So far, we have encountered two transcendental realms, that of the cave allegory of Plato, and that of Goswami’s quantum theory within monistic idealism. A third such realm was proposed and described by David Bohm (see, e.g., David Bohm, Wholeness and the Implicate Order, 1980, and David Bohm and F. David Peat, Science, Order, and Creativity, 1987) as an extension of his formulation of quantum theory.

David Bohm was a theoretical physicist with wide ranging interests, and an unusually deep, intuitive understanding of physical concepts. He was never satisfied with the conventional interpretations of quantum theory, and strove to develop a theory which incorporated classical, rather than observer created, particles into it. This foray into unconventional physics led to his quantum theory of particles, or the hidden variables theory which we discussed in Chapter 6. In this effort, he met the approval of Einstein. However, his theory turned out to be extremely nonlocal, which Einstein could not accept. Later, Bohm generalized his quantum particle theory to a quantum theory of fields, and was led to an even more radical theory of the material world.

[Note for scientifically inclined readers: In classical physics, a field is a quantity, defined over all space, which is the source of a force. This force acts on classical particles. For example, the electromagnetic field is the source of the electromagnetic force which acts on electrically charged particles like the electron, Likewise the gravitational field is the source of the gravitational force which acts on all particles having mass. (In classical physics, this includes all particles.) On the other hand, in quantum field theory there is a quantum field that is the source of every particle. Some particles are the agents of forces; they are called field quanta. For example, the quantized electromagnetic field is the source of the photon which is the agent of the electromagnetic force. The gluon field is the source of the gluon which is the agent of the nuclear force, the force which holds the nucleus together. The quantized gravitational field (for which at the present time there is no established theory but for which there is little doubt about its existence) is the source of the graviton which is the agent of the gravitational force.

In Bohm’s quantum particle theory, his quantum potential and the quantum force derived from it are unobservable, but their function is to organize the motion of the particles so that this motion has a wavelike as well as a particlelike behavior. In his quantum field theory, the quantum fields are not the sources of particles as in conventional quantum field theory, but rather the movement of the fields produces both particlelike and the wavelike phenomena. To organize the movement of these fields, he proposed a potential analogous to his quantum potential, which he called the superquantum potential, and which like the quantum potential is also unobservable.]

Bohm described all phenomena in terms of order. A simple example of order is the description of a straight line as an ordered array of short line segments of equal length laid end to end, with all of the successive segments having the same difference in position. A square is an ordered array of four straight lines of equal length laid end to end, with each successive one oriented at 90 degrees with respect to the preceding one. A circle can be thought of as an ordered array of infinitesimal line segments laid end to end, with the same infinitesimal difference in angular orientation. More complicated lines and geometric figures can be described as ordered arrays with more complicated differences in position and orientation.

Order can be seen not only in geometric patterns, but also in all manifest phenomena. The kinds of order described in the previous paragraph are orders in space. There are also orders in time. The ticking of a clock, a single frequency tone, the rhythmic beating of a heart, or a periodically flashing strobe light are simple examples of orders in time. Examples of more complicated orders are sounds with changing frequencies and/or a mixture of frequencies such as any musical sound, the changing mixture of light frequencies in almost any visual object, or the rhythmic bodily sensations in walking, running, and dancing. Even more complicated examples are those in which rhythm and frequency are not so apparent, such as in thinking, eating, working, and playing. In short, all perceived phenomena are examples of some sort of order.

The above are all examples of what Bohm called the explicate order, i.e., the order that is explicit and exists in everything that is perceived. A much larger realm of order is what Bohm called the implicate order, i.e. a realm of order which is implicit and cannot be directly observed. Bohm was initially led to the concept of this realm from his hidden variables theory of particles. [Remember that his quantum potential and quantum force are always implicit in all observed phenomena, and can never be measured or observed. The explicit observables are the particle properties like position and velocity. In the extension of his theory to quantum field theory, the superquantum potential, which can never be observed, comprises the implicate order, whereas the particlelike and wavelike phenomena, which are the organized movements of the fields, are the explicate order.]

An explicate order is a projection into the manifest world of a corresponding implicate order. The implicate order is enfolded upon itself in such a way that any part of it contains elements of the whole, whereas the explicate order is unfolded from the implicate order and consists of separate, identifiable objects. Bohm used the analogy of the hologram in which a laser beam is split into two parts, the first part interfering with the second part after the latter has been reflected from an object. The result is an interference pattern such that any part of the pattern contains light reflected from the entire object. When a photographic image of the interference pattern (the hologram, which is the implicate order) is illuminated with a laser beam, a three-dimensional image of the original object (the explicate order) is unfolded and formed. Thus, the implicate order is a representation of the explicate order such that information about separation, distinction, and identity is retained but is enfolded. If only a part of the hologram is illuminated by a laser beam, the entire explicate order (the three-dimensional image) will be unfolded (formed in the laser beam), but some accuracy and detail are inevitably missing because information from the rest of the hologram is not being used.

From these considerations, Bohm was led to the idea of the holomovement, which carries the implicate order and which, because of enfoldment, is an unbroken and undivided totality. All possible different types of implicate order are enfolded within themselves and within each other, so that they are all intermingled and intermixed. Thus, any part of the holomovement contains all of the implicate orders and is representative of the entire holomovement. Bohm used the term holomovement rather than hologram to emphasize that it is constantly changing and in motion, and cannot be pictured as static in the way a hologram is. The holomovement is the source of the explicate order, which is projected out and made manifest. Consequently, Bohm considered the holomovement to be primary and fundamental, while the manifestation is secondary. The holomovement has no limits of any sort and is not required to conform to any particular order. Thus, it is undefinable and unlimited.

