New Atheism: Blind faith and a shadow universe

Sabahat Ali Rajput, Missionary, Mexico

“Faith, unsupported by evidence, is a lethal weapon.” (Richard Dawkins)

“The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” (Helen Keller)

Sweeping allegations have been levelled against Islam that it commands its followers to adopt such beliefs as have no empirical, rational or otherwise reasonable bases. Prof Dawkins, in his best-selling book, The God Delusion, writes:

“An atheist … is somebody who believes there is nothing beyond the natural, physical world.” (Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, p. 15, Bantam Press [2006])

Amazingly, New Atheists have become so engrossed in their opposition to “blind faith” that they fail to see that science is one of the greatest proponents of believing in the unseen, i.e. things beyond the physical and the tangible. In fact, scientific enquiry demands it at nearly every level of investigation. So, what does Islam mean when it invites us to believe in the unseen?

The fact is that Islam categorically rejects blind faith without supporting arguments or empirical proofs.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra explains:

“The word [ghaa‘ib] used in the Quran does not mean, as assumed by some hostile critics, imaginary and unreal things, but real and verified things, though unseen (see Ch.49: V.19; Ch.32: V.7). It is, therefore, wrong to suppose … that Islam forces upon its followers some mysteries of faith and invites them to believe in them blindly.”

He goes on to expound the actual word used in the Holy Quran:

“The word ghaa‘ib, as stated above, means things which, though beyond the comprehension of human senses, can nevertheless be proven by reason or experience. The super-sensible need not necessarily be irrational. Nothing of ‘the unseen’, which a Muslim is called upon to believe, is outside the scope of reason.” (The English 5-Volume Commentary, Vol. 1, pp. 32-33)

Elaborating the nature of the unseen in relation to different points in time, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh explains:

“All hidden knowledge of perceivable things, whether it pertains to the past, the present or the future, lies within the scope of this category. In other words, we are required to believe in the existence of things which are not known at a given point in time but do exist and may become known at another point in time. This belief cannot be dubbed as blind faith. The Quran does not require the believers to have faith in anything which is not supported by irrefutable arguments.

“Hence, the unseen covers only such things as may become accessible through the instruments of reason, rationality and deductive logic. The point to be noted here is that the unseen as defined, though not directly perceivable by the senses, is yet verifiable. The rationale of this Quranic injunction is fully supported by human experience. (Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, pp. 272-273)

Science is sightless without blind faith

Brian Greene, a well-known physicist and author of both The Elegant Universe and Fabric of the Cosmos, observes that “exploring the unknown requires tolerating uncertainty.”

Just because a realm of knowledge cannot be directly observed does not nullify grounds for belief in it. The intellect of man is but finite; it was never meant to grasp and comprehend infinities in their entirety. The physical, intellectual and indeed neurological faculties of man are so restricted, that, for instance, even micro-organisms are invisible to him without the aid of technology.

As Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra observes:

“There are many things in the world which, though unseen, are yet proven to exist by invincible arguments and nobody can deny their existence. God cannot be perceived by the physical senses.” (The English 5-Volume Commentary, Vol. 1, p. 33)

The mystery of dark matter lights up the way

Despite the stunning scientific advancements of the 21^st century, even the most decorated scientists at NASA know that there is quite possibly – what they refer to – as a “shadow universe”, which they are seeking earnestly. (“The First Glimpse of the Shadow Universe Around Us”, National Geographic, January 2015)

It is established that everything that has been directly observed using the most highly developed space-exploration technology comprises only 5% of the observable universe. Yet, not one scientist in this field can deny the existence of what remains to be directly observed. Otherwise, there would be no motivation to investigate something that one knows is not there. Still, it is central to the scientific method that reasonable evidence by way of deduction also warrants an unbiased investigation.

