The Rare Ted Talk They Don't Want You to See
Summary
TLDRThis thought-provoking script explores the concept of reality, questioning our presuppositions and their impact on life decisions. It critiques the scientific view of a lifeless universe and delves into the mysteries of consciousness. The speaker advocates for a phenomenological approach, where meaning and interest guide personal growth and resilience. The script suggests that pursuing genuine interests can transform individuals, making them robust against life's adversities and safeguarding against pathological belief systems.
Takeaways
- 🧠 The concept of 'real' is subjective and based on presuppositions that guide our life decisions, and these assumptions can have significant impacts on our lives.
- 🔬 The scientific view of reality as fundamentally dead matter has limitations, particularly in explaining phenomena like consciousness and the transformation of potential into actuality.
- 💡 Alternative perspectives on reality, such as phenomenology, suggest that what is most meaningful to us is most real, which can have protective effects against certain modern pathologies.
- 🌑 Nihilistic hopelessness can arise from the belief that life lacks inherent meaning, leading to a potential weakening of the individual during challenging times.
- 🚫 Pathological belief systems, sometimes a consequence of the conflict between religious and scientific viewpoints, have historically led to disastrous outcomes, including mass movements and near-annihilation.
- 👁️ The human eye as a symbol of attention and perception is central to understanding reality, with phenomenologists positing that what manifests as meaningful is more real than mere objects.
- 🌟 Children perceive the world in a more open and unfiltered way, experiencing reality as it 'shines forth', which contrasts with the narrowed perceptions of adults focused on specific goals.
- 💖 Love and interest in something can momentarily lift the barriers of perception, allowing the true essence of reality to shine through and provide a glimpse of a better future.
- 📚 As we mature, we tend to narrow our focus for practical reasons, becoming more competent but potentially more blind to the unfiltered reality that children and lovers can perceive.
- 🌱 The development of individuality and integrity comes from pursuing genuine interests that align with one's values, transforming both the individual and their goals over time.
- 🔮 The pursuit of what genuinely interests us can lead to personal transformation, making us stronger and more capable of bearing life's adversities, and aligning us with a deeper reality.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the discussion in the transcript?
-The main theme of the discussion is the exploration of the concept of 'real' and how our assumptions about reality shape our lives, decisions, and the potential pathologies that can arise from incomplete or incorrect assumptions.
Why are our assumptions about reality important according to the speaker?
-Our assumptions about reality are important because they form the basis of the decisions that govern our lives. Incorrect or incomplete assumptions can lead to significant consequences and pathologies.
What is the issue with the scientific view of reality as presented in the transcript?
-The issue with the scientific view of reality is that it considers the bottom stratum of reality to be dead matter, devoid of meaning or purpose, relegating these aspects to the subjective and potentially illusory, which is incomplete and can lead to dangerous pathologies.
What is the significance of consciousness in the context of this discussion?
-Consciousness is significant because it is a major unsolved mystery in science, and it plays a crucial role in the transformation of potential into actuality, which is not well understood despite being recognized for almost a century.
How does the speaker relate the concept of 'phenomena' to the idea of what is real?
-The speaker relates 'phenomena' to the idea of what is real by suggesting that things that manifest themselves as meaningful are considered more real. This aligns with the phenomenologist's view that the shining forth of things (phenomena) is more fundamental than their objective existence.
What is the role of meaning in our perception of reality as discussed in the transcript?
-In the transcript, meaning is suggested to be more real and important than the objective view of things. Our brains are wired to react to things that have meaning before constructing perceptions of objects, indicating that the meaning of things is more central to our engagement with reality.
Why does the speaker believe that children perceive reality differently from adults?
-The speaker believes that children perceive reality differently because their brains are not yet fully developed and thus not as inhibitory, allowing them to be more open to the shining forth of phenomena, experiencing reality more directly and with wonder.
What is the 'round chaos' mentioned in the transcript, and how does it relate to the concept of reality?
