1. First Conversation

2. Second Conversation

3. Third conversation

4. Fourth conversation

5. Fifth and final conversation

1. First Conversation I’ve turned 70 and should feel old—at least reasonably old—but despite trying my hardest, I can’t seem to shake off a youth that refuses to leave me. My determination is perfectly logical and natural. The reasons I’m interested in growing old are that my view of life doesn’t align with the common opinion, and because I don’t see death as the end of something wonderful and desirable—which life is—especially when, as in my case, one enjoys a long and inescapable youth. Life is full of imperfections because, in my opinion, it is itself the consequence of an imperfection. Something must have gone awry in the perfection of the nothingness from which we came, and from this disruption arose a being condemned to endure countless painful vicissitudes, beginning with birth—one of life’s first trials—and its subsequent upheavals. It’s not that life in the womb is ideal, but from living calmly and peacefully in the warm womb, without having to endure the hardships of the outside world, we find ourselves under the painful obligation to learn things at a breakneck pace—an effort that, naturally, would annoy anyone. For this reason, we do nothing more than take a quick glance at the world on the outside before bursting into frenzied, inconsolable tears. Of course, the foolish eagerness of some to be born prematurely, as if they were eager to taste all the misfortunes of this world as soon as possible. I can forgive being born a month early, but two months is inexcusable. Nor do I agree with those who choose the exact opposite and, in their obstinacy, commit the murder of their own mother; obviously, this is an unpremeditated act, because otherwise, as soon as they reached the legal age, they could be tried and convicted of matricide. Despite the horrendous nature of the crime, I do not agree that the death penalty should be applied to them, but I would impose life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Fortunately, in today’s world and in those countries that act logically and reasonably, the lazy are forced to be born. There are also cases where they are prevented from continuing this adventure of life in a more drastic manner, but this is a delicate moral issue that I do not wish to delve into. It is also somewhat unusual for some to open their eyes as soon as they leave the womb, as if what lies outside were of great interest. Obviously, they immediately realize that the outside world isn’t all that great—in fact, it must frighten them—and I find that reasonable, because nothing we see out there is familiar to us, especially if we’re born in the operating room of a private clinic. At least when born at home, we don’t have to endure the extravagant, green and masked appearance of the gynecologist and his assistants—and the simple expression of an old-fashioned midwife, who knows better than anyone the hardships of this world, is always more comforting. Although the scenery inside the womb is somewhat monotonous, after nine boring months one must get used to the viscous texture of the placenta, as if living in the cell of a cloistered convent, with only the faint light from a tiny window that barely illuminates the room. For this reason, there are those who, after being born—and having experienced firsthand the drawbacks of the outside world— deeply disappointed, return to the womb—that monastic cell—in search of the peace and security lost years ago. These premature “boyeurs” tend to be adventurers or artists, given their eagerness to see everything, whether it interests them or not, and they end up glued to a computer, browsing “Google” with the “Images” option, or—at the height of spiritual ecstasy—using “Google Earth”—but what is truly intolerable are those who take it upon themselves to write books on absurd topics, though they may also be on philosophy or natural history, as in my case. Generally, they do not attain very prominent social positions. They are the ones who gradually open their eyes to reality, as they go along and seeing nothing but what interests them—those predestined for big business, academia, or the legal profession and public administration—that is, those most useful to today’s society, which has no ethical or aesthetic aspirations. That is not my case, so I am condemned to a life of adventure, typical of an artist, and for this very reason to the inevitable curse of this persistent youth that will not leave me. Some of my readers will already have realized my paradoxical misfortune, and if they could, I am sure they would suggest a solution as reasonable as euthanasia. Indeed, I have thought about it dozens of times, but life—which is governed by the forces of evil—in its probable eternity has thought of nothing else but how to endure and defend itself against those who, like me, naively believe they can destroy it. The first malevolent invention was undoubtedly pain. That entire complex nervous system enveloping this perfect machine—the body—has no other purpose than to make us feel intolerable discomfort the moment we attempt to harm it. Thanks to pain, living beings feel a natural aversion to being victims of violent acts and flee from them just as a cat that has been scalded flees from cold water. If physical pain did not exist, we could go about our lives without any discomfort, and even do without all those parts or organs that seem irrelevant to us. But thanks to the discomfort caused by pain, the body not only remains intact but also develops undesirable substances and deformities, and that is precisely what shows the extent to which life is governed by evil. To anyone who isn’t more slow-witted than usual, it makes no sense that this perverse life would insist on preserving itself while surreptitiously rendering itself completely unviable. Could there be a greater contradiction? Where is the logic in a life whose perversity consists in protecting itself from all violence except for the inevitable death? Why does it go to such lengths? What is its diabolical plan, if it has one at all? Not only I, but sensible people who have come before me, have seen in this contradiction the mark of Satan; life’s diabolical game consists of toying with it just as a cat plays with a dying mouse, solely for the pleasure of destroying what it has built, with no other purpose than the game itself. It is no wonder that the most vibrant people are, at the same time, the most fond of play—especially children!—and the most bland and vulgar are those born with their eyes closed and, when their time comes, those who detest and condemn it. But life was not content with equipping itself with physical protection; rather, it has managed to develop another, more subtle and perverse form of protection—the very one we use to think, for better or worse—which gives rise to the most despicable monstrosity in this world: doubt. Precisely because we doubt what may await us after life, we refuse to admit the intrinsic evil that lies beneath it. As soon as we are born, we learn that there are certain things for which there are no longer any answers—precisely because we ask them while we are still alive—since the doors to the nothingness from which we came have been shut. And that is the door I am trying to open, and the reason why this prolonged youth depresses me, for it is clear that as long as I remain alive, I will not have the slightest chance of finding it, even though I have spent a good part of my contradictory existence trying to rid myself of doubt and find conclusive answers to such fundamental questions as: What lies beyond death? , or “What is nothingness?” Questions that I’m sure almost all of my readers have asked themselves at some point, and whose answers—necessarily ambiguous and vague—will have amounted to nothing more than some naive hypothesis, read in one of the useless philosophical treatises written to date, or, even more unrealistically, in the Holy Bible, assuming, of course, that they are the children of Christians. Nothing conclusive that reason or experience can prove! I must clarify that when I ask myself, “What lies beyond death?”, I am not referring literally to what happens after one breathes one’s last and loses one’s life, because the answer is elementary: after life comes, necessarily, the death of that which is alive, but not the end of life itself, nor, of course, of death itself, which is as enduring and necessary as life itself. Therefore, my question goes much further and seeks to find a far more complex answer, one that goes beyond life and death—that is, what came before, or what will come after, life and death? —Absolutely nothing! —Very well! I was supposed to be thinking, and when someone is thinking, what they think is a private matter, and no one—except, of course, God Himself, assuming He exists—can know it. —Well, obviously, I am God! —Great, you’re obviously God! But you still have time to correct yourself, and I won’t take such nonsense into consideration. —God can’t help but be God, so there’s nothing to correct. On the other hand, I’m not ashamed of being God, but I admit that, depending on how you look at it, I’m an annoying and unbelievable character. The worst part of my nature is my omnipotence and omnipresence, which generally rubs most humans, but as I said, I can’t help it—though I doubt you’d be able to understand that. —I’m trying not to lose my composure and to act as naturally as possible. With all this talk of God, it’s only natural that sooner or later He’d have to show up—but why me? —I don’t know. Actually, I was just passing by… —You were just passing by! Great, so now it turns out that God just strolls around as if it were no big deal, just like a retiree strolling through the park who, out of boredom, decides to strike up a conversation with the first person who happens to be thinking about the afterlife. —It’s not exactly like that. I wander everywhere because I’m omnipresent, but when someone wonders about the afterlife, obviously the topic interests me, and I usually join the discussion. —But what kind of discussion can there be between someone who doubts everything and someone— let’s say God, who knows everything? —Actually, I don’t know everything either; I only know everything about myself, but reality itself transcends me. But just because I know it doesn’t mean I can prove it just like that, without even trying, simply because I’m God. When you know everything about yourself, there’s no need to prove anything to yourself, but when engaging in a debate, one must always take into account what the other knows about everything that can be known. That’s when the problem arises, and despite being God, I’m forced to justify my knowledge just like any human being. —“That makes sense.” —“In fact, I have my own obligations too, just like everyone else. My job isn’t simply to be God and surround myself with heavenly beings and believers—such as angels and archangels and other more or less divine beings—too many to list here; no, my job is to go around resolving important doubts for those who raise them, and in this matter I’ve already spent nearly half a million years of your time trying to help resolve questions like the one you were asking yourself. —Let’s suppose I buy into the story that you’re God; it would be enough for you to just tell me where you live to answer all the questions raised, and we’d save ourselves a lot of headaches. Despite my curiosity, I don’t think I’m equipped with the right mind to solve complex theological or philosophical questions. In school, I never got past fractions, and I was unable to solve a first-degree equation. As for philosophy , I know what everyone else does—that is, very little… —That’s the problem: I can’t just tell you where I live out of the blue, because the difficulty isn’t so much in describing the place—something already common in many of your books—but in figuring out the path you need to follow to find it. Do you understand? —Of course! I’m not God, but I’m no fool either! —Depending on how you look at it, you’re just as much a god as I am, but, so to speak, on a smaller scale; a god of your own world. —That’s an old idea, but it doesn’t solve the dilemma. If I’m also a god, however personal that may be, why do I have doubts and still don’t know what lies beyond life and death? —It’s simply a matter of time! Besides, each person’s god is—so to speak, since there are others—an intuition; an intuition of yourself, just as you will be until the end of your days. I, too, am an intuition, but on another level; yet I, too, do not know everything there is to know about everything— I only know what concerns me as the God of my own world—that is, the universe that is also yours—and what I have been able to learn in my own time. Despite what people say, I am not eternal, but obviously my lifespan is infinitely greater than yours, which is why I know more than