The God Theory: Universes, Zero-Point Fields and What's Behind It All

by Bernard Haisch

Book Overview

On the one hand, we have traditional science, based on the premises of materialism, reductionism, and randomness, with a belief that reality consists solely of matter and energy, that everything can... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1578633745
• ISBN13: 9781578633746
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser
• Length: 157 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.4" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Glimmerings of a New Science of Consciousness and Spirituality

Bernard Haisch is an eminent astrophysicist who is a member of an increasingly large group of prominent scientists who are trying to bridge the seemingly impossible divide between the conventional Reductionist worldview, Creationism and Intelligent Design. For over a century it has seemed as if there is no possible way to reconcile the camps that seem to be totally at loggerheads with each other. Haisch begins with two observations: First, what we often call the "Goldilocks Theory:" why is it that certain key physical constants have just the right values to make life possible. The term is also applied to describe the key zones around a sun - not too hot and not too cold - in which planets are conducive to the development of carbon-based life forms. The second starting point is a phrase that is found in many religious traditions around the world, from the Middle East to India and China: "Let there be light, and there was light." He believes that consciousness is our connection to God, who, or which, is the source of all consciousness. This infinite conscious intelligence has infinite potential, and its ideas become the laws of physics. In his view the purpose of the Universe is the transformation of potential into experience. So consciousness is the origin of matter, the laws of natures and of all the universes that may exist. Bernard is the co-author of a remarkable theory about inertia: that it is the property of matter that gives it substance, and that this solid matter is sustained by an underlying sea of quantum light: the zero-point. It is good to remember that one of the most celebrated theories of all time - Einstein's theory of special relativity - is based on the properties of light. Bernard proposes that light, in the form of a universal electromagnetic zero-point field, creates and sustains the world of matter that fills space-time. One of the immediate implications of these ideas is that we are all imbued with some splinter of God consciousness, that God is experiencing through us, that we have purpose and that our relationship should be one of partnership rather than domination or servility. A second implication is that we should live a life that allows the expression of this intelligence, because in that way we evolve, grow and achieve ultimate satisfaction and happiness. The brain is a filter rather than a creator of consciousness and it is possible to develop the brain so that more of this consciousness is able to manifest. This squares well with the recent data on neuroplasticity and the impact of meditation on the structure and function of the brain. These ideas are familiar to anyone who has studied Hindu, Buddhist or Taoist philosophy, or the writings of mystics and contemplatives who have described the universe as the "body of God." But it has rarely been expressed so clearly and placed in a scientific framework. Bernard Haisch has unique qualifications for writing this book. He was born in postwar Germany but came to the

An Interesting Theory!

I believe that God exists -- it is only that I don't know what God actually is. Perhaps Mister Haisch has God pegged via his unique theory. It's an interesting theory (a synthesis of science and spirtuality) in which the author believes that God is attempting to experience His full measure of potential "as God" by actualizing Himself through each human being within the physical realm. (We are His incarnations.) Just a few random things in general about it: He comes down hard against the materialism (the belief that reality consists of matter and energy and nothing else) and reductionism (the belief that complex things can be explained by examining their constituent parts only) of scientists who refuse to accomodate even the "possibility of the spiritual", but he's equally critical of the massive failings of religion. He focuses on the "Zero-Point Field" -- A special light energy that is supposed to inhabit all of space as mandated by the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. He explores the possibility that this background sea of quantum light existing throughout the universe (the zero-point field) is what makes matter the solid and stable stuff that it is. Anyway, it's about that kind of thing. He proposes that "consciousness" gives rise to matter and not vice versa -- it is the primary stuff of reality shaping and directing matter by an "infinite intelligence" dreaming up an infinite variety of laws and physical constant values and then letting them play out in all their varities in this and other universes. Though I don't embrace the "God Theory" outright, I can't dismiss the idea out of hand because he makes a somewhat compelling case for it. It is as valid a possibility for explaining it all as anything else that has come before. Mister Haisch does an excellent job in explaining scientific concepts so that the non-scientist can understand it well enough. If you have a "scientific mindset" but can accomodate the possibilities of the "spiritual" or if you have a "spiritual mindset" but can accomodate the principles of science then you may find this theory at the very least an interesting one. I have no negative comment about the book except that it is too short. I hope I have been helpful to you.

