How To Build A Universe That Doesn't Fall Apart Two Days Later

by Philip K. Dick

1978 speech from the anthology The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick: Selected Literary and Philosophical Writings (1995).

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Essays, Writing, Literature, Theory, Religion

145 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Philip Kindred Dick was a prolific American science fiction author whose work has had a lasting impact on literature, cinema, and popular culture. Known for his imaginative narratives and profound philosophical themes, Dick explored the nature of reality, the boundaries of human identity, and the impact of technology and authoritarianism on society. His stories often blurred the line between the real and the artificial, challenging readers to question their perceptions and beliefs.
Raised in California, Dick began writing professionally in the early 1950s, publishing short stories in various science fiction magazines. He quickly developed a distinctive voice within the genre, marked by a fusion of science fiction concepts with deep existential and psychological inquiry. Over his career, he authored 44 novels and more than 100 short stories, many of which have become classics in the field.
Recurring themes in Dick's work include alternate realities, simulations, corporate and government control, mental illness, and the nature of consciousness. His protagonists are frequently everyday individuals—often paranoid, uncertain, or troubled—caught in surreal and often dangerous circumstances that force them to question their environment and themselves. Works such as Ubik, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, and A Scanner Darkly reflect his fascination with perception and altered states of consciousness, often drawing from his own experiences with mental health struggles and drug use.
One of Dick’s most influential novels is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, which served as the basis for Ridley Scott’s iconic film Blade Runner. The novel deals with the distinction between humans and artificial beings and asks profound questions about empathy, identity, and what it means to be alive. Other adaptations of his work include Total Recall, Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, and The Man in the High Castle, each reflecting key elements of his storytelling—uncertain realities, oppressive systems, and the search for truth. These adaptations have introduced his complex ideas to audiences well beyond the traditional readership of science fiction.
In the 1970s, Dick underwent a series of visionary and mystical experiences that had a significant influence on his later writings. He described receiving profound knowledge from an external, possibly divine, source and documented these events extensively in what became known as The Exegesis, a massive and often fragmented journal. These experiences inspired his later novels, most notably the VALIS trilogy, which mixes autobiography, theology, and metaphysics in a narrative that defies conventional structure and genre boundaries.
Throughout his life, Dick faced financial instability, health issues, and periods of personal turmoil, yet he remained a dedicated and relentless writer. Despite limited commercial success during his lifetime, his reputation grew steadily, and he came to be regarded as one of the most original voices in speculative fiction. His work has been celebrated for its ability to fuse philosophical depth with gripping storytelling and has influenced not only science fiction writers but also philosophers, filmmakers, and futurists.
Dick’s legacy continues to thrive in both literary and cinematic spheres. The themes he explored remain urgently relevant in the modern world, particularly as technology increasingly intersects with human identity and governance. The Philip K. Dick Award, named in his honor, is presented annually to distinguished works of science fiction published in paperback original form in the United States. His writings have also inspired television series, academic studies, and countless homages across media.
Through his vivid imagination and unflinching inquiry into the nature of existence, Philip K. Dick redefined what science fiction could achieve. His work continues to challenge and inspire, offering timeless insights into the human condition a

Reviews

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a remarkable coincidence that just happened to me.

Not, a longstanding admirer of Philip K. Dick, stumbled across this essay yesterday while looking for something else. If you're curious, you can download it here. After reading the first paragraph, she printed out a copy, meaning to finish it later, and put it on the coffee table. She hadn't got any further when I noticed it there. Since she had meanwhile started something else, I picked it up and read the whole thing in about ten minutes.

The piece, which is weird even by PKD standards, centers around a series of bizarre events related to Dick's 1974 novel Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said. It was drawn to Dick's attention that important aspects of the book are connected to passages from the Acts of the Apostles, a New Testament book that Dick said he had not read before he composed FMT. Among other things, several key scenes in FMT closely mirror scenes from Acts; also, the hero of FMT is called Jason, a name which only occurs in the Bible in the books of Acts and Romans. As Dick investigated, more and more strange coincidences turned up, both in the book and in real life. Finally, he came to a conclusion which very few people could even have hypothesized, much less accepted: the real world is the early Christian world described in Acts, and what we think is the real world is an illusion created by Satan to deceive us.

This is the most batshit crazy theory I've come across this century, and one of our best friends in Geneva is an expert on UFOs and remote viewing. But let me get to my own coincidence. For the last six months, I've been meeting for an hour every week with Not's aunt, a Catholic nun, who's been recording Bible audio for the LARA project. We did Luke, then we did some of Ecclesiastes and Psalms, then Ruth. A few weeks ago, we started on Acts. I'm meeting her tomorrow, and I downloaded the next two chapters to set up the recording. Sure enough, the first paragraph I looked at, the beginning of Acts 17, mentions Jason; it's one of the scenes Dick refers to. This is the only time Jason is mentioned.

Well, perhaps Not saw references to Acts in Dick's piece and downloaded it for that reason, knowing that I was recording this book with her aunt. But she says she's sure she only read some of the first page, and there is no mention of Acts until halfway through; also, Not is pathologically uninterested in the Bible, and makes a point of knowing so little about it that she can't name any books or recognise any scriptural quotes. Of course, she might be exaggerating her ignorance for dramatic purposes. And even if Not wasn't helping things along, a simple explanation is that it's no more than a coincidence.

Obviously Dick's idea is just a fantasy cooked up by a science-fiction writer who liked drugs too much and had some serious mental health issues. That goes without saying. But it's still pretty weird to feel his reality reaching out to me like this.

[Petergiaquinta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy shit but Philip K. Dick is so marvelously insane...

And there's something truly marvelous here for the Phllip K. Dick fan in this 1978 essay where he blends together equal parts Disneyland, the mind rot of television, Heraclitus and other assorted Ancient Greek thinkers, a Chinese fortune cookie, Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch, a dream about an old bearded man on a horse who just might be the Alpha and Omega, his compassion for the recently fallen Dick Nixon, and a whole lot more in a crazy pot of gumbo that essentially acknowledges the two overriding questions his life's work has attempted to address: 1) What is the nature of reality? and 2) What makes up an authentic human being?

Readers of Dick know the significance of the first question. Dick is certain that the reality we see and experience every day is not the real reality at work beneath the surface of this illusion, and all of his works address this concept in a variety of fascinating ways from the first novel I read of his called Time Out of Joint to the more famous Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and The Man in the High Castle. But forget all those illusory realities of his novels because here in this essay Dick shares with us what's really going on in our world: we live in a deep fake construct crafted by Satan himself masking what is the true reality of 50 A.D. in those early years after Christ has ascended to Heaven and the faithful attempt to establish his Church. Yes, underneath it all, despite Instagram and Only Fans, Fox and Friends and the wildfires in the West and the fall of Kabul, we are actually really and truly living in the first century during the early years of the Christian Church. Even more specifically, Dick seems to believe he's actually the apostle Philip. Hmmmm.

So ... does Dick really believe this or is the essay is just one more fascinating take on the illusory nature of reality? Remember, he's insane, but despite that he sanely acknowledges that his quest to determine the nature of reality has come up short.

Toward the end of the essay, Dick claims to have found better success in answering that second question regarding the nature of authentic humanity. Dick finds it in the refusal by authentic humans to participate in the spurious reality around them. Dick explains, "I see their authenticity in an odd way: not in their willingness to perform great heroic deeds but in their quiet refusals." These authentic humans reject the deep fake constructs around them to find the real reality, and Dick writes, "This, to me, is the ultimately heroic trait of ordinary people; they say no to the tyrant and they calmly take the consequences of this resistance."

