Hi Roger and Group,
I (ROGER) HAD WRITTEN:'....that which is more dynamic,
that is, at a higher level of evolution, is more moral.' (P
183)
It seems we either need to show justification for this
statement (see my last two posts from July), or accept that
the entire metaphysics and ethical system is based on this
anecdotally supported, emotive comment. Or perhaps someone
can suggest another way out.........
MARK:
There is perhaps YET another 'way out'. This month's
question is koan-like. And perhaps Roger is our Zen master-
notice that word 'way', interesting...
The question might be rephrased like this:
'That which is more real is better than that which is less
real.'
But 'more real'? a thing is either real or it doesn't
exist, right?
BUT one might answer that static intellectual patterns are
NOT reality, but patterns of reality. Here, I think, is the
rub. Intellectual patterns ARE real,
as real as anything. The problem IMO is between reality and
truth. The intellectual pattern which claims that what is
'out there' is reality, is a real pattern, it's just not
true. So if we accept that everything is real, then what
can possibly be less real than reality?
Another way to word the question might be:
'The here and now (DQ) is better than the past (sq).'
In my previous post I wrote that 'claiming DQ is better
than sq is like saying that the THERE is better than the
HERE.' This is confused, on my part! It's probably more
accurate in MOQ terms to regard the HERE as DQ (present
reality) and the THERE as sq (the past). (This reminds me
of Pirsig's reference to the Greek historical perspective
of looking into the past from the vantage point of the
present.)
These question/s IMO point to the human condition of
searching for a purpose to existence. If reality is better
than non-reality, then WHY is it better, why is it better
to live than not to? No other animal ponders this question
of WHY, being concerned soley with HOW to exist, to survive
in the everchanging flux of reality.
So perhaps, the WAY out of the human condition, is to
pursue reality, in the hope that we might escape from our
intellectual awareness that life might indeed be ultimately
purposeless. At this stage there will then be two paths-
suicide or freedom from intellect- which is in reality just
one path :)
Thanks for reading,
Mark
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Kick off your party with Yahoo! Invites.
http://invites.yahoo.com/
MOQ.org - http://www.moq.org
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat Aug 17 2002 - 16:03:25 BST