The matrix from the perspective of Buddhism and Berger's theory
The matrix from the perspective of Buddhism and Berger's theory This essay analyzes the recent film The Matrix from the perspective of modern-day myth-making. After a brief plot summary of the film, I note the well-documented parallels to the Christian messianic narrative of Jesus. I then go on to highlight the often overlooked parallels to the Buddhist existential analysis of the human condition. In particular, I note a remarkable resonance between The Matrix and the fourth century (C.E.) philosophical school of Buddhism known as Yogacara. By highlighting the syncretic or combinative nature of the film's symbolic narrative, I submit The Matrix as a cinematic example of the dialectical process of myth-making by means of Peter Berger's theory of socio-cultural construction. Humans are mythologizing and, as Peter Berger would suggest, "world-building" creatures. We appropriate elements from our past and present to fashion epic narratives and myths for a variety of existential, sociological, and religious ends. Myths are not fixed narrative forms, however. Studies of traditionally oral cultures evidence considerable elasticity in the details of a particular myth. And history also demonstrates that myths often evolve as a result of cultural diffusion and contact. Myths are constantly adapted to new cultural contexts and worldly realities. While the invention of writing inspired
The Struggle to Explain and Discover Reality
3/4/05 The Struggle to Explain and Discover Reality Typically, spiritual experiences are marked by the word "transcendent" because the most significant feature regarding them is the fact that their quality is independent of and perhaps above the material universe. On the other hand, science may be a valuable method of collecting data from these experiences to determine certain physical properties that do exist, using a factual form of examination. Through this data, it can be made easier to understand certain aspects of these transcendental experiences without demeaning their true essence. However, where does the exact separation line belong? Through research, I have attempted to discover what science can do to make a positive impact on the understanding of spirituality without breaking through its boundaries of what it is capable of teaching. An article useful in my research was titled "Why God Won't Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of Belief," written by Andrew Newberg. This article discusses scientific tactics of explaining brain behavior, first leading the reader through the background of meditation observation through science and then differentiating between fact and spiritual experience that cannot be fully understood when using fact as its basis of interpretation. "Cybergrace: The Search for God in the Digital World" by Jennifer J. Cobb is introduced with the
How do you know you are not dreaming?
How do you know you are not dreaming? After the revelation Descartes experienced on November 10, 1619, he undertook his own intellectual rebirth. His first step was to throw out everything he thought he knew, refusing to believe in even the most basic premises before proving them to himself. Descartes felt it would be a waste of time to attack each idea individually; instead, he attacked what he considered the very foundation: the idea that sense perception conveys accurate information. He developed several arguments to illustrate this point. Descartes applied illusion argument, dreaming argument, and evil genius argument, culminating in the "method of doubt" to achieve his goals: Mind and body are two different substances, the complete separation of the mental world and the physical world. To prove anything, Descartes has to call everything into doubt. This idea of thinking in philosophy is called scepticism, the practice of critically examining one's own knowledge and perception to determine whether they are true. But sceptics also have to ask whether there is such a thing as true knowledge, in other words, whether it is possible to know anything for certain. Descartes was not the first person to employ scepticism. Descartes hopes to come to one unquestionable truth on which he can build his philosophy. The truth that he eventually comes to is often called the "cogito
Ever since the beginning of human existence, humans have lived as individuals, solely concerned about their own individual self interests.
Ever since the beginning of human existence, humans have lived as individuals, solely concerned about their own individual self interests. However, as time passed by, and a noticeable evolution in human nature and thought could be seen, we could see that man discovered that it was much easier and safer to live in communities rather than on his own. And that idea generated a transformation in human thought, from focusing on his self interest to focusing on the general public interest. This theory of ignoring individual self interests in order to subject oneself to the general will, in search of security and well-being, was later seen and emphasized in the work of Jean Jacques Rousseau, a European philosopher that lived in the 1800's, whose main argument revolved around the idea that people are better off subjecting to the general will even if they have particular interests (Ebenstein Pg.459-461). However, when communities became larger and people's relationships with one another become more intense and sophisticated, it was extremely necessary for them to find a way to organize both their lives and thoughts. At this point in history, a primitive concept of government emerged as a suitable solution; a person who is respected and elected by all members in the community, and who would also be responsible to judge and settle disputes that occurred between people under his
The Eighth Century Prophets
The Eighth Century Prophets Amos Amos, whose name means "load or burden," lived in Tekoa, a town about five miles southeast of Bethlehem. His character was harsh and he was not known for his sympathy and warmth but rather for his sense of justice and right. His occupation was that of a herdsman of sheep as well as taking care of sycamore (wild fig) trees. He was not of the priestly nor prophetic line but was called to be a prophet of Israel while engaged in his humble occupation. (Pfeiffer & Harrison) His claim that the Lord called him directly puts him in line with all the prophets who experienced a direct revelation from God. (Pfeiffer & Harrison) It is generally believed that Amos, a minor prophet, prophesied about 760 BC. During this time period the king of Israel (the northern kingdom) was Jeroboam II and the king of Judah (the southern kingdom) was Ahaziah. The period of Amos was a time of political security for Israel, which was reflected in the pride and carelessness of the ruling classes. Although Amos was a native of Judah, he prophesied in the Northern Kingdom. His preaching aroused such antagonism, however, that he returned to Judah, where he committed his message to writing. (Pfeiffer & Harrison) The message of Amos, for the most part, is "a cry for justice." The prophesies of the Book of Amos are of almost unrelieved gloom. He can clearly see
'Utilitarianism is the best approach to
'Utilitarianism is the best approach to environmental issues.' Discuss There are two main types of utilitarian; rule and act. Rule utilitarian's roughly follow a general rule which incorporates their utilitarian principles. This enables them to establish social order and justice which if followed universally would lead to the greatest happiness for the greatest number. However, act utilitarian's focus on the consequences of an action to determine whether it is good or not. They believe in the greatest pleasure for the greatest number. They often use the 'hedonic calculus' to measure the amount of pleasure against the amount of pain to determine whether an action is good or bad. With regard to the issue of pollution and carbon emissions rule utilitarian's would apply the 'greatest happiness for the greatest number' principle which can be interpreted to mean that pollution isn't necessarily a bad thing because it allows businesses, economies and developing countries to expand which they cannot do without producing high levels of carbon emissions. Allowing economies to expand and countries to develop will make the inhabitants happy and could also produce positive effects for the whole world; e.g producing cheaper raw materials so production of a good with high demand can be increased. This would make people all over the world happy. However, future generations would be left
Are any of descartes' arguments for the existence of god persuasive?
