From The Notebooks of Peter Seeker

 About Myself  

For those scientists who will undoubtedly read these notebooks as part of the continuation of my initial research about the element I have called Real Idea, I am enclosing some information about myself. I do this not out of any idea of self importance, but in an effort to provide each of you with some insight into my work and thinking and what it has lead me to discover. For many, these notes will appear to be the ramblings of an old man disconnected from the world of practical science.

            For others, they will appear to be the writings of a man who has lost his way. I remember in a great novel of my day, there was a prisoner in a jail who was a learned friar. He claimed to have a great treasure, which he offered to anyone who helped him escape. This man was called the mad friar. In the end, he bequeathed the treasure to a fellow inmate who himself doubted the story until he found the treasure and knew it was real. I am sure there will be those who will call me the Mad Friar of Brahman, believing Brahman does not exist.

            For a few of you, I hope you will find the earnest seeking of a man who in the course of his work discovered something that could not be explained in terms of science as we know it today. At each step of the way, I have had to fight the demons in my mind that urged me to give up this silly work, this nonsense about Brahman and the dimension of Status. In my isolation, in the lonely days when many laughed at my work and in the nights when I was alone, it was hard to accept the facts and understand where they were taking me. Over time, I have ventured far from the current conception we have of Existence. For those who see this sincere seeking and wish to follow, I offer you a few words of advice. Have faith and aspire for the truth; answers shall reveal themselves in time.

From the depths of my seeking,
Peter Seeker.

Mr. Vidya gave us five minutes to read and think about the note from Seeker. Then he turned to the class and asked another question. “What do you think of Peter Seeker from his note?”

This time there was immediate response. Charles Zimmer, the class clown, stood and said, “I understand Seeker was a strange guy, not unlike a number of the people in our class who spend their days glued to computers or lost in laboratories. What I can’t understand is how someone like this became so important and for the last nine hundred and fifty years people are still wasting time talking about it.” Mr. Vidya listened without comment. He looked for another response.

Brian Jones spoke next. “I feel Seeker was a serious and hard working person who in the course of his work came upon something bigger than anything he ever expected. I think many people in his circumstance would have disregarded the information rather than devote the next thirty years trying to discover what it was all about. He seemed like an explorer to me.” Mr. Vidya nodded approvingly and looked for another response.

Frank Justin spoke next. “Seeker fascinates me. Seeker clearly understood he had found something very important that would shake the foundation of our society. Not only that, he seemed to have understood society would find ways to discredit and laugh at this knowledge because it was so revolutionary. Yet in spite of this, Seeker decided not to walk away from his search for knowledge and truth. I feel he was a great person because he had to grapple with new things that few have ever understood. All my life I have known about Peter Seeker. My grandfather, who lives with us now, is a great admirer of Seeker. He keeps a picture of Seeker on his desk. My grandfather, like Seeker, is an eminent scientist who has won international recognition for his work. He has always sought to go beyond what he knows like Seeker and it has made him famous, but more importantly, happy. Every Saturday night my grandfather and some of his colleagues meet at our house to talk about the frontiers of knowledge. I sit and listen even though I do not understand much of their discussion, but I can see an energy and excitement in their eyes as they dream beyond our current limits of knowledge. I hope someday I can be like Seeker and my grandfather.” Mr. Vidya smiled and thanked Frank for his comments.

Then Judy French spoke. She said Seeker appeared to be more of a religious type of person than a scientist. She felt his approach to life was based on a passionate belief and faith in existence. “I know he was a scientist, but he seems to be different than most scientists I have met. I feel he touched something beyond science.” Mr. Vidya had listened quietly to all of the answers but said very little. He turned and looked for another person to speak, but there was silence.

He looked over at me and asked what I thought of Seeker. At first I felt self-conscious about speaking, but I calmed myself and said, “Seeker touched me in two ways. First, I felt he was a serious person who liked his work. He was part of the scientific establishment and was quite comfortable fitting in with its social and technical demands. Second, I felt Seeker was a man of destiny, one of those people who found himself facing a fundamental truth, which forced him to choose to remain where he was or to take a great leap outside of the norm. Seeker grabbed hold of the challenge and struggled with himself in favor of something greater. I feel he found an answer for himself. His note is an invitation to everyone to face a challenge that is bigger than life, as he did. He does not tell us what to do, but surely he encourages us to take a leap of faith.” Just as I finished my answer, the bell sounded and the class ended. Mr. Vidya asked everyone to read the first section of Seeker’s notes before the next class.

I was very busy for the rest of the day in school, but I found myself thinking about Peter Seeker in class, during lunch, and while playing basketball. My mother was right, there was something special about him and the legend of Brahman. I found myself looking forward to getting home, so I could read the pages Mr. Vidya had assigned.

It was almost 9:00 pm before I finished all of my other homework. I had come home a little late after basketball practice. I was trying out for the freshman team along with a number of my friends, so it was 6:30 before I got home. Today of all days, I had a lot of home work to complete. I even had to prepare for a small test for earth science. While I was finishing all of these assignments, I kept thinking about Seeker. I was anxious to read his notes, so I could have a better idea about him and the legend.

It was past 9:00 pm when I finished all of my work and was free to read. It was only a few pages, but I wanted to read them slowly and carefully. Mr. Vidya might call on me again, so I wanted to be prepared. I sat on my bed with Seeker’s notebooks and was just ready to start reading when my mother came into my room. She wanted to know how my day had been, as we had not met at dinner. She had a meeting and did not get home until 8:30 pm. We talked for a few minutes. She was about to leave, when I told her how excited I was about my Legend class. She listened with great interest and saw I had the notebook in my hand. I told her I was about to read the first section for tomorrow’s class. She said she wouldn’t bother me when I had such an interesting lesson to read. She smiled and left.

I read the section. It was interesting. Seeker seemed to be an ordinary person. There was nothing very special about him. He seemed to really like his work as I had suspected. From his response to the death of his friend and his visit to his friend’s wife a couple of years later, I understood he was an emotional person. I felt he and I could have been good friends. I liked him.

About an hour later, my mother came in and woke me up. I had fallen asleep on my bed with Seeker’s notebook in my hands. She smiled and said, “I think you have had enough of Seeker for one night.” She took the book and placed it on my desk as she went out. She paused at the door and said, “You remind me of Seeker. You have something of his emotional side.” She smiled and left. I showered and was asleep in twenty minutes.