The actual quote from Dostoevsky’s “Notes From The Underground,” goes as follows: “And yet I think man will never renounce real suffering, that is, destruction and chaos. Why, suffering is the sole origin of consciousness. Though I did lay it down at the beginning that consciousness is the greatest misfortune for man, yet I know … Continue reading Origins of Consciousness
As is often the case with the approach of the autumn season, I can strongly sense that change is coming, and it’s not just in the dazzling panoply of autumn leaves. My spirit—my soul—the very essence of my existence—is rising. I feel its approach; I sense its immanent arrival; and I welcome it. I understand … Continue reading Auguries of Autumn
Daffodils announce the Season For those of us on the East Coast of the USA, it finally is beginning to feel like Spring! The recent rise in daily temperatures to the more seasonable level found me searching for a Spring theme to share with my readers here and in the process, I came upon a … Continue reading Finally…Spring!
“If you were able to create an immortal version of yourself, would you? Until this decade, that question was the stuff of science fiction, but now experts in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics suggest it will indeed be possible.” --excerpt from film promo Throughout the tumultuous days in the recent past, I never … Continue reading New Year Ahead: Artificial Immortality
In this month's edition of my Consciousness Video Series, I put together a review of a recent book by Dr. Alan Lightman called, "The Transcendent Brain: Spirituality In The Age of Science." In a wonderful development, my review of Dr. Lightman's book, "A Sense of the Mysterious," apparently caught his eye, and he sent me … Continue reading Consciousness Video Series: Episode 11: The Transcendent Brain Reply to Alan Lightman +plus: A Porch With A View
I am more aware than ever of my fragility and my mortality. Lately, everything I see and take in reminds me that, as time progresses, there may now be much less time to waste, and yet sometimes what to a casual observer may seem like wasting time is actually an effort to completely immerse myself … Continue reading Reminiscing and Reverie
One of the advantages of accumulating a fair number of decades of life experience, still reasonably intact in the main, is the ability to reflect upon and seriously consider what one has endured and accomplished over the course of those decades. As I now traverse the early days of my eighth decade, I suppose that … Continue reading Living Through and Through
The Unplanned Journey In reviewing the events and experiences of the past few months, struggling as I have to make sense of it all, it seems that my natural instincts have been a great deal more useful than any deliberate mental process I attempted to employ along the way. Hindsight typically provides us with a … Continue reading An Unplanned Journey
There was barely time to attempt any sort of recovery of my wits from the events of the past few months, having been so engaged as we were in what would end up being a painfully long goodbye, when I found myself on the road to be present for the birth of my grandson in … Continue reading A New Life Follows Our Long Goodbye
by AledJonesDigitalArt Recent bouts of milder-than-usual morning and afternoon temperatures in this part of the country have provided several opportunities to sit out on the deck out back while enjoying my typical cup or two of coffee, stretching the experience out into the early afternoon. I am commensurately grateful for the chance to enjoy this … Continue reading The Castle in the Forest
John's Consciousness 