The Situation

This post is a summary of earlier posts:

1. Observation: There are multiple "worlds", for example, the world of ants, the world of dogs, the world of aliens from another galaxy, the world of humans etc. The causal world of humans is just one of a kind. The following points, briefly, suggest a theory to explain this situation.

2. Theory - Part 1: Each world is an appearance that is a function of the physical and psychological composition of the individual/species and not the "ultimate" reality out there. However, the appearances are grounded in that transcendental, ultimate reality. Humans too are grounded in that ultimate reality.

3. Theory - Part 2: The ultimate subject / seer / the mind's eye immediately known to oneself, that which observes the thoughts including the 'I'-thought, is non-different from the transcendental ultimate reality.

4. Some philosophical/religious references: God revealed himself as "I am that I am" in Christian Bible. Prophet Muhammad said, "He who knows his self knows his Lord". In Hindu Upanishads, its written, "The self is the transcendental reality".

Reality Check

As the Observer is the common ground of all multifarious experience, the experience itself is purely only a function of the mental and physical faculties and not of the disinterested Observer. So, we can say our experience of a causal world is intimately tied to the mental and physical composition of the body. From this viewpoint, causality is not an objective view of reality.

Nevertheless, as a human, the world we experience is a causal world. Causality is on the side of reason and adaptable science and not on the side of absolutes and ideologies. From the point of view that causality is an experiential truth, we have to accept that the present moment is perfect. Denying that is denying causality. Denying that is denying science, reason and first-hand experience. There could be no alternative to the present moment (present moment is an effect of earlier causes). When times are bad, instead of complaining about the present moment, we just need move on and do what needs to be done.

Having said all this, we should again emphasize that our experience of causal world is only a product of our body and mind and not ultimate reality. Although we can figure out the cause for birth/sustenance/death of a star for example, the primordial cause of entire existence will always remain a mystery because of the question; what is the cause for the first cause? leading to infinite regress. Similarly, the purpose of this existence will also always remain a mystery as parts (ideas, concepts, theories etc) cannot be used to describe the purpose of the whole ('existence' that includes these ideas, concepts and theories). So, the situation is: the cause of every 'observable' thing (like a star, a tree or a thought) can be found but the cause and purpose of the entire existence itself will remain a mystery.

The preceding paragraph gives the reasons why any metaphysical or mystical ideas to understand or realize ultimate reality (not subjective reality) should be seriously looked at and reflected upon.

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Observer

Who are you?

Let's make one assumption: if you can observe something then you are not that thing. For example, you can observe a distant star, hence you are not that star.

Under the above assumption, you are not the body because you can look at the body. You are not the thoughts because you can observe the thoughts. You are not the emotion because you can feel the emotion. You are not the conditioned brain because you are aware of the conditioning.

What are you? You are the Observer of all these things. A disinterested Observer at that. (Disinterested because conditioning is very much observable). The disinterested Observer is the essence of you-ness. The very fact that we are able to make this claim about an observer indicates that the Observer is somehow self-aware. There is no second observer observing the first observer; that is contradictory to our experience and logically would result in infinite observers.

We think we are the body, thoughts and conditioning because: a) Only we can voluntarily control our body, nobody else can and b) Only we are aware of our thoughts, nobody else is. I think these are sufficient reasons to distinguish them from say a star or a tree and to claim them as part of oneself. But, along with that, the silent witness in the background should also be noticed and acknowledged.

What is the contribution of the Observer? I think it is two-fold; a) It is the ground for the sense of self ("I") and b) It is needed for the awareness of any 'other' thing ("I am not that thing").

[If you don't make the assumption made in the beginning, the counter-assumption is, if you can observe something then you are that thing. Under this assumption, you are everything you observe. So, either you are none of these things or you are all of these things.]

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Probable Solutions

Progression of ideas:

1. What is the situation? Awareness of Self and World.
   
2. What is the general problem? A sense of doership coupled with a lack of purpose.
3. What is the symptom of the problem in human? All knowledge is subjective and all actions are a result of conditioning. The situation is unsettling.
4. From inquiry, what are the probable solutions to the problem? a) Get rid of dualism to eliminate self-other split, b) Get 'objective' knowledge to understand everything, c) Live in duality and operate with subjective knowledge but understand you are not the doer.
   
