Quantum Reality as Indra’s Net: A Category-Theoretic Formalism for Relational Quantum Dynamics

Osf (forthcoming)
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Abstract

We propose a rigorous synthesis of the ancient Indra’s Net metaphor with Relational Quantum Dynamics (RQD), casting quantum reality as a web of relationships formalized in category-theoretic and information-theoretic terms. Drawing on enriched category theory and measures like quantum mutual information and integrated information Φ, we develop a formal framework in which quantum systems (observers) and their states emerge only through relations – “jewels” reflecting one another. We define the mathematical structure of RQD as a category of relational contexts, proving that each quantum object is fully characterized by its morphisms (relations) to all others, in accordance with the Yoneda lemma. This theorem formally mirrors Indra’s Net by showing that each part reflects the whole, with no observer-independent properties. We further enrich the category with information metrics, demonstrating how quantum mutual information quantifies the “reflections” (correlations) between nodes, and how the integrated information Φ of the whole exceeds the sum of parts. Key theorems establish the consistency of this relational ontology resolving Wigner’s-friend-type paradoxes without requiring a global collapse and providing bounds on information integration in a fully interconnected “Indra’s net” state. We explore applications of the framework to consciousness (modeling observer-awareness via Φ in a relational network), to artificial intelligence (multi-agent systems as Indra’s net of information-sharing observers), and to quantum computing (entangled qubit networks as physical instantiations of Indra’s net). This work unifies metaphysical insights with quantum foundations in a fully formal manner, suggesting that quantum mechanics, information, and consciousness coalesce into a single relational web.

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2025-03-19

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Arash E. Zaghi
University of Connecticut

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References found in this work

Relational quantum mechanics.Carlo Rovelli - 1996 - International Journal of Theoretical Physics 35 (8):1637--1678.
QBism and Relational Quantum Mechanics compared.Jacques Pienaar - 2021 - Foundations of Physics 51 (5):1-18.
What Is the Integrated Information Theory of Consciousness?Adam Pautz - 2019 - Journal of Consciousness Studies 26 (1-2):1-2.
Hua-yen Buddhism: The Jewel Net of Indra.Francis H. Cook - 1977 - Pennsylvania State University Press.

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