Metodología

In western science, there are quite some concerns about the explanation of the origin and nature of the universe. The same concerns have led to the question of: where does the universe comes from and where is it going? Did the universe have a beginning, and if so, what happened before then? What is the nature of time? Will it ever come to an end? Can we go back in time?

The approach however or method employed in answering these myriads of questions is what makes the answers unique and distinct and it is the scientific method of induction from (observation and experimentation). To begin with, the scientific universe is not made by substances different from its materials. In other words, it wasn‟t mind over matter but matter

162 over mind meaning the scientific universe wasn‟t created or spoken into existence as Christians and other religions will believe.

The universe‟s origin is known in modern science through mathematical synthesis of observation and experimentation. Cosmology makes extensive use of what is called models of the universe. These are mathematical representations which try to describe the universe in terms of strictly determined rules. These rules are based on logic, and because of this symbolic form, it is considered to be an aspect of mathematics. Cosmology can use so many different models since none of them can be actually tested against observation. But the rigorous aspects of mathematics and logic are not perfect, or at least, they are not rigorous enough for everything as shown by Kurt Gödel. Mathematics and logic then seems a poor tool for describing reality, especially ultimate reality.

Beginning from Aristotle, Ptolemy, Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Newton through Hawking, there has been an effort to understand and explain the origin and nature of the universe. Hawking states that: “today Scientists describe the universe in terms of two basic partial theories-the general theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. They are the greatest intellectual achievements of the first half of this century… unfortunately, however, these two theories are known to be inconsistent with each other-they cannot both be correct. One of the major endeavours of physics today, is the search for a new theory that will incorporate them both-a quantum theory of gravity”.⁵⁷

The big bang is the most popular model of the origin of the universe in modern science.

According to this model, the universe started out in a complete state of chaos or disorder, with everything inside it moving about in all directions completely at random. Because the big bang model is a closed system, if it is correct, then the second law of thermodynamics will be wrong.

163 This is because the law implies that, since the universe as described by the big bang model is a closed system, its disorder must increase with time. The second law of thermodynamics states that the disorder in a closed system must increase with time: that this increase in disorder, or chaos, is not time-reversible. Thus an egg cannot unscramble itself and a broken tea cup cannot put itself back again, because that would increase the amount of order.

The implication of the big bang model of the universe necessitated the question whether the universe came about in time or out of time. In mathematics, this is called zero and infinity and we find the two terms prevalent in much of the mathematics that deals with cosmology.

Does the universe have a beginning (zero) or it did not (extends for an infinite period)?

Unfortunately, neither of these two ideas can be treated entirely satisfactorily from a scientific realist point of view. Marcelo Gleiser asserts that:

In 1917, soon after the original formulation of his theory, in an attempt to describe the geometry of the universe as a whole, Einstein had proposed the first model of modern cosmology. He assumed quite reasonably given the data at the time and very much consistently with his Platonic view of nature, that the universe was maximally symmetric (shaped as a three dimensional sphere) and static: in effect, a finite space without a boundary…Natural phenomena took place within this perfectly symmetric space, consistently with the locality of change and transformation.⁵⁸

Beginning from the big bang model of the universe, physicists have been pushing their theories well beyond what is testable with current technology even though they keep sliding into the terrain of metaphysics. Thus experiments are ongoing at CERN (The European Organization for Nuclear Research) with the record-breaking energies achieved at the large Hadrons collider.

What science has been doing is to extrapolate our theoretical models of particle physics to the extreme conditions of the very early universe, hoping to find possible clues of what went on. But whether this method can actually explain what happened at the beginning of time still remains a metaphysical speculation. Gleiser noted that “countless scenarios have been proposed, suggesting the existence of new symmetries such as „supersymmetry‟ and „topological defects‟,

164 cosmic strings, tubes of energy that lock extreme high-energy conditions in their interior, possible relics of earlier times when the universe was more symmetric than today”.⁵⁹

African thoughts on the other hand sees the explanation of the origin and nature of the universe quite differently as they do not believe in going back in time physically in other to know how the universe originated and what its nature is. The answer to how traditional Africans view the universe can only be found in its cosmological worldview. Archibong and Usoro assert that:

African cosmology and worldview is nothing other than the web that ties the African people together cutting across her heritage, culture, tradition, belief, philosophy and myth. For the Africans, the world includes the earth, sun, moon, stars, and other planets.

This permits the African cosmology to be described through myths. African thought recognizes a plurality of worlds and hierarchy of beings. However, the material world is just the first step towards understanding other worlds of which is the spiritual worlds…⁶⁰

The origin of the universe for the Africans is from the force of the Supreme Being which is God. But how he created the universe is to be understood from mythology. Myth, derived from the Greek mythos meaning „word” or “story” is “used to express the views of the people concerning the existence of man, gods, the universe, their fears and aspirations in life”.⁶¹ Africa is replete with a lot of myths about the origin and nature of the universe. The myths are as varied as the multiple ethnic and tribal groups in Africa. But one thing that unites these myths is the belief that the universe is not self caused nor is it eternal. The universe is a creation of the Supreme Being and its nature is dualistic. This is why force to the African is dynamic and essentially metaphysical. Myths to the Africans represent explanatory mechanics and organizing metaphors utilized by Africans to resolve puzzles of nature. Uduigwomen asserts that:

Myth relates to primordial event that took place at the beginning of time. It is a special story about past happenings which are generally held to be real. The actors of the myth are in most cases gods or culture heroes, not human beings as such. There is the assumption that man cannot know his acts except they are revealed

165 to him. The myth therefore is a recital of what the gods or the

semi-divine beings did at the beginning of time.⁶²

Accordingly, the origin of the universe and its nature for the African is not something to be known by physical observation and experimentation. This is because we can never really know for certain how our vast physical universe emerged and for how long it has endured. We can‟t also fully understand its nature except by divine revelation as enshrined in myths. The African will always return back to the hierarchy of forces in his understanding and explanation of the universe. By this, he is able to go through those explanations that meet a dead end because it is adopted only from the perspective of material reality such as we find in modern science. This commitment to mythical, religious and cultural explanation satisfies the African curiosity with respect to explanation of the origin and nature of the universe.