The easy cop-out is to say that it is human nature to suffer and to kill. — leo
I have pondered about this extensively, and I have come to the conclusion that most suffering stems from fear and false beliefs. — leo
According to the World Health Organization, 300 million people suffer from depression, — leo
But some people in remote regions seem happy, at peace, living in harmony with each other and their environment. So whence all this suffering? — leo
Fear and false beliefs are a symptom of the underlying condition, the divisive nature of thought. If suffering could be remedied by editing our beliefs we would have long ago stumbled upon the correct beliefs and would now be living in a utopia.
The human condition arises out of the nature of what we're made of psychologically, thought, and everything else is a symptom. — Jake
Not that it's good for those 300 million people, but if that number is correct, then less than 5% of people in the world suffer from depression. I would have actually guessed the number was higher than that. "95% of the people in the world do not suffer from depression" sounds like we're doing pretty good. — Terrapin Station
In any event, are there any psych or other medical professionals who believe that depression is caused by particular beliefs rather than being a brain structural/electro-chemical issue that's not correlated to particular beliefs a la religious, political, philosophical, scienctific etc. views the individual might hold? — Terrapin Station
The real problem is people do not want to lead a simple, peaceful life. Perhaps it is ambition, greed, ignorance, but in the end it's a choice. How many people would like to leave all they have behind in order to live happy and in harmony? Very few. Then there's those, who have put up the bars and walls of their own prison, who would like to, but think they can't.
In truth, most do not want to leave the comfort and luxury behind, and they will be unhappy as a consequence. They want careers, expensive cars and clothing, a big house, and preferably a little bit bigger and better than the neighbors. — Tzeentch
And how do we changes someone who really doesn't want to change? — Tzeentch
I didn't say editing our beliefs was an easy process, it isn't precisely because beliefs determine how we think, what we do and how we feel. — leo
You're saying suffering stems from the nature of thought itself, — leo
I would say that yes the act of thinking is responsible in itself for a lot of suffering, but I don't see it as the underlying cause, on the contrary through thinking you can come to make some sufferings disappear. — leo
Through thinking, I discovered that I am very happy on a sunny day in the woods, which is great, but...
Now I use those awesome beautiful peaceful days in the woods filled with glorious silence as a basis of comparison in evaluating my experience of the suburban neighborhood where I live, which I'm finding increasingly problematic.
We are the richest people ever to walk the Earth, thanks to thinking. And we're dissatisfied because we're comparing that to something even better, thanks to thinking. We have everything, and nothing, thanks to thinking. — Jake
I would say that it isn't the act of thinking that's responsible for this suffering, but the belief that you can't change how things are, that you can't get what you want, and I would argue that's a false belief. — leo
Ok, fair enough, but....
About an hour after I get what I want...
I'll start wanting something more. A new basis for comparison will be created, but the same old process will remain in tact. — Jake
I'm sure that people who commit suicide are depressed. There's nothing suprising what Sapolsky says, especially if you focus on younger people. Yet I think the number one killer is heart disease, which isn't caused by depression (bad habits because of depression might have an effect, but still).there is a video from Stanford neurobiologist, Robert Sapolsky, where he claims that depression is going to be something like the number one killer. I think it already outranks a number of other diseases. — LD Saunders
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