Seeing and Believing

   We live in a material world which is made 'real' by our senses; seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, smelling. It is because of this apparent certainty afforded by our senses that reductionist science has taken a hold in Western society. We honestly believe that if we can see, touch, hear, taste or smell something then it really does 'exist'. Science is about being able to measure things- that can be weight, size, motion, heat or sound. These 'units of reality' fulfill the requirements of our senses and are therefore the tools that give us access to the world in its physical form.
   However, what is missing here is the fact that not everything has physical mass. What about emotions? Well, for sure they affect our physical wellbeing but in and of themselves we cannot truely measure or even place them despite brain scanning techniques, measuring chemical changes in the blood stream, the heart beat and temperature of the individual. It is possible to say that certain regions of the brain appear to be stimulated when we feel emotion but that still doesn't qualify the emotion or the type of reaction we are going to have to the feeling. As for imagination, well that is right brain thinking and beyond our capability to clearly explain so we shall just have to let that go for now - unless of course you study eastern approaches to life and the mental aspects of living. In those philosophies and sciences it is the unseen and non-measurable that take precedent, countering our western materialistic view.
   It is vital to have this point of balance since both the external world and the internal world influence our every thