Where Is Here [1]
Some things are impossible to explain, and we can’t even explain why that is.
First, a little preface.
By all appearances, the book, Reality and Being, is written in so many words. But words are problematic. What do they mean? We need to be careful about trusting the words we hear, read, say, write, and repeat over and over to ourselves. Words are so entangled with one another and with all other things we encounter in life, that their meanings continually change, sometimes subtly and sometimes surprisingly. What if you were reading something interesting, and suddenly the words just lost all meaning, suddenly just became senseless squiggles? What would that feel like? Same thing goes for hearing and thinking. But, not to worry, at least there is something else that never seems to change at all, something that always grounds us in ourselves so that we can notice all of the stuff that does change. Something remains forever constant at the heart of this theater. You can, of course, verify this for yourself, … if you really want to.
This book of words is ostensibly (i.e., apparently, seems to be, claims to be, etc.) about the words, “reality” and “being,” along with a number of other words listed in the TOC. If these words did not have meaning for you, you would not be able to read them at all. The 40 key words in the text will all have some meaning, as will most of the other 25,000 or so that are used.
But of course, this isn’t really about words, it is about ideas, and ideas are actually a lot more private and a lot more meaningful than mere words.
OK, it isn’t really about ideas either, but about a particular subject that you are already familiar with: your sense of being here in this world. That subject is extraordinarily difficult to talk about meaningfully, either because we so often take the idea completely for granted or because we simply have no idea what to say about it. Try to keep that in mind: this sense of being here.
The subject of this book has been around in many forms for a very long time. I find it impossible to adequately name or describe it. Every attempt I have made seemed too misleading, too restrictive, or too vague.
Instead, let me introduce it by way of this puzzle
Here begins a journey from where beliefs seem not quite true,
to where truth may seem unbelievable.
Answer this question: Where is here?
For every answer you consider, answer this question:
If that is where here is, then where is that?
If you think you can answer this with a few well-chosen words,
then perhaps you can.
You be the judge. Only you can decide whether or not you have solved it.
Suggestions:
How is this puzzle related to the topic, Words?
How is the question, “Where is here?” similar to the question, “What color is the sky?”
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As time goes by ….
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Where Is Here [4]
You should still be thinking about the puzzle introduced in the first topic, Words.
This is not a trick question. The better your answer, the better your satisfaction with these topics. Only you can know how well you may have solved it.
Here are a few ideas to help you along:
Keep in mind what you read about Words, Reality and Unreality, Being and Existence, and Awareness and Experience.
You can, of course, solve this puzzle in any way that pleases you; these topics are only here to offer you suggestions, ideas, and encouragement.
In keeping with Words, you should pay attention to possible meanings of “where,” “here,” and “is.”
Where and here do not have to be physical or geographical.
“Is” has at least two main uses: attribution, as in “the apple is red,” or identification, as in “this is the same apple.” You could also try to imagine other ways in which the word might be useful; try to imagine ways in which “is” can be used that are neither attributive nor identifying, or that somehow combine both possibilities.
Be creative, but also be reasonable.
Caution: I recommend that, for now, you not use a dictionary. Stay with the puzzle at hand rather than take on the puzzle of the dictionaries. We will consider dictionaries more in other topics. In any case, your solution to the puzzle might scarcely use words at all.
— — —
As time goes by ….
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Where Is Here [7]
When considering this puzzle, be careful how you judge the meanings of the words. We typically take “here” to refer to some physical, spatial, or temporal location: on the table, in the middle, or now. But if you expand your thinking a little by interpreting the puzzle more as a question of container and content, other possibilities arise.
What does the word, “here,” mean to you right now as you read this question?
What contains that meaning? Is it public or is it private?
What does the phrase, “Where …,” mean to you right now as you read this question?
What does the phrase, “Here is where …,” mean to you right now?
Reflect for a moment on how you reacted to those questions: your thoughts, feelings, ideas, various attempts to answer in words, and so forth.
— — —
As time goes by ….
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Where Is Here [14]
If you haven’t yet solved this difficult puzzle, or even if you have, you might take into consideration the two meanings of truth.
Don’t you want to know what’s true? What good is a doubtful answer if you take the puzzle seriously? So far, you have read and thought about reality, being, and awareness; and perhaps you have also learned something about how containers work.
This small paradox sums up a major theme…. Perhaps it will be useful for the puzzling question, “Where is here?”
A True Paradox—
“If we really know something, we should be able to explain it.”
But, …
“We cannot explain what we truly know,
and we do not quite believe what we think we can explain.”
What do you know but can’t explain?
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In context:
1 - Words (An Introduction)
4 - Awareness and Experience
7 - Container and Content
14 - True and False