Crazy Charlie

An Entirely Unnecessary

Prologue

On Metaphysics

All universes are, of course, multi-dimensional.  Thus to discuss any universe in terms of extremes and what lies between them is to speak in terms of at best a first order, linear approximation.  This is no less true of the universes of philosophy than of any other.  Nevertheless, the philosophy of metaphysics may usefully be considered to range between the extremes of materialism and spiritualism. 

Materialism insists that the only reality is that of the physical universe, controlled by physical laws, and that all occurrences, including human life and thought, result from purely physical phenomena and are completely governed by those laws.

Spiritualism insists that physical universe reality is all illusion, that the only true reality is spiritual, and that the goal of awareness is to transcend illusion and achieve purely spiritual existence.

Between these extremes there is a pragmatic middle ground, which does not deny the spiritual view, but recognizes also that the illusion of physical reality is established not by one but by the many spiritual beings inhabiting the physical universe, and that if one has any attachment to or interest in the welfare of others it is futile to transcend their shared illusions as an individual.  In this view, it is the commonality of the illusion of material reality that gives physical laws their seemingly immutable force.  No individual, despite whatever personal awareness of the illusory nature of reality he may have, can transcend that reality and simultaneously maintain interaction with others who remain within its sway.

Transcendence thus has three possible paths:  First, there may be independent transcendance with no interaction and thus no agreement, no sharing with others, in the experience.  This is limited only by the individual's willingness to violate agreed upon material reality (no simple matter when most of these agreements remain uninspected, outside of concious awareness). Secondly, there may be local transcendance, with interaction possible insofar as those beings aware of the act can be influenced to agree with the modifications of their normal reality which are involved (or otherwise provided with satisfactory explanations for their perceptions), at least temporarily.  Finally, full transcendance, modification of the common reality and widespread acceptance of a new possibility, through acceptably small alterations of initial considerations in gradient steps of acceptably insignificant individual consequence (or in some cases, at least of less consequence than any otherwise unavoidable alternative), may be achieved.

In this view, then, an individual with sufficient personal awareness and influence might use the first path to his own advantage, and where possible, the second, to produce an accumulation of local, temporal agreements that will build gradually to finally achieve a change for all...