Prophetic Ponderings

[Ghost213]

What is the one question that bothers you most? You know, the one that keeps you up at night, wondering "why this" or "why that"? The questions that we cannot figure out answers to, Problems that seem solutionless. Everyone has something about life, or the universe, or religion that they don't understand. I just want to know what some of those questions are.

Don't put any stooped answers on here, I want serious Puzzlers. This is meant for the mind.

I will start with a question of my own:

Why do we exist? We obviously have a purpose, or we wouldn't be the sophisticated beings we are. Every other being on this planet is by far inferior in their ability to reason and be self-aware as well as extremely aware of our surroundings and the multiple ways to manipulate them. Is it possible that we were some kind of genetic experiment by an alien race. Were we created by a "God" of sorts, some higher power. And if so, what would they intend other than the obvious amusement of watching idiots do ignorant things. There has to be purpose to everything, so what is ours?

[sweet8D]

Maybe a question one should first ask oneself is not "Why do we exist?" but rather "Do we exist?"

I mean I can assure you that I do exist-that I am a concious being, that I am capable of thought and action. But how would you know that I exist? One can only know that they themself do exist. Beyond me I will never know whether or not everyone else is just a figment of my imagination-or am I a figment of theirs?

And if everyone does exist, how do I know that my perception is the same as yours? How do I know that what I see as a flower is what you see as a pencil, but it is still a flower to you...

I'm logging off before I go crosseyed. Peace out.

[frazz]

These are mostly ultimate answer 42 type questions. So I'll throw something else in.

Is this a waste of time? I mean, it's 9:30 right now and I could be writing an essay, reading a book or excercising(I have 0 strength). But instead I sit here and type in this forum. Are mmorpgs a waste of time? Should I use my tiem building stats and my character. Just switching zeros to ones and ones to zeros? I have a life, but I really could be doing something else then talking to people I don't really know.

[Ghost213]

All the world, in my opinion, is just a simple matter of perception. Yes, there are certian aspects considered to be true by most people, but at the same time, not true for all. Take for example, the death penalty. Some percieve it as equal punishment for one's crimes; on the filpside however, some people see that as wrong and taking another person's life will not solve everything. Here is another: You could look at a female, and have no desire to even get to know her; your buddy next to you, on the other hand, desires her greatly, just based on looks, and says he wants to go talk to that hot chick. Everything in the world is simply a few neurotransmitters travelling through grey matter, triggering some electrical impulses, creating your perception. People who are blind view the world differently (actually, pretty much not at all, if they are totally blind, but you get what I am saying) making their perception of everything different from someone with sight. I had a point behind all of this, and forgot what it was, so I am going to stop typing this post>.<

[sweet8D]

Is this a waste of time?

I'm going to answer your question with another question. What is time? Does it exist? What exists? If nothing exists than time has no meaning. If all that exists is what you percieve, then if you don't percieve time, time has no meaning. If existence doesn't change with perception, well, you're screwed. For the last time.

All the world, in my opinion, is just a simple matter of perception. Yes, there are certian aspects considered to be true by most ...

But what defines what is true? ... I think Frazz hit the nail on the head.
These are mostly ultimate answer 42 type questions.
If you like to ponder, read some Buddhist proverbs-or any proverbs for that matter. The ones with the greater meanings and make you think will keep you up at night.

[Ghost213]

Those are all good points Sweet, and I like the part about proverbs, being as I have intrest in them myself. But truth would have to be different for everyone, if truth itself is only derived from perception. Thus, there is no truth, only NER'ZUHL!!!

[sweet8D]

If there is no truth, and there is no spoon, then the spoon is logically the truth...

If a spoon falls in the forest and nobody is around...?
I think I need to get some sleep!

EDIT: Here is one of my favorite "Zen Proverbs"

Banishing a Ghost


The wife of a man became very sick. On her deathbed, she said to him, "I love you so much! I don't want to leave you, and I don't want you to betray me. Promise that you will not see any other women once I die, or I will come back to haunt you."

