Circle
At the core of everything we know and everything that is, there is some central, unknowable mystery. Every piece of knowledge I gain is based on a series of facts which are based on a series of assumptions which are made in an attempt to understand the world. For example, last night, I sat across a table from my brother. I sat there, wondering how it was that I knew I sat across from him. There is his face, which I have learned belongs to him. But what am I actually experiencing? I do not actually see him; electricity, generated in a plant, is piped into the restaurant, where it is run through a filament that glows. It causes light to reflect off his face and hit my eyes, which then send an electrical impulse to my brain, which in turn interprets the electrical signals into a “visual” interpretation. I do not “see” him. My mind produces an image based on light reflecting off of some undefinable, invisible “essence” that is my brother.

Think of life as a room with screens displaying news stories, biographies, and just general information about the world. Imagine you were born in that room, and you never left it. All you ever knew came through those screens; all language, science, relational skills, etc. all came through those screens. You can think of your mind’s conception of the world like that room, where the screens are the senses. All of the information that you gain is made through assumptions and connections based on what you have learned from those screens, your senses. And although you have likely come to somewhat accurate conclusions as to the nature of your surroundings, you have no real evidence that what you have concluded is an accurate representation of absolute reality. And no such evidence is possible. What follows from this point of view is not a futile, solipsistic view, but rather an appreciation for and an acceptance of whatever mystery ties our consciousness to reality.

I believe this mystery pervades everything, from this invisible force that ties us to our reality to something more visible. I believe it is the inexplicable personal magnetism of love; there is no biological reason for selfless love. There is no reason why two people should be tied together or why they should feel they are extensions of one another. The same force that ties our being to reality ties one person to another. This central mystery is in everything. It’s what holds the nucleus of an atom from flying apart. It is the wordless oneness of marriage; it is that the impossible injustice of forgiveness is the greatest justice; or that death begets life.

I believe that this central mystery of the universe becomes even more evident in our everyday lives. I believe that the circle is the symbol of this mystery. The circle is the symbol of perfection; it is indicative of completion, wholeness, oneness, and self-sufficiency. The circle is the basis of all technology and mechanics. Cars, computers, and every other technological advance is based on the circle. Calculus, geometry, astronomy, biology, even history; every area of knowledge has at its core cycles and circles. It is reflected in every planet, star and moon. Every drop of water forms a circle as it falls. Every angle is defined as some degree of a full circle. Despite the ubiquity of the circle, we cannot even measure it. Pi, the central measurement of the central shape that pervades the universe is impossible to completely define. Again, we find that at the center of everything we know and all of our life, resides this untouchable mystery.

I believe that the circle is the symbol, or even the embodiment, of that mystery. That mystery is the Truth. It is the perfections of all things; the perfection of love is the same as perfect truth. Perfect justice becomes perfect love. When all these things are extrapolated unto their perfection, they all become the same thing. Love is truth, is justice, is logic, is joy, is beauty, is goodness. And all of these things are that Mystery. They are all the same thing, and they are what the whole universe and everything else is all about. They are the universe and everything else, and they are what it is made for.

I believe that these things I just mentioned; love, justice, joy, beauty, logic, goodness, perfection, and glory are all the same thing in the end, and that that one thing is something nameless, and any name that it is given serves only to limit it. “Love” limits this thing to only the aspect of it that is interpersonal and involves emotions. “Justice” limits this thing to those matters of fairness and law. I believe that all these are descriptors for different aspects of this thing, this thing that is embodied in the fullness and wholeness of the circle. I believe most people call this thing “God”.