Free The Animal

[An email out. Just another in a discussion going back years.] P: > “They are simply abstracts of reality that you and others have > come up with.” This is the post-modern idea that there is no truth. On the contrary. Truth is real and absolute. Nonetheless, all concepts are abstractions. You understand this; recall the “dissecting a brain to find ideas” analogy. You can’t dissect it and find truth, either. I’m not saying there’s no truth. I’m saying that an integrated abstract model of reality (existence / body / mind / consciousness) is closer to the truth than a dualist abstract model (two sides of reality). The truth is that if you are looking for a philosophy in which to live life as a natural human being, then it ought to integrate body and mind, not separate it. In my view, this is the primary source of your frustration (and your book is filled with frustration and hand-wringing). In the hierarchical, authoritarian civilization in which humanity arose, the dualist approach was probably reasonably suited. But today’s technology — a natural outgrowth of man acting naturally — is ushering in decentralization, rejection of say-so authority, individualism, free agency. In short,…

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Without citing a bunch of past posts, I’ve been on a bit of a quest, lately, to investigate some of the Eastern religious traditions. I still am — but increasingly as a skeptic and less as an honest inquirer. That’s inevitable; once you’re informed enough to begin making honest judgments, you do. There are still interesting aspects I haven’t fleshed out, and this quest is driven by a couple of things. First, I see a lot of things I like from some of the new breed of businesspeople, many of whom cite interest in Eastern traditions, and second, I prefer to focus on what we can actually choose to do and accomplish, rather than on merely what is our right not to have done to us. That may perhaps just be a difference in perspective and attitude, but I think it’s a big one. The following is an email out to this author, and concerns discussions over months and years centering on this page and proceeding forward through the chain of eight short pages, which should be read for background. Paul: I don’t think that he, I, or any of us are “confusing consciousness with quantity.” We’re just saying –…

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