For several months after her death, the husband did avoid other women, but then he met someone and fell in love. On the night that they were engaged to be married, the ghost of his former wife appeared to him. She blamed him for not keeping the promise, and every night thereafter she returned to taunt him. The ghost would remind him of everything that transpired between him and his fiancee that day, even to the point of repeating, word for word, their conversations. It upset him so badly that he couldn't sleep at all.

Desperate, he sought the advice of a Zen master who lived near the village. "This is a very clever ghost," the master said upon hearing the man's story. "It is!" replied the man. "She remembers every detail of what I say and do. It knows everything!" The master smiled, "You should admire such a ghost, but I will tell you what to do the next time you see it."

That night the ghost returned. The man responded just as the master had advised. "You are such a wise ghost," the man said, "You know that I can hide nothing from you. If you can answer me one question, I will break off the engagement and remain single for the rest of my life." "Ask your question," the ghost replied. The man scooped up a handful of beans from a large bag on the floor, "Tell me exactly how many beans there are in my hand."

At that moment the ghost disappeared and never returned.

[Ghost213]

That can be taken metaphorically, as well. We are all haunted by ghosts of our creation, and sometimes they seem to know just when and where and how to torment us. The best way to remove such suffering is to simply question the ghost, wonder upon its existence and ultimately, find a way to rid yourself of it. My problem happens to be that I smoke cigarettes. I have done many other things and rid myself of them, but the pull of niccotine is quite a pain. I have resolved to quit, but at the same time, I want to go get the half a cigarette I broke out of the trash and smoke it. I have been smoking since I was Thirteen, and I am now five and a half months from eighteen, trying to avoid further problems.

[sweet8D]

Exactly-
Everyone must confront their own ghost. The widower was convinced that his wife's ghost was all knowing and all powerful, but by asking her a question which he himself didn't know, his ghost couldn't know it either... He had to "Reach into his inner strength" to use a cliche and only by facing his problem was he able to thwart it.
I am not a smoker but I am a sufferer of childhood obesity. My ghost is eating too much, and it's hard to face.
Good luck with facing your ghost, ghost!

[Ghost213]

Truly a hard thing to do, quitting smoking, but I have succeeded so far. But another cliche, out of the fire and into the frying pan. I have been at my mom's this weekend, and she smokes a bit, but now I go to where they smoke constantly, and freely hand me cigarettes. It shall be tough, but I hope to manage

[frazz]

I'm going to answer your question with another question. What is time? Does it exist? What exists? If nothing exists than time has no meaning. If all that exists is what you percieve, then if you don't percieve time, time has no meaning. If existence doesn't change with perception, well, you're screwed. For the last time.

let me answer your qeustion with a metaphor.
Time is like M&M's. You get 1000(or so) M&M's. Once you eat em, you get no more. So, you eat one, it tastes good. Most people chew the M&M's, giving a somewhat long lasting flavor. Some swallow them whole, totally missing the point of M&M's, which is to enjoy the taste. Others scarf down the candy at ridiculous rates, running out very quickly. Others slowly savor the candy, enjoying the M&M, savoring it's juicy chocolate juicy... whatever.
The point is, am I swallowing my M&M's whole by spending time with MMORPGs and forums? Am I chewing them, or am I just letting them melt in my mouth? Would I bed savoring them more if I were, say, out riding my bike and getting exercise, or doing school, or taking care of all my other responsibilities?
If you are allergic to chocolate, or don't like it, just replace M&M with another small food product of your choice.

[pixels]

the point of existance is merely to exist. to experience as much as you can. you're only the sum of your memories and experiences.

[Ghost213]

Remembering things is what forms our personalities. Without having experienced anything, we would not form opinions or perceptions of anything, and having not done so, we would be like robots, no ideals or emotions, just the ability to process information.

[Duddits]

How can you ever trully believe a person?

