Quote by Bertrand Russell

[kentuck]

"Men fear thought as they fear nothing else on earth -- more than ruin -- more even than death.... Thought is subversive and revolutionary, destructive and terrible, thought is merciless to privilege, established institutions, and comfortable habit. Thought looks into the pit of hell and is not afraid. Thought is great and swift and free, the light of the world, and the chief glory of man."

Bertrand Russell

[lindysalsagal]

1. Interesting article I found when googling this:

https://reasonandmeaning.com/2014/06/11/we-fear-thought/

People reject thinking not just because it is hard, but because they worry it will undermine their long-held, comfortable beliefs. Having taught university philosophy for more than 30 years I have seen this first hand. Students often dread thinking about controversial topics like politics, ethics, and religion.

But probe even deeper. If you start thinking, you may reject not only god and country but love, friendship, freedom, and more. You may discover that what is called love is reducible to chemical attraction; that friendship is mutual reciprocity; that morality is what those in power decree; that messengers of the gods are often psychologically deranged; that freedom is an illusion; and that life is absurd. Thought breeds the fear that we will lose our equilibrium, that we will be forced to see the world anew. We fear thinking because what we and others think matters to us.

I used to tell my students to not believe that ideas and thoughts don’t matter—that they only exist in the ivory tower with no significance for the real world—as if beer and football are more important. No. Thoughts and ideas incite political revolutions; they inspire people to sacrifice their lives or kill others for just and unjust causes alike. They determine how one treats both friends and enemies, and whether family is more important than money.

Even the most abstract thinking affects the world. Non-euclidean geometry or symbolic logic are about as abstract as thinking gets—yet you can’t understand Einsteinian gravity without the one, or run computers without the other. Thinking matters to us, to others, and to our world. That’s one reason why we fear it so much—it shakes our foundations.

[kentuck]

4. Thoughts precede actions...

But what precede thoughts?

[Kid Berwyn]

6. Mystery.

The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations.
These two spring from the same source but differ in name;
this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.

— Lao Tzu
Tao Te Ching, Chapter 1

[kentuck]

11. That's heavy!

Would that be like a spirit?

Life is a mystery.

[Kid Berwyn]

14. If you dig Bertrand Russell, you'll appreciate Jane English.

Her translation of the Tao, accomplished with the help of her late husband, Gia-fu Feng, is outstanding in every way. Get a hard copy — her photos also are profound.

https://terebess.hu/english/tao/gia.html

https://eheart.com/TAO/TTC/TTCchapters-small.pdf

The fact we can think makes a case for existence as a blessing.

[kentuck]

20. Bookmarked!

Thanks for those!

[Karadeniz]

15. Don't tell this to some people here. Mystery causes anxiety. The named and things are their safety.

I wish we had more of history. So much loss of the past. We know there were Buddhist missionaries in Alexandria around the year Dot. We know that some participated in the Mystery experience, but I can't remember which. Paul cites the Mystery he can't reveal to the unready. Jesus said he hid his knowledge in puzzles called parables for the same reason...but they can be teased out with patience and an open, inquiring mind. Oh, well, I could live on a diet of quotes such as the one you posted! Line 1 explains it all, really. Thanks for the post! Life interrupts once again and my animal family stirs.

[PatSeg]

19. Oh yes, very true

I've learned that this is not a good place to discuss metaphysics for the most part. If something cannot be explained by the scientific method, then some consider it "woo", which is one big receptacle where they toss anything and everything they do not understand. But some truths really cannot be defined with words and the more we try, the less real they become.

It is nice that now and then someone briefly touches on the subject though.

[Karadeniz]

21. So...we need a Metaphysics or Paranormal category... not the Religion one. You are not alone!

[PatSeg]

23. True

Occasionally I've seen "Religion" posts that venture into metaphysical terrain, but for the most part I don't find religion an appropriate designation for more transcendental discussions. Religion tends to rigidly define truths, whereas metaphysics goes beyond traditional definitions.

I personally don't care for the condescending ridicule that exists here in a very small measure when it comes to more intangible or spiritual beliefs.

[Karadeniz]

25. Absolutely right!!!

[PatSeg]

27. We are on the same page

Always good to encounter another truth seeker.

