Chapter 2 Evolution Follows A Cycle

Our universe is a universe of 'space-time'. Space and time are inseparably interrelated, such that it is meaningless to attempt to think of the existence of or of a change in one without thinking of it in relation to the existence of or to a change in the other.

All of the universe can be thought of as '1' universe. The universe can also be subdivided into galaxies, or rocks, or in an 'infinite' number of ways. Because all space-time in the universe constantly interacts with all other space-time in the universe, no matter how large or how small space-time is subdivided, that space-time interrelates among itself as a 'unit' of space-time.

All units of space-time are 'alive'. This is true because the universe is 'alive'. What is 'life'? 'Life' is evolution of a unit of space-time following the pattern for the 'cycle' of nature. Everything in the universe that follows a cycle is 'alive', and everything in the universe follows a cycle. Everything in nature follows a cycle, and all cycles follow the same pattern. The species Homo Sapiens is aware of five dimensions of space-time. This means that humans are aware of five stages (dimensions) in the pattern of all cycles in the universe.

The five stages in the pattern of all cycles in the universe can be symbolized by the words birth, growth, decline, death, and perpetuation, and every subdivision of the universe, each unit of space-time, follows the same pattern.

People tend to understand the word 'life' in a very limited sense, without realizing that the entire universe, and everything in it, follow this same pattern of life. One of the usually recognized requirements of 'life' is something that, among other things, can 'reproduce', or 'perpetuate'. This is a very necessary ingredient to life. However, mankind's understanding of the concept of 'perpetuate' must evolve. Organic life is only one example of the diversity of life in the universe and in the solar system. Nature is as diverse as it can be, and if nature can evolve to 'organic' life, it will do that as one of the 'infinite' forms of life in the universe. Life is 'infinite' because all interactions in space-time are life, and their cycles of interaction follow the same pattern. Not all units of space-time are aware of their life in the same way the unit of space-time known as 'mankind' is aware of his life. Yet, from the perspective of the interaction of space-time in the universe, there are more forms of 'perpetuation' than what mankind has come to recognize.

When people think of the 'cycle' of life, they tend to think of the cycle of the life of mankind. How did mankind first become aware of the pattern of the cycle that he recognizes to be 'life'? How did mankind discover this pattern that is the pattern of all cycles in the universe? In the fourth dimension of awareness, awareness of the four dimensional 'area' of awareness first enabled mankind, when oriented in his proper direction of orientation, to be aware of the sun and the moon as they cross the sky.

Mankind's progressive understanding of the cycles of the sun and the moon became his model for understanding each of the five dimensions in the pattern of the cycle of life in the universe. As the sun and the moon are mankind's most recognizable cycles to serve as models for the pattern for all cycles, let us examine the pattern of the cycles of the sun and the moon, in order to gain a basic understanding of this pattern.

It may take some effort for the reader to recognize that anything that follows a cycle is 'alive'. Do not attempt to think in terms of how these examples of the cycles of the sun and the moon can be thought of as 'life', but attempt to think instead in terms of how all that can be thought of as 'life' are further examples of this pattern.

2.1 Cycle Of The Month

It was in the fourth dimension of awareness that mankind first became aware of the cycle of the moon, the month. English now uses 'solar' months, which are tied to the cycle of the year, and are no longer based solely on the cycle of the moon. For a 'lunar' month, the life of the moon follows a cycle that begins just after a new moon and ends upon the next new moon.

Think of each cycle of the moon as equivalent to one generation in the life of the species Homo Sapiens. Each new cycle of the moon symbolizes a unique moon that is different from all previous moons. To the unknowing eye, the moon might appear to be the 'same' each month, but its relationship to the earth and to the solar system is evolving according to the same pattern as all other cycles in the universe.

What is evolution? Evolution is the cyclic motion of space through time. Just as the moon is evolving, just as the solar system and the universe are evolving, mankind as a species is evolving, and the life of each person is evolving. All cycles evolve, as the space in each unit of space-time evolves through its time.

Each 'distinct' cycle of the moon symbolizes the '4' stage cycle of life, which ends in death. The fifth dimension of awareness is awareness of perpetuation, wherein a new moon begins after the 'death' of the previous one.

