you can expect to learn more about as this book progresses.
And while we’re at it, please follow along as I take you on a brief tangent about the concept of Abstraction. Abstraction means finding the underlying patterns within myriad different permutations and thus being able to understand something at a more basic level. Abstract thought gives us the ability to use symbols like numbers, letters, words, icons and archetypes to represent Complex Concepts. It is the basis of language, science, philosophy, technology and all other disciplines at the Foundation of our civilization.
The ability to Engage in Abstract thought is perhaps the single most significant ability that separates Humans from all other creatures, (although many animals have shown the capacity for Abstract thought, and some Humans seem woefully inept at it).
Ask any software programmer and they will tell you; programs that are highly Abstracted are clean, efficient and even elegant. Programs that are not properly Abstracted inevitably devolve into clutter and confusion. In programming, abstraction is paramount. This is just one example of this Universal Law that applies to every single Aspect of Reality.
Abstraction is the beginning of Awareness.
So we are going to start with some very Fundamental, Abstract concepts because they will provide the framework for understanding all that follows. It may be difficult for some people to grasp at first. Abstraction is difficult, especially in the beginning. It can leave your mind adrift, with no bearings that Relate concepts to your usual frames of reference. I completely understand. If the Truth be told, I never did master Abstraction as a programmer, nor am I much of a math whiz.
So I will sprinkle in Real, down-to-Earth examples while elaborating on these Fundamental, Abstract concepts to keep it Engaging. Here’s one for example:
If you want to build a quality home that is going to last, you would obviously start with a solid foundation, right? Once that’s in place, you would do the framing, then the wiring and plumbing, then the fixtures and so on. You wouldn’t get to the trim and fine details until the very end of the project, even though that might be the most fun for you.
It’s the same with the ISIT Awareness System. This is a system designed to stand the test of Time. So we’re going to build it right — from the ground up. That means starting with the most Fundamental, Abstract concept there is — Absolute Infinite One.
So returning to AIO, even though we can’t possibly understand it, most of us have this intuitive sense that this Concept is at the root of everything that exists and at the Core of our Being. And that’s because IT IS. In fact, it must be.
Consider the alternative — that there is not, never has been, and never will be (which all mean the same thing in this context) Absolute Infinite One. That would mean the Universe is inherently Relative and Limited. It would have to be just a collection of Relative Objects stretching on and on and on, getting larger and larger until…. What? You reach the end of it? After all, our Rationality demands that a Relative, Finite Universe has to end somewhere.
I remember being a boy of about eleven or twelve, sleeping out under the stars in the back yard with my brothers on warm summer nights, gazing up at the brilliant Milky Way and pondering this very question with them. Our eyes and minds were filled with peaceful wonder as we mulled over this conundrum, for hours it seemed.
If you could travel all the way to the very edge of the Universe, what would be on the other side of that? If we had the ability to see past all the stars and galaxies and clusters and superclusters, to the very edge of the cosmic web, and we gazed out into the Void beyond, wouldn’t we be looking at Infinity? That empty space would have to go on forever and ever and ever with Absolutely no more Relative Objects — ever again.
Or would we just hit some kind of barrier that we couldn’t go through, because there is Absolutely Nothing on the other side? Maybe the Universe just bends back on itself like a kind of vast snow globe, with all time, space, matter, energy and everything else that exists contained within it. But how could there be Nothing on the outside of that snow globe? There would have to be something on the other side, right? And whatever that was — so far beyond our imagination that we can only contemplate it in Abstract terms — it would stretch on and on until…what? We came to the end of that? And what would be on the other side of that?
It’s a conundrum. The ultimate paradox. And I am not going to solve that paradox in this book. I’m not even going to try. In fact, this is my very point. We are not capable of understanding Absolute Infinite One. Full stop. Period.
But as I mentioned above, just because we can’t comprehend it, it is still valuable to contemplate the concept. So I will engage in one more exercise along these lines.
Just to make this point Absolutely clear, let’s do a little thought experiment. We know that the size of the entire observable Universe is about 26 orders of magnitude larger than our human scale. We also know the size of the smallest known particle, the neutrino, is maybe 24 orders of magnitude smaller. (Isn’t it interesting that we humans seem to occupy a space about half way between those extremes?)