Part of me wants to eat this up, especially when Dick is talking about Disneyland and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. After all, who's more authentic than Toad of Toad Hall? That crazy fucker could not be constrained by simple morality, the concern of his friends, speed limits, or sobriety. But after the last few years and the way Dick's charming brand of insanity seems to have taken hold in society at large among the frighteningly large number of Qanon adherents, Republican congressmen, and diseased monkeys who believe Donald Trump is still the real president, I'm feeling less charitable about Dick's definition of what constitutes an authentic human being.

So, are the rabid anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers out there today slapping school board members and willy-nilly spreading Covid across the land actually the embodiment of this authentic, heroic Dickian human the author describes near the end of his essay?

No, sadly they're just dicks.

Thanks to Manny R for calling this essay to my attention.
Take a look: https://urbigenous.net/library/how_to...

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This essay about Philip K. Dick’s real life is just as weird as the science fiction he wrote. It discusses some of the eerie coincidences between events in Dick’s life and stories he had previously written. It explores the fascinating turn late in Dick’s life where he was convinced that he was communicating with a spirit, or higher being, and that he was living two lives simultaneously: one in the here and now, and one in ancient Rome.

Was Philip K. Dick crazy? Maybe. Possibly. Or maybe he was sane, and we’re all nuts.

Interesting stuff for anyone who wants to know a bit more about what made Dick tick.

[ліда лісова · Rating 4 out of 5]

Приблизно у той час, коли Верховний суд вирішив передати касети з записами Ніксона спеціальному прокуророві, я сидів у китайському ресторані у Йорба-Лінда, містечку в Каліфорнії, де Ніксон ходив до школи, де він виріс, де працював у гастрономі, де на його честь назвали парк, ну і, звісно ж, там стоїть дім Ніксона, звичайний дерев’яний будиночок і так далі. У печиві, яке мені дісталося, було таке пророцтво:
«Усе таємне стане явним».
Я відіслав цю смужку паперу в Білий Дім, зазначивши, що китайський ресторан знаходився за милю від колишнього дому Ніксона. Я написав: «Мені здається, трапилася помилка. Випадково мені дісталося пророцтво пана Ніксона. У нього раптом немає мого?» Я так і не дочекався відповіді від Білого дому.

цікаво шо через деякі висловлювання його вважали ледь не божевільним а тепер вони звучать майже як банальність. шо звісно не так. блискучий есей

[Nathaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most fascinating essays I have ever read.

[Lisa Bianca · Rating 4 out of 5]

a short and at times thought provoking read, that requires some open mindedness on how PDK processed his inner

[Ellie P. Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

February 2022:

A must-read for anyone at all interested in Philip K. Dick. I always knew PKD was sort of an interesting character, but this excerpt of nonfiction acts as a connecting bridge to his fiction in proving to readers that our author really is as paranoid as his writing portrays. Reality cannot be as it seems to be - it is beyond our scope of perception. We can never fully understand the true workings of what is really going on. Time is a trick. Events repeat themselves simulacrously. The unconscious is wise and aware.

On What is reality?:

"The pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Parmenides taught that the only things that are real are things which never change… and the pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Heraclitus taught that everything changes. If you superimpose their two views, you get this result: Nothing is real."

"I offer this merely to show that as soon as you begin to ask what is ultimately real, you right away begin talk nonsense. Zeno proved that motion was impossible. David Hume, the greatest skeptic of them all, once remarked that after a gathering of skeptics met to proclaim the veracity of skepticism as a philosophy, all of the members of the gathering nonetheless left by the door rather than the window. I see Hume’s point. It was all just talk. The solemn philosophers weren’t taking what they said seriously."

On What constitutes the authentic human being?:

"Fake realities will create fake humans. Or, fake humans will generate fake realities and then sell them to other humans, turning them, eventually, into forgeries of themselves. So we wind up with fake humans inventing fake realities and then peddling them to other fake humans. It is just a very large version of Disneyland."

On the idea of fake fakes:

"In my writing I got so interested in fakes that I finally came up with the concept of fake fakes. For example, in Disneyland there are fake birds worked by electric motors which emit caws and shrieks as you pass by them. Suppose some night all of us sneaked into the park with real birds and substituted them for the artificial ones. Imagine the horror the Disneyland officials would feel when they discovered the cruel hoax. Real birds! And perhaps someday even real hippos and lions. Consternation."

