What is reality

Every thoughtful person has a number of favourite quotations that have 'stuck in their mind' for one reason of another. Some are humorous, some insightful, some just encapsulate personal beliefs in a short, pithy sentence.

My favourite quotations are what I call 'philosophically incisive': they state a philosophical tenet or problem by 'cutting through' to the heart of the matter. One of my favourites comes from a book called 'The Centre of the Cyclone' by John C. Lily:

https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_C._Lilly

Here it is:

"In the province of the mind, whatever one believes to be true either is true, or becomes true within limits to be determined both experimentally and experientially. Those limits are further beliefs to be transcended."

Something of a mouthful, but once you understand just how much insight is concisely expressed, you'll find it can't be shortened. Before analyzing it, an important point is that it can be taken to apply to two different scenarios:

1. It could be a statement of 'magical creation': "Whatever one believes to be true ... BECOMES true ... experimentally." In other words, Mind is the Creator of Reality - REAL PHYSICAL reality. Personally, I believe that this is true of what I'll call 'Community Mind'. For example, if EVERYONE in the WHOLE WORLD one day decided to make a new island rise up out of the sea, and focused their combined power of belief all at once on a single place, and held it there for ... an hour? ... a day? ... a week? they actually make it happen.

Ancient legend tells of strange, fearsome beings that have come to Earth in ages past, and were able to do this: to 'shape the Earth' and create mountains, rivers, islands, anything they wanted.

2. It could be a statement of 'personal perception': "Whatever one believes to be true ... BECOMES true ... experientially." In other words, one's perception of reality is 'coloured' by one's own mind. We may take on the belief that we have the power to 'walk through walls'. If we decide to test it, and only 'walk through a wall' where a doorway happens to be, we become convinced that it is true. But if we try to walk through and there's no doorway ... OUCH!

Here lies an important distinction: that between 'subjective reality' - that which we experience within ourselves - and 'objective reality' - that which is outside of us and is therefore 'real reality' or 'consensus reality' which everyone else agrees is real.

Enough for the moment. If any else is interested, we can turn to analyzing other aspects of this quotation.

Hi Colin ! i'm not especially good on philosophical matters but i still can attempt to give you my humble understanding of your opening post.

Colin#1 : " "In the province of the mind, whatever one believes to be true either is true, or becomes true within limits to be determined both experimentally and experientially. Those limits are further beliefs to be transcended." "

How i understand what Lily is saying is remembering us that merely 10% of the mind' activity is well understood by physical sciences ( probably more by philosophy ) and that the remaining understanding shall be researched by empirical analysis & trials and errors process.

" 1. It could be a statement of 'magical creation': "Whatever one believes to be true ... BECOMES true ... experimentally." In other words, Mind is the Creator of Reality - REAL PHYSICAL reality. Personally, I believe that this is true of what I'll call 'Community Mind'. For example, if EVERYONE in the WHOLE WORLD one day decided to make a new island rise up out of the sea, and focused their combined power of belief all at once on a single place, and held it there for ... an hour? ... a day? ... a week? they actually make it happen. "

i disagree with the logics of "mind over the matter" as it appears to me to be just wishfull thinking.

"2. It could be a statement of 'personal perception': "Whatever one believes to be true ... BECOMES true ... experientially." In other words, one's perception of reality is 'coloured' by one's own mind. We may take on the belief that we have the power to 'walk through walls'. If we decide to test it, and only 'walk through a wall' where a doorway happens to be, we become convinced that it is true. But if we try to walk through and there's no doorway ... OUCH!"

Again i don't see how the belief in wishfull thinking could help the empirical methods of hard research needed to understand better the functionning of the mind. I even think such understanding is for reasons outside of my grasp, out of reach for physical science.

But i agree with Lily that it lies somewhere in vast research fields such as spirituality, psychology and philosophy....

> the remaining understanding shall be researched by empirical analysis & trials and errors process.

It's essential to understand that 'mind' and the brain are two different things. The brain is a physical organ in the Physical Realm that communicates with the mind, which is an energy structure in the Psychic Realm. So the brain is a psychophysical communication device.

> i disagree with the logics of "mind over the matter" as it appears to me to be just wishfull thinking.

And so it is for individuals. However, if several minds are 'tuned together' they become more powerful. There's a fun party trick I can explain to you if you have four or five friends willing to try it.

If you get a whole community to 'tune their minds' the results are even more impressive. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi did some very interesting experiments with this. He's a bit of a fake, but his experiments were interesting.

