David Bohm
1917–1992 — USA / UK
“Does quantum physics reveal an undivided, flowing wholeness in which matter and consciousness are folded into each other?”
Primary Contribution
Proposed the Implicate and Explicate Order. Argued that space-time and physical particles are a surface appearance (explicate order) emerging from an underlying, undivided wholeness (implicate order). Conducted historic dialogues with J. Krishnamurti exploring the nature of thought as a material process.
Key Ideas
- The Implicate Order: the underlying, undivided reality where everything is folded (enfolded) into everything else
- The Explicate Order: the manifest, unfolded world of separate physical objects and space-time
- Holomovement: reality is not static but a dynamic, flowing movement of enfolding and unfolding
- Thought as a material system: thought is a physical process in the brain and body, not a separate spiritual entity
- Dialogue: a process of collective awareness where individuals observe their own reactions and thoughts together without agenda
Recommended Works
- Wholeness and the Implicate Order
- The Ending of Time (dialogues with J. Krishnamurti)
- On Dialogue
“Reality is an undivided wholeness, and all parts, including the observer and the observed, merge and coalesce in a single flow.”
Further Sayings
Legacy & Influence
David Bohm was one of the most original theoretical physicists of the 20th century, making fundamental contributions to quantum theory. His work on the Aharonov-Bohm effect and the causal interpretation of quantum mechanics remains highly influential. His bridge-building dialogues with J. Krishnamurti represent one of the most rigorous historical intersections between a theoretical physicist and a spiritual investigator, exploring whether the physical brain can transcend its evolutionary programming.
Knowledge Well & Media
Recommended research papers, debates, and lectures