| Start: | Oct 16, '08 03:00a |
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Utility
Man asks what is of existence that it is. He searches for the answer, trying to explain the universe as precisely as he could. This might be partly because his ability to think challenges him to use it to the fullest - rational pride as one might say - but regardless of what it precisely is, the drive is inert and powerful on its own. One might not notice, but the daily activities of a certain being is made possible by the subconscious, if not unconscious longing to find the purpose of life. Thus, it is of great interest to try uncovering this puzzle.
A piece of paper lies on the desk. What is written on it? Nothing, it's blank. How did it get there? Someone placed it on the desk. Why was it placed there? It would be used to write a draft of an essay. What essay would that be? An integration paper that is supposed to reach the teacher's hands by tomorrow. What ideas would it talk about? The Philippine society, its problems and suggested solutions. What would be the problems that are present in the Philippines? Many, and corruption is one of them. What is that corruption that troubles the Philippine society? Abuse of power, unfair governance, short-term policies. What is power, or governance perhaps? The ability and responsibility of controlling certain aspects of the community. How is this control imposed? Through laws and orders. Why should there be laws? To keep the community harmonized. Why should the community be harmonized? To avoid conflicts which could hurt people. Why should people not get hurt? Because it is their right to get hurt. Why do people have rights?
Because their existence is for a purpose.
Silly as it may seem, seemingly ordinary facts point toward the essential question of utility. This is true for all. Even if one asks about the peanut butter inside a sandwich, one would end up rationalizing existence. But what really is the utility of human life, as well as of everything existing in the universe?
Observing the workings of the perceivable world, one could not make out details of its motion (which is both physical and metaphysical in aspect). Thus, it is nearly impossible to inspect on its purpose, which lies beneath the mechanisms. But then, further reasoning would lead us to look upon the blurred images of the system, distinguishing patterns from which a vague idea could be reconstructed. The behavior of the universe is almost as irrational as the word itself, and this is in a very paradoxical way. What is meant is that the universe is very systematic, and seems to have rigid laws that puts everything in place. But the mere fact that exceptions exist on virtually every law disrupts the law itself, and a new law of larger scope is then created. This conflict is essentially endless, and the possibility of an ultimate law is a question rhetorical in quality. Then we realize that it is a detail we are trying unravel; patterns are what is sought for. We can then see that the conflict-resolution cycle leads to a seeming endpoint; and that is one of greater rationalization, i.e. more logical. This more reasonable end is a seeming standard that the universe's workings drive on, and one could only speculate at the identity of the asymptote (one amazing fact is that higher math, though it looses that practicality which most students invoke during times of incomprehensibility, touches on philosophy, especially its accurate description of the universe). One can easily find a word for it, however, and it is this that the whole argument is leading to:
Perfection.
Indeed, the natural tendency of all things is to achieve perfection. One would dispute on this through entropy or death or the impermanence of things, but one should notice that even they have underlying theoretical concepts explaining their unity with the grand plan. Entropy, for example, may actually not be imperfection in itself. Though energy loses its utilitarian purpose, its existence can never be tied to human satisfaction. Thus it could be perfection for energy to become random heat. Alternatively, entropy could be seen as energy rising to a dimension of higher perfection, leaving imprints on this universe now seen as disorder. This also is an alternative explanation for death, for we are familiar with concept of heaven (the ultimate perfection) which proceeds death (the seeming exception). Chaos theory touches on this matter (again another fascinating math fact), and shows a theoretical hypothesis of how everything - even disorder itself - is systematic, much like how exceptions turn out to perfectly obey laws.
However, one would ask: isn't it too selfish, too base to say that mankind exists to perfect itself? This might somehow be true; but, thinking again, one could integrate this into one conclusion, and surprisingly it takes into account the deepest outcries of religion itself.
Perfection is beauty. Beauty is goodness. Goodness is love...Love is God.
A piece of paper lies on the desk. What is written on it? Nothing, it's blank. How did it get there? Someone placed it on the desk. Why was it placed there? It would be used to write a draft of an essay. What essay would that be? An integration paper that is supposed to reach the teacher's hands by tomorrow. What ideas would it talk about? The Philippine society, its problems and suggested solutions. What would be the problems that are present in the Philippines? Many, and corruption is one of them. What is that corruption that troubles the Philippine society? Abuse of power, unfair governance, short-term policies. What is power, or governance perhaps? The ability and responsibility of controlling certain aspects of the community. How is this control imposed? Through laws and orders. Why should there be laws? To keep the community harmonized. Why should the community be harmonized? To avoid conflicts which could hurt people. Why should people not get hurt? Because it is their right to get hurt. Why do people have rights?
Because their existence is for a purpose.
