The Cosmic Code: Philip K. Dick's Vision of God as Programmer and Quantum Immortality
Back when computers were barely more advanced than the PacMan arcade game or convenience store calculators, Philip K. Dick boldly asserted we were living in the Matrix - some form of it, at least.
Introduction
The name Philip K. Dick is synonymous with science fiction, but his works delve into philosophical explorations that transcended the boundaries of fiction or writing. One of the most intriguing ideas he proposed is the concept of our universe as a simulation controlled by an omnipotent “Programmer” (God) and a variation on the quantum immortality concept which Reddit and other social media outlets have explored. Today’s Substack post will examine these ideas and their implications.
Philip K. Dick and the Simulation Hypothesis
Philip K. Dick's thoughts on reality were way ahead of his time, particularly his belief that we might be living inside a vast computer program. In speeches and writings, he often pondered the nature of existence, suggesting that we might be part of a simulated reality controlled by a "Programmer" or God-like figure.
In his famous speech in Metz, France, at a science fiction convention in 1977, Dick famously stated, "We are living in a computer-programmed reality, and the only clue we have to it is when some variable is changed."
God as the Programmer
Dick's interpretation of God as a Programmer resonates with the idea of an intelligent creator controlling our reality, not unlike the conception of a divine entity in various religious traditions. For Dick, God was not an abstract, distant figure but a hands-on creator, tweaking and manipulating reality as a coder might adjust a program.
The implications are profound here; if God is programming a reality for us — benevolently, Dick believed, as he couldn’t entertain the notion of a truly evil or malicious creator — then our relationship with the divine changes.
He also cites some parts of the Bible, such as the “many mansions” explanation by Jesus, saying that this is evidence of a layered or multi-world reality.
In the novel VALIS, Dick explores the idea of an alien satellite that beams information to the protagonist, revealing the truth about our reality. This can be seen as a metaphor for a divine message or guidance from the "Programmer."
Quantum Immortality and the Many Worlds Interpretation
Beyond the simulation hypothesis, Philip K. Dick also appeared to believe in a variant of quantum immortality. This idea posits that all possible outcomes of a quantum event exist in separate branches of reality. In Dick's version, one might be rewarded after death with a better version of the world they lived in before.
In some of his works, like Ubik, characters seem to exist in multiple realities simultaneously. The fluctuating reality experienced by the characters aligns with the Many Worlds Interpretation, and the notion that death may simply be a transition to another, potentially better, existence.
For a better explanation, watch the entire YouTube video embedded above, which contains most of his 1977 speech on the subject. It begins a bit convoluted and hard to follow, but by the end it all makes sense.
I give this subject a degree of credence since I’ve experienced one of the “lateral” moments he describes in the lecture. Although he could have probably explained the concept well in less than 40 minutes, I appreciate that he draws from his own personal experiences, because it makes his shocking thesis that much more believable when he finally comes around to it fully.
The next part of today’s research is for our Substack premium / First Class thought fliers only:
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to David Seaman's Deep to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.