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Cause and Effect, or Effect and Cause?

CarlCarl
edited August 2007 in 'One Who Knows Does Not Think, Speak Or Write...'
Thank you Lynn

I will do that. :idea:

Comments

  • CarlCarl
    edited December 1969
    We are drawn to the 'cause and then effect' point of view, as noted in the commentary on chapter 24. This plays a profound, if shadowy, role in daily life so... need I say more? Certainly!

    There is nothing wrong with seeing reality with a 'cause and then effect' bias per se. I reckon this bias is instinctive and common to all life forms to some extent, e.g., when a dog steps on a sticker he look for the cause of the pain and removes it if possible. The same goes for the 'sticker' equivalent in a bacterium's life.

    Viewed with some [chref=16]impartiality[/chref], however, [chref=14]the shape that has no shape[/chref] looks more like this: every 'effect' is a 'cause'; every 'cause' is an 'effect'. A problem, unique to those who 'think', arises when we cease following the chain of causation and simply settle on some surface 'cause'. In doing so, we paint ourselves into a corner and close the lid on the 'box', thwarting any change to 'think outside the box'. Failing to think outside the box, leads to difficulty. As chapter 71 puts it: '[chref=71]Not to know yet to think that one knows will lead to difficulty[/chref]'.

    In a way, the 'causes' we see become self fulfilling prophesies, and we become our own worst enemy. Only by being [chref=15]hesitant, tentative, murky, and thick[/chref] in our judgements can we ever enter [chref=1]the gateway of the manifold secrets[/chref] as a daily and [chref=23]natural[/chref] way of life. Now that certainly sounds easy [chref=17]enough[/chref] doesn't it?
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