From "Mind" to "Supermind": A Statement of Aurobindonian Approach
ABSTRACT: In contrast to Western theories of mind, Aurobindo’s theory is comprehensive and holistic. This theory derives from his ontology. With respect to mind, Aurobindo contends that evolution will not stop with homo sapien. Rather, he posits higher levels of consciousness: Higher Mind, Illumined Mind, Intuitive Mind, Overmind, and Supermind. Higher Mind is an intermediary between the Truth-light above and the human mind. Illumined Mind is Spiritual light. Intuitive Mind possesses swift revelatory vision and luminous insight. Overmind acts as an intermediary between Supermind and Intuitive Mind. Supermind contains the self-determining truths of Divine Consciousness; it is the Real-Idea inherent in all cosmic force and existence.
The various concepts and theories of mind prevalent today have had their origin and development in the West. They can be classified as : Psycho-analytical (cf., Sigmund Freud, Karl Jung, A. Adler), Behavioural (cf., Gilbert Ryle), Gestalt (cf., Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, Wolfgang Kohler), Physiological (cf., J. J. C. Smart, U. T. Place, Feigl), Psycho-physical (cf., Karl Popper), Evolutionary (cf., Henry Bergson, Samuel Alexander, Whitehead), Functional (cf., R. Rorty, Peter Smith, O. R. Jones), and Mental or Homo Sapiens-oriented (cf., Roger Penrose). The outcome of all such discussions is that "mind" is mysterious and beyond all scientific explanation. According to the main contemporary view, in particular, `there is something essential in human understanding that is not possible to simulate by any computational means’. This indicates that the nature of mind continues to remain a source of acute discomfort to the Western thinkers. Even their new empirical findings regarding the highly complex mental acitivity is dubious. The object of this paper is to submit that in this context of the West’s indecisiveness and perplexity, Aurobindo’s approach to mind comes as a breath of fresh air.
Aurobindo’s theory of mind is as much "inclusive" of the essence of the Western schools of thinkers cited above, as it is "contrastive". The pioneers in this area from William James and McDougall through Freud, Jung and Adler etc, established the paradigm of the "iceberg" with reference to the nature of mind. This can be designated as the "infra-structural" theory of the entity. The views of the "evolutionists" (Darwin, Laplace, Bergson, S. Alexander, Whitehead, for instance,) are "different" but not "enriching". All of them fail to recognise that any infra-structure can, and must have, logically speaking, a "supra-structure" as well, in order to be complete and holistic.
Explain the way in which Smart argues that brain-processes are identical to mental sensations with respect to what he says about topic-neutral sensation language.
Throughout history, women are often included as a side note to occurrences of their ages, most often seen as small and unimportant among patriarchs. Despite this shortcoming in historical documentations, some events do look more closely through the eyes of women. The French Revolution of the eighteenth century is one of these events. This investigation will be exploring the French Revolution, and asking: to what extent did women make an impact? In Thomas Streissguth’s book, Women of the French Revolution, he highlights several women of France, while also analyzing their contribution to the course of the revolution. With his book as a major source, the investigation will explore the topics of women’s riots and salons, individual women, and women as a whole.
The idea of difficult love is very often explored through the motif of” love out of balance”. (SparkNotes Editors, 2002) This loss of balance is represented in the asymmetrical love between Athenians – Hermia loves Lysander and he loves her back. On the other hand Helena loves Demetrius, but Demetrius loves Hermia, instead of Helena. Thus we have this love misbalance leaving one woman with too many suitors and another with no suitors at all.
In this essay I will argue that Rosenthal's Higher Order Thought Theory provides a possible account of conscious awareness, in doing so addresses and gets to solve the mind-body problem for that particular mental phenomenon.
Functionalism is a materialist stance in the philosophy of mind that argues that mental states are purely functional, and thus categorized by their input and output associations and causes, rather than by the physical makeup that constitutes its parts. In this manner, functionalism argues that as long as something operates as a conscious entity, then it is conscious. Block describes functionalism, discusses its inherent dilemmas, and then discusses a more scientifically-driven counter solution called psychofunctionalism and its failings as well. Although Block’s assertions are cogent and well-presented, the psychofunctionalist is able to provide counterarguments to support his viewpoint against Block’s criticisms. I shall argue that though both concepts are not without issue, functionalism appears to satisfy a more acceptable description that philosophers can admit over psychofunctionalism’s chauvinistic disposition that attempts to limit consciousness only to the human race.
