- Image via Wikipedia
One of the states of duality is the sense that there is an I which resides inside a body, and then there is a world outside the body.
I look out through these eyes to a computer screen on which text is appearing as I type. For most practical purposes this view of me and my relationship to the outside world works. It allows me to function in the world, to interact with the world, to communicate with other people in the world.
What is really going on here? There may indeed be a computer screen in front of me, but I cannot see it as it really is. Light passes from the screen into my eyes. These light waves are then interpreted by the brain which then constructs an image which I label computer screen. Am I seeing the screen out there or is it in here, inside my brain?
- Image by sunjaec via Flickr
One things that non-dualists says is that there is no separate self.
How does the mind get around that one? It seems so obvious that you exist. Every time that you use the word ‘I’, you are establishing that you exist as a single standalone entity.
So let’s find the I. Can you find the I without the content of the I? What I mean by this is that, when you use the word I, you are generally referring to an experience. You say:
- I am hungry
- I will get back to you on that one
- I feel sad
- I will think about that
Image via Wikipedia
I was watching a video on the internet today. It was a talk by a man who had been involved in research into the secret of a long life. He looked at several areas of the world where the average lifespan is considerably longer than the average.
He showed slides of 102 year olds water skiing, a 97 year old heart surgeon and a 103 year old grannie. They all appeared to live happy and active lives. When he looked into why they lived longer, one thing that these people had in common was a strong social life and a religious belief. In American, there is a community of Seventh Day Adventists who spend 24 hours every week worshipping God and socialising. Research has shown that a religious faith can add about 4 years to your life.
