This is a little tale of the mystery of how hopelessness may turn into wisdom and arise as energy waves, how passion may turn into compassion and arise as particles.
Since June 2020, a new cycle of paintings has been manifesting in cccferrari art studio, situated along the Emme riverbank (CH). Rather unexpectedly, the painting process has been blessed with a great deal of flow.
It happens with a twist of the wrist: a certain "brushstroke rate variability" catches waves of inner luminosity. It follows an expansion drive and, through the celebration of colour, the triumph of painting.
The words "Catch these Waves and Party-cles" vaguely echo scientific research on the origin of matter. Not the least attempt to illustrate scientific theories is made here.
Energy waves (the unformed) are equated with the brushstrokes on the canvas. Saying this is an invitation to reflect upon wisdom: the acknowledgement that all there is is boundless energy and how, in our case, it arises from the sheer hopelessness of a definitive truth. "Boundless energy" is here used for lack of a better word.
Particles (the formed) are equated with the geometrical grid drawn on the canvas. Saying this is an invitation to reflect upon compassion and how, in our case, it arises from an irrepressible human passion.
Since time immemorial the best minds in many cultures have been enquiring into the nature of matter.
What is matter?
It has been observed that objects are composites made of parts, which are made of parts, which are made of further parts. The Ancient Greeks came up with the notion of the atom, which was supposed to be the smallest building block of matter. Quantum Physics, the modern science investigating the microcosmos, has observed how material objects resolve into molecules, atoms, protons, neutrons and electrons and then into quarks and mesons and even into other infinitely small bits of matter, right down to the Higgs boson.
Once you get down to a certain level of matter, particles become waves and these waves appear and disappear into "space". Space, not being a sensory object that we actually experience, can't even be defined.
The idea of ultimate building blocks of matter is now called "unified energy fields". Under certain conditions energy waves may appear as particles and, thus, matter "apparently" comes into existence, establishing the notion of space by occupying it and generating the notion of time by appearing and then disappearing, by being born and then dying.
What are the conditions under which waves turn into particles?
Astonishingly it seems to be the very presence of an observer (and his/her instruments) that causes the emergence of particles (matter) in the phenomenal world. You may care to Google the experiment of the "double slit".
Does the mind project/create the universe?
Eastern cultures have being saying something of the sort for thousands of years. Many scientists are now plunging into the study of the mind and of consciousness in what is called "the hard problem of consciousness". Eastern cultures boast many fascinating models of the mind and its correlation to matter, experientially tested for millennia.
By now you've probably noticed that all this has been roughly delineated by someone who has no scientific training at all. Nevertheless we like to mention this "story" because it has found a lot of resonance, here at cccferrari.
What is suggested here is this: the universe is not made up of space, energy, waves, particles, matter, consciousness or what have you; the universe is made up of "stories" or "tales", if this word is more agreeable. Scientific tales, psychological tales, social tales, spiritual tales, philosophical tales, historical tales, mathematical tales, political tales, evolutionary tales, artistic tales and so forth. We can talk about and exchange nothing but tales, wrapped up in concepts and transmitted through different narrative registers and styles. The belief that the Sun revolves around the Earth was a tale that lasted hundreds of years. The mind expanded and the tale that the Earth revolves around the Sun has replaced the previous one and is still top in the hit parade of what is considered to be "The Truth".
But the mind keeps on expanding, new tales will form new notions of truth with corresponding belief systems, and old ones will be discarded.
We honour all tales as glorious, equally worthy of respect, and wonderfully futile endeavours of existence. Some of these resonate differently with different people; apparently life enjoys manifesting itself thus.
Resonating with the "tale theory" of waves and particles we dare say "Catch these Waves and Party-cles". We allow ourselves to split the word "particle" and point to the possibility of honouring/celebrating this wonderful scientific/mystical tale, without elevating it to the status of truth, without identifying with it. A debasement of the word "party" was necessary to make this somewhat horrid "particles/party-cles" pun work. Sorry about that!
"Catch these Waves and Party-cles" is also meant as an invitation to exercise compassion for everything, nature or human made, that may come into existence.
May every minute particle, every tale, every manifestation, all doomed to be crushed and pulverized, be met with compassion. The best word we, as thinking minds, can find to describe this futile/sublime life process is "mystery".
And more: let us contemplate and perhaps practice the way of wisdom and say: let us not catch these waves after all, let's just observe them, without grasping.
And less: let us just observe the observer.
And perhaps even less...
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