by Paul Quek, from Singapore
BBA (Hons), MAppSci (CompSci)

[Bachelor of Business Administration, Honours]
[Master of Applied Science, Computing Science]

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Preamble

If you arrive here from our 'What Mysteries?' article, then you know that we have already tackled the 'What' of Mysteries.

And you will have known that we tackle the 'What' question in a three-fold way:

1. firstly, with a simple definition about what is a mystery;

2. secondly, with a specific list of examples of mysteries; and

3. thirdly, with a consideration of related words, or synonyms, thus extending our scope to include myths and related secret rites/rituals.

Well ... this article you are now reading is about the 'Why' question.

Two Questions

Okay, basically we can break down the 'Why' issue into two questions,

• firstly, 'Why' this website on Mysteries — i.e., "Why have a website about Mysteries?", or more to the point, "Why is there a need to create yet another website on Mysteries?"; and

• secondly, "Why are the Mysteries important to you and I?"

First Question

Okay ... let's deal with the first question, "Why is there a need to create yet another website on Mysteries?"

Well, first off, why not?

Variety is the spice of life, right? ... it should be the same for the Internet, right?

Right!

Second reason: no one website (or book, or magazine, or library, or university, etc.) can possibly cover the subject matter of Mysteries (or any subject matter) exhaustively. (And, of course, I have to say that it is the same case with this particular website!)

Which brings us to the third reason ...

Third reason: the 'angle'!

So, the real answer to the question of why another website on Mysteries is this: each website (or book, etc.) puts the subject matter in a different light or lays a different emphasis — i.e., there is a difference in 'angle'.

The 'angle' depends on the aim of the author, or in this case, the 'webmaster' (that would be 'me' — Paul Quek).

Now, my 'angle' would, of course, reflect the person that I am ... it's how I see the matter, right?

So, let's see what are the influences on me that in turn influence the nature of this website ...

Influences

Firstly, being an Asian means that I do have some familiarity with 'Eastern Mysticism' and 'Oriental Traditions' and stuff like that, including the Dao (or Tao, if you mispronounce the word) ...

And, since the mid-1990s, I have 'boned up' on Zen, although for some reason, I seem to be familiar with it already!

Probably, my living in Scotland for about 4 years had something to do with it. That is, the familiarity with Zen came about because I was 'living Zen' without realizing it! This isn't as strange as it sounds; it is actually quite ordinary! (Zen is just everyday ordinariness.) For you see ... I was living with my family while I was in Scotland, but without any other influences from my native Singapore. With a perfect naturalness (which I didn't even wonder about at the time), I had 'enmeshed' my life completely with the then-and-there 'moment-ness' of Scotland and the rest of the UK, without feeling any 'homesickness', and not pining for a home that is geographically, socially and politically 'far away', for the period in question.

Secondly, in my younger days in Singapore, being an 'English-education stream' student — especially in 'missionary' or 'Christian Brothers' (read: Catholic) schools — meant frequent exposure to Graeco-Roman (thus, including Hellenistic) influences, as well as, of course, exposure to the Bible, Christian traditions, and the like.

And my own private readings outside of the school syllabi only resulted in extending and enhancing this base of Western influences (including Westernized forms of Middle-Eastern ideas from the Biblical lands and times).

These aspects of my younger-day educational background have given me more than just a surface (or pidgin) appreciation of the nuances and connotations of the English language, which I use as a first language. I think in English. I do not think in Chinese, even though ethnically I am a Chinese.

There is clearly a difference between an ethnic-Chinese 'Singaporean' of my educational background, from a Chinese national of, say, mainland China (aka PRC; People's Republic of China) or of Taiwan (aka ROC; Republic of China), or of any Chinese national who have recently migrated from those two places. When a PRC or ROC individual uses English, you can tell if they think in Chinese, then translate their thoughts into English, especially the spoken form (which is, of course, less formal).

I don't do that, thinking in Chinese and then translating my thoughts into English. I wouldn't know how to, because I hardly use any Chinese. In fact, if I speak the occasional Mandarin or Cantonese (or some other dialect), I do so in a really 'haltingly' manner, because I have to translate my thoughts from English to Chinese!

Thus, by the same token that I have some reasonable level of appreciation with the nuances and connotations of the English language (and by extension of the English-speaking 'West'), my use of Mandarin at the pidgin level is a reflection of the fact that I do not have much of an appreciation of all the nuances and connotations of the Chinese language and culture, rich as they are. I am an ethnic Chinese in flesh and blood, but not in my thoughts! ... and probably not in spirit as well (maybe?).

