Reference: Scientology 8-8008
Reference: A Course on Hubbard’s Factors
The chapter SCN 8-8008: The Beingness of Man provides some very fundamental data on the subject of human beingness. Here are the definitions of some basic concepts in Scientology after subject clearing. They correct many misconceptions in Scientology.
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Definitions
UNKNOWABLE
What religions generally refer to as “God” is actually unknowable, because neither the cause nor the beginning of this universe is knowable. Religions only make postulates in an effort to know the Unknowable, but we end up knowing the postulates only. We find that no matter how much we know, there is always something more to know. There is an unbridgeable division between the Unknowable and the Knowable. See The KHTK Factors.
KNOWABLE
Postulates are manifested and, therefore, they are knowable. From postulates evolves the whole universe, which is knowable. Anything knowable must have substance. See POSTULATE, SUBSTANCE, UNIVERSE.
SELF
The SELF is the “ability to postulate and to become aware.” It pervades everything, and is considered to be infinite. It represents the ultimate beingness. It has no individuality.
STATIC
Scientology defines “Static” to be without mass, energy, space and time (making it Unknowable); but with the ability to postulate and become aware (this ability is knowable only when it is manifested). See UNKNOWABLE, SELF.
THETA
Theta is the mathematical symbol assigned to Static. See STATIC.
POSTULATE
A postulate is a self-created truth that gives form to the unknowable, and attempts to make it knowable. Based on postulates further reasoning is done. To be valid postulates and reasoning must adhere to the Principle of Oneness. See KNOWABLE.
SUBSTANCE
A substance is anything substantial enough to be known or sensed. We know matter to be substance. But we can sense light; therefore light also is substance. We can know thought, so thought too is substance. In general, all things knowable must have substance because they cannot be known otherwise. When a postulate is manifested we have substance. Origin: “That which stands under.”
PRINCIPLE OF ONENESS
Oneness does not imply sameness. Oneness means that all that is known is continuous, consistent and harmonious in its substance. In other words, everything knowable is inherently connected according to this principle. This Principle of Oneness underlies the very concept of the universe. It also underlies the Scientific method. This principle gives us the ideal scene for logic, because its violation gives us anomalies.
UNIVERSE
The universe is the outcome of postulates and the reasoning that follows from those postulates. The universe has substance. The universe consists of all that is knowable—physical, metaphysical, real, imaginary, postulated or speculated. The root meaning of the word UNIVERSE is “entire, all, literally, turned into one.” See SUBSTANCE, MEST.
SPIRIT
SPIRIT is a loose concept that includes SELF and the postulates that form the goals and basic characteristics of a person. Spirituality has to do with becoming aware of the situations in life and having the ability to resolve them. See SELF, POSTULATE.
THOUGHT
The substance of postulate is called thought. Thought then develops into considerations, concepts, etc. Pure thought has no resistance and its motion is infinite. It appears as space but as it condenses it takes on the characteristics of energy. The condensing thought has increasing resistance and a motion rapidly becoming finite. Condensing thought produces a spectrum. This spectrum is represented by a Tone Scale in Scientology on which 40.0 represents pure thought as “serenity of beingness”; and 0.0 represents a very condensed thought as “death of beingness.” Origin: “to know.”
SPACE
Space represents the dimensions of substance that we see as “extents.” Space of pure thought is infinite. Space condenses as thought condenses. Condensed space is seen as “energy space,” which represents the extents of the electromagnetic radiation. Extreme condensation of space appears as “material space,” which represents the extents of matter. Space to energy to matter we have increasing condensation of substance. Thus, the presence of space as “extents” implies the presence of substance. There is no empty space. Physics conceives of empty space as an abstraction of “material space” that we study in geometry. Einstein expanded the concept of space from rigid “material space” to increasingly malleable “energy space.”
ENERGY
Energy arises as thought condenses (see THOUGHT, and SPACE). Our experience does not differentiate “energy space” from “thought space” in terms of extents, or the electromagnetic radiation from thought in terms of substance. Therefore, much confusion exists regarding the concepts of ENERGY and SPACE. The electromagnetic radiation changes considerably as it condenses from radio waves to gamma rays. This is presented in detail as the electromagnetic spectrum of decreasing wavelengths and increasing frequency. When we talk about energy as activity, it is energy changing in its wavelength and frequency.
MATTER
Matter is condensed energy. This was the breakthrough discovery of Einstein which made atomic bombs and nuclear reactors possible. It explained how Sun produces its energy. Einstein also differentiated “material space” from “energy space.” These were the new scientific revolutions of the twentieth century. Matter is the most ubiquitous part of our experience as the solidity of substance, so much so that we have identified all substance as matter. Matter itself has a spectrum of density. The matter in collapsed stars and black holes have much higher density than what we normally experience.
