--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Patrick Gillam" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > We talk a lot around here about the reasons behind > actions and beliefs. What this article does is talk > about how some reasons are just more persuasive > than others by their very nature. For example, stories > seem to be more persuasive than technical accounts, > even if those technical accounts come from authorities. > > Hence, I may be willing to believe in a Golden Age of > Sat Yuga simply because it makes a good story. Or > I'll believe TM research when I've heard Skip Alexander > tell a story behind it, but I'll be more circumspect about > studies otherwise.
Thanks for posting the link to that story, Patrick. (http://tinyurl.com/rmmfc) It's a fascinating subject. I found myself thinking of Carlos Castaneda's books when reading it, and how he is regarded by different people. Factually -- a 'technical account' -- Carlos played fast and loose with the truth from Day One. He lied about his name, his age, what country he was from, his academic credentials, the fact that he deserted a wife and kids back home, and many other things, *years* before he started writing his books. The contents of the books have been challenged by almost every anthropologist and sociologist in the biz, because they can find zero evidence that most of the things Carlos claimed were part of Yaqui tradition really were. He is widely regarded -- in 'technical accounts' -- as a charlatan. And yet. In the wider field of people who like to read about spiritual things because they find them entertaining or uplifting, he's still considered a completely reputable source. His books continue to get published, and bought, year after year. Why? The article gives a clue. Because -- *despite* what the author is quoted as believing in the article, stories are considered by most people a 'higher' and more reliable reason than are 'technical accounts.' Carlos was a great storyteller. His version is *always* going to win among people who prefer a good story over the "facts." And the world of spiritual seeking basically *runs* on stories; it is a world almost completely devoid of facts, and filled with people who are gener- ally uninterested in facts. They prefer stories. The Carlos situation is the same, I think, as the recently- discussed-here belief in Indian myths as if they were real, or in the stories of the Bible as if it were real. There is no 'technical account' evidence that either is more than a series of well-told stories, but for millions, obviously, a well-told story is *enough*. People would prefer to believe a good story that appeals to them rather than believe the more stringent 'technical account' that may take more things into account, but is almost always boring, uninteresting, and laden with agenda. The thing I most disagree with the author about is that I believe the preference for one type of reason over another is *individual*, not universal. *Not* everyone prefers or values a 'technical account' more than they value a good story. The whole spiritual world, for example, would tend to be exactly the opposite -- it has run for centuries on people who value stories more than they value facts. (And a good thing, too, because there are very few facts *in* the spiritual world.) But it's a fascinating subject, one with many ramific- ations for FFL and for Internet communication, period. To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
