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Originally Posted by tomn8er  What is your understanding of how other people fit into subjective reality NightOwlNation? Or anyone for that matter. I'd like to hear a more in-depth explanation of how it makes sense to doubt that other people are conscious, and still regard them as significant human beings as opposed to fake robot-like illusions? |
I, too, had much trouble accepting Steve's theory that I -- not even he -- was the one and only existing consciousness. I refused to believe that other people and creatures were mere projections placed there to enhance my personal experiences.
However, when I brainstormed a bit on the concept, I came up with a solution as to how this might be possible while still allowing all other beings to be on an equal footing with myself, existentially speaking that is. Here the solution:
You are indeed the one and only current focus of God, the One Universal Consciousness. I and everyone else that you experience are NOT. This can be true for everyone when we think OUTSIDE the box of Space-Time.
Each of us exist WITHIN the Space-Time universe, and are locked into experiencing our awareness in a LINEAR fashion.
God is NOT locked into linear timelines, for All That Is -- including Space-Time -- exists and is contained WITHIN GOD.
Assuming the theory that each of us is one of infinite focus points -- or Points of Experience of God, it can be also assumed that God focuses on and experiences the Universe... one POE at a time. Hence the term FOCUS.
Returning to the concept that God exists OUTSIDE of Space-Time, He is free to experience each and every POE... AT ANY POINT IN TIME that He chooses.
To illustrate: I am God, currently focused on experiencing Space-Time through the ego personality you know as Rocket Surgery. None of you are CURRENT from my perspective, since all things occur in the PRESENT. Your "present" exists either in My (God's) past or future. My present POE is Me, Rocket Surgery.
In other words, I, God, am a TIME TRAVELER, hopping from POE to POE at each birth and death. Not being a prisoner of linear timelines, my previous POE could have been an ancient gladiator, my great grandchild, or even Steve Pavlina. Remember Back to the Future, where teenage Marty McFly meets his "older" self in the future? Both share the same, singular consciousness, yet both perceive the other to be a "separate" entity sharing the same point in Space-Time. The only difference is that God does not travel within one "body." God has the ability to live each and every life of each and every body... CONSECUTIVELY. And CONCURRENTLY. Ouch!
Concurrently from the perspective of the human ego that is locked in linear Space-Time. Consecutively from the perspective of God, who is not limited as such.
So, basically, if you imagine that everyone you meet is in reality YOU, experiencing human existence from a place in either your past or future that your waking ego has no memory of, then it becomes quite possible to accept that YOU are indeed the ONLY "current" focus of God's consciousness. Just remember that is only true from YOUR perspective, and that from everyone else's perspective, YOUR conscious experience is something that either happened in THEIR past, or is yet to happen sometime in THEIR future.
This is the only way that I was able to resolve the paradox created by Steve's theory. In other words, both are true. Yes, it is true that I am the only CURRENT focus point of God. But it is also true for everybody else. The REAL illusion is that God is experiencing each individual lifetime concurrently. The reality is that He experiences each lifetime consecutively.
Now the question becomes -- assuming one accepts this concept -- where does everyone fall on God's personal timeline?
My guess is that I, God, am experiencing my current "Rocket Surgery" personality hundreds -- more likely thousands or millions -- of lifetimes before I experience the lifetime of Jesus or Buddha.
Does anyone understand what I'm trying to say here, or am I just babbling?
Anyway, it's just a theory.
~ RS