THE STRING THEORY

To familiarize yourself with this revolutionary theory, the best material available is The Elegant Universe, a three-part documentary directed by David Hickman in 2003.

The first part is titled Einstein’s Dream. It relates the quest of the inventor of general Relativity for a unique theory that would include all the laws of the universe. Convinced that he was searching for something essential, he devoted his life to the search for this scientific Grail, kepping a notebook at all times for writing down equations, in case he found the ones that confirmed his Unified Field Theory. Meanwhile, quantum mecanics were being developed though Einstein showed absolutely no interest in them (hence the famous quote: ‟God does not play dice”). In fact, the theory of the infinitely large and the theory of the infinitely small turned out to be perfectly incompatible. Though Einstein was alone in his quest, this first episode shows that the legacy he left for the future generations was his dream of finding an all-encompassing theory.

The second episode, The String Theory, fits in this approach. Its underlying idea is that the whole universe is made of a single ingredient: tiny strings that vibrate in a multitude of different ways, the universe being a gigantic cosmic symphony. This theory reconciles the two previous ones, the theory of the microcosm and the theory of the macrocosm.

As for the third episode, Welcome to the 11th Dimension, it invites the audience to radically change their conception of space. Brian Greene’s humour, his skills as a frontman, drag us into a most exciting experience. The boldest animations capture our attention as the concepts studied drift away definitively from our everyday lives. Here our universe becomes a slice of bread! The other slices of the loaf are parallel universes. And, of course, there are hundreds of such loaves. Enough to make your head spin! Especially when Brian Greene brings up the pathways that lay between these universes. And what if the Big Bang did not mark the beginning of our universe?

An amazing scientific epic, the history of the discovery of the string theory, from its inception to the unification of its five different versions by Edward Witten, will certainly fascinate you, especially if you practice Phosphenism.

But let us go back to the scientific presuppositions of this theory situated at the far end of science.
The universe is composed of ‟string-like, tiny, oscillating strands of energy”. If an atom was enlarged to the size of our solar system, these strings would be the size of a tree. The strings of a cello can vibrate at different frequencies and thus produce various notes. Similarily, it is the different modes of vibration of the strings that confer particular characteristics to particules, i.e. their mass and their charge.

There lays the elegance of this theory, but also its weak point. Indeed, can we really speak of theory when faced by one that is impossible to disprove? There are no experiments nor observations that are in the position of doing so. Strings cannot be observed. Does the string ‟theory” belong to the domain of physics? Or does it belong to the domain of philosophy?

Let us now briefly describe Phosphenism, in order to demonstrate that it goes in the same direction as this ‟theory”.
In 1959, Francis Lefebure, a French doctor and researcher, had the idea to check the efficiency of the initiatory exercises that had been taught to him, by using the phosphenes. The phosphenes are all the subjective sensations of light, i.e. those which are not directly caused by light stimulating the retina. This is how he discovered the importance of the rhythm of two seconds. He realized that when he swayed his head laterally at this pace, the phosphene followed the movements of his head. On the contrary, when he swayed his head faster or slower, the phosphene remained fixed. Building from this discovery, he studied what would happen with two phosphenes and developed the award-winning Cerebroscope. This device allowed him to monitor cerebral rhythms in a new, revolutionary way.

Three years later, he decided to experiment with thinking about a precise subject during the presence of the phosphene. This is how he discovered the foundation of what would become his method: Phosphenic Mixing. Phosphenes and thoughts interact dynamically, allowing the development of memory, intelligence and creativity.

Phosphene, rhythm and thought, these are the fundamental ingredients of Dr Lefebure’s ‟scientifically improved yoga”.

The idea that the universe is constituted of tiny vibrating strings is particularily attractive to the Phosphenists, as they consider that rhythm is a primary component. Also, the fact that these minuscule ‟ingredients” that compose the universe can resonate together to perform a cosmic symphony, can seduce the minds who are trying to achieve resonance with themselves and the universe they live in.

Dr Lefebure, and those who walked in his steps, have developed a privileged relationship with the cosmos. Indeed, Dr Lefebure used to meditate in the direction of the constellation of Sagitarius to establish a relationship with spirits, guides, electrons of a high energy level.

Some veteran Phosphenists are unwary travellers who wander back and forth across the cosmos (the universe lays within us…).
‟(…) one night, I find myself in a scenery that I know very well, as it is a place where I spent a part of my childhood and all my summer holidays: my cousin’s farm in the Brittany region of France. There, in the middle of a field, stands a massive tree. I move towards it and, slowly, I enter it, as if I wanted to be at one with this tree and with nature itself. Then, I feel propeled up into the sky. I am rising. I am moving away from the earth and it is becoming smaller and smaller. Above me, I perceive the inifinity of space. Suddenly, I am freefalling at a tremendous speed. I have just crossed the spiritual equivalent of the line of equal gravity, i.e. the line where the attraction of the earth is cancelled by the attraction of the sun. I have just entered the ‛high astral’. I keep travelling, and find myself in the cosmic plane. There, a grand sight is presented to me.
Myriads of stars shine in the distance (…) I contemplate this subjective universe.”
Extract from: Preparation for Astral Projection or The Exploration of the Subjective World, by Daniel Stiennon.