As a man who has devoted his whole life to the most clear headed science, to the study of matter, I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter.
—Max Planck, “Das Wesen der Materie” [The Essence/Nature/Character of Matter]
These immortal words of the father of quantum physics may be far more palatable to humankind today than when they were first uttered in 1944. Planck was adamant at the end of his life that he did not believe in a personal god, but this passage, from a lecture he gave in Florence, indicates a reverence for something greater than the human mind and the material universe.
As the vast majority of humans come to the realization that “things” and “stuff” have not delivered the meaning of life, many are searching, amid the astonishing economic losses of the past decade, for a deeper purpose in their existence. Sadly, many have abandoned that quest and have taken their own lives, because all rationale for their existence vanished along with their material status. Some who remain have found meaning in family, community, nature, or service, but many more suffer from depression, despair, and feel adrift on a sea of listless despondency.
The current crisis of industrial civilization is characterized by a loss of faith in matter and the realization, however obscure, that the energy behind and vibrating through matter is that of a conscious, intelligent mind, which is indeed the matrix of all matter. Regardless of how much or how little “stuff” we have, we can only know with certainty our relationship with the matrix of all matter by way of our own personal experience. The good news, however, is that we can experience this life-force energy, beginning with its manifestation in our own bodies. No matter how depressed or listless we are, the matrix of all matter exists within us as intelligent creativity or, if you prefer, creative intelligence.
The energy coursing through all matter holds the key to our existence—why we are here and what we came here to do. This energy holds together the solar systems of the atoms in our bodies and holds the key to our aliveness. It is the matrix of all matter and the framework of our being.