Eternal physical life revisited

On March 7, 2016 I wrote about not wishing to perpetuate my biological life in my body, as some hope to do. It turns out Don DeLilo's new novel, which I'm currently reading, is about a determined attempt to achieve just that. The problem with the goal is in the very definition of the self and the excessive attachment of the psyche to that myth.

National Parks of the USA

Yosemite was created by an unprecedented and improbable Act of Congress in 1864, signed into law by Abraham Lincoln, giving the land to the State of California with the stipulation that it would preserved in perpetuity for all citizens as a natural wonder, and never be exploited for private financial interests. In 1905, California gave Yosemite back to the federal government as a national park. To this day, some view our national parks as a prime example of government overreach and interference in the business of the states and private individuals.

Myths we live by (or Let us now praise famous men)

I recently wrote on Tracey Waters’ Facebook page that history is a myth and so is ‘reality.’ What I meant is, everyone has a conception of the present and past that is constrained by the parameters of human cognition, conditioned by his or her particular culture and built of interlocking sets of beliefs incompatible with the beliefs of other people both near and far. For example, I believe I am a citizen of the USA and that Barack Obama, all things considered, is doing a great job as President. My neighbor shares the idea of the USA but thinks Obama is a Muslim socialist who has betrayed the Constitution and the country in general. The neighbor knows both Obama and I are going to Hell because we do not hold the correct beliefs about Jesus and God. Certain radical Muslim jihadists believe the USA is “the Great Satan” and Obama is currently the head demon. In their mythology, myself, the neighbor, Obama, and followers of other branches of Islam are all condemned men.

I believe in a creator and follow the teaching of Jesus but I don’t believe anyone is going to Hell because the only Hell is right here. In my myth, the creator is transcendent and inscrutable. We cannot know with certainty what, if anything, this God wants from us, so we must be humble in our ignorance and rely on faith.

Given the above disagreements, someone has to be wrong, right? Except perhaps right and wrong is not how to think about our reality myths. Perhaps nature knows what it’s doing in generating a wide range of mutually contradictory reality myths across the population of Homo sapiens at any point in time. Not only are reality myths useful in giving us meaning and purpose, but their diversity challenges thoughtful people to look deeper into their own myths.

Like the idea of god, the concept of the USA and other countries is a useful abstraction, a shared myth. The USA only exists because people believe it exists and operate under a set of rules and conventions giving it substance and power. A more objective view of human activity would be the characterization by V-ger -in the first Star Trek movie that collectively we are a “carbon infestation” on the surface of the planet. All of our institutions, universities, banks, tech companies, cities, clubs, rock groups, and professional sports teams are similar abstractions that only exist in the minds of human beings. Landscapes, buildings, uniforms, birth certificates, electric guitars, and membership cards are objectively real, though not as clear and distinct as we think; but, the abstractions themselves are invisible and never seen directly. Yet because we act as if the abstractions are real, they are a part of our reality.

When we practice mindfulness, nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment, all of these ‘things’ disappear into the eternal, seamless moment where we find no past, no future, just a flowing now. Even ones individual identity and everyone else’s are a convenient social fiction that allows us to imagine we live in an orderly world populated by unchanging, separate persons who have only one name and one personality. Haha, that’s a good one.

In the same vein, history is a shared story where certain persons and events are picked out, enshrined in words and treated as canonical by segments of a population. Aside from the big problem of determining if anything in the past actually happened and if so, who did what, as in a criminal investigation, any number of interpretations of the supposed ‘facts’ are possible. A recent example is revisionist history of slavery in the USA. Reputations of revered figures such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson are being revisited in light of their ownership and inevitable abuse of slaves. Confederate battle flags over state buildings are coming down, light is being cast on the means Georgetown University long ago used to insure it’s economic survival (selling off its slaves) and statues of iconic Confederate generals are in danger of removal from their pedestals in New Orleans. Do I believe there was a time period where these people lived and had legal ownership of other people? Yes, but who is to say which ‘facts’ are the ones we should record and teach and how we should interpret them? Is the forgotten life of a slave less important than the life of a Founding Father? Most people would say yes but any reputable God would say no.

