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The argument of humanity living a perpetual zombie state is hard to buy into when comparing the past and present. Especially when comparing monks who arguably h
by thenerdhead 4y ago
The argument of humanity living a perpetual zombie state is hard to buy into when comparing the past and present. Especially when comparing monks who arguably have dedicated much of their life to awareness.
The differences of “distractions” are what matters here. Being distracted with god, your body, your emotions, or your mind is a human condition. Being distracted with artificial things is another.
Monks have extensive memories. Contemporary man has the memory of a goldfish. Two completely different ways the brain can work if given the right amount of stress and daily practice.
Much research has shown that those who meditate regularly have built a deliberate skill to focus their attention where needed. Many people struggle to do even that as modern attention is much more scattered between artificial distractions.
- reidjs 4y agoOn memory: Is memory even that useful anymore? Now that we are all literate and can offload our knowledge to our devices, perhaps the ability to keep that written information organized and having systems is a more useful skill than being able to recall the information directly from your head.
- thenerdhead 4y agoIt's a philosophical question and subjective. Anyone can go from a fast brain to a slow mind and vice-versa. Only your experience can tell you the usefulness. In other words, how does knowledge become wisdom? Reflection, experience, and insight. Offloading that knowledge does nothing for us.