God is consciousness.

There is a widely held misconception that scientists don't believe in God. The truth is that they don't believe in the anthropomorphic Judeo-Christian and Muslim God who was invented by man in the era of his scientific ignorance. In fact, scientists are recently publishing an increasing number of books trying to identify God and his relationship to our universe. This is another such book, and shares the same main title as Ronald Tarter's book published four years ago. It differs from most others, however, in that the author strays a little more into the realm of the mystic. For him, God is consciousness. That by itself may be a little confusing since there is no general agreement on the definition of the term. But towards the end he defines it as "something infinite, timeless...[that] can have no characteristics that can be properly translated in physical terms. Love, light, and bliss come the closest." Although this God Consciousness has an infinite potential, this can only be actualized, become real, through experience. So God creates the world so that he can experience himself from a non-God viewpoint. For Haish consciousness is the origin of matter, not the reverse as physical sciences postulate. Creation is thus a physical part of God, including you, me and Fido; we are all parts of God. He maintains that we do not experience the world as it really is but only through what our brains do not filter out. As an example he points to some idiot savants who suffer from brain damage and who cannot tell right from left but can multiply in their heads two three digit numbers while carrying a conversation; not through any analytical process but just by seeing the number shapes in their mind morph into the final number. He attributes it to the [un]conscious being somehow linked to the infinite consciousness. According to Einstein's theory, says the author, a photon traveling at the speed of light gets to its destination instantaneously, because at that speed there exist neither time nor space. He concludes that light generates matter. Light, of course, is pure energy, and energy can create particles as long as the sum of the particle properties is zero, like an electron-positron pair as an example. He discusses the zero point field (the radiation left over from the Big Bang that is spread throughout all creation), which contains a huge quantity of energy (but at extremely low potential so it is not easily accessible) but does not consider it to be God as some other writers in this field have. Haisch ends up by scolding both science and religion; science for ignoring everything other than the material world that can be tested in the laboratories, and religion for perverting its own beliefs and causing untold damage to the people of this world. This last chapter can be considered to be inspirational. The book is extremely readable (with the possible exception of the chapter dealing with Einstein's theories and the Kabbalah, w

A voice of reason, meaning and purpose

In this book Haisch shows that it is not just possible, but also rational to view the universe as a purposfull and wonderfull place. He is not afraid to point to mysticism as a genuine source of wisdom, something that makes him stand out from the crowd of mainstream scientists. This is a courageous move, one that I feel is desperately needed. Having just finished a master in physics, I know well that the message in "The God Theory" doesn't go well with the common held view of the physics community (there are those who share it, they just remain silent because of the taboo). This has nothing to do with science, but everything to do with dogma. During my years of study I have come to the same conclusion as Haisch has, and it seems to me that more scientists are starting to share this view. The world is indeed a much greater place than we are led to believe, and "The God Theory" can help you see this.

A Major Contribution

THE GOD THEORY is a delightful romp through the labyrinths of philosophy, theology, and science by one of the outstanding astrophysicists of our day. Author Bernard Haisch throws a gauntlet at the feet of physicalistic science, which views consciousness as an evolutionary accident or as an epiphenomenon of the brain. For Haisch, consciousness is a fundamental, not derivative, aspect of the world. The philosophical and theological implications that flow from this approach, which is anchored in solid scientific reasoning, are majestic. This book is very smart, very literary, very thrilling--a fine read. -- Larry Dossey, MD Author: THE EXTRAORDINARY HEALING POWER OF ORDINARY THINGS