Silly as it may seem, seemingly ordinary facts point toward the essential question of utility. This is true for all. Even if one asks about the peanut butter inside a sandwich, one would end up rationalizing existence. But what really is the utility of human life, as well as of everything existing in the universe?
Observing the workings of the perceivable world, one could not make out details of its motion (which is both physical and metaphysical in aspect). Thus, it is nearly impossible to inspect on its purpose, which lies beneath the mechanisms. But then, further reasoning would lead us to look upon the blurred images of the system, distinguishing patterns from which a vague idea could be reconstructed. The behavior of the universe is almost as irrational as the word itself, and this is in a very paradoxical way. What is meant is that the universe is very systematic, and seems to have rigid laws that puts everything in place. But the mere fact that exceptions exist on virtually every law disrupts the law itself, and a new law of larger scope is then created. This conflict is essentially endless, and the possibility of an ultimate law is a question rhetorical in quality. Then we realize that it is a detail we are trying unravel; patterns are what is sought for. We can then see that the conflict-resolution cycle leads to a seeming endpoint; and that is one of greater rationalization, i.e. more logical. This more reasonable end is a seeming standard that the universe's workings drive on, and one could only speculate at the identity of the asymptote (one amazing fact is that higher math, though it looses that practicality which most students invoke during times of incomprehensibility, touches on philosophy, especially its accurate description of the universe). One can easily find a word for it, however, and it is this that the whole argument is leading to:
Perfection.
Indeed, the natural tendency of all things is to achieve perfection. One would dispute on this through entropy or death or the impermanence of things, but one should notice that even they have underlying theoretical concepts explaining their unity with the grand plan. Entropy, for example, may actually not be imperfection in itself. Though energy loses its utilitarian purpose, its existence can never be tied to human satisfaction. Thus it could be perfection for energy to become random heat. Alternatively, entropy could be seen as energy rising to a dimension of higher perfection, leaving imprints on this universe now seen as disorder. This also is an alternative explanation for death, for we are familiar with concept of heaven (the ultimate perfection) which proceeds death (the seeming exception). Chaos theory touches on this matter (again another fascinating math fact), and shows a theoretical hypothesis of how everything - even disorder itself - is systematic, much like how exceptions turn out to perfectly obey laws.
However, one would ask: isn't it too selfish, too base to say that mankind exists to perfect itself? This might somehow be true; but, thinking again, one could integrate this into one conclusion, and surprisingly it takes into account the deepest outcries of religion itself.
Perfection is beauty. Beauty is goodness. Goodness is love...Love is God.
Pondering upon Things
Quite shivering. It's cold outside the room. The glimmer of the street lamps may have contributed some heat, but it seems that it is the only heat available. The wind is blowing.
Quite sharply, I noticed the firefly fluttering upon the bamboo grove. Glowing, with a fleeting transient presence that catches attention yet triggers anticipation. I do not know what I would do next. Jump off the road and into the dense cluster of tall reeds? No, that would be silly indeed. I'd rather wait for the next flash to appear; and it did.
Quite surprised at my being surprised, I stopped walking for a while. Thinking. Or maybe, trying to think. What should I be thinking? What a question. Disgraceful. But I guess I really should be thinking. The beautiful scene, the stream of incoherent imaginations. Lo! I have thought of a though to think.
Quietly I sat. Yes, on the sidewalks. There were no cars passing, not even people. The place was barren except for me and nature. Or am I separated from nature? Oh well, I'm going to think. Deeply. Digging. Or, should I say, diving?
Quite different from getting old is getting crazy. It appears unrelated, but in fact they are one and the same. Everything is. It is not a cause and effect relationship, but rather a cause and another cause. Old age is seen as the portal to knowing the truth, they say. Wisdom, one acquires experience and thus gets wise through it. Craziness, on the other hand, is the acquisition of something cannot grasp. A scary voice? Bells ringing perpetually? A disillusioned diemnsion of reality? People disregard it as simply irrational - crazy - as if it is different from the rational and the "normal". You see, irrationality is dictated by a lose of logic. But to have a complete lose of truth is too systematic to be illogical - one needs to know every bit of truth to revert it and become crazy altogether. Thus crazy people are better than most of us. The "normal" people comprehend a mixture of truth and fallacy, this being an effect of the degradation of reason (logic's shortcoming, i.e. its vulnerability to emotions). The true normal person, however, is that which knows and stand with the norm - more precisely described as perfect. And thus to be crazy - that is, to be the opposite of normal - is to be the exact opposite of normal. And this is a perfection in itself - and a norm in itself. The whole point is that crazy people acquire truth in theory, though it is incomprehensible to the minds of the normal - I suggest a better term is common - and dismiss it as unimportant under the reasoning of craziness. Thus getting old and getting crazy both acquire the truth, though in different ways. And I think I am getting both at the same time.
Quite strange, but I feel that something will happen a few hours from now. Am I getting crazy? No, I'm simply getting old.
