Love what we are talking about together. Thanks. My issue is, the language needed to discuss in depth these concepts often leaves most people behind. This is kinda high minded egghead shit we are discussing here. Who amongst us can bring this into language an eight year old could understand. That’s when Sunday School lessons probably had…
Love what we are talking about together. Thanks. My issue is, the language needed to discuss in depth these concepts often leaves most people behind. This is kinda high minded egghead shit we are discussing here. Who amongst us can bring this into language an eight year old could understand. That’s when Sunday School lessons probably had there biggest impact on me. What is a simple. ‘A ha’ definition of monistic idealism for example. Who has lovely little fables explaining the way. This is what is needed to expand our reach
I asked Claude to rewrite the essay for a 16 year old and got this... would love to know what you think...
"What Is Reality Made Of?
Imagine you're building a house. You'd never start with the roof or windows - you'd begin with the foundation. The same goes for understanding our world and fixing its problems. We need to start with the most basic question: What is reality made of?
This question isn't just for philosophers sitting in ivory towers. Your answer to this shapes everything else: how you think about climate change, artificial intelligence, social justice, even what happens when we die. Let's break down the main ways people think about this:
The "It's All Physical Stuff" View
Most scientists and many modern people believe everything is made of physical matter - atoms, energy, and the forces between them. In this view, your consciousness (your thoughts, feelings, and sense of self) is just the result of brain chemistry. This way of thinking helped create our modern world - smartphones, vaccines, space travel. But it also has a dark side.
If everything is just meaningless physical stuff, why care about the long-term future of Earth? If death means total lights out forever, why not just focus on extending your own life through technology, even if it harms others? This thinking helped create our current crisis: amazing technological progress, but also environmental destruction and social alienation.
The Religious View
Some people take religious texts literally. For example, some Christians believe God made the world in six days and that the end times are coming soon. If you believe this, why worry about climate change or pollution? Some mix this with modern science in confusing ways - like tech billionaires who talk about both artificial intelligence and biblical prophecies.
A New (Old) Way of Thinking: Consciousness as Foundation
Here's where things get interesting. Recent discoveries in physics suggest something mind-bending: the universe might not have a definite reality until it's observed by consciousness. In 2022, scientists won the Nobel Prize for proving that the universe isn't "locally real" - meaning things don't have definite properties until they're measured or observed.
This leads to a view called "monistic idealism" - the idea that consciousness is the fundamental reality, and physical stuff comes from consciousness, not the other way around. Think about your dreams - in them, your mind creates entire worlds that feel completely real. What if our waking reality works similarly, but on a much bigger scale?
This isn't just some new age idea - it aligns with both cutting-edge physics and ancient wisdom traditions. It also solves some big problems in science, like the "hard problem of consciousness" (how does physical brain matter create subjective experience?).
Why This Matters For Your Future
If consciousness is fundamental, and we're all connected through it, this changes everything:
1. Environment: We'd see damaging nature as literally damaging ourselves, because we're all expressions of the same underlying consciousness.
2. Technology: Instead of racing to create artificial general intelligence or upload our brains to computers (which comes from the fear of death in the physical-only view), we might use technology more wisely, focusing on collective wellbeing.
3. Society: We might move away from extreme individualism and competition toward cooperation and mutual care. After all, if we're all connected at the deepest level, helping others is helping ourselves.
4. Personal Growth: Instead of seeing consciousness as just brain activity that ends at death, we might take seriously the possibility that some aspect of us continues. This could make us think more carefully about our actions and their long-term consequences.
Evidence and Implications
There's actually interesting scientific research about consciousness continuing after death. Dr. Ian Stevenson studied thousands of cases of young children who remembered details from past lives that could be verified. Physicist Amit Goswami has proposed ways this could work through quantum mechanics.
The Big Picture
Our current global problems - climate crisis, social division, mental health issues - might stem partly from our materialist worldview that sees everything as separate, meaningless physical stuff. If we shift to understanding reality as fundamentally conscious and interconnected, we might:
* Care more about long-term consequences
* Use technology more wisely
* Focus less on acquiring stuff and more on inner growth
* Work together better to solve global problems
* Take better care of nature and each other
Real Change Starts with Real Understanding
You can't solve problems without understanding their root causes. Many of our current attempts to fix global issues fail because they don't address our fundamental way of seeing reality. By understanding that consciousness might be primary and we're all connected through it, we might find better solutions to our biggest challenges.
This isn't just philosophy - it's about the future you'll inherit and help create. How we think about the nature of reality will shape how we handle artificial intelligence, climate change, social justice, and every other major challenge facing your generation."