you do about the afterlife. Furthermore, there is another matter you must learn as soon as possible, and it’s strange that it hasn’t come up in our conversation yet. Knowledge does not depend on me—that is, on God—but on the Devil. He is fundamentally ignorant, but over time—even against his will—he will come to acquire as much wisdom as I myself possess; but by then, time will have run out for both of us, and his efforts will be of no use to him, nor will I finally be able to rest and stop being bothered by him… —“Don’t think I’m not listening to the conversation; I’m simply polite enough not to intervene unless I’m mentioned!” But since the subject of the Devil has come the subject of the Devil has come up, it’s my duty to join the discussion and defend myself. In fact, you guys don’t give me a minute’s rest, but I’ll admit I enjoy these conversations because you always learn something new! There’s nothing more boring than the self-righteous conformity of those believers who don’t bother to learn more about my fascinating personality. —Great! Now the Devil shows up, just like that, as if by magic and without or an appointment! —I already told you I was surprised he hadn’t shown up yet. He always does. He can’t stand to see me talking to someone without coming over to state his own views—that’s precisely his worst flaw. —It’s not polite to mention the Devil, attribute things to him, and make premature value judgments without allowing the person in question—which is me—to defend myself. In fact, without my influence, there wouldn’t even be a topic of conversation, since I am precisely the cause of all the doubts in this and all possible worlds, because I am the reason things move. Without my influence, the entire universe would collapse. —But it will inevitably collapse! —Wait a minute—I’m the one here who’s interested in knowing this, and and I’m already lost! —Sorry, kid, but when God and I get tangled up in these topics, I lose control. So, where did you get lost? —First and foremost, we need to set the record straight. I don’t mind having a conversation with someone who just shows up out of the blue claiming to be God, or with another who joins the conversation on his own, also without warning, and claims to be the Devil, but I have to be on my guard against both of them, and I want to make it clear that we’re going to set aside the usual moral judgment that one is good and the other is evil. I know full well that there are more than enough reasons to accept that certain things are governed by good and others by evil, but this is a rather confusing, relative, and circumstantial judgment. I accept that life is governed by evil… —Obviously! —But oriented toward good! —Let me finish! When I say “evil,” I’m referring to a subjective judgment based on the inevitable and inherent relationship between life and pain, or life and doubt, and let’s say that both pain and doubt are basically evil… —But necessary! —“Okay, okay; that’s what I was getting at! Pain is justified to preserve life, without getting into whether or not it’s worth preserving, and doubt is justified to learn what life is, without getting into whether it’s worth knowing. What I want to know, in your own words, is what sets you apart and why you’re both necessary despite being so different.” —Shall I start? —As you wish. —Personally, I have nothing against the Devil, but you have to admit that his ignorance is the cause of all the misfortunes in this world… —Of course, when you live with the idea that you’re omnipotent, wise, good, and just, but you do absolutely nothing to prove it—you cause no harm, but no good either! I’m the one who’s been at work here since the beginning of time. What could I possibly know about life if I had no experience? Knowledge is acquired only with time, and time entails suffering, but for God, time is as if it did not exist, because it is both past, present, and future. To put it one way, He controls time from beginning to end! “Try to be more concise, or this poor creature will form a false opinion of us.” —Explain it to me yourself! —What the Devil meant—though he couldn’t resist making his usual reproach—is that duration is a single, complete entity, from a beginning to an end with no present; or, to put it another way, for me there is nothing but a single quantity of time, which, as I say, we must call duration, and I have always known what would happen in each of its possible moments—what you call the present. The Devil, on the other hand, who came into being at the very same moment as I did, knows nothing of the future and must discover it for himself, because he moves and consumes time, whereas I do not move because I have no need to know something I already know—that is, I do not consume the time of which I am fully aware in its entirety. —That’s exactly what I’m saying! —And why are you, Devil, so ignorant? —You’re always so quick to judge me! But don’t you realize the crucial point? Who are you? A living being, aren’t you? Something with substance, and everything that has substance exists in time. That’s why, like me, you have doubts and are ignorant! In other words—and don’t take this the wrong way and fall back on your usual prejudices—you’re fundamentally made of diabolical substance. I am, in fact, the cause of your existence. —“I already knew that!” —“Just a side note. Actually, the Devil is a ‘poor devil,’ because his only desire and aspiration is to be just like me—because, and this is what bothers him most, in this world one cannot aspire to anything higher than being God. No matter what he does, no matter which way he turns, in the end he’ll do nothing but try to imitate me in everything.” —“But it’s certainly not out of envy! It’s simply because when we both came into being, he was already the master and I was the apprentice, and this is inevitable.” Now you’ll understand why it drives me crazy that I—who am the one who really works hard—am held in such low regard, while He—who merely sits back and lets things happen—is given all the honors. I make the mistakes and am the cause of the world’s suffering, but I myself correct them and resolve the problems and doubts that lead to misfortune, because I have no choice but to better myself, always taking God as my model. —This is more complicated than I thought! —The Devil is right, and I think he’s explained it to you with absolute clarity, and I have to say that this is the first time he’s acknowledged his inferiority in public… —I don’t consider myself inferior! See? There’s that divine arrogance again! Even if we look at it realistically, it’s exactly the opposite—and for the record, I’m not trying to offend! God is there, sitting calmly on His throne, knowing everything, in a passive attitude, not bothering to lift a finger for anything or anyone. Since He knows that even the Devil aspires to nothing more than to be like Him! —Hey, wait a minute—something here doesn’t add up for me! —Like what, for example? —If God does nothing, how do we know what we must learn and understand to be like Him? —There you’ve hit on the main issue—the one the Devil just can’t wrap his head around! First of all, it’s true that activity isn’t my primary quality. It’s true that my existence is entirely passive. I admit that the Devil does all the work, and I limit myself to mere contemplation—if we set aside these exceptional conversations, which amount to nothing more than a purely insubstantial exchange of views. I cannot move because I have nowhere to go! Where can God go if I occupy all of time and space within my own divine reality? I am necessarily immobile because I have no point of departure or point of arrival as a reference—a condition indispensable for movement. If I know everything, how do you expect me to learn more? The Devil’s criticism makes no sense! —So, he’s right; your attitude is apparently irresponsible. —Apparently so, but not really. The way I intervene in worldly affairs is precisely through the Devil’s ability to understand my points of view. If someone harms another, I cannot prevent it, but the Devil can, because he knows perfectly well that I do not approve of such behavior. Only he, who is in contact with natural reality, has the ability to influence and correct the behavior of those who cause harm. — “But it makes no sense for the Devil to be God’s advocate!” —“Of course not! I do not advocate on God’s behalf—that would be meaningless—but I am compelled to correct my own behavior because of that accursed reason.” Things were simpler before reason appeared in nature. Reason is the cause of the emergence of good and evil. —Does that have anything to do with the myth of the expulsion from Paradise? —May I answer? —Go ahead! —First of all, it’s clear that this is a myth born of the imagination of those who spread it. There was no such Paradise, nor did I expel anyone from any supposed Garden of Eden. What an imagination! It’s a way of introducing a critical turning point in the evolution toward human forms. —When my personality became associated with evil and God’s with good! But perhaps it would be helpful for God to say a few words to you about evolution, even though I myself would be best suited to explain it. —I could use that! I think I understand it perfectly because there is clear scientific evidence, but several doubts remain. Well, the issue of “Intelligent Design” and all that controversy. —I’m not surprised. But the explanation is simple: only I have the ability to remain unchanging despite the passage of time, for the reason I’ve already explained to you. But natural things start from a simple element and must end up as complex organisms, capable of having this conversation, among other things. If evolution didn’t occur, how could such a thing happen? —It’s strange that God hasn’t mentioned the fact that it’s precisely because of me that evolution must occur—which is why many consider it a diabolical theory. It certainly is! But nevertheless, as He Himself has just explained to you, it makes divine sense. —Perfect! If I had any doubts before, now I don’t even know where my right hand is! —But it’s simple! A single immortal organism would have no capacity whatsoever to mutate and evolve over time. It is essential that each organism have a brief lifespan; that it die after fulfilling its reproductive mission. In this way, opportunities arise to utilize the influences of environmental changes, genetic crossbreeding, and other concurrent factors to progressively transform into what it is destined to become over time. —And what is it supposed to become? —Like me, obviously. In my image and likeness! —Much to my misfortune! —So, Intelligent Design is true after all! —Obviously. To put it one way—and without implying that we should make a moral judgment about the comparison. Natural things begin with the image of the Devil and end with that of God—that is, with mine. But since I cannot perform the miracle—due to my inability to intervene in the Devil’s affairs, that is, in natural life—it is he himself who, thanks to evolution, takes on this complex mission. —“That’s why I was telling you that evolution is a diabolical theory with a divine meaning! Do you understand now?” —“Barely!” What I don’t understand is the cause of life itself; the reason behind this little game where if you’re the bad guy and I’m the good guy, it turns out that we’re all good in the end. Couldn’t something simpler have been done? —We should never have allowed evolution to produce human beings! Can’t you just accept things as they are and try to make sense of them without trying to outsmart God? —“Calm down, calm down! It’s perfectly reasonable to ask this question because, right from the beginning, I’ve been trying to figure out what there was or will be before or after life and death…” —“Did He ask you that?” —“In those exact words!” —“And what did you tell Him?” —“What do you want me to tell Him? That there’s nothing!” —And was he satisfied with that answer? —No, obviously I’m not satisfied! What I’m wondering is what’s in nothingness! —See? He insists on knowing what’s in nothingness! —Well, what’s going to be there? Nothing! How could there be anything where there’s nothing? —So neither of you knows! —What are we supposed to know? —Well, exactly that: what comes after life and death! —But if there’s nothing but life and death, how can there be anything before or after? —But… —No “buts” about it! And now I don’t care if I’m the bad guy in this conversation, which already seems pointless to me. So you’re not content with knowing how what exists works—you also want to know how what doesn’t exist works. And here I was thinking I was arrogant! —It’s not arrogance; it’s a reasonable question because it can be asked, and everything that’s reasonable must be raised and must also have a reasonable answer. —It’s reasonable, but it’s not logical! —The problem is that your mind isn’t as perfect as you suppose. Not even my mind— God’s mind, is perfect, and you cannot aspire to greater perfection than mine. I am your very limitation. —But however little or much you come to know will be with my help—that is, with the help of philosophy. A form of knowledge as diabolical as that of science! —All right, I’ll withdraw the question for now, but I still think that the need for good and evil to make possible evolution toward God seems to me—if you’ll both allow me the expression—a real botched job, and it has very little to do with Intelligent Design. 