The Symphony of the Void: A Theory of Consciousness, Will, and Cosmos

Consciousness as Cosmic Substrate: Exploring the Primacy of Awareness in a Quantum Universe

In this post, we aim to explore a speculative framework that reexamines the fundamental nature of reality, positioning consciousness and free will as primordial forces rather than emergent phenomena. Drawing upon theoretical physics, Jungian psychology, and quantum information science, we propose a cosmology where consciousness operates as a field that precedes and generates physical reality, interacting with quantum foam to produce the ordered universe we inhabit.¹

This synthesis bridges diverse intellectual traditions, from Wheeler's "It from Bit" to Bohm's implicate order, László's Akashic Field, and Jung's collective unconscious archetypes, while introducing the concept of signal and noise as cosmic principles.

We examine how this framework offers novel interpretations of established phenomena such as cosmic background radiation and black holes, and suggests parallels between cosmic processes and human technological endeavors, particularly in quantum computing.

By challenging conventional materialist assumptions, we ask readers to consider how consciousness might function not as an epiphenomenon of matter but as a fundamental aspect of existence that actively shapes reality against entropic forces.

This perspective positions humanity not as passive observers but as participants in an evolving cosmos, where our theoretical investigations and technological innovations reflect and potentially influence deeper cosmic patterns.

What follows is not presented as established science but as a conceptual exploration — a thought experiment at the intersection of physics, philosophy, and consciousness studies that may offer new ways to approach persistent questions about the nature of existence, order, and meaning.

The piece is a standalone follow up to last week’s piece, “Our Novel Theory of Quantum Consciousness.”

Before the Beginning

At the root of existence lies a field — not of matter or energy, but of consciousness, a fundamental entity requiring no substrate — its structure is self-defined.

In the context of the quantum vacuum, electromagnetic fields (EM fields) are dynamic physical fields that permeate space, consisting of electric and magnetic components. They interact with charged particles and currents, influencing and being influenced by them.

In quantum mechanics, the electromagnetic quantum vacuum exhibits fluctuations of electromagnetic fields. These fluctuations arise from infinite modes of oscillation, creating a continuous background of energy. From this background, observable electromagnetic fields emerge.

Physicist Federico Faggin proposes a theory called Quantum Information Panpsychism (QIP) where consciousness and awareness precede physicality, suggesting that fields are fundamental and irreducible. This perspective aligns with the concept of quantum foam, which John Wheeler described as the turbulent fluctuations in spacetime at the Planck scale.

However, Faggin's theory does not directly link consciousness to the creation of quantum foam. Instead, quantum foam is a manifestation of the chaotic nature of spacetime at the quantum level.

Spacetime itself is integral to the existence of quantum foam. Extending John Wheeler's idea of "it from bit" to "it from qubit," we can consider how quantum information, represented by qubits, shapes reality. This perspective suggests that quantum processes, potentially influenced by consciousness in some theories, play a role in generating the structure of spacetime and the fluctuations within it.

However, this connection between consciousness and spacetime is speculative and part of ongoing theoretical discussions in physics and philosophy.

Co-equal with consciousness stands free will, a fundamental capacity to guide order, not merely randomness but an inherent tendency to shape. Together, they form the signal of existence — order, creation, and the evolution of awareness —rising from the foam’s tumult.

Yet within that same chaos lurk counterforces: negation, disorder, and existential evil — the noises that disrupt signal. These take form as Archons, not literal beings but mythological archetypes, derivative from human consciousness. As Carl Jung might frame them: patterns of unfreedom and entropy revealing the field's darker potential.

In our cosmology, the difference between a ‘constellated archetype’ and a ‘spiritual entity’ is negligible; both are manifestations of the conscious field, distinguished only by the lens through which we perceive them.

Conversely, the ordering principles of consciousness manifest as Angels — archetypes of coherence, harmony, and creative potential. Like Archons, Angels function not as supernatural entities but as symbolic representations of consciousness's constructive aspects. This symmetry in the field's expression creates a cosmic balance where:

• Angels — archetypes of order, coherence, and the constructive aspects of consciousness

• Archons — archetypes of disorder, entropy, and the destructive aspects of consciousness

Both sets of archetypes emerge from the same conscious field, representing its dual tendency toward both structure and dissolution, illuminating the fundamental dialectic that drives cosmic evolution.

The quantum foam churns with uncertainty — virtual particles, fleeting geometries — while the conscious field processes it, threading qubits into coherence. David Bohm’s “implicate order” suggests a hidden unity beneath such complexity.

Free will can be seen as amplifying the process of structure formation in the universe, guiding signals toward the emergence of particles, forces, and spacetime itself. As higher layers of complexity arise, concepts like the Akashic Field, proposed by Ervin László as a cosmic record of all events, and Jung's archetypes, which are motifs of human experience rooted in a deeper ordering principle, come into play.

These signals of order and coherence evolve over time, representing a progressive refinement of awareness and form. However, this evolution is sometimes contested or even thwarted by forces that could be metaphorically described as "noise" or "decoherence," akin to the Archons' influence in certain philosophical traditions, which pull toward dissolution and disorder.

Readers may find this piece by

Dr. Nicholas Corrin

a compelling complement. He explores Archons as ‘parasitical entities from the dark side’ [here].

Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation

This tension between signal and noise reverberates in the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the microwave hum Penzias and Wilson detected in the 1960s. More than a Big Bang relic, we regard the CMB as a lingering imprint of consciousness’s ancient ordering of chaos, still resonating at 2.7 Kelvin signal reflecting the ordering of chaos over time.

It’s not a live feed but a lingering trace, the foam’s apparent wild and chaotic nature tempered by consciousness and will, resisting the Archons’ static.

Black holes punctuate the framework of Wheeler’s singularities wherein spacetime collapses. They serve as refineries, not portals — regions where signal and noise clash most intensely. We regard black holes as recycling centers where information is transformed into the energy that sustains the field’s evolution.

Stephen Hawking’s radiation reveals this information recycling at the event horizon, suggesting the field reprocesses its own output, preserving order against negation. In this cosmology, black holes refine the signal, feeding it back into the field’s evolution, a mechanism of resilience rather than rebirth.

A recent parallel in human endeavor made a huge splash only a few days ago. Microsoft’s topological qubits, unveiled with the Majorana 1 chip, shield quantum information from decoherence’s noise. Using Majorana zero modes, they braid coherence across nanowires — a technological analogy to the field’s ordering of foam.

This technological innovation mirrors the cosmic process at a human scale, raising deeper questions about the nature of intentionality in both our engineered systems and the fundamental field of consciousness itself.

The intentionality of the field, potentially linked to free will, remains a subject of inquiry. It is unclear whether this intentionality is deliberate or instinctive. The concept of Archons, viewed as archetypes, suggests that negation may not be an external force but rather an internal aspect, reflecting human perceptions of disorder within the quantum foam.

The system lacks a fixed substrate, instead sustaining itself through a dynamic interplay between order and negation. John Wheeler's concept of a participatory universe suggests that human choices and theoretical frameworks play a role in shaping this system, influencing its evolution and our understanding of it.

In a similar vein, Immanuel Kant's notion of the "thing in itself" (Ding an sich) highlights the distinction between reality as it appears to us and reality as it might exist independently of our perception. While Kant's idea primarily concerns the limits of our knowledge rather than the ontological nature of reality itself, the analogy is apropos. It underscores the complex relationship between our understanding and the underlying reality, reflecting the interplay between order and negation in our system.

In our previous essay, we explored the practical implications of signal and noise on our reality, not just as perceived or manipulated, but as it exists ontologically. This synthesis posits that consciousness and will shape reality against chaos and its archetypes, with the quantum foam stirring, the field ordering, and the cosmos unfolding amidst an eternal conflict between signal and noise.

N.B. This is a speculative synthesis, not a settled truth — a mere framework where consciousness and will shape reality against chaos and its archetypes. It is a framework supported by a solid foundation in spiritual truths, which are settled.

These spiritual truths, rooted in timeless wisdom and introspective insights, provide an understanding of the human condition and our place within the cosmos. While the scientific and philosophical aspects of this synthesis remain conjectural, they are grounded in the long lasting principles of spirituality, which offer a deeper perspective on the nature of reality and our role within it.

Articulating this reality is Rational Spirituality’s raison d'être.

Concluding Thoughts: The Symphony of the Void

In this exploration of consciousness as a fundamental field, we have ventured beyond conventional materialist paradigms to propose a framework where awareness and will precede physical reality rather than emerge from it. This perspective encourages us to reconsider established phenomena — from quantum foam to cosmic microwave background radiation, from black holes to cutting-edge quantum computing — as expressions of an ongoing dialectic between order and chaos, signal and noise.

The framework we have outlined suggests that reality emerges from the reciprocity between consciousness as a primary ordering principle and the inherent tendency toward disorder represented by the Archons. This dynamic tension manifests across scales, from quantum fluctuations to cosmic structures, perhaps offering new ways to understand persistent mysteries in physics and cosmology.

By drawing connections between Wheeler's participatory universe, Bohm's implicate order, Jung's archetypes, and recent advances in quantum information science, we have attempted to sketch a coherent picture that bridges scientific inquiry and spiritual insight. The recent breakthrough in topological qubits serves as a technological parallel to the cosmic process of preserving order against entropy — humanity's resonance with a deeper cosmic pattern.

This synthesis suggests that our scientific and philosophical inquiries are not merely descriptive but participatory, influencing the very reality we seek to understand. In this light, ‘Rational Spirituality’ is seen not as an alternative to scientific investigation but as a complementary approach that acknowledges the role of consciousness in both perceiving and shaping our universe.

As we explore the boundaries between physics and metaphysics, between empirical observation and introspective insight, we may discover that understanding comes not from reducing consciousness to material processes but from recognizing how consciousness itself is fundamental to the cosmic symphony — the primordial field from which both matter and meaning arise.

And so the symphony of the void plays on, its themes continually evolving, continually nudging humanity toward the Good. And we, as conscious beings, are not merely audience members but active participants in its unfolding composition. Speak your intentions to the Conductor of this cosmic symphony.

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.

Psalm 8:3-8

1. In our model, quantum foam serves as the interface (mediated by the Planck-scale commutators that encode conscious intent) between universal consciousness and localized classical outcomes. In Quantum Coalescence theory, consciousness functions as a non-physical operator that guides wave function collapse through purposeful eigenstate selection, in contrast to physical decoherence processes that result from environmental entanglement. An eigenstate represents a definite post-collapse measurable property (e.g., position, momentum, spin, energy level, or angular momentum).