Am I the only Atheist with Animistic/Panpsychic inclinations?

[EnemyOfReason]

Lets come down to reality fellow heathens; the only reason why religion looks good at times is because it reduces reality down to an anthropomorphic entity which is relatable. We all love being with other humans and would love a human to be the cause of the world the same way a domestic cat thinks felines created humans to serve them despite it being the other way around.

I sometimes like personifying ultimately inanimate things like stars because they are so amazing. I few them as the closest thing to a pantheon we could ever have. But reality kicks in and you realize they are ultimately stars despite us being the product of matter which arises from the "deaths" of stars.

I guess anthropomorphizing everything is awesome while at the same time delusional. Just my rant on things.

 

[Zoness]

I'm not an Atheist but I can relate. For me its a matter of liking many religious concepts while wanting to keep others at arms length. I relate well to various kinds of both theist and non-theist thought.

Sure there are Atheists out there that do feel this way though.

 

[EnemyOfReason]

I'm not an Atheist but I can relate. For me its a matter of liking many religious concepts while wanting to keep others at arms length. I relate well to various kinds of both theist and non-theist thought.

Sure there are Atheists out there that do feel this way though.

I always feel like the odd guy in the crowd because I am unorthodox in everything that I do. So many atheists seem to be afraid of the fact that religion exist in the world but it has never bothered me the slightest bit. I love religions and love how they are even if I do not believe in them. I would really want them to be true but sadly I can't say that they are.

 

[MehGuy]

I like to personalize things sometimes..

When I look up at the night sky during a clear night, sometimes I like to imagine it's like staring at the cold dead eyes of a mistress. So cold and lonely and mysterious.

I understand how such things can make reality seem more vivid and breathtaking. Sadly as an atheist I really can't get into that mindset like I used to be able too. Looking at images such as the hubble deep field helps sometimes, but I'm not nearly as sensitive to these things as I used to be.

I do wonder if there is a way to reverse that. Getting back a childhood innocence is probably next to impossible though.

 

[EnemyOfReason]

I like to personalize things sometimes..

When I look up at the night sky during a clear night, sometimes I like to imagine it's like staring at the cold dead eyes of a mistress. So cold and lonely and mysterious.

I understand how such things can make reality seem more vivid and breathtaking. Sadly as an atheist I really can't get into that mindset like I used to be able too. Looking at images such as the hubble deep field helps sometimes, but I'm not nearly as sensitive to these things as I used to be.

I do wonder if there is a way to reverse that. Getting back a childhood innocence is probably next to impossible though.

Something funny is that I have never been able to pray once for years on end. I have tried and tried but nothing comes out. It just seems so abstract to pray to something not there. It seems delusional and childish to pray to a god because even when I tried reasoning a philosophical god it failed.

Being religious has been very hard for me for quite some time.

 

[CryOfALion]

Lets come down to reality fellow heathens; the only reason why religion looks good at times is because it reduces reality down to an anthropomorphic entity which is relatable.

A mistake made often by believers and nonbelievers alike. Maybe not you, but it is a mistake, and misnomer description.

We all love being with other humans

Some people may; I personally cannot stand being around other humans in person. I would rather walk with lions sometimes - it can be a lot safer overall.

and would love a human to be the cause of the world the same way a domestic cat thinks felines created humans to serve them despite it being the other way around.

Another mistake - some may want other humans to be the cause of the world, but I flee from that idea. That is the quickest way to a hell IMO - another human being the "cause of the world."

I sometimes like personifying ultimately inanimate things like stars because they are so amazing. I few them as the closest thing to a pantheon we could ever have. But reality kicks in and you realize they are ultimately stars despite us being the product of matter which arises from the "deaths" of stars.

Have you ever been to a star? I agree with your scientific knowledge, but you do not know for sure if a star is just gas, or a Russian unicorn in disguise. You don't know for sure; that is the true reality.

I guess anthropomorphizing everything is awesome while at the same time delusional. Just my rant on things.

Absolutely, if you turn everything anthropomorphic it is delusional, as everything is not calibrated to humanity. People make totems - religious or otherwise. Anthropomorphic mentality is very old, but certainly not exclusive to Christian school or Hebrews.

 

[seashale76]

So many atheists seem to be afraid of the fact that religion exist in the world but it has never bothered me the slightest bit.

Most atheists I talk to don't strike me as being afraid of religion at all. They simply don't believe and are apathetic about it all. At least those I know are this way.

 

[EnemyOfReason]

Most atheists I talk to don't strike me as being afraid of religion at all. They simply don't believe and are apathetic about it all. At least those I know are this way.