-The 'round chaos' is an alchemical symbol representing the fundamental substance of the world, a combination of spirit and matter, akin to information. It is seen as the most real thing that precedes the spiritual and material and is what shines forth, aligning with the idea of reality being what manifests itself as interesting and meaningful.
How does the pursuit of what interests us transform us according to the speaker?
-According to the speaker, pursuing what interests us leads us through adversity, aligns us with the world, and transforms our internal structure, making us stronger, more durable, and better equipped to bear the conditions of existence without corruption.
What is the ultimate goal of following one's interests as described in the transcript?
-The ultimate goal of following one's interests is to transform from a citizen into an individual with integrity, strength, and direction, living more in the real world, and being strong enough to have a meaningful life without falling prey to pathological belief systems.
Outlines
🧠 The Illusion of Reality and the Role of Consciousness
The speaker introduces the concept that our understanding of reality is limited by our lack of infinite knowledge and the assumptions we make about what is most real. These assumptions influence our life decisions and can lead to significant consequences if they are incorrect or incomplete. The current scientific view of reality is criticized for being incomplete, particularly in its treatment of consciousness and its role in transforming potential into actuality. The speaker suggests that alternative perspectives on reality may offer protection against modern pathologies such as nihilistic hopelessness and dangerous belief systems that have historically led to disastrous outcomes.
🌟 The Phenomenology of Reality and Childhood Perception
The speaker explores the idea that reality is not just objective matter but also the subjective experiences that shine forth to us, such as meaning and purpose. Phenomenologists argue that what is most meaningful is most real, and the speaker suggests that our brains are wired to react to meaning before forming perceptions of objects. This is exemplified by the way children perceive the world with wonder and how adults can rediscover this openness through relationships with children. The speaker also discusses the narrowing of perception as we become more competent adults, trading broad awareness for focused goals, and the potential for re-engagement with unfiltered reality through genuine love and interest in the world around us.
👶 Developmental Specialization and the Path to Individuality
The speaker discusses the developmental process of becoming a competent adult, which involves a necessary narrowing of focus and specialization. This process is seen as a form of sacrifice for roles such as being a good parent, partner, or citizen. However, the speaker suggests that there is a higher level of existence beyond these roles, which is the development of individuality. This involves a re-opening of perception and an alignment with genuine life-giving meaning, which is essential for avoiding cynicism, nihilism, and pathological belief systems. The speaker emphasizes the importance of paying attention to what manifests as interesting, as this can guide us towards a more meaningful and integrated existence.
🔍 Pursuing Interests and Transforming Reality Perception
The speaker emphasizes the importance of following one's interests as a means of engaging with the world and transforming one's perception of reality. By paying attention to what shines forth as interesting, an individual can access real information directly from the world, leading to personal growth and a stronger, more informed self. This pursuit not only helps in achieving established goals but also transforms the nature of those goals as the individual learns and adapts. The speaker suggests that this process of engagement with reality is what makes life worthwhile and provides the strength to bear life's adversities.
💎 The Journey to Individuality and the Resilience of Belief
In the final paragraph, the speaker concludes that pursuing one's interests will lead to adversity but also through it, transforming the individual into a stronger, more durable self, much like the internal structure of a jewel. This transformation aligns the individual with a deeper reality, providing the strength to withstand life's challenges without succumbing to corruption. The speaker references TS Elliot's idea of exploration leading to a deeper understanding of one's origins and the importance of maintaining a connection with life-giving meaning to avoid pathological belief systems and destruction.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Real
💡Presuppositions
💡Consciousness
💡Phenomenology
💡Nihilism
💡Belief Systems
💡Individuality
💡Interest
💡Transformation
💡Pathology
Highlights
The concept of 'real' is subjective and based on presuppositions that shape our life decisions.
Incomplete cultural assumptions about reality have led to dangerous and costly outcomes.
The scientific view of reality as dead matter without meaning or purpose is challenged.
Consciousness is a central unsolved mystery in the transformation of potential into actuality.
Alternative views of reality can protect us from modern pathologies like nihilistic hopelessness.
Pathological belief systems, born from shattered worldviews, have led to mass atrocities.
