SquareOne Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 I see... Oh ok then, that makes me feel better. They are symbolic of something that transcends them. Therefore they do not "literally" exist. Is a rose as an expression of love, love itself? Or is love expressed in the rose? Is it the rose, or what is beyond the rose you embrace? Perhaps both in the experience of love, but the rose fades while love remains. For me roses are plants and love is an interpretation of certain behaviours of the human brain. Wonderful behaviours though. Sorry, that's a bit flat of me. I'm not a totally cold person. I actually rather enjoy symbolism. But you did lose me there.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antlerman Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 I see... Oh ok then, that makes me feel better. They are symbolic of something that transcends them. Therefore they do not "literally" exist. Is a rose as an expression of love, love itself? Or is love expressed in the rose? Is it the rose, or what is beyond the rose you embrace? Perhaps both in the experience of love, but the rose fades while love remains. For me roses are plants and love is an interpretation of certain behaviours of the human brain. Wonderful behaviours though. Sorry, that's a bit flat of me. I'm not a totally cold person. I actually rather enjoy symbolism. But you did lose me there.... Seriously? You haven't experienced love? Love is an experience. Do you experience it as "an interpretation of certain behaviours of the human brain"? You look at the sunset, breath in the air, feel the wind on your face and experience "a set of visual and sense data entering my brain and telling me this is nice". Okay, Commander Data. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SquareOne Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 Erm... Well, I was only being silly, I thought that was pretty obvious. Obviously love is important and yes I have experienced it, and experience it in the present. Hence "wonderful behaviours". It is all just a trick of the mind of course. But, that doesn't mean we can't enjoy it. "a set of visual and sense data entering my brain and telling me this is nice" Fairly sure I didn't say that?? *checks* Yep, didn't say that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skankboy Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 Nope - I think the idea can be a useful mental tool (as some have mentioned) but I don't personally believe they have any existence outside of the human mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vendredie Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 Nope - I think the idea can be a useful mental tool (as some have mentioned) but I don't personally believe they have any existence outside of the human mind. This. I don't believe in anything supernatural or paranormal, but I've had some of the experiences others have described. I think these experiences come about when our sub-conscious pick up some things when our conscious is too busy with what is 'right', even if it hurts us. The human mind is a very powerful thing, and science has not been able to provide a complete understanding of it yet. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skankboy Posted February 13, 2013 Share Posted February 13, 2013 Thanks Vendredie - and may I say how much I like your "avatar" avatar... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hoseki Posted February 13, 2013 Share Posted February 13, 2013 Oooh, yes I do! I wouldn't be here it wasn't for one. I was one of those kids that happened as a result of foolish accidents in the bedroom. My parents were looking to abort me and went to a family planning center. In someway, there was a lady who worked there who convinced them otherwise. However, when they went back to say thank you to her, she was nowhere to be found. No one had ever heard of her, seen her and she hadn't been a employee. Everyone in church believed it was an angel. But I'm thinking that it was a special guide of some sort. I often make silly theories that it could have been the me of the future who time traveled. Or a projection of myself into the past. I've had similar instances in my teenage life where I should have died, but something unexplained and completely unnatural shielded me. Who knows? Maybe our emotions and wills are powerful enough to project at times of distress. I really have no answer for it, so I just pretend for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denyoz Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 Oooh, yes I do! I wouldn't be here it wasn't for one. I was one of those kids that happened as a result of foolish accidents in the bedroom. My parents were looking to abort me and went to a family planning center. In someway, there was a lady who worked there who convinced them otherwise. However, when they went back to say thank you to her, she was nowhere to be found. No one had ever heard of her, seen her and she hadn't been a employee. Everyone in church believed it was an angel. But I'm thinking that it was a special guide of some sort. I often make silly theories that it could have been the me of the future who time traveled. Or a projection of myself into the past. I've had similar instances in my teenage life where I should have died, but something unexplained and completely unnatural shielded me. Who knows? Maybe our emotions and wills are powerful enough to project at times of distress. I really have no answer for it, so I just pretend for now. Wow, Hoseki, that is so cool. It reminds me of an instance where there was an old bag lady sitting on a bench in a park, who said something very unusual to my wife. As we walked away, my wife told me what the lady had said, so I turned around to see who that lady was but there was nobody there, no bags, nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebatman Posted February 14, 2013 Author Share Posted February 14, 2013 Oooh, yes I do! I wouldn't be here it wasn't for one. I was one of those kids that happened as a result of foolish accidents in the bedroom. My parents were looking to abort me and went to a family planning center. In someway, there was a lady who worked there who convinced them otherwise. However, when they went back to say thank you to her, she was nowhere to be found. No one had ever heard of her, seen her and she hadn't been a employee. Everyone in church believed it was an angel. But I'm thinking that it was a special guide of some sort. I often make silly theories that it could have been the me of the future who time traveled. Or a projection of myself into the past. I've had similar instances in my teenage life where I should have died, but something unexplained and completely unnatural shielded me. Who knows? Maybe our emotions and wills are powerful enough to project at times of distress. I really have no answer for it, so I just pretend for now. Strange but I like stories like this, it gives me a glimmer of hope that there might be something else to this world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will02 Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 I'm not nearly as open about this stuff as I used to be, but here's my $.02. I do not believe in gods but I do know there's something out there. Like others have said, it's a matter of experience, not belief. I've had paranormal experiences and it would be foolish to disregard that in my worldview. There are times where I can feel things around me, sort of like dense pockets or nodes of energy. I can't actually see them but I do know exactly where they are (it's kind of like radar). I can also determine intent since some of these things "feel" hostile while others don't. Some of them seem to be sentient while others act more like animals. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greylight Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 I would really love to believe in spirit guides, the supernatural. After a deconverted I held onto these beliefs for a while. But after a looked into this more, there's really not enough evidence to support any of it. The most I can say is that it's psychological phenomenon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThereIsNoGod Posted February 15, 2013 Share Posted February 15, 2013 You know I think the problem with most religions is that they expect you to basically become a schizophrenic. You have your reality where you do your job and take a realistic attitude to life, then you have your spiritual side where you assume the existence of gods, angels, demons, avatars and whatever else. I dunno if the whole point to this is, you work hard, come home tired and so rejuvinate by spending a couple of hours in a fantasy world, then you're ready to face another day. I think probably every religion should have a number one rule. "KEEP YOUR FEET ON THE GROUND AT ALL TIMES". I think for religion to be useful, the stories associated with each, need to be treated as poetry, not taken literally. Spending half your life in the real world and the other half in a prescribed fantasy world is not a good system in my view. The are MANY things in this world that give us the inspiration and rejuvination needed to live our lives. As for spirit guides, fine sometimes we feel like a spirit is guiding us. I don't mind people using those terms but the more loosely they are meant, the better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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