A person may possess a body-soul duality that is an extension of the wave-particle duality of subatomic particles. Both dualities participate in the element of subjectivism in explaining reality. This element of reality represents the philosophical aspect but has been neglected by contemporary cosmologists, who focus on the results of observation. In this paper, I demonstrate the scientific evidences for body-soul duality and cite the recent discoveries in quantum mechanics and quantum information and conclude that the metaphysics of this duality can be derived from the laws of nature.
A person may possess a body-soul duality that is an extension of the wave-particle duality of subatomic particles. Both dualities participate in the element of subjectivism in explaining reality. This element of reality represents the philosophical aspect but has been neglected by contemporary cosmologists, who focus on the results of observation. In this paper, I demonstrate the scientific evidences for body-soul duality and cite the recent discoveries in quantum mechanics and quantum information and conclude that the metaphysics of this duality can be derived from the laws of nature.
Although quantum physics has led to the most accurate predictions to date about the nature of matter and the universe, a metaphysical interpretation of its non-deterministic and subjective nature still remains an ongoing debate. In this work, we will review the nature of the debate and propose a new way to address the controversies about the non-deterministic and subjective nature of quantum physics. In our previous work, we have shown that everything is made of information, energy and matter. We propose to define spirit or soul as the content of information, spiritual heart as the receiver of information, and mind as the processor of information. In this paper, we show that the intrinsic uncertain and non-deterministic nature of quantum physics can be explained by the insights from these definitions. Information relates to the possibilities and potentialities of an object. Information is intrinsically uncertain and non-deterministic. Since quantum physics is the fundamental physics theory describing the information, energy and matter of everything, quantum physics has intrinsic an uncertain and non-deterministic nature. We further demonstrate that the process of quantum measurement can be interpreted as the role played by soul, spiritual heart and mind in the manifestation of physical phenomena. We conclude that our insight that everything is made of information, energy and matter and the definition of soul, spiritual heart and mind provides a simple metaphysical interpretation of quantum physics. They can help us understand and resolve the two controversies about quantum physics.
The ontological interpretation of physical vacuum and its interactions in physical phenomena was initiated to understand the quantum philosophy or the reality matter in quantum mechanics, at the beginning; however, it must be a different worldview from any metaphysical view that used to be in philosophy, and thus, it affects on all branches of academic studies and human activities in general. Especially, the ontological interpretation of soul, such as what it is, how it interacts with its own living physical body and external physical objects, and so on, should have an influence on the basic human values and principles, which makes human life improved ultimately with a firm philosophical base.
The mind–matter relationship remained in the domain of philosophers for aeons. However, the inquisitiveness of the scientific minds has always been trying to understand the science behind its various functions. The scientific temper ushered in by the Renaissance about the 15th century saw the scientists exploring this problem from a science point of view. Technological advances during the later part of the 20th century enabled neuroscientists to explore and localise functions of the brain. However, the most difficult has been understanding the origin of a conscious experience scientifically or materialistically. Despite the delineation of many functions of the brain, the origin of conscious experience, the qualia, in the material brain remains elusive, so much so it came to be called the holy grail of neuroscience. Heisenberg wrote: ‘Physics entered the domain of philosophy with the emergence of consciousness in quantum observation, which incidentally opened the door for reconciliation of science and philosophy’,[1] an event which enabled the predictions of Snow of the merging of arts and sciences.[2,3] Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics relating to very small particles – subatomic particles – electrons, photons, and everything in the submolecular realm, being the smallest units in matter. Quantum theory is the most fundamental theory of matter available at present. Some basic concepts of quantum physics need to be understood. These include “superposition”, where in subatomic particles exist either as waves or particles in a dual nature, never simultaneously. They exist as waves in more than one place at a time and once an observer observes or interferes with (such as measuring) their superposition state collapses to particle state. Quantum entanglement is the phenomenon that occurs when a group of particles which are generated, interact with or share special proximity such that they remain connected even when separated by vast distances. Consciousness is a manifestation of quantum process. Q mind or Q consciousness comprises a group of hypotheses proposing that quantum mechanical phenomena such as entanglement and superposition may play an important part in the functions of the brain and could thus explain the origin of consciousness. Several theories of quantum consciousness have been proposed. Wigner proposed the idea that quantum mechanics has something to do with the workings of the mind and proposed that the wave function collapse in the interaction with conscious observation creates consciousness.[4] Vitiello and Freeman[5] proposed quantum field theory (QFT) of brain states. This theory deals with systems and provides formal elements from which a standard description of brain activity can be inferred. According to QFT, particles are only excited states or simply manifestations of a field. Every particle has its own field that covers all of the universe, which means that, according to QFT, all of the electrons of the universe belong to the same field and could be regarded as one. Bohm formulated the QFT as a deeper theory of quantum theory plus relativity.[6] He viewed mind and matter as projections into our explicate order underlying the implicate order. Quantum brain dynamics (QBD) hypothesis explains the function of the brain within the framework of QFT.[7] It is not yet known exactly how quantum superpositions and their collapse result in the genesis of the raw feels of consciousness, the qualia. Feynman stated ‘if you think you understand quantum mechanics then you do not!’[8] Pribram proposed the holonomic brain theory (quantum holography). He invoked quantum mechanics to explain the higher-order processing by the mind. Pribram provided evidence on how much of the processes in the brain take place in a distributed fashion.