According to the leading experts at the CERN in Switzerland paired with the University of Stanford:

“The invisible majority [of the universe] consists of 27 percent dark matter and 68 percent dark energy. Both of them are mysteries. Dark matter is thought to be responsible for sculpting the glowing sheets and tendrils of galaxies that make up the large-scale structure of the universe – yet nobody knows what it is. Dark energy is even more mysterious; the term, coined to denote whatever is accelerating the rate at which the cosmos expands, has been called a ‘general label for what we do not know about the large-scale properties of our universe.’

“…Theorists working in what is called super-symmetric quantum physics have conjured up lots of unobserved varieties of matter, one or more of which might turn out to be dark matter.

“Dark matter’s aloofness makes it challenging for experimenters to catch – even if, as some scientists estimate, dark matter particles are so commonplace that billions of them pass through every human being every second.” (Ibid)

Since the 1930s, colossal efforts and resources have been consumed in trying to understand the phenomenon of dark matter, a particularly subtle and elusive energy source, which scientists know is there, but cannot produce tangible or empirical evidence for it. Yet, scientists are ecstatic to discover more about it, always hoping that fine-tuning their machinery, investing more time, capital and greater brainpower in thought and reflection will reap promising results.

Professor Risa Wechsler of Stanford University is an astronomically seasoned scientist and exorbitantly accomplished astrophysicist. She is Director at the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology and an Elected Fellow to the American Physical Society.

Just two months ago, during her TED Talk, she began her explanation of dark matter in the following words:

“One of the strangest things we have learned is that most of the material in the universe is made of something entirely different than you and me. But without it, the universe as we know it wouldn’t exist. Everything we can see with telescopes makes up just about 15% of the total mass in the universe. Everything else – 85% of it – doesn’t emit or absorb light. We can’t see it with our eyes. We can’t detect it with radio waves or microwaves or any other kind of light. But we know it is there because of its influence on what we can see.” (The search for dark matter and what we’ve found so far, Ted via YouTube, retrieved 21 April 2020)

Dark matter, as defined by NASA, is so shrouded in mystery, that astronomers know little to nothing about it. More is unknown than is known. We know how much dark energy there is because we know how it affects the universe’s expansion. Other than that, it is a complete mystery. But it is an important mystery. It turns out that roughly 68% of the universe is dark energy. Dark matter makes up about 27%. The rest – everything on Earth, everything ever observed with all of our instruments, all normal matter – adds up to less than 5% of the universe. Come to think of it, maybe it shouldn’t be called “normal” matter at all, since it is such a small fraction of the universe. (“Dark Energy, Dark matter.” NASA. Accessed December 2018)

Evidently, dark matter is something that, despite the best efforts of the world’s greatest scientific minds and the most advanced technologies, is far from directly observable, and its investigation requires us to invest multitudes of resources, combined with decades of patience, hope, and hard work. It needs to be observed indirectly, through its interaction with what is known: gravity. And even gravity – the basis from which the existence of dark matter is recognised – is not directly observable but is known by its effect and influence on mass and vice-versa.

This furnishes compelling evidence that the greater and more powerful a force, the more evasive it is. The more profound its effect is on the universe, the more subtle it is – hence, why something as substantial as dark matter and as ambiguous as Dark Energy must be observed by their respective effects on other things. Entire chains of non-physical, intangible forces exist and no one so much as fl inches at the fact that they are not directly observable.

Imagine – gravity is not directly observable but is known by its complex and subtle effect on things, yet dark matter is known by its even more elusive and undetectable interaction with the ghost of gravity – and this is perfectly scientific. One is astonished at the criticisms levelled against Islam’s invitation to believe in all those things which are not directly observable by the naked eye.

Even today, every single fair-minded atheist believes in the unseen with a conviction and certainty that he does not even realise he has. The mystery of dark matter has forced scientists to elasticise the extremities of their belief in the unseen to unprecedented levels. In doing so, they have reached unequalled frontiers of discovery and insight, proving the genius behind the Holy Quran’s invitation to always believe in the unseen.