ARE ANY OF DESCARTES' ARGUMENTS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD PERSUASIVE? Having established the Cogito as the 'first principle' of Descartes' new and certain philosophy, he is left with the monumental task of reconstructing the system of beliefs that he so mercilessly destroyed in the First Meditation. But rather than launch directly into an attempt to build on this claimed 'firm foundation' of the cogito, he takes what Cottingham describes as the 'curiously indirect route' of seeking first to prove the existence of God. Descartes' motivation behind establishing God's existence before considering the most basic of scientific or natural existences is, he argues, the natural step from the first principles to the establishment of scientific and natural knowledge that cannot be doubted. To construct this new and certain knowledge directly from the basis of the cogito would be near impossible, as at every stage of consideration one would be plagued by obsessive doubts over the truth of our perceptions. If God's existence can be proved, then one may rely on 'clear and distinct perceptions' based solely upon the 'fundamental innate truths which God has implanted in us', and thus a certain and permanent structure of knowledge may be constructed. In the Meditations Descartes offers two arguments for the existence of God: the 'trademark argument' and the 'ontological argument'. It is the
The State and Conditions of Filipino Philosophy.
THE STATE AND CONDITIONS OF FILIPINO PHILOSOPHY So there I was ... polluting the word of God with my own profane language. But, good heavens, if my poor words could not be distinguished from the Revelation by God's own Messenger, then what did that mean? What did that say about the quality of divine poetry? - Salman Rusdie Prologue In the previous student philosophy congress held last year at the University of Santo Tomas, the proponents presented a research paper that made an analysis on the state and conditions of Filipino philosophy as manifested in the undergraduate thesis works in four academic institutions, namely, San Beda College, the University of Santo Tomas, the University of the Philippines, and the De La Salle University. Through the use of statistical data and tabular illustrations, it was observed that there is an emerging trend within these academic institutions that focuses on, and thus contributes to, the arts and literature of the Filipino people- in other words, Filipino culture. Furthermore, these studies reflected the ideological leanings of each institution as readily seen in the titles of each thesis work. A thorough discussion of that paper need not be presented here; suffice to say, it was generally viewed that while Filipino philosophy remained underdeveloped, the initial findings of that paper suggest a promising field for future studies.
What, in your view, is "freedom"? Do you think that an agreement can be reached on its meaning?
Name: Barbara Zieciak Student Number: 204506349 Course: Political Science 1B Tutor: Professor De Kant Date: Friday 17 September 2004 4. What, in your view, is "freedom"? Do you think that an agreement can be reached on its meaning? Justify your answer. Freedom means different things to different people and it is a concept that has been debated by great thinkers, politicians and writers throughout history. It is hard to pinpoint an exact value of the word "freedom" simply because the concept relies ultimately on your stance and outlook. To me, freedom is a utopian ideal of a perfect state of being where one is free from coercion and restraint and everyone can do as they please so long as they do not harm others. It is the free will to set one's own boundaries and not having to compromise one's moral grounds, ethics and beliefs. The utopian freedom is being free of obligations and responsibilities that are not a consequence of one's own choice. I would like to think that freedom means the ability to think for one's self even if this is different from what is considered to be the status quo and to express the ideas. In one of Cat Stevens' songs, the lyrics are ended with, "Say what you mean, mean what you're thinking, think anything." Allowing people the freedom to think is a scary proposition but they must be given that freedom. We must remember that we can make both
"Skeptical scrutiny is the means in both science and religion, by which deep thoughts can be winnowed from nonsense" Carl Sagan
"Skeptical scrutiny is the means in both science and religion, by which deep thoughts can be winnowed from nonsense" Carl Sagan Science and religion are two of a kind in which you look at everything as if it were true until you could verify it. Science is the field of study in which find out knowledge involves systematized observation, experiment and induction. Scientists usually follow the scientific method to find out whether their hypothesis is true or not. The scientific method shows us that scientists have just a hypothesis to believe and the actual fact of the hypothesis is unknown. I believe that science is a subject in which belief and faith plays a very important role in the first few stages of the scientific method. However in religion belief and faith also play a very important role because religion is a branch of life, which cannot survive without the two. Here we can see the similarity between science and religion and how the to have to be proven until every on can say its true. There are many controversial topics which science and religion cannot explain. One of these sorts of topics is the argument on the existence of god. People like Descartes said that if you could think of god the there might be a god to think of. Even people like Descartes could prove the existence of god with the help of science. Science built on hypothesis (something not true until