I actually got new insights from reading the sixteen year old version. Thanks. Can it do an eight year old. When I was teaching myself marketing to further promote ecostore on our journey, I was always encouraged to use the simplest language I could manage. Less is more , is integral to my journey. E.g. I’m sorry for writing such a long letter, I didn’t have enough time for a short one . Mark Twain
Love what we are talking about together. Thanks. My issue is, the language needed to discuss in depth these concepts often leaves most people behind. This is kinda high minded egghead shit we are discussing here. Who amongst us can bring this into language an eight year old could understand. That’s when Sunday School lessons probably had there biggest impact on me. What is a simple. ‘A ha’ definition of monistic idealism for example. Who has lovely little fables explaining the way. This is what is needed to expand our reach
I asked Claude to rewrite the essay for a 16 year old and got this... would love to know what you think...
"What Is Reality Made Of?
Imagine you're building a house. You'd never start with the roof or windows - you'd begin with the foundation. The same goes for understanding our world and fixing its problems. We need to start with the most basic question: What is reality made of?
This question isn't just for philosophers sitting in ivory towers. Your answer to this shapes everything else: how you think about climate change, artificial intelligence, social justice, even what happens when we die. Let's break down the main ways people think about this:
The "It's All Physical Stuff" View
Most scientists and many modern people believe everything is made of physical matter - atoms, energy, and the forces between them. In this view, your consciousness (your thoughts, feelings, and sense of self) is just the result of brain chemistry. This way of thinking helped create our modern world - smartphones, vaccines, space travel. But it also has a dark side.
If everything is just meaningless physical stuff, why care about the long-term future of Earth? If death means total lights out forever, why not just focus on extending your own life through technology, even if it harms others? This thinking helped create our current crisis: amazing technological progress, but also environmental destruction and social alienation.
The Religious View
Some people take religious texts literally. For example, some Christians believe God made the world in six days and that the end times are coming soon. If you believe this, why worry about climate change or pollution? Some mix this with modern science in confusing ways - like tech billionaires who talk about both artificial intelligence and biblical prophecies.
A New (Old) Way of Thinking: Consciousness as Foundation
Here's where things get interesting. Recent discoveries in physics suggest something mind-bending: the universe might not have a definite reality until it's observed by consciousness. In 2022, scientists won the Nobel Prize for proving that the universe isn't "locally real" - meaning things don't have definite properties until they're measured or observed.
This leads to a view called "monistic idealism" - the idea that consciousness is the fundamental reality, and physical stuff comes from consciousness, not the other way around. Think about your dreams - in them, your mind creates entire worlds that feel completely real. What if our waking reality works similarly, but on a much bigger scale?
This isn't just some new age idea - it aligns with both cutting-edge physics and ancient wisdom traditions. It also solves some big problems in science, like the "hard problem of consciousness" (how does physical brain matter create subjective experience?).
Why This Matters For Your Future
If consciousness is fundamental, and we're all connected through it, this changes everything:
1. Environment: We'd see damaging nature as literally damaging ourselves, because we're all expressions of the same underlying consciousness.
2. Technology: Instead of racing to create artificial general intelligence or upload our brains to computers (which comes from the fear of death in the physical-only view), we might use technology more wisely, focusing on collective wellbeing.
3. Society: We might move away from extreme individualism and competition toward cooperation and mutual care. After all, if we're all connected at the deepest level, helping others is helping ourselves.
4. Personal Growth: Instead of seeing consciousness as just brain activity that ends at death, we might take seriously the possibility that some aspect of us continues. This could make us think more carefully about our actions and their long-term consequences.
Evidence and Implications
There's actually interesting scientific research about consciousness continuing after death. Dr. Ian Stevenson studied thousands of cases of young children who remembered details from past lives that could be verified. Physicist Amit Goswami has proposed ways this could work through quantum mechanics.
The Big Picture
Our current global problems - climate crisis, social division, mental health issues - might stem partly from our materialist worldview that sees everything as separate, meaningless physical stuff. If we shift to understanding reality as fundamentally conscious and interconnected, we might:
* Care more about long-term consequences
* Use technology more wisely
* Focus less on acquiring stuff and more on inner growth
* Work together better to solve global problems
* Take better care of nature and each other
Real Change Starts with Real Understanding
You can't solve problems without understanding their root causes. Many of our current attempts to fix global issues fail because they don't address our fundamental way of seeing reality. By understanding that consciousness might be primary and we're all connected through it, we might find better solutions to our biggest challenges.
This isn't just philosophy - it's about the future you'll inherit and help create. How we think about the nature of reality will shape how we handle artificial intelligence, climate change, social justice, and every other major challenge facing your generation."
I actually got new insights from reading the sixteen year old version. Thanks. Can it do an eight year old. When I was teaching myself marketing to further promote ecostore on our journey, I was always encouraged to use the simplest language I could manage. Less is more , is integral to my journey. E.g. I’m sorry for writing such a long letter, I didn’t have enough time for a short one . Mark Twain
I totally agree and you have given me an idea.
Just sent it to many friends. It’s saying…..media no longer available??
such a great question and well put.