The unknown always is gleaned by what is known

The University of Harvard’s Chandra Observatory describes dark matter as the following:

“Although it cannot be observed directly, dark matter does interact via gravity … Capitalising on this interaction, astronomers have studied the effects of dark matter using a variety of techniques …”

When something cannot be observed directly by the human faculties, it is observed through its interaction with what is known and perceivable. This is the only logical and practical way to understand the unknown. Even still, the New Atheists are not willing to study God by way of His interaction with what is known. And yet, when gravity, which itself is a scarcely understood concept, is seen reacting to a totally invisible force (dark matter), no one hesitates to acknowledge the existence of this invisible force. In fact, scientists immediately prepare to (quite literally) study it to the ends of the cosmos, calling it “the force behind the expansion of the universe”, and this is considered science at its best.

Yet, according to New Atheists, when a “force” literally articulates countless verities and sublime realities of astrophysics, geology, biology, evolution, psychology, law, totally unforeseeable future events and so much more, to an unlettered man 1400 years ago in a desert, this “interaction” between man and this invisible force does not warrant an investigation. At what point does it remain scientific to have such vacuum blind faith?

The knowledge vouchsafed to Muhammad^sa warrants investigation

Scientists know that the universe is expanding and they have named the “energy” that goes on expanding it, “Dark Energy,” despite not being able to see it. All they see is that the universe is progressing outward. The discovery of the expansion of the universe is among the single most significant scientific milestones of our time. According to A History of Science:

“The recognition that the universe is expanding is one of the greatest ever discoveries in Cosmology. It is generally acknowledged that modern Cosmology is crucially founded on this discovery, which … served as cosmologies main observational basis.” (“Who Discovered the Expanding Universe?” History of Science [Journal]. Accessed 22 April 2020)

If a man who lived in 7^th century Arabia, a thousand years before the first recorded patent of any telescope, who could not read or write, pronouncedly declared before the world that the universe is expanding and that there is an extremely subtle and physically imperceptible force going on expanding it, it would take entire galaxies of bias to ignore such an earth-shattering revelation.

Amazingly, this concept of the expansion of the universe has already been laid out in the Holy Quran 1400 years ago and God Himself states that He is the force behind both the creation of the universe and its expansion. Thus, the Holy Quran declares,

وَ السَّمَآءَ بَنَیۡنٰہَا بِاَیۡٮدٍ وَّ اِنَّا لَمُوۡسِعُوۡنَ

“And We have built the heaven with Our own hands, and verily We go on expanding them.” (Surah al-Dhariyat, Ch.51: V.48)

For any fair-minded person, the mere fact that an “unknown” force, whatever it is, informed a desert-Arab of the seventh century that the universe is expanding at all, at a time when no living person possessed the faintest notion of it (not to mention the fact that no one had any concept of this for over 1200 years that followed as well), is sufficient evidence to warrant a very serious investigation into Who exactly gave the Prophet Muhammad^sa this information.

Another point that must be acknowledged is that when it comes to the actual beginning of the universe, i.e., what preceded the Big Bang; what force caused the Big Bang to happen at all; what preceded the known Universe; scientists are at a complete loss, as has been established in part one of this series entitled “An introduction to New Atheism.”

The Promised Messiah^as writes:

“Consider, for instance, the case of a person who has never seen a magnet and is unaware of a magnet’s power of attraction. If he were to claim that a magnet is only a piece of stone; that he has never witnessed any such power of attraction in any stone and therefore, in his opinion, it is wrong to assert that a magnet has such a power – for it is contrary to the law of nature – then would his vain assertions cast any doubt on the well-established quality of a magnet?

“Certainly not. All that his assertion would prove is that he is absolutely stupid and ignorant and considers his own lack of knowledge to be a proof of the nonexistence of a reality and does not accept the testimony of thousands of people who have experienced it. How can we possibly lay down as a general condition for the laws of nature that they must be personally tested by every individual?

