The physical world exists as a special school and experience. It provides opportunities and challenges in order to equip the soul for a life that must be led when leaving this world. It is a process of learning that readies us for the next stage.
The physical world is a prison when compared to the spirit world. We are able to express a very small portion of ourselves in this world. The body we use in the spirit world is far more real and solid than the one used in the world of matter, for this world is not real at all. It is only a shadow cast by the world of spirit. The spirit world is the reality and we cannot fully understand this greater reality until we pass into the world of spirit.
The physical universe is generally considered as extending outward in space (and backwards in time). With such an external view, man could visit another planet and deem it unable to support life, when in fact life does exist. Other life forms could visit Earth and draw the same conclusions. Our very perception of travelling through space would in a greater reality, be seen as travelling around it. The more we are able to perceive an inner view of our physical structures, the greater our understanding of the universe will be.