forum ~probably gonna have no replies but,,,,what are some of your opinions on life/ philosophies

Started December 11, 2019 by Deleted user

tune

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Recently, I watched a movie called Maurice (i recommend) which influenced a movie called Call Me by Your Name (highly recommend) and decided to read a little bit of the book that one of the characters interacts with; 'The Cosmic Fragments,' by Heraclitus and some other stuff. I only got through a little bit, and then read a few articles/contributions/comments on the book and similar others which triggered a near-hysterical existential crisis in me (im ok now.) I talked to my family and a friend– but they don't really seem to think much of it.
I read a little bit on Plato's 'The Republic,' and other short compositions, and I really wish that there were others who knew a little about this topic– or were curious or willing to listen/learn, i guess.
I really want to explore and discuss this further, because it's a very romanticizing topic that can be applied to literally anything. Also– different concepts of living (i find) can be very good for the creative process of writing dialogue/characters' beliefs. :) So if any of yall know abt this type of thing or are interested,,,hello :)

i is here to listen my dude

hii how are u doin –
so jus to give a bit of info,,,i was reading this one review for 'The Cosmic Fragments' and it really made a lot of sense– and it started this whole snowballing of overthinking; apparently its an excerpt (translated) from a film called Il Rosso e Il Blu, and it just—-

"There is something in art, as in fact in nature, that reassures us and something on the other hand that torments us, that disturbs us. A green meadow full of flowers or a clear blue sky without clouds calms us; the stillness of a lake or the violence of a storm disturbs us. The beauty of a greek statue – a Fidia or the Venus de Milo – calms us; Friedrich’s Der Mönch discomfits us, alone before the immensity of the sea. Two eternal feelings in eternal struggle: the search for order and the fascination with chaos; man abides within this struggle, we all live in it, order and disorder. We look for rules and regularities, forms, canons but we never grasp the real functioning of the world, the real form of all that is outside us and all that is within us and this for man is an eternal mystery… our incapacity to resolve this mystery terrorizes us, forces us to oscillate between the search for an impossible harmony and abandonment to chaos…"

It talks about how in life there is usually good and evil, beautiful and ugly/ black and white, which Plato (other philosopher) pretty much agreed with. It all gets messy around time, and how as society changes, those things are seen in a different way. Like things back then that were seen as good, are now bad n so forth. But how can we live in chaos, if chaos is truly just an intricate order? (chaos theory)

im good, and you -

it sounds a lot like something i've researched in the past.

i believe chaos is easier to live through then not,,, you know? aha

im ok :)

in theory, chaos would be easier to live in, but there are so many constructs in the world, believing that our path of life has been somewhat or completely predetermined, like 'God's plan' of just history repeating itself.
Heraclitus said "The meaning of the river flowing is not that all things are changing so that we cannot encounter them twice but that some things stay the same only by changing.” If we apply this to the study of 'multiple dimensions,' how would this change our view of morality?

This is kind of unrelated,,, but I didn't know where else to put it and it would kind of fit here, so… something I've been thinking about a lot lately is the concept of philosophical zombies. If you don't know what that is, the Wikipedia sums it up really well but the basic concept is the idea of a being- a human, indistinguishable from the rest of our species- that acts exactly the same as any other human in the world, but has a complete lack of consciousness or sentience- e.g. 'the lights are on but nobody's home'. Instead of thinking, understanding, or feeling the way we do, they live their lives just like us- but only through reacting and imitating us, not through making their own decisions. The idea really scares me for a number of reasons. Ever since I researched the concept, I've noticed something. I've always had problems connecting with other people. 99% of the people I meet I just don't ever seem to click with- to me, they don't even seem like real people, they seem more like 3-D cut-outs, caricatures, background characters. I can't see them as thinking or feeling like I do. It has nothing to do with how well I know them. Sometimes I can look at a stranger and immediately see them as 'real', and one of my worst moments came when one day I looked at my best friend of ten years and realized I couldn't see a light behind her eyes. I know I sound like a total lunatic, but sometimes it just… legitimately scares me that there's no way I can know if I'm the only person on the planet who is actually conscious… yeah, I'm probably gonna need some psychiatric help for this one.

No– I totally get what you mean!!! its like– you don't even know the person beyond their basic interests, even if youve been friends for a while, but then you talk to someone, like even just a simple conversation, not romantic or platonic, and you feel like you know them, even if you don't end up being friends– youre somehow connected, even if youre not on speaking terms. I feel like I'm carrying around a secret that I don't even know about when I think of them.
I think I'd call that dissociating; like your out of place, I guess. But I really get what you mean with the whole 'artificial' thing.