“God has created the human species with great diversity in their external and internal faculties. For instance, some people possess very good eyesight, while others have weak eyesight, and some are altogether blind. When those who are weak-sighted find that those with good sight have perceived a thing from afar – for instance, they have sighted the crescent – they do not deny it; rather, they think that their denial would only humiliate them and expose their weakness. (Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad^as, Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, Part III, (English) pp. 141-43)

Similarly, today, if the experts at CERN and NASA convey findings about the inner-most workings of the universe, the rest of mankind will trust them because they are the professionals who have delved far into the subtle-most matters of everything from super-symmetry to quantum mechanics. We will believe them – truthfully speaking – blindly. What a deplorable state of affairs, then, that despite their loud claims to curiosity and fair investigation, New Atheists are blinded by bias and prejudice.

Here is a force practically banging at the door of mankind, itself elucidating 1400 years ago the most significant scientific realities known to man. Surely, if this force is literally expressing such complex secrets as the expanding universe, then the other claims which it makes, if not immediately taken at face value, at the very least warrant a very serious investigation – but our Atheist friends will not even do that much. What’s more is that this “force” unravels such secrets of the universe in numerous fields of study, for which even now, despite the best efforts of science, man has no answer.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh writes:

“It should be remembered that the concept of the continuous expansion of the universe is exclusive to the Quran. No other Divine scriptures even remotely hint at it. The discovery that the universe is constantly expanding is of prime significance to scientists, because it helps create a better understanding of how the universe was initially created. It clearly explains the stage by stage process of creation, in a manner which perfectly falls into step with the theory of the Big Bang.” (Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, p. 303)

A final dilemma – the telescopes within us

How unfortunate that our New Atheist friends totally fail to factor in the final dilemma. If discovering God Almighty were confined to the electron microscopes of today and NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, or if mankind needed to wait for the completion of the much-anticipated James Webb telescope to find God, then what of the rest of mankind for thousands of years before us?

Logic demands that if God Almighty exists, then He should have planted the instruments for investigating, discovering and experiencing Him within the biology of man thousands of years ago. Therefore, the telescope of prayer, which was sown into the nature of man millennia ago, has always been an incontrovertible sign against those who seek to deny and oppose the faithful.

Hence, it is a point to ponder – what if looking inside is even more important than looking outside? Surely, the invisible force which has always backed the true prophets of God warrants an investigation? After all, what is this undeniable force which has always granted unthinkable victories to seemingly helpless Prophets throughout mankind’s history?

The Big Bang – A point to ponder

As has been described in part one of this paper with detail and the testimonies of numerous scientists, even the most advanced scientific knowledge falls short where the origin of the universe is concerned – no one seems to have much idea what gave the initial push that caused the big bang.

One might assume that whatever astronomical phenomena are pushing the universe outward must be a part of the same system which exploded the original singularity of the big bang. Initially, it was thought that the expansion of the universe was only a natural consequence of the actual explosion. When a bomb detonates, for example, one does not attribute the outward scattering (diffusion) of the explosion to an independent force from the actual explosion itself.

Amazingly though, scientists have begun to unravel some mysteries of the force(s) behind the expansion of the universe which have compelled them to re-think many aspects of their previous understanding. An explosion occurs when a large amount of energy is released into a small volume of area in a noticeably short period of time. Burning very rapidly, explosive material releases concentrated gas that expands quickly to fill the surrounding air space and apply pressure to everything in it. (Can you really outrun an explosion? HowStuffWorks, retrieved 5 May 2020)

