Infinity ... It is a challenging concept to understand even for mathematicians. We use models to help us. The simplest being the counting numbers. 1, 2, 3 and then just keep going. It never stops and that is the smallest example of infinite. Still it is not graspable since we think of things like the universe as big and yet the number of all the atoms and particles are estimated to be just a finite but large number like 10^86. Still a long way from infinite. The 19th century mathematician Georg Cantor explored the nature of infinity, showing that some infinities are larger than others. Again a boggling notion to most that struggle to conceive of even the smallest of them!
We are challenged with language that suggests that something can be infinite, and beyond the physical knowing of a finite (human) mind. Philosophers, spiritual mystics and mathematicians explore this realm with different degrees of success.
Today August 8, 2015 is considered auspicious as it numerologically is an 8 8 8 day. The 8th day of the 8th month and the digits of 2015 add to the number 8. Why 8? The symbol for infinity sometimes called the lemniscate looks like an 8 on its side. There is much to explore in this universe even with its puny finite set of particles, its dark matter and apparently growing dark energy. But all of this pales compared to even the smallest of infinities. And after all a googol is 10^100 a modest sized number with a name that exceeds the expected “size” of the universe, but it is truly small next to a googolplex defined to be the finite but quite a bit larger that is represented by 10^googol. That is a 1 followed by 10^100 zeroes.
This always helps me to realize that the set of all things we don’t know will always massively exceed all that is known by all of the peoples ever living on this planet. Small wonder that Spirit or God or any other mystical name for the unknowable is always beyond words, symbols, It is the More. Larger than all of the infinities!
We are challenged with language that suggests that something can be infinite, and beyond the physical knowing of a finite (human) mind. Philosophers, spiritual mystics and mathematicians explore this realm with different degrees of success.
Today August 8, 2015 is considered auspicious as it numerologically is an 8 8 8 day. The 8th day of the 8th month and the digits of 2015 add to the number 8. Why 8? The symbol for infinity sometimes called the lemniscate looks like an 8 on its side. There is much to explore in this universe even with its puny finite set of particles, its dark matter and apparently growing dark energy. But all of this pales compared to even the smallest of infinities. And after all a googol is 10^100 a modest sized number with a name that exceeds the expected “size” of the universe, but it is truly small next to a googolplex defined to be the finite but quite a bit larger that is represented by 10^googol. That is a 1 followed by 10^100 zeroes.
This always helps me to realize that the set of all things we don’t know will always massively exceed all that is known by all of the peoples ever living on this planet. Small wonder that Spirit or God or any other mystical name for the unknowable is always beyond words, symbols, It is the More. Larger than all of the infinities!
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