TIME
Time is a measure of the condensation of substance as its “duration.” Thought has little duration; energy has greater duration; and matter has the most duration. We experience time, generally, as the changes occurring in our experience. We are generally conscious of the “material time” connected with the duration of matter. It is measured in terms of the passage of sun across the heavens due to earth’s rotation. This “material time,” however, is very different from the “thought time” connected with the duration of our thoughts. It is startling when we are confronted with both of them at once, such as, when waiting for something to happen in the “material universe” while thoughts are racing in our “thought universe.”
MEST
MEST is the mathematical symbol assigned to all substance that we are familiar with as space, energy and matter; along with time as the measure of condensation of substance. MEST refers not just to the material universe but also to the thought universe, because it is a designation for all that is knowable, as opposed to the Unknowable. MEST is an acronym formed from the initial letters matter, energy, space and time. Scientology makes the error of limiting the designation of “MEST” to the material universe only. See SUBSTANCE, SPACE, ENERGY, MATTER, and TIME.
THETA-MEST THEORY
The original idea of Hubbard was that life is a no-substance thing, up against a physical universe which is a substance thing. Here is nothingness up against a somethingness interacting where the nothingness or the no-substance thing is actually giving orders to and handling the all substance thing, the physical universe.
As the definition of “substance” is stated more accurately, the theory shifts toward becoming “Unknowable-Knowable theory.” There is the Unknowable, which is approximated and symbolized as Theta. There is knowable, which is approximated and symbolized as MEST. According to this theory, the MEST (knowable) is being postulated continually into existence by Theta (Unknowable).
BEING
The “being” is a package of postulates energized by Self. It consists of postulated goals and behavior characteristics. It carries the detailed blueprint for the body and the mind. The being, therefore, has an individuality, and it is finite with a beginning and an end.
BEINGNESS
Philosophically, the ancient Vedas divide the beingness of a person into Self and Being. The person is the BEING that is grounded in SELF. He is most happy and operates optimally when his postulates are not in violation of the principle of Oneness.
PERSON
When one addresses a person, a human being “in the flesh” one is not addressing a simple being. What you see as a human being, a person, is not a single unit being. A person can be himself or he can be under the belief that he is another person or thing entirely. Then there is the matter of being in a body. A body is a very complex contrivance, quite remarkable, quite complicated. And it is also quite subject to its own distortions. There are also the entities. These follow all the rules and laws and phenomena of single beings. And then there is the matter of influences of other people around this human being.
THETAN
Thetan is the mathematical symbol assigned to individuality of a person, which is energized by theta. Thetan as an individuality is a package of postulates specifying definite goals and behavior characteristics, similar to the idea of Being. But Thetan does not include the idea of Genetic Entity, which is included in the Being.
In Scientology, the thetan is thought to be detachable from the body in a literal sense. This is in error because Thetan is not a thing that can be separated from the body. Such a “detachment” is essentially the resolving of fixation on the body.
In Scientology, thetan is also thought to be immortal. This is in error because thetan is made up of postulates, and postulates are not permanent. Hubbard is conflating thetan (individuality) with theta (ability without individuality). See STATIC, THETA, SELF, BEING, GENETIC ENTITY.
GENETIC ENTITY (GE)
Genetic Entity is the basic programming of the being, which is carried through the genetic line by the DNA molecule. The core genetic programming develops the body and maintains all its functions. It operates on feedback and is very sophisticated, but it has limited capacity to update itself. The higher end programming that allows self-awareness, which can update itself, operates as the thetan. The Genetic Entity + Thetan, together represent the whole gradient of programming, which results in the Being.
MENTAL MATRIX
The programming of the being is organized as a matrix of perceptual elements. We call it mental matrix. It is based on postulates, and it develops continually as it assimilates experience. The experience is made up of input to the physical senses of touch, sight, hearing smell and taste. This input proceeds as sensations, which breaks down into perceptual elements. These perceptual elements when assimilated into the mental matrix, produce perception.
PERCEPTUAL ELEMENT
The incoming sensation breaks down into its elements. We call them perceptual elements because they generate perception upon assimilation into the mental matrix. Each perceptual element is like a “pixel”, which is identified by its characteristics and the time when it were received. This time stamp helps recreate the memory form these perceptual elements later. Origin of perception: “a taking in.”
ASSIMILATION
Assimilation of perceptual elements allows perception to occur. Assimilation merges all perceptual elements with the elements of the mental matrix. This establishes associations among the perceptual elements, such that the Principle of Oneness is maintained as closely as possible. Duplication of perceptual elements is eliminated for efficient storage. Origin: “made similar”.
MEMORY
A memory is a duplication of a perception once received. It is routinely reconstructed, when required, from the associations among the perceptual elements based on similar “time stamps.” Memories are harder to reconstruct, when perceptual elements get associated with unassimilated impressions. Memories are not stored as “recordings” as assumed in Scientology. Only unassimilated impressions appear as recordings at the moment of their assimilation.
