Philosophy Now Forum

commonsense wrote:And now we're back to PhilX's question (although I suspect I already know how all you materialists would answer): what form did your consciousness take before you existed and what form will it take after you die?

Since you're the only one owning your consciousness, why can't it exist in some form before and after your lifespan? Maybe

Because ALL the evidence says that is stupid.

commonsense wrote:
Does that mean that from my perspective I will only see the reality that exists in my world, making reality an absolute for me in my world? If so, do I have it right that in all possible worlds reality would vary just as each world would vary?

Yes you are quite right - in that each human perspective is a one off unique never to be repeated mutated appearance of the same unchanging consciousness dreaming differences where there are none. Dreamt characters including the characters that are imagined to be human are the visible images evidenced in a conscious experience, yet have no reality separate from the invisible field of infinite consciousness appearing as everything visible. So in actual fact, who you really are is essentially invisible just like tv and radio waves and other invisible field effects. Consciousness is basically the ultimate wireless internet.


''Consciousness, like every other aspect of nature—like gravity, like electromagnetism, like the nuclear forces and the subatomic “particles”—is at basis an unbounded, nonmaterial field. The human brain can be seen as an intricate broadcasting and receiving station for waves traversing this field of consciousness.''

Philosophy Explorer wrote: If so, then it would be natural to ask what form did your consciousness take before you were born and what form would it have after you die? If you don't have consciousness, then what are you?

PhilX

Of what were you conscious before you were born, (or conceived), and of what do you believe you will be conscious after you die.

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote: If so, then it would be natural to ask what form did your consciousness take before you were born and what form would it have after you die? If you don't have consciousness, then what are you?

PhilX

Of what were you conscious before you were born, (or conceived), and of what do you believe you will be conscious after you die.

I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote: If so, then it would be natural to ask what form did your consciousness take before you were born and what form would it have after you die? If you don't have consciousness, then what are you?

PhilX

Of what were you conscious before you were born, (or conceived), and of what do you believe you will be conscious after you die.

I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:
Of what were you conscious before you were born, (or conceived), and of what do you believe you will be conscious after you die.

I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

For me for sure, I can't prove this for others.

PhilX

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:
I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

For me for sure, I can't prove this for others.

PhilX

Then if there is anyone who can attest to consciousness before conception or consciousness after death, let us know, though we might need to conduct a seance to discover the latter. Without any positive reports of either case, I would think that we could safely assume that consciousness does not exist outside a living brain. I know there have been some reports of contact with the departed spirits, but most do not have adequate support.

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:
That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

For me for sure, I can't prove this for others.

PhilX

Then if there is anyone who can attest to consciousness before conception or consciousness after death, let us know, though we might need to conduct a seance to discover the latter. Without any positive reports of either case, I would think that we could safely assume that consciousness does not exist outside a living brain. I know there have been some reports of contact with the departed spirits, but most do not have adequate support.

I think Bob may have such contact through his "Divine Guidance." At least he claims supernatural contact.

PhilX

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:
For me for sure, I can't prove this for others.

PhilX

Then if there is anyone who can attest to consciousness before conception or consciousness after death, let us know, though we might need to conduct a seance to discover the latter. Without any positive reports of either case, I would think that we could safely assume that consciousness does not exist outside a living brain. I know there have been some reports of contact with the departed spirits, but most do not have adequate support.

I think Bob may have such contact through his "Divine Guidance." At least he claims supernatural contact.

PhilX

Then perhaps you should quiz Bob on that, I am not inclined to contact Bob about anything. Also contact with a divine being does not necessarily count for the consciousness of a human being. If that divine being has always existed and is not subject to death, it is therefore outside the purview of this discussion.

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

thedoc wrote:
Of what were you conscious before you were born, (or conceived), and of what do you believe you will be conscious after you die.

I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:
I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

Don't you mean "monkey", since humans are apes and apes are monkeys, according to the latest classification. How far back do you want to go?

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:
I have no memories of being conscious before being born and I don't believe I will have consciousness after death.

PhilX

That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

I already have a banana that gets girls excited. I think you deserve that banana even more.

PhilX

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

thedoc wrote:
That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

I already have a banana that gets girls excited. I think you deserve that banana even more.

PhilX

Careful, if you shove it down his throat, he might like it.

thedoc wrote:

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:
Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

I already have a banana that gets girls excited. I think you deserve that banana even more.

PhilX

Careful, if you shove it down his throat, he might like it.

Not even in his wet dreams.

PhilX

Philosophy Explorer wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

thedoc wrote:
That would seem to indicate that consciousness exists only in a living brain.

Whoahhhh. Give the boy a banana!!!

I already have a banana that gets girls excited. I think you deserve that banana even more.

PhilX

Well thanks for the offer, but I'm not GAY. Maybe you should ask Dubious?