Phenomenologists believe that meaningful phenomena are more real than mere objects.
The brain prioritizes meaningful perceptions over objectified perceptions.
Children perceive the world with an openness that adults often lose.
Love and fascination can temporarily lift the barriers of perception, revealing deeper realities.
As adults, we narrow our perceptions to focus on specific goals, losing touch with unfiltered reality.
The development of competence requires specialization but also blindness to broader realities.
Being a good citizen is necessary but not sufficient for a meaningful life.
Individuality and personal development can lead to a re-opening of perception to deeper realities.
Pursuing interests can lead to personal transformation and a more meaningful alignment with reality.
The pursuit of genuine interests can provide the strength to bear life's adversities.
The alchemical concept of 'round chaos' symbolizes the fundamental reality that precedes spirit and matter.
In the Harry Potter series, the game of Quidditch and the Resurrection Stone symbolize the pursuit of deeper meaning.
TS Elliot's poem encapsulates the journey of self-discovery and the alignment with reality.
Transcripts
so I'm going to talk to you today about
a different way of looking at what real
is it's not easy to figure out what real
is because we don't really have infinite
knowledge and so we're always making
some sets of presuppositions about
what's most real and it really matters
what you assume is most real because you
base the decisions that you make that
run the entire course of your life on
those assumptions whether you recognize
it or not and if you get the assumptions
wrong or even if you leave them
incomplete you're going to pay a big
price for
it and uh the assumptions that we use in
our culture although they've enabled us
to develop a tremendously potent
technology are incomplete in ways that
have also cost us and that are extremely
dangerous and since the scientific age
began we've lived in a
universe where the bottom
Strat of reality is considered to be
something that's dead like dirt it's
like it's matter it's objective
it's
external and there isn't any element of
it that lends any reality to phenomena
like meaning or purpose that's all being
relegated to the subjective and in some
ways to the illusory
but it's by no means self-evident that
that set of presuppositions is
correct because we
lack infinite knowledge and there's many
things about the structure of being that
we don't understand the main one being
Consciousness we can't account for it at
all and we can't account for the role it
appears to play in the transformation of
potential into actuality which is a role
that's been recognized by physicists for
almost a hundred years now
and which remains one of the biggest
Unsolved Mysteries in
science there are other ways of looking
at what's
real and these other ways have some
advantages and one of the advantages
they have is that they protect us
knowing these other ways of of operating
within reality defining reality protect
us from certain kinds of pathologies
modern people are prone to a fair number
of pathologies that stem from the
assumptions of their of their of the
systems they use to define reality and
one of those pathologies is uh kind of a
nihilistic hopelessness which is a
consequence of the recognition that in
the final analysis nothing really has
any
meaning and because life is difficult
and that's a meaning that you can't
escape being forced to abandon your
belief in a positive or A Transcendent
meaning can leave you weak at the times
when you really can least afford to be
weak and there's more important
pathologies that it's opened us up to
too and those are pathologies of belief
and I think we saw the most most
horrifying examples of that hopefully
the most horrifying examples in the 20th
century where people whose belief
systems were shattered at least in part
by the competition between religious and
scientific viewpoints turned in large
numbers to mass movements that were in
in every way a substitute a more
rational in some sense substitute for
religious beliefs that appeared no
longer tenable and the consequence of
that was it was just about Annihilation
because we came close to annihilation
twice once in the 60s and once in the
80s and even without the totality of
annihilation we lost hundreds of
millions of people as a consequence of
pathological belief systems in the 20th
century so if belief systems become
pathological they po that pathology can
pose the biggest threat possibly to our
very existence and if you're a darwinian
in any sense you have to understand that
the things that pose the biggest threats
to your survival are the most real
things they have to be dealt
with now here's another way of looking
at
things I'll start with the definition of
this word this word phis thigh is the
root word of phenomena phenomenon and
phenomena are the things that appear to
you and fisy means to shine forth and
the phenomenologists who were interested
in The Shining forth of things made the
presumption that the things that
manifested themselves to you as most
meaningful were the most real things and
I think you can make us strong case that
that's actually how your brain is wired
because your brain is wired to react to
