On 11/30/11 2:42 AM, "MarshaV" <[email protected]> wrote: > "We conceive hyperia as a physiological function of the central nervous system > thanks to which certain neuronal circuits in our brain fire > hypersynchronically, giving rise to paroxysmal psychic experiences ..."
>Are you suggesting that such experiences can be reduced to firing neurons? Dave, Nope. Certain patterns of electrical discharges in the brain help researchers predict certain patterns of psychic experiences. Now if you are one who is subject to violent epileptic seizures I'm pretty sure you will think it's a good thing if researchers find by interrupting those patterns your seizures stop. Whether or not your experiences can be said to be ultimately "caused" by the firing of neurons or the hand of God make little difference to you. In a nutshell what interests me is this from page 8 of the Introduction: "Indeed, it is not just that the experiences in question are due to an excess of neuronal synchrony, but that, furthermore, the experiences themselves are always excessive, in such a way that during the moments that this hypersynchrony lasts, the mind is occupied by a psychic product with an overwhelmingly intense content: sudden and highly intense experiences of depersonalization or déjà vu, panic attacks, very clear hallucinations, very penetrating feelings of sadness or joy, often alternating with each other, ......" IN PATICULAR THIS NEXT PHRASE. ".......extremely strong ideas that appear suddenly in the consciousness and which impose themselves on it with the strength and feeling of absolute conviction,...." Let's look at a brief history of three men. (OK, I understand that as a women this in and of itself may be troubling but bear with me.) Though they lived in different times and places they all had some similar qualities that we find good. They were all intelligent, compassionate, articulate, inquisitive, etc and all came to believe that there's something wrong with the human condition, and they were going to look for a solution. All spent several years intensively studying the problem. Each finally settled on what the problem was. Then they all spent considerable more time investigating possible solutions and then each settled on a promising one. One thought the problem was love, one suffering, and one metaphysics. Deep into their investigations they all had extraordinary (mystic? epileptic? psychotic?) experiences which gave them insight into both the problem and solutions. These experiences " impose[d] themselves on [them] with the strength and feeling of absolute conviction," that their previously identified problems and solutions were correct and they spent the rest of their lives clarifying, articulating, and promoting their ideas. Though all their sets of ideas have some similarity all also radically conflict with one another in many basic ways. They all cannot be right. But each is absolutely convinced they are. Jesus says not only is their a God but I'm his Son and you should do thus and such. Buddha says whether there's Gods or not it's immaterial to human existence so forgetaboutit and do a different set of thus and such. Pirsig says there are no Gods but quality has all its characteristics except for the name and another set of thus and suchs. This is what I find problematic with using "mystic" experience as a foundation for belief. Not that the investigation is uninteresting. Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org/md/archives.html
