At,
your summary of the discussion on the fundamental question «What is real?»
is very inteligent and interesting, but I do feel that it is based on
unsound paradigms.
Stating that perception of reality comes from the interaction with
everything else forgets the fundamental Rene Decartes' paradigm of the
unreliability of the senses. If our senses can be mistaken many times and
all that we percieve from reality comes from what we learn through our
senses, all reality can be false. This constitutes what I call the paradox
of reason. If all perception comes from our senses or the deduction
through the crossing of perceptions from our senses, and reason tells us
that what is not clearly proven cannot be assumed with certainty to be
true, then NOTHING CAN IN HONESTY BE STATED TO BE REAL. All knowledge is
thus based in assumptions and prejudice.
Obviously, this leads us nowhere. We wouldn't be able to move or even to
realise time or space and work anything within these basis. Thus, WE NEED
SOMETHING TO BE REAL. Reality is a construction we have so to fulfill the
needs of each of us. Each of us has one reality, and beliefs. This is not
bad or destructive, this is what allows us to talk to each other, work
together, enjoy each other. The seven essencialities you talk about are in
my view what we need reality to be or have for it to fully fulfill our
needs. But we can never forget that all knowledge is made of ASSUMPTIONS
AND PREJUDICE.
That doesn't mean it is invalid or bad, it just means we have to be
careful with what we THINK we know.
Do we really KNOW rocks do not think?
Do we really KNOW we have brains? Have we seen them? Have we felt them? Do
we simply suppose that we have them because others had them? But htey were
dead when other people saw then, right? Or at least sleeping. Maybe our
brain is gray only when we die or when we are asleep. How can we KNOW?
Do we know someone walked on the moon? I've seen it on television, but I
also saw a witch flying on a broom on television... Do I really KNOW
somebody walked on the moon?
The thing is, if I didn't believe in it what good would it do me? Much
better to give it the benefit of the doubt.
Reality and belief are one and the same thing. This could both be
destructive or constructive. Just like entropy or creativity, no? I agree
with you that we should all take everything to be real. At least as much
as anything can BE real. Because in truth, nothing is REALLY real. Yet,
why not give the benefit of the doubt more often? «Reasonable doubt» is a
very useful concept, don't you think? Trust comes from it.
Sic transit gloriae mundi,
Bruno Martins Soares
Lisbon, Portugal
--"Bruno Martins Soares" <bmartins.soares@mail.EUnet.pt>
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