PANMEISM: A New Philosophical Framework

By
Guyus Seralius

Copyright © 2016

Here, within this article, I present the main pillars of all my philosophical views which I have spent my entire life discovering and piecing together. I will share a brief summary of them, below.

I think it is safe to say that all possible, broad, philosophical concepts have already been conceived of by mankind at one point or another in our history—often more than once—for these are eternal truths which have the habit of cropping up in the minds of men, again and again. So the broad philosophical ideas discussed within this essay or anyone else’s are very likely nothing new. Although, there are many age-old ideas that are relatively new in the overall view of man’s history and completely new in the minds of most modern men. However, I hope to present to you my unique bouquet of beliefs that I think go quite well together and which can be thought of as a new philosophical framework for a new belief system to facilitate a new way of life for most.

I should first explain that I base all my views on what the universe has taught me so far, on all that I have learned from classrooms, books, magazines, television, family and friends, along with all my own personal life experiences and many hours of deep contemplation. For instance, the scientific discovery that matter and energy cannot be created nor destroyed has helped me conclude that the universe has always existed and always will. I have a huge amount of respect and appreciation for science and the scientific method and believe it is one of the best approaches to predicting and understanding the world. However, I also have a huge amount of respect and appreciation for philosophical thought which aims to be rooted in logic and reason and can help us to responsibly leap beyond the scientific data so as not to become lost in the numbers and the details. I hope to share all my philosophical discoveries with others, so they may see it as I see it. The universe is a remarkable, awesome thing!

My views can best be described as a branch or subset of pantheism; the view that the entire universe is God or that which is the constant causation of our existence. It is also a form of dialectic or dualistic monism, which is the view that all of reality is ultimately a unified whole but must express itself in dualistic terms (often depicted by the Yin-Yang symbol) like two sides of the same coin. My views have often been compared to those of Buddha, Marcus Aurelius, Giordano Bruno, Baruch Spinoza, Ralph Waldo Emmerson, Alan Watts, and Eckhart Tolle. Growing up, I was greatly influenced, in passing, by Eastern philosophy and became interested in many of the classic Greek philosophers. So some of my views are similar, but not limited to, Plato’s Ideal Forms, Emmerson’s law of compensation, the scientific law of conservation, and Eastern views like the law of attraction, reincarnation, karma, and Buddha’s middle way.

Panmeism is a word I created to express my own personal tailored views of pantheism. The term literally means ‘all me’ or all is me. At its core, it expresses the view that each can view him or herself to be the infinite universe, because it requires the whole universe in order to exist. Nothing can exist outside the All, nor be independent of it. All things are ultimately interconnected, all is one, and all is balanced. In my view, it’s a belief system that many are naturally moving towards, more and more, these days. It includes many common core themes found in most religions and philosophies and welcomes and embraces people of all racial and cultural backgrounds and of most faiths and philosophies as long as their views and practices don’t prove to be harmful or intolerable.

Here are the main pillars of my personal philosophical views which may serve as a new philosophical framework.

1. The universe and all of reality is the Supreme Being. They are completely one and the same. It is the ultimate body and the ultimate mind. It is the most profound system, the most awesome tapestry. It is the constant causation of our existence and the existence of everything else. It is the law and it is the authority that governs all things, including itself.

2. The universe has always existed and always will. It is eternal in the same way the mathematical construct 1 + 2 = 3 is eternal, or the three sided triangle, or the color wheel, or the music scales, or the golden ratio. These concepts truly have no beginning nor an end. They couldn’t have evolved, or been invented by man, or created by any god or some first time big bang event. They are truly eternal. From the perceiver’s point-of-view, the universe is like one cosmic conveyor belt, whereby portions are constantly being created or constructed, while other areas are being destroyed or deconstructed. Like the ocean that is always moving and changing, from an observer’s view, yet still remains to be the ocean.

