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Post by Matt on Jul 20, 2014 2:48:29 GMT -7
Well first off, let me ask a question, what is philosophy? Philosophy is very simply put, thinking outside of the box. It is asking the questions that nobody else is asking to evoke thought in others, it is an internal revolution of sorts. The world around is constantly changing, and so must the mind and thoughts, to adapt to a constantly evolving world around them. It is coming up with complex answers for the simplest questions. It is questioning absolutely EVERYTHING. It is looking at and confronting any subject matter from as many different perspectives as conceivable, looking at every aspect of the topic at hand, picking it apart piece by piece, and putting together some sort of reasonable speculation or belief that can explain the very nature of the things that surround you in a way that challenges the mind and makes one think profound thoughts.
In a sense, it even bridges the gap between theology and science. Though, many times religion and science will take these and adapt them to their own belief systems, or even use them as doctrines in which to base or reinforce ideas that perpetuate and strengthen their own systems. Which is not the point of philosophy, the point of philosophy is to challenge the status quo, and yet at the same time, it is an attempt at finding a universal truth through sparking enlightened and unique thinkers.
So, to start this off, I will ask a simple question: What is it that defines humanity? And don't copy and paste the definition or quote Wikipedia, I'd like unique and well thought-out responses to this question. And be prepared to defend your answer, or even to strengthen it and your understanding on the subject.
I will post more in depth topics to discuss later.
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Post by Zac~Azrilyan on Jul 20, 2014 9:55:43 GMT -7
Humanity as I see it is overall a large herd of cattle. No.. Something more docile, lets go with sheep. As I look more at the people around me, the more they seem to be completely dependent on the suffering they cause them selves. That mixed with the idea that energy travels from high to low means that humanity plays a large part in feeding the moon (lower and denser energy levels).
So being both dependent and harvested as a food source they are much like sheep.
(While writing this i remembered a story.)
'There was an evil magician. He lived deep in the mountains and the forests, and he had thousands of sheep. But the problem was that the sheep were afraid of the magician because every day the sheep were seeing that one of them was being killed for his breakfast, another was being killed for his lunch. So they ran away from the magician's ranch and it was a difficult job to find them in the vast forest. Being a magician, he used magic.
He hypnotized all the sheep and suggested to them first of all that they were immortal and that no harm was being done to them when they were skinned, that, on the contrary, it would be very good for them and even pleasant; secondly he suggested that the magician was a good master who loved his flock so much that he was ready to do anything in the world for them; and in the third place he suggested to them that if anything at all were going to happen to them it was not going to happen just then, at any rate not that day, and therefore they had no need to think about it.
He then told different sheep...to some, "You are a man, you need not be afraid. It is only the sheep who are going to be killed and eaten, not you. You are a man just like I am." Some other sheep were told, "You are a lion -- only sheep are afraid. They escape, they are cowards. You are a lion; you would prefer to die than to run away. You don't belong to these sheep. So when they are killed it is not your problem. They are meant to be killed, but you are the most loved of my friends in this forest." In this way, he told every sheep different stories, and from the second day, the sheep stopped running away from the house.
They still saw other sheep being killed, butchered, but it was not their concern. Somebody was a lion, somebody was a tiger, somebody was a man, somebody was a magician and so forth. Nobody was a sheep except the one who was being killed. This way, without keeping servants, he managed thousands of sheep. They would go into the forest for their food, for their water, and they would come back home, believing always one thing: "It is some sheep who is going to be killed, not you. You don't belong to the sheep. You are a lion -- respected, honored, a friend of the great magician." The magician's problems were solved and the sheep never ran away again.'
