the most interesting question
we say the universe is infinitely large. by describing it this way, we are saying the universe is one of two things.
the first possibility of what we mean is that it is myriad in every moment, myriad in every possible possibility (and in every possibility of every possible possibility, etc.) -- what we are saying is that every fragmentary moment exists, physically, somewhere out there on the other side(s) of the universe. when you look up at space, somewhere out there, someone -- you -- is living a life of total synchronicity, with every similarity, in sum, to your existence, except for a slight momentary change in the history of your being. and another. and another. and another... an infinity of yous. not to mention the infinities of not-you, on this world and every other, in their evolution and essence. just an entire infinity of infinite entirety.
that's one way to look at the meaning of infinite: that the universe contains, physically, every possibility for everything ever. is this likely?
the second meaning is that this universe of ours is so large that its size is simply beyond our comprehension. we cannot fathom how utterly huge this place is, so we call it infinitely large.
while this second meaning seems like it may be the more-likely-to-be-accurate definition, it is still insufficient. because we are within a universe so truly all-encompassing that it goes and goes and goes and goes... on and on and on... and to our feeble cognitive ability and microscopic range of perception, it just seems to go on forever. and yet: does it go on forever?
if we are saying that the universe is just this extremely, extremely large place, then surely, at some point -- in some scale of gargantuity we cannot comprehend, at some strata of creation -- there is somewhere where the universe stops. if we are saying that the universe is a vast enclosure of space and time, then, at some point, the universe must have a physical end. somewhere where there is no more universe. a place where the universe no longer is.
and so, the most interesting question to me is not which of these two definitions of infinite is, ultimately, the more correct one. no, the most interesting question to me is, if the universe does indeed have an end -- then what is on the other side?