3. The universe must be exactly as it always has been, is, and always will be. The universe is not all powerful or capable of doing whatever it wants. It has no choice but to be what it is and to do what it does. Thus, there was never any allowance for a ‘Designer’ or ‘Creator’ to choose how the world could be. A creator could never have ‘chosen’ to make the world any other way. A designer could not have made the world without liquids and gases or made 1 + 2 = 6. The pi of every circle must always equal 3.14. All things must be the way they are. The universe is unfolding exactly as it was always meant to unfold and will continue to do so. All is perfectly ordered. Even the disorder, as it is perceived by us perceivers, is part of the overall order. It is not something that is accidental or serendipitous. Even great works like Romeo and Juliet are part of its fabric.

4. The universe is infinite in its physical distribution, yet cyclic. If a yellow butterfly could venture out far enough it would eventually emerge from a yellow butterfly. If you could venture in any direction, including deep within any particle, you would eventually run into a very similar version of yourself. The universe operates like a cosmic set of barbershop mirrors, reflecting repeated patterns of itself, infinitely. However, the possibilities are finite. For example, 3 x 4 can never = 8. A life form can never be made only of water from the perceiver’s point-of-view. Big bangs and big crunches have and do occur throughout the infinite universe in a cyclic fashion like an infinite, frothing, cosmic, bubble bath. You may refer to it as a multiverse, involving parallel worlds and sub worlds, but it is all a part of the overall uni-verse.

5. The briefest, yet most meaningful synopsis of the universe, of life, of God is the Positive and the Negative, the Yin and the Yang. Understand these two most fundamental forces and how they interact and you will be very close to understanding the theory of everything. The universe is the ultimate contradiction, the ultimate paradox. It has substance, yet it doesn’t. It moves, yet it remains fixed. It is very old, yet it is brand new. It is divided, yet it is whole. It is singular, and yet it is infinite. It is both cruel as well as kind, beautiful as well as ugly, and painful as well as pleasant. At times it is frightening, though at times it is comforting. At times it hurts us, though at times it pleasures us. At times it gives life, though at times it takes it away. Unfortunately, we will always have to contend with its negative half. The good news is we will always have its good side, too! I strongly believe there is a profound meaning and purpose to it all and an inherent goodness, which can never be destroyed. Unfortunately, I believe there is also an inherent darkness, which too can never be destroyed. There can’t be one without the other. But, ultimately, these two forces remain conserved and balanced.

6. The universe, overall, is and will forever remain perfectly balanced and conserved. However, from the perceiver’s perspective, the world is often seen to be very out of balance, for perfect equilibrium can never be achieved or experienced from the perceiver’s limited point-of-view. The reason for this is because all perceivers are forced to experience the world in a limited fashion. We are not capable of experiencing or perceiving all aspects of the infinite All, simultaneously. We cannot hear every sound, see every grain of dust, or feel every substance of the universe, all at once. If we were somehow able to experience that absolute, perfect balance, all would be like a dull, boring, homogeneous soup, where nothing interesting ever happens. Therefore, we are forced to experience the world in an endless series of imbalances.

Since all perceiving minds must experience the world in an undulating manner between the extremes, we must experience gains and losses. We each take turns being winners and losers. Thus, we must experience the law of compensation, which states that for every gain there is a loss, and for every loss there is a gain. For instance, if a girl’s outer appearance is perceived by most to be ugly, then it will likely cause her to become beautiful on the inside. The opposite is true, too, meaning a girl is likely to be a shallow person with a huge ego as a result of her outer beauty. This is not a permanent condition. This is nature’s way of compensating and maintaining balance. It’s what provides the fuel for proper change towards equilibrium. The beautiful girl with an ugly inner core will be treated accordingly by many, possibly even by her own friends and family, forcing her to increase the beauty of her heart and pay less attention to her external looks and, thus, become a more well balanced person. Unattractive people as well as attractive people both get balanced out by life sooner or later. The universe will never allow anyone to be one hundred percent perfect. It always takes a pile of dirt to grow a rose! So everyone will always have their equal share of dirt, and everyone will, sooner or later, be fairly compensated and paid in full for all their suffering. The universe is the great equalizer.