[9,10] The composite model of Pribram-Bohm of holoflux hypothesis addresses observed phenomenon of non-locality both spacially and temporally. Bose and Einstein, who first predicted Bose Einstein condensate proposed that water at dendritic membrane surfaces might operate by structuring condensation,[11] supporting QBD. Penrose and Hamoreff proposed the orchestrated-objective reduction (ORCH-OR) in 1989 through 2013. According to them, the microtubules in the neurons (neurotubules), the tubulin protein polymer at the site of quantum collapse, leads to conscious experience. The quantum superposed states which develop in the tubulins remain coherent and recruit more superposed tubulins until a mass-time-energy threshold is reached. At this point, self-collapse or objective reduction occurs, which is equated to a discrete conscious event. Cascades of ORCH-OR events give rise to the stream of consciousness.[12,13] Penrose suggested that objective reduction represents neither randomness nor algorithmic processing but instead a non-computable influence in spacetime geometry from which mathematical understanding and, by later extension, consciousness derives.[14] Quantum vibrations in the microtubules proposed by Bandyopadhyay[15] have been shown to be source of conscious experience by corroborating the Penrose-Hemeroff’s ORCH-OR hypothesis.[13,16] In April 2022, the results of two related experiments at the University of Alberta and Princeton University, announced at The Science of Consciousness conference, provided further evidence to support quantum processes operating within microtubules. However, in another experiment, Gregory D. Scholes and Aarat Kalra of Princeton University used lasers to excite molecules within tubulins, causing a prolonged excitation to diffuse through microtubules further than expected, which did not occur when repeated under anaesthesia.[17,18] Beck and Eccles considered quantum mechanics at the synaptic level. If Orchestrated objective reduction (ORCH-OR) theory is applicable, a similar phenomenon in the microtubules at the presynaptic level, the axon terminal could be invoked for the genesis of consciousness.[19] A recent study by scientists at Trinity College, Dublin, in October 2022,[20] suggests that quantum processes underlie the cognitive and conscious brain functions. The brain–mind operational architectonics is the boundary between and integration point of quantum physics and eastern metaphysics and that it may inspire building a richer and more inclusive paradigm of the brain–mind relation, where quantum physics and eastern metaphysics are inherently intertwined. A body of empirical evidence[21-24] supports these possibilities, strengthening the proposal that the mind–brain relationship may be partially quantum. Quantum information theory clarifies the distinction between the unobservable mind and the observable brain and supports a solid physical foundation for consciousness research. With all these theories trying to explain and understand the theoretical/hypothetical framework for consciousness to explain the subjective experience of consciousness, the experts of this field feel it is still a long way to bridge the gap between current neurobiological and physical–mathematical concepts with their associated quantum–mind theories. Though there is still a long way to go for explaining conscious experience scientifically, when ever this happens, it will become one of the benchmarks in science. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest. Use of artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted technology for manuscript preparation The authors confirm that there was no use of artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted technology for assisting in the preparation of the manuscript and no images were manipulated using AI.
Despite its successes, quantum mechanics (QM) has remained mysterious to all who have encountered it. Starting with Bohr and progressing into the present, the departure from intuitive, physical reality has widened. The connection between QM and reality is more than just a “philosophical” issue. It reveals that QM is not a correct or complete theory of the physical world and that inescapable internal inconsistencies and incongruities arise when attempts are made to treat it as physical as opposed to a purely mathematical “tool.” Some of these issues are discussed in a review by F. Laloe [Am. J. Phys. 69, 655 (2001)]. In an attempt to provide some physical insight into atomic problems and starting with the same essential physics as Bohr of e moving in the Coulombic field of the proton and the wave equation as modified by Schrodinger, a classical approach is explored that yields a remarkably accurate model and provides insight into physics on the atomic level. The proverbial view, deeply seated in the wave-particle duality notion, that there is no large-scale physical counterpart to the nature of the electron may not be correct. Physical laws and intuition may be restored when dealing with the wave equation and quantummechanical problems. Specifically, a theory of classical quantum mechanics (CQM) is derived from first principles that successfully applies physical laws on all scales. Rather than using the postulated Schrodinger boundary condition “Ψ → 0 as r → ∞,” which leads to a purely mathematical model of the electron, the constraint is based on experimental observation. Using Maxwell’s equations, the classical wave equation is solved with the constraint that the bound (n = 1)state electron cannot radiate energy. By further application of Maxwell’s equations to electromagnetic and gravitational fields at particle production, the Schwarzschild metric is derived from the classical wave equation, which modifies general relativity to include conservation of spacetime in addition to momentum and matter/energy. The result gives a natural relationship among Maxwell’s equations, special relativity, and general relativity. CQM holds over a scale of spacetime of 85 orders of magnitude — it correctly predicts the nature of the universe from the scale of the quarks to that of the cosmos. A review is given by G. Landvogt [Internat. J. Hydrogen Energy 28, 1155 (2003)].
The intricate dance between quantum mechanics and the Heart Sūtra's philosophical insights illuminates the enigmatic nature of the universe. This paper ventures into the wave-particle duality inherent in quantum mechanics and its unexpected alignments with the ancient wisdom encapsulated in the Heart Sūtra, revealing a reality not as a steadfast entity but as a spectrum of potentialities that morphs in the wake of observation. A pivotal focus is on the duality's emphasis on emptiness and existence, pushing the boundaries of conventional thought. Quantum mechanics, intriguingly, reverberates with Buddhist ideologies, especially the intertwined nature of all phenomena. This alignment finds further resonance in the Trikāya doctrine, clarifying reality at the quantum level to the observable material reality. As the exploration into the universe's depths continues, the Heart Sūtra emerges as a crucial beacon, underscoring the all-encompassing nature of existence and the transformative potential of the Prajnaparamita. This paper marries the Heart Sūtra's teachings with quantum science's revelations, bridging the ancient spiritual realm and contemporary scientific frontiers. Through this confluence of ancient wisdom and modern science, the paper offers an enriched perspective for spiritual and scientific scholars, emphasizing the intertwined fabric of reality.