While I was trying to build a connection between Heisenberg and Muhyiddin Arabi, he himself was interested in Heraclitus and his philosophy. To speak on wahdat al-wujud (the Unity of Being) and dialectics would, for now, be rather ambitious.
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Heisenberg—one of the most important figures in particle physics and the author of the Uncertainty Principle—compared natural philosophy with modern science. In this comparison, what matters most for us is that Heisenberg attributed the greatest significance to Heraclitus, who is regarded as the founder of dialectical materialism. Heraclitus, the first to grasp the concept of change, spoke of “fire”; the physicist, instead, spoke of “energy,” thereby virtually paying tribute to Heraclitus. Engels once said, “Dialectics has awaited history.” In the same way, Heraclitus awaited science for his ideas to be confirmed. From Heraclitus to Marx, both history and science have vindicated—and will continue to vindicate—all dialecticians.
—Tayfun Er, Yeni Harman, May 2010