A new moon, a new cycle in the existence of the moon, is 'born' when a new moon first appears in the sky. At this time, the moon is dark. Darkness is Yin, and the moon appears to be totally Yin just before it is born. The moon appears to have no light, and light is Yang.

Nowadays, the term 'new moon' refers to the point in time when the moon is darkest, or most Yin. Yin is at its maximum in relationship to Yang, and Yang is at its minimum in relationship to Yin. Actually, the new moon is not a point in time, it is a birth, and is not born until some light (Yang) appears in the darkness (Yin).

The first phase, the first dimension, in the cycle of the moon ends at what is called the 'first quarter', or the '1'st (Yang) 'half moon'. During this phase, Yang is steadily increasing, and more light appears in the moon. As light (Yang) is increasing during this phase of the moon, and as darkness (Yin) is decreasing, the first phase is a Yang phase of the moon. However, Yin is still greater than Yang, as until the end of this phase the moon is still more dark than light, more Yin than Yang. This phase of the moon is therefore called 'Yang within Yin'. There is growth in Yang, but there is still a greater amount of Yin. The '1'st phase in the cycle of the moon ends when light (Yang) is equal to darkness (Yin), at the point of 'equal Yang'.

In the second phase, in the second dimension, in the cycle of the moon, which ends with the 'full' moon, Yang is still on the increase. At the end of this phase, the moon is total light (Yang), with no darkness (Yin). This second phase is a Yang phase, as Yang is increasing during this phase. Because Yang is greater than Yin during this phase, because more than one half of the moon is light and less than one half is dark, this phase is called 'Yang within Yang'.

At the end of the second phase in the cycle of the moon, the moon appears totally Yang, and appears to have no Yin. There can never be Yang that is entirely without Yin or Yin that is entirely without Yang. However, it can appear to be that way. At this point, Yang can increase no more, as there is no 'more' for Yang in this cycle of the moon. As well, Yin can decrease no less, as there is no 'less' for Yin in this cycle of the moon. The '2'nd phase in the cycle of the moon ends when light (Yang) is at its maximum (Yang) and darkness (Yin) is at its minimum (Yin).

This demonstrates the pattern of nature that Yang always evolves into Yin, just as Yin always evolves into Yang. In the third phase, in the third dimension, in the cycle of the moon, light (Yang) cannot but begin to decrease (Yin). Darkness (Yin) begins to increase (Yang). The light (Yang) of the full moon begins to evolve into darkness (Yin). The third phase ends at what is called the 'third quarter', or the '2'nd (Yin) 'half moon'. During this phase, darkness (Yin) is on the increase (Yang). Therefore, this phase is a Yin phase. Because Yang is still greater than Yin, this phase is called 'Yin within Yang'. There is growth in Yin, but there is still a greater amount of Yang. The '3'rd phase in the cycle of the moon ends when darkness (Yin) is equal to light (Yang), at the point of 'equal Yin'.

In the fourth phase, in the fourth dimension, in the cycle of the moon, which ends with the 'new' moon, Yin continues to increase. At the end of this phase, the moon is total darkness (Yin), with no light (Yang). This fourth phase is a Yin phase, as Yin is increasing during this phase. Because Yin is now greater than Yang, more than one half of the moon is dark and less than one half is light, this phase is called 'Yin within Yin'. The '4'th phase in the cycle of the moon ends when darkness (Yin) is at its maximum (Yang) and light (Yang) is at its minimum (Yin).

At the end of the fourth dimension in the cycle of the moon, in the life of the moon, the moon has 'died'. All of the Yin of the previous moon has evolved into Yang, and all of the Yang which has evolved from all of this Yin has evolved again into Yin. All of the space of the moon has passed through all of its time, and the cycle has ended.

Next comes the fifth dimension of the cycle. When this life dies, when the cycle of the moon ends, what becomes of its existence? The cycle perpetuates. The Yin of this cycle of the moon that has died is the source of the Yang of the next generation in the cycle of the moon, as it is the Yin of the previous generation that will evolve into Yang in the next generation.

