That "something else" which is not god (Christ, atheists, recall)
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. We have no idea what our brains are actually doing most of the time, and that's a good thing, as our consciousness is totally not up to the task of "running" us. Brains run on automatic as far as consciousness is concerned and only call on consciousness when a conscious reaction is required. .
It's long been my contention that what you say explains intuition.
The brain received and stored information you may not even have been 'aware' of but when certain circumstances triggered them, it "popped up" as intuition...a summary, if you will, of what you've learned that may apply.
I must be 'more' of an atheist than you because one thing I can't wrap my mind around is the idea of any sort of "mind/intelligence/purposely creative entity or the like, as the source of it all.
Sorry, but your use of "something beyond us" led me to assume ( yeah, I know, a bad thing to do) was going beyond just scientific explanations since we all have to acknowledge that ignorance.
Perhaps you could clarify?
Sorry, but your use of "something beyond us" led me to assume ( yeah, I know, a bad thing to do) was going beyond just scientific explanations since we all have to acknowledge that ignorance.
Perhaps you could clarify?
I'm just saying there may be "forces" out there...not necessarily creator forces.
Absolutely not trying to hassle you, just genuinely curious.
Can yo explain what you mean by "forces" if not just unknown scientific facts?
I think it probably references levels of intelligence/power of which we currently are unaware.
There is an intelligence hierarchy among living entities on earth. It ranges from thoughtless life forms such as plants or bacteria, through creatures with brains in various stages of capability development. Insects aren't as intellectually developed as cows, which in turn are less advanced than dogs, and eventually we arrive at the top of the chain...us.
Who is to say that if there is an ultimate force responsible for the creation and sustaining of the universe, that it is the next step in intellectual development? Why couldn't there be numerous stages of intelligence which are superior to our best, but inferior to the ones above and to the ultimate intelligence? Or maybe there is no ultimate intelligence, but still many degrees of existing forms of life which are vastly superior to ourselves. Or maybe we are as smart as it gets anywhere in the universe.
The "forces" would represent those forms of existence which are above us in development, but not necessarily the ultimate.
Yes we are. But I don't think that we need to resort to psychic cords to explain the feeling of connectedness.
First, there's the obvious - we are the same species.
Second there's the less obvious - that our consciousness is not the main way we encounter the world. I read a book a while back whose author (sorry, can't remember the title or author) contended that consciousness is our user interface. We have no idea what our brains are actually doing most of the time, and that's a good thing, as our consciousness is totally not up to the task of "running" us. Brains run on automatic as far as consciousness is concerned and only call on consciousness when a conscious reaction is required. That's why we can feel what seem like instant connection with some people - for whatever reason, our brain decides that this is a person we can trust. The pheromones that we don't consciously perceive tell us that this other person is sexually compatible or that we are more closely related to them than we are to most other people or that their face/voice are similar to someone we trust, or who knows what.
I totally agree with you that religions serve as one of several mechanisms that reinforce group cohesiveness, which is both a good thing and a bad thing.
Ah, but I feel the connectedness is to other species, as well. And trees and rocks and such.
Always have, since childhood, so of course it could be childish imagination still within me.
Not something appropriate or productive to discuss in this forum, though, but some of us have had conversation along these lines in the Pagan forum.
FWIW, I have often thought that subatomic particles were nothing in the world but miniature galaxies. Thus if that's the case, there is an infinite regression, in both directions.
I am not a physicist and really know nothing about physics, except a little about the physics of playing the violin. So this theory seems plausible to me.
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