So what do you think @nikes ? And how old are you, if I may ask.

So what do you think @nikes ? And how old are you, if I may ask.

sorry, what do i think about what? and i'll just say im in my teens, if thats fine :)

i don't know dude, i feel the same way about that, but in reverse. instead of being the only one conscious, i feel like im dead, like just a thing moving through the time of the day, not even human. i wake up, go to school, eat, come back and sleep, like im emotionless, like ive been programmed to be that way. i watch other people and study them a lot and most of how i express my emotions refelcts how others would do it, the "socially acceptable" way. i don't know how to describe it, it's weird. everyone else seems to be so lively and authentic but im just…here. and there are times where i do feel something but i don't really know what that is because i never (or rarely do) feel that way. im guessing this is because of the whole alexithymia thing i have going on but i genuinely feel like i have no connections with anyone, no matter if they are my family or really close friends. i know this is going to sound really bad, but most of the things i say, i've learned from other people. i tell people what they want to hear, not how i would really respond, which would be complete apathy- indifference.

i don't know dude, i feel the same way about that, but in reverse. instead of being the only one conscious, i feel like im dead, like just a thing moving through the time of the day, not even human. i wake up, go to school, eat, come back and sleep, like im emotionless, like i don't have the right to think or act. i watch other people and act like them because that's how society wants us to act and it's acceptable. if i were to act any different i feel like something bad would happen, i'd get thrown into a box. i don't know how to describe it, it's weird. everyone else seems to be so lively and authentic but im just…here. and there are times where i do feel something but i don't really know what that is because i never (or rarely do) feel that way. im guessing this is because of the whole alexithymia thing i have going on but i genuinely feel like i have no connections with anyone, no matter if they are my family or really close friends. i'm not sure when this happened, or if i've always been this way but i just figured that it didn't really matter.

I think i can relate to what you're going through– and it does matter.
With my other reply, I mentioned how people can seem so disconnected- but in my position for that topic, its more of a personality thing and with interest in the world.
As for what you're feeling, I recently had a long talk with a family member about how i felt life was 'going too slow' for me, and it almost felt cyclical and never-ending. It still feels like its going too slow, and (without sounding unstable) its really hard for me to get through the day. I look around; and i see so much "bad" in my generation– or all the generations, I guess, because there are so many topics of the world, both good and bad, that people have no idea of. Of course, it's not really thier fault. But I feel like life, for me, is painful in a way, because I try so hard to experience the most out of life through literature, movies, nature, art, music, people, and just– living, (which is tough for me) and all these beautiful things in the world are going to forgotten or overlooked. These parts of our culture are 'keeping me afloat' but it's hard for me to talk about, because no one seems to really have an opinion on what they are experiencing.
I'm a person who wants to reference a lot of stuff during conversations, (something pretty common like.. a famous 80s band for example) but just– so many people haven't experienced it, or don't care about its role in history and developing our culture as the generations go by. Just– no one cares about the things that I feel really matter in life. I really do see how what i'm saying is narcissistic, and self-absorbed, but I haven't met anyone who's really wanting to experience life, beauty, and culture in a way that steps outside "whats trendy." That's not to say that everything else doesn't matter, its just that I'm seeing these views in the masses, and I wish people would be more connected: we're living in the most technologically advanced era, but were all so lonely: disconnected.

dude, we must be the same person because i feel that too. i have this thing where i really want to live and stop being this emotionless thing.
i want to step outside of what people think is normal and acceptable and just go postal. seeing the different cultures around the world is something i want to get to experience but i find that whenever im talking about these things i get shut down because no one's really interested. they just want to know what the next big thing is.
i feel like this whole thing is artificial and im tired of breathing it in, i want a change of pace.

i feel like we all do. i think my thing is more a depression thing more than anything else, though, that is how i view the world.
sometimes going through the same day over and over again makes me feel so desperate like i want to self destruct or run away and go somewhere else where i won't feel like this, but unfortunately, that has to be internalized. the thought that everyone has to do the same thing every day and they're okay with it drives me insane.

