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Old 09-20-2018, 05:02 PM   #22 (permalink)
DJ Trashy
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 870
Another VIP Catch-up listen, sorry for the necro-posting...

I hope I haven't missed any big changes in Chemda's spirituality this year, because then all these words might be for nothing

Quote:
Originally Posted by porky2468 View Post
I'm glad Keith mentioned spiritual because that's how I feel, but it can sound goofy to say. I just want to be one with the earth!
Congratulations, you're wish can come true! Unfortunately you have to die first...

AS an ex-fundie Christian for 40+ years, I have explored this territory for almost two decades now. Instead of trying to split hairs over the definition of 'God' I find it easier to shift the discussion to natural vs super-natural. Most of what people think of as super-natural is basically impossible.

Example: If you traveled back in time to early cave-man and showed them something as simple as a flashlight, would they not think you had god-like powers? And yet you would be breaking no known laws of physics. You would be perfectly *natural*. But to them, a super-natural god.

As we have progressed through time, more and more things that we once either misunderstood or mislabeled come to be understood. We understand our heliocentric solar system with it's round earth orbiting it, and a round moon orbiting us. We understand that our universe is expanding and moving away from a central point. We no longer require a super-natural 'god' for this.

In my experience, this idea of a universal consciousness comes from a misunderstanding of the sensations and changes in perception during periods where the brain is under the influence of a chemical. The same brain can perceive alternate universes during LSD or peyote trips *AND* see giant non-existent pink elephants when bathed in alcohol. And let's not forget nightmares induced by PTSD. None of that is real or actually happening, but only the *good* trips are credited for allowing us to see into some other realm of supposed reality. And don't even get me started on salvia trips which can *induce* PTSD all on their own. (ask me how I know)

Just because the brain can have hallucinations doesn't mean it has become perceptive of reality. It is more likely that it is simply malfunctioning in unique ways.

I've meditated, done yoga, hung out in a Krishna temple, done salvia and weed and a ton of alcohol. Sometimes you have to see things first-hand. I get it. But while you are keeping an open mind, remain open to the possibility that there is no 'spiritual' connectedness or universal consciousness going on. Maybe such things are limited to the weak electro-chemical energy that keeps our brains working and our ability to read each other's body language.

Fucking Namaste
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