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Post by David on Jul 20, 2014 10:33:48 GMT -7
Humanity as I see it is overall a large herd of cattle. No.. Something more docile, lets go with sheep. As I look more at the people around me, the more they seem to be completely dependent on the suffering they cause them selves. That mixed with the idea that energy travels from high to low means that humanity plays a large part in feeding the moon (lower and denser energy levels). So being both dependent and harvested as a food source they are much like sheep. Wow that's pretty twisted to put humanity into such a degrading comparison. Even more so to generalize all of them in such a manner. Not all humans are like that. Most of the people I work with for example are very brilliant and innovative people. People who can reason and break down problems into steps for solutions. It does seem odd that lots of people don't have functional problem solving capabilities. I suppose I can blame our education system and the recent explosion of social networking for that..... however that too would be a harsh generalization without factual basis. It is true that even when told of a solution to their problems, some people would rather continue doing the very things they complain about. While I am not perfect by any means nor would I claim to be, at the very least I know my flaws and work towards fixing them. A trait so many people lack. |
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Post by Zac~Azrilyan on Jul 20, 2014 10:46:28 GMT -7
Well let me elaborate a little bit.. I believe it's entirely necessary for them to be in there position after all things do need to get fed. However I do pity them, the old ways were to feed the other side without death, but now there isn't enough people who do that. Also I know I'm in the same position as them, and will have my consciousness eaten after death if I'm not strong and fast enough to "dart past the eagle". The difference is I'm fighting right now, and most people are having their consciousness eaten during there life as well.
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Post by Matt on Jul 20, 2014 11:32:34 GMT -7
The way I see it is somewhat similar to your views Zac, however I see it more as there are four basic groups: sheep, sheepdogs, wolves, and shepherds. Sheep wander aimlessly. Sheepdogs keep them in line but answer to shepherds whom built the confines of the sheep to keep them in and wolves out. The wolves are only there to seek their own gains and finding easy targets for food for their pack. Shepherds are there to guide the dogs, scare away the wolves, and harvest the sheep. Of course, I may be over-complicating this as I tend to do.
The sheep are mindless, they follow the slightest whim and have no sense of direction, no plan, they serve no real purpose other than to have their wool used for clothing, and their meat harvest when needed to feed the dogs and shepherd and his family. Yet the pen that holds them is large enough, and they are surrounded by others like them, so that they maintain the illusion of freedom, even though deep down they know they are prisoners and there is no permanent escape.
The sheepdogs confines are more mental programming and obedience that keeps them in line, they aren't necessarily a higher consciousness, but rather controlled by one, like a construct with set tasks.
The wolves are just smart enough to find ways to occasionally get what they need and keep their pack alive. They act most on a very basic primal instinct to survive in a group mentality. In this way they are much like sheep, though more like sheepdogs, while their alpha acts more as a lone shepherd. Sometimes one will challenge the way of things and go against their leader to try and take control.
The shepherd acts all in the hopes of preserving his lineage and providing comfort for himself and family, while satisfying his need to feel powerful and in control over nature, because deep down he knows he is weak against the wolves alone. Just as weak as the sheep he selfishly tries to preserve.
And then, there is the unspoken force that controls all of these things without even trying, this entity is nature itself. It guides and drives them all from unseen depths.
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Post by Grigori on Aug 15, 2014 10:04:33 GMT -7
Most people are confined to being sheep, its an age old cross cultural tale. Its been proven and recognized in psychology as normalacy bias. I never been killed all my life, so I probably won't be killed soon. Add the comforting deception of society and it explains our ignorance and inactivity to solving world crisis. People all deserve better and are capable of it. Through intelligence and love. The point of the analogy is that we chose to be sheep. We are certainly not born this way. The analogy is prevalent because of it radicalism it takes a cold hard abrasive truth to wake people up from their normalcy bias and see corruption. Even more to motivate them to change. People are not inherently the problem. Power and attached dependance are. Holding on to this life and the way we live it to tight is the sheep in a way only when we see the sheep in people and ourselves does it hit home though. I see this as cold yes but also the difficult and necessary form of love... the tough kind. Thank you for reading.
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Post by Michelle on Aug 17, 2014 12:54:50 GMT -7
Rather cool ideas. I am me and live by my insticts and intuition. I am curious too but overall i try my best to survive. If something trys to hurt me i will hurt it, if it tries to eat me i will kill it.. Just my view~  |
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Post by David on Aug 17, 2014 13:12:20 GMT -7
If something trys to hurt me i will hurt it, if it tries to eat me i will kill it.. Just my view~ Omnomnomnom. Bwahahahahahaha. Just messing with you. :-P |
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