On the perception of blind people:

"As to our senses, I understand that people who have been blind from birth and are suddenly given sight are amazed to discover that objects appear to get smaller and smaller as they get farther away. Logically, there is no reason for this. We, of course, have come to accept this, because we are used to it. We see objects get smaller, but we know that in actuality they remain the same size. So even the common everyday pragmatic person utilizes a certain amount of sophisticated discounting of what his eyes and ears tell him."

On pluralism (one of my most favorite ideas ever):

"The kosmos is not as it appears to be, and what it probably is, at its deepest level, is exactly that which the human being is at his deepest level — call it mind or soul, it is something unitary which lives and thinks, and only appears to be plural and material."

Tentative answers to our first two questions:

“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.”

"The authentic human being is one of us who instinctively knows what he should not do, and, in addition, he will balk at doing it."

PKD covers it all. I'm beginning to think he was either some metaphysical genius or a crazy hack with type two schizophrenia or whatever. He was probably both. That's usually how those kinds of things work

[Tristan rasmvs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had such an interesting experience reading this book. In his essay Dick writes about how he coincidentally experienced in real life a scene from one of his novels. After that he tells his priest about this event, and his priest states that this described scene in essence is also described in one of the Bible passages from Acts. after that, Dick encounters a woman at the door of his home. Dick gets intrigued by her necklace, which is a golden fish, upon asking she tells him that it is a symbol that the early Christians wore.

This book was brought to me by a woman in the bookstore that I work. I for a while have wanted to start reading SCIFI, but after months had not managed to purchase a book or do more research about authors. The moment I started reading it at the beach. I had just finished St Augustine’s confessions, which I was also busy reading when she visited the store. On that same day minutes before I started reading htbautdfa2dl I read one of Augustine’s last pages, which mentioned the symbol of the fish that Christians in his time used.

The bizarre coincidence, that also Dick did not seem to be able to comprehend, has now also sparked an interest in his other work, leading perhaps to a larger interest of me in SCIFI. It just shows that things you are “manifesting” even though not with effort, will eventually lead to new doorways.

This was such a fun and quick read, and the inclusion of Classic philosophy and the contemporary was really interesting. Definitely a recommend!

[Emily Constance · Rating 5 out of 5]

so trippy. i have a feeling that I will be coming back to this a lot. "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." In a similar vein, the authentic human is that whom, when everyone around him pressures him to act in a way he knows he shouldn't, refuses to do so despite whatever consequences he may face. "The nature of things is in the habit of concealing itself." To get to the truth you have to look beneath the surface, which is why Ubik had those trippy experiences with the Bible that he did. The Bible is a book of universal truths...give or take. They apply to whatever reality is perceived or real. So it makes sense why he would theorize that the Bible is somehow the true reality underneath all of our plural, perceived realities. Whatever is true is that which can withstand change, the ability to absorb and 'deal with the new' being part of its nature, which is why the 'pre-socratic' beliefs that 'all things that are real are things that do not change,' and 'everything changes' can both be true. a lot to marinate on for sure, I'll def keep this book on hand for a while - it's tiny enough :,)

[Ben DeCuyper]

The Isolarii books are a lot of fun! I’m thrilled with David Krakauer’s involvement here and hope he continues participating in Isolarii’s publications.

