009* Brief overview of book “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101”

Ricardo 4 US House 21

The Austin Cry: be the Cause, join the Movement, the PaRDeS Universal ReConstitution for Washington and World Repair!

Visit my websites www.PaRDeSism.com, www.Ric4USH21.com, podcasts with pdf, or at iTunes and other platforms.

I have a calling, born out of enthusiasm; a book to deliver, “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101”; and a job to get done, place the cornerstone of civilization for the III Millennium!

Title: “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101”

Subtitle: “(PaRDeS primevalism ~ treeseeding our original common-sense on the Bible’s Creation Story 1:1-2:3; Universal World ReConstitution, from Crisis City to PaRaDiSe Earth)”

Author: Ricardo Turullols-Bonilla.

Where: At Amazon, in paperback and digital, in English and Spanish translation.

What we create, here and now, reconstitutes the universe!

009* Brief overview of book “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101”

Dear Friends of Dialogue:

There are so many good light books out there, that it’s high time for a heavy weight to balance things out.

At this point in the series of podcasts, I do make a space and present a quick bird’s eye view of my book. The reason is simply because by now you must have certainly asked the question, how does all this so far tie-in with the book?

In any case, the title of my book is “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101 (PaRDeS primevalism ~ treeseeding our original common-sense on the Bible’s Creation Story 1:1-2:3; Universal World ReConstitution, from Crisis City to PaRaDiSe Earth)”.

The title pretends to make the statement that, while there may be, on the one hand, the hard physical and biological sciences, and, on the other hand, the softer extensions of the social and political sciences, there has yet to be anything in-between. Sure, there’s the humanities, but these are hardly sciences. Rather, philosophy is the antithesis of science. This simply doesn’t make any sense, unless nonsense is acceptable nowadays out of force of habit.

If the title is the what, then, the subtitle would be the how. It explains the source that led me to reach the conclusion of the existence of the field, to use this image taken from physics. In a nutshell, it makes the claim that ultimate knowledge, human science, rests on the Primeval Big Bang of the Creation Story. Without giving more away at this early stage, which will be provided in due course, let’s move on with the narrative.

Our claim is that there is a science that stands tall on the shoulders, on the one hand, of the sciences, and, on the other hand, of the humanities, and this has got to be human science. Introductory level, that is, 101, but not implying in any way, shape, or form, baby-talk. This is no babble, rather, it pretends to layout the cornerstone of civilization moving forward.

Let’s jump straight into the work, without further ado. Enough introduction has already been made such that in what follows you will surely feel a déjà-vu familiarity with the content. At one point, I was tempted to start the series of podcasts with an outline of my book, but decided against it. The reason simply being that pedagogically it was unsound. The way to do things, is to give samples taken out of real-life experiences that showcase the general principle involved, and then, and only then, move on to present the thesis statement.

The work is structured in III Parts. Part I deals with “Greece, Israel, and Modernity”. This provides numerous examples of the occurrence of triads in all walks of life, ranging from the core school subjects, to daily experiences. The purpose is to guide the reader to wonder, one swallow doesn’t make spring, granted, but, a whole school clouding the sky, surely does. So, much smoke must be indicating that there’s a fire going on.

Part II is entitled “The Seed of Life”. If you’ve been reading and listening so far, you must by now know what I am referring to. The Seed of Life name, obviously takes off from the Tree of Life image. This is so central to the Second Creation Story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and all that therein occurs, that it affects our understanding of the things of the world ever since.

But, after all, where does a tree come from, if not from a seed? Of course, this may begin to sound like the chicken-and-egg dilemma. Though there is some element of truth in the comparison, however, the point, isn’t so much that, but rather, that there is alternative view of things that is equally contender to offer an explanation of things in the world. But, besides that, the clue comes without a doubt from the fact that the image used throughout the numerous slides of the essay, of an ellipse and right-triangle, is reminiscent of a pecan, of a shell surrounding a live kernel, hence the name Seed of Life.

Part III, however, takes off on the tangent, as if replying to the nature of the previous comparison made of the Tree of Life with the Seed of Life. It happened quite naturally, taking off from the middle, not from the beginning leg of the essay. It wasn’t but until I had finished the middle Part, that it suddenly surfaced in me, the query, what relationship does all this have, that I had written, with the greater tradition of Jewish thought?

I hadn’t occurred to me before this point to inquire at greater length. But, now there, as if before a cliff, as awareness struck me, of the presence of the deep. That I had inadvertently walked into unchartered territory. Had I been aware, most certainly I would not have dared embark on such an odyssey. I simply don’t see myself as having such resolve of character. Ignorance, is not only bliss, it’s also, audacity.

