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SeanD

Pinker and Krauss Dogmatic Blindspots

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Here are two quotes from some of the most decorated scientists/academics on the planet. Sam Harris asks both of them the following question:

Sam Harris: What belief do you have, what are you most certain of, such that, if the data contradicted [the belief] you would have to say that the data are in error?

The responses:

Steven Pinker: Probably that the mind is completely determined by the physiological activity of the brain. So if there were apparent demonstrations of pre-cognition, of telepathy, of mind-over-mater, the soul surviving the death of the brain, I would look at the data twice.

Lawrence Krause: My own existence. Because I have a personal reason to want to exist… I guess I have to say that my whole being is based on the fact that there is an objective reality. Everything I do in my life and my work is based on that. So the assumption that there is no objective reality is something that would be the hardest for me to give up. 

—————————————————

I think one of the things that Leo’s videos have helped me with is to dismantle the authority that individuals such as these have because of the universities that they work for and/or attended. To see the massive blind spots that these two gentlemen have was kind of put nails in the coffin for me, so I thought I would share this with everyone. 

P.S. I found these on his podcast Waking Up. The Lawrence Krause episode is #115, and he answers the question at around minute 52. I didn’t record the minute of the Pinker answer, but it’s at the end of the talk (which is on YouTube).

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And for Sam Harris, the answer to that question would be acknowledging that God is a thing, and atheism is wrong.


You are God. You are Truth. You are Love. You are Infinity.

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@Leo Gura

I personally don’t like using the word god, it has too many associations for most people. 

Thesism and atheism are two sides of the same coin, they assume ultimate reality is based on a belief.

Sam Harris claims to have experienced the illusion of self, but he still seems to be stuck at the materialistic/intellectual view of the world. But I think he understands non–duality on more than an intellectual level, if you read his book on the subject.

You should listen to his recent podcast with michael pollan on psychedelics. Really interesting!

 

Edited by dharm4

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@Leo Gura

Lol, Harris actually did answer his own question, and his response was better than the others. He said “Consciousness is here, and something seems to be happening”. I’m not sure what data he could possibly find to contradict that, but the answer is better than the other two. 

As far as what you think his answer would be, I’ve seen people press him with more mystical definitions of God (God is Consciousness, the Universe, etc.), and from what I’ve heard, he doesn’t disagree with them, but weasels out of it by telling the interlocutor that they shouldn’t use the word ‘God’, because 99% of individuals who use that word think they have a personal relationship with someone who gave them a holy book of rules to follow. So he tells them that their use of the label ‘God’ is disingenuous. 

It also seems to me like he is beyond his previous positions, but his audience is not. I heard him tell one interlocutor who was pressing him on his negativity toward Islam that he loves Rumi and the call to prayer, but he doesn’t think his audience would be interested in hearing him talk about the things he likes about these religious. I think he occasionally trots out the god bashing statements because they are apart of his ‘greatest hits’, so to speak. 

Anyway, I posted that not because of Harris but because of the other two, who are far more decorated than him but seem so stuck. They seem to me to be members of a priestly class who are awarded massive respect and recognition by their society, but are committing an error that is just as fundamental as the priestly class that attacked Galileo for claiming that the earth went around the sun.

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10 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

And for Sam Harris, the answer to that question would be acknowledging that God is a thing, and atheism is wrong.

Sam Harris isn't an atheist, he just sometimes accept having that label for practical reasons and the associations the word «god» has. It's just a word. God would be the source of creation, but God has traditionally in culture for most people meant a personal figure in the sky, and in that sense he is an atheist, and so is you I guess...

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3 hours ago, SeanD said:

So he tells them that their use of the label ‘God’ is disingenuous. 

That's because he hasn't actually become conscious of what God is.

Whatever awakening he has had, it wasn't deep enough.

There are many degrees of realization. And he still has a long way to go.

His rationalist paradigm is keeping him from full surrendering to God.

Realizing no-self is not the same thing as realizing God. God sits deeper.


You are God. You are Truth. You are Love. You are Infinity.

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19 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

Realizing no-self is not the same thing as realizing God. God sits deeper

No Self means God is only left. There is no deeper realisation. If there is further to go, then your living experience is not of Permanent No Self. There is a difference between getting a glimpse of No Self and completely transcending the ego. This includes realising limitless nature of consciousness.


There's Only One Truth!

My book on Enlightenment and Non Duality

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BHWCP7H

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Sam Harris certainly hasn't "completely transcended the ego".


You are God. You are Truth. You are Love. You are Infinity.

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