But the Big Bang, scientists say, was very different. Contrary to what many might think, the Big Bang was not an explosion per se, but an extremely dense “ball” (for lack of a better word) of astronomically seething heat paired with hyper-dense energy, and this came to be around 14 billions years ago. Even more bamboozling is the fact that this tiny spec was no more than an atom to begin with, but about 14 billion years ago, it instantaneously swelled up into a golf-ball sized mass and thus began an outward stretch of this breath-taking anomaly at speeds, which perplex the mind when written and compel scientists to admit that the very fundamentals of matter, and perhaps even the laws of physics, must have been quite different than they are today. At any rate, as Sean Carroll, a theoretical physicist at the California Institute of Technology, put it, “This is a moment in time, not a moment in space.” (From Big Bang to Present: Snapshots of Our Universe Through Time, LiveScience, retrieved 5 May 2020)

A not-so-economic inflation of the universe

The farthest-flung pieces of our observable universe are also curiously similar to one another, not just in how they formed over time as the universe expanded at nearly untellable speeds and subsequently cooled down, but in their original composition moments after the big bang as well. This is supported by the theory of cosmic inflation, which basically states that the universe expanded outward with an almost anti-gravitational behavior, instead of everything clumping together, the initial incident of the big bang caused everything to move apart.

Astrophysicist Alan Guth in the 80s pioneered this theory and astrophysicists overall like it. It fits well with other facets of the equation, including super-symmetry and Cosmic Microwave Background radiation. Having said this, the outward expansion obviously did not continue at the colossal pace with which it began. Just as the universe in its infantile stages began to stretch its infinite arms outward at light-speed (or more), it took but another fraction of a second for it to suddenly come to a silent halt. It began to slow down as the tendrils of the galaxies formed and stars were given the opportunity to start decorating the vast ceiling of time and space.

This far-more leisurely expansion, however, was found in the 1990s to be quickening its pace. The universe, scientists realised, was not only expanding, but was doing so at an ever-accelerated pace. Normally, even with a massive blast of say, two neutron stars, which are restlessly dense mini-monsters, usually no more than about 10 kilometres in radius (scoop out a teaspoon of these evasively unassuming mini-giants and you’ll be holding about 1 billion tons of mass), the explosion goes outward at break-neck and eventually slows down. This is the norm for nearly any explosive phenomenon.

The other alternative, as we know, are black holes, which can form (amongst other ways) by an implosion more powerful than the explosion, causing everything to retract into a super-dense mass. When two of these neutron stars begin to circumambulate one another, caught not-so-romantically in each other’s deathly gravitational grip, they dance their last dance together, and what a dance it is!

Eventually, they spin around one another at nearly 500,000 rotations per second. The resulting neutron double-Pirouette ends in a collision for the ages – literally sending a ripple through space time. This is known as a kilonova. These are among the most powerful collisions recorded by science to date.

Quranic language revealed these mysteries long ago

But even an explosion of such chaotic magnitude eventually slows down. So why is it that the universe, after slowing down, is now accelerating in its expansion? It really is mind-numbing to think about. This is also why the statement of the Holy Quran 1400 years ago is as stellar as it is interstellar. The Holy Quran also claims that the force which is causing the universe to expand is the same force, which pushed it into existence in the first place.

Hence, the words of the Holy Quran, that

وَ السَّمَآءَ بَنَیۡنٰہَا بِاَیۡٮدٍ وَّ اِنَّا لَمُوۡسِعُوۡنَ

“… We have constructed the heaven with Might, and verily, We are the Ones Who go on expanding it,” (Surah al-Dhariyat, Ch.51: V.48)

refer precisely to this phenomenon. It must be borne in mind that this same conclusion took the bleeding edge of science until about 100 years ago to come to. What’s more, the word musi‘oon is the plural for a person who increases the sa‘ah of something (Lane). The word, according to leading Arabic lexicons, refers to the “width, breath, extent and space” of a thing, as well as its “ampleness, plentifulness, richness, competence, capacity and power.” (Ibid)