The question that I now posed, was, how does this PaRDeS, ellipse and triad of a pecan, tie-in with the Seed of Life approach of Kabbalah Reception (קבלה)? The reason I now asked, was, because by now I had searched the web, and to my surprise, discovered that there are two main themes in Jewish mysticism, the Ma’aseh Merkhavah Work of the Chariot (מעשה מרכבה), found in Ezekiel Yechezke’l 1:1-26 (יחזקאל) not recommended for beginners, and, to my surprise, also the Ma’aseh Bere’shith Work of Creation (מעשה בראשית) Genesis 1:1-2:3!

There is, what amounts in practice to a ban on studying such works. The bar is set accordingly high to dissuade the curious light of heart: men over forty, married, captain of fifty, and like conditions. Fortunately, since the year 1492 the conditions have been relaxed, and now, everybody is welcomed to study it, at their own risk, mind you.

But, unfortunately, that happens to be the same year of the expulsion of the Jews from Spain, effectively affecting its development. While it did make headway in Safed Israel, it has been under the radar for the most part, under the heading of occult sciences, or, the mystic. Hardly adequate milieu for healthy growth and strengthening. Up until of late, of course, with this incursion of ours.

The Kabbalah actually takes off from a study of the Creation Story 1:1-2:3. Of this I wasn’t aware. How could anyone suspect that the triads of Pythagoras could eventually lead a trail directly to such pits. But, hold on, I’m getting way too much ahead of myself. This we will cover in due course. In the meantime, let’s take it from the top.

~

In Part I, the starting point is the present. Contemporary thought goes by the name of Modernity. It is the case that there is an ongoing crisis of civilization, and, only getting worse as we speak. For how long? No one knows for sure, some claim that it’s coetaneous with humanity, since Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Others claim, that it’s of more recent invoicing. Be what it may, the most recent milestone in shaping contemporary thought is, beyond a doubt, the Principia of Isaac Newton. The whole title of his book tells the tale, namely, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. This surmounts to putting physics on a mathematical footing, debunking the philosophical basis dating from Antiquity, and, in general, to the School of Athens, comprised by Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.

As science teacher to at-risk students at the local Austin ISD, for the most part, I have a population of those not going on to college and higher grounds. Here, it’s more like the pipeline to prison, kind of thing, with notable exceptions. Though High School is not research oriented, one is, nonetheless, exposed to an extensive view of the whole area of science. And I mean of science, including biology, chemistry, and physics. The main concern of the facility is their reason of being, juvenile justice, and only secondarily, education. After all, the host is the County, we, District, are guests.

In practice, this rolls out as having all classes being stacked-up, in all core subjects, and electives as well, including PE. That is, in each class period I may have biology students, alongside chemistry, and some physics, as well as some environmental science, and 8th grade science in the mix. Oh, Delta credit recovery students as well, that’s computer assisted modality, covering astronomy, health, and those of the other core subjects, ELA, Math, and Social Studies.

But, looking beyond the challenge this setup poses, it is also breeding ground for asking out-of-the-ordinary questions, those seldom articulated in a regular school setting. Inquiries like, what is the common denominator in all these science subjects? The blank reply from all Chapter One of any science book is, the Scientific Method. Of course, it really isn’t. This is where the first tolerance vaccine for fake science takes root under the skin, early in schooling. This is just placed there so that you don’t have to ever bother asking again, if there was ever anyone so inclined.

Well, I don’t know about other teachers. I can only talk in the first person. Having studied physics and philosophy, and business, gave me an inclination for mixing theory with practice, and, avoiding the path most taken. Along the way, I discovered the preSocratic thinkers, those who predated philosophical thought proper. Back then there were three Schools of Thought, and one Mystic Sect. The timeline was Thales of Miletus, founder of the Milesian School, of the cosmologists; then Xenophanes of Colophon and Parmenides of Elea, founders of the Eleatic School, of the being-is-and-not-being-is-not; then Pythagoras of Samos, founder of both Pythagorean School and Sect, of the triads, and, of the Tetractys, respectively.

Pythagoras of Samos stands out above his contemporaries. Though he personally left no written fragments behind; fortunately, his followers did. In particular, Ion of Chios is credited with saying, that the virtue of things is a triad: strength, intelligence, luck. Philolaus of Croton added that all things (triad) are unlimiteds, limiters, and both, unlimiteds and limiters. Less is more, squarely applies here.

If you teach High School to kids who couldn’t care less about science, and all the knowledge that it represents, this is all you need to know about education to figure out the puzzle as to why we live in a broken, corrupt, and misguided world. At one point three years into teaching at Detention, I asked, what is it, that best portrays science, to all parties concerned?

Starting from Biology, working my way back to Chemistry, and unto Physics, I can’t think of anything more representative of science than the Equation.

Then I added one and one, and, to my surprise, there it was, in plain sight, for all to see. In plain view, stark naked to the unforgiving eye. The triad in a nutshell. The reason for the success of the triad is, that it is the philosophical version of the human brain. And, of the equation, it is that it is its mathematical mapping.

