Cambio de Philosophy Introduccion: Try changing some fundamental philosophical beliefs...

by phil on Friday May 19, 2006 1:36 PM

So here we go, I'm going to attempt to change my positions on these philosophical debates: the existence of God, reality is objective, and purpose is not about personal happiness maximization, but humanity. Since philosphers haven't settled any of them, they're all up for grabs.

Some element of double-think is involved here. I must disclaim that at my core level, I'm undecided about all these questions. However, that core level is not relevant in practice. In our real, day-to-day living, we make decisions according to strategies and heuristics that are patterned after beliefs about the nature of the universe. (I'm not alone in this perspective: famous biologist Dawkins says he's an agnostic inside, but in practice an atheist).

In the next three posts I will pitch a reversal of beliefs to myself.

This almost seems like a desecration, a violation of some sort of code. But when you're born into a religious house, aren't your beliefs chosen for you? When you choose to be curious and read different sacred texts, haven't you chosen to be open-minded and thus open to changing your beliefs? So I'm asking myself to have an open-mind.

I could have just put it that way, but it's important to communicate a major theme here on philosophsitry, that of self-programming.

(There is an elephant-in-the-room: that this kind of practice implies I believe in a subjective reality or in agnosticism. This strikes at the heart of those debilitating meta-problems that gives me pure-obsession nightmares: how can you change the hand that changes! So for my own health, I'll ignore this meta-question.)