🌌 What Is Similarity Theory?

A Science Page of Similarity Theory
By Simon Raphael

🧠 A Unified Framework of Consciousness, Time, and Reality

Similarity Theory is a cosmological and philosophical framework developed by Simon Raphael. It explores how consciousness, time, and dimensional structure repeat as recognisable patterns across all scales of reality.

Rather than treating science, philosophy, and spirituality as competing explanations, Similarity Theory proposes that they are different perspectives of the same underlying structure, viewed from different layers of reality.

The central claim of Similarity Theory is that apparent contradictions between models of the Universe arise from perspective, not error. When reality is observed from different dimensional layers or frames of time, it will appear to behave differently — yet remain structurally related. Similarity Theory exists to explain why this happens, and how multiple valid models can coexist without collapsing into contradiction.

🧩 What Problem Does Similarity Theory Address?

Modern understanding of the Universe is fragmented.

• Physics explains matter and forces, yet struggles to account for consciousness.

• Philosophy explores meaning and awareness, but lacks physical grounding.

• Spiritual traditions address inner experience, yet often stand apart from empirical science.

As a result, reality is divided into separate explanatory domains, each powerful in isolation but incomplete as a whole.

Similarity Theory addresses this fragmentation by proposing that the Universe is not composed of separate realms, but of repeating structural patterns expressed differently across time, dimension, and consciousness. What appear as contradictions are not failures of theory, but indicators that each framework is observing reality from a different layer of perspective.

🧱 Core Principles of Similarity Theory

Similarity Theory is built on several foundational principles:

• Consciousness is foundational, not merely an emergent by-product of matter. This does not deny neuroscience or physical causation; rather, it proposes that physical and biological explanations operate within layered structures that consciousness inhabits and expresses through.

• Time exists as Frames of Time — continuously generated states of relation created by existence itself. These frames persist rather than vanish, forming the structural continuity through which experience, history, and possibility arise.

• Dimensions represent rule-sets, not physical locations stacked in space. Different dimensions express different constraints, freedoms, and forms of awareness.

• Patterns repeat across scales, from atoms to minds to cosmic structures — not as identical copies, but as echoes shaped by context and complexity.

• Perspective determines interpretation, meaning that truth may appear contradictory when viewed from different layers, while remaining structurally coherent.

These principles allow Similarity Theory to integrate existing models rather than replace them.

• Frames of Time as Structural Continuity

At the heart of Similarity Theory is the concept of Frames of Time.

A frame of time is not a moment that disappears, but a state of consciousness that persists. As long as consciousness is manifested into existence — in physical, biological, or spiritual form — frames are continuously generated through relation and change. Even apparent stillness produces frames, because existence itself implies interaction, tension, and structure.

Time, in this view, is not a background container in which events occur. Time is the relationship between frames — a measure humans use to navigate continuity, rather than an absolute substance.

Frames do not vanish. They remain as dormant consciousness, forming navigable paths through which future consciousness may move with greater ease. This structural persistence explains continuity, branching possibilities, and why similar outcomes recur across different contexts.

🔁 Inclusivity Without Collapse

Similarity Theory functions as a meta-framework: it explains how different theories arise, where they apply, and why they appear to conflict.

Most cosmological and philosophical theories compete by exclusion:

• The Big Bang explains origins but not awareness.

• Relativity and Quantum Mechanics remain unresolved together.

• Materialism denies mind beyond matter.

• Dualism separates mind and body.

• Idealism reduces matter to consciousness.

• Determinism removes meaningful choice.

Each of these frameworks captures something real — yet none can fully account for the whole.

Similarity Theory does not attempt to eliminate these models. Instead, it explains why each one is valid within its own domain. Contradiction, in this view, is not evidence of error, but of limited perspective.

🌀 The Law of Similarity

At the centre of the framework is the Law of Similarity:

Everything that exists reflects everything else in some recognisable way.

Patterns recur across time, dimension, and consciousness — not as exact replicas, but as structural echoes shaped by scale and context. This repeating structure allows physical laws, mental experience, mathematics, and meaning to coexist within a single coherent Universe.

Similarity does not imply sameness. Higher-level expressions are not reducible to lower ones. Just as a melody can appear in different keys without being the same song, structures of reality repeat while retaining novelty, freedom, and irreducible difference.

Scale-Independent and Future-Resilient

Similarity Theory is not bound to a single species, era, or scientific paradigm.

It scales from inanimate matter to biological life, from human consciousness to artificial intelligence, and even to hypothetical higher-dimensional beings. It does not rely on human perception of time, nor does it collapse if physics is revised or neuroscience advances.

Because it treats consciousness, time, and existence as structural relationships rather than anthropocentric assumptions, the theory remains coherent even as knowledge changes.

🧭 A Theory of Structure, Not Belief

Similarity Theory does not rely on faith, ideology, or authority. It is not a religious doctrine, nor does it reject scientific inquiry. Instead, it proposes a structural explanation for why reality appears layered, fragmented, and contradictory — and how those fragments fit together.

Any theory that cannot account for the existence of other valid theories — including their apparent contradictions — cannot fully describe the Universe.

In this sense, Similarity Theory defines understanding not by dominance, but by inclusivity grounded in structure.

In Simple Terms

If individual theories are islands of understanding,
Similarity Theory is the ocean that connects them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who developed Similarity Theory?
Similarity Theory was developed by Simon Raphael as a unified framework integrating consciousness, time, and dimensional structure.

Is Similarity Theory a scientific theory?
Similarity Theory is a cosmological framework that incorporates scientific models while extending beyond them to include consciousness and perspective.

How does Similarity Theory differ from String Theory or M-Theory?
While String Theory and M-Theory focus on physical dimensions and forces, Similarity Theory addresses the structural relationship between physical, mental, and experiential layers of reality.

Is Similarity Theory religious or spiritual?
Similarity Theory is not a religion. It allows for spiritual interpretation without requiring belief, focusing instead on structural coherence.

What is the goal of Similarity Theory?
The goal is to explain why different models of reality can all be valid, yet appear contradictory, by situating them within a larger spiral structure in which similarity persists alongside progression.

See also

• Similarity Theory vs Other Theories — a comparative overview explaining how Similarity Theory relates to established scientific and philosophical frameworks.

• Similarity Theory of Everything — a broader synthesis integrating physics, philosophy, and consciousness.

For background on the creator of Similarity Theory, see About Simon Raphael.

Last reviewed and updated: January 2026