And if you get a group of highly evolved beings who have been using their minds 'in tune' for centuries, they can do amazing things. That's how their spacecraft are constructed, powered and navigated.

We're just above the bottom of the evolutionary ladder. We've learned the basic uses of Mind - reasoning, deduction, analysis - but have yet to venture into exploring its psychophysical aspects. This is the next step upon which we're now embarking. I've been researching it for years.

> out of reach for physical science.

Yep. We need a better Physical Theory. Here's a link to an article on one of my websites discussing this:

http://vitency.com/npt

> But i agree with Lily that it lies somewhere in vast research fields such as spirituality, psychology and philosophy....

Quite right! And the fact that you've understood this means that you're ready to 'go forward' in your understanding and personal evolution, whereas all those scientists who deny such things are stuck in Materialism, a philosophical and practical dead end. It's those sorts of scientists who have created the fake 'COVID pandemic' because they believe that the human organism is purely physical, when in fact it's a physical/psychic/spiritual complex.

Colin#3 : " Yep. We need a better Physical Theory. Here's a link to an article on one of my websites discussing this:

http://vitency.com/npt "

Thanks for the link mate : im reading the book.

" It's those sorts of scientists who have created the fake 'COVID pandemic' because they believe that the human organism is purely physical, when in fact it's a physical/psychic/spiritual complex. "

We probably should create a thread to discuss the COVID in all extents.

"And so it is for individuals. However, if several minds are 'tuned together' they become more powerful. There's a fun party trick I can explain to you if you have four or five friends willing to try it.

If you get a whole community to 'tune their minds' the results are even more impressive. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi did some very interesting experiments with this. He's a bit of a fake, but his experiments were interesting.

And if you get a group of highly evolved beings who have been using their minds 'in tune' for centuries, they can do amazing things. That's how their spacecraft are constructed, powered and navigated.

We're just above the bottom of the evolutionary ladder. We've learned the basic uses of Mind - reasoning, deduction, analysis - but have yet to venture into exploring its psychophysical aspects. This is the next step upon which we're now embarking. I've been researching it for years."

Hummm ! it's true that the mind is both related to the brain and the spirit : so i concurr that exploring its psychophysical aspects looks like a promising ride.

Do you think it is what SR called " the formation of Gods " ?! this is the top chapter that tantalized me in the WIH book and as i'm quite a solitary for this lifetime moment, i've been feeling that i'll just have to keep my spirit in good shape if this eventuality arises on Earth's physical plane.

Something like we'll just find ourselves naturally ABLE TO act as a Godess or a God if one ever form because there will be allmost no one else exept us ( tolerant & caring people ) !

Do you think there's anything to do on purpose or trainings to act as a ONE ?

> We probably should create a thread to discuss the COVID in all extents.

Good idea!

> Do you think it is what SR called " the formation of Gods " ?!

This is a fascinating topic and a VERY large one. Brief answer - Yes! The first problem is that the English word 'god' covers not one, but many different and diverse things. I use Sanskrit terms for them. I can't speak or write Sanskrit - it's a very ancient language - but I have several dozen Sanskrit words that I use because there are no English equivalents. This needs at least a thread on it's own.

> we'll just find ourselves naturally ABLE

At this stage of our evolution NOT AT ALL "naturally". We have to struggle and try and fail, and try and fail, and try and fail again before we start to get it right, and even then we'll make many mistakes, so you need to be VERY careful otherwise you end up hurting yourself, and others.

> there will be allmost no one else exept us ( tolerant & caring people ) !

This is one of the biggest challenges that people that you and I will face during the coming years. We'll be up against some of the most evil, ruthless and determined beings on (and off) the planet, yet we must always act with compassion and love else we become one of them. Mistakes like this may not be fatal for your body, but they can be poisonous to your soul, and ultimately fatal to it if you fail repeatedly.

> Do you think there's anything to do on purpose or trainings to act as a ONE ?

This is probably the most far-reaching question you've asked so far. The philosophical problem of One is one of the most difficult and abstruse you'll ever tackle.

Here's the founding site of "The Ra Material" which explains what's called "The Law of One":
https://www.llresearch.org/library/the-law-of-one

... a discussion forum about it (sadly, it's very BORING and New Age, but for the record):
https://bring4th.org/links/

... what might be a better place to discuss it (haven't visited):
http://lawofonesociety.com/

... and the complete text of The Ra Material:
https://www.lawofone.info/

Happy reading!

