In my tango travels I met a woman who was an ardent believer in the Law of Attraction. Consequently, I spent a considerable amount of time reading about this theory of the universe and its origins. I came to the conclusion that proponents of this belief were underestimating the amount of participation necessary to yield measurable results. It could all be bullshit but I try to be open-minded. The examples I read about involved hundreds of people but I’m guessing, and it is just a frivolous shot in the dark, billions of participants are needed. Religions claim to be able to affect results but there is no proof of causality.
Here is what the Internet says about this philosophy:
“The law of attraction is the belief that positive or negative thoughts can bring positive or negative experiences into a person's life. The core principle is "like attracts like," meaning your dominant thoughts and beliefs, whether conscious or subconscious, attract corresponding circumstances to you.”
It is basically the irresistible allure of every religion that requires adherents to pray for what they want and how they want this world to be. I believe there is some truth to this but it is not a force in the universe that you could hitch your wagon to. I think people who are drawn to the Law of Attraction are too hopeful or naive about their ability to harness its power.
The secrets of the universe are usually profound but seemingly subtle until we discover their true nature. Each civilization reaches a level of understanding of these mysteries and then they are discarded as the wheel of time rolls forward. I believe our current civilization is at the point now of unlocking the key to many of those mysteries with leaps in computing power and our ability to gather information from beyond the confines of our own planet.
When we do things with other people in unison, e.g. clapping, singing, etc., we feel a certain amount of exhilaration equal in proportion to its complexity and the number of creatures participating. The fundamental building blocks of the universe are frequency and vibration. Both definitions of frequency apply here: repetition and radiation. I guess vibration and radiation are kinda the same thing but it is better to say too much than too little. Two people clapping sounds nice but two dancers connecting physically, mentally, spiritually to each other, to the music, to the crowd and even the very fabric of space, is cosmic.
A yogi may attain enlightenment after years of meditation but a couple dancing tango may do it in one night. That is why I say Tango is the South American Martial Art of Love. It is akin to tai chi in that each person must move with utmost intention but that is where the similarity ends. Learning how to move is only the precursor to getting two humans to connect to the Godplane, or whatever we are going to call that place touched by our souls that keeps us coming back for more.
The very fabric of space exists but it is unmeasurable, maybe that is a good example of another dimension. I find it impossible to imagine what another dimension beyond the space/time dimensions might be like. I kind of feel like this tango connection to the partner/crowd/universe might give us a clue as to what one is. I propose that it is possible for a group of people to experience another dimension by joining together in body, thought and motion to music. I’m going to call this perripoling.
Perripoling is what happens when the crowd of dancers at a milonga, the place where tango is danced, achieve synchronicity with the Universe. It doesn’t happen all the time and not all dancers experience it, but those that do are affected. I know, I have been affected. It is a feeling that doesn’t happen all at once, it unfolds in my memory of the event as I continue my life after the dance is over. A week later and I am still processing just what it is that I experienced. It is a feeling that I will never be able to describe other than one of satisfaction.
Quantum Theory’s bastard child, String Theory, postulates the existence of more than four dimensions. Just what they may be we do not know but I do not believe they are beyond our abilities to perceive, it is just very difficult. Just like the Law of Attraction, I think we underestimate how much effort is needed to achieve awareness. It is possible we experience other dimensions all the time but we just don’t realize it when it happens. When we dance tango, we sometimes achieve awareness of another dimension, having done that we should probably take some measurements or make others aware of what we have found.
In my latest book, Kokapelli in the Wiccans’ Kitchen, I endow my characters with awareness of other dimensions and have them interact with these dimensions in an entertaining manner. I guess I do this for my own personal enjoyment but I also aspire to higher ideals. I think people should be open to the possibilities that they can experience the universe in a myriad of ways and that this is not the sole property of the scientists and the intellectuals.
No comments:
Post a Comment