So through about 50 orders of magnitude, from neutrinos, through quantum particles (like quarks and bosons) to sub-atomic particles like protons, neutrons and electrons, to atoms to molecules to compounds to cells to organs to organisms (like us) to planets to solar systems to galaxies to galactic clusters to superclusters to the tangled filaments of the cosmic web, we see this same repeating pattern of Objects within Objects within Objects — without exception.
Now… is there any logical reason to believe that pattern just happens to stop at the end of our Observable Universe? Isn’t it just a little too convenient to think that the conclusion of that repeating pattern just happens to coincide with our abilities to Identify Objects at that level?
If you think about it, the notion that the Universe we Observe is the ultimate Object is just as anthropocentric as the ancient notion that the sun and stars revolve around the Earth.
In fact, logic dictates that it is more likely the pattern of nested objects we see repeating over and over and over so consistently continues to repeat both beyond the reaches of the Observable Universe, as well as on the lower end of the scale. String Theory already theorizes some form of ‘Object’ (in the form of a vibrating string) far below the scale of neutrinos. In fact, those theoretical strings are as small compared to neutrinos as atoms are compared to us. Mind boggling!
But not as mind boggling as this: If we assume that our Universe is simply another Object in this Pattern of nested Objects, then it follows that whatever unimaginably vast Object that our Universe is a subset of is, itself, a subset of a still larger Object—and so on and so on… ad infinitum.
Infinity of Scale.
Just try to ponder that for a while.
You’ve probably seen visualizations in movies of zooming out through space from Earth, past the planets, through our galaxy and then out from the Milky Way through other galaxies into vast nebulae and on to superclusters of galaxies before ending just about the time we come to the end of the Universe as we know it.
But you can imagine that scene not ending there. Instead of just fading out when we reach the end of the Universe, you simply pull back from our Universe, further and further until it appears as tiny as a sugar crystal floating in an endless black void. And just before it completely fades into Oblivion, you notice another tiny white speck. And then another, and another — each one a Universe in its own right — so remote from each other that they seem completely unrelated.
And as you continue to zoom out farther, their “light” (in quotes because at this scale light as we define it would be irrelevant) blends together to form a silvery mist, which turns out to be just a wisp of a great cloud, that turns out to be part of one blob among many blobs within a still larger Object.
Can you imagine the experience as you continue to expand out, level after level, until our Universe is just an infinitesimal dot somewhere deep inside the latest manifestation? All sense of time and space has long since lost any meaning as your experience continues, faster and faster expanding into ever greater creations until you finally realize that you will never, ever reach the end of this Eternal process of Expansion.
That is the ‘scale’ of Absolute Infinite One.
Most people have probably never contemplated this notion. If we do, our minds recoil at the thought. It is beyond us.
But when you start to think about it, it makes perfect sense. When we ponder Infinity we tend to think of it in terms of time and space — the miles or light years stretching on and on and on. The years stretching into centuries to millennia to epochs to eons. But since Infinity goes on forever, eventually you would cross that next order of magnitude, and eventually the next, and the next. If you accept the concept of Infinity, and you acknowledge the compelling pattern of nested Objects that we see repeated consistently through 50 orders of magnitude, you must accept the conclusion that our Universe is but another Object within a greater Object and that this pattern never, ever ends.
And the point of this thought experiment?
It is this: We can never fully comprehend Absolute Infinite One while we are confined to a physical form. Not ever. And until we accept that Truth, we will be mired in confusion.
There can be no greater confusion in Life than to think you understand what ‘God’ is, or by extension what ‘God’ wants, likes or hates. So much pain and misery has been caused over the ages by profoundly confused people who purported to know ‘God’s’ will.
As long as I’m using the name ‘God’ in quotes, I might as well address a key point now.
Different religions use different words to identify their ultimate deity, and many of these words carry connotations. In fact, the Jewish religion has many different names for God, each one conveying different Aspects of God. In this sense, Judaism is similar to Hinduism, which takes this approach even further by giving these different aspects of God their own personas, like Vishnu (preserver), Shiva (destroyer) and Devi (sacred feminine). Christianity also assigns many attributes to God such as generosity, love, jealousy, vengefulness, etc.