7. The universe embodies natural laws which include a moral and ethical code of conduct that is universal, unchangeable, and eternal. I refer to these eternal guiding principles as The Cosmic Commandments, which you may view by clicking the following link: https://guyus.wordpress.com/2015/11/01/the-cosmic-commandments
Although I actually chose and wrote down the specific words to personally express them, I am not the true author of those eternal principles; I merely discovered them through personal experience and deep contemplation, for they have in essence always existed and always will. They can essentially be found throughout the universe on any developed planet, where civilized men are allowed to evolve and advance themselves. They are universal and timeless.

In essence, the universe uses a variety of ways to urge us towards a very balanced path. Though, at times, it does this with amazing cruelty and can be quite unforgiving. Sadly, the universe always punishes us and corrects our behavior by its own natural laws when we try to reach towards the extremes. For instance, if we become too selfish then the universe, by its own natural laws, responds in a way so as to reverse our greedy behavior like causing us to lose friends who have been taught by the universe to hate selfish behavior. If we are too giving, then again, the universe will respond in such a way that pushes our excessive behavior back into balance, such as allowing others to take advantage of us when we are too generous. In this way, the universe, as a whole, provides guidance to all living things.

We should strive towards balance in most aspects of our lives. We need to find a healthy balance between work and play, between excessive wealth and poverty, between rules and freedom, between competition and cooperation, between public and private, between independence and dependence. Those who walk a balanced path increase their chances that the universe will respond in a kinder, more balanced, harmonious way. If there is a secret to life, it is and will forever be, balance.

8. We are each doing as the universe dictates. The universe governs all things. It is the ultimate puppet master pulling all the strings. In one sense, we do have free will. We get to choose among the available options that which pleases and fulfills us. However, somewhat paradoxically, we don’t get to choose that which stimulates us to choose the way we choose. A cow will always choose to chew on grass instead of mud, a rabbit will always feel like thumping its foot on occasion, a cricket will always be inspired to rub its legs together on a humid night, honeybees will always be motivated to suckle nectar and to unknowingly spread pollen from flower to flower, and humans will always behave like humans.

9. You are the All, an infinite purposeful system of positive and negative forces, trying to perceive itself, trying to understand itself, and trying to know itself. But you are not alone. You are actually in infinite company. I too am the All, so is your neighbor, and so is the smallest housefly. But you are the All from your own special position in time and space. This position allows you to forever remain unique. But in a deeper sense, at our core, we are all the same. We all have our moments of fear, moments of jealousy, moments of embarrassment, moments of anger, and thankfully, moments of pure joy! So there is your Local Self, that version of you that likely moves around in a vessel of human flesh, it changes, grows, ages, and will die; and then there is your Cosmic Self, that version of you that is full, complete, conserved, and eternal. In one sense, you are like a single leaf upon an infinite cosmic tree, but in another equally real sense, you are the entire infinite cosmic tree, for it is all ultimately connected into a single concert, an ocean of energy, and you are the summation of all things. You are the personification of the All, and therefore, the personification of God, The Supreme Being.

10. There is no escaping the eternal flame that is the cosmos. The mind of each perceiving being can never be fully extinguished, for it is part of a never ending continuum. Our mind will move from one life to the next, forever and ever. We will eventually lose our memories and our identity, but the universe will remind us from time-to-time who and what we really are—The Forever All. We will experience all the highs and all the lows, we will continue to have moments of great suffering as well as moments of incredible pleasure, and all those in between. Where exactly these moments crop up no one will ever know for sure. We will continue to undulate between degrees of consciousness and degrees of unconsciousness, between deep sleep and great awareness. I believe we all take turns playing each and every role in the wheel of life from the eagle that soars up high to the jellyfish that swims deep below. We will each continue to take turns being squashed as the nastiest bug as well as becoming the greatest king who rules over an epic kingdom during many years of peace.

