I would go on to argue that Immanuel Kant is indeed one of the greatest

philosophers of all time, but he has probably done more than anyone to cause
confusion between science and metaphysics. Kant applied two descriptions to the
universe: ''noumenal'' and ''phenomenal''. Noumenal applies to the universe as it
is in itself while phenomenal applies to how the universe appears to observers.
Kant was highlighting a potential gulf between how things really are and how
they seem. If it's impossible to get beyond the universe of appearances then
the world as it is in itself can never be known.

Every human presents a mask - a persona - to others, but underneath that mask lie
traits, feelings and beliefs that could be shocking to others. No one can claim to
absolutely know any other person, no matter how seemingly close they are, because
the mask - the appearance - always stands in the way.

Kant's revolutionary idea was that the universe doesn't put on a mask but, rather,
observers put a mask on the universe. Reality doesn't shape the human mind, rather
the human mind shapes reality i.e. "reality" is a construct of the human mind and
there's no way of knowing if there's any correspondence between the
mind-generated reality and reality itself. This is the world of ''phenomena'';
things as they appear to us - seem that way because our minds compel them to. And
the ''noumena''; things as they are, which according to Kant, is impossible to
achieve knowledge of.

It's important to emphasise that, for Kant, there is a single reality, but the
actions of mind create a mind-specific interpretation of reality. Every different
type of mind - those of insects, mammals, dinosaurs, aliens - would produce
a different interpretation of the same underlying reality. It's not the reality
that changes but the way in which it is perceived by particular minds. The universe
is masked in as many ways as there are observers.

Does this sound familiar? Modern science works with this view, the systematic study
of something that is really an illusion. The maximum possible knowledge of the
phenomenal world would yield no truths at all about how things are in themselves.
If the scientists in the movie "The Matrix" had discovered every conceivable
scientific "truth" about their world, they would have learned nothing except the
rules of the elaborate computer simulation in which they were trapped. They
wouldn't have discovered a single fact about the reality outwith that simulation.
Science, in the Kantian view, does nothing but help us to make sense of
our own mental simulation of how things are, but the relationship of that
simulation to reality remains forever unknowable.

Illuminism, on the other hand, teaches
manifests itself in two ways: physical
unknowable and phenomena are illusory,
mental component of existence is fully
component of the universe. The perfect
aspects is the province of ''God''.
that there is a single reality that
and mental. In Kant's universe, noumena are
but in the universe of Illumination, the
knowable, and through it the physical
understanding of the universe in both of its

The mental and physical aspects inherently interact with and link to each other;
they always do so and can never not do so. Being part of a single reality, they are
never independent of each other. But if the physical is active, the mental is
passive, and if the mental is active the physical is passive. At any instant,
either the physical or mental is in control. Control can switch instantly from one
to another.

The physical aspect of the universe provides the platform for the mental aspect to
express itself as fully as possible. Evolution is about simpler forms, under the
control of the physical aspect of the universe, trying to find ways to create more
complex forms where the mental aspect comes to the fore. The universe is going on
an extraordinary journey from an apparently blind, mechanical, unconscious
physical nature to completely purposeful, intelligent self-awareness. The Law of
Becoming dictates that the physical aspect of reality gradually surrenders to the
mental. The physical world is the start of the journey, the mental the end.

If Kant were right and the mind were the active creator of time and space, of cause
and effect, there would be no reason for dreams to be different from reality. Yet
they are entirely different. In sleep, sensory input from the physical world is
denied to the mental world, so the mental world reverts to its own way of working.
Similarly, when a brain is affected by drugs, especially hallucinogens, and
normal functioning is disrupted, the mind loses all sense of space and time,
cause and effect. Under the influence of hallucinogens, senses often become
confused. People can smell colours, taste sounds, hear sights and so on.
The mind requires a properly functioning brain to operate correctly.

There is no true noumenal/phenomenal divide. The mental is trying to harness the

physical in order to understand both the physical and itself. A sufficient mind -
that of God - can have complete understanding of the physical and mental worlds.
Even the limited human mind can gain a far deeper understanding than Kant
believed possible.