Why is this significant to the 'angle' that I have developed for this website? Well, basically, it means that, although I have some familiarity with the stuff I mentioned in point #1 above (Zen, Oriental Traditions, Eastern Mysticism), I cannot help but build a website that reflects all these influences!

Another observation (perhaps a digression): it is my personal observation that the appreciation level with respect to the nuances and connotations of the English language that a 'native' speaker may have (it's not automatic! ... depend on his or her own educational background, interests and inclinations!) — and which a non-native speaker, like myself, may also have, because through early education, such an individual has lost their original 'thinking' ethnicity, and has thus acquired some level of such appreciation of the English language — is definitely absent in those in the non-English 'education stream' and/or those not from the English language-based 'missionary' schools. The absence of appreciation results in a clear display of a tendency to speak pidgin-level English, i.e., some localized version of Queen's English (such as the 'Singlish' in Singapore). If, however, they do speak a gramatically correct form of the English language, they are still without any accurate understanding of the nuances and connotations of the English words, for their understanding is limited to the literal sense only. Yes, they make sense in their use of the English language — but they are using the language, and they understand the language, at the literal level only. You see ... it's not just the vocabulary ... it's many other aspects of the communication process ... including the intonation, facial expressions, hand gestures, body stance, and many other aspects of 'body language' that are influenced by the language (this applies not just to the English language, of course!).

A certain reasonable level of understanding of the nuances and connotations of the English language does not make me superior in any way. Things just turn out that way due to the early educational influence and my own natural interests and inclinations. Definitely, I had little control of the process because much of it were at the unconscious level; you just absorb like a sponge, without much conscious decisions!

Today, with the Internet's vast resources at our fingertips and disposal, I find that I can continue to immerse myself in the English-speaking West (and sometimes a bit of the French-speaking West, since French is also part of the huge body of Romance or Romanic or Neolatin Languages) ... there's still so much to discover and explore and study! Wowee!

But with the Internet, there is really little reason or excuse for anyone not to develop any level of such appreciation of the English language, if they choose to speak the language (you don't have to speak English, if you don't wish to ... but good luck to you!).

Now, I don't mean that a thorough study of the English language would do the job. No, siree! Far from it! Like I said earlier ... it's not just about the vocabulary or the grammar!

With the Internet, you have just about the entire literature and the other arts and the Sciences as well ... Really, you have available at hand, a humongous set of treasures and resources ... especially of the English-speaking West ... all at your beck and call, via electronic, digital, processor-driven communication. Thus, getting immersed should not be a problem!

But it may take a few years, if not a few decades, before you would notice any measurable progress ... the vocabulary and grammar rules would be the easiest (and fastest) to master ... But, liberal education, scientific education, Christian ideas, etc., etc. — these and other stuff collectively represents another level of the (ball)game!

And, of course, it would help if you are a Christian, otherwise the influences from that important avenue on the English language (and the English-speaking West) are lost to you! You've then got to work doubly hard, to read up on the Bible and related stuff. Most likely, you may face resistance (not necessarily from others, but from YOURSELF), if you are from another faith! A non-Christian would have to possess an unusual level of will power and determination, in such an undertaking!

Thirdly ... also about another aspect of my early educational background ...

Being streamed into the so-called 'Science stream', as opposed to the 'Arts stream', meant that I was knee-deep into Chemistry, Physics, 'Elementary' Mathematics, 'Additional' Mathematics, and the like — and, thus, there may be a higher tendency towards a rational, Science-grounded approach towards anything — including the study and exploration of the Mysteries.

I have little patience with 'fringe science', 'pseudoscience', 'weird science', 'cargo cult science' (as used by the late Nobel laureate Richard Feynman), 'bad science' (a la Professor Alistair B. Fraser), pathological science, 'voodoo science' (a la Professor Robert L. Park), 'anti-science', and all other non-science and nonsense. You will definitely notice this mindset in this website! My web article on 'Type of Site' explains this briefly.

Fourthly, there are the influences from or at the University level, the exposure of which tended to be more American than the otherwise predominantly UK-English (or more accurately, 'British') education at the lower levels. This can mean a difference, I suppose, although in Science and Mathematics type of subjects, the difference is not that wide. Thus, my business education at the 'Bachelor' (or graduate) level and my Computer Science education at the Master's (or post-graduate) level, were definitely American in content and style — even though I did the first in Singapore and the second in Scotland (!).