things that have meaning before they
construct the perceptions that you think
of as objects and the reason for that is
because the meaning of things is more
real in some sense but more important
than the view of things as objects and
so for example a
famous philosopher psychologist a vision
said that when you approach a cliff you
don't see a cliff you see a falling off
place it isn't that it's an object Cliff
to which you attribute the meaning of
falling off place too it's the falling
off Place perception comes first and the
abstraction of the objective Cliff if it
ever happens at all comes much later
much later conceptually because even
babies can detect Cliffs and much later
historically poets have noticed this
phenomena shining
forth reality and and they've often
associated with childhood and I think
there's good reasons for that I think
your brain is not so much of an
inhibitory structure when you're a child
before it's fully developed
and so there's there's neurological
reasons for noting it but there's also
reasons that stem from the level of
lived experience you can tell when
you're around children that they're open
to things in a way that adults aren't
they're wide-eyed with Wonder and adults
like being around children for that
reason because although the child takes
an awful lot of care and is a is a a
terrifying object in some ways to behold
if you have a relationship with a child
because they're so vulnerable the part
of the way they pay you back is they
open up your eyes your eyes that have
been closed by your experience and that
have learned to Shield out the things
that shine forth and when you have a
child you can look through the child's
eyes again and to me it's like they're
on fire in a sense they're like a candle
or something that's Burning Brightly and
I think that's also partly because we
actually don't screen out fire we
actually see fire and that's why we
can't not look at it when it's around I
think the same thing happens when you're
in love with someone if it's if it's
genuine love because genuine love gives
you a hint of what could be in the
future if you could just set yourself
right you get a glimpse of what could be
in the future if you fall in love with
someone you don't get that without work
but you get a glimpse of it and I think
it's because when you fall in love and I
believe this is likely a biochemical
transformation is the perceptual
structures that normally stop you from
seeing people because you really don't
see people you just see Shadows they did
the the the the the barriers are lifted
temporarily and what's really there
shines through and it's overwhelming but
to stay in that state well it requires a
tremendous amount of moral effort is
really the right way of thinking about
it Wordsworth said about children there
was a time when Meadow Grove in stream
the Earth and every common sight to me
did seem Apparel in Celestial light the
glory and the freshness of a dream it is
not now as it hath been of your turn
where soever I may by night or day the
things which I have seen I now can see
no
more Earth fills her lap with pleasures
of her own yearnings she hath in her own
natural kind and even with something of
a mother's mind and no unworthy aim the
homely nurse doth all she can to make
her foster child her inmate man forget
the glories he hath known and that
Imperial Palance Palace whence he came
and what woodsworth means by this is
that as you develop as an as a as a
competent adult which which is precisely
the the direction towards which you
should develop much of what you're doing
is actually closing in and narrowing
you're closing in and narrowing towards
a particular goal and a particular way
of being and that's necessary because as
you develop you have to develop towards
a particular way of being or you don't
develop at all and you can't stay a
child
forever that goes that goes sour of its
own accord and so human beings are
destined to close their Perceptions in
to sharpen themselves and to focus on
very little so that they can at least do
that but the price we pay for that is
that we start to replace the
relationship we have with untrammeled
reality with the Shadows that are only
complex enough to let us do what we need
to do and no more and in some sense
although we become more competent in in
other ways we become more blind and we
kind of know how this happens it happens
from the bottom up now this is a mgre
painting and the painting has an obvious
meaning in a sense which is that we're
blinded even to what's right in front of
us by the objects that we see and we
think that
seeing is letting in the light but it's
only letting in a very small fraction of
the light because we're only capable of
contemplating a small fraction of
everything whenever we're doing any
particular thing and so very much of
what we're doing is screening things out
very much of your cortex is
inhibitory and mcre is trying to get at
that with that idea it's like there's a
businessman there he's dressed in his
uniform he can't see beyond the
immediate the immediate thing that's in
front of his eyes how does that happen
well let's say you're a baby the first
thing you learn you learn you build your
body from the bottom up you build your
perceptual and action structures from
the bottom up you learn to move your arm
you learn to close your hand then you
