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Quote:<hr>(1) Could Tony (or anyone with an IQ under 190 not engaged in the study of math/physics as a vocation) ever find spiritual meaning in a theory of the universe that so thoroughly rejects subjectivity and the importance of individual human experience, perception, and feeling, which are (to some extent) an inescapable part of every scientific, religious, and philosophical principle man has ever devised . . . including principles rejecting the relevance of perception?<hr></blockquote>
Absolutely. I don't think you have to be a Math, or Physics wiz to find spiritual meaning in Quantum Theory. I'm definately no Physics Wizard myself...Heck, my college degree is in Fine Arts, and while I don't understand the equations, I understand what it is saying on the surface.
Hell, many scientists call Quantum Physics a religion, as it is, because of it's unusual nature and the way that much of it doesn't fit with traditional scientific thinking.
If you are interested in reading about it, in a form you can digest, try Steven Hawkings books, The Universe in a Nutshell, or A Brief History of Time. They are actually really interesting reads.
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Quote:<hr>(2) If Tony is, indeed, everyone and everything, then why should he feel different now since he has been the same "everyone" since the beginning? Why did it take an NDE and/or a Bell Labs scientist to apprise him of that fact since he is also the Bell Labs scientist? <hr></blockquote>
It's simply a matter of being made aware. You could ask the same question about any experience you might think he had in that coma. Why should a near-death experience make him feel different at all, even if it was a Christian one, for example? Tony would have always been a part of God, before the gunshot, just as he is after. The difference is that, the experiences he had in the coma would make him aware of something else.
In this case, it made Tony aware of being "a part of something bigger" (his words, not mine). A part of Everything? A part of the Universe?
Its just like looking at a shirt with a tiny dot of a stain. You might not ever notice the tiny stain. But, once somebody points it out to you, you can't see anything but that stain when you look at the shirt.
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Quote:<hr>(3) How could there be any such thing as an NDE since that presupposes not only the extinction of something that doesn't exist (a distinct human entity) but the existence of an "experience", which by definition conveys a subjective, personal perception?
4) If "everything is everything" and there is no Tony as distinct from the monk as distinct from Finnerty, then why were the monks suing him, since they ARE him? Why was it important that HE take responsibility, since there is no "he" apart from them?
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First off, this is just
you trying to understand that theory. Not Tony. There isn't any evidence of
Tony bringing up these questions...
...That being said, the fact that everybody and everything is connected and is "the same", doesn't mean they can't be spererate entities.
Think of your body as a "Universe". You are everything in your body, right? Well, your body is made up of enzymes, red and white blood cells and all sorts of other tiny little "organisms" that have their own agendas and do things to keep you alive. If it weren't for certain protein digesting enzymes, you wouldn't be able to send singles from your brain to your hands to type. But are you aware of those enzymes? They are all seperate from each other, but all a part of you.
There are theories that say the Universe is alive, and we exist to help make the Universe aware of itself. We are all part of the same make up, like small cells in the Universe's body.
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Quote:<hr>(5) Why did their theory contain the important preface, "one day we will all die and then we will be like that tree, no you, no me" unless they believe in the first instance that there IS a "you" and a "me" and that the act of death removes the peculiar and distinct "something" that makes us individuals?<hr></blockquote>
Removing the veil of life, you are able to more clearly see what is underneath.
I'm not versed in Eastern Religions. I don't know exactly what they believe, but it doesn't seem like it's any different than any other religious belief, to me. When you die, you change states. Every religion believes that. There are even theories, based in the Quantum Physics world, about what happens to your body's energy after death. Remember, Einstein's Theories tell us that you can not create or destroy energy, and human bodies run on energy.
What I understand, from Buddhist beliefs is that if you could make yourself aware of the truth of everything you
could experience being one with a tree, or one with anything esle, even in this life. But, that being human makes it diffucult to see the reality of things and most people aren't able to until death. I believe that is, in part, what meditation is supposed to be about in Buddism.
Humans are imperfect (another staple of religion).
For the rest of your post, I suggest reading one of those Hawking books, rather than Wikipedia blurbs, if you are truly interested in learning what Quantum Theory is about.
Wave and particle theory, is interesting, but I don't see how it apply's to anything that Schwinn said in the Sopranos. That's about molocules that can be measured as either a wave or a particle, but not both at the same time. And it appears to be a matter of our measuring methods, that makes it so, because we have to alter the particle's state to be able to measure it.
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Edited by: <A HREF=http://p098.ezboard.com/bthechaselounge ... jayduck</A> at: 4/4/06 11:34 am