Life in Plato’s Cave

The metaphor of Plato’s cave is something that reveals immense truths in the way we live our lives and how the environment affects the way we live The premise is that Plato kept prisoners in a cave since their childhood, their arms and legs are chained to the wall of the cave and their heads were shackled so that their sight was fixed on the wall. There is a huge fire behind the prisoners upon a raised walkway. Puppets of different animals, plants and other various objects pass through the entrance of the cave, creating shadows on the wall. The prisoners made a game of identifying these shadows and they judged each other solely on how well they played the game.

There was a well traveled road behind the cave where people would pass and make general noises; the prisoners would think that the noises they are hearing are coming directly from the shadows they are seeing. They are unable to distinguish reality from fantasy. The theory states that if a prisoner was able to break his chains, he would spend some time learning how to walk and eventually he would feel the urge to explore. He would leave the cave and would be instantly blinded by the sun, since he had never seen light before. He would slowly work his way out of his confusion and would eventually be able to see the sun, and in time he would learn to see real objects as opposed to the shadows. He would learn the nature of life, understanding the seasons of the year and all that is visible. Once enlightened to the awareness of the function of the earth, he would feel obligated to free the other prisoners so that they could live the life he has experienced. One problem he might encounter is the prisoners not wanting to be freed.

Upon returning to the cave, the freed prisoners eyes would have to adjust again, and the other prisoners would have the advantage in the naming game they used to play. Since the freed man would perform poorly the other prisoners would assume that the light had ruined his mind. Their perception would be that life outside the cave is not worth living. Since they only have one way to judge life, they would believe that the game they play is the only existence. The freed prisoner would know that they are being horribly treated and were completely ignorant of the truth.

Essentially the prisoners in the dark are living in a false reality, but since it is the only reality they know, they have absolutely no contrast to compare it to. They see shadows that are real, but they misinterpret them to be real objects. They do not know what they’re seeing isn’t real; they would have to free themselves as the first prisoner had. The free prisoner could never get them out because they did not possess the desire to leave in the first place. They would have to open their eyes by themselves and would learn the ways of the world.

In essence, we spend a great deal of time in Plato’s cave. We spend a vast portion of our lives working what seem to be meaningless jobs in a worthless existence when you realize that everything does coincide with itself. The secrets to space and time are outside the realm of space and time. You must be able to remove yourself from the moment and your emotions, essentially becoming detached from your ego and who you say you are and all these games you play as a person.

We play mind games constantly, no matter what you do; everyone knows that everything happens for a reason. Life is going to be what it is going to be, from moment to moment and minute to minute. Existence is love, without love nothing would exist. The message is that eventually everyone will become some sort of artist. By that I do not mean that everyone will participate in what we consider to be “the arts”, like philosophy, theatre, poetry, song and dance, etc. Art can be found in anything, it is a Zen kind of quality to see yourself as an artist. Art is universal; there is an art to living, which is an art we must master.

Once you see the light, which is white and blind, you lose yourself for a while and you might not understand why, but it does not matter how you see it. We see things in the simplest definitions we can come up with, through words, these symbols we’ve invented. There is a reason why we use alphanumeric characters to express ourselves. Everything is symbolic, it’s all completely universal. Everything is related to itself and everything else; forces are attracted to each other and attracted to themselves, which is what makes us do what we do.

All we are going to do is keep on living, which is all we know how to do. We are no different from any form of life, animals or plants. We are exactly the same; we may call it intelligent design. There are two technological breakthroughs in the distant future that will explain the afterlife and why everything is the way it is. You must have the ability to think ahead and make prophecies to have vision. Without vision, you would have no sight and without sight, you cannot see if you can’t see, you’re blind; you’re in the cave.

Once you take a walk out of that cave, you realize that life is so very beautiful, and will do anything to propagate the lust we find for these things, the lust for life is the most important thing you can have. If you don’t feel like you’re really alive, you must do something to change that. We’re constantly changing, that’s evolution, and it’s completely true.

