Philosophy Now Forum

Dontaskme wrote: ↑Fri May 03, 2019 12:07 pm That stateless state has to be the ''Nothingness'' that is ''Absolute Knowing''...in that life is living itself and functioning automatically without knowing or being self aware that it is functioning at all.

Agree - still, I wouldn't call it nothingness... but anyway, doesn't matter...

Dontaskme wrote: ↑Fri May 03, 2019 12:07 pm But it is Nothingness and yet how can nothingness be an experience, how can nothingness be known?

Well, it seems to know itself via being itself - its all a big mystery...

Dontaskme wrote: ↑Fri May 03, 2019 12:07 pm Consciousness is the dream.

Reality is the dream, there is nothing MORE outside of that arena.

Sure, we can call reality a dream and vice versa, and ultimately its all the same, but I find it "important" to see that there are layers in this dream/reality.
The most important layer is the one which seems to create duality out of the non-dual dream/reality. Its conceptual thought that creates an alternate dream/reality within the dream/realty. Reality/dream is as it is, unknowable by thought, undefinable etc... but thought still insists on creating a limited universe including all these things and characters (based on what we believe we observe)... Its interesting to see and understand that this seems to happen and that the underlying reality is unaffected, perfectly undivided and whole.

onglob wrote: ↑Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:27 pm Humans harmful behaviors against their environment and against other humans and species is as archaic as
the advent of modern humans.

As humans settled and human societies emerged, conflicts and damages due to those harmful behaviors
impaired the whole society. so humans devised god or gods and religions to justify moralities to avoid
those harmful behaviors.
But as the history tells us the problem didn't solve, if not deepened and became more complicated as
religious wars, theocracies and religious dogmatism proved to be even more harmful.

It's probably been said earlier but...

You seem to be ignoring out most of philosophy and religion. The Perennial philosophy explains how to get rid of the ego and promotes the benefits of doing so. Human beings are perfectly capable of geting rid of their egos. It is the entire secret of finding true happiness.

PeteJ wrote: ↑Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:32 pm
It's probably been said earlier but...

You seem to be ignoring out most of philosophy and religion. The Perennial philosophy explains how to get rid of the ego and promotes the benefits of doing so. Human beings are perfectly capable of geting rid of their egos. It is the entire secret of finding true happiness.

I agree that getting rid of our egos is the entire secret of finding true happiness, although I prefer to use the word prosperity instead of happiness .

But my deductions is just based on my perceptions and observations and what has happened in the past and what is happening at present .

I don't think supernatural beliefs can solve the problem of humans' egoism and I guess history approves it .

I didn't say that humans are incapable of getting rid of their egos , I just suggested that many prevalent behaviors, and accepted values in human societies are the causes of our persistent egoism .

Suppose we give the credit of our every success in life to the cause or goal we are striving for and not to ourselves .

Suppose our resolution is based on experimenting new ideas or approaching a truth and not on what's called "self-confidence" or "self-assertiveness" .

And suppose we seek pleasure and satisfaction not for ourselves but for realities in our lives .

Perhaps in that way we would be somehow relieved of our egos.

PeteJ wrote: ↑Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:32 pm Human beings are perfectly capable of getting rid of their egos.

Since the ego, (if that Freudian term must be used), is one's conscious self, so you are perfectly correct. The most popular way of accomplishing that today is drugs, but any other self-destructive way of achieving oblivion works.

PeteJ wrote: ↑Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:32 pm It is the entire secret of finding true happiness.

Those who must deal with the drug overdoses daily, or with those seeking help with their addictions would not agree with you.

What would happiness be that did not pertain to one's self?

RCSaunders wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 2:03 am

PeteJ wrote: ↑Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:32 pm Human beings are perfectly capable of getting rid of their egos.

Since the ego, (if that Freudian term must be used), is one's conscious self, so you are perfectly correct. The most popular way of accomplishing that today is drugs, but any other self-destructive way of achieving oblivion works.

PeteJ wrote: ↑Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:32 pm It is the entire secret of finding true happiness.

Those who must deal with the drug overdoses daily, or with those seeking help with their addictions would not agree with you.

What would happiness be that did not pertain to one's self?

I don't understand what drugs have to do with anything, and happiness that merely pertains to self is a sorry thing.

PeteJ wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 2:02 pm I don't understand ...

That's OK.

RCSaunders wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 4:40 pm

PeteJ wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 2:02 pm I don't understand ...

That's OK.

A wonderful smartass reply.

Perhaps I should have asked you to explain what drugs have to do with this.