In this age of great change and the revealing of much new information, the very foundations of our understanding are being shaken up in many areas of our lives. As science and technology progress at record speeds, taking us into territories previously unknown, we often become distracted by the incredible high-tech developments happening around us, and as we do, miss the fact that these new inventions are only possible because of a seismic shift in thinking regarding the fundamentals of our existence and nature of the universe.
The idea that we live in a material universe where only matter exists was, in the grand scheme of things, a short-lived concept and one now outdated as for over a century physicists have been able to confirm everything appearing as matter is ultimately energetic in nature. Whilst this knowledge has been present in the science domain for some time, the implications are just now beginning to dawn on many in the population at large. We are finally starting to grasp the fact that everything is interconnected (energy cannot be divided) and we see this manifesting, for example, in a new understanding that humans don’t exist separately from Nature but are a fully integrated part of it. We are also witnessing a rise in interest regarding the non-material realms of life and issues of a spiritual nature. And as we look around at the troubles on our planet, there is a sense we urgently need to push the boundaries of our understanding in these areas in order to find a more harmonious way of living.
As a new awareness of our energetic universe seeps into the collective consciousness, various words and expressions that reflect this are appearing more frequently in our common language. People speak of ideas or concepts that ‘resonate’ and about being ‘in sync’ with someone or something, both of which relate to the properties of energy waves. Other terms that relate, such as ‘vibration’ and ‘frequency’ are also being used increasingly and sometimes to describe our state of being - ‘positive vibes’, for example. ‘Coherence’ is another word with links to the nature of energy waves finding its way into conversations more and more. It is also being used in a wider context and in my view, a bit like ‘interconnectedness’, the growing use of this term speaks of a fundamental shift in our comprehension as to what will be most important in our world moving forward.
Because I feel the concept of coherence is so vital for us to grasp in these times, I want to spend a little while exploring the wider use and deeper meaning of this word. So here goes. Coherence is the quality of ‘cohering’ which describes the logical, orderly and consistent relationship of parts. We commonly use ‘coherent’ to refer to someone who is able to bring their thoughts together and express them in an intelligible way. But coherence is more than a simple descriptive term for a cohesive relationship of parts, it is a physics concept defined as a constant phase difference in two or more energy waves over time, phase difference describing how ahead or behind two or more traveling waves are in relation to one another. This is a little hard to explain but maybe the basic diagram below will help.
The two images on the lefthand side represent waves that are incoherent. The waves with different colours also have different wavelengths. On the righthand side the two images represent waves that are coherent and even though the top set have different wavelengths, the frequency of each wave (number of waves passing a fixed point in unit time) is unchanging and it is as if the waves are travelling as one. The bottom righthand image shows coherent waves that also have the same wavelength and are travelling in phase, i.e. their peaks and troughs coincide.
Interference of waves is the phenomenon when two waves meet and superimpose (either with an additive or subtractive effect) while traveling along the same medium. This resultant interference of two or more waves causes the medium to take a new shape due to the net effect of the individual waves. However, incoherent waves with randomly changing frequencies do not create a stable interference pattern and therefore you could say they are unable to inform a new wave pattern, i.e. bring new information to the party.
There is great interest in the biological effects of coherent energy at the moment, as it appears biological systems rely on it. For example, the human body utilises many forms of energy, classical and quantum, that together form the body’s biofield, and when the energy is coherent it allows for rapid (instantaneous in the case of quantum energy) transfer of information. This means individual systems, organs, cells and molecules can be in constant communication even across large distances providing coordination of all biological processes. If that sounds pretty important, it is. Life is not possible without coherent energy.
“Biological coherence is becoming increasingly acknowledged as an autonomous and fundamental mechanism of biological self-organization, with the capacity for efficient energy transfer and information processing as well as integrating larger systems.” (1)
The heart’s energy field is the most powerful in the body and it plays an essential role in connecting, communicating and coordinating all of the body’s processes. For optimal physiological functioning it is important the heart’s energies are coherent and when they are, they help regulate other energy fields of the body, entraining them to also become coherent. There is a particular and special relationship between the heart and brain and with coherent exchange between the two, cognitive performance increases (2).
It is not just the physical body but also the mind that has been under scrutiny in relation to coherence. ‘Psychological coherence’ is a term that refers to the alignment and integration of our thoughts, emotions, and behaviours, and because we seem to thrive when we’re able to maintain a sense of order and meaning in our often-chaotic world, psychological coherence helps us navigate life’s challenges with resilience and purpose. There is a positive relationship between physiological and psychological coherence and when the heart’s field and general physiology is coherent, this leads to emotional wellbeing (psychological coherence), and vice versa (3).
Whatever field of study the term coherence is applied to, its general meaning is the same and as I mentioned at the beginning, it refers to the orderly and consistent relationship of parts. Now, after a bit more exploring, we also understand that coherence brings information along with it so that coherent energies as they interact literally in-form or bring shape to a new state of being. In the quantum world, where coherence is a fundamental property, the state created from the interference of two or more quantum states (superposition state) will not only be new, it will also contain a higher level of order and, some suggest, intelligence, even consciousness (4). In other words, as coherent energies flow and meet other coherent energies those streams of information will add up to a more intelligent creation. As the quantum fundamentals are actually the fundamentals of all life, this phenomenon is relevant to coherence on all levels.
The term ‘coherence’ has philosophical connotations which resonate on an intuitive level, as well as a logical meaning and in fact, true to its very nature, as it combines those two streams (intuition and logic) a new and deeper significance of the term materialises. This is more than a perfect blending, it is an emergent state, one not known before and with a higher intelligence built in. To understand the power of coherence to create something more evolved is so important right now as it speaks of our need to bridge the many divides in our societies that are gaping wider than ever before, it seems, and find ways to live in harmony (cohere) with those that have different ideas and beliefs (you could say wavelengths and frequencies). Modern science shows us it is collaboration more than competition that drives our evolution and so perhaps for the breakthroughs we need on this planet, it is time we release the need to stand against our opposite and allow ourselves to flow towards and embrace our polarity. As we do this we may watch with anticipation as magical solutions previously unknown emerge.
My feeling is that now you’ve brought ‘coherence’ into your consciousness by reading this article, you’ll observe its presence in your everyday life more and more. You’ll probably notice it applied to various different subjects and scenarios but one thing you’ll now understand is that this is a word of our times for very good reason.
References
Conference paper, 3rd International Symposium: Biophysical Aspects of Complexity in Health and Disease
McCraty R and Zayas M. Cardiaccoherence, self-regulation, autonomic stability, and psychosocial well-being. Front Psychol. 2014 Sep 29;5:1090.
McCraty R, Atkinson M, Tomasino D et al. The Coherent Heart Heart–Brain Interactions, Psychophysiological Coherence, and the Emergence of System-Wide Order. Integral Review 2009.
Neven H, Zalcman A, Read P et al. Testing the Conjecture That Quantum Processes Create Conscious Experience. Entropy (Basel) 2024 May 28;26(6):460.
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