The Ultimate Complexity
The book has many great quotes and I might refer to it further in my posts.
For now, I want to share with you a part that I found really intriguing and that is a theory called the Ultimate Complexity. This theory explains what is good and what is evil, i.e. it tries to answer one of the ultimate questions: what's moral and what's not?
The theory goes as follows (paraphrased):
What is the Ultimate Complexity?
The universe came to its existence by a Big Bang when first tiny bits were created. With time, those tiny bits came together as particles. The particles came together in first atoms, the atoms came together to make molecules, the molecules came together to make the first stars, the first stars exploded in a shower of new atoms that in turn created new stars and planets.
This process was not random, but the universe has a nature, for and of itself, and its nature is to combine, to build, and to become more complex. It always does this. If the circumstances are right, bits of matter will always come together to make more complex arrangements. In western science it is called the tendency towards complexity. This tendency has carried the universe for fifteen billion years from almost perfect simplicity to the kind of complexity that we see around us. The final destination then is the Ultimate Complexity or as some call it God.
What do we as humans represent in this theory?
By the same token, humans are the most developed expression of the complexity in our bit of the universe.
So how does this relate to the definition of good and evil?
Anything that enhances, promotes, or accelerates this movement toward the Ultimate Complexity is good. Anything that inhibits, impedes, or prevents this movement is evil.
Why is this theory of morality more objective than any other theory (religious or secular)?
The definition of what is good and what is evil is in a way defining a unit of morality. Each secular or religious group defines morality in their own way.
The author argues that basing morality on the fact of the universe's tendency towards complexity is, at this point in time and with our best scientific knowledge, the closest to being objective in defining what's good and what's evil. It is based on facts and it encompasses the existence of the whole universe as we know it.
How do we then judge what's good and what's evil?
In order to judge whether an action is good or evil, we need to ask two questions:
1) What would happen if everyone did this thing?
2) Would this help or hinder the movement towards complexity?
What are some practical examples?
We all know that killing is wrong. Based on this theory, if everyone killed each other, the human race would be wiped out and we would cease to exist. If everyone stole, people would get paranoid and would spend so much money and time on their self-protection which would hinder the progress of the human race and moving towards complexity.
On the other hand, love, friendship, loyalty, freedom are good as that would help us on our way towards the ultimate complexity.
Maybe next time when you judge whether something is good or evil, you can think about those two questions and whether your action would lead to more or less complexity of the universe.
I would love to hear your experiences and thoughts on this one and whether it passes the test in practice.
About the Book
The book is a semi-autobiography and talks about a guy from Australia who was sentenced to nineteen years of prison for a series of armed robberies and escaped from prison to Bombay (which corresponds to author's life story). In Bombay he established a clinic for slum-dwellers and worked as a counterfeiter, smuggler and street soldier for mafia. The book is full of convincing descriptions, strong emotions, and unexpected twists and turns. It depicts the preciousness and fragility of life through his incredible stories. Highly recommended, but keep in mind that it has 1000 pages!
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