Maybe this isn't a blockbuster stooped answer, but I want know what other people think. My reply is that the only way we know is through blind faith, which contradicts what I say because that mean that you DON'T know. I only believe one person completly and honestly with telling me the truth, no matter how cold hard or brutal, my girlfriend (insert comment about teenage love here-). With love and trust come the blind faith, and only thne can you believe someone about something you don't know.

[Ragnarox]

The questions that keep me up late at night are the questions like how people discovered certain things (drugs) had an effect on the body or how people thought of eating eggs. Seriously, who was the first person to say,
"I'm going to eat the first thing that comes out of this animal's ass." or
"I'm gonna dry up this leaf, roll it up then stick it in my mouth and light it on fire."
The logical answers seem few and far between. I mean, I can't see how somebody can accidently smoke tobacco or sniff cocaine, in any way, shape or form. Just, an interesting concept to think about when bored.

[sweet8D]

Who first decided to to cataract surgury?

Doctor: I know! I'll rip off the first layer in this patients eye!

Nurse: ARE YOU F***ING INSANE!?!

Patient: I'm kind of with the nurse on this one, doc...

*Thunk*
*Thud*
*Gas*

Cheers! The first Cataract surgery!

[Yoda]

I'm not sure if the title is right, but it doesn't really matter anyway.

The question I ask myself is "why am I here?" If 2/3 of the world go to bed (metaphorically) hungry, then why am I suddenly in the priveleged 1/200th (or whatever) who have the luxury of having to do no work, going to school all the time, insulation from weather, a computer, the internet etc etc.... Do I have some sort of purpose by being here? Am I here for some sort of reason? This is partly coming from a Christian perspective.

I also have many, many other questions which I will probably ask God when I die if I remember to and get into heaven (which I am kind of worried about).

[GenocideAlive]

Why does nothing drive Men mad like a blank?

Edit: Any circumstance, thing, or opportunity in which something isn't defined.

[sweet8D]

Yoda man. We just connected on another level-unless that's creepy. Did I overstep my bounds? I'll shutup now... GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!

Anyway. I often ask myself the same questions. Why do I deserve to have a roof over my head, a good school, a computer, and food? What makes me different from the homeless people I don't give change to on my way to the bus? It's truly intriguing.

Genocide, you'll have to explain what a blank is... unless I don't want to know.

[Dark_Magneto]

The point is, am I swallowing my M&M's whole by spending time with MMORPGs and forums? Am I chewing them, or am I just letting them melt in my mouth?
A moment enjoyed is never wasted.

I have absolutely no regrets for any moments in my life that I have enjoyed.

That is not to say that you should forgo responsibilities and become a hedonist, but just that you shouldn't beat yourself up over things you enjoy simply because you could be doing other things. Cost/benefit analysis and all that. You might enjoy cutting class to play games, but later on down the line, the cost is not worth the benefit.

The idea is to set yourself up so you can experience the maximum amount of enjoyment. This varies form person to person as some people are content with much less than others. I find that the more minimalistic your enjoyment requirements are, the more enjoyment you'll get out of life. Those people that have to have the latest and greatest pop consumer items will find that their enjoyment is fleeting and short-lived. They haven't grasped the concept that happiness is a state of being, not a physical object. It's an internal mindset, not an external force.

[GenocideAlive]

Well, I banged my gf's sister, and while I enjoyed it, it's not one of my fondest memories looking back. It wasn't full on half-hour sex, but it was coitus. That kind of thing sinks to the bottom of a person, and just rots.

[frazz]

sweet8d and yoda. I have thought the same thing. Of all the places and familys I could have gone to, there is only one I could possibly like better. It's so nice I feel I should be starving like everyone else. It's wierd but I think down the line I'm gonna do something better than winning the SC championship or whatever dreams and aspirations I have now. I almost don't wnat to raise a family becuase I feel it will prevent what might be something greater happening. But if I fall in love then I can forget that.