The mystery of nothingness and emergent space, time, and matter...this is our first and last question.
… how to contemplate complete nothingness?
...how could anything emerge from the vacuum of space, from nothing?
“Is it possible that, in spite of inventions and progress, in spite of culture, religion, and wisdom, one has remained at the surface of life? Is it possible that even this surface, which would at least have been something, has been covered with an incredibly dull material till it looks like salon furniture during the summer vacation?” Rainer Maria Rilke, 1910; The Notes of Malte Laurids Brigge.
Nicolai Kusmich, is a character in a story, from the above mentioned book by Rilke, who thought he had a long time yet to live. Assuming he probably had another 50 years of life, he decided to calculate the days, hours, and minutes left to him. Basking in the abundance of all those minutes, he felt rich! Then he began to notice how quickly they were passing by. He tried for a while to save them, doing everything faster, getting to work earlier, drinking his tea standing up, etc. At the end of the week, he saw that he had been unable to save any of the minutes. What was he to do?
One day, while sitting quietly on his couch, he suddenly felt a movement, like a wind, on his cheek. Realizing that it was time passing by, he became alarmed and assumed that the rest of his life would be like this. When he stood up, he could feel the movement of the earth under his feet. Oh, this could not be tolerated! So… he lay down… for the rest of his life. Eventually he began to recite poetry, which helped. It soothed Nicholai. Poetry seemed like something stable to hold onto. He admired others who could walk around living “normal” lives, ignoring time rushing by and the earth moving so quickly.