Everyone has likely had a shocking experience when first encountering the byproducts of “behavioral advertising” or “targeted advertising.” When experiencing this encounter for the first time, I thought it was an uncanny, wild coincidence. In HTBAUTDFATDL, PKD shares what I believe is a similar sensation but for spirituality in general. This doesn’t yield the eventual understanding and paranoia of one’s privacy being violated, but rather a sustained fascination with PKD’s theory that “time is not real… that despite all the change we see, a specific permanent (a la Parmenides and Plato) landscape underlies the world of change – and that this invisible underlying landscape is that of the Bible… (p.67, 68)

I’ve been fascinated with the Greeks lately and was pleased to read PKD’s references to Xenophanes, Parmenides, Heraclitus, Anaxagoras, and Plato. Specifically, Plato’s Timaeus is referenced. I read HTBAUTDFATDL at a perfect time in my life. In addition to Greek mythology, I’ve become interested in Cosmogonies in general. Learning of Timaeus around the same time as picking up this Isolarii served as a strange (albeit insubstantial) coincidence. More generally, my recent fascination with creation myths has made me realize that even if one is not spiritual, one cannot deny the cultural pervasiveness of such texts.

I really loved the parallels drawn between Xenophanes and Spinoza. I loved Krakauer’s point that the dialectic of Heraclitus (flux) and Parmenides (permanence) “is a more fundamental opposition than that between Dionysus and Apollo.” Lastly, I will preach at the altar of PKD’s image of the “authentic human” of “small deeds” and lost names. “I see their authenticity in an odd way: not in their willingness to perform great heroic deeds but in their quiet refusals. In essence, they cannot be compelled to be what they are not.” (p.107, 108) In an age of LLMs and deepfakes, PKD’s essay is especially appropriate.

[Kye Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have put off reading this for around 6 weeks and after a sleepless night I decided to start it in the wee hours of the this morn.

After a unnecessarily wordy and complex series of intros by David C.Krakauer which reminds me of exactly the kind of language I do not enjoy in academic texts and essays we are thrown into a written account of a speech PKD gave in 1978.

Very different from the pages of fiction I’ve reas through this year but a unique view into how PKD approaches not only his own fiction but his views on reality, fake fakes, and Disneyland. I loved “Man in the High Castle (it was one of the first books I read this year) so it was very interesting to take a peak first hand into the machinations of the author’s brain.

There is a fair amount of heavy lifting done by happenstance, chance and serendipity in the stories that pin Phillip’s realisations and theories together but that’s the crux of the speech itself and I’m all for a bit of magical coincidence and making conclusions out of seemingly disparate patterns. The language used to describe these thoughts is clear concise and peppered with humour - exactly how I like my universe bending text to be served up and in stark contrast to the intellectual guff in the intro.

* the book itself is physically tiny which I didn’t realise till it arrived making the low page count even lower if it were to be proper book sized, should I count this as a read? I’ll let my one follower that reads these decide.

[Cameron]

“[…] as soon as you begin to ask what is ultimately real, you right away begin talk nonsense.” Tell me about it! PKD’s secret love of chaos… of the ossified giving way to rebirth… an elastic organism who is at once just one component of a great ever-shifting behemoth god and an individual god (creator and destroyer) of worlds — images — The Word — Logos — The Unreal God and the Aspects of His Nonexistent Universe — a plague of coincidences revealing order within chaos and its diametric reverse — TIME IS NOT WHAT WE IMAGINE IT TO BE — the incorruptibility of the pure essence of life despite all changes giving way to death the two alike in their enormity within a vast whole.

“For a short time, as hard as this is to believe or explain, I saw fading into view the black prison-like contours of hateful Rome. But, of much more importance, I remembered Jesus, who had just recently been with us, and had gone temporarily away, and would very soon return. My emotion was one of joy. We were secretly preparing to welcome Him back. It would not be long. And the Romans did not know. They thought He was dead, forever dead. That was our great secret, our joyous knowledge. Despite all appearances, Christ was going to return, and our delight and anticipation was boundless.”

[Bob Finch · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I understand this tiny enjoyable book, it is the text of a lecture written by the author in the late 1970s. It is, in large part, a thoughtful and entertaining attempt to explain what are ostensibly curious coincidences between one of his novels (and at least one personal experience) and, especially, the Book of Acts in the Christian New Testament. Perhaps unsurprisingly, as the author is a self-proclaimed Christian, his explanation relies on Christian texts and teachings. The author also draws on a few pre-Socratic Greek philosophers to round out his thesis about the nature of reality.