Lastly, in terms of 'faith' (spiritual) matters, I am officially a Christian, although non-denominational, definitely Pentescostal (despite being educated in Catholic schools), and most certainly, a 'Charismatic'. What this means, I will deal with later, when I present the Mysteries relating to the Bible and, especially, to Jesus Christ and also Christ Jesus (the Apostle Paul showed us there's a clear difference between the two).

The long and short of all of the above influences can be stated as follows:


Perhaps, we can view this 'Unresolved' conclusion in at least two closely-related ways (a clear example of 'nuances'), as follows ...

Temporary Judgment

(Against)

Although I am 'open' to finding out, exploring and examining what others have to, or want to, say about any so-called Mystery — else I won't even be bothered to get involved in designing and building this website on 'Mysteries of the World' — it does not mean that I am bound to 'believe' in the proferred views about these Mysteries, especially if such views are clearly of the 'fringe science' or 'pseudoscience' type. The use of those two terms may lead to the criticism that I have formed a judgment against the proferred views regarding these mysteries. That is true — but it is, at best, a temporary judgment. Why temporary? Because I am still 'open' to further developments that may change what have been hithertho regarded as 'fringe' into the 'mainstream', i.e., from the hithertho 'unorthodox' to the 'orthodox'.

Suspended Judgment

(Neither For Nor Against)

Besides 'temporary judgment', I am forced, very often, to come to this conclusion: Unproven! — meaning 'yet to be proven, either way'. Neither true nor false! Neither 'busted' nor 'confirmed', if I may borrow the two terms of the 'either-or' verdict used in the popular and quite-entertaining TV series, "Mythbusters". Thus, neither true nor false, neither 'busted' nor 'confirmed', means 'suspended judgement'. This is preferred to 'temporary judgment' in the absence of more or other corroborating evidence either way. That is, there is enough (often statistical) evidence to cast a doubt on total falsity (total falseness), but there is just enough, or even that bit, of doubt about total verity aka total veracity (total trueness).

Thus, the matter under discussion or investigation is not 'debunked' completely, and I still hold the door open to further developments, either way (in the direction of true or false).

I don't claim that the above two kinds of judgment are the 'best' way to go about evaluating the Mysteries that we are investigating in this website. The nuance is certainly present!

Fortunately, I am only a regular guy who, when faced with such Mysteries (often voluntarily, sometimes otherwise), I have to adopt some kind of stance (even between the nuanced ones) — else how?

I am not a skeptic or cynic, professional or otherwise — and I don't have to answer to fellow skeptics or cynics, or under whatever other labels they may choose to call themselves.

And, as I have already stated earlier, I am not a scientist. I do not even regard myself as an 'amateur scientist', even as I tried to be (and enjoy being) as rational and as Science-grounded as I can be. This may be difficult for some to accept, as I have also stated that, in the matters of 'faith', I am a Charismatic Christian — to skeptics and/or cynics and many others, this means that I am automatically 'disqualified' from being rational and Science-based. (I may pursue this line in another web article, but not now, not here!)

Occam's Razor

In all matters under investigation (including the Mysteries), it is also useful to apply Occam's Razor, a.k.a. the 'Principle of Parsimony'.

In other words, the simpler explanation or viewpoint may obtain.

In fact, it is almost very often that the simpler explanation applies better to the situation (or Mystery), while the involved explanation or complicated viewpoint may be unnecessary, especially if that 'constructed complexity' tries to demolish the existing paradigms in a throw-the-baby-out-with-the-water basis. And listen! Calling something a Mystery doesn't make it so! See my web article, 'What Mysteries?', on the simple definition of what makes for a true, or real, or genuine, Mystery.

I am not saying that the existing paradigms are sacrosanct — but extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence and proofs, else we go back to the caves or, worse, to the Dark Ages (Early Middle Ages) with an authoritarian theocracy overseeing and terrorizing the superstitious and cowering populace of serfs! That must never be allowed to happen again, ever!

I definitely do not condone religious mania. Religious lies have serious consequences. A modern example would include the World War II Japanese military who believes in the religious lie of a 'Divine Emperor of Japan' — with serious consequences for much of South-east Asia and East Asia (China, especially). In Singapore alone, the Japanese military slaughter young Chinese men summarily, shooting them in the head from the back or making it a game to see who could behead a person and still leave enough skin for the head to dangle! And they gang-raped young Chinese women and girls, killing them after their dastardly, perverse acts.