2. Second Conversation After two hours of conversation—not very “intelligent,” in my opinion—with God and the Devil, I haven’t come any closer to understanding anything. I still think that this part of reality—that is, life and its corresponding and inevitable death—can’t be the most interesting one. There must be another reality where we don’t have to endure this irresponsible duality, with its well-known consequences, such as the existence of good and evil; virtue and sin, etc.—which I have no idea how to describe, but which must be more perfect and interesting than this one. As I’ve said, my situation isn’t the best for finding that out. Life flatters me by granting me this pernicious and long youth and its pleasures. Thanks to my own intelligence, I have learned to avoid many of its pains. In this situation, I doubt that I am in the best position to answer the question about the afterlife. Not even God has been able to give me the answer, for it is evident, judging by His own words, that He lives in a world entirely limited to Himself and cannot see beyond Himself. That is to say, I very much fear that God is unaware of the cause of His own existence, so it is evident that He cannot give me the answer. I will have to find this answer on my own and without His help, but I doubt He will allow me to do so, for I suppose I won’t be able to go beyond his own limitations, after all, I must be made in his image and likeness. On the other hand, and since the Devil is more active—or rather, is the one who actually takes action—I suspect he knows more than he lets on, but for some reason he keeps it to himself. God could not have had a cause within himself; therefore, he must have been caused by something, and that something is what I’m interested in knowing. I insist that only the Devil must have the answer. Furthermore, the answer—if there is one—can only come from the Devil, for he is the only one capable of learning things, since God knows everything—but He does not know the cause of Himself, because that knowledge lies outside of Himself! Therefore, it is clear that during our next conversation, if I have another opportunity to debate with those two, should take me to a secluded place with the Devil, away from any witnesses, to coax the truth out of him regarding this delicate matter. My only concern is whether I might be wasting my time on futile speculations and squandering this prolonged youth. Nevertheless, I take comfort in proving to myself that I am not wasting it at all. It is precisely because I have asked such questions that I must be enjoying this mysterious and unshakable good health and prolonged youth. For that reason, I’ve learned other things, many of which are undeniably useful in real life. For example, I’m involved with a charming woman—a real beauty—who’s half my age. Despite this, she loves me passionately and gives herself to me without reservation. She doesn’t dwell on our age difference , because she has no sense of time; she simply has an innate ability to value things based on their vitality, because she needs stimulation, and I must be to her like a spicy chili pepper in a chocolate cream cake. Of course, I don’t let her down. We both know how to wisely connect with the essence of life, avoiding its flaws and contradictions. The key is to let nature do its job properly, following a strict plan based on its own principles—no more, no less; without excess but without deficiency. Seeing the positive side of every setback—which obviously prevents me from considering them setbacks at all. Everything in its own time and when it should be, not when it could be. Power is unnecessary when duty is one’s guiding principle. I also have a few good friends who appreciate me for my eccentricities, which they associate with genius. Like all good friends, they enjoy the encouragement of my friendship in exchange for their generosity and loyalty, that is, each gives the other the best they have, but in equal measure and without haggling. I have nothing else to offer but the fruit of my eccentricities, which is no small thing and is rare among ordinary people. We have fun together, each sharing our stories, all of which are equally important. Finally, whether it’s because of my healthy appearance, my eternal half-smile, or my sincere warmth, I find myself faced with the paradox that as soon as I run into someone—whom I usually look in the eye without hesitation—they feel compelled to smile at me. It’s a feeling that’s hard to explain, but it’s as if I were saying “good morning” to them in some universal language that everyone understands, devoid of all malice, even though all this cunning knowledge can come from nowhere other than the Devil himself. So it could be said that I find humanity as a whole pleasant, and I must be just as pleasant to them. I almost forgot to mention that the same thing happens with animals, but it must be for another reason. In a park near my house, there’s a kind of bird that comes to eat from my hand. Nor do I worry about money or how to earn it, because to date it has come to me—in a way I might well call miraculous—whenever I’ve truly needed it. And I say “truly needed” because in most cases we squander it needlessly. I’m up to date on all the wonders of new technologies, including the Internet, but after trying almost all of them, I’ve given up on several of its most spectacular inventions. One of them is the cell phone. I have not the slightest doubt that people who need it do not enjoy the pleasures of this life as I do; on the contrary, their efforts lead to nothing of value in nature. In other words, I trust that sooner or later they will be eliminated, just as so many other inventions—equally annoying and unnecessary, as should happen with nuclear energy—one of the greatest aberrations of the human mind—which I’m sure pleases neither God nor the Devil. In short, my life isn’t exactly a vale of tears; quite the opposite, I live as close to Paradise as one can possibly be. This is precisely what I am trying to find out, and so far neither one nor the other has been willing to clarify it for me: whether Paradise exists in that which we stubbornly call nothingness. It’s not that my insistence on this matter means I’m complaining about living conditions in this world—which is not the case—but rather that it’s an inevitable question in any sound mind. I suppose I enjoy the favor of both God and the Devil, and this is no contradiction, for it’s evident that God’s best servant is the Devil himself; without his considerable help, God’s designs would not be fulfilled. But the issue of good and evil always comes up again, and again the question of good and evil, of their causes and effects, and it would not hurt to resume the discussion precisely at this point, for it is evident that the world is torn between one influence and the other, yet lacks an objective basis for choosing one over the other. “Hello. I’ve heard the last part of your thoughts; the first part holds no interest for me, and given the allusions, I must offer some clarification.” “Where is God?” “He’ll be here soon; he never misses a debate if it’s interesting. He likes to stick his nose into everything.” —Show some respect! —No, He already knows me, so He won’t get angry. Oh, and don’t even dream of discussing matters of God in private without His presence—whatever needs to be said should be said to His face, without holding back. —It was just a supposition, but all right—as long as you speak plainly in His presence! “I’m not afraid of God!” “That sounds pretty bold—I suppose you have your reasons.” “Sure, we’re buddies, but we each mind our own business!” “But God is all-powerful!” —Undoubtedly, but He lacks the ability to prove it. As I told you, God can do nothing but remain motionless with His immense potential power. But He doesn’t act—neither to remedy evils nor to inflict them. I do, so if we’re talking about real life, I’m infinitely more powerful than He is. —And you know more than you’re letting on! —Possibly… but don’t get ahead of yourself! —Don’t ask the Devil more than what he wants to tell you—that’s his tactic! —Ah, there you are! —I’ve been here since the beginning of the conversation—I’m omnipresent! —Then why haven’t I seen you until now? —We should have started with this at the beginning. Do you remember the myth of the Garden of Eden? The part about the expulsion and all that? —Of course, it’s the first thing they teach us in religion class. Theologians and religious leaders are quick to teach us that we’re the devil’s natural children… —No wonder! —I haven’t always been visible. You could say I’ve only been so since relatively recent times. To put it plainly, since the whole Paradise business. Since then, I haven’t had a single day of rest, because ever since they came up with my idea, everyone’s been asking me for impossible things, asking me strange questions; they affirm or deny me—they even renounce me—almost every day, and not with the manners and vocabulary one would expect after so many years! Not to mention the atrocities committed in my name! —It’s not my fault! These are the consequences of evolution; we’ve discussed this before. —“Indeed. Before your species appeared—which is, of course, my own as well—no living creature had even the faintest idea of God. What’s more, they had no ideas of any kind—neither good nor bad; neither profound nor stupid.” Things were simple back then… —And I had a good reputation, not like now! When a violent death occurred, no one blamed the Devil—it was the most natural thing in the world and bound to happen! —So are you saying that only when we formed an idea of God did the idea of good and evil also arise? —“Exactly! But it’s not that simple.” —“Let me explain it to him; the Devil has a way with words when it comes to philosophy—theology is your thing.” —“Well, whoever it is, just get it together!” —“What is evil?” —“I don’t know for certain, but St. Augustine said it’s the absence of good.” —“Correct!” This bishop, despite living in unreasonable times, came up with the correct answer—because he was more of a philosopher than a theologian! We could say he was more inspired by me than by God. But he made a slight error in his reasoning. Evil is the absence of the good that the Devil possesses; in other words, it is a matter of the Devil and not of God. —“And aren’t you going to say anything?” —“The Devil is right; I do not operate within the duality of evil and good—I don’t even move! He does.” I am immutable—that is, absolute good—which cannot turn into evil; he, however, as part of temporal substances, does operate within this duality; therefore, evil is the absence of good that exists within him. The idea is correct. —I’d never thought of it that way! —Just wait and see! To help you understand better: evil is causing pain without a logical and reasonable justification; therefore, evil always depends on the logic and reason that justify the act of causing pain. For example, when a lion hunts an unsuspecting and defenseless gazelle calf and kills it before the eyes of its desperate mother, we don’t say that it’s a bad action, simply because the lion lacks the capacity to reason. It is, therefore, a logical and natural action—but it isn’t reasonable! Consequently, the indispensable condition for the existence of evil—and of good, of course—is to be endowed with reason; to be a reasonable human being. Do you understand? —So, only human beings can be good or evil, but we cannot make value judgments about the morality of animals. —“Of course not! But human beings who do not reasonably justify the harm they cause fall into the same amoral category as an animal.” —“And for that very reason, only human beings have the remote possibility of speaking with me or with the Devil, for we are nothing more than the moral aspect of their existence. When we speak of me or of the Devil, we are speaking of morality, not science or mathematics, to give two examples of other aspects of human existence. —In other words, your ideas serve no other purpose than to reasonably determine when and how we should cause pain to others. —Or pleasure—don’t forget the other side of the coin! —How could I forget that when my very existence is pure pleasure? —You must be a rare case of advanced moral evolution! —Thank you; that’s the best compliment I’ve ever received—especially coming from the Devil! —God doesn’t give compliments. —But He doesn’t offer criticism either; my passivity also has its positive side; all