Hmm, well I get a different feeling from atheists who are online and in reality. Apatheism is in real life but online I have met very few atheist who behaved like this. Most of them are like me and staunch anti-theists

 

[MehGuy]

Something funny is that I have never been able to pray once for years on end. I have tried and tried but nothing comes out. It just seems so abstract to pray to something not there. It seems delusional and childish to pray to a god because even when I tried reasoning a philosophical god it failed.

Being religious has been very hard for me for quite some time.

It is a sad state of affairs that the more one becomes self aware of the inner workings of their spirituality, the less they may find that they are able to harness it. My only real hope is for technological neurological progress. There will probably come a time where we'll be able to force the brain into induced spiritual states. The mixture of secularism and spirituality. Imagine the kind of sensations we can play with, and the values we can alter.

If I concentrate hard enough I can induce the old spiritual states I had as a Christian. I have actually written formulas for them. Surprisingly the emotions are just as vivid as they once were. They do not seem to have fallen victim to desensitization. The problem is just motivation. And personification is one big hurdle I have to overcome.

I admire how you have tried to salvage as much of your spirituality as you could. I do understand your frustrations. The best we can do is just keep at it, and think outside the box as much as possible. And study, study, study.

 

[EnemyOfReason]

It is a sad state of affairs that the more one becomes self aware of the inner workings of their spirituality, the less they may find that they are able to harness it. My only real hope is for technological neurological progress. There will probably come a time where we'll be able to force the brain into induced spiritual states. The mixture of secularism and spirituality. Imagine the kind of sensations we can play with, and the values we can alter.

If I concentrate hard enough I can induce the old spiritual states I had as a Christian. I have actually written formulas for them. Surprisingly the emotions are just as vivid as they once were. They do not seem to have fallen victim to desensitization. The problem is just motivation. And personification is one big hurdle I have to overcome.

I admire how you have tried to salvage as much of your spirituality as you could. I do understand your frustrations. The best we can do is just keep at it, and think outside the box as much as possible. And study, study, study.

I personally dislike the term "spirituality"; drives me crazy when people use that term. I think that what people call spiritual is just being human. It is innate in humankind to progress cognitively and socially. Why else have we lasted this long?
We are the [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] most weirdest animals on the planet afterall.

 

[Agnikan]

I sometimes like personifying ultimately inanimate things like stars because they are so amazing.

Where's the dividing line between 'inanimate' and 'animate'?

 

[EnemyOfReason]

Where's the dividing line between 'inanimate' and 'animate'?

Name me a single atom in the human body that is not by default inanimate. The body consists of Oxygen, Carbon, Iron, Silicon and Copper. There is no physical distinction between an animate or inanimate object

 

[Agnikan]

There is no physical distinction between an animate or inanimate object

Is there any distinction at all?

 

[EnemyOfReason]

Is there any distinction at all?

Socially yes. Physically and cognitively no.
Sorry but I cannot control the laws of the Cosmos nor science.

 

[MehGuy]

I personally dislike the term "spirituality"; drives me crazy when people use that term. I think that what people call spiritual is just being human. It is innate in humankind to progress cognitively and socially. Why else have we lasted this long?
We are the [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] most weirdest animals on the planet afterall.

I don't mind when people use the term. Although, other than this forum I don't use the term myself. I just thought I could relate better to people here if I adopted it.

 

[Agnikan]

Socially yes. Physically and cognitively no.

So, cognitively, there is no difference between an 'animate' and an 'inanimate' object?

 

[Eudaimonist]

Of course there is a distinction between animate and inanimate.

Life is an emergent phenomenon. It is the activity of life that distinguishes an animate from an inanimate object. This is why we have the science of biology, and why that science only covers a limited range of natural phenomena.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[Jane_the_Bane]

I do not think panpsychism or even animism requires anthropomorphization by default.

Such a view point is possible, and has historically been quite common ("the river spirit is angry!"), but it is by far not the only possible inception of panpsychism/animism.

It is conceivable that mind/consciousness, albeit not in the specific form we associate with animals in general and mankind in particular, is a universal feature of matter/energy.

It's certainly a solid alternative to the human exceptionalism that's been plaguing Western world views in particular (religious as well as secular) for the better part of the last two millennia.

Here's a nice article on the topic. Not the one I was looking for, but still worth the read:

Is Consciousness Universal? - Scientific American

 

[light upon light]

It is conceivable that mind/consciousness, albeit not in the specific form we associate with animals in general and mankind in particular, is a universal feature of matter/energy.

Or that matter/energy are a manifestation of mind/consciousness.

 

[EnemyOfReason]

Of course there is a distinction between animate and inanimate.

Life is an emergent phenomenon. It is the activity of life that distinguishes an animate from an inanimate object. This is why we have the science of biology, and why that science only covers a limited range of natural phenomena.


eudaimonia,

Mark

A) Biology is apart of science
B) The activity of life is thanks to what it is composed (almost every mineral known to modern science)
C)