superstition free

smiles

What is the sound of one hand clapping ? Where does your lap go when you stand up ? If a tree falls in the forest ... and there's nobody there to hear it ... does it make a sound ? Whatever happened to Schrodingers cat?

Does the observer effect render all observations as being subjective ?

According to the Black Iron Prison .... everything is true and nothing is true. It's all a matter of belief.

If you think you've got the objective truth of it all ... just keep on believing that.

Just sayin' is all bro.

There's the internal reality that we all have and then the external reality of the world around us. It's better if the two are relatively in synch with one another. People sometimes become very dysfunctional as they drift further and further off in their own reality bubble ( aka ... the childhood dream.)

Wintertime, and the social isolation that often accompanies it, is a hard time of year for a lot of folks. It's called cabin fever here in Maine.

It's probably best to begin by defining the word superstition and then speak our truths clearly and plainly.

These definitions of superstition from the dictionary may be helpful.

: a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation

: an irrational abject attitude of mind toward the supernatural, nature, or God resulting from superstition

: a notion maintained despite evidence to the contrary

As you may have learned from your time in the military ... precision in language is important. Could you please more clearly define what you mean by the word superstition ?

Well ... let's go back to the beginning. You spoke of superstition and seeking a truth or truths which were not subjective.

In essence ... it al boils down to reasoned thinking. It's an aspiration to achieve the objective viewpoint. It's pure logic untainted by personal bias.

A person who has achieved true mastery of a truth should be able to break it all down in a clear and concise way. It's much like a mathematical equation in this way. 2 + 2 +2 = 6 It will always equal six.

The "argument" that you spoke of is simply a vetting process. We're all human and as such ... we are prone to errors in our reasoning.

That's why i called upon you to be impeccable in your word. It was so that i might examine your conclusion that " people are like a dog with a stick. "

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I'll be straight up with you CD. From everything you have told us ... it would seem that you have largely withdrawn from society. You're " livin' the dream" as they say. The life of a solitary can be both a blessing and a curse.

The blessing part would be that you're free from the distractions and noise of everyday life. In order to attain the objective viewpoint ... one must first detach oneself. True masters have a variety of ways in which they temporarily detach themselves ... the more common being through prayer and meditation.

The curse part is that as a solitary ... you probably spend a lot of time living inside your own head. It's very easy to become hopelessly lost in that vast expanse between the ears.

That's what i was alluding to when i spoke of our internal reality gradually becoming more and more out of synch with the external reality of the world around us. It can come to a point where you can't function in the everyday world very well anymore and end up living as a hermit.

Someone that's truly balanced can walk as easily in one world as they can in the other.

Does this make sense ?

Originally Posted by ChildhoodDream

Taxes are not that bad so far as I have Homestead credits. Last year was $328.00 total. Less then my vehicle insurance for a year.

As for superstition it goes much deeper then what fanatic sports followers wear.

Religion is mostly superstition and rituals.

It's all about the "money" and if looked at and measured with research, we find that money is just a fancy I.O.U. that people including myself will take as CA$H as long as others will.

Illusions and false facades is what the world is constructed of. I can see well what's behind the facades and illusions as I'm not that interested in them.

Rituals are very popular. Any that I follow, I do in fun and realize that I'm playing make believe and pretend and acting silly.

I have learned that most haven't a clue to how I Live and what makes me tick. I'm very aware that I can make people uncomfortable with who I AM.

I find that most humans are not interested in growing up beyond age and size. Overgrown toddlers with loaded weapons.

Well ... as you said " There's nothing new under the sun ."

You have to be careful with the holy scriptures though because they can read different ways depending upon your level of understanding. Someone with little or no understanding takes it at face value. An intermediate would interpret it another way and a person of advanced learning might interpret as meaning something entirely different. That's why they have bible study ... so that the Christians can gain a deeper understanding of their faith.