For most people, the myths of present and past share a delusion, namely, that the human species is uniquely special and important in the universe. Our supposed superior intelligence in comparison to other living things on earth and/or divine appointment are common rationales. This notion, though uncritically accepted as common sense, is in fact the height of presumption. Even people who don’t believe in a god still tend to believe that they, as individuals, are uniquely special and important. All of this is mere unsupported opinion, much like opinions of which 20th century pop star was the greatest, whether a college football team from one era would defeat a successful team from a different era, whether conservatives or progressives have the right approach to governing, and what are the 10 best small cities for retirement. None of these issues has a correct answer but people believe they do and argue them, sometimes to the death.

OK, you might say, the questions you listed are at bottom subjective but there are objective truths that have been verified scientifically.  Laws of physics have been discovered and many practical methods, technologies and accurate predictions flows from them. I would not question this position, for example, by jumping off a tall building to see if the laws of gravity and motion are still in effect. One has to be impressed by the success of humanity in figuring out how the physical universe works and using the knowledge to do extremely cool and powerful things. But, one must also be impressed at how little good this knowledge has proven in changing the destructive and foolish behavior of the vast majority of people. It’s been about 2,600 years since the Buddha taught, 2,000 years since Jesus, 1,400 years since Muhammad delivered his message. Why are we not feeding and educating everyone in the world? Why have we not stopped killing one another on a massive scale?  Why instead of cooperating are we getting better and better at destroying one another and the environment?

Isn’t it because of the reality myths we live by? Isn’t it because our leaders either buy into the myths or see through them and use them to manipulate you and I, their constituents, into continuing practices leading toward eradicating most or all of the carbon infestation which is them and us? Or perhaps this is just the way processes identified by Darwin and his successors play out such that we end up with a more successful species. Perhaps this is a manifestation of the hidden method in nature’s madness.

Suppose we step back for a moment and consider whether reflective humans like you and I are simply observing a small sample of a gigantic, unfolding process over which we have no real control. Perhaps the outcome is already determined and we’re just waiting to find out or die before it happens.

 

In my view of things, the best approach for me is to seek understanding with a relentlessly open mind and do my best to direct my actions in light of what I learn and the values that make sense to me. The goal of this approach is to become continuously wiser as long as I’m here and able to learn. I didn’t know at the outset whether the project would go anywhere good but, for me, it was worth a try. Somewhat to my surprise, it's worked pretty well so far.

What is really going on here?

We have the unfolding process of the universe of which our awareness is a part.

I just reviewed in chronological sequence my posts from last fall through last month.  About the concept of evil, I wrote

 "Evil stems from beliefs that are transcendently false, beliefs that contradict the transcendent truth "everyone is valuable and worthy of respect," beliefs that are spiritually psychotic. The exemplars are "I am important and you are not," and "My people are intrinsically better than your people." Evil is characterized by expedient selfishness and the absence of compassion. Evil is proudly and shamelessly wrong."

To this I would add, a third belief that produces evil actions. "Nothing in this life matters, so I may do anything I want with impunity. I might as well do whatever makes me feel good regardless of how it impacts anyone else." An intelligent person pursuing this sociopathic idea can do tremendous harm to others.

Recently, I've been thinking the values of a culture and its leaders is more important in producing well-being that the specific system of government in that society.

Reality is what's left when you stop talking to yourself

Reality is real. However, a lot of what passes for reality with human beings is the order imposed by our ways of perception reinforced by our verbal habits.

Note to my friends

On my visit to Athens last week, I'm grateful I was privileged to spend time with you, you remarkable people I admire and view as exemplary human beings. Some of you are people I previously knew only as internet pals. Some are brand new to me, people I didn't previously know at all. And some are people I'd met casually and now was given the chance to know better. Then, there were my old and dear, time-tested friends who go back through the years and in many cases the decades. How meaningful each shared moment is with all of you, the ones whose passion and spirit drives you to test the limits of your potential, who take nothing for granted nor as an entitlement, who know pain, disappointment and discouragement are part of it but refuse to give up, who hold on to your faith that what we do matters, who realize the clock is ticking and it all counts. May our hearts always be open.