Deftly written and thoughtfully presented, it is simultaneously entertaining and provocative. Well worth the minimal time it takes to read. David Krakauer’s introduction in the edition I have (ISOLARII 2024) is fun, a bit zany, and worth rereading after finishing the main text.

[Robert Boyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

This slight book starts off with a fairly comprehensible premise and then quickly goes off the rails. This is from a talk that Dick gave in 1978. Around 1974, Dick experienced a mental break that lead him to believe that he was a Judean living in first century Syria and hiding from the Romans. But he was aware that he was a man in 1978, living near Disneyland. He knew that Jimmy Carter was the president. He was aware enough of who he was that he was able to give this lecture and talk about it--Dick tries to link what is happening to him to various pre-Socratic Greek thinkers, but he never says, "Wow, I took way too much LSD in the sixties and my mind is damaged as a result." His conviction about what he believes is happening to him seems solid in this weird little book.

[Berengere · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially written as a speech in 1978, then published for the first time in 1885.
A great short read in a pocket-size format, which added to the fun. (can be found online too, for free!)

K. Dick was truly brilliant, with wonderful ideas and a great sense of humour. Two quotes of note:

"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."
"[...] authentic human being[s] [are those who] cannot be compelled to be what they are not."

I also thoroughly enjoyed the introduction, by David C. Krakauer, a renowned scientist. It's maybe a tiny bit wordy, but it taught me quite a few new words - always a bonus!

[David Macpherson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sign of a persuasive writer. When you read the postulate of reality and what it means to Dick, you can almost believe where he is coming from, but then try to summarize it to a friend and you sound like a crazy person. That is this talk about how we are living under a false reality due to the Devil, I think. This is maniac stuff but so amazing, The pieces where he brings in Disney land are terrific. I am glad this was taken from a large collection of essays and talks and presented by itself or there might be a chance my head would explode.

[Jakub Adamčík · Rating 4 out of 5]

everyone's favourite paranoid schizophrenic Gnosticism fanboy strikes again.

first half of the book is a pretty spot on media analysis mixed with ontological rablings and musing on nature of collective and individual reality.

that writing slowly bleeabout into Philips batshit crazy interpretation of/relationship with Christianity because of course it is.

wouldn't tolerate jt with any other writer, but Philip gets a break.

good essay, read it

[Stephanie Petersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a speech he gave in 1978, Dick describes an experience pertaining to his own writing that illustrated to him the illusory nature of time. I won't give spoilers, but I have experienced something similar in my work, too. Well written and funny; this "essay" will definitely get you thinking.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is exactly what one would expect from a PKD speech from 1978: the results of decades of mixing amphetamines, gnosticism and science fiction.

The 2020 album by Les Puryear is a very good reading of the piece

[Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

This essay reads so conversational, and I love it. The inner workings of a truly inquisitive person. I’m looking forward to reading his novels. Also I love this format?? So readable, font size is perfect, feels so good to have a physical copy and all.

[Enju Jung · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great essay that makes you rethink your life as you know it. I think everyone should read this.

[El Sh'Booms · Rating 5 out of 5]

The more I read Philip K. Dick, the less I know. Certainty collapses. Only questions remain.

[Marta · Rating 1 out of 5]

Употребление наркотических веществ порой негативно сказывается на работе мозга.

[Antonio Hall-Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

this dick guy was real crazy

[Wiley June · Rating 4 out of 5]

top tier schizophrenia

[sam k · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty interesting

[Conal Frost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, thought-provoking, and approachable. I think I need to find a god or at least open myself up to the universe more.

[Michael Colglazier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me reading flow my tears the policeman said: Wow this is cool, I wonder how PKD came up with it.
Me reading How to build a universe that doesn’t fall apart in two days: Oh he’s actually just crazy

[Denis Vasilev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Речь Филиппа Дика о реально существующей истине

[Ignace · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick peek behind the veil and the world will never be the same again. So marvelous!