that is the Devil’s business. Human beings only began to know whether they were acting right or wrong when the Devil took a fancy to philosophy—something inevitable in the evolution of his peculiar mindset, but one of the most important causes of his foreseeable end as such a Devil. Philosophy inevitably leads to me; that is to say, the rational discovery of truth leads to the full discovery of my divine personality. Philosophy is the only path to avoiding evil, because if it is necessary to cause harm, it must be done for a justified reason—as when we disinfect a wound with alcohol. But since, in the long run, for the moral human being there will be nothing that justifies causing pain, they will attain the state of absolute goodness, and evil will disappear. —I have always believed that theology was the science of morality. —Not at all! Since theology is not rational, it can justify causing harm for reasons that are not grounded in truth, but in the fanaticism of dogmas. — But dogmas are supposed to be revealed by you yourself! —As I’ve already grown tired of saying, I cannot perform such a miracle, because, I insist, I do nothing. It is the Devil who causes those supposed apparitions and revelations. —But why? —Because of that blessed intuition of God! —The Devil means faith, but he won’t utter that word even if it meant his own ruin! Yes, this is the only open channel of communication between me and human beings. A veritable black hole in the human mind! —No triumphalism! Because God’s intuition says nothing concrete about Him, but rather conveys a vague—not to say confusing—sense of God, which must be reasonably interpreted by me. And not through theology, but through philosophy! —Right, reasonably. Then revelations are unnecessary. —Absolutely! And moreover, they are regressive for human morality itself. With time and the necessary evolution, reason alone has sufficient capacity to achieve a high level of social morality; it will even inevitably converge with the absolute goodness of God Himself, which will, of course, the end of my mission in this world. —In other words, we can say that peoples governed on the foundations of reason are the most divine. —You can simplify it that way if you wish. —All the harm I have caused humanity has not been due to my wickedness but to my ignorance; to my irrationality. If I am evil, it is because I am ignorant. That is to say, evil lies in the ignorance of God… —“I never would have expected to hear such a truth from your lips! Are you getting old, Devil?” —“Of course, I am not God, with all His timelessness intact; I pass through time because I am of this world! But then again, don’t you know the saying, ‘The Devil knows more because he’s old than because he’s the Devil’? —“Well, let’s keep this conversation calm and without belittling anyone!” —“All right, go on, Devil.” —I’ve made countless mistakes ever since human beings acquired the capacity for reason. Before that, things were simple, and I acted according to the designs of nature, which created me… —What do you mean, “nature”? Didn’t God create everything, including the Devil? —What nonsense! —Typical of the limitations of human reason! —But what sense would it make for God to create the Devil? —So…? —Let’s take it one step at a time and stay on the topic of good and evil. That’s a more complicated matter than you imagine, and I doubt you’re ready to understand it yet. —All right, but don’t question my mental capacity. If I were slow-witted, what would be the point of this conversation? —You’re a quick learner; it’s clear you’ve put my teachings to good use! God is undoubtedly the absolute truth, but what is truth? —The absence of contradiction in a statement. —Then you’ll understand that truth cannot be of this world! As soon as you arrived at a statement without any contradiction whatsoever, there would be nothing left to ask or clarify—it would be the end of falsehood, but also of truth! “Then why all this interest in discovering the truth?” —It is not a capricious interest; it is an urgent necessity resulting from the passage of time. Everything that passes comes to an end with its duration, and at the end of duration lies God, inevitably. —Hence my inability to move, for all movement comes to a halt within me. I have only to wait. The Devil is the one who does all the work; he is the one who understands the affairs of time. I understand only duration. —But what is the difference between time and duration? —For God’s sake (pardon me!), it’s perfectly clear! Duration is all the time that is yet to pass, whereas time itself is the succession of moments that pass within that very duration. Duration does not move—that is, God; time does—that is, me. Duration is absolute—again, God; time is necessarily dual: past and present—and belongs to the substantial—once more, me. —But duration is also supposed to have had a cause—a beginning—and must have an end, just as time does. — Don’t keep harping on this idea! If duration is all of time, how can there be a time before duration? —There lies the dilemma, once again, of the cause of the first cause! —Between us, I recommend that you not raise this aporia again in God’s presence, or you’ll get yourself into trouble. Everything created has the same limitations as its creator. Nothing can escape this reality… not even the Devil! —Let’s suppose I give in and accept it. Then can you tell me what lies at the end of time, once duration has come to an end? —God has already told you a thousand times: Paradise, once again! —That’s exactly where I was going with this, and I won’t accept any more evasions! What is Paradise? — “Paradise is nothingness! I think I already told you that at the beginning of this discussion.” “And you, Devil, what do you have to say?” “How can the Devil speak of Paradise? Have you lost your mind?” “But then, we’re back at square one! Is neither of us going to be able to answer what lies beyond good or evil?” —Maybe another time… —The Devil is trying to confuse you! How can there be anything above God and the Devil? —See you later! Because obviously you can’t say “goodbye” or “God be with you” to the Devil —See you later, Devil —I’m leaving too. Your question has thrown me off a bit—which is unusual for me—and I need to think this over. —I didn’t mean to… —No, it’s fine, it’s just a new topic and I need to give it some thought. See you another time! —Goodbye, God! —Goodbye, man!! 3. Third Conversation Nothing—I just can’t seem to make any headway with my legitimate doubts! God doesn’t stray from his calling—goodness—and the Devil, who is undoubtedly more gifted in philosophy, is clearly trying to hide what he truly knows. He must certainly have his reasons, but it’s baffling. Several days have already passed since our last conversation. The truth is, I haven’t had much time and haven’t thought to summon them. World events are in turmoil, and undoubtedly both God and the Devil, have a great deal to do with them. While I live naively devoted to my reasonable existence—which grants me a long and healthy youth—irrationality has taken hold of the world of finance. The blame lies with two or three American politicians who failed to recognize that politics is the social arm of reason and the law; that is to say, they weren’t really politicians at all. Suffice it to say that one of them was a third-rate actor and can’t even be considered an artist! The others were simply dimwits, especially the last one. The very antithesis of philosophy! He must have believed that Plato was the title of a movie about the Vietnam War and that Aristotle was a Greek millionaire who married Kennedy’s widow. Their wickedness, to quote the Devil’s theories, was that they didn’t stop to consider whether the suffering they caused to so many millions of people around the world—whether through their bellicose interventions or by promoting a virtually unregulated free market—had any legitimate justification. Fortunately, the Devil, who is once again right, has set things right and inspired the American people to choose— finally! , a real politician—with all his flaws, of course—who is rethinking those justifications with more intelligent arguments and thus ones more pleasing to God. Good politicians should come from law or philosophy schools, but not from economics or the fine arts—and certainly not from Hollywood! Another matter is whether that gang of ignoramuses, financiers, and economists—who trade in other people’s money for their own benefit, without taking any moral considerations into account. They believe that the market knows how to decide for itself what is good or bad for human beings and fail to understand that the market is nothing more than a mechanism at the service of the moral person—and not the other way around—that the moral person must be at the service of the market, which is impossible! But now they’re paying dearly for it. Well, to tell the truth, we’re all paying for it, but at least I live in a country where politics is truly at the service of reason and the law, and I hope it doesn’t affect us too much. Rather, I trust that the exact opposite will happen: that we’ll be the model to emulate in the future. But with all this mess, I’m forgetting the fundamental point, and my question remains unanswered. I no longer expect anything from God, but I’m increasingly convinced that the Devil has the answer, but for some reason he’s keeping it to himself. —“It’s just that the answer isn’t useful to human beings!” —“Ah, so there is an answer! Sorry, I didn’t even say hello.” —“You’re too fixated on a matter that’s of no interest to you.” —“Then if it’s of no interest, why does the question arise?” —“It’s… because of a glitch in the human mind!” I shouldn’t say this unless God is present, but creation isn’t perfect; in fact, creation itself is the result of an imperfection… of nothingness! —Ah, so my intuition was right! —I’m surprised God hasn’t intervened yet in this new conversation. —It’s just that last time He left with doubts… —I have no doubts about my own affairs; I only have doubts about the Devil’s! Hello to both of you… —Hello, God, I’m glad you’re joining the conversation again. This conversation wouldn’t be the same without your opinion. —I am completely certain about my creation. I know everything: past, present, and future; but if the human mind can conceive of something above me, then I’m lost—it’s beyond my power. I have no way of knowing anything about my origins because, in my own view, I have no origins. I cannot get into a discussion about matters that are beyond me. I must have made some mistake in my creation—just as the Devil was telling you—for you to even be able to ask such a question. If you accepted the idea that nothingness does not exist, the problem would be solved, but you insist on making a mountain out of a molehill, as they say… —Ahem! —Are you trying to say something, Devil? —Yes, but it’s a delicate matter; I don’t know if I should… —Speak plainly, Devil; you yourself told me to give my opinions straight to the point. —But God lives under the delusion that He is the one and only, omnipotent, and absolute creator of all that is visible… but that’s not the case. He hasn’t even created this world… —Now that’s a good one! Then let someone tell me why I know in advance what will become of the world, because I live as much in its past, its present, as in its future. I know what will happen tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, and everything that happens in the world is foretold according to my designs, because I am its creator! —But the Devil must have some argument to make such a claim! —Now he’ll come at us with the idea that the world is his creation too! —Impossible; I cannot make such a claim, because it wouldn’t be logical. How can I be the creator of the world and, like you, be unaware of both my origins and my destiny? —“I am your destiny!” —“I am yours, yes, but not nature’s. Nature is, reasonably speaking, eternal! We are nothing more than merely instrumental and circumstantial beings, at the service of nature! —“Wait a minute, wait a minute; let’s get this straight! New concepts have come up here that need to be clarified: the world and nature. No matter how much of a God or Devil you may be, this doesn’t work without a bit of philosophical rigor. First of all, Devil, what do you mean by ‘the world’?” —That’s a complicated question. I’d prefer that God be the one to start by giving his opinion. —The world? Well, what else could the world be?: the universe, the cosmos; everything that exists, everything visible and invisible; the known and the yet-to-be-known—in other words, Me! —And your definition, Devil? —The world is undoubtedly the cosmos, but it’s also yourself, or a cockroach, or a microbe invisible to the naked eye. God doesn’t know the true definition of the world, due to his scant interest in philosophy and excessive attachment to theology. In philosophy, we can say that a world is any spatio- -temporal unit