Meanwhile, Eastern religions take a more Abstract approach. Taoism, as noted previously, holds to the belief that the Tao transcends any definition or attribution. Similarly, Buddhism doesn’t identify a deity at all, but rather holds Nirvana, or complete enlightenment as the ultimate state of Being.
Of course, when adherents to the Western religions are pressed, most will admit that the deity they worship is Infinite and beyond understanding or attribution. But the need to personify this unimaginable Being is very strong, so people tend to default to a more relatable Image. The reconciliation of these different approaches to the deity can get confusing.
Some people think of God as a Being outside of the Universe, Observing it as if it were a precious Object. Some people think of God as the disembodied consciousness of the Universe itself. Others take a more pantheistic approach, in which God is the Universe itself, as though the Universe is the body in which Its Consciousness dwells—just as they see our Spirit dwelling within our Material bodies. And of course, there are still those who believe that God is actually an Individual entity that exists in a place called Heaven that is located somewhere within the Universe. And there are certainly many conceptions in between these that I won’t attempt to go into as that exercise alone could fill a library.
Rather, I will be very clear about how ISITAS approaches the concept of Absolute Infinite One and how we will generally refer to other religions’ names for the supreme deity.
When we refer to AIO, we are talking about something that is beyond definition, attribution or comprehension. It is as the name says: Absolute, Infinite, and One. We Imagine the thought exercise I described before, until our minds surrender to the Truth that in our current Form, our imaginations can not and will not stretch that far.
Given the tendency of Christians, for example, to assign attributes to the Entity called ‘God’, we are inclined to think of ‘God’ as a kind of Cosmic Consciousness associated with our Universe in the pantheistic sense described above. After all, the Book of Genesis did say that God created Man in His own Image, so it would make sense that God, (as depicted in the Bible) would have some form of body.
Of course, given my previous description of AIO, it must be clear that this concept of God as limited to the confines of our Universe makes God a subset, or manifestation, of Absolute Infinite One, along with every other Object.
Some Christians will no doubt take offense at that representation. But then, until they are ready to give up any notion of being able to assign personal attributes or to understand God’s will, they must admit that they are contemplating a Relative Entity that is Subject to our understanding.
Ultimately, this exercise boils down to your understanding of Infinity. If you accept the concept of Infinity then you must accept that everything scales Infinitely and that our Universe is but an infinitesimal speck in an endless expansion of nested Relative Objects, and that Absolute Infinite One can never be defined.
If, on the other hand, you cannot accept that conclusion because it is beyond your grasp, then you are left with the conclusion that the Universe is not Infinite but is rather an inherently limited object suspended in an endless Void.
Of course, in that case you are still confronted with the concept of Infinity — only it is the Void that is Infinite, not the Awareness that fills it. It seems that there is no avoiding the concept of Infinity, and therefore we simply need to decide what is Infinite — ALL or Nothing.
And here we have reached the bottom of the pot. The ultimate question of philosophy and religion is: ‘What is Infinite?’
Some believe that Awareness is Infinite and thus the Source of Everything in Reality. Others believe that The Void is Infinite and that Existence emerged from Oblivion through some process that can ultimately be explained in scientific terms. We’ll get into that debate in more detail later in the book. But for now, let’s establish where ISITAS stands on this Fundamental Question.
ISITism holds that Pure Awareness — Absolute Infinite One — is Infinite, and Infinitely beyond our ability to comprehend it. Nevertheless, we see the evidence of this Absolute Infinite One in every Aspect of our Reality, and we are compelled to accept the Truth of this concept that we know we can never understand.
Accepting a notion like this through simple faith and pure logic without Concrete evidence to support it is disconcerting to many people. But we are all eventually required to do exactly that, because the ultimate Truth in an Infinite ‘Universe’ will always be beyond our grasp, let alone definable.
Letting go of everything you think you know about ‘God’, or ‘Allah’, or ‘Krishna Consciousness’, or ‘The Great Spirit’ is the first step toward gaining real enlightenment that can help you attain Peace, Joy and Abundance in this Life.
The second step is to understand that which is not The Absolute Infinite One — The Other.