Bohm thought that all aspects of the manifestation are projections from the holomovement, including all physical, mental, emotional, and sensory manifestations. Thus, all objects of awareness arise from the holomovement, including the body-mind itself. He regarded the mental and the physical as being inextricably connected to each other, like the north and south pole of a magnet. Thus, every physical object has a mental aspect, and every mental object has a physical aspect. Consequently, the manifestation is dualistic. However, the holomovement from which mind and matter are projected, is characterized by wholeness, without any distinction between them. Thus, the holomovement is monistic.

The explicate order is the order that we directly perceive. Bohm thought there is an infinite hierarchy of implicate orders above the explicate order. Each implicate order can be considered to be the explicate order for the implicate order directly above it in the hierarchy. The implicate order directly above the explicate order of the observed universe contains the physical laws which govern the motion of the universe. They are implicit in the explicate order, i.e., they are not directly observed but must be inferred from measurement and observation. Physical law governs the space-time ordered sequence of events that are projected into the manifestation so that the present follows from the past.

The manifestation contains only the space-time events that are observed at this moment. However, since the holomovement is characterized by wholeness, it contains the events in all space-time in implicate form. i.e., it contains all events in all time as well as in all space. As the sage Ramesh Balsekar says, "It is all there!" This feature is a possible explanation for nonlocality of the mind. Nonlocality in time means that some nonlocal minds are sensitive to projections from the holomovement that include some aspects of past and/or future. This would explain those talented individuals that can read the "akashic records" and thus see past lives, or those that are precognitive and can see some aspects of the future. Nonlocality in space means that some nonlocal minds are sensitive to projections of images of locations far outside the direct perception of that individual. The inevitable inaccuracy and unreliability of such nonlocal projections can be explained by realizing that only part of the implicate order is projected. Thus, some information is missing, just as in the case when a laser beam illuminates only part of a hologram.

We can now see the similarities between the holomovement of Bohm and the transcendental realms of Plato and Goswami. All of them transcend space-time, but all are the source of space-time and of the entire manifestation. They are all characterized by wholeness because they cannot be divided or separated into parts. Because they are whole, all time and space events exist in them in implicit form. Each moment of the manifestation is formed and subsequently dissolves back. These processes of manifestation and dissolution go on continuously from moment to moment. In each moment the manifestation arises anew and falls, to be replaced by the next moment.

None of the transcendental realms can be described or defined using space-time concepts because they are all transcendental to space-time. All three transcendental realms are unperceivable to us, but all contain the blueprints for the perceived manifestation, e.g., the archetypes of Plato, the wavefunctions of Goswami, and the holomovement of Bohm. The material world is projected from the archetypal realm of Plato in our adaptation of the cave allegory. It is also projected from the holomovement of Bohm, and appears by wavefunction collapse from Goswami’s transcendental realm.

The sage, Ramesh Balsekar, whose teaching will receive much emphasis in this course, has a concept of the source and sink for the manifestation which is similar to the transcendental realms discussed above. He calls it the "pool of consciousness" and it implicitly contains all of the forms from which consciousness "selects" an object for manifestation, such as a body-mind organism. At the death of the organism, the mental conditioning that was present in the organism, such as thoughts, desires, aversions, and ambitions, return to the pool where they become ingredients to be used by consciousness in creating new forms.

As we stated above, because the basic feature of the transcendental realms is their wholeness and transcendence, the entire space-time realm must be represented in them. Ramesh frequently refers to the destiny of every individual and of the world as being completely determined (we shall say more about this later). This is consistent with the existence of an abstract form of the entire space-time realm existing in the pool of consciousness, just as it does in the other transcendental realms.

What meaning can be given to the transcendental realms?  One meaning is that the existence of destiny is implied, as mentioned above.  The existence of destiny means that the entire past and future of every individual exists in implicate form.  Distinction between past and future is purely conceptual because they are really parts of an inseparable whole.  Another meaning is that only an infinitesimal fraction of the total number of possibilities is ever projected into manifestation.  The transcendental realms are the realms of all possibilities.  This means that there is a total absence of any limitation on the types of forms that could actually appear in the manifestation.  What appears is what we perceive, and our perceptions are limited by our preconceptions and conditioning (Ramesh calls them our programming), which are also part of our destiny.  Nonlocal minds are less limited by conditioning than minds that are conditioned to be receptive only to the material and tangible.  Furthermore, the reality of the objects that we do perceive is much more abstract than we think.

The purpose in postulating a transcendental realm is to attempt to explain phenomena that have no other explanation.  There is no problem in doing this as long as the hypotheses are not self-contradictory and are useful.  The reason Goswami hypothesized a transcendental realm was to explain how wavefunction collapse could occur without violating Einstein locality.  Since time and space do not exist in the transcendental realms, such realms cannot be defined or described using space-time concepts.  The forms existing in them are much more abstract.  There is an analogy in today’s physics for this kind of abstraction.  We have already mentioned in Chapters 3 and 7 that the original formulation of quantum theory by Heisenberg was written in terms of matrices without reference to space-time.  In fact, theoretical particle physicists today often work with very abstract mathematical models which contain no reference to space-time notions.  For example, it is routine to consider rotations and other operations in abstract, mathematical spaces that are in no way related to space-time. 

The problem with Goswami’s use of a transcendental realm is that, rather than explaining wavefunction collapse, it transcends it!  With his approach, it is meaningless to talk about the Schrödinger equation, its wavefunctions, and wavefunction collapse, all of which normally are conceived to occur in space-time.  This is tantamount to sweeping the whole problem under the rug where no explanations are needed.