A more recent example would be the serious consequences of September 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center in New York City, arising from another religious lie, this time one dealing with the after-life — that a so-called religious or 'Jihad' martyr would be given a certain type of after-life, with plenty of virgins!

Nope! Respect for those who believe in lies, especially religious lies, can now be seen to be dangerous to innocent bystanders — and that may mean YOU!

So, yes! ... I would advocate a serious study of the Mysteries, including the religious ones — to see what have/had influenced, and what can continue to influence, other Humans than YOURSELF, to do what THEY do!

Caveat lector, "let the reader beware"!

Or as Jesus was fond of saying, "He who hath ears, let him hear!"

Okay, we have tackled the sub-question about why another website on 'Mysteries of the World' can, and should, be created — ultimately, it is a personal and private decision, even though the outcome (creating a website) is a public affair.

Personally, I feel that it is useful to have more rather than less discussion about the 'World's Mysteries'; at least we would have exercised our minds to some extent, and have some pleasant encounters (it is hoped) with the truly Mysterious! And remember, there can be serious consequences from ignorance and lies, especially religious ones.

Whether we are nearer or not to a general agreement among all who are involved in the discussion about the many and varied Mysteries — the hope is always there, that we may one day reach a useful concensus regarding the truth — we should come to a realization that we can still live together in some form or level of harmony, even with our differences in opinions and stances.

Let's not run away from the situation — living as a hermit in a cave may not be what it's cut out to be! — and let's not let our emotions become our masters!

Let everyone uses his or her mind for good — and not for bad or, worse, evil.

Second Question

Okay, let's tackle the second question: "Why are Mysteries important to you and I?"

In other words, why bother with the 'Mysteries of the World'?

This is, first and foremost, a question about ... no, not philosophy! ... It's about YOU, actually!

You see ... you can go through life without bothering at all about any of the Mysteries, of course!

I wouldn't want to live that way ... but you have the right to choose to do so! (And remember, Choices have consequences! Sometimes, really serious, and even deadly, consequences, as we have seen in 911, during WW II, and, during the Dark Ages, with a controlling religious regime over much of the West.)

As a whole, Mysteries are important because they add a dimension to life that can be quite enriching. Wondering about the Mysteries of existence — that is, 'life, the universe, and everything!' — surely can be enlightening.

Where the Mysteries involve 'nature' (as if 'we' are not part of nature! ... of course, we are!), they involve us. Scientists, like the late Dr. Carl Sagan, tell us we are 'star stuff' — so everything within the known Universe should be of interest to us, even if we are not scientists.

Some of the Mysteries are closer to home, of course. These tend to be about our origins within this solar (or star) system, in particular on Sol III — i.e., the 'third rock(et) around the sun (or Sol); i.e., planet Earth, Terra itself.

And when we have to wrestle with the mounting evidence and views from Science about life on this single planet, we have to wrestle with our humanity and our beliefs, faiths, religions, and values. Mysteries of our faiths are an interesting area to explore!

The home planet Mysteries also will impact other life on this planet, simply because we — i.e., Humans, aka Homo sapiens sapiens (the sapiens subspecies of the species, Homo sapiens) — are part of the biosphere of the planet, so that extinction-level events (or 'ELEs') of the past are important to find out about because of their catastrophic effects on the biosphere as well as the lithosphere (land), atmosphere (air), etc.

Mysteries within the historical timeframe of the human race also reflect on us, on our pre-occupations, on our humanity (sometimes) and on our inhumanity (other times). We seem to have a tendency to create Mysteries for ourselves, as if there weren't enough 'out there'. These manmade Mysteries could be from prehistorical times (perhaps!), through antiquity or ancient times, through historical times, and even to modern times! Some modern Mysteries may eventually turn out to have pre-modern roots (does anyone know for sure, either way?)

Lastly, there are the potential Mysteries about 'what comes next' that involve our very mortality — a hope-for afterlife, an existence beyond this existence, with eternity within our grasp. Perhaps! And, perhaps, we may find that only the means to immortality and eternity may differ — but the results could be the same! The ultimate and final question remains: "What does it all mean?"

Postscript

It is my hope that you agree with me that the 'Mysteries of the World' (aka, the 'World's Mysteries') deserve our serious time, effort, attention and other resources.


'Nuff said!

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