NOTE: I DONT EXPECT ANYONE TO *ACTUALLY* READ ALL THIS. YOU CAN STILL LEAVE ME A NOTE SAYING "HI" AND NOT FEEL GUILTY 
Okay, so now I'm on the spot. I meant to post something to someone's board, but being the absent minded person I can be, I ended up posting it on my journal -- and now I'm overwriting it.
I'm always on a journey to figure stuff out, and yesterday I spent a good few hours debating what the soul is, if it exists, and, if it exists, that scientific determinism, something I've believed in for a few years, cannot exist.
This is basically what I came up with:
If the soul exists, scientific determinism doesn't. If the soul doesn't exist, or is just a consequence of things that are, then scientific determinism does.
In regards to the soul, the mind and the body, I've basically come up with this hierarchy:
The body is a tool of the mind.
The mind is a tool of the soul.
Which is to suggest that the mind is just a utility used by the soul to cogitate things that the soul "knows".
Socrates believed that humans never "learned" anything. The human soul (or any soul, if there is anything other than a human soul) is eternal, and therefore, over eternities past, they have learned everything there is to learn. The only thing that we're doing is "remembering" the things that the soul has already learned. He gave an interesting proof that I won't go into right now, but whether or not you believe it, it's an interesting thought.
Assuming you believe these premises, then this is how you would define things:
The soul : An eternal, non-corporeal entity that identifies a person as a particular individual (i.e., themself). Linked to both mind and body, but greater than both.
The mind : A tool of the soul used to store knowledge and manipulate the body into use. Basically a bridge between the soul and physical reality.
The body : A tool of the mind, making in turn a tool of the soul. A mechanical monstrosity of flesh used to manipulate the universe machine within the scope of physical reality.
To put it in a way that's easier to swallow, think of KRANG from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. His body does nothing alone. His being is the mind (i.e., the brain, himself).
There's no analogy for the soul, but put it this way. Assume that reincarnation exists, or that you exist in some form before or after you die. Your soul is that "something" that continues to make you yourself.
-- Now, of course, I'm not saying there's anything to support anything I've just said, I've just decided that this is what I'mg oing to believe as it works out with a lot of my greater theories of the universe that don't necessarily involve mankind. I don't exclude Scientific Determinism entirely because it's a REALLY interesting concept, and if you don't believe in the soul, it works out very well (because, without the soul or some greater "force" that truly randomly affects the universe, there's no reason why the entire universe wouldn't be 100% mechanical and predictable).
Okay, so now I'm on the spot. I meant to post something to someone's board, but being the absent minded person I can be, I ended up posting it on my journal -- and now I'm overwriting it.
I'm always on a journey to figure stuff out, and yesterday I spent a good few hours debating what the soul is, if it exists, and, if it exists, that scientific determinism, something I've believed in for a few years, cannot exist.
This is basically what I came up with:
If the soul exists, scientific determinism doesn't. If the soul doesn't exist, or is just a consequence of things that are, then scientific determinism does.
In regards to the soul, the mind and the body, I've basically come up with this hierarchy:
The body is a tool of the mind.
The mind is a tool of the soul.
Which is to suggest that the mind is just a utility used by the soul to cogitate things that the soul "knows".
Socrates believed that humans never "learned" anything. The human soul (or any soul, if there is anything other than a human soul) is eternal, and therefore, over eternities past, they have learned everything there is to learn. The only thing that we're doing is "remembering" the things that the soul has already learned. He gave an interesting proof that I won't go into right now, but whether or not you believe it, it's an interesting thought.
Assuming you believe these premises, then this is how you would define things:
The soul : An eternal, non-corporeal entity that identifies a person as a particular individual (i.e., themself). Linked to both mind and body, but greater than both.
The mind : A tool of the soul used to store knowledge and manipulate the body into use. Basically a bridge between the soul and physical reality.
The body : A tool of the mind, making in turn a tool of the soul. A mechanical monstrosity of flesh used to manipulate the universe machine within the scope of physical reality.
To put it in a way that's easier to swallow, think of KRANG from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. His body does nothing alone. His being is the mind (i.e., the brain, himself).
There's no analogy for the soul, but put it this way. Assume that reincarnation exists, or that you exist in some form before or after you die. Your soul is that "something" that continues to make you yourself.
-- Now, of course, I'm not saying there's anything to support anything I've just said, I've just decided that this is what I'mg oing to believe as it works out with a lot of my greater theories of the universe that don't necessarily involve mankind. I don't exclude Scientific Determinism entirely because it's a REALLY interesting concept, and if you don't believe in the soul, it works out very well (because, without the soul or some greater "force" that truly randomly affects the universe, there's no reason why the entire universe wouldn't be 100% mechanical and predictable).
VIEW 7 of 7 COMMENTS
fuji:
herro!
fuji:
i remember you taught me some of stairway to heaven. that song is wanksta status