Quiet. The place is quiet for now.
Quite sharply, I noticed the firefly fluttering upon the bamboo grove. Glowing, with a fleeting transient presence that catches attention yet triggers anticipation. I do not know what I would do next. Jump off the road and into the dense cluster of tall reeds? No, that would be silly indeed. I'd rather wait for the next flash to appear; and it did.
Quite surprised at my being surprised, I stopped walking for a while. Thinking. Or maybe, trying to think. What should I be thinking? What a question. Disgraceful. But I guess I really should be thinking. The beautiful scene, the stream of incoherent imaginations. Lo! I have thought of a though to think.
Quietly I sat. Yes, on the sidewalks. There were no cars passing, not even people. The place was barren except for me and nature. Or am I separated from nature? Oh well, I'm going to think. Deeply. Digging. Or, should I say, diving?
Quite different from getting old is getting crazy. It appears unrelated, but in fact they are one and the same. Everything is. It is not a cause and effect relationship, but rather a cause and another cause. Old age is seen as the portal to knowing the truth, they say. Wisdom, one acquires experience and thus gets wise through it. Craziness, on the other hand, is the acquisition of something cannot grasp. A scary voice? Bells ringing perpetually? A disillusioned diemnsion of reality? People disregard it as simply irrational - crazy - as if it is different from the rational and the "normal". You see, irrationality is dictated by a lose of logic. But to have a complete lose of truth is too systematic to be illogical - one needs to know every bit of truth to revert it and become crazy altogether. Thus crazy people are better than most of us. The "normal" people comprehend a mixture of truth and fallacy, this being an effect of the degradation of reason (logic's shortcoming, i.e. its vulnerability to emotions). The true normal person, however, is that which knows and stand with the norm - more precisely described as perfect. And thus to be crazy - that is, to be the opposite of normal - is to be the exact opposite of normal. And this is a perfection in itself - and a norm in itself. The whole point is that crazy people acquire truth in theory, though it is incomprehensible to the minds of the normal - I suggest a better term is common - and dismiss it as unimportant under the reasoning of craziness. Thus getting old and getting crazy both acquire the truth, though in different ways. And I think I am getting both at the same time.
Quite strange, but I feel that something will happen a few hours from now. Am I getting crazy? No, I'm simply getting old.
Quiet. The place is quiet for now.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Break
There I was...absorbed in the events that come with "school", college to be specific. It has been a long time since I drained myself - that is, by writing in a blog without having a draft (which I make when I submit papers and stuff)...The flow of thought just drains stress...at least for a while.
Well, this is my launch of a whole new blog. Ha,it seems so weird to change my whole blog into a different one...I was actually planning to delete this, but the comments just make me guilty of doing such...a crime I would say...
Well, seriously if anyone reads this (or cares about it), I would like to tell that someone that my previous blogs were either so-so or plain crap.Though I cannot say that with my multiply blog, but I just realized that the order and content of each blog entry affects a blog in such a way that other entries would be seen in the same context. Therefore, I should say that copy-pastes from different blogs is simply a failure...oh well, I failed miserably.
But at least I learned...And now I am trying to put into practice these newly discovered principles...ha, I sound like an expert.
Actually, the reason why I wrote this is simply to try to purge my awful past entries...I can't delete them, yet I can't hide them either. I am left with the option of making a cover entry that would push them all out of sight...I wish they all will...
Oh well,that's it. I have a math exam tomorrow...finals to be more specific...I hope I can carry on...
P.S. if you read my blog,can you please leave comments. The comments simply fuel me to write. Which is why my multiply is active...Many people comment on my entries...so, if you will pity me (wow, nice term) please do leave comments...
Well, this is my launch of a whole new blog. Ha,it seems so weird to change my whole blog into a different one...I was actually planning to delete this, but the comments just make me guilty of doing such...a crime I would say...
Well, seriously if anyone reads this (or cares about it), I would like to tell that someone that my previous blogs were either so-so or plain crap.Though I cannot say that with my multiply blog, but I just realized that the order and content of each blog entry affects a blog in such a way that other entries would be seen in the same context. Therefore, I should say that copy-pastes from different blogs is simply a failure...oh well, I failed miserably.
But at least I learned...And now I am trying to put into practice these newly discovered principles...ha, I sound like an expert.
Actually, the reason why I wrote this is simply to try to purge my awful past entries...I can't delete them, yet I can't hide them either. I am left with the option of making a cover entry that would push them all out of sight...I wish they all will...
Oh well,that's it. I have a math exam tomorrow...finals to be more specific...I hope I can carry on...
P.S. if you read my blog,can you please leave comments. The comments simply fuel me to write. Which is why my multiply is active...Many people comment on my entries...so, if you will pity me (wow, nice term) please do leave comments...
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