“It is our bodies that provide us with all of the information we have about this world”
I think about this concept quite a bit in relation to spirituality/ religion/ god/ etc. It is so interesting to think about how much we rely on our senses to interpret our physical existence. But when you look really closely at certain features, holes start to emerge and it is so easy to question our ability to perceive anything. As a simple example I think about how our eyes are generally oriented in a way that we should see the bridge of our noses blocking a portion of our field of vision all the time. But our brains “fix that” for us so we don’t crash into shit. I also think about animals who can perceive things like millions of colors that we cant and yet we have the unmitigated gall to tell some people they are colorblind. Some Animals can sense earth’s magnetic fields and use it to navigate but we can’t without instrumentation. The closest we can get is seeing the limited human color spectrum of the Aurora Borealis and posting it on Instagram to prove we saw it. Beyond mind/body connection, we seem to lack a mechanism for real body/earth connection. If we had a body/earth connection that manifested as a sense like smell or taste would we need a god? Would we be less likely to destroy our home? Was it a trade off? Did our evolution drop the body/ earth connection in favor of an enhanced ability to perceive ourselves in intangible and unsharable ways for a reason? Are we supposed to know that we are just 2 lbs. of firm tapioca piloting electrified meat suits?
As a well spoken 80’s punk band once said,
Our minds are like a room without a window and we can’t see out.
Thanks for the opportunity for semi-coherent rambling.
Your semi-coherent rambling is very much appreciated. Definitely true that we lack the Earth/body connection. Not sure why that is - couldn't have always been that way. Maybe we bred it out of ourselves in favor of... well, I don't know what.
A couple years ago I watched this TED talk about how language influences how we think and became obsessed with the portion about an Australian tribal language that doesn’t have words like left or right. They use cardinal directions (North, south,etc) for all descriptors of movement and even time. Because of their language requires such awareness at all times, they are hyper oriented to the movement of the sun around the earth. Hope this link works (if you are interested) but the language is called Guugu Yimithirr
I wrote about this over on my substack after reading your essay, and in short, I used to fear death. Now, I do not. I can't claim to know what happens, but the options I have settled on are soothing to me. I believe that matter cannot be destroyed, so I will go on in some form. I believe in the "higher self" that controls the brain and body, and I think that is the form that survives death in some fashion: existing after the body stops. Whether there will be Deity to greet this higher self or not, I don't know; I used to really fret about that, but now, I feel that a loving Deity will be happy to see me and welcome me back to wherever I was before I was born. Who knows, I could be wrong. But as Mark Twain said, “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.”.
I wouldn't normally self-link —I know it's gauche as hell!!!— and you specified "people with more expertise," which I certainly wouldn't claim (my philosophy degree is from LSU!); but in addition to what you explore in these posts, I think the "origin of existence" situation is more conducive to deism, or at least to openness to the possibility, than many understand. It's rather dramatic, IMO!
Other than that: thanks for sharing these thoughts! I think it's actually harder to express this category of reflection than it is to e.g. confess much of what's considered "vulnerable" to open up about, and I've enjoyed the hell out of them so far!
Gauche or not, you got me to read the post. Great job! I love what you laid you and am going to re-read to think more about them. Origin of existence is a fascinating topic. In some ways, it feels like one of only two topics worth discussing (the other one being: where are we going?). And yes, it's an incredibly vulnerable thing to write about, which is why I opened the first post quoting my conversation with Krista Tippett. You don't get much more naked than when talking about this stuff, especially for a person whose line of work involves a lot of deflection.
“It is our bodies that provide us with all of the information we have about this world”
I think about this concept quite a bit in relation to spirituality/ religion/ god/ etc. It is so interesting to think about how much we rely on our senses to interpret our physical existence. But when you look really closely at certain features, holes start to emerge and it is so easy to question our ability to perceive anything. As a simple example I think about how our eyes are generally oriented in a way that we should see the bridge of our noses blocking a portion of our field of vision all the time. But our brains “fix that” for us so we don’t crash into shit. I also think about animals who can perceive things like millions of colors that we cant and yet we have the unmitigated gall to tell some people they are colorblind. Some Animals can sense earth’s magnetic fields and use it to navigate but we can’t without instrumentation. The closest we can get is seeing the limited human color spectrum of the Aurora Borealis and posting it on Instagram to prove we saw it. Beyond mind/body connection, we seem to lack a mechanism for real body/earth connection. If we had a body/earth connection that manifested as a sense like smell or taste would we need a god? Would we be less likely to destroy our home? Was it a trade off? Did our evolution drop the body/ earth connection in favor of an enhanced ability to perceive ourselves in intangible and unsharable ways for a reason? Are we supposed to know that we are just 2 lbs. of firm tapioca piloting electrified meat suits?
As a well spoken 80’s punk band once said,
Our minds are like a room without a window and we can’t see out.
Thanks for the opportunity for semi-coherent rambling.
Your semi-coherent rambling is very much appreciated. Definitely true that we lack the Earth/body connection. Not sure why that is - couldn't have always been that way. Maybe we bred it out of ourselves in favor of... well, I don't know what.
A couple years ago I watched this TED talk about how language influences how we think and became obsessed with the portion about an Australian tribal language that doesn’t have words like left or right. They use cardinal directions (North, south,etc) for all descriptors of movement and even time. Because of their language requires such awareness at all times, they are hyper oriented to the movement of the sun around the earth. Hope this link works (if you are interested) but the language is called Guugu Yimithirr
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKK7wGAYP6k&pp=ygUZZ3V1Z3UgeWltaXRoaXJyIGxhbmd1YWdlIA%3D%3D
I wrote about this over on my substack after reading your essay, and in short, I used to fear death. Now, I do not. I can't claim to know what happens, but the options I have settled on are soothing to me. I believe that matter cannot be destroyed, so I will go on in some form. I believe in the "higher self" that controls the brain and body, and I think that is the form that survives death in some fashion: existing after the body stops. Whether there will be Deity to greet this higher self or not, I don't know; I used to really fret about that, but now, I feel that a loving Deity will be happy to see me and welcome me back to wherever I was before I was born. Who knows, I could be wrong. But as Mark Twain said, “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.”.
If indeed the universe is musical in nature it's probably ska.
Could not agree harder.
I just read Navel Gazing a couple months ago and it gave me a lot to think about, as has this series.
Looking forward to reading more!
I wouldn't normally self-link —I know it's gauche as hell!!!— and you specified "people with more expertise," which I certainly wouldn't claim (my philosophy degree is from LSU!); but in addition to what you explore in these posts, I think the "origin of existence" situation is more conducive to deism, or at least to openness to the possibility, than many understand. It's rather dramatic, IMO!
https://suckstosuck.substack.com/p/good-news-its-all-still-a-complete
Other than that: thanks for sharing these thoughts! I think it's actually harder to express this category of reflection than it is to e.g. confess much of what's considered "vulnerable" to open up about, and I've enjoyed the hell out of them so far!
Gauche or not, you got me to read the post. Great job! I love what you laid you and am going to re-read to think more about them. Origin of existence is a fascinating topic. In some ways, it feels like one of only two topics worth discussing (the other one being: where are we going?). And yes, it's an incredibly vulnerable thing to write about, which is why I opened the first post quoting my conversation with Krista Tippett. You don't get much more naked than when talking about this stuff, especially for a person whose line of work involves a lot of deflection.