When two quantum particles (electrons, photons, atoms) are joined together, in a special way called “entanglement”, and are then separated, they retain the interconnectivity that has been created , even if separated by distance and time. So are you entangled? Read more…
Dear Barbara, we agree on a couple of fundamental things (at least, I think we do!):
But here’s where we part ways… Read more…
“Life is the unknown and the unknowable, except that we are put into the world to eat, to stay alive as long as we possibly can.”
Students of Richard Bach’s Jonathon Livingston Seagull will recognise that quote as part of the admonition of Jonathon by the Elder of the Council gathering.
Wondering what that’s got to do with ‘the road less travelled’? Well, I’ll return to that later when we will find out what Jonathon had to say in response to his chastisement.
In the meantime we should recognise that Richard Bach was by no means the first to introduce the concept of the ‘road less travelled’. The 6th century Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching, ch. 53) wrote:
“With but a small understanding
One may follow the Way like a main road,
Fearing only to leave it;
Following a main road is easy,
Yet people delight in difficult paths”.
But perhaps Lao Tzu had been watching ants!
You see, early one morning while I was outside sitting on a chair to put on my trainers there was a procession of ants marching by. Curious to see what might happen I disrupted the procession with my hand. Most of the ants stopped and appeared confused until they grouped up and followed each other around my hand (the easy way). A few brave ants took a risk and decided to go over by climbing up my hand (the difficult way). So are we really any different? Faced with a challenge most of us will wait and then follow the crowd, a few individuals will take the difficult and challenging way, go out into the wilderness, the unknown –will take ’ the road less travelled’!
The concept is also raised in the Bible… here’s what St Matthew had to say… “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7: 13-14). But maybe he had read the Tao Te Ching and been watching ants!
Then there’s Richard Frost who raised the same concept in his poem “The Road Not Taken”.
“Somewhere ages and ages hence;
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference”.
And what about M Scott Peck who tackles the same issues in his popular books “The Road Less Traveled” and “Further Along The Road Less Traveled”. He writes “Life is complex. Each one of us must make his own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another…The journey of life is not paved in blacktop; it is not brightly lit, and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness. ”
And again he counsels “It is in the whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has meaning. Problems are the cutting edge that distinguishes between success and failure. Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom; indeed, they create our courage and our wisdom. It is only because of problems that we grow mentally and spiritually. It is through the pain of confronting and resolving problems that we learn.”
There are many other references to the concept of ‘the road less travelled’. Here are a just a few of them:
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” Ralph Waldo Emerson
“We must go beyond textbooks, go out into the bypaths and untrodden depths of the wilderness and travel and explore and tell the world the glories of our journey”.
John Hope Franklin
“I see my path, but I don’t know where it leads. Not knowing where I’m going is what inspires me to travel it”. Rosalia de Castro
“The path to spirituality is the road less traveled. Because it is less traveled it is covered with underbrush, brambles, thistles, and thorns. The way is painful and lonely. Yet, because it is less traveled, it is also the path that leads to discovery, adventure, and joy. It is the way of the warrior. It may very well be the path you were meant to follow.” Chuck Gallozzi
“Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason.” Jerry Seinfeld
So what does ‘the road less travelled mean’? Here’s part of what Jonathon had to say… “We can lift ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill. We can be free!” “Who is more responsible than a gull who finds and follows a meaning, a higher purpose for life….now we have a reason to live – to learn, to discover, to be free.”
I’m with Jonathon all the way. I see setting out on ‘the road less travelled’ as an attempt to assert my individuality… as an integral part of my bid for intellectual and spiritual freedom. It’s a long and exciting journey of self-discovery.
What about you?
This series of posts attempts to break down the critical thinking process into a number of steps that build upon each other. So far we’ve looked at:
In this post I want to go into a little more detail so that you have a guide or checklist, if you like, to aid you get more out of your reading. It is based on tips that are generally available from a number of sources. So here’s something with which to work:
Try the guide and see what you think
This series of posts attempts to break down the critical thinking process into a number of steps that build upon each other. So far we’ve looked at:
* Improving the organisation of information stored in the brain,
* Analysing information in order to identify aids to critical thinking such as possible relationships and/or recognise patterns within sequences.
* The critical thinking component itself.
