I Can't Believe It!!

'I can't believe it,' is one of those phrases that we all are quite familiar with. Ever thought about why we say it? I mean, ever wonder what really causes disbelief?

To figure that one out; we have to take a look at what a belief is. What is it really to believe? Webster-dictionary.net defines believe as: To exercise belief in; to credit upon the authority or testimony of another; to be persuaded of the truth of, upon evidence furnished by reasons, arguments, and deductions of the mind, or by circumstances other than personal knowledge; to regard or accept as true; to place confidence in; to think; to consider; as, to believe a person, a statement, or a doctrine.

So in order to believe something; we have to take somebody else's word for it. A belief is something that a person has been persuaded to take as truth. It has nothing to do with first hand knowledge or experience. To know something and to believe something are altogether entirely different.

To believe requires the mind. It requires the super advanced computer of intellect to weigh the evidence presented and make a judgment call. Trouble with this is; the mind is usually under control of the primitive ego. The ego identifies with beliefs making them part of your identity. So many people have made part of their identity something that is not part of their true life experience.

The egoic mind is not involved with raw experience. It is not involved with true knowledge. You gain true knowledge through raw experience. It is the egoic mind that then interprets this experience. To illustrate this; notice the weather. You can see a weather forecast and choose to believe it or not. That is a judgment call on your mind's behalf. When you go outside; it is not your mind that tells you it is hot and hazy out there. It is the pure sensory experience. This is true knowledge. Nobody can convince you otherwise because it is first hand experience.

So what about 'not believing it'? When people say that they, "can't believe it;" they are speaking the pure truth. Notice than when people can't believe something; it is usually a first hand experience. If it is not first hand, it is from a source that is known to be factual. The reason this phrase stands up to its literal meaning is; if you experience something, you do not have to believe it. You know it. Belief only gets in the way at that point.

When people can not believe something; they have the experience of something that their mind did not expect. Once again; belief is in the mind. This could be something they think is extremely good. It could be something thought of as horrible. Nevertheless, it is an experience that surpasses all expectations of the egoic mind.

'I can't believe it,' is a phrase of that confirms that we are more than our minds. We have perception and experience that can leave the mind behind. The mind is a tool used for making judgments, after all. Without our perceptual abilities; there would be nothing to judge.

Do you believe me? It does not matter. I do not want to persuade or convince you of anything. I want you to see for yourself. It is the only way to truly know.

For a more in depth explanation of these concepts; read What Is Really Good? and stay tuned to this blog.

2 comments:

bometernally said...

Great contemplation material! You are so right in regard to not believing something is purely a "mind thing" and not direct experience! You are totally on that the egoic mind is not prepared for the direct experience. So true that to "see" for yourself is your direct experience.

Derek said...

One mind! I see what you mean exactly from your post on my blog.


All I have to do now it to take care that I don't believe you! It's OK though, I see it... But now it's gone! Into the domain of belief perhaps? I would say that it's OK to believe, but better to base our life on experience of the here and now.. Derek