dimensions
When you try to cognitively understand the idea of alchemy, the concept of dimensions might come in handy.
It helps understanding why you cannot understand alchemy.
The idea of alchemy is moving to the next dimension.
No dimension is only a dot. A dot can not understand what it is to be a line. Though it might have big questions, as it understands there are other dots and also realizes these other dots are not where the dot is itself. But to really grasp the idea of another place our dot should be one dimensional. Only al line can really understand what dots are
One dimension is only a line. A line cannot understand the concept of a plane. It can know that it itself has a direction. It might be aware of other lines and of the fact that that those lines have other directions. But to really understand the impact of this, it should be able to think in two dimensions.
Two dimensions is a plane. When a horizontally oriented plane meets a vertical plane, it cannot see or understand the upright postion. It wil look entirely horizontal towards the vertical plane and be convinced it's not a plane, but a line. Because a line is all you see when you look completely horizontal towards a vertical plane. A twodimensional entity will have difficulties in understanding what the meaning is of more planes. Jou Tsung Hwa uses the example of a cup. A two dimensional horizontal slice will be a circle. The fact that, when you horizontally slice through a cup, there are different circles possible, hints that there's more to space then two dimensions. But to really understand the meaning of all the possible slices that can be made intersecting the cup, you need to understand what height is. Without understanding height, you cannot understand the cup. Just the slices.
Three dimensions is space. In three dimensions there can only be one space, with room enough for everything as it is limitless in all directions. Though limitless, it is abolutely static. no room for change. To graps the concept of anything ever being different than what is known in threedimensional space, you need the concept of time. Whithout the concept of time, you can never go beyond this static state. We are as the slices through the cup. Every moment we experience our threedimensional slice of the fourdimensional cup. Animals do that to, but they do not wonder. We do. What is the meaning of all these time slices? We experience these slices as a continuum stretching out in opposite directions as past and future. We are aware that there must be someting as time. We are dots that know there are other dots and realize there must be someting called a line. We are lines that know of lines that have other positions, we are lines thinking about planes. We are planes theorizing about space. We are threedimensional creatures , aware of this fourth dimensional component we call time
Four dimensions is space time. Threedimensional space is clear, we know what it is. It's the time part we cannot really understand. What was there before the big bang?What will happen in a second? Why do we have to die? We are threedimensional creatures understanding that there is a fourth. Alchemy is about transforming from a dot, that's aware of other dots, into a line. Going from line to plane. A circle that transforms into a sphere. From a threedimensional entity that''s caught up in time, to a four dimensional being (caught up in a fifth dimension) that can look at time from al angles, with no more mind breaking question. For a sphere the concept of a circle holds no secrets. To understand all our four dimensions we have to move onward to the fifth. For a creature of the fifth dimension, time is no longer something it is caught up in. It will experience time as something that can be travelled as easily as the other 3 dimensions. Where traveling off course is a word that itself is still caught up in four dimensional space. To completely be free of the chains of time, the necessary condition is probably that all fourdimensional concepts as body, mind and self are put aside. A small price to pay, for an alchemist
Five dimensions is... . I 'll let you know when I have a clue.
It helps understanding why you cannot understand alchemy.
The idea of alchemy is moving to the next dimension.
No dimension is only a dot. A dot can not understand what it is to be a line. Though it might have big questions, as it understands there are other dots and also realizes these other dots are not where the dot is itself. But to really grasp the idea of another place our dot should be one dimensional. Only al line can really understand what dots are
One dimension is only a line. A line cannot understand the concept of a plane. It can know that it itself has a direction. It might be aware of other lines and of the fact that that those lines have other directions. But to really understand the impact of this, it should be able to think in two dimensions.
Two dimensions is a plane. When a horizontally oriented plane meets a vertical plane, it cannot see or understand the upright postion. It wil look entirely horizontal towards the vertical plane and be convinced it's not a plane, but a line. Because a line is all you see when you look completely horizontal towards a vertical plane. A twodimensional entity will have difficulties in understanding what the meaning is of more planes. Jou Tsung Hwa uses the example of a cup. A two dimensional horizontal slice will be a circle. The fact that, when you horizontally slice through a cup, there are different circles possible, hints that there's more to space then two dimensions. But to really understand the meaning of all the possible slices that can be made intersecting the cup, you need to understand what height is. Without understanding height, you cannot understand the cup. Just the slices.
Three dimensions is space. In three dimensions there can only be one space, with room enough for everything as it is limitless in all directions. Though limitless, it is abolutely static. no room for change. To graps the concept of anything ever being different than what is known in threedimensional space, you need the concept of time. Whithout the concept of time, you can never go beyond this static state. We are as the slices through the cup. Every moment we experience our threedimensional slice of the fourdimensional cup. Animals do that to, but they do not wonder. We do. What is the meaning of all these time slices? We experience these slices as a continuum stretching out in opposite directions as past and future. We are aware that there must be someting as time. We are dots that know there are other dots and realize there must be someting called a line. We are lines that know of lines that have other positions, we are lines thinking about planes. We are planes theorizing about space. We are threedimensional creatures , aware of this fourth dimensional component we call time
Four dimensions is space time. Threedimensional space is clear, we know what it is. It's the time part we cannot really understand. What was there before the big bang?What will happen in a second? Why do we have to die? We are threedimensional creatures understanding that there is a fourth. Alchemy is about transforming from a dot, that's aware of other dots, into a line. Going from line to plane. A circle that transforms into a sphere. From a threedimensional entity that''s caught up in time, to a four dimensional being (caught up in a fifth dimension) that can look at time from al angles, with no more mind breaking question. For a sphere the concept of a circle holds no secrets. To understand all our four dimensions we have to move onward to the fifth. For a creature of the fifth dimension, time is no longer something it is caught up in. It will experience time as something that can be travelled as easily as the other 3 dimensions. Where traveling off course is a word that itself is still caught up in four dimensional space. To completely be free of the chains of time, the necessary condition is probably that all fourdimensional concepts as body, mind and self are put aside. A small price to pay, for an alchemist
Five dimensions is... . I 'll let you know when I have a clue.