The two things that humans battle with throughout their whole lives. Are they the same thing? Does logic come from emotion? Does emotion come from logic? If a guy is planning on asking out his dream girl.. he can see the logic... he knows exactly how to do it... he sees no reason to get nervous about it... yet he is nervous... why is that? The emotion is not logical... so why have it? A man sees another man carrying thousands of dollars in a briefcase through a dark alleyway. Logicaly.. he knows that mugging this man will mean that he will have far more money and will be better off... yet emotionaly he feels it would be a bad idea... he would feel guilty. Yet again... the emotion is not logical... he would benefit from having the money... yet he feels he shouldn't mug the man... why is that? Social conditioning? Do most people live a life of logic over emotion? or vice versa?
Most people lead lives of calculation, colored by whatever weakness for the flesh they may have. The mind, "Satan", rules. Emotion is a soupy mixture of love in different aspects. The ability to feel, with clarity, defines a person just as much as the ability to think. Compassion. Empathy. Every bit as important as a degree upon the wall. Except to display them ,you must live through their influence, rather than that of your lower animal self. The ability to calculate becomes a tool for the heart that has a voice. It becomes a weapon for the selfish person that calculates well but feels little. x
Maybe we need another category:values. A large part of what I define as "meaning" in life has to do with those, especially my self concept--my idea of the kind of person I am. Where do they come from? Upbringing, life experiences, social conditioning, and (in my case) religious ideals. I can recall a situation from personal experience that was a variation on the man in the dark alley with the suitcase. I was travelling in a foreign country. I had to cash a travellers check at a hotel. The woman at the desk was obviously not used to the transaction and gave me far more money than she should. I'll admit, I felt a moment of temptation. I could have played dumb American and walked away with the money before anyone would have been the wiser. But I did the "right thing" and pointed out the error. She was really grateful, and I realized that in addition to just being honest I'd probably saved her job. I'm glad I acted as I did. The payoff for me was the satisfaction that I had acted in a way that I admired & I wish everybody acted. Empathy also played an important part. Much as I would have enjoyed the money, I wouldn't have enjoyed it enough to want to risk that woman's job. Rationally, I'm aware that my gesture of honesty would probably not matter much in the greater scheme of things, but somebody might notice. She noticed and might do something good for somebody else. And I noticed. It's like voting. How much is my vote going to matter? (especially in my state where a non-Republican in a presidential election might as well stay home and catch up on some yardwork). But I do it to set an example and uphold a principle, in hopes somebody might be positively influenced to do likewise. A friend of mine told me that there are basically three kinds of people in the world: turtle ignorers, turtle anihilators, and turtle rescuers. Suppose you're driving along a highway and you come upon a turtle crossing the road. What do you do? Keep on going, & when you hear a thud, think "Dumb turtle. Should have watched where it was going" (Turtle ignorer)? Or do you aim for it & say "Ha! Got me another turtle (Turtle anihilator)? Or do you swerve to avoid the turtle? (Turtle rescuer)? I'm definitely in the Turtle rescuer category.
i think that we all need philosiphies or values. mine for instance i just found recently. i was listening to the Jimi Hendrix song If 6 was 9. and then it hit me like a train sudden realization of how to live a notural good life style. it basically means let your fancy flow, and "i don't care, i don't mind, it aint me .etc" i think its been working out for me so far .dont care what other people think. be your own person. in english i have learned that most people hid their character or their sense of elf from the public b/c they fear what others think. well i think that we should all toss away those fears and start living life as a person with no personal boundaries.
i respect that notion. i feel you should consider, however, how far you are willing to take it. very early on you will feel pressure from others in acting on this. i'm sure this won't phase you. however, this pressure doesn't cease. as you continue down this path, it will become increasingly difficult/intense. all i ask of you is that you truly consider what comforts you are willing to give up, for the path you have chosen is not a comfortable one. that being said, if you take it far enough, with dedication and compassion/love, you are sure to impact your world, my friend. i wish you luck.
emotions have a valid role in life. trusting them, when at odds with legitimately varified evidence, is illogical. i don't beleive we have to deny them to not trust them. i believe i do neither. =^^= .../\...
what about our thinking that is not of social language . it's beyond acceptable , recognizable logic . in my brain i note both kinds of thinking - an organic and a synthetic . either one or both together can produce action . i suspect an education philosophy is responsible for a lack of respect for the organic less-than-logical . too bad . the ordered language thinking is just so buggerdly slow and , too , can be rudely manipulated .
The concept of logic (and the people who cling to it as if it were their salvation) has always made me laugh. Life is never really logical. Logic is man's desperate attempt to create order in a disorderly world. Let it go.
follow it to the end of itself. true logic will inevitably hit walls in many different ways, forming a sort of mental grid around or up against that which it cannot decipher. once this grid or wall is apparent enough to the user, it should be obvious that there is something more. what lies immediately beyond that wall is confident, unhesitant action. i don't feel there's any need to drop logic permanently, however. just don't let it rule you. it's an advanced sensory/interaction tool. how will you communicate with those around you without it?