learn to do things that are practical
with those abilities you lift a spoon
while you have to do that to feed
yourself you learn to move a plate you
learn to set the table that's starting
to become social now because you can set
the table for you and for other people
you learn to make a meal that's a more
complex sequencing of motor activities
and perceptual abilities that's very
focused as you continue to develop the
things you chain together become more
and more complex and and but also more
specific you you have to care for your
family which means there's all sorts of
other things you're not doing you have
to find a good job which almost everyone
when they're young experiences as the
contemplation of a limitation well not
everyone but many people think oh no you
know I'm going to have to settle for
this role I don't want to only be that
role but it's better to be that role
than no role at all and maybe the way
through the role to the other side is
through the role not around it there's
no avoiding the responsibility of
narrowing and shaping and specializing
be a good parent well that's the
sacrifice you make for the Next
Generation be a good partner the same
thing be a good citizen it's easy for
young people in particular to be
skeptical of that because the old
Society is always corrupt and archaic
and blind and to become a member of that
seems to be in part to to allow yourself
to adopt that same aged
blindness but that thing also educates
you it shapes every word you speak it's
something that you have to be grateful
to even in its aged and archaic form and
it's part of the necessities of human
responsibility that you become a good
citizen and that means in some sense
giving up more of what could be at least
to sustain what
is is a satirical song from the late
1890s English I am the very model of a
modern major general I've information
vegetable animal and mineral I know the
Kings of England and I quote the fights
historical from Marathon to water in
order categorical and the satire is well
he has the knowledge he's an
official functionary and it's very
difficult to do that but in the same way
it's very limited and categorical and of
course an artist would object to
that but it's better than nothing at all
and that's the
alternative well above that maybe what's
above good citizen because sometimes
good citizen is not so good if you were
a good citizen of Nazi Germany or a good
citizen of the Soviet Union or of ma
China you know you were narrowed in a
particular way
but and then maybe in a necessary way
but also in a very pathological way and
so it seems to be that there has to be
something even though adopting that
restricted Viewpoint is necessary there
has to be something above it and I think
that's also the thing that can restore
the sense you have of a true
entanglement with the the deepest and
most meaningful realities of life and
that's the issue of being a good person
it's above being a citizen it's
something else it has something to do
with the development of individuality
and I think we're also wired for that so
it looks like we're wired to lose what
we had to specialize but then once we're
specialized to reopen once we've got the
skills built into our body and then can
hand handle reality because we're more
adapted and more fluid and more flexible
then we can start opening the doors
again and I and I believe that your
nervous system is setups to help you do
that if you don't interfere with it if
you notice and you notice that by paying
attention to the things that manifest
themselves to you that shine forth as
interesting they grab you and where
you're grabbed is where the obscuring
map you live in isn't obscuring the
reality that's underneath it's like
there's a hole in the map and the light
shines through that and you're attracted
to that and that will pull you along and
that's when your interest is seized by
something that's your nervous system
doing that you don't do that it's it's
an unconscious Force you could even say
it was the world itself talking to you
and the phenomenologists did feel that
way and it's a real phenomenon it's not
a secondary thing and you know that
because you can't live without it you
die you stultify you get cynical you get
nihilistic or you adopt some wild belief
system if you don't have the attachment
to some genuine lifegiving meaning in
your own life and it's a hard thing to
follow that because it doesn't necess
neily put you into perfect juxtaposition
with Society because it's not Society
it's not being a good citizen it's
something else it's also the thing that
rebuilds how you would be a good
citizen the Egyptians knew about this a
long time ago they didn't really know
they
knew because they they acted things out
in drama and portrayed them
mythologically because they didn't have
the capacity to articulate the ideas
fully but the Egyptians worshiped the
human eye and they worshiped the eye
because they knew the eye was was the
thing that paid attention like we're
really visual creatures and your eye is
automatically attracted to the things
that manifest themselves or shine forth
in front of you and you have to look at
them if you pay
attention to the things that shine forth
because what you're seeing is the
reality instead of the map you're
gaining access to the real information