In the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, there are a lot of various sorts of love by using different situation in different diverse circumstances. However, we’re going to pick three types of love in this essay Parental Love, False love, and True love. Parental love is shown when Egeus want his daughter to marry a man she does not love. False love is shown when Theseus and Hippolyta are going to get married because he won her in a battle. True love shown when Hermia and Lysander relationship, they runned off despite her father wishes. love is uncertain but, the fact that you never know where it might end up is the mystery. Much the same as in the play who knew whether Hermia and Lysander will end up together, or Helena and Demetrius yet love
Hermia’s father wants her to marry Demetrius: “Stand forth, Demetrius. -My noble lord,- this man hath my consent to marry her,” (1.1.25-26.9). However, Hermia is deeply in love with Lysander: “Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes and interchanged love tokens with my child,” (1.1.29-30.9). Hermia betrays her father by refusing to marry Demetrius because she is loyal to Lysander. Theseus’ threat to Hermia to either “die the death, or to abjure forever the society of men,” (1.1.9.67-68.11) does not phase her feelings. To be able to be together, Hermia and Lysander are willing to run away and leave behind their friends and family: “There gentle Hermia, may I marry thee; and to that place the sharp Athenian law cannot pursue us,” (1.1.163-164.17). While in the forest, Lysander wants to sleep beside Hermia, but she expresses her discomfort with this. Lysander accepts her wishes and does not pressure her into anything: “O, take the sense, sweet, of my innocence!” (2.2.51.57). This is a sign of real love, that he is patient with her and does not force her to do something she is not ready for. In the climax, Lysander is placed under the magic potion and falls in love with Helena: “And yours of Helena to me bequeath, whom I do love and will do till my death,” (3.2.169-170.93). Hermia becomes upset and jealous that Lysander has left her: “What love could press Lysander from my side?” (3.2.189.95). The only reason
In the first scene of the play you are introduced to the duke of Athens, Theseus, who lays down the law for Hermia. Hermia, the daughter of Egeus, desires to go against her father’s wishes of marrying Demetrius, and instead marry Lysander. Theseus firmly states to Hermia, “Either to die the death or to abjure forever the society of men”; which simply put, Theseus gives Hermia the option to die or to no longer enjoy the company of men (Crowther). Furthermore he means to send her to a nunnery. This exemplifies the first variation of love within this play: arranged love, i.e. arranged marriage. Theseus then gives the order to Hermia that she must have her decision by his own wedding day with Hippolyta, thus giving her four days to decide her fate.
One could say it is the transference of a person mental anguish into physical issues. Individuals with somatization disorder may complain about their symptoms in a very dramatic way, yet describe the symptoms in very vague or unclear terms. They may also visit more than one doctor for diagnosis and treatment for the same symptoms, have test results that do not confirm any medical illness to explain their symptoms. A person with somatization disorder is not intentionally producing or pretending to experience these physical complaints. You should have at least one reference in this
In Act I Scene I, Egeus, father of Hermia, is clearly upset with his daughter’s choice in Lysander as a suitor. Egeus’ has so much love for Demetrius that he has chosen him to be Hermia’s husband in an arranged marriage. Egeus’ desire to have Hermia marry Demetrius is so strong that he would rather Hermia be dead than marry another. Egeus implores upon Theseus, “As she is mine, I may dispose of her, which shall be either to this
Are minds physical things, or are they nonmaterial? If your beliefs and desires are caused by physical events outside of yourself, how can it be true that you act the way you do of your own free will? Are people genuinely moved by the welfare of others, or is all behavior, in reality, selfish? (Sober 203). These are questions relevant to philosophy of the mind and discussed through a variety of arguments. Two of the most important arguments with this discussion are Cartesian dualism and logical behaviorism, both of which argue the philosophy of the mind in two completely different ways. Robert Lane, a professor at the University of West Georgia, define the two as follows: Cartesian dualism is the theory that the mind and body are two totally different things, capable of existing separately, and logical behaviorism is the theory that our talk about beliefs, desires, and pains is not talk about ghostly or physical inner episodes, but instead about actual and potential patterns of behavior. Understanding of the two arguments is essential to interpret the decision making process; although dualism and behaviorism are prominent arguments for the philosophy of the mind, both have their strengths and weaknesses.
Speculations on the origin of the mind have ranged from ghosts to society. Each new theory brings about more speculation and disagreement than the last. Where the mind resides, where it came from and if the brain has any involvement with the concept are common questions that fuel theory paradigms. Those questions are also the foundation of the debate about the roll of experience versus the existence of innate capacities. Steven Pinker theorizes the mind as a computing system created by the brain to fill the gap between innate capacities and capacities missing using common sense and learned critical thinking skills.
One of the most fascinating topics for philosophers throughout time has been the topic of the human mind and how it works. Many have tried to understand where people’s thoughts come from and how they are influenced. A person’s mind is most popularly thought of in two parts: the consciousness and the unconsciousness. While the consciousness is typically easy to understand the unconsciousness is more of a mystery to people, and is most often shown through dreams. Despite both having their flaws, the unconsciousness is best understood through Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud’s views on it.
A.I.: Artificial Intelligence is a Steven Spielberg science fiction drama film, which conveys the story of a younger generation robot, David, who yearns for his human mother’s love. David’s character stimulates the mind-body question. What is the connection between our “minds” and our bodies?
Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind In Society:the development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, Ma: Harvard University Press.