The Kardashev scale is a hypothetical framework for measuring the level of technological advancement of a civilization. It was proposed by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Kardashev in 1964, who classified civilizations into three types based on their energy consumption:
Type I: A civilization that can harness all the energy available on its home planet.
Type II: A civilization that can capture all the energy emitted by its home star.
Type III: A civilization that can control all the energy in its home galaxy.
But some people think that there might be civilizations even more advanced than Type III. They might be able to use all the energy from the entire universe, or even multiple universes. These are called Type IV and Type V civilizations, and they are like real gods.
The difference between Type IV and Type V civilizations is not very clear, as they are both beyond our comprehension. However, one possible way of distinguishing them is based on their relationship with the multiverse.
The multiverse is the idea that there are many different universes, each with its own laws of physics, history, and life forms. Some of these universes might be similar to ours, while others might be very different. Some of them might even have different dimensions, such as time and space.
A Type IV civilization might be able to access and explore the multiverse, but not change it. They might be able to travel to different universes, observe and interact with them, and learn from them. They might also be able to communicate and cooperate with other Type IV civilizations in the multiverse.
A Type V civilization might be able to not only access and explore the multiverse, but also change it. They might be able to create, destroy, and modify universes as they wish. They might also be able to transcend the multiverse, and exist in a higher level of reality. They might not have any limits or boundaries to their power and knowledge.
The difference between Type IV and Type V civilizations is similar to the difference between a tourist and a creator. A tourist can visit different places, but not change them. A creator can make new places, or change existing ones. Both are amazing, but one is more powerful than the other.
A Type V civilization would be so advanced that it would be indistinguishable from magic to us. It would have access to infinite energy, matter, information, and dimensions. It would be able to create, destroy, and modify universes as easily as we can draw pictures.
It would be able to travel across time and space without any limitations. It would be able to manipulate the fundamental forces and constants of nature, and even create new ones. It would be able to transcend the concepts of life and death, and exist in any form it desires.
Such a civilization might be at least as old as some billions of years with such a rich history our human one might look like a brief millisecond and boring in comparison with it.
To “primitive” civilizations (like a type 2 civilization) they might be gods of their legends.
Their machines might look like bacteria, viruses, the laws of physic itself, and at the same time they might have constructed hyper mega structures as large as whole universes to live in, to transform their energy, to create universes.
In their normal everyday Joe’s life they might be willing to create natural environments, others might like to live in hyper-high-tech structures.
They totally completed a transhumanist’s life and the originally organic and technological parts might be already indistinguishable since they totally perfected this technological development.
To us “pesky” type 0.7 humans their technology might look like the force of nature, they can manipulate how fast a whole universe expands, how it comes to existence.
What would they do with their godlike powers?
There is no definitive answer to these questions, as they would depend on the values, ethics, and preferences of each individual or collective being. The most we can do is think theoretically from a human point of view. Some possible scenarios are:
Exploration: A Type V civilization might be driven by curiosity and wonder, and seek to explore and understand every aspect of existence. They might create and visit countless universes, each with different laws of physics, histories, and life forms. They might experiment with different scenarios and outcomes, and learn from their experiences.
Creation: A Type V civilization might be driven by creativity and expression, and seek to create new forms of beauty and meaning. They might design and construct universes according to their aesthetic preferences, and populate them with diverse and complex beings. They might also create art, music, literature, and other forms of culture that reflect their vision and values.
Preservation: A Type V civilization might be driven by compassion and responsibility, and seek to preserve and protect the existing universes and their inhabitants. They might intervene in cases of injustice, suffering, or danger, and provide guidance and assistance to lower civilizations. They might also ensure the stability and harmony of the multiverse, and prevent any threats or conflicts that could endanger it.
Evolution: A Type V civilization might be driven by growth and improvement, and seek to enhance themselves and their universes. They might constantly seek new challenges and opportunities, and strive to overcome their limitations. They might also seek to expand their consciousness and awareness, and attain higher levels of wisdom and enlightenment.
These scenarios are not mutually exclusive, and a Type V civilization might pursue more than one of them at the same time. Alternatively, they might have goals that are completely incomprehensible to us, or no goals at all. They might simply exist in a state of blissful harmony with themselves and the multiverse.
Where is our place on the Kardashev Scale?
The original K scale was qualitative, ie there were no “in-between” gradations between the categories.
On this scale current human civilization is not even on it. (As the original scale had no zero, it started with one)
Later on people modified the scale to quantify it, with the understanding that different planets, stars and galaxies can have wildly different energy fluxes. They took the total energy flux of the Earth, and the total energy flux of the sun, and the total energy output of the Milky Way (as it was understood to be at the time), and attempted a linear regression, in order to assign specific energy NUMBERS to the K1, 2 and 3 levels.
On this modified scale, it should be noted, a K1 is not exactly the total energy flux of the Earth and a K2 is not exactly total energy output of the sun (and a K3 isn’t so much the total energy output of any individual galaxy but just the combined energy output of a very large number of stars).
This linearized scale is logarithmic, and if you take modern human civilization’s current energy budget and place it on the scale, it ends up being just over 0.7.
Is God a Type V+ civilization?
The distinction between God and a Type 5 civilization remains undefined because God lacks a clear definition.
This poses a challenge for religion, as an unexpected appearance of God would leave us unable to discern whether we are encountering extraterrestrial beings due to religion’s failure to precisely articulate the nature of their deities.
In our current stage of scientific and technological development, humans can only rely on their imagination to speculate about a hypothetical Type 5 civilization.
Such a civilization is far beyond our comprehension, akin to how our advanced 21st-century Western high-tech society might appear to a Stone Age Cro-Magnon human magically transported to our present time—especially one who, unlike the Sentinels from North Sentinel Island, has had no prior knowledge of our civilization.
Nobody on earth, or perhaps in this universe (if it is a design) can give you an answer to the fact that God is alien or more than alien. But it is likely that there is some higher form of advanced species beyond our imagination.