At another place in the Holy Quran, God Almighty explains that when He created the heavens, He also ascertained the particulars of all the values required to maintain equilibrium and balance in the universe. Scientists argue that the four fundamental forces may very well have been determined within a millionth of second aft er the big bang – values that, if they were off by even a hundredth of a decimal point would have forced the universe into an immediate regress or totally halted the formation of hydrogen and subsequently, the galaxies, stars, Earth, and life itself. Thus God Almighty states:

وَ السَّمَآءَ رَفَعَہَا وَ وَضَعَ الۡمِیۡزَانَ

“And the heaven He has raised high and set up a measure.” (Surah al-Rahman, Ch.55: V.8)

Even more fascinating is that the ancient interactions between these fundamental forces are so peculiar and well organised that many leading cosmologists and astrophysicists have opined for decades that they are actually just four varied manifestations or expressions of one fundamental force. The most successful attempt at such a unification is the electroweak theory, proposed during the late 1960s by Steven Weinberg, Abdus Salam and Sheldon Lee Glashow. This theory, which incorporates quantum electrodynamics (the quantum field theory of electromagnetism), treats the electromagnetic and weak forces as two aspects of a more-basic electroweak force that is transmitted by four carrier particles, the so-called gauge bosons. (Encyclopedia Britannica, under Fundamental Interaction).

Either way, God Almighty acknowledges that there is a system in place of various forces which contribute to the expanding universe. As has been explained, the Holy Quran uses the word musi‘oon (the ones who go on expanding) in the plural. It is a linguistic excellence of the Holy Quran that where it seeks to point out a multitude of constituents involved in any action, it uses the plural when talking about God Almighty.

Hence, whether the fundamental forces or interactions between these forces are expressed by physicists as one or four, the Holy Quran invites the attention of its readers toward an All-Powerful cause of all causes and Originator of the universe. But that’s not all. The same force Who informed the Holy Prophet^sa of Islam 1,400 years ago of the expansion of the universe, also brilliantly described the phenomenon of the Big Bang, specifically addressing those who refuse to believe in God. Regarding the Big Bang, the Holy Quran clearly illustrates:

اَوَ لَمۡ یَرَ الَّذِیۡنَ کَفَرُوۡۤا اَنَّ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَ الۡاَرۡضَ کَانَتَا رَتۡقًا فَفَتَقۡنٰہُمَا ؕ وَ جَعَلۡنَا مِنَ الۡمَآءِ کُلَّ شَیۡءٍ حَیٍّ ؕ اَفَلَا یُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ

“Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were a closed-up mass [ratqan], then We clove them asunder [fataqna] And We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe? (Surah al-Anbiya, Ch.21: V.31)

Commenting on this verse, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh writes:

“It is significant that this verse is specifically addressed to non-believers, implying perhaps, that the unveiling of the secret mentioned in this verse would be made by the non-believers, a sign for them of the truth of the Quran.

“In this verse the words ratqan (closed-up mass) and fataqna (We clove them asunder), carry the basic message of the whole verse. Authentic Arabic lexicons give two meanings of ratqan, that have great relevance to the topic under discussion. One meaning is ‘the coming together of something and the consequent infusion into a single entity’ and the second meaning is ‘total darkness’. Both these meanings are significantly applicable. Taken together, they offer an apt description of the singularity of a black hole.” (Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad^rh, Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, p. 304)

It only gets more interesting. As has been described above, the current understanding of the initial expansion of the universe is becoming more and more clear to scientists today. The light that our amazing scientific minds are shedding on the first few instances of the universe also illuminates the genius of the language used by the Holy Quran 1,400 years ago.

The word used by God Almighty to describe the outward expansion of the initial super-dense singularity 1,400 years ago comes from fa-ta-qa. According to the leading dictionaries, fataqa literally means “he rent [it] asunder, opened it up, disunited something – the disunion of a previously merged thing.”

To an unbiased reader, this striking language of the Holy Quran in its picturesque description of the first few breaths taken by the infantile cosmos is undeniably wondrous and thought-provoking.

