BetterTROM.com - TROM GENERAL THEORY PART 5

TIME

This universe has been well described by physicists as a space-time continuum. It has three spatial dimensions, and one time dimension at right angles to the three spatial ones. Although this concept is easy to handle mathematically it is not easy to visualize, for once within the universe our minds become to some degree trapped within the three spatial dimensions. Which leaves the fourth dimension a bit tricky to grasp. However, life can embrace a four-dimensional continuum. If life could not embrace it then life could not have created the idea of the universe in the first place. (Even if it is considered that the universe was created by God he too is considered as being alive). Indeed, this universe is within life, rather than life being within the universe. Only when we consider life to be a phenomenon generated by the masses and spaces of the universe do we have any real difficulty in grasping the nature of the universe. This is the ultimate trap of materialism.

We can get over the difficulty of conceiving of a four-dimensional continuum very easily by dropping one of the spatial dimensions. This leaves us with a model containing two spatial dimensions and one time dimension. We can conceive of this very easily. Such a model is a cylinder closed at one end and open at the other. The two spatial dimensions of this tube are its cross section. The time dimension is the length of the tube at right angles to the cross section. The closed end of the tube is the beginning of the universe. The open end is now. As time passes the tube gets longer.

If we now imagine our tube to be populated with beings who can only easily perceive the two spatial dimensions our model is complete. We, of course, being easily able to perceive in three dimensions, can see the whole tube. The beings in the tube, by their own creativity and games play make time, and thus continuously extend the tube. We outside the tube, by observing them and seeing what they are doing, could easily predict the future of the tube. But if we were to enter the tube and agree to abide by the laws of the tube – that is to say, to only perceive spatially in two dimensions - we too would become a tube dweller, and be limited accordingly.

And this is precisely how a being gets into the real universe. He considers that such a game looks like fun, and pops into the tube. After a while he may well wonder how he is ever going to get out again. He gets out again by contacting and reviewing his decisions to go into agreement with the laws governing the tube.

In this universe, one will only know those things which are brought into existence to be known. Therefore, while in this "tube", the future, or that which has yet to be brought into existence, is unknowable.

The basic law of our universe is that one will only know those things which are brought into existence to be known. Agreement with this law keeps us in the tube. It’s as simple as that. As one continues to null the ‘To know’ goals package* one progressively frees up from the compulsion to be in the tube. Eventually one has regained one’s freedom of choice in the matter of whether or not to stay in the tube.

*Nulling the ‘to know’ goals package: TROM Level five has you do exercises with the "to know" goals package (to know, not know, be known, not be known). When you do this to no more change, it's said to be "nulled".

Now this tube we call the universe has been in existence for some 200,000,000,000,000 Earth years. This is a long time when compared to an Earth year, but how long is it to a being who is outside the tube, and only needs to flip his attention from one end of the tube to the other?

Not every being currently in the tube has been in it since the tube began. They have been drifting in to see what the game is like continuously - like children joining in an existing game of cowboys and Indians. Most have eventually become more or less trapped in the tube as they lost cognizance of their true nature as spiritual beings, and of the basic law governing the tube.

One of the many phenomena that stem from the basic law of this universe is that no matter when a being entered the tube all of the past of the tube is available to him. His agreement to only know those things which have been brought into existence to be known does not prevent him from knowing anything and everything that has ever happened in the tube, whether or not he was in the tube when the event happened. Because everything ever brought into existence in the tube is knowable by the basic law governing the tube, the being can know it.

You can know anything and everything that has ever happened in the past of this universe. But you cannot know what is going to happen in the future of this universe, because that has yet to be brought into existence to be known, and so by the basic law of the tube is unknowable. To know the future of the tube you have to go out of the tube - and out of agreement with the basic law of the tube.

So, you can know what has happened in the past of this universe, whether or not you were actually present when it happened. You can observe the fall of Carthage, the crucifixion of Christ etc. But don’t be surprised if the event turns out to be different from what is reported in the history books. Historians use a system of knowing, not direct knowing. Using systems of knowing history becomes the common denominator of what people can agree upon as having happened, which can be and often is very different from what actually happened.

As we know, people can and do assume the identities of well-known historical figures for the purposes of games play. This can and does become quite compulsive amongst certain types of personalities. We can predict that it would be most compulsive amongst the insane. And it is so. Any given insane asylum may have five Napoleons, four Christs and a couple of Genghis Khans. Where did they all learn so much about these identities to be able to ape them so well? Need we ask? Are any of these insane people reincarnations of the originals? Probably not. But all of them have the native ability to know everything there is to know about the originals by examining the past of this universe.

Another aspect of the same phenomena is that any incident that occurred in the distant past of this universe can be found in the past of any being in the universe today. And it is ridiculously easy for the being to believe that he was involved in this incident, for he has no evidence to the contrary.

Again, then, we see the sheer futility of ransacking the past of this universe in search of the ‘reasons why’ for current behavior. The being has the whole history of this universe to draw upon when he is a bit short of a convincing ‘reason why’ for a postulate, and will not hesitate to do so when pressed. Clutching a cherished postulate to his bosom, he will happily and methodically relate any and all of it to those who are stupid enough to search for the ‘reasons why’ of his postulate.

Only by resolving postulates in conflict can the being be freed from the trap the universe has become for him. This is the subject of the goals package in general, and the ‘To know’ package in particular.

IF YOU STILL haven't seen this video, and the above explanation of the illusion of time and how it works hasn't quite sunk in, HAVE NO WORRIES! We came up with our own method of explaining it in the first few minutes...

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GLOSSARY

Page updated

Report abuse