The farmer's market encounter with Anya felt lighter than air, like a perfectly ripe heirloom tomato. No pressure, just…connection. Which got me thinking about connection on a cosmic scale. We're all made of star stuff, right? That old Carl Sagan line. But it's not just poetic; it's profoundly true. Everything heavier than hydrogen and helium was forged in the cores of dying stars and scattered across the universe in supernova explosions – stellar events that, for a short time, can outshine entire galaxies! So, the carbon in my coffee cup, the iron in my blood, the calcium in my dodgy attempts at pottery, all originated in events that happened millions, even billions, of years ago, light-years away.
And that's where quantum entanglement comes in. Einstein called it "spooky action at a distance" because it suggests that two particles can be linked in such a way that they instantaneously affect each other, regardless of the distance separating them. It’s like having two coins, flipping them in separate rooms, and always getting heads and tails, even if you don't know which room the other coin is in. Scientists have now entangled photons across hundreds of kilometers, demonstrating the potential of quantum communication (and maybe even teleportation someday, though I wouldn’t hold my breath for it).
Now, I’m not saying Anya and I were entangled at a quantum level (though the sheer absurdity of that thought made me chuckle). But there’s a certain poetry to the idea that everything in the universe is interconnected, vibrating with energy, constantly exchanging information. We’re all part of a vast, cosmic dance, a never-ending ballet of creation and destruction.
My new perspective started bleeding into my daily life. The overflowing inbox at work? Just another manifestation of entropy, the universe's inevitable march toward disorder. No need to panic; just tackle it one email at a time, like sorting socks in a black hole of a laundry basket. The traffic jam on the freeway? A macroscopic example of Brownian motion, the random movement of particles suspended in a fluid. Instead of honking and getting stressed, I’d put on some chill music and contemplate the nature of reality. (The other drivers probably thought I was nuts, but hey, at least I was relaxed.)
One evening, I was sprawled on my couch, reading about the origins of the universe when I stumbled upon the Nasadiya Sukta, the Hymn of Creation from the Rig Veda, one of the oldest sacred texts in the world. The translation was surprisingly relevant:
"Then there was neither non-existence nor existence; There was no realm of air, no sky beyond it. What covered it? Where was it? In whose keeping? Was there then cosmic water, in depths unfathomed?
Then there was neither death nor immortality; No sign was there of night nor day. That one breathed, windless, by its own impulse; Other than that there was nothing beyond.
Darkness there was; at first concealed in darkness This All was indiscriminate chaos. All that existed then was void and formless; By the great power of Warmth was born that unit.
Thereafter rose Desire in the beginning, Desire, the primal seed and germ of Spirit. Sages who searched with their heart's thought discovered The bond of union between Existence and Non-existence.
Who verily knows and who can here declare it, whence it was born and whence comes this creation? The gods are later than this world's production. Who knows then whence it first came into being?
He, the first origin of this creation, Whether he formed it all or did not form it, Whose eye controls this world in highest heaven, He verily knows it, or perhaps he knows not."
This ancient poem, written thousands of years ago, grapples with the same questions that modern cosmologists are still wrestling with today: What was before the Big Bang? Where did everything come from? Is there a creator? It acknowledges the limits of human knowledge, the inherent mystery of existence. It's an acceptance of uncertainty, a profound humility in the face of the infinite.
The line “He verily knows it, or perhaps he knows not" struck me. It's a beautiful admission of the unknown. We can build models, develop theories, and gather data, but ultimately, the universe may hold secrets that are forever beyond our grasp. And that’s okay.
Modern physics kind of agrees. Quantum mechanics has shown us that at the most fundamental level, reality is probabilistic, not deterministic. We can predict the probability of a particle being in a certain place at a certain time, but we can never know for sure. There's always an element of randomness, of uncertainty. God, if it exists, might be playing dice with the universe, but it's a very sophisticated game of dice, with rules and probabilities.
So, what does all this mean? It means that worrying about the future, obsessing over the past, is ultimately a waste of energy. The universe is constantly changing, evolving, and rearranging itself. Things may seem chaotic and unpredictable, but there's a deeper order at play, a cosmic rhythm that we can sense, but never fully comprehend.
The loop? It's not a trap. It's an opportunity. An opportunity to learn, to grow, to become a better version of ourselves. And even if we repeat the same mistakes, even if we stumble and fall, we can always get back up, dust ourselves off, and try again. Because that's what it means to be human. It means to strive, to question, to explore, to love, to laugh, to cry, and to experience the full spectrum of human emotions.
So, my black hole sculpture might still look like a deflated football, and I might still occasionally burn my toast, but I'm okay with that. I'm embracing the chaos, the uncertainty, the inherent absurdity of existence. I'm riding the wave, enjoying the ride, and not freaking out when I wipe out.
And here is my advice to you. Don't worry about the future, cause the future does not exist. The past does not exist, cause it is merely a reflection of the now. The happenings that will lead to something are all constant, predictable and cannot be changed, so, you must enjoy the present. Live in the present, and only focus on the present. Everything will go as it is planned, so don't worry, be happy and be present. And if you ever feel lost or overwhelmed, just remember the words of the Nasadiya Sukta: “He verily knows it, or perhaps he knows not.” Embrace the mystery, and keep searching.