Enormous forces are at work in the universe. Vast numbers of stars and their planetary groupings move at high speed. Radiation of various sorts streams throughout the universe. There is a cosmic background radiation that scientists can now measure as they develop ever-finer instrumentation to try to understand the universal creation. Here on earth, we exist due to the radiation provided by the sun which provides the energy needed to sustain life on the planet. We are subject to gravitational forces including the influence of the Moon.
We recognise some of these forces ourselves to some degree when we deal with sunburn, UV rays impacting our vision, etc. We harness electricity to run much of our lives. These unseen forces are now able to be measured, quantified and harnessed to a great degree.
These are the universal cosmic forces at the material level of the creation. There are also similarly universal forces that operate on the vital, the mental and indeed other planes of existence that we cannot ‘see” but which we can experience in their impact on our lives.
Those who take up spiritual practices tend to develop awareness of many of these more subtle forces. Just as we have found ways to identify and measure material forces of the universe, we are finding ways to identify and measure these other, more subtle, levels of vibration and their impacts.
Sri Aurobindo writes in his epic poem Savitri: a Legend and a Symbol, Book I, Canto 3: ““Awakened to the lines that Nature hides, Attuned to her movements that exceed our ken, He grew one with a covert universe. His grasp surprised her mightiest energies’ springs, He spoke with the unknown Guardians of the worlds, Forms he descried our mortal eyes see not, His wide eyes bodied viewless entities, He saw the cosmic forces at their work And felt the occult impulse behind man’s will.”
Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 4 Cosmic and Universal Forces, pg. 80
Sri Aurobindo Studies 