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I’m told that we live in a simulation.
That some hyper-advanced beings one level (or more) up the dimensional ladder decided to create a quantum computer capable of simulating our expanding universe and all of the laws of nature within. That this simulation is capable of sustaining life, consciousness, and the unconscious. That they, whoever they are, made not just one giant fusion reactor surrounded by rocky planets and gas giants and all their associated moons and asteroids, not just one billion fusion reactors, not just one galaxy filled with 100 billion fusion reactors, but more than 100 BILLION GALAXIES, each filled with more than 100 billion fusion reactors.
For a simulation, this place is pretty fucking detailed.
And when zoomed out to those unfathomable distances (spoiler alert, the distances become unfathomable to our puny human minds before you even reach the oort cloud, let alone the insanity of interstellar or intergalactic distances), the nature of reality becomes less concrete and more completely, mindfuckingly absurd. Ditto for when you zoom all the way in and you realize that reality isn’t even locally real.
I suppose I should make it clear (if my snark didn’t) that I don’t believe this is a simulation. I do believe that looking at the Universe as if it were a simulation is an extremely useful lens for creative magick and spiritual practice. Indulge me for a minute. Let’s pull on that thread.
Metaphorically speaking, if reality is a simulation, then it must be programmed. There must be code running in some interdimensional quantum server that generates everything within the bounds of the simulation. Moreover, there must be a way for the dimensional sysadmins and senior developers to get in there and edit the code. Perhaps there’s a multiversal GitHub out there, with simulation version control managed by plasma-hoodie-wearing alien biotech bros, each with their own kool-aid drinking intern.
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But I want to take this simulation metaphor one step further. Who’s to say that each of us isn’t living our own, hyper-specific, hyper-local simulation? What’s stopping us from applying this metaphor to our individual conscious experience, and looking at how that is coded?
For the past two months, I’ve been learning web development through the completely free and open-source coding program The Odin Project.
Coding has given me a conduit through which to explore more logical thinking and problem-solving, which has in turn given me a better understanding of my own relationship with reality.
The reality of a computer is a bunch of 1s and 0s which manage electrical pulses through circuitry, and if we can read and write the proper coding language for an application, we can completely alter the paths those 1s and 0s take. We can fundamentally change how the hardware behaves by rewriting the software.
Extrapolating this idea to “real” reality, or the reality of human consciousness, we just need to understand the language of how this simulation is programmed if we want to change how the hardware behaves.
If there’s code, we can edit it. We just need to learn the language.
The Odin Project is aptly and synchronistically named, no? Odin is the god of wisdom. The dude literally gouged out his own eye to understand more about reality. No sacrifice is too great when it comes to knowledge.
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He also hanged himself upside-down from the world tree, impaled himself with a spear, and fasted from food and water for 9 days and nights in order to gain the knowledge of the runes. The runes are probably the easiest available example for what I’m aiming at with this thought experiment.
The runes are single characters, each of which corresponds to a different facet or experience of reality. If you believe in magick, and you believe in the power of belief, then you can extend that belief to the runes as a sort of primitive, mystical, coding language. You can use these special characters to alter the behavior of reality as you see fit. Need more money? Enter Fehu into your consciousness. Require protection from bad vibes? Type up Algiz or Thurisaz. Don’t forget to compile.
Odin learned this mystical coding language, and so he was able to increase his power over reality. All the countless Vikings who carved runes into their axe handles and shields were reprogramming their simulations. They called upon the runes to bring them protection, power, victory, prosperity, and to symbolize their devotion to their gods.
But what if you don’t believe in the runes?
You don’t have to. Your individual conscious experience is hyper-specific and hyper-local. It’s coded in languages that are specific to you, and just like computer programming, different languages will be used to accomplish different things.
The language doesn’t matter, it’s all about belief.
The runes work as an example because they’re literally alphabetical characters. But this idea gets much more murky and esoteric. Allow me to attempt an explanation.
Coding languages are made up of data types. In JavaScript, the language I’m currently learning, there are 8 data types, a few of which are: numbers, strings (words and letters), booleans (true or false), and objects (everything else, kinda). Don’t worry about what these mean, the point is that you use these data types, organized syntactically along with operators and functions built into the language, to create, interact with, and manipulate the “reality” of web pages.
Your conscious reality is also made up of “data types.” Some examples could be: the physical (matter, electricity, vibrations, light, etc), dreams, language, spiritual energy, and thought. There are a thousand other examples that would work here, and it’s all dependent upon your experience. But in essence, you use these data types to manipulate the “reality” of your conscious experience.
If you have a weird dream, your whole day could feel off. Your simulation has just been edited. If someone says something hurtful to you, your experience is now being hurt. Your simulation has just been edited. If you have a wild, synchronistic, spiritual experience that changes the way you see things and how you treat people, well, your simulation has just been edited.
“But Squendle, I don’t have control over what I dream!” Ok. You can learn.
“But Squendle, I can’t control how other people treat me!” No, I still haven’t figured that one out, but you can change how you react to other people. Not that that’s always the answer, but just saying.
Belief is your Developer Environment.
Let’s call it the BDE. I’m reclaiming the acronym. The Belief Developer Environment is the framework through which you organize your data types and execute your code.
In my BDE, the unconscious is the place where reality is created. In order to manipulate my reality, I must interface with the unconscious through my BDE and enter my code there. The gateway I use, the operating system for my BDE, is meditation. Grounding. Trance. Gnosis. Whatever the fuck you wanna call it. It’s the place where you’re still awake but you’re dreaming. The place where reality is simply awareness. Mind. The place where nothingness and void become experience.
In my BDE I use a coding language to enter information to the unconscious. There it gets to work editing the fabric of my conscious reality. It only works because I believe it works, and it only operates within the established boundaries of my BDE.
Sometimes my coding language is just visualizing a rune. Sometimes it’s making a physical offering of incense to the gods. Sometimes it’s a repeated chant. Sometimes it’s a prayer. Sometimes it’s visualizing a sigil I created. Sometimes it’s just a feeling.
The important thing is that I only use data types for which I can establish a tangible experience of belief. That’s on me. It’s personal, specific, and unique.
It requires introspection, questioning, reading, learning, integrating, and then questioning some more.
But when you get a handle on what you truly believe, you start to see how you can create your own idiosyncratic coding languages to interface with your reality. You start to see how energy works for you even though divination doesn’t. How sigils work for your bestie when they mean nothing to you. How you can have a close, personal relationship with an ancient prosperity goddess but not your own ancestors, and vice-versa for others.
But you need to sit down and understand the building blocks first. You need to get in there and learn your data types. You need to figure out how you link them up, what the syntax is. You need to learn how to open your BDE, what you need to install in your consciousness to get it to run, the keyboard shortcuts and hidden features.
Is all of this accomplished at an altar with candles and smoke and ritual chanting? Or is it done at a desk with pen and paper? Is it done via The Sims, Minecraft, or Stardew Valley?
If you’re living a personal simulation, your ability to command that simulation is absolute. You just need to learn how to code.