5. Probable Sol #1: Get rid of dualism. Hint: Lose yourself, what remains is non-dual.
   
6. Probable Sol #2: Get objective knowledge. Hint: Lose the subject, what remains is objective.
   
7. Probable Sol #3: Understand non-doership. Hint: Reflect on the core of your being. (Subject of next blog.)
   

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Dissolving Duality: an Unsolvable Problem

As long as the ego (sense of 'I') exists in an individual, duality exists. Actions of an individual, motivated by reasoning on imperfect knowledge is bound to have effects on the individual as the ego presumes responsibility for the knowledge, reasoning and actions. As there cannot be any objective judgments such as right/wrong, good/bad etc about such actions, the individual is in limbo.

When the ego dissolves (this depends on whether ego is a real/illusory entity!), I think, all actions will become completely unselfish. When there is no doer (ego), there is no ground for the effects of actions to affect the doer.

How can an individual with ego attain the state of dissolved ego? I don't think it is possible because all actions of the individual with ego produces effects that affects the ego and only bolsters its presence.

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Root Cause: Duality

Effect: Uneasiness due to uncertainty

Cause: Duality

Cause -> Effect: {Duality + Body/Mind} -> Imperfect knowledge -> Uncertainty -> Uneasiness

Symptom of the correct solution to the problem: To be at ease every moment

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Stating the Purpose of Existence: an Unsolvable Problem

Existence: Everything. Examples: The chair I am sitting on, dust on the ceiling, a distant star in a different galaxy, mental concepts like atomic theory, patriotism etc.

Awareness: The fact that I am able to make this claim about chairs and stars means I am aware of chairs and stars. Somehow, I know these things are different from me (as I am also self-aware). Labeling them and scientifically understanding and manipulating them stems from this awareness.

Also stemming from this awareness, is a question: why is there an existence rather than nothing? Basically, what is the purpose of existence?

As an analogy, what is the purpose of a cell phone? Because man invented it, we can firmly state its intended purpose. To put it simply, one way to state the purpose of a cell phone is, it can be used to talk to a distant person. The important thing to note here is that, in stating the purpose of the cell phone we did not mention how a cell phone looks or works. The implementation of the cell phone itself is not needed to state its purpose.

It is my premise that the parts cannot be used to state the purpose of the whole. In our cell phone example, we used the concepts/objects: use, talk, distance, and person etc to state the purpose. Moreover, we did not mention the screen, keypad, antenna etc which are parts of a cell phone to state its purpose. But the parts need to be used to describe how the parts put together achievs the stated purpose.

From the cell-phone example, we can note that there is a difference between: a) stating the purpose of an object and b) describing how the parts of that object satisfy its purpose. The purpose of any object is stated using objects and concepts external to the object in question. Whereas, description and relationships between parts proves how the stated objective is achieved.

Coming back to the original question, what is the purpose of existence? We should, similar to a cell phone, be able to state the purpose of existence without involving the parts that make up existence. But the problem here is that existence encompasses all objects and concepts. There are no objects or concepts above and beyond existence that we can use to state the purpose of existence. We have to conclude, then, that it is impossible to state the purpose of existence.

The purpose of existence is beyond man's understanding. So, complete, perfect knowledge is impossible, for we have a question (what is the purpose of existence?) for which we cannot reason an answer. Hence, knowledge in the conventional sense is useless to solve this particular problem. This being the case, as long as we are aware of existence (duality), this problem will prevail and remain a cause of uncertainty.

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Problem (Observation: 5/5)

Uneasiness due to uncertainty. Uncertainty due to incomplete knowledge.

Everyday Life (Observation: 4/5)

What is the basis for your action?



Courtesy for picture:
Gut Feelings: The Intelligence of the Unconscious
Author: Gerd Gigerenzer, Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classic)

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Human Society (Observation: 3/5)

Why such extreme inequality?

Ten million people die every year of hunger and hunger-related diseases. 25% of hungry people are children.
(just one of the many inequalities)

Links:
http://www.wfp.org/aboutwfp/introduction/hunger_who.asp?section=1&sub_section=1
http://www.fao.org/es/ESS/chartroom/gfap.asp#

Time (Observation: 2/5)

What number are you?

Its estimated about 100 billion humans have lived on earth since their evolution began between 400,000 - 250,000 years ago

Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_evolution
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_population
http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/Photography/Images/POD/t/trichur-pooram-crowd-508657-sw.jpg

Space (Observation: 1/5)

Can you spot Earth in this vastness?

Artist's concept of the Milky Way galaxy

Links:
http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/news/hurt_milky_way_image.html
http://www.news.wisc.edu/11405
http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/answers/021127a.html