In a way, I guess you could say it was my Eureka, or Aha moment, if you prefer. I had been toying with making correspondences all this time, and found quite a few, but, regarding science at its roots, this had eluded me. More than anything else, this gave me a charge of confidence. After all, what more can a person ask, to keep following the guiding tread, than a strike of lucidity?

This I did. The bulk of the rest of this Part of the book makes the case working my way backwards that there’s so much evidence in its favor that it more than warrants doing a further search on the matter at hand. Herein I put forth examples from all the spectrum of experiences, ranging from language, social studies, and passages from the Bible itself.

In closing, allow us to put out the slide that best portrays the notion outlined above, of how it all ties together, simply, in PaRDeS. This is to be read as columns.

This takes us to Part II of the text. Just like the drive going backwards to the source in science, led me eventually to the Equation in physics, likewise, I asked myself the same question, but, now regarding the greater scheme of things. What is it that all points to, and nothing can point beyond it. Well, we can’t be talking about anything else than about the beginning. The beginning is the starting point of everything. All dovetails to the beginning, and from there, spread outwards. By beginning, I mean in time, as well as in the literature. The Bible Creation Story stands out, without a doubt. Sure, there are other stories, but none better source-codes the essence of time than this one.

There are many ways to approach the Bible Creation Story. Though I am quite aware of the documentary thesis, and other critical works, like, what role does Ezra the Scribe play in putting all this together, they all take a backseat at the end of the day. Irrespective of their relevance, we still have to take a study of the Creation Story on its own merits.

In the previous Part mention is made of the two prevalent explanations out there, on the one hand, the Greek of the impossibility of an infinite regression, and, its dubious conclusion of the Eternal Universe, and, on the other hand, the Israeli of Revelation of the Torah Teaching (תורה) to Moses at Mount Sinai. All you can conclude is that you can’t conclude anything. The first thesis is documented in the Dialogues of Plato, of the School of Athens, whereas the second appears in the Bible, in the book of Bemidbar Exodus (במדבר).

Hardly anything is provided in this Part outside that might serve as background. Instead, wasting no time, assuming the indispensable on the part of the interested reader, I jumped directly into the crux of the matter, the Creation Story as found in Bere’shith Genesis 1:1-2:3 (בראשית). The toolbox that I carried in my backpack contained, amongst other instruments, the Pythagorean triad and notions of the Tetractys, my science teaching, the backdrop of modernity, and personal items.

Ordinarily one hears that there are two Creation Stories, very symptomatic of our times, needless to say. In reality, there’s only one Creation Story, and, a second one. The one Creation story is the Seven Days, spanning 1:1-2:3, whereas the second one, is that of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, spanning 2:4-2:24. Originally, the intention was to cover the whole two chapters, however, due to time, and ending wasted after three years of toiling, I cut it back to the One Creation Story.

What I was looking for was a template, something along the lines of the triad and the Tetractys, a cogent way of putting things in a nutshell. This I found from the start in One Day, verses 1:1-5. What’s more, One Day cannot be understood, but thanks to verse 1:1. Furthermore, this verse 1:1 can’t be understood either, without the very first word, Bere’shith InHeadOf (בראשית) of 1:1a. Moreover, this first word can only be understood in light of the first letter of the Hebrew alefbeth, namely, álef a (א). The key to unraveling all this is provided by the very construction of the second letter of the alefbeth, beth b (ב), and the fact of the third one, gímel g (ג), equivalent to our c.

As an aside, though actually quite central, is the fact of the correspondence between letters and numbers in Hebrew. The álef a (א) corresponds to the number one (1), the beth b (ב) to the two (2), the gímel g (ג) to the three (3), and so on.

All this is very logical, but, up beyond to the point that a program couldn’t get it. There is a leap, that only a person can take. A point of mutual understanding seems to be reached between the reader and the text, without which all is pointless. The only explanation, credible one, that I can come up with, is that this is understandable solely on account that we somehow have it in us, already, what is in the text, somehow.

A dialogical relationship of sorts is established from get-go. This experience is certainly not unique. My impression is that therein lies the proof, to the convinced, of an actual Revelation. You cannot prove any more than you can disprove it. This doesn’t mean that it’s arbitrary. Quite the contrary. But, at the end of the day, the ultimate proof is in how much it nourishes and nurtures us.

As I was saying, a template I found, and that is PaRDeS PaRaDiSe (פרדס). This is an acronym standing for Peshat Plain (פשט), Rémez Remite (רמז), Derash Discover (דרש), Sod Secret (סוד). This is just the hermeneutics of Biblical exegesis. The sages have known it all along, just never bothered telling anyone, or else, they did, we just weren’t listening attentively.

