Mark Graves
New member
Out of the three theoretical components of the universe (mind, body, and spirit), I used to be sided with Rene Descartes in thinking that mind was the only verifiable constituent of reality, "Cogito Ergo Sum" = I think therefore I am. I agree that the world we know is restricted to how we perceive it, but as we delve into our experiences, we can trace every decision and action to a source, and we realize NO thought comes from NOWHERE and everything has a cause. I would very much agree with Friedrich Neitzsche and Patricia Churchland in their shared ideology of our lack of free will, and the nature of causality. Everything is a reaction to something else. Reactions are the physical effects to causes that are each governed by the laws of nature alone. This fact is abundant in every facet of our universe as far as our perceptions can measure. Our brains are the body that conjures the image of consciousness and because we have no perception of the origin of our thoughts, we have no spacial relationship between mind and body, thus we mistakenly treat them as separate. Spirit is a whimsical fantasy to explain what we cannot understand. As much as I would think Pythagoras would agree, we will be able to explain all in due time with math and science (except for maybe quantum indeterminancy). If you ask yourself why you do things you will always be able to trace it back to a physical experience. Neurology, geneology, and psychiatry are growing studies in determining what causes our behavior. So far, there's a gene found for homosexuality, alcoholism, promiscuity, intelligence, success, and happiness. Our entire character is determined by our genetic makeup as well as our experiences, none of which we choose. You say we choose to change our environment to improve our experiences. But why did you change your environment? Was it because you learned that changing your environment would better your life, or you found out your life gained quality once you moved away from an abusive home? If so, that education was not self-created, that realization did not come from nowhere, it was discovered through experiences, which are taken in by the physical reactions of the cones and rods in our eyes, the vibrations in our eardrums, the neurons in our brains whose connectivity is shaped by our perceptions, etcetera. We all react as we are supposed to. We are physical bodies governed by the laws of physics. There is no such fantasy as free-will. The purpose of life is not to MAKE decisions (that is already determined). The purpose is to experience them. So whether we are Mother Theresa or Adolf Hitler, we are equal in moral value. Why wouldn't we be? Everyone makes the best decisions with the experiences we are given.