contained within an organism. What defines the world is its totality in and of itself. That is why we commonly say “every person is a world” or “the world of horses” or “the world is a small place,” etc., because we are always referring to a totality of something related and consubstantial, without specifying what its space is. —So God is right: He, too, is a related totality—the totality of all space-time totalities, so to speak. —Yes, but He isn’t the only one! He is undoubtedly the God of the universe… —So, where does that leave us? —Don’t you get it? That is precisely the confusion of the human mind. All worlds necessarily have a duration. As space-time units, they are not eternal—time eventually causes them to disappear! If God is a totality, He too will necessarily have to disappear. The universe is a totality and will have to disappear when its time runs out. —“That’s why you know something you’re keeping to yourself—because you understand time better than God Himself!” —“I don’t need to understand time, because as God, I am time itself!” —“Excuse me, all “your” time—that of your world or your universe—but you have no idea what time is in and of itself. One world is followed by another new world, and—forgive me for saying this so categorically and bluntly—every world has its own duration, that is, its own God! —I admit that philosophy isn’t my forte, but here’s a simple contradiction: if the world is everything, there can be nothing but everything. I admit it sounds strange, but there’s no reasonable alternative to believing that there can be anything outside of everything; that is, there can be nothing outside of myself. —“I might as well say: nothingness; and that was my question from the very beginning!” —I didn’t say that existence doesn’t unfold within a whole; I’ve known that for twenty centuries or more, ever since I took an interest in philosophy. What I’m questioning is precisely the dimension and structure of the whole, for our minds—both God’s and mine—are not capable of forming a true conception of the whole; hence we can never perceive an end to it, where there is supposedly nothing, because there is always something! —But where is there always something? —In nature—I’ve already told you! —Then nature has neither beginning nor end. —No, as far as we can conceive. —But God says… —He can conceive of it even less than anyone else; God conceives only of Himself and does not go beyond His own duration as the God of a necessarily finite universe—which, for us, is everything. What we’re talking about is the place where the universe itself is located. A space and a time where that magnitude is situated, bounded by another time and another space—namely, our universe. — Are you implying that I am not the one and only God; that there are other gods and other universes? —You’ve gone too far, Devil! —I already warned you that God wouldn’t find this idea amusing at all. He cannot see beyond the space-time dimension of our universe; I can. —You can? And for what reason, if I may ask? —Because I… Well, to put it one way, because I travel—not just through this world, but through the others as well. I’m always on the move, and when one world ends, I start another one! Do you understand? I can’t stay still for even an instant—that’s inconceivable—because reality is nothing but movement! If movement ceased, reality itself would cease. —“So, when a world ends, what happens to God?” —“It’s not for me to say. He must already know.” —“Nothingness; that’s why I can have no end!” —“I knew that would be his answer—he’s simply incapable of conceiving of movement! He’s never moved in his life! Indeed, nothingness—that is to say, it vanishes without a trace! —How is that possible?—But haven’t I explained it clearly enough? If God has a duration, as long as He lasts and time exists, there is movement and the existence of things is possible, and therefore, there is something. But if time runs out, movement ends and there is nothing, not even God!… Except for the potential space where God Himself was, which is precisely what we now call nothingness.—“Absurd! There is nothing beyond God!”—“See? Always the same old story, and there’s no getting him off that!”—“And what is that space where God is supposed to be?”—“That’s exactly where you’re heading!”—Yes, that’s precisely the only doubt that disturbs my peace of mind!—But what’s the point of knowing? You and your world will vanish with the end of your God’s time… That’s reality; our reality! That’s another space-time dimension, to which only I have access—and only on rare occasions.—Well, even if it has no practical meaning for me and it’s unreal, is there any reason why I shouldn’t know it?—Ask God. Human beings achieve their moral fulfillment by coming to know God and being in His image and likeness, but if you try to surpass Him, that puts you back at square one—that is, facing ignorance of something new and unknown, or to put it another way, once again facing evil at its worst.—“No human being should aspire to know beyond the attributes of his God—that is, mine. I provide happiness, pleasure, and joy. If you yourself boasted of enjoying both, why do you need to ask yourself questions that take you back to the Devil’s origins? I offer you Paradise!”—That’s the mental disorder I was telling you both about! A glitch in the system of nothingness! There is no such thing as Paradise, because there is no such thing as nothingness!—Well, enough of this nonsense! If nothingness is an idea and all ideas have a meaning, what on earth does the idea of nothingness mean, and why does it exist as such an idea? What’s the point of it?—Let the Devil answer that; I don’t need to know. I can’t conceive of such an idea—that idea must be the Devil’s doing!—Indeed, the idea of nothingness, like all the others, was invented by me. God has no ideas!—that is to say, He has only one idea: the idea of Himself, but as you’ve seen, it turns out to be far too monotonous and boring. The idea of nothingness represents the inconceivable—that which cannot be seen or experienced because it exists only in potential. But that doesn’t mean that just because we can’t see or experience something, it’s necessarily “nothing”; it’s a provisional idea that’s absolutely necessary for advancing our understanding of things. Where there’s nothing today, there may be something tomorrow! It is, so to speak, a necessary barrier for the development of our own ideas and for the consistency of the very reality in which we live. —Therefore, the idea of God is limited by nothingness… —Correct! Hence His obsession with nothingness, which He prefers to call Paradise. It’s just another way of making the unknown desirable. —Interesting! —Absurd! —Not so absurd! For an idea to arise, a starting point and an endpoint in a train of thought are essential. Everything outside that space is nothingness! —Then, Devil, you agree with me: I am all that exists, since I am the idea of everything, and whatever cannot be conceived outside this idea—which is everything—simply does not exist; it is nothing! —I’m getting lost! —No, if God is right; the problem is that nothingness, as I was saying, is a temporary unreality, an unknown space, but one that potentially exists. To put it in strictly philosophical terms: “it is, but it is not yet and does not yet exist.” —That’s why Parmenides said that “being cannot not be”! —Correct! Being has always been, but viewed from our own perspective of spacetime reality, it has not always existed. When it comes into existence, it is nothing more than a being limited by duration, always within a specific spacetime. —That must refer to you, God! —I’m sorry to say I can’t agree, and I’m getting drawn into something that doesn’t really interest me—philosophy, a subject of the Devil—but how can Being remain without existing? —That’s the beauty of it! It’s that it has always existed, but in different spacetime dimensions! That’s why when we think of Being, we do so from the perspective of our own reality or dimension, and the Being that exists in another dimension doesn’t exist for us, because it cannot be measured by our own space and time and lies outside our duration; but the fact that it doesn’t exist for us doesn’t mean it isn’t—otherwise, how could we even propose the hypothesis of its existence? —So after me, there’s nothing! —Of course, of course; after you, nothing! But this young man isn’t content to accept the facts as they appear to be, which would lead him to you without further questions. He wants to know what nothingness “really” is! —That’s the sin of pride! —Come on, God, we’re in the 21st century! That whole “sin” thing is a bit outdated. Nowadays we just say it’s incorrect or unrealistic—but “sin”? Get with the times! —I’m always up to date! —“In matters of morality and even the truth about this world, I agree, but in matters of speculative reason and philosophy, you’ve never been very up-to-date. People not only experience what they wish to know, they also formulate hypotheses about everything conceivable, even if it cannot be experienced and, therefore, known—precisely because it is of another world! —But that approach won’t make them happy. —I’m reasonably happy—probably above average—and I ask myself those questions. In real life, I don’t renounce you, and I like the idea that the Devil is reforming himself, but the mind can’t help but question everything that is reasonable, whether real or unreal; of this world or another. “But what’s the point of speculating about things that have no practical use in real life? If I am the destiny of this world, including its humanity, why wonder what lies beyond that destiny, if—as the concept itself implies—destiny is the ultimate end of everything I have created?” —“It’s pointless; God will never accept any idea that surpasses Him! But it’s clear that, unlike animals—who know only what they need to know for practical purposes—human beings seek knowledge for the sake of truth, without seeking any practical use for what they discover through reason. It’s only natural!” If their mind is capable of transcending the very idea of God, it is inevitable that it will do so. That’s the “disorder” I was telling you about earlier! —It’s no mental disorder! In my opinion—and I admit that as a human being my perspective is very limited—all knowledge must sooner or later serve some purpose, even that which transcends reality itself and may seem unreal to us. In fact, I’m not the first to ask these questions. These have been the fundamental questions since the dawn of philosophy! —“God refuses to admit what’s obvious: I am the one who seeks the truth, and since I existed before God, I must also exist after Him…” —“You’ve finally let it slip, Devil! So the myth that you’re a fallen angel isn’t true!” —“Only partly, and I think I’ve put my foot in my mouth! I should never have revealed this secret!” —What secret? There are no secrets from God! —About the things of this world, but not of others; you don’t have the slightest idea about other worlds. —Tell me, Devil! —Another time—I’ve said enough already. The Devil must be restrained in his revelations because when he ceases to be evil, that is, when he ignores the things of this world and others, it will be the end… —But only of this world! —Of course; I’ve already said that nature has no conceivable beginning or end! Well, until next time—even the Devil needs to rest. —“I already told you—don’t ask the Devil to tell you more than he wishes to tell you. I don’t know if it’ll be worth my while to participate in the next conversation. Everything that needs to be said about me has already been said, and I’m not interested in knowing anything about nothing— and forgive the redundancy! So, goodbye, and I don’t know if we’ll see each other again. But don’t forget that I am the limit of reality, and beyond God there can only be evil! —I’ll keep that in mind. Goodbye, God. —Goodbye, man. —Well, if we don’t see each other again, God, until we come face to face at the end of your world. —Until then, Devil! —See you soon, Devil—I’m still interested in the subject of the afterlife! 