The argument is either evolution or creationism. Most people fail to see that it is entirely possible for both these theories to coincide. There are two things that explain reincarnation and why all philosophy and religion are the way they are. For me to give you those answers would be cheating. I’m not going to give them to you, you must think for yourself.

The question they use to determine if someone is an optimist or a pessimist is “Is the glass half full or half empty?” Optimists see the glass half full, pessimists see it half empty. I am a realist and my answer is that if it is half one thing, then obviously it must be half the other, there’s a line. In the yin yang people see black and white without realizing that there is a line in the middle. That line is what one should aim to become. Be the line, be the man. These are important sentiments of life.

The darkness of Plato’s cave represents the summation of all our fears and insecurities. Often time’s people are afraid to be themselves. It’s like a caterpillar turning to a butterfly, it’s the metamorphosis, the change that we undergo ever second of our lives; we cannot escape it. Once we make that change we discover that the darkness really isn’t all that bad. Once you dissolve all your fears, they have no power over you. You are merely possessed by a spirit from a different time and space. It is important to be here and help each other out.

The worst problem in the universe is that no one is willing to help anyone else; everyone is lost in their own little world of greed and torment, that’s not the life I choose, or the life I’m going to live. I only go where I’m needed; where I lay my head is home. These are the things that make me who I am.

The reason I am writing this now is to be able to relate to other people and make an effort to help the world survive. I am doing all the headwork, I’m constantly thinking these things, and it is my responsibility to use these thoughts to benefit our existence. My philosophy is “live and let live,” and everything will be alright. Only time will tell, I believe that with every day that passes, we are making progress to a better future. We really have no way to look but forward. We cannot change the past or the present, but we can change the future of things to come. It is best to cease becoming and begin to be. I know nothing of greed or gluttony; I am a minimalist and am happier with the less material objects I “own.”

It is the small everyday occurrences that make life to be what it is. These coincidences make life to be beautiful and perfect. That’s just how I feel; I cannot be the only one. I’ve spent most of my life alone pondering these notions and I am convinced of their truth.

The purpose of the theory of Plato’s cave is to revolutionize your mind and the way you think. It’s supposed to teach you the balance of perception and how everything comes full circle. Everything exists for a reason, there is evidence in The One we call “God,” the creator in everything. There are patterns in science and nature, it is in these patterns that we find that we are all fulfilling our own unique identities and niches. Everyone has their part in the universe and place in mankind. No one’s destiny is greater than anyone else’s; all of our destines intertwine and relate to each other. It all makes sense when you take a step back and realize that there can be only one truth; there can be only one creator.

My personal theory is that everyone is controlled by their own god. There is a god for every living thing in the cosmos. What you must realize is that if that is true, logically there can be only one creator god that began the other’s existence. There is one Unmoved Mover, and the rest are copies of Him. We are all images of the one creator God.

 

ive always found this analogy quite amusing, thanx that was interesting

 

Outside Plato's cave the light is with or against the ten commandments. It is with the ten commandments if you are the only one to know you yearn to do the will of goodness for the common fellowship (that is the hghest form of explanation for the Good Life). It is against the ten commandments while everyone is to be worried about trusting the conscience of fighting, or instead, just being in the demoralized state (-religion, if you like).

famewalk

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The light is for the progress of Mankind. Insurance companies are not, because big and small are one.

 

I'm more with Baudrillard et al on this one. Everyone who thinks they've exited the cave seems to be a massive douchebag as a result, despite (or because of) having no more reason to think that they've "seen the light" than they did when they were inside "the cave".

My personal belief is that our senses simply are limited, that we only have a certain capacity to perceive the nature of a subject, and that the best we can hope for is to know roughly how much we don't know about it. Like an iceberg - looking at it, you know you can see 10% of it above the surface of the water, and that 90% of it is below, but you're only able to make educated guesses about what that 90% is. Would I believe someone who said that they "just felt" that they'd seen the rest of the iceberg? Maybe, but I wouldn't trust them with my life.