Where does this feeling or sense come from? "connect to something beyond myself"

[AgnosticBoy]

Pure hedonism

Or we can also call it Miley Cyrus-ism or even Kardashian-ism (after Miley Cyrus and Kardashian family). Sure it feels great in the moment, but it also leads to instability. The most obvious sign with those two is in how they have to keep bouncing around to different guys and girls when it comes to romantic relationships. As famous as they are (it's a shame that we'd even elevate them, imo), they should definitely not be seen as role models for stable relationships or a stable life for that matter.

I'm not a perfect saint myself but I can understand the need to balance one's life with something more than just pleasure, which is where purpose, spirituality/religious ideals come in.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

Hi Honest-ism
I have my own processes to integrate with The Mind [God] which I find very helpful...

At present I am watching/listening to this video.

I wish they would've limited each response to a specific topic. Would've made it easier to follow, but nonetheless, a lot of great ideas were offered. I think in some cases, the limitations of science is where religion/spirituality starts, like when it comes to consciousness, or questions regarding the ultimate nature of the Universe. Who or what is behind it all - the Matrix?!

 

[William]

I wish they would've limited each response to a specific topic. Would've made it easier to follow, but nonetheless, a lot of great ideas were offered. I think in some cases, the limitations of science is where religion/spirituality starts, like when it comes to consciousness, or questions regarding the ultimate nature of the Universe. Who or what is behind it all - the Matrix?!

I simply refer of 'it' as "The Cosmic Mind".

Engage with It.

[LINK]

 

[Geoffrey]

" I don't know if Christianity is true (it was a long time ago!), but by engaging with it as a possibility, I connect to my community and to something beyond myself." This is from a philosopher, Philip Goff's, bio page.

Where does this feeling of wanting something greater than yourself come from?

Do all humans have this feeling? Is it something that we are born with?

What does Christianity or any other religion has to say about this? Didn't Neo and Morpheus have this feeling in the Matrix movie?

The second poem in the Appendix of my book, "Life Stills" reads:

As the energy confined within the earth
Rises up to meet the lightning as it descends,

So the spirit of man, bound to the flesh,
Reaches out for
Reunion with God.

That's the "short answer." For the "long answer," you might want to visit my blog at:

Life Stills

Religion, Philosophy, Christianity, Catholic, Catholicism, Spirituality, Simplicity, Minimalism, Peace, Zen, Quiet, Meditation, Self

www.againlifestills.blogspot.com

 

[AgnosticBoy]

You can read the book (or download it) from my blog at:

Life Stills

Religion, Philosophy, Christianity, Catholic, Catholicism, Spirituality, Simplicity, Minimalism, Peace, Zen, Quiet, Meditation, Self

www.againlifestills.blogspot.com

or you can get an idea of what the book is about by reading the "Look Inside" blurb on the Amazon page at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0915RP4X3?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860

Moderator Comment

Hi Geoffrey. This part of your post goes against our advertising guidelines. Members can bring up their book and online site for the purposes of providing info. from it that applies to the discussion. You started out doing that and that's fine. BUT recommending that others check out the rest of your book goes beyond just citing relevant information so that's a no-no.

*Moderator comments are just friendly reminders.
Our Rules and Guidelines

 

[William]

" I don't know if Christianity is true (it was a long time ago!), but by engaging with it as a possibility, I connect to my community and to something beyond myself." This is from a philosopher, Philip Goff's, bio page.

Where does this feeling of wanting something greater than yourself come from?

Do all humans have this feeling? Is it something that we are born with?

What does Christianity or any other religion has to say about this? Didn't Neo and Morpheus have this feeling in the Matrix movie?

Where does this feeling of wanting something greater than yourself come from?

I think it mainly comes from ones 'sense of self' + 'the reality one is experiencing' which is itself, greater than ones sense of self.

Since the universe [ and even our particular locality within it ] appears to be 'without a sense of self' - humans long for a greater mind than they themselves occupy themselves with.

Thus religion is borne from this rather theistic motivation.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

Where does this feeling of wanting something greater than yourself come from?

I think it mainly comes from ones 'sense of self' + 'the reality one is experiencing' which is itself, greater than ones sense of self.

Since the universe [ and even our particular locality within it ] appears to be 'without a sense of self' - humans long for a greater mind than they themselves occupy themselves with.

Thus religion is borne from this rather theistic motivation.

I wish religionists could emphasize your point more than some of the other things that they get themselves into.

 

[William]

I wish religionists could emphasize your point more than some of the other things that they get themselves into.

They don't realize it, because they don't have an equal appreciation for their self as they do for the image of the greater thing than themselves. I suppose that appears to be a contradiction because, how can something be 'greater than ones self - while at the same time be equal with one's self?
I look at it differently - the 'self' is like a drop of water, where the greater thing is like a lake. Same 'stuff' but greater volume.

 

[Geoffrey]

Moderator Comment

Hi Geoffrey. This part of your post goes against our advertising guidelines. Members can bring up their book and online site for the purposes of providing info. from it that applies to the discussion. You started out doing that and that's fine. BUT recommending that others check out the rest of your book goes beyond just citing relevant information so that's a no-no.

*Moderator comments are just friendly reminders.

Moderator Comment

Hi Geoffrey. This part of your post goes against our advertising guidelines. Members can bring up their book and online site for the purposes of providing info. from it that applies to the discussion. You started out doing that and that's fine. BUT recommending that others check out the rest of your book goes beyond just citing relevant information so that's a no-no.

*Moderator comments are just friendly reminders.
Our Rules and Guidelines

Dear forum members and visitors ... I am sorry if it appears I have contravened the community advertising guidelines; my post was poorly worded. The poem I posted was the "short answer" to the moderator's post asking why it is that humans seem to want to reach beyond themselves, to be part of something larger than themselves. My comment that interested readers might "check out" the rest of my book might have been better phrased as an invitation for those interested in the "long answer" to visit my blog. My (apparently unclear) implication in the rest of the post was that my book may be read online in its entirety, or downloaded for free as a Word file, or purchased (at no profit for the author) in a more nicely bound format from Amazon. That I intended my post to be an invitation and not an advertisement is (I hope) readily apparent to visitors to my blog. Again, I am sorry for the misunderstanding. Finally, the poem quoted is the only mention of "God" in the entire book (I personally find the word carries too much "baggage"); the rest of the book speaks of "spirit" as that which the moderator and other members refer to as that something greater than themselves.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

If someone were to ask me if this feeling was subjective or objective, I'd have to tell them it's both. It's subjective or personal in the sense that I'm feeling it, but it's objective in that it impacts how I live. It has real world consequences.

A lot of Christians ultimately live life differently because they believe someone upstairs is watching their actions. He also has his set of rules he expects you to live by.

I think under your philosophy William, we can have that same reverence for life by realizing that we are more than just dust... and that we shouldn't limit ourselves to just a bodily perspective.