Many question whether or not Heaven and Hell actually exist. In my view, Heaven is where ever and whenever one can find it. Heaven is not a permanent place, but a state of mind, a state of being. When you die, no matter how good of a person you are, there’s no such place you can go to live happily ever after. I wish that was true, but it’s impossible to obtain uninterrupted eternal bliss forever and ever, because we all have to have moments of pain in order to have moments of pleasure. You can’t permanently have one without the other, for they define each other. One has to be hungry before he or she can experience the pleasure of being filled. A door has to be closed before it can be opened. The same can be said for Hell. No matter how bad of a person you may be, you will not go to a place to burn and suffer forever and ever, non-stop. Life is always part pain and part pleasure. If you are having a very pleasurable moment, then you are in a heavenly state, regardless of geography. If you are experiencing a moment of extreme suffering, then you are in a state of hell. So it’s not a good idea to wait until you die to visit Heaven. Try to appreciate the joyous moments in your life, now, while you can, as long as it is not at the cruel expense of others and as long as you have truly earned it or truly deserve it.

11. Man was not meant to live completely free and independent like an island unto himself. We need each other and must learn how to live together and be interdependent. This panmeistic view that all is connected and interrelated could aid many to realize we must all be mindful of the environment and of one another as one interconnected family. I believe panmeistic views and practices could help save the world from destroying itself. I also deeply believe we the people should come together to create our own communities within or nearby our own cities, not to be completely isolated or segregated from the current system but to merely serve as a more communal alternative that would allow many to voluntarily live as mankind was intended, where we work together to grow most of our own foods, make most of our own products, and provide most of our own services as much as possible, instead of focusing on profiting off the naive, the desperate, the imprisoned, the sick, and the dying. It would help citizens band together all over the world to influence their own local governments, to pool their own resources, to collectively start their own co-op businesses, to set up their own insurance systems, to provide their own healthcare and legal services, to form their own schools and community shopping centers, and so on. These local communities would hopefully rise up in every city of every nation to push back all the political and corporate corruption and greed that is spreading like a cancer and which is destroying our world. Although some needed change may come from the top, I believe real change must come from the ground up, and I’m confident it will. Panmeism expresses that we are all a part of the same family whether we like it or not. What affects one, ultimately, affects all others. Therefore, I believe it is time to get rid of the outdated view that “It’s every man for himself,” and adopt the more reasonable, effective, and compassionate view that it’s “All for one and one for all.”

In terms of any holidays and celebrations related to panmeism, it would be welcomed and even encouraged to celebrate the birthdays of certain prominent historical figures, such as those who are viewed to be responsible thinkers and spiritual leaders, whose words and/or actions have helped the human race progress in some way, to participate in existing holidays like Earth Day and World Humanitarian Day, which are both already a global observance. I’ve also advocated for years that Christmas should become a day of spiritual celebration for all those of any and all religions as well as no religion. Any earth-friendly activities like planting a tree on the same month and year one’s child is born or anything that is viewed by most to be environmentally positive is appreciated. Marriages and other relationship bonding ceremonies may be performed by any fellow panmeist (one who agrees with the philosophical pillars of panmeism and strives to abide by the Cosmic Commandments).

I’ve come to realize that neither science nor religion, independent of the other, can provide a satisfactory explanation to our existence and the existence of the world. I believe ultimate truth will arise only when the scientific thinkers join forces with the spiritual thinkers. Yes, the world can be viewed as a mechanical thing, but at the same time, it is an awesome, divine thing, which ultimately goes beyond full understanding.

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My Book: Here you can review my book, The Forever All: A Philosophical and Spiritual Guide, and read several excerpts and chapters for free with the option of buying if you wish to read more. https://guyuseye.com/my-ebook

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