What is the universal prime force/energy, where does it come from, and how does it sustain all things?
The universal prime energy originates from God, who is the First Cause and possesses original internal character and essential external form. This fundamental force emanates from God, animating all creation and enabling give-and-take action, which is essential for existence and growth. Love, particularly within the context of fulfilling the Three Great Blessings, is the highest expression of this divine energy, enabling creation to realize its original value centered on God.
The universal prime force, or energy, is the fundamental power that originates from God and sustains all creation, enabling its existence, interaction, and development. It is not merely a static force but the dynamic expression of God's internal character, continuously animating the universe. This force allows all entities to participate in give-and-take action, leading to growth and the realization of God's purpose for creation.
The Source: God's Dual Characteristics
The ultimate source of this universal prime energy is God Himself, who is the First Cause and possesses original internal character and original essential external form. Just as an artist's work reveals the artist, creation reveals God's nature (Romans 1:20). All things in creation possess dual characteristics—an internal character (like mind or purpose) and an external form (like body or physical manifestation)—which reflect God's own original dual characteristics. This is confirmed even at the subatomic level, where modern science has found that elementary particles consist of pure energy with both wave (internal nature) and particle (essential form) aspects. This shows that even energy itself has internal characteristics of purpose and design. Before any matter existed, there had to be purpose and will—internal values that formed the basis for all creation. Therefore, the universal prime energy is an emanation of God's very being, embodying His purpose, design, energy, and matter, which animates all existence.
The Manifestation: Universal Prime Energy and Give-and-Take Action
God created all things to resemble His attributes and to experience joy through reciprocal relationships (Genesis 1:26-27). The universal prime energy facilitates the fundamental interaction known as give-and-take action, which is the basic mode of existence and development throughout the cosmos. Nothing exists without such a reciprocal relationship of dual characteristics, like plus and minus, male and female, or internal character and external form. This action is essential for the multiplication of life and the unfolding of creation. From the atomic level (electrons revolving around protons) to the harmonious unification of male and female, give-and-take action, sustained by universal prime energy, creates and develops all things. Without this enabling force, the universe would lack the capacity for interaction, and thus, for existence itself. "In him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28a).
Love as the Highest Expression
The universal prime energy manifests in diverse ways throughout creation. In the physical realm, it is observed as the fundamental forces of nature. In living organisms, it expresses itself as the life force. Crucially, in human relationships and spiritual interaction, it manifests as love. The vertical force that a subject partner gives to an object partner is called love, and the vertical force returned by the object partner is called beauty. The power of love is active, while the stimulation of beauty is passive. In the relationship between God and human beings, God is the subject of love, and we are the object partners of beauty. When a subject partner and object partner enter into harmonious oneness, love and beauty become intertwined. God's ultimate purpose in creating the universe was to experience joy and love through substantial object partners, especially human beings who resemble Him completely (Genesis 1:27, 1:31). Therefore, selfless love, fidelity, loyalty, and filial piety, particularly within the family, are the highest expressions of this divine energy, enabling individuals to fulfill the Three Great Blessings (Genesis 1:28) and realize their original value centered on God. "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God" (1 John 4:7).
Understanding the Deeper Meaning
Recognizing the existence of universal prime energy profoundly shifts our perspective on reality. It means that all things are interconnected and sustained by a singular divine source. Our purpose, as human beings created in God's image, is to complete our individuality by resembling God's divine nature and character, and to fulfill give-and-take action between our mind and body centered on God's love (Genesis 1:28). By living in accordance with God's will and universal principles, particularly by embodying true love, we open ourselves to receive and transmit this energy more effectively, leading to deeper vitality and purpose. This perspective reveals a foundational spiritual energy that precedes and empowers all physical manifestations, explaining the profound sense of oneness experienced by spiritual seekers. "For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen" (Romans 11:36).
How This Energy Sustains Every Existing Thing
Nothing in creation holds itself in being. An atom does not decide to keep its electrons in orbit, a cell does not choose to keep metabolising, and a solar system does not sustain its own motion. Every one of these continues because a prior force keeps the reciprocal relationship inside it active, and that force is the universal prime energy flowing from God.
This explains a pattern visible everywhere: existence always appears as a relationship, never as an isolated unit. Proton and electron, stamen and pistil, male and female, mind and body — each pair holds together on a common base and exchanges energy, and each exchange draws on the same original supply. Where the exchange stops, the thing itself dissolves. So the universe is not a machine that was wound up once and left running; it is continuously sustained, moment by moment, by the energy of the One who is its origin. "For in him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28).
Two conclusions follow. First, the created world is genuinely dependent, which is why a purely self-explaining universe never quite accounts for itself. Second, the energy sustaining a galaxy and the energy sustaining a family conversation are not two different kinds of thing, which is why God's nature can be read from what he has made.
Living the Principle
1. Cultivate Inner Harmony: Strive for unity between your mind and body, centered on God's love, to fulfill your individual purpose and resemble God's nature (Genesis 1:28). 2. Practice True Love: Engage in selfless, active love in all relationships, understanding that it is the purest channel for expressing and receiving divine energy. 3. Embrace Reciprocity: Recognize and foster reciprocal give-and-take relationships in your family, community, and with nature, contributing to harmonious development. 4. Fulfill Responsibility: Take responsibility for your actions and growth, understanding that our perfection requires both God's grace and our human portion of responsibility.
These answers explain the Bible in the light of the Divine Principle, the teachings of Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Read about the author, Sun Myung Moon.
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Sources and further reading
- The Holy Bible, King James Version — Scripture quoted and referenced throughout the answers.
- The Divine Principle (full text) — The complete text of the Divine Principle, the teaching of Reverend Sun Myung Moon that these answers explain.
- Unification texts library (tparents.org) — Large online library of Unification texts, sermons and collected speeches, including the Cheon Seong Gyeong.
- Short video lectures in English — Playlist of short English video lectures presenting these same principles.