[Karadeniz]

32. Partners in crime!

[Karadeniz]

13. Ah, that would be Metaphysics. I've seen the rudeness here on DU that can be leveled at those of

Us who acknowledge the paranormal, so I'm not opening that can of shrapnel!!!!

[sop]

18. One has to have something to think about, so accurate, truthful information and well reasoned

arguments would be required. In other words, a good education.

[triron]

33. Insightful! And who or what is bringing and doing the thinking?

[ananda]

8. Also: "Most people would rather die than think; in fact, they do so."

So true.

[2naSalit]

10. +1

[Scrivener7]

2. Great quote but I disagree. Men fear women more than anything else.

[jaxexpat]

3. Actually, men fear the lack of women above all else.

Oh, and I totally get that you were waxing facetious.

[Scrivener7]

5. No. I was totally serious. And though men fear the lack of women, as a group they fear women more.

[empedocles]

22. Hmm

In Sicily, Women are More Dangerous than Shotguns ...
https://christinanewland.substack.com/p/in-sicily-women-are-more-dangerous
‘In Sicily, women are more dangerous than shotguns.’

['Godfather']

[Buckeyeblue]

7. People--men and women--fear change more than anything else

And what's even worse is that their notion of reality is fractured. So they fear a change in something that doesn't even truly exist. That is one of the reasons we got Trump.

[Scrivener7]

24. No. Men fear women more than anything else. That's the main reason we got Trump.

What is the basis for Evangelism? What is the change that they fear? What is at the bottom of that fractured notion of reality?

Dig deeper and you'll get there.

[Roy Rolling]

9. John Lennon

John had a saying (paraphrased) “you must believe it first in your mind for it to happen for real”.

That inspired his famous War is Over (if you want it) phase of his life.

[niyad]

16. Or, "Be the change you want to see in the world."

[Roc2020]

12. Well to think means to be responsible

and frankly many people do not like being responsible.

[niyad]

17. Bookmarking this thought-provoking thread.

[nuxvomica]

26. "thought is merciless to privilege, established institutions, and comfortable habit"

This destructive need for protected self-interest is why I have been playing with a new paradigm for politics that goes beyond morality and religion, which people cannot agree on, and instead leverages the centuries-old concept of the hero cycle—the same narrative shared by the Christ and the Buddha, Luke Skywalker and Frodo Baggins, and every story and myth in between—as a guide to our behavior. I think most of the grief in our society stems from an unwillingness to accept the role of hero when one becomes an adult, maybe not in all aspects of life but far too frequently in our politics. This paradigm asserts that the singular duty of adulthood, from which all our other duties arise, is the protection of innocence, which I define as the state of wonder, playfulness and honesty, as opposed to the state of corruption, which is characterized by fear, drudgery and sham. I think we are wired to want a return to the state of innocence into which we are born but this impulse can become misguided when we equate it to the accidents, or non-definitive correlations, of innocence: youth, complete protection, and comfort. The youth misdirection may be the least destructive to society, resulting only in things like cosmetic surgery and mid-life crises, but the protection and comfort misdirection can be very damaging, driving insatiable desires for walls and weaponry, brutal leaders, substance abuse, fear of the other or the new, and personal wealth absurdly far beyond need. So thought that challenges privilege may upset one's sense of personal safety and comfort but that's okay. As mature human beings, we should have bigger fish to fry than that; we cannot reclaim the bliss of innocence without accepting our role as the protector of innocence, and thinking freely and critically is the most necessary provision for that journey. It's what got us out of the trees, made warm homes and hot meals for our children, and will ultimately take us to the stars.

[nuxvomica]

30. Heroism just appears more dramatic in stories

But being a hero includes any act which requires a little sacrifice and is meant to protect the innocent. For example, the parent who goes to work every day to provide for their kids is committing a heroic act.

[Irish_Dem]

31. I think I will use this as a sig line for awhile.

Love it.

[RussBLib]

34. As much as anyone else

Bertrand Russell's writings influenced me in becoming an atheist.

[womanofthehills]

35. When I was in high school my dad had some Bertrand Russell books about religion

I read one and never went to church again. I thank him for that.