IMAGINATION
Imagination, or visualization, is the result of creative associations among the perceptual elements according to some purpose. There may be gaps among the perceptual elements, but they are bridged over by rational projections. Over time, these rational projections may be replaced by actual experience.
CONSCIOUSNESS
Consciousness depends on the fineness of the perceptual elements. The finer are the perceptual elements the clearer is the perception and deeper is the understanding. These perceptual elements are much finer in humans compared to the animals. Origin: “to know together.”
UNASSIMILATED IMPRESSION
These impressions are made of compressed sensations, such as those from traumatic incidents. They do not breakdown into perceptual elements, and cannot be assimilated in the mental matrix. Therefore, they are sensed rather than perceived. They embed themselves in the mental matrix. When activated, these impressions play out like hidden recordings influencing the thinking and behavior of the person. They create irrational thinking and cause sickness in the body. The solution lies in discovering and assimilating such impressions.
FACSIMILES
The unassimilated impressions are called facsimiles because they are literal recordings of the experience. Facsimiles generate anomalies in the operation of the mind.
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REASONING
Reasoning is the process of associating postulates and other data to come up with further considerations in the attempt to know the unknowable. Reasoning is subject to the constraint of continuity, consistency and harmony of data according to the principle of oneness.
EXTERIORIZATION
The whole idea, in Scientology, that the person, as the thetan, is detachable from the body is misconceived. When a part of the body is detached from rest of the body, certain functionality is lost. When the whole body is detached, it can only mean the loss of all functionality, or death. In reality, the phenomenon of exteriorization simply means letting go of the fixation on the body, mind, and self.
OPERATING THETAN
An operating thetan is a thetan that has resolved all anomalies to do with beingness. In spite of its complexity it is operating completely smoothly without friction or fixation. In other words, it is has become one with the universe. See PRINCIPLE OF ONENESS.
ABSOLUTE
Absolute means free from imperfection, restriction or limitation. This universe is postulated, where the postulates are subject to the principle of oneness. Therefore, everything is relative, conditioned and impermanent. There is no unchanging, everlasting, absolute substance like Self, Soul, or Ātman within or without. Origin of ABSOLUTE: “free, unrestricted, unconditioned.”
LIFE
The postulates are manifested and become knowable; but the underlying potential to postulate and to become aware is hidden and unknowable. The knowable postulates (MEST) energized by unknowable potential (theta) results in all life and its activities.
REALITY
The reality of the universe comes from the principle of oneness. In other words, all that is real is continuous, consistent and harmonious. Conversely, all that is unreal has the element of discontinuity, inconsistency or disharmony in it.
BODY
The body is physical material arranged per the genetic blueprint. It operates per the electro-chemical-mechanical laws of substance.
VIEWPOINT
The postulates of beingness shape the view. This is the viewpoint of beingness. A thing to be “good” or “bad” would depend on the viewpoint of the observer. “Good” or “bad” do not exist as absolutes without a viewpoint.
ANOMALY
An anomaly is any violation of the principle of oneness, such as, discontinuity (missing data), inconsistency (contradictory data), or disharmony (arbitrary data).
ABERRATION
In Dianetics, aberration is used to refer to psychoses, neuroses, compulsions and repressions of all kinds and classifications. In Scientology, aberration is any deviation or departure from rationality. Origin of the word ABERRATION: “to wander, deviate.” All aberrations are anomalies.
HUMAN MIND
The task of the human mind is to keep the beingness and knowledge free of anomalies (See MENTAL MATRIX, ANOMALY). But Scientology conceives the human mind to be the recorder, computer and solver of problems relating to survival.
SURVIVAL
Mankind survives as well as it knows how to know, and has no illusions about its capabilities (See HUMAN MIND). But Scientology defines survival as an impulse to persist through time, in space, as matter and energy.
DYNAMICS
Scientology divides the impulse to survive into eight sub-impulses called dynamics. Subject Clearing finds these dynamics to be more useful as categories of beingness in the sequence that beingness evolves: (8) Unknowable, (7) Oneness of postulates, (6) Substance, (5) Life, (4) Mankind, (3) Group, (2) Family, (1) Self. All these categories of beingness are interdependent.
OPTIMUM SOLUTION
An optimum solution is one that is free of all anomalies. But Scientology defines an optimum solution to any problem as “that solution which brought the greatest benefits to the greatest number of dynamics.”
RIGHT ACTION
The right action would be spotting and resolving anomalies in the dynamics immediately concerned. But according to Scientology, right action would depend upon its assisting the survival of the dynamics immediately concerned.
ZERO AND INFINITY
Zero and infinity are best described relative to the scale of some value. Zero is the reference point on that scale that means “absence of that value.” Infinity is the undefined extreme of that scale in either direction. Zero and infinity exist only for the knowable. They do not exist for Unknowable.
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