Consistency, Relational Pathways, and the Limits of Observability: A Zero-Level Framework in the History and Philosophy of Physics

Modern physics has achieved extraordinary predictive success, yet persistent conceptual tensions remain at its foundations. Challenges surrounding observability, the dominance of non-luminous structure, the nature of time, and the relationship between quantum theory and relativity suggest that existing theories may be incomplete not at the level of equations, but at the level of underlying assumptions. This paper articulates a zero-level reframing grounded in two organizing notions: Consistency Principles (CP), which define non-negotiable constraints on what configurations may exist, and Relational Constraint Pathways (RCP), which specify the relational routes through which matter, energy, or information may propagate without violating consistency. Within this framework, observability is treated as a secondary condition, arising only when relational pathways permit access, rather than as a prerequisite for existence. In this initial interpretive formulation, the framework introduces no new particles, forces, or equations. Instead, it clarifies a pattern already implicit across scientific practice: that indirect inference, structural influence without emission, and constraint-driven organization are foundational rather than exceptional. By situating this pattern historically and philosophically, the paper positions CP and RCP as a unifying interpretive scaffold within the history and philosophy of physics.