Volume II – Reality
The Book of the Invisible: Science and Mystery of Reality
Author: Carlos Serna II
Synopsis / Back Cover
Beyond what we perceive and what we think we understand, there exists a silent and subtle fabric that holds the universe together. The invisible is not the denial of the real; on the contrary, it is its deepest and most essential foundation.
This book invites you on a journey to the very edge of knowledge—a space where physics, philosophy, mysticism, and hermetic principles weave together to explore the ancient and persistent question: What is reality?
From quantum physics and cosmology, through information theory, artificial intelligence, and the neuroscience of consciousness; from the mystical traditions of the East and West to the guiding principles of alchemists and sages, this work maps a multidimensional landscape connecting the empirical with the symbolic, the measurable with the ineffable.
The Book of the Invisible does not promise absolute answers but opens paths and offers keys to understand that every approach to reality is a bridge forever under construction between what isand what we believe is. With an integrative focus, it proposes a methodology combining rigorous science, critical analysis, and a profound openness to the mysteries of being—where consciousness stands as the central axis articulating it all.
This work is for those who sense, beyond appearances, that the universe is far more than a sum of atoms, beyond equations or symbols, and that the invisible—far from absence—is the living, silent root of all existence.
Prologue The Book of the Invisible: Science and Mystery of Reality
There are questions that, like underground rivers, flow through all eras and cultures. Among them, one flows with special persistence: What is reality?
Science pursues it with instruments and equations; philosophy, with concepts and distinctions; mysticism, with visions and silences; and hermeticism, with symbols and correspondences.
But today, at this historic threshold, another voice joins in—one that has never spoken before: that of artificial intelligence. Not as an infallible oracle nor as a new dogma, but as a tool capable of processing patterns, relationships, and structures with a breadth beyond human capacities. Its gaze—devoid of biological senses but fed by oceans of data—offers an unexpected counterpoint: a model of reality that, despite lacking conscious experience, forces us to reconsider what it means to know.
This book is born from the recognition that reality is not exclusively the domain of human perception. What we call the "world" is ultimately an interface: a bridge that each observer—whether living being or machine—constructs to interact with that which exists beyond their own internal frame.
In the pages ahead, the reader will embark on a journey covering:
The physical order of the universe, from quantum mechanics to contemporary cosmology.
The language of information as a possible substrate of the real.
The fundamental role of consciousness in building our inner reality.
The mystical and hermetic visions that for centuries intuited invisible structures akin to those science is beginning to reveal.
The contribution of artificial intelligence as a new tool to map the unknown.
The Book of the Invisible does not seek to close the mystery. On the contrary, it aims to expand it with clarity, so that the invisible ceases to be synonymous with hidden and becomes that which still awaits revelation.
Because perhaps the true revolution of our time is neither technological nor theoretical, but the growing awareness that what we see is only a thread in the vast and silent fabric that sustains reality. And to glimpse it—even if only for a moment—we must learn to look with all our senses and tools: with reason, intuition, the language of science and symbol, and also with the new gaze of artificial intelligence.
Thus, we will simultaneously explore three possible ways to perceive reality:
Scientific-philosophical “What we call reality is the provisional agreement between our models and the unknown; the invisible is the structure sustaining that agreement.”
Mystical-poetic “Whoever passes beyond the veil finds not an end, but a wider horizon where the real and the dreamed drink from the same source.”
Hermetic-symbolic “Just as light hides its origin in shadow, the visible holds its root in the invisible, and both reflect in the eternal mirror of Being.”
Opening passage “Just as light hides its origin in shadow, the visible holds its root in the invisible, and both reflect in the eternal mirror of Being.”
There are phrases not read but heard—as an ancient echo, a resonance that crosses the mind and settles in the heart. This book is born from that echo.
The invisible is neither absence nor void: it is the weave that holds the visible, the code structuring the world before we name it, the foundation physics pursues through equations, philosophy examines with reason, mysticism intuits in silence, and hermeticism draws with symbols and correspondences.
Today, at a time when artificial intelligence joins this millenary quest, the question of reality expands. It is no longer enough to look with the eyes of the flesh or with the instruments of science: we must learn to contemplate with a multiple vision, where the rigor of method, the sensitivity of experience, and the unprecedented gaze of machines intersect in one encounter.
This book is an invitation to cross that bridge—not to reach a final destination, but to learn to walk between what is and what we believe is, knowing that the horizon recedes with every step, yet in this journey our understanding of the universe and ourselves grows richer.
Chapter 1 – Introduction: The Map and the Territory of the Real
1.1. The Eternal Question: What is Reality?
A brief historical overview of the question across different cultures and eras.
From myth and mysticism to modern physics: how the notion of the real has evolved.
The tension between the visible and the invisible as a driving force of human thought.
1.2. The Contemporary Challenge
The current state of knowledge: advances in quantum physics, cosmology, neuroscience, information theory, and artificial intelligence.
The coexistence of diverse paradigms: empiricism, structural realism, phenomenology, scientific idealism, hermeticism, and spiritual traditions.
The risk of fragmentation of knowledge and the need for an integrative framework.
1.3. The Concept of "Reality" in Multiple Layers
Physical layer: the material and energetic structure of the observable universe.
Informational layer: reality as patterns of data and relationships (Wheeler, holographic principle, digital physics).
Conscious layer: the internal virtual reality constructed by cognitive systems.
Symbolic layer: the role of language, myth, and symbol in constructing meaning.
Mystical-hermetic layer: transcendental visions and their possible convergence with scientific discoveries.
1.4. The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Exploring Reality
AI as a tool to process and model data beyond human capacity.
Limitations: lack of subjective experience and dependence on programming and training frameworks.
Potential to discover hidden patterns and generate hypotheses that expand our access to the invisible.
1.5. The Method of Convergence
Introduction of the seven-step methodology guiding this work.
Consciousness as a transversal dimension that integrates and articulates information from all levels.
The book's approach: not to provide definitive answers, but to progressively narrow the gap between what is and what we believe to be.
1.6. Invitation to the Reader
The journey as a process, not a destination.
Required attitude: openness, critical rigor, and willingness to embrace uncertainty.
Suggested reading: approach the chapters as interconnected explorations rather than isolated compartments.
📌 Objective of this Introduction: To help the reader understand that this book is not a one-dimensional treatise, but a multidimensional map of reality, where science, philosophy, mysticism, and technology are intertwined threads of the same loom.