We concluded the last post by saying that one secret to being a good critical thinker .is being able to identify good questions to ask yourself and others about what you are reading or hearing. Read more…
This series of posts attempts to break down the critical thinking process into a number of steps that build upon each other. So far we’ve looked at:
* Improving the organisation of information stored in the brain,
* Analysing information in order to identify aids to critical thinking such as possible relationships and/or recognise patterns within sequences.
In this post we look in more detail at the critical thinking component itself. Read more…
In the first post in this series we said that critical thinking is all about “thinking for yourself” and that simply being critical is letting others think for you. I’m sure you don’t like the sound of that – imagine someone else controlling your mind! Fortunately it doesn’t have to be that way. Read more…
Critical thinking isn’t about what you think – it’s about how you think! Let me try to explain what I mean. Read more…
Plato believed in the existence of inner man. His perception of man has a body and soul with the spirit outside – external to man. In Plato’s view the soul existed before the body and was independent of it.
Aristotle’s philosophy moves away from the emphasis on the spirit as being external to man. Aristotle saw the spirit as the immortal soul of man. In fact, Aristotle considered there were two aspects to the soul:
– the mortal aspect which belonged to the physical body and
– the immortal aspect which belonged to the spirit.
If you are interested in digging further into Greek philosophy, both Plato and Aristotle held what are now totally unacceptable views on the status of women. In Greek society a woman’s main function was considered to be the reproduction of children
So what is metaphysics and what do we mean by the nature of man? Well, let’s start with a look at metaphysics…
The main tradition has been to use ‘metaphysics’ as a title for philosophical as distinct from scientific or experimental inquiries. Read more…
About a week ago I experienced nausea, loss of balance and hot ‘flushes’ – all in the pursuit of health! But it’s not bad news at all. You see there’s a particular practice in which such symptoms are a sign of progress. Read more…
Here’s an invitation to take a scary journey – it’s a journey to a little known state called honesty and you’ll have to travel alone through hostile territory. Read more…
Women often refer to ‘glass ceilings’ as a barrier to a successful career and rightly so. However, I suggest there is a powerful yet overlooked factor that makes the journey even more stressful. Read more…
In the “National Interest” is a term much favoured by politicians to invoke support for policy implementation. But what does it really mean – in fact, does it have meaning at all and why it is so effective? Read more…
While there is much focus, and rightly so, on the efforts of various governments to control the flow of information on the Internet there are other and perhaps more sneaky restrictions on your freedom to choose that are often overlooked. Read more…
People often complain about governments always taking. But governments can be benevolent too! Just look at how readily governments around the world are acting to protect us from information overload Read more…
TV presentations of celebrity chefs seem to be in vogue. And it seems obligatory for celebrity chefs to be bad tempered. So I ask myself how can angry chefs produce good food… they must do because most of them own restaurants that have been awarded Michelin hats. Read more…
In this post I’m going to explore the potential for a world without leaders. I’m going to argue that, whether or not it is intentional, leaders act like parasites in that they suck the life-force and value out of followers. Read more…
Negatives can be positives and, no, I’m not about to announce an astounding new breakthrough in psychotherapy. Instead, it’s high-fives time for your nose! Read more…
I felt the urge to start with the theme of a popular TV advertisement and say “my god isn’t like your god” – so I have!
You see, my god is inside not outside. If your god is outside you’ll probably, and quite rightly, want to dismiss the following discussion – I’m certainly not out to change anyone’s belief. – it’s none of my business. Read more…
I just recently moved to another house. I’d placed my furniture and appliances just where I wanted them. Now I’ve decided to move things around… for my brain’s sake! Read more…
How would you like to join me on a journey – a journey that goes “beyond the dinner plate”? It’s an exploration of food alchemy.
By food alchemy I mean the transformation of food into energy that the body can use. You see, food is not what it seems. In fact, food is very secretive and keeps its inner mysteries well hidden from view. Read more…
So what is it about darkness that makes it both magic and powerful? Read more…
In this two-part series I want to explore the effect of darkness – as in a lack of light – on our senses. I’m not yet sure how it might unfold so while I gather my thoughts a bit of scene-setting might be in order.
And what better way than by using the lyrics to “The Music Of The Night” from “The Phantom Of The Opera” by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The song is about seduction. Read more…
Honestly, I’ve never seen so many people walking around water bottle in hand – it must be at pandemic proportions!
If that’s you… do you know why? Perhaps you’ve heard that it’s supposedly healthy to drink lots of water or maybe you’ve seen the slogan “drink 6 to 8 glasses of water each day”. Read more…