Again, we must re-emphasise: here is an entity, force, or whatever name one gives it, which is not only expounding and unravelling interstellar mysteries of the universe with incredible precision and step-by-step detail to an unlettered man in 7^th century Arabia, but is Itself claiming that It is the same force which created the universe, and is its First Cause.

To draw a logical parallel, we must remind the reader that according to New Atheists, there is sufficient cause to believe in the existence of a force, if it even unconsciously interacts with what is known. Indeed, this is how Dark Energy and Dark Matter are known, as has been established using various academic sources in part one of this article. Yet, here is an obviously conscious force, articulating itself and claiming to be the Cause of all Causes, the force behind the Big Bang and even the force that shall bring an end to the known universe and New Atheists will not even give it a fair thought.

Beyond the physical senses

If the five basic senses were the only faculties given to man, then perhaps belief in things metaphysical or concepts, which transcend the tangible and empirical could be objectionable. Imagine, then, if the Holy Quran had not invited its readers to hold firmly onto believing in those things which are beyond the scope of the physical senses.

Hence, at a time when science was simply too young to understand the micro and macro universe, the Holy Quran made it intellectually, spiritually, and – indeed – scientifically incumbent upon Muslims to expend and exhaust their super sensory faculties for things that they could not, with their naked eye, observe. It is this bridge between science and faith to which Islam draws our attention by providing inexplicably profound insight into the truths of our universe.

Islam lauds and celebrates science but invites man toward factoring into it a cause of all causes as well. We close this short interlude about blind faith and the astonishing astrophysics pioneered by the Holy Quran 1,300 years before any science could, with the following quote of the fourth Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslims Community, Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad^rh. To this effect, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh, states:

“Of the material forms of existence, there are many categories which defy direct examination. The knowledge of their existence and that of their physical properties can only be gained through logical deduction, or with the help of sophisticated electronic devices, which make them accessible to the senses, indirectly. What are neutrinos and anti-neutrinos? What is matter and antimatter? What are bosons and anti-bosons? The answer to these questions cannot be obtained through any direct means of examination, yet their unseen world has become a universally accepted reality. It should be remembered here that the mind is the ultimate entity of life, which receives and computes all messages transmitted to it by the senses through the computer of the human brain. Mind is not just another name for the brain. It transcends the brain and manipulates its operation.

“The mind is the ultimate seat of consciousness. Deductive logic is the most amazing faculty of mind. Even when there are no facts fed to it, it may continue to operate with hypothetical data. It can also operate by ruminating over the previously stored data. All decision making is done at the level of the mind, while the brain is merely a material hardware, a storehouse of memory. Moreover, the mind has the power to contemplate upon metaphysical and conceptual issues like infinity and eternity. It endeavors to resolve the enigma of a seemingly endless chain of cause and effect. Where did a certain thing begin and what lies beyond every beginning? Was there a first cause preceding all other causes? If so, was that first cause living and conscious, or was it dead and mindless? The only rational conclusion the mind can draw is that the first cause could not be unconscious and dead.”

Huzoor^rh continues:

“Again, the question as to whether death can create life, and unconsciousness give birth to consciousness, is a subject fit only to be explored by the mind and not by the mere brain mass itself. Thus, sometimes the mind learns to believe in the unseen entirely through hypothetical exercises, while at other times it examines and sifts material data and draws logical conclusions from them. It can visualise all forms of radiation which coexist with us, but man can learn of their presence neither through sight, hearing, taste or smell nor through the sense of touch. They can be seen and heard of course by means of radio and television, but only when they are transformed into visible and audible pulses. Even then it is only the faculty of mind which is responsible in the final analysis for decoding these electrical vibrations into sounds and pictures and lifelike phenomena. The images which the mind creates are not merely those seen by the eye on the flat surface of television. There is more to them than meets the eye. Many an unseen meaning is added to the visible scene by the mind, before it is finally developed into a meaningful concept.” (Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad^rh, Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, pp. 273- 74)