2.2 Cycle Of The Year

The cycle of the moon is the best model of the stages of each cycle of nature. In addition to the stages of each cycle, it is important to understand how the rate of motion through time and the rate of motion through space, the rate of change in time and space, evolves as the cycle evolves. The cycle of the year is the best model for this. Although the cycles of the month and the year are different, the pattern is the same for each.

The cycle of the year is born on the winter equinox. That is the time of year that Yin (night) is at its maximum and Yang (day) is at its minimum (nights are longest and days are shortest). The Romans, who created a calendar that is based on the yearly cycle of the sun, determined to start their year on the winter solstice, and they only miscalculated by a few days (January first is near the winter solstice). Three hundred fifty years later, when the Christian decided to equate the birth of the 'son' with the birth of the 'sun', Roman science was more advanced, and so they measured a whole week closer, December 25 instead of January 1, but they still miscalculated the winter solstice slightly.

As the entire earth is a balance of Yang and Yin, the experience of the year throughout the earth is different. Let us consider from the perspective of the North Pole, as this most closely resembles mankind's experience with the moon.

When the cycle of the year begins on the winter solstice, the day is completely dark at the North Pole. There is no Yang (light), but there is only Yin (darkness). Science teaches that the orbit of the earth about the sun is not a circle but an ellipse. The earth is farther from the sun at the winter solstice than at the summer solstice six months later. And yet, each 'season' (the distance from one solstice to the following equinox and vice versa) is approximately equal. Therefore, the earth travels farther through space when it is farther away than when it is closer to the sun. As the earth is at its maximum distance from the sun at the time of the winter solstice, it is traveling at its greatest rate of motion through space.

Because of the earth's high rate of motion through space, the people on earth notice that the change in their space is at its maximum. The increase in the amount of day (Yang) in relation to night (Yin) is at its maximum. The sun 'rises' earlier and 'sets' later at its greatest rate.

The length of the day increases during the 'first quarter', from the winter solstice until the spring equinox. Yang (light) increases at its greatest rate.

On the day of the spring equinox, day is equal to night, Yang is equal to Yin, just as at the 'first quarter' of the moon.

From the spring equinox until the summer solstice, the day continues to increase. Yang continues to increase. Because the earth is closer to the sun, however, the increase in Yang is slower than before, and the rate is decreasing steadily. The sun rises earlier and sets later each day, but the amount of 'earlier' and the amount of 'later' is decreasing each day.

On the day of the summer solstice at the North Pole, the day is completely Yang. The day is light (Yang) all day, and there is no darkness (Yin). Yang has reached its maximum. Mankind is now at his greatest awareness of space (he can see changes in space all day), as light (Yang) is total. However, the rate of increase in Yang has slowed to zero, and now can only evolve in the other direction, into Yin.

From the summer solstice until the fall equinox, the day (Yang) decreases. Darkness (Yin) increases. However, as the earth is at its nearest to the sun during this 'quarter', the increase in Yin is at its slowest.

From the fall equinox until the winter solstice, the rate of increase in darkness (Yin) increases. As the earth is farther from the sun, it must be in greater motion through space to move through one quarter of its yearly cycle through space in the same amount of time. However, this greater motion is not Yang. It does not increase the day (Yang), such that mankind increases his awareness of space. It increases the night (Yin), and is greater motion through time. At the end of the cycle of the year, when the earth is at its farthest from the sun, the earth is moving at its fastest rate into darkness, it is evolving at its greatest rate through time.

As an analogy to help understand the pattern of a cycle, consider firing a gun in a direction parallel with the earth. The bullet bursts out of the gun with the greatest rate of motion through space that it will have throughout its 'life'. Motion through space is Yang, as motion is energy, and energy is Yang. The Yang of motion through space is accompanied by a corresponding balance of Yin in motion through time, as lack of motion is stillness, and stillness is Yin. The initial motion of the bullet through space will be almost perfectly horizontal (horizontal = Yang). As the life of the bullet 'ages', more of the motion of the bullet will evolve from motion through space to motion through time, and the motion of the bullet will evolve from horizontal motion to vertical motion. By the time the bullet 'dies', when it ceases all motion because it hits the ground, its direction of motion will be almost perfectly vertical (vertical = Yin). The Yang with which the life began has completely evolved into Yin, and 'death'. If a bigger gun were fired, the bigger gun would impart more initial motion through space to the bullet. The larger bullet would have more initial Yang than the smaller bullet. It has a bigger 'orbit', or cycle, of 'life'. As the bullet has more initial motion through space, it will begin with less initial motion through time, and so will age more slowly. It will thus travel farther through space.

