complexity | The Short Version

But What Is Real? The Limits of Perception/Conception

March 4, 2008 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

Originally posted on 05-19-07: I ended yesterday's post mentioning the importance of distinguishing fantasy from reality, which brings up a really big question: What is reality? Which reminds me of the current installment … [Read more...]

Be Here Now; The Complexity of the Present Moment

March 4, 2008 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

Originally posted 05-10-07: One of the first books I ever read on meditation was Be Here Now, in the early 70's. Since then I've seen many references to staying in the present moment, paying attention, mindfulness, etc. but … [Read more...]

When I realized that the idea of god was a joke, I thought that was the end of the story. Later I found that Christianity had shaped my values, and while some were worth keeping, many had lost their foundation—the meaning of life, for example. Something similar happened when I realized that the idea of free will was a joke, and I’ve spent the decades since both those realizations discovering and editing what Julia Galef calls the “orphan beliefs” they left behind. It’s a tricky business, and this blog has been a chronicle of my efforts to puzzle it all out, including reviews of related books. I hope you find it helpful.