Questions and Answers
Well – are there any erudite Astronomers/Physicists/Boffins out there who can tell us why light travels at "the speed of light"?
This question of why light travels at a certain speed is an invalid question in a philosophical context. Philosophy is the science that provides man with a comprehensive view of life, and science and astronomy form part of the natural sciences that depend on this conceptual foundation.
When we refer to light, we are referring to all its characteristics that we observe. Light is an element of nature. Like every element of nature, every galaxy, star and speck of dust, they all have specific characteristics and identities. Its speed is one of the essential elements without which light would not be light.
Everything in nature, which has not been altered or influenced by man, had to be and could not have been otherwise. They are facts of reality.
Using his conscious faculty, man gains knowledge about existence by observing and integrating the facts of reality. Through his knowledge of existence and existents, he can further his understanding and reshape reality for his own purposes, adhering to the facts of reality. This fact is important as man determines what is true or false by whether or not his judgements correspond to or contradict the facts of reality.
To question why light behaves as light does is to question the law of identity. Everything that exists acts according to its specific nature. Implicit in the question of why light travels at a certain speed is the assumption that it could have behaved otherwise or by someone’s choice or whim. In this view, reality and existence are not the metaphysically given, but created by one’s consciousness. According to this subjective view, reality can be whatever what one wants it to be, facts and existence is divorced from perception.
"Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed." Francis Bacon
Eric Brindeau