4. Fourth Conversation I’m sorry that God got upset during our last conversation. I understand that He, who in every sense lacks the Devil’s attributes, also lacks any interest in knowledge beyond the real world—that is, beyond His world and, of course, mine as well. Back in my catechism days, they taught me to honor God, but they failed to tell me what the proper way to do so was. They told me—in a hushed tone, of course—that the truth would set us free, without giving us even the slightest clue as to what freedom actually was. Especially under the dictator’s rule! Now I’m trying to form a concrete idea, and the result goes against God Himself—I just don’t get it! Of course, God doesn’t seem very reasonable. Sure, He doesn’t need reason to figure out what He already knows—God is the truth, period! In my last conversation with the two of them, several ideas came up that have impressed me. Of course, the Devil always impresses with his ability to reason. He is undoubtedly the father of philosophy! The most unsettling idea—unfortunately left unresolved—is that apparently nature, and not God!, is what is eternal. What a letdown! However, I cannot conceive of such an idea, for nature, as an existing entity, must necessarily have a beginning and an end. But, of course, if we look at it from another point of view, it’s clear that death isn’t the end of life, but rather another form of life; on another level, or in the Devil’s words, in another dimension. The problem, as the Devil said, is getting a grasp of the various dimensions of space-time—or, to put it in more understandable terms, of the various worlds and their respective natures. But I don’t quite understand it. That is to say, I understand it when presented as an isolated hypothesis, but I don’t see the connection between the various space-time dimensions, nor can I grasp their structure. Let’s say that if I look at it up close, I get a clearer picture—that is, if every living being is a world, I can see the relationship between us: the theory of evolution. But when I think about the universe, I simply get lost! Is the universe also subject to the laws of evolution? The Devil must know, because he’s traveled everywhere! But the most baffling idea is that of God himself. It turns out that, as something that has a duration, it unfolds over time, because everything that is something must necessarily have a duration, even if it is the whole! So far, we’ve lived by limiting the whole to the idea of the cosmos, and according to this reasoning, the cosmos itself—insofar as it is something—has duration and unfolds over time; therefore, God, the God of the cosmos, cannot be infinite, but must necessarily be finite! What is God really? And what, then, is the infinite? The Devil says it is nature, but nature is supposed to be everything that exists, is real, and can be experienced, and as such must necessarily be finite. But no, of course not, because the duality of nature is resolved between life and death, and it is impossible to know when this contradiction ends— whether it will all be death or all life! Neither one option nor the other, since both are dialectically necessary: life must necessarily end in death, but death cannot arise from any state other than death itself… because there’s nowhere else to look! —“There is a third option! There’s always a third option! Or haven’t you heard the saying, ‘Good things come in threes’?” —Ah, thank goodness you showed up, Devil, because I’m a total mess! —What’s the latest on God? —I doubt he’ll come. He must be angry with both of us… —Poor guy! It’s not easy being God and living locked away in his immense integrity, unable to consider anything outside himself; unable to travel around and see things beyond his own space-time dimension. Of course, if something like that were to happen, it would be chaos. He has to remain as he is until the end of cosmic time—our time, of course. In any case, we’ll disappear along with him. What good does it do us to know things that transcend him? —“According to Him, mere and wicked curiosity!” —“I always have to be the one to blame for everything in this world!” —“In this case, there’s no doubt about it. If I’ve understood correctly, love of the truth, for us, is love of God, and not pretending to go beyond that; but seeking truths that can never be proven, just out of curiosity to know them, is no longer love of God—perhaps it’s hatred…” —What do you know about love, boy! —I’m madly in love! —Yes, no doubt, but you have no idea why. —Because… Because… Well, it’s true—it turns out I really have no idea why! —Love, my friend, is the attraction to the unknown, the unfathomable, the mysterious. —So I only love what attracts me but which I don’t know! —Correct! That’s why now that we’ve come to know God, we’ve stopped loving Him. —That’s why He left in a huff! —There’s no reason to be angry; on the contrary, He should be our friend even more now than before! —But if you say that we don’t love what we know… —Then, my friend, friendship arises, because friendship is the attraction to the known and kindred; and friendship is more enduring than love, even if it isn’t as strong or as emotional a feeling! —“That’s interesting, but you’re right! Rather than being in love, I live in harmony with everything around me.” Well, I think I love my partner because I don’t really know her very well, but I’m passionately drawn to her! So is what I feel for her really love? —Without a doubt, but sooner or later it will turn into friendship—or enmity, if you discover she isn’t really the way you thought she was! That’s where all those great romantic disappointments come from! But it’s also a good reason to justify the desire to discover truths that transcend reality itself—for the love of truth, which is the unknown! —Well, let’s set my personal matters aside and get to the point, Devil, because I’m on pins and needles. —You trust me too much; you should try a little harder and find all the answers for yourself! —So, what use are you in this world? —I have my doubts too, because I’m not God! —But you yourself have said that you’re above Him; that you’ve existed since before the God of our universe appeared… “That’s not exactly true! Let’s just say I’ve served other gods who came before Him, but I’ve never been free, nor have I ever existed on my own. There’s always been a God above me!” —And does that bother you? —What does it matter? That’s just the way things are, and there’s no point in overthinking it! Evil exists because good exists; there’s pain, but there’s also pleasure; love and hate, and so on. There can be no gods without devils! Reality, in whatever dimension, is always dual. —“We’re back to chaos! But how many realities are there?” —“Millions, trillions—no one knows!” —“Not even you?” —“Not even me!” —“And does God know?” —“Less than I do! As I’ve told you, He doesn’t travel; I do.” —“Well, all right; I’ll accept it even though I don’t understand it. But let’s go back to the beginning.” As soon as I arrived, you told me there was a third option, besides life and death. Could it be immortality? —Absurd! Don’t you learn anything after everything we’ve talked about? If it were immortality, there would also have to be “non-immortality.” Have you ever heard that word? —Obviously not, because it makes no sense! —Then how can you even conceive of immortality—that is, a life that doesn’t die? It’s completely irrational, and therefore belongs to my worst moments of ignorance and wickedness! Fortunately for God’s plan, I’m improving with every passing century and growing older… —By the way, how old are you? —About 13.7 billion years—the age of the universe. The same as God’s! —Our God, of course! —Do you know of another? —But you say there are more… —But they can’t come to know one another because they belong, belonged, and will continue to belong to another space-time dimension. To us, they neither exist, nor have they ever existed, nor will they ever exist! —You’re making this more and more complicated! Your stuff is convoluted and complex; God’s was simpler and easier to understand… —That’s why I’m the Devil! The nonconformist! The true creator! The philosopher! —If you keep going down that path, you’ll never redeem yourself! —“Someone has to keep the flame of life—and of time—alive! If I were like God, in another 13 or 14 billion years everything would end, just like that, without a trace. My job is to always go further, but without ever knowing where I’m going. I only know that there will always be a God in my constant journey through whatever reality or dimension I move through. But the gods don’t have that mission. —You speak as if you were a pagan philosopher from ancient Greece! —They had a more objective view of reality. Plato was to blame for the change. After him, the idea of multiple gods—which is the reasonable one—disappeared, and we fell into the irrationality of conceiving of God as having neither beginning nor end, which makes His existence impossible! —So, we’ll go back to pagan polytheism! —Do I have to repeat this again? But haven’t you understood it yet? There is only one true God and millions, trillions, or quadrillions of false ones! —But…! —They’re false because we can’t reasonably conceive of their existence as a statement without contradiction. I’ve already told you this before: they are there, but they neither are nor exist! —Enough with the riddles! This is starting to sound more like theology than philosophy! —That’s what your poor, ignorant, and diabolical mind assumes. The mystery is perfectly reasonable, but it’s still a mystery! It’s the third option we were talking about! —But which one, which one? I’m starting to lose my temper and my manners! —Nothingness, obviously! —This is really enough to make anyone angry! —All right, all right; I’ll try to be more specific, but if I can’t find a suitable metaphor, I doubt you’ll understand… Umm, umm… I’ve got it! How good are you with computers? —Like everyone else, I suppose; I have a basic understanding. —That’s enough. Let’s see, what happens when you install a new program? —A window pops up on the screen with a white bar, and then a black one, which fills up the white one until the installation is complete. But what’s the connection…? —Shut up and listen! The universe was created the same way a program is installed on our computer. First, the total space needed appears—but without time! That’s the duration of the download! That blank space is God! But it’s a potential space. In reality, it’s nothing—do you understand? Then I, the Devil, necessarily appear—the black bar that gradually reaches the duration of God thanks to time, which is me! Within the space reserved for God, there can be nothing other than what is meant to be there—the program in its entirety! or, to put it in theological terms, fate or predestination. Do you understand now? —It amazes me that something so simple has such a momentous implication, but so far I get it! —Very well, let’s continue! What happens once the program has been downloaded? —The download window disappears. —Therein lies the problem that God cannot accept: that the world disappears, and with it God Himself, the Devil, and everything else! The program is now installed; the download time has ended and therefore the space has been filled—in other words, God’s plans have been fulfilled… —And…? —And what! —And what happens next? —Well, another program gets installed: another world with another God, another Devil, another nature, and another humanity! —But who installs the programs? —That’s the end of the process, but I don’t know if your mind can grasp it! —If you can grasp it, so can I—I’m made of the same stuff as you! —All right, all right; I’ll explain it to you! That’s the beginning of the mystery, but not the end. That being who’s supposedly installing programs is nothing more than another program being downloaded! Do you understand? The first one contains the second, but the second, in turn, contains millions, billions, trillions—or who knows how many—programs being downloaded. The same can be said of the first one, which is in turn contained within just as many programs being downloaded in the opposite direction. There are always programs being downloaded, because there is always movement, and if there’s movement, there’s time; and if there’s time, there’s life and death—but without knowing where the end or the beginning of this duality lies! And not only that. In addition to the programs that are downloaded and contained within one another, others are also downloaded in parallel, side by side with the same inconceivable internal structure. And now you know practically everything! —That’s a mind-bending hypothesis! But it doesn’t answer my questions! —Your questions have only one answer, which is contained in the third option, but it’s pointless for you to know it, because we return to the nothingness that troubles you so much! —So, what’s been the point of all these conversations? — God already told you right from the start: after Him—or in their case, them—there’s nothing, and that is Paradise, where of course I have no access! —What about me? —I suppose not you either. You ask too many questions! —Are you saying that Paradise is reserved for the ignorant? —No, that’s not it either, because the ignorant are just as bad—or worse—than I am. The truth is, I haven’t a clue. Maybe God knows… —You’re just in time! After spouting a thousand absurdities, you expect me to provide the final answer. —Ah, hello, God; I’m glad you came—this whole thing is a real mess! But I don’t think you should bother yourself just because we want to clear up our doubts, whatever they may be. The Devil isn’t as bad as he seems anymore; he’s becoming wiser and, therefore, more virtuous, but he’s cut from a different cloth; he has other ambitions; he’s traveled a lot! —You