Anyhow ... opinions very. My opinion ... though probably not very well informed ... is that " Nothing new under the sun " was more likely a commentary on human nature. Times change ... great empires rise and fall ... yet basic human nature has changed very little over the past 4,000 years or so of recorded history.

You read the ancient religious texts from places like China, India, South America, the Middle East, and Europe ... and the authors of those books reveal volumes about themselves if you have a basic understanding of human nature. It just takes the quality of human empathy. There are different personality types that repeat through history. Not entirely unlike the 13 different Cylon models from Battlestar Galactica if you're into Sci fi.

Anyhow ..there's nothing like settling in with a hot cup of coffee and a good book next to the woodstove in a cold winter's day. You might like the writings of Henry David Thoreau. He was a man very much like yourself.

In fact ... the resemblance is almost uncanny.

I dunno ... i'm about 45 years in on my current path of learning. It's certainly not what one would called an organized religion. One might call it an eclectic mix but even that's a poor descriptor. I just performed the Kabbalistic rite at age 16 and then placed my trust in spirit to bring me along as it would. I suppose my path is my own. It certainly has been a learning experience full of all kinds of surprises along the way. Some fun and others not so pleasant... but it was all a part of the learning.

Here it is ... all this time gone by and it feels as though i've barely scratched the surface of what there is that could be learned.

I wouldn't recommend being too cynical about religion. Pick any particular religion and it's just an organized way teaching a subject. Not all that different from teaching math. You start with the basics and get into more complex and advanced concepts as you move forward in your learning. Most folks start with basic math and that's really all they need. Others go on to college to earn an advanced degree in the subject.

I find it interesting that you participated in an on line group that was postulated as religion versus science and then came away with certain opinions.

The two things ... religions and science are very much one in the same you see. Human nature hasn't changed. It's still very much the religion of science.

I dunno ... i'm reminded of something one of the elders in the community once said. He said that you can tell a lot about the character of a man from the nature of his wood pile. Your writings here are your wood pile CD.
They tell a lot about the kind of man you are.

You're pretty self involved and tend to make a lot of grandiose statements in condemnation of humanity in general. You definitely consider yourself to be a cut above the rest of the world. A superior human yet you seem to live in your own little world. Dealing with others in your day to day life causes more stress than you can bear.

I was just wondering ... have you had any psychological testing done in the past ? Maybe some cognitive testing done ? It's no big deal as long as you are relatively happy in your life and you're not a threat to yourself to others.

On the other hand ... you don't seem to do very well with other people and long term human relationships would be nearly impossible for you to manage. It was never in the cards for you to be a husband or a father. There's really no room in your life for anyone besides yourself. That could be a very lonely place to be in the dead of winter. Most humans are social creatures by nature. None of us are an island unto ourselves ... even a solitary such as yourself. The companionship of others is just a basic human need. It's every bit as vital to our well being as food, water, and sufficient rest.

The internet is a poor substitute for genuine human companionship.

The testing and a psych evaluation might help you figure out why some things are so difficult for you. Asperger's Syndrome is a very real thing. It certainly doesn't make you a bad person and it doesn't make you any less intelligent. It's just a condition that some people are born with.

Anyway ... this is the internet and i'm just a guy on the far end of cyberspace with no qualifications or degrees whatsoever. Take it with a BIG grain of salt but please do try to keep an open mind.

Ahh well ... it was just a suggestion.

BTW ... wasn't trying to sell you on religion. I was simply pointing out that your knowledge in this particular area isn't very extensive. We're all just learners but some of us are a bit further along than others.

My experience has been that the more i learn ... the less i really know. If i ever reach the end ... i may come to realize that i really don't know anything at all.

Interesting discussions for some but they're not socially appropriate for this place. There are no mods and the admin is only in from time to time. It's pretty much on us to exercise good judgement and try to govern actions accordingly. kinda seems as though we're pushing the further limits of the forum guidelines.

I feel it's best that i should politely excuse myself from this conversation.