Perhaps the best way to understand it is by connecting with our ordinary way of describing our human composition. We; we are, PaRDeS PaRaDiSe (פרדס); we are whole, Sod Secret (סוד); all the while, we are the whole in parts, Spirit Derash Discover (דרש), Mind Rémez Remite (רמז), and Body Peshat Plain (פשט).

The next thing on the to-do list was to demonstrate that, as is verse 1:1, so are the rest of verses 1:2-2:3. This takes up the bulk of this Part II. But it is necessary, that effectively all the verses somehow, more or less, fit the template.

In closing, let’s put an illustrative slide that highlights the above-mentioned notion of PaRDeS PaRaDiSe (פרדס). Here we have the right-triangle, representing the triad as in PaRDeS PaRaDiSe (פרדס), the Spirit Derash Discover (דרש), Mind Rémez Remite (רמז), Body Peshat Plain (פשט), all the while the ellipse encloses it as Creation PaRDeS PaRaDiSe (פרדס), the Divine Sod Secret (סוד).

Part III, takes off from the previous one. As mentioned at the outset, after having finished it, the Ma’aseh Bere’shith Work of Creation (מעשה בראשית), the natural question was to ask, how does this tie in with the one already out there? That is, by now naming our version of things as the “Seed of Life”, the question is, what relationship holds between it and the “Tree of Life”, the one commonly referred to as Kabbalah Reception (קבלה)?

This in itself is quite another ball game. Nevertheless, it needs to be addressed, for leaving it open, is not an option. If there are two versions of the same thing, the natural question to ask, is, how do these compare and contrast? This wasn’t part of the original plan, rather, it came aboard by added measure, notwithstanding.

It is with this brief that the Seed of Life version surfaces, whereas, on the other hand, the Tree of Life has a long life, approximately dating from the later part of the Middle Ages, though having a direct link to Antiquity. It is hard to tell, being shrouded as in a cloud.

So far, in the previous Part, we only mentioned the triad on its own. However, if the Seed of Life is continued, it unwraps into a triad-of-triads. In all this, the right-triangle, and, now the triad of right-triangles, is enclosed by the ellipse. On the other hand, the Tree of Life is ordinarily displayed as an array composed of ten (10) sefiroth numbers (ספירות) and twenty-two (22) ’othioth letters (אתיות). The idea being that Creation was executed by way of the ten (10) numbers and the twenty-two (22) letters of the Hebrew alefbeth.

Putting both representations side-by-side, can go a long way to coming up with a mutual mapping. This approach we now display in the following slide.

Our goal is limited to showcase, firstly, if they, the Seed of Life and the Tree of Life, are valid alternative versions of the same thing, and secondly, if so, are they mutually helpful into developing a higher order one standing on the shoulders of both, a SeedTree, as it were? Let’s put it in question form. Assuming the validity of the triad-of-triads, the question then is, is the Tree of Life configuration compliant with the notion of the triad-of-triads of the Seed of Life?

The question has no effect on the array composed out of the ten (10) sefiroth numbers (ספירות), once we’ve made the corresponding mutual identifications. However, it certainly has an impact on the distribution of the twenty-two (22) ’othioth letters (אתיות). The arrangement is different in order to comply with the triad-of-triads requirement condition.

Our research, which it obviously isn’t, stops here, once having made the necessary adjustments to the reordering of the lines connecting the dots, that is, of the twenty-two (22) ’othioth letters (אתיות) connecting the ten (10) sefiroth numbers (ספירות). As to what it could possibly mean further down the line, is well beyond the penetration of my lights.

We end this section displaying what, to our understanding, should be the corrected Tree of Life configuration. In all this, we have chosen to name the ten (10) sefiroth numbers (ספירות) of the Seed of Life with names taken out directly from the same Creation Story text in question. On the other hand, the Tree of Life has names taken from other parts of the Bible.

Though not requisite, to understanding the content podcasts in these webpages, it is highly recommended to study the source at one point, once one is sufficiently able and motivated to do so. My recommendation would be to read at leisure all you can of Part I, start selectively with One Day of Part II, and, skim over Part III.

Needless to say, there’s more in the book than what has been expressed herein so far. Here we for the most part limit our discussion to day one, and more precisely verse 1:1, whereas, the book covers the whole of the seven days. If you simply can’t get yourself to do the book, no problem, the Takeaway is simply PaRDeS, and it should suffice moving forward.

Well, with this we end the summary of the book “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101”, that forms the basis of the whole project.

Yours truly, Ricardo Turullols-Bonilla

The Austin Cry: be the Cause, join the Movement, the PaRDeS Universal ReConstitution for Washington and World Repair!

Visit www.Ric4USH21.com, www.PaRDeSism.com, and find my book “PaRDeSism ~ Human Science 101” in English and Spanish translation, in paperback and eBook

Thank you so very much. And, God bless!