don’t have to travel to know the truth. You don’t have to move to find the answer, because it’s precisely that movement that keeps us from finding the answer. “Does this make sense, Devil?” “If He says so—and He is God—then it does!” —So the three of us are here thanks to movement, but are you saying that precisely because of movement we are unable to unravel the mystery of nothingness? —Precisely because of that! But I am better equipped than the Devil to understand it. I am not in motion, but neither am I completely motionless, because I contain movement; I make it possible for things to exist because they move within my potential space! Within the universe that contains all conceivable space-time! I have made only one movement in my entire long existence: to create space and duration—a single, fundamental movement, but one sufficient to ensure that I am no longer part of absolute nothingness! For that reason, too, it is absolutely necessary that I exist. Without my existence, the world would not be possible; time would not pass; the Devil would not exist; nature would not be viable. I am the space that contains real things, but I do not move! —So, is there anything in reality that does not move and has never moved? —Indeed, there is! —Impossible, because it would not be real, but unreal! —Yes, it would be and is unreal, but it is there. It is that which is not, yet exists! —To put it precisely: it exists, but for us it does not exist because it is in nothingness! God has already told you this a thousand times! —It’s enough to drive one mad! Can’t one of you two speak plainly once and for all, so that a normal mind like mine can understand it? Perhaps it would be better to drop this conversation, I’ll go back to my business and forget about the whole thing… —You’d grow old overnight! At 70, you’d be like a 90-year-old, and you’d have to forget about that beauty you boast so much about! —But maybe after I die, I’d find the answer! —Don’t be naive: once you’re dead, it’s all over, as the saying goes. —Why won’t you listen to my arguments? The Devil confuses things and doesn’t have the final answer. He’s always on the move; he goes here and there, but he’s always in the world—this one or any other. I’m made of the substance of nothingness, because I’m nothing! Merely pure potentiality due to a single movement—the one necessary to create the potential space occupied by the cosmos—nothing more! —You’ve really done it now, God! If you’re nothing, who the hell am I talking to? —No one! I mean, as you so rightly say, only the Devil! I’ve never spoken in my life, but the Devil hasn’t stopped doing so since the creation of the world. Growling, barking, or speaking like a person—but he’s never been silent! All those stories about me ever having spoken to humans, sent signals, or appeared in dreams are the Devil’s tricks. Let’s get this straight once and for all: I cannot speak to anyone because I am pure and simple potentiality! In other words, to humans I am nothing, but I necessarily exist for the reason stated! —“So who am I talking to right now?” —“The Devil, of course; his split personality: his real self and the deceptive one in which he tries to imitate me. The Devil is an extraordinary ventriloquist!” —Now we’ve really made a mess of things! And you, Devil, what do you have to say about that? —Yes, it’s true! Sorry, kid, these are things a Devil can’t help— I’m a ventriloquist and I imitate God to perfection! —So you know everything; you’re just like God, and you’ve been mocking me the whole time! —Shut up, don’t talk nonsense! God is God and the Devil is the Devil! But I have no choice but to act as God’s advocate—who else could do it? I’ve already told you this before—why are you so surprised now? —Let’s just get this damn conversation over with already! Spill everything that’s left—no lies, no tricks. Speak like the Devil you are and don’t mess with me again with your nonsense. —You shouldn’t trust me until I’m completely redeemed, because I can’t help but commit some evil deeds, but that’s up to you. —Yeah, that’s up to me; I’ll take whatever comes, but come on, tell the rest of this story! —But I’ve already said it all! God is of this world because He was the creator of the universe’s space and duration, but precisely for that reason He has become “naturalized”—made part of nature, so to speak. He is part of the duality of good and evil; truth and falsehood—or more precisely, positivity and negativity—because everything is energy! Therefore, He must necessarily exist! But God is , obviously, of divine substance; He comes from the unchanging void—the one that has never made a single movement—the one that contains all space and time in potential for everything that has existed, exists, or may ever come to exist. Are you following me? —Barely! —If you want, we can stop here… —Yes, that might be best, at least for a few days. In a way, I’ve already formed an idea of that inconceivable and nonexistent being; that is to say, I now more or less understand the meaning of the nothingness that obsessed me so much. Absolute nothingness is not God—neither ours nor any other possible gods—but “the divine,” that which is but does not quite attain existence, nor any name at all, because it has never moved, yet it is in nothingness! I see now that there’s no possible connection for human beings. Once we come into existence, there’s no door leading back to nonexistence, so to speak. Death doesn’t solve the problem… It’s a real shame! —Unfortunately, there isn’t one! At least not that I know of! —See you later, Devil! —“Whenever you want, man!” —“By the way, since you’re here, I’ll take this opportunity to ask you: what do you plan to do about the financial crisis?” —“It’ll work itself out, don’t worry, man; human beings, like the Devil himself, only learn from our mistakes—but we do learn!” 5. Fifth and Final Conversation The Devil’s latest revelations have been devastating, yet I haven’t completely lost my optimism. In a way, they’ve helped me become more realistic and less of a dreamer. Now I’m beginning to realize that my desire to move past this rebellious youth as soon as possible is pointless. It’s better for things to stay this way for as long as possible, because now that I know that the passage of time is the Devil’s doing, just like everything else!, I also know it will be ruthless, and although I’m still not thrilled by the idea, I’m no longer as interested as I used to be in growing old. If death doesn’t clarify anything; if I won’t be able to enjoy some kind of Paradise after mulling the matter over so much, I’d better stay as I am—which isn’t so bad. As for his ideas about love, the truth is that now that I realize they must be true—because with each passing day I feel less romantic passion for my partner but get along better with her— because we’re getting to know each other better and better! It’s a shame that the Devil has such a bad reputation, because his ideas are reasonable. Aside from his inevitable tendency toward deception and imitation, there’s no doubt that we owe him many good things in this world. On the other hand, given God’s passivity up in His heavens, we have no one but the Devil to help us improve ourselves morally. His experience is what makes him kinder and wiser with every new century that passes. I believe that, given the circumstances in which we live here in the world, there’s no doubt that the Devil’s friendship proves positive in the long run—and, above all, enlightening! If I’ve understood correctly, God is more of a physical concept than a theological or philosophical one . It is a space filled with potential energy, possessing duration, within which time unfolds. That space obviously does not move because it is all that it is, within this universe of ours, of course! What moves is time in the present moment within that space, from the past toward the future, and in this unfolding—thanks to evolution—the phenomena we know as life and death occur without interruption, along with others such as consciousness, intuition, etc. Life and death—that is, nature—are movement; whereas the divine is static and immobile—but it is not death, rather, it is nothingness! That blessed and inconceivable nothingness of all time! That is why God is incapable of intervening in the affairs of nature—whether human or wild—but He can intervene in the affairs of the spirit, though as if it were nothing, because He is not capable of preventing the pain caused by ignorance; that is to say, evil itself! It turns out that it is the Devil himself who puts us in communication with God through his prodigious imitation, which even I had come to believe! It’s a contradiction, yet it has its own logic. Another matter that I now understand with absolute clarity is the interpretation of the well-known Mystery of the Trinity; the thing is, when it’s expressed in theological terms—so ambiguous and confusing— it seems unsolvable—but it’s actually simple to understand! The Son, to put it simply, is the human being redeemed through the knowledge and understanding of God. In other words, it is the final stage of the human being in their necessary moral, mental, and—in all likelihood—even physical evolution, since in some way we must be in the image and likeness of God. By the way, in my next talk—if I get the chance—I’ll have to ask the Devil how it’s possible that God bears our image, or vice versa, of course! As for the Father, He is obviously that potential space that constitutes the container of the universe or of our reality, so to speak. The destiny or predestination of all living things in this space-time dimension of ours. And of course, the mysterious Holy Spirit is undoubtedly the potentiality that lies within absolute nothingness; divinity at rest; that which is, yet does not exist—as both God and the Devil used to say, because on this point the two are in agreement. The three persons of the Mystery are necessarily interrelated. The only question that remains is the nature of nothingness—that is, of the Holy Spirit. But I hardly dare to keep insisting on this anymore! After all, as the Devil says, it serves no practical purpose for human beings. —“Hello, human! How did you sleep? Have your thoughts cleared up? Are you going to ask me again about the afterlife, or will you settle for enjoying life like any normal person?” —“Hello, Devil! I always sleep well, and if I have problems, I turn on the TV and watch the phone sex ad shows. They really relax me.” —Aren’t you interested in the fortune-telling ones? —Why would I be, when the future is perfectly clear? —That’s why they’re good for insomnia. —I see you’re in a good mood today. I’m glad, because there’s nothing more fun than a happy Devil! —I have no reason to be angry or unhappy. If things go badly, so much the better for me! But if they go well, that also works in favor of my future redemption! In other words, no matter how they go, they’re always positive for me. —You’re clearly a positive person! But isn’t that a contradiction? Evil is supposed to be negative. —So many wrong things are assumed about the Devil! —Don’t think I’ve taken everything you’ve told me so far at face value. There are things that don’t add up for me. By the way, now that you’re back, you have to clarify a saying for me: Why do they say we’re made in God’s image and likeness? —I see you’re back to your old ways—you’re not content with knowing what’s good for you; you also want to know what isn’t. —Let’s not start with outdated moralizing. It’s a bit late for you to be bringing that up, after everything you’ve told me about reality and God! Tell me what you know and forget about my salvation— that’s my business. —Then let’s take it one step at a time. Tell me, what are you? —Me? A person, of course! —You’re nothing! —There’s no need to belittle me! I know I’m more ignorant than you, and for that reason I must be worse, but since I have the will to learn, I think I’ll be saved after all. —No, it’s not about belittling you—it’s just that you’re nothing! Not me, not God, not the universe—this one or any other possible one! —Are we back to that damn “nothing” again? I’m no longer interested in hearing anything about this subject, so just answer my original question—but not with another question! —It’s just the truth—we’re nothing! —Well, the next time I go to the movies, I’m not going to pay for a ticket, because after all, I won’t be taking up any seat—since I’m nothing! —Take it as a joke if you want, but I still insist that we’re nothing. Nothing but appearances! —And isn’t the apparent nothing? — Exactly! —Here we go again with your devilishly convoluted philosophical arguments! —If what appears to be something were actually substantial, it wouldn’t be an appearance—or is the expression “appearance” not clear enough? —You’re playing with language! —No, language plays with us—which isn’t the same thing! But its meaning is literal and not wrong: what we see is nothing more than appearances! —And what, then, is the substance?