Colin#5 : "This is probably the most far-reaching question you've asked so far. The philosophical problem of One is one of the most difficult and abstruse you'll ever tackle."

oh ! i used the word "one" in a very loose sense : you can replace it by either " an advanced civilization " or "Godesses & Gods" at your preference.

"This is one of the biggest challenges that people that you and I will face during the coming years. We'll be up against some of the most evil, ruthless and determined beings on (and off) the planet, yet we must always act with compassion and love else we become one of them. Mistakes like this may not be fatal for your body, but they can be poisonous to your soul, and ultimately fatal to it if you fail repeatedly."

When i see how people like says Kissinger, G Soros or B Gates, they just seems like big monsters
who are corrupted body&soul. They don't scare me much : i would say the average cop is way fairer then them so what's the big deal, even if their Power is momentaneously huge : we're coming FOR them.... Are you afraid of Evil ?

" At this stage of our evolution NOT AT ALL "naturally". We have to struggle and try and fail, and try and fail, and try and fail again before we start to get it right, and even then we'll make many mistakes, so you need to be VERY careful otherwise you end up hurting yourself, and others. "

Ok i take it as this is easier envisionned then done : i figured out that if an individual ( me for exemple ) can fully take care of himself ( with the help of the gov because i receive a public-derived income in France i confess ) and that others can more or less do so, we naturally reach a point that if we find ourselves together, it would be a matter of adjustments until we are able to live together with serenity.

New Physical Theory
http://vitency.com/npt

I've completed the reading of chapter 1 and chapter 9 and i highly recommend them.
I much appreciated to learn that that in essence physical science should and can no longer be separated from spiritual research : thus the new name "psychophysic".

I had lost the patience to read books after i made my breakthrough and SR even recommended me AGAINST reading most modern books because my breakthrough process was enabling me to learn
about anything and everything i wanted to know about " the nature of Spiritual reality " but also,with time, to answer for myself any question in any field.

Glad you enjoyed them. Most of the other chapters are quite technical, but if you simply ignore the technical terms and concentrate on the CONCEPTS you'll find that understanding comes after a couple of readings.

When you finish reading a chapter, move away from the computer, sit down and close your eyes, and reflect on the chapter, looking at the IMAGES in your mind that the reflection generates, especially those from the pictures and diagrams.

In this way you'll find that you DON'T need to know all the technical terms in order to understand the essential concepts.

Colin#8 :

Yeah this is what i've done before i went to sleep  :
and it remembered me of my father who had gone to a
doctorate educational level in maths and physics
but who was almost entirely closed to psychic sensibilties.
Then the image of the 3 gunas being like one flower soothed the difficult memory i have of him.

As the subjects of Eastern occultism and spiritualities are vast and not easy for me to immerse into,
i'm still glad i made it all by myself up to dealing with " the physico-psychic link "
to call the junction between the " as above, so below " spiritual postulate.
not long after i made my 2006 breakthrought. This book come the the same conclusion calling it "psychophysic".

> the subjects of Eastern occultism and spiritualities are vast and not easy for me to immerse into

Yes, they are. I came under severe psychic attack early in my 20s, and it took ten years to reduce them sufficiently to cope. At first I was completely lost, just wandering around the country doing odd jobs with all hope and interest gone. Then I decided to take my favourite Vedic text, the Bhagavad Gita, as my guide to spiritual development.

At first it was meaningless, but I just kept rereading it. Slowly, meaningless words began to take on meaning, like signposts on a dark road at night. Then I began to recognize the road between the signposts, and discovered I was going round in circles. That's when I knew that there WAS a way out: find the old straight road and follow it. I did, and left the trap of my blind repetition.

When investigating all ancient writings, and especially the vast Vedic literature, it's important to remember that most of it is irrelevant. There are many 'jewels of wisdom' buried in a huge mass of religious doctrine, social customs, philosophical nonsense, traditional texts, outdated laws and more. The only way to recognize the 'jewels' is by your OWN intuition - that 'echo of recognition' after reading a passage that says "there's something here worthwhile".

Once you've achieved this a few times, confidence rapidly increases, you waste less time on worthless material, and useful concepts start coming into focus.

Here's a link to a short article you might like:

http://vitency.com/sivsi.html

Colin#10 : " http://vitency.com/sivsi.html "

Yes i liked the conciseness of the form while dealing with the deep subject of Reality.

In fact one of the first thing i figured out when i did my 2006 breakthrought
was even more concise : at that time i was looking for what the word " Reality " meant
as it kept on getting strong in my mind and i did my first and rare building of a verbal symbol :

Reality meant " everything is/and nothing "