I know!!! truly,,,i want to live. Ive done the whole self-deprecating, angry, emo thing, and It really isn't for me. ive gone through so many aesthetics and music preferences, and using that really helped me– express myself, i guess. i have such an avid love for love and people and the romance of living, but i feel so alone in the world because i feel like no one can communicate anymore. Everything is "have you seen that tik tok" or "have you seen that one meme." (dont get me wrong i love memes)
no one wants to talk about whats actually happening in the world with pop culture, (even if they're not interested, theyre completely unaware) or literally anything from a different genre of art, in all it's forms. Its hard for me to show myself to people who claim they're willing to listen, but want nothing to do with what i care about.

yeah man, this whole thing has just turned into a huge mess. sometimes i wish i could go back in time (cliche, i know) and experience life like people did without all the technology. i feel like it was better that way, though most wouldn't agree with my opinion because they're way over the top addicted to their phones and computers and shows and whatnot. im not saying it's bad either, but it's also not healthy to be stuck to a screen for days straight at a time.

and dude, i really, really get that. people don't know what's really going on in the world anymore. my people (from el salvador) are still struggling with the guerrilla and the aftermath of all the destruction and dead bodies they've left behind, the corrupt government leaving people to die in poverty of starvation and a number of other things. in brazil, the inmates are so poorly kept that they kill each other, chop each other's head off without remorse and no one cares. little kids mining for mica in caves that are dangerous as fuck- so many have died and they do it because their families need the extra support, the mica that they put into makeup is worked for by these little kids starting at age seven and lower and we think nothing of it. and then there are the albino kids in Africa that are getting their fucking limbs chopped off because some fucking stupid shitty people think they have healing properties and other magical whatever the fuck effects just because their skin is white and they have little to no melanin in their bodies. i could go on but there's just so much shit to list.

sorry for the aggression there, i get really heated about topics like these cause no one pays attention to them

i totally get your anger in that. i feel the same with that– all the horrors of the world literally surround us, but so many of us choose to ignore it, even when we know its happening. people say the phrase 'world hunger' like its casual, and obviously in a lot of places (like where my life is now) poverty is not extreme, but when I tell people that I'm from Bali, (Island in Indonesia) they ask if its nice there, if the beaches are good for surfing, if i liked it better there. What they never ask, and never care when i tell them, is that almost everywhere you look, there are crowded roads, broken sidewalks, garbage being burned, pollution in the air almost all the time, an ocean i played in littered with garbage, animals being sold on the side of the road, and so, so many homeless families and children. But they don't care, really, because they've only seen it in textbooks and commercials and documentaries, almost like thats whats artificial.

So what do you think @nikes ? And how old are you, if I may ask.

sorry, what do i think about what? and i'll just say im in my teens, if thats fine :)

I meant about philosophy and the meaning of life. And it’s cool with your age.

well, i guess i'd say i'm grateful for it– and the meaning of life isn't just one answer, i think its more of a personal development that you experience, or discover at a certain point in your life. for some, it could be to fight for the future of the world, or to love and be loved, or to create something worth dying for, or to take risks and live freely. i don't think it has to be one 'purpose,' too, It could be a whirlpool or list of your ways of life, and that itself would be your purpose through life; to live as you'd like to. the meaning of our existence, however, could be different.
there are hundreds of theories as to why we were created; some 'scientific,' and some spiritual ideas. i believe its up to the individual to decide why they choose to or how they live life.
vivre est un acte egoiste; to live is a selfish act. survivre est une loi genetique; to survive is a genetic law.
i believe that I should survive to live. living, i mean, is to live your life to the fullest, for you, and for others. i will survive, because there is a life i have yet to live and moments i have yet to live.

Interesting. I definitely agree about living life to the fullest. That’s why I think morality exists. But I wouldn’t say it is up to the individual which means that there are subjective meanings of life = no true meaning.

yeah i get what you mean– but what i believe is that there is no fixed meaning. the idea of our origins and creation are up to you and what you believe, i think, and your purpose for living is too. but as for why we're all here, who knows? we, as a civilization, don't really know 'the meaning of life,' as in, why we were put on earth/created. its really intricate, and i believe 'the meaning of life' doesn't have to be one answer. (tho it could be)

I believe it is one answer. And that it is the same for all humanity, though is different in millions of minuscule ways. The objective of life in my opinion, is to live the life that is best for said human. The best life would not necessarily be the happiest, but the most spiritually fulfilling. But obviously I cannot be certain.

i think i could agree to that, more-or-less, but to lead a life of say…selfishness, or greed, could be the best for that person, and i guess you could call it spiritually fulfilling for them, if that's what they want to do with their life, then sure. if that person wanted to live a life of corruption and wrong, that would be their meaning of life. so i guess it makes sense to live life as it best suits you, but not everyone does so. not everyone can live their 'best life,' because of a lot of restrictions society applies, like (for example), if i wanted to live my life cherishing and loving someone of the same gender, in a place where that is not acceptable, would that (or my) overall meaning of life change? i would want to live my life to the fullest, but wouldnt.

Well I think wickedness is not very fulfilling. At least that’s my experience.

yeah, i would agree. but there are just…bad people out in the world, who think they're doing good, whether its for themselves or for humanity, i guess.

Point.

life is weird 🤷🏽‍♀️idk