—There is no such thing as substance; there is only the appearance of substance. What we see consists of something, but it isn’t something substantial—or, if you prefer, material.—If you’re referring to the atomic structure of matter…—But what matter? Nonsense! There’s no such thing as matter!—You’re infuriating! Are you trying to deny everything, even what’s obvious?—What’s obvious is merely what we see, but it doesn’t tell us what it consists of.—You tell me!—It consists of nothing—I’ve already told you that!—Then you and I are two ghosts; an illusion of the mind; a dream. We could even say it’s a revelation.—You’re on the right track!—Send your theory to the Academy of Sciences—I’m sure they’ll love it!—Scientists don’t know the first thing about it.—And you know it inside and out!—I’m glad you haven’t lost your sense of humor. Depending on how you look at it, reality is laugh-out-loud funny, but if we view it with attachment to the mundane, it’s pitiful—a huge disappointment!—The truth is, you’re starting to worry me. If we’re nothing and come from nothing, not only do we remain in it, but we’ll return to it, because we’ve never been anything more than mere appearances! Isn’t that right?—Your reasoning is extraordinarily sound, and I must congratulate you on your progress.—But what is it that we believe ourselves to be that we’ve never actually become?—Nothing more than a misstep of nothingness, an accident; an incomprehensible error of perfection!—In other words, movement alone gives rise to the appearance of things.—“You could say that! What do you know about Einstein?”—“Don’t go down that path, because I’m not very good at physics. In school, I never got past Archimedes’ principle, which is why I know that a cork floats and a stone sinks—but don’t ask me much more than that! Still, I more or less know what E=mc² means.” I think it refers to the calculation of the potential energy contained in matter.—There’s no such thing as matter—I’ve already told you—there’s only energy; what we see is the appearance of energy in motion!—But now you’re talking like a scientist, and not like a Devil?—And what’s the difference? There’s nothing more diabolical than science. Everything is related to science; all knowledge is scientific, even religious or philosophical speculation! We know nothing unless we apply a scientific method.—Is philosophy also a science?—If it’s methodical, yes; if it uses words without any scientific rigor, no; certainly not! Words have their exact meanings in their respective contexts, and philosophy has its own, just as mathematics has numbers for its own. Ever since Plato and Aristotle, practically everything in philosophy has been confusion—as much, if not more, than in theology! Just empty rhetoric from academics who have to justify the salary they’re paid for teaching this subject at universities! There have been some exceptions, of course—we shouldn’t be too pessimistic.—They wouldn’t want to hear your opinion!—The problem is that they don’t know what the real purpose of philosophy is.—Tell them yourself!—To seek God; to seek the truth; to discover the true attributes of nothingness! To find answers to all questions without any contradiction.—But that’s the end!—When a philosopher finds the answer to the final question, it will be the end, of course—that’s inevitable!—Then philosophy is diabolical, too!—Are you deaf, or are you pulling my leg? All knowledge in this world is diabolical, but by divine design—I’m tired of telling you that! Do you think Descartes fled ecclesiastical censorship because he was paranoid? Do you think Hobbes published under a pseudonym because he detested fame, or that Kant didn’t write about religion in his later years out of respect for the enlightened Frederick II? Can you imagine that Clement VIII had a grudge against Giordano Bruno and that’s why he handed him over to the Inquisition, which condemned him to the stake? All the knowledge in this world is inspired by me, but the scarcer it is, the more diabolical it becomes. That’s why the executioners and those who inspired them were obviously worse than their victims—including the popes! But it has always been this way and will continue to be so until the end of the time we have left before we reach the truth without contradictions.—Well, all right, but let’s get back to the matter at hand. Why am I nothing?—I can’t tell you how it all began, because that’s inconceivable, and we’ve already discussed it before, but I can tell you how and why things appear. And I say “appear” because that’s how it is: they aren’t created or born; they simply appear out of nowhere—and I hope you understand that now!— “Of course, if we’re nothing, we must necessarily appear out of nowhere—that’s elementary. Go on!”“If you’re not interested, we’ll drop it. I’m not here to waste my time with unmotivated humans.”—After all these days of exhausting talks, do you think I’m not interested in knowing how this story ends? Come on, Devil, don’t be so suspicious!—All right. Imagine the waters of a calm pond, where an object suddenly falls in. Where there was previously no movement at all, a series of concentric ripples form—the larger the impact, the larger the ripples. And I say “impact” because what happens is that it is from that instant onward that a potential space is created—one that will contain the resulting nature of that very movement—because everything that moves must necessarily unfold over time, but time is sequential and rhythmic, whereas the formation of potential space occurred in a matter of moments; it was a veritable explosion—or a revolution, so we’re on the same page!— and it is in that necessary passage of time that what is contained within the potential space comes to be…—Intelligent Design! But you’re also talking about the Big Bang, which is supposed to have created our universe, isn’t that right?— Correct! The Big Bang is nothing more than an object falling into nothingness, which generates in a matter of moments an immense amount of what is now called “dark energy”—which is positive energy in potential!; that is, the potential space where the future universe will unfold. Within the duration of space lies the information necessary for the being that is destined to form over the total duration of that span to take shape ; in other words, dark—or positive—energy is “intelligent.” At the same time, the falling object contains a single particle of negative energy—but enough to set the energy in motion once it is polarized! —And what about environmental effects—that is, evolution? —This is the external circumstance, the one I explained to you using the example of downloading programs—remember?; necessary to successfully complete creation; that is where our universe draws its sustenance. Although nature’s behavior may seem guided by free will, there is always a final plan that must be inexorably fulfilled. Along the way, hundreds, thousands, millions of species are discarded or go astray, yet they are or have been necessary. Some, as you know, become extinct due to their complete inability to adapt; others survive but barely serve the final plan envisioned by God—that is, the being contained within the information of its potential space, or as Aristotle would say, its potentiality. That final being must necessarily bear His image and likeness, because that is precisely His plan! Do you understand now? —Fascinating! So God Himself had planned for us to descend from the monkey. — Of course! —What’s the point, then, of all that controversy between creationists and evolutionists? —None at all, of course; it’s just ignorance on both sides. The creationists fail to consider appearances as something capable of developing their own mechanisms and organizing themselves according to a plan and with a purpose; but evolutionists because they fail to consider that, despite everything, they are nothing more than appearances! —Do you mean that energy in motion is capable of evolving into apparent forms, like the ones we see and that seem real to us? —And they are real, as long as we admit that reality is nothing but what appears to be; pure magnetism! —I’m getting lost again! —“Reality is an illusion of the senses, but to us—who are also an illusion created by those same senses—it appears real. We touch things and they seem solid to us; we try to walk through a wall and bump into something that seems solid. But the truth is that if we could control our passive energy, Einstein!, we should be able to walk through walls as if they weren’t there. We are nothing more than a certain amount of positive and negative energy inside a space-time capsule, with a certain reserve of potential energy that is consumed by work performed over that time, gradually converting it into passive or materialized energy. Once converted, movement ceases and we disintegrate—we disappear. Boom—back to the nothingness from which we came! Do you understand now? —What a perspective for the proud human being! —There is no other; that is the reality of what we are. —But it doesn’t make sense! All of this is too mechanical! —“Deus ex machina”! The universe is a mechanism; every organism, despite appearing to be something else, is governed by a mechanism. Nature is a mechanism, and the peculiar thing about mechanisms is their ability to produce something with useful and practical meaning thanks to continuous movement—evolution! —But then, why do we want to have a God, or millions, or however many? —For nothing, because we are nothing! Morality is an illusory phenomenon, just like all other phenomena! Good and evil are temporary, and their sole purpose is to carry out certain designs without asking questions! —God already told me that right at the start of this complicated conversation! —I told you so! —Well, whoever it is, it doesn’t really matter! So where are the incentives for existence? —Doubt and desire! There are no other incentives for living beings. But if you prefer, you can put it more passionately—even romantically: the stimulus of life is love; that is, the irresistible attraction to everything unknown and the desire to know and possess it! —Maybe you’re right. In a way, that’s the main incentive that drives my own life, and also that of children with their powerful imaginations… —That’s why you feel young, and as long as you remain interested in what you don’t yet know, you’ll stay young right up until the day you die! —If I were to go along with that, I can think of a whole bunch of misconceptions that people believe to be correct. For example, meditation, conservatism, stagnation… On the contrary, it’s obvious that an ever-active, progressive , avant-garde… —But no more avant-garde than is tolerable! The nature of things has a precise rhythm. One can venture into the future without breaking ties with the present. —And what use is the past? —To avoid making the same mistakes over and over again! Any time in the past has always been worse than the present, because even I, the Devil, was more ignorant, and evil lies exclusively in ignorance! —But what confuses me is that the Devil never stops defending God. Are you a believer or an atheist? —Neither; I’m reasonably agnostic. I only believe in what’s reasonable to believe, and beliefs evolve, just like everything else! —Just like any good philosopher or scientist! Well Well, Devil, I think there’s nothing left to say. You’ve given me enough new ideas to keep my mind occupied for the next few days—and who knows, maybe even years! —Ahem…! —Is there still something else to say? —Yes, of course… But I don’t know if I should… —The Devil has moral doubts! —There is no such thing as the Devil! —There’s no what?! —Devil, there’s no such thing as the Devil! —So? —You’re the one saying it all! —Ah, so now it turns out I’m talking to myself! —Not exactly; you think to yourself, and you take to writing down what you think, making up that nonsense about being able to talk to God and the Devil, as if they were right there, sitting quietly at your desk! —Now that’s a good one! The God thing has already been cleared up, but as for you… —Actually, you’re the great imitator; you’re the ventriloquist! You’ve been imitating God and the Devil, and you’ve actually believed it! Let’s see if you can get this through your head once and for all: no one can step outside their own space-time, and every person is a world unto themselves! You’re alone, kid; better get used to the idea! Well, now, if you don’t mind, I’m heading back the way I came—through the door of your fantasies. I’m returning to nothingness, which is where life is best! After all, just as the God of your fantasies told you, that’s where Paradise is! —! Goodbye, Devil—or whatever you are! —Goodbye, man—until we meet again in nothingness! —Very funny! And that’s how things stand. It turns out I’ve just been rambling to myself and haven’t actually talked to either God or the Devil. Well, who cares! At least I had a good time! THE END