that's in the world it's not prepackaged
information because that can be false
it's the real information flowing out
from the ground of being and if you pay
attention to that it will help you move
towards the goals that you've already
established for yourself as a good
citizen that are that are part of the
inbuilt value structure that you've
adopted but at the same time it will do
something else it will lead you to
transform the nature of those goals
because as you pursue the thing that
guides your interest and more and more
information is revealed then by
absorbing that information which is
learning essentially you build yourself
into a different person a stronger and
more informed person and a and a more a
more intact person a person with more
integrity and with more strength and
with more Direction and at the same time
you differentiate your map and so you're
living more and more in the real world
so as you approach your specific goal
even if it's a culturally conditioned
goal the learning that you do along the
way transforms you and it transforms the
nature of your
goal things shine forth there's a reason
for that and you know that because when
you're attending to something you're
interested in and you're engaged in
that's when you're alive that's when
life is worthwhile it's so worthwhile
that in those moments you don't even ask
the question about it the question
itself goes away because the meaning
that you're United with is so powerful
that it can push back the adversity that
would otherwise characterize life n said
the person who has a why can bear any
howow and and that's a really useful
thing to know because you think well
we're very vulnerable creatures and our
life ends catastrophically and and and
terrible things happen and how can we
bear that and the answer to that is and
always has been that you have to be in
sync with something that's beyond you
because that synchrony gives you the
strength that you need to Bear your
terrible limitations you see this played
out people know this everyone knows this
it's just that our culture isn't good at
articulating it we've lost a lot of this
we haven't developed our knowledge about
this as much as we've developed our
knowledge of the objective world and
we're paying for it you see it in weird
places on the on the right here there's
an old symbol at the bottom it's called
the round chaos and the Alchemists
believe that the round chaos was the
thing that held what was what the world
was ultimately made of the thing that
was most real and they conceptualized it
as something like information they
thought about it as a combination of
spirit and matter and it was a
combination of spirit and matter which
is what information is in a sense
because when you interacted with it you
took some of the information and you
built yourself out of it so that was the
spiritual element and you took took some
of the information and you built the
world out of it and that was the
material element and they thought of the
reality itself as something that
preceded the spiritual and the material
and that that reality was what Shawn
forth and that's been dramatized in in
in Tales modern Tales of transformation
the most interesting place has popped up
is in the Harry Potter stories where
central to the Harry Potter theme is a
game called quidditch and in quidditch
which is a game the way you win the game
is by playing a game that's sort of
outside the quidd game you you win the
quiddit game by finding following this
thing that beckons this golden thing
that glimmers and moves around you if
you catch that then you win the game and
so does your whole team and inside that
is it is the resurrection Stone it's a
it's a diamond it's a it's a jewel the
idea is that if you follow the thing
that manifests itself to you as
interesting it will lead you through
adversity it'll lead you to do things
that are difficult and as that happens
but not be on your capacity because it's
tempered for that what will happen is as
you hit yourself against the world
pursuing what you're interested in
you'll tap yourself into alignment your
molecules your structure internal
structure will become non-contradictory
like the internal structure of a jewel
which is something that reflects light
that makes you hard and
durable and able to Bear the terrible
conditions of existence without becoming
corrupt TS Elliott said something about
this we shall not cease from
exploration and the end of all our
exploring will be to arrive where we
started and to know the place for the
first
time and that's a five line summary of
the
most
remarkable elaboration of the nature of
the relationship between the individual
human consciousness and reality itself
that's ever been penned and and and the
culmination of a of a system of thought
that's been developed over thousands and
thousands of years which we have lost
and cannot properly
articulate follow what you're interested
in it'll take you to adversity and then
through it it'll transform you from a
citizen into an individual and then the
doors will open again and at that point
you're strong enough to have your
life and at that point you're strong
enough not to fall prey to pathological
belief systems and work towards the
destruction of
things thank you
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