The stages in the cycle of the year demonstrate that each cycle begins with its maximum rate of change in space, and with its minimum rate of change in time. As another analogy, consider a ball that is thrown upwards into the air, which moves at its greatest rate of motion through space at the moment that it leaves the hand. It is moving at its least rate of motion through space (least Yang) when it stops rising upward, and at the moment that it falls back into the hand that threw it, it is moving at the same rate of motion as when it left. Just before the ball stops rising in the air, it is still rising, but at its lowest rate of rise, then it stops rising and slowly, at an increasing rate of motion, falls back. Think of the directions up (Yang) and down (Yin) as symbolizing motion through space (Yang) and motion through time (Yin). It begins and ends with greatest rates of motion. The motion upward (Yang) symbolizes motion through space (Yang) and the motion downward (Yin) symbolizes motion through time (Yin).

2.3 Yang Evolves Into Yin & Yin Evolves Into Yang

Another important concept that is important to understand is the relationship of time and space to the concepts 'Yang always evolves into Yin' and 'Yin always evolves into Yang'. The universe follows a cycle. In the first dimension of the universe, there is only time (Yang). In the second dimension of the cycle of the universe, time (Yang) gives rise to space (Yin). In the third dimension of the universe, space (Yin) expands. In the fourth dimension of the universe, space (Yin) contracts. In the fifth dimension, there is again only time (Yang), and time perpetuates the cycle of the universe.

This is the pattern of the cycle of the universe. When attempting to understand this cycle as it relates to other existence within the universe, the cycle must be understood somewhat differently. In other words, it is important that the universe is currently in the third dimension, and not in any other dimension.

In the first dimension of the universe, there is only time. Time (Yang) is in motion (Yang), and the universe evolves only through time. In the second dimension, time (Yang) gives rise to space (Yin). Time is Yang, and space is Yin. Time (Yang) is in motion (motion is Yang), and space (Yin) is still (stillness is Yin). In the third dimension, there occurs the Big Bang. In the third dimension, space (Yin) goes in motion (Yang). As space (Yin) increases in motion (Yang), time (Yang) increases in stillness (Yin). Therefore, in the third dimension of the cycle of the universe stillness (Yin) in space evolves into motion (Yang) in space, as motion (Yang) in time evolves into stillness (Yin) in time, and in the fourth dimension of the universe motion (Yang) in space evolves again into stillness (Yin) in space, as stillness (Yin) in time evolves into motion (Yang) in time.

The universe is currently in the third dimension. In this dimension, space is Yang, as space is increasing in motion, and Yang is increasing in the universe. Space is evolving into Yang. Space is increasing in its motion toward its maximum. In the third dimension of the universe, time is Yin, as time is increasing in stillness (Yin) toward its maximum.

Eventually, the universe will reach its 'full moon'. Motion (Yang) in space will be at its maximum (Yang), and then it will begin to evolve into stillness (Yin). Space will evolve into stillness (Yin) in the fourth dimension, just as the full moon evolves into the new moon. At this time, time will again evolve into motion (Yang). At the end of the fourth dimension of the universe, time will again be completely in motion (Yang), and space will again be completely still (Yin).

2.4 The Nature Of Infinity

The universe as '1' undivided existence is infinite. It exists forever in time, with no beginning or end. The existence of the universe is a cyclic existence. The universe subdivides, and each subdivision subdivides, and each subdivision of each subdivision follows the same cyclic pattern as is followed by the universe as a whole. However, the word 'infinity', which can be applied to the 'universe as a whole', cannot be applied to any subdivision of the whole. In other words, no subdivision of the infinite universe can itself be infinite. The reason is that if any subdivision of the universe were itself infinite, it would not end, and so would not evolve through the stages in the cycle that is the universe.