New Thoughts Are Sometimes Old Thoughts

Well...the new idea I was trying to figure out yesterday, I actually discovered was better said by somebody else. This time by Aldous Huxley. Although to be accurate it is more likely his is just flat out a better idea and I can only hope mine was at least somehow similar.

Here is the quote,

Every fully developed religion exists simultaneously on several different levels. It exists as a set of abstract concepts about the world and its governance. It exists as a set of rites and sacraments, as a traditional method for manipulating the symbols, by means of which beliefs about the cosmic order are expressed. It exists as the feelings of love, fear and devotion evoked by this manipulation of symbols.

And finally it exists as a special kind of feeling or intuition — a sense of the oneness of all things in their divine principle, a realization (to use the language of Hindu theology) that “thou art That,” a mystical experience of what seems self-evidently to be union with God.

The ordinary waking consciousness is a very useful and, on most occasions, an indispensable state of mind; but it is by no means the only form of consciousness, nor in all circumstances the best. Insofar as he transcends his ordinary self and his ordinary mode of awareness, the mystic is able to enlarge his vision, to look more deeply into the unfathomable miracle of existence.

The mystical experience is doubly valuable; it is valuable because it gives the experiencer a better understanding of himself and the world and because it may help him to lead a less self-centered and more creative life.

 The bold section almost, a little, addresses what I was trying to say. It is a search for or recognition of a sense of "oneness" of all things, and it can develop into a religious path or a science path. And the other bit is that both science and religion have a cultural and emotional aspect that needs to be recognized and one must be sure not to confuse the two parts of each approach.

But what of the Atheist? They may very well suggest there is no yearning for connectedness, and sinse it cannot be measured, it therefore does not exist.

Sort of tweaking Wittgenstein's statement "What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence." to something like "That of which we cannot speak, does not exist"

It is already getting late, and that is about all I can come up with tonight.


"What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence." ― Ludwig Wittgenstein, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus . -- By the way, about all I know about the guy is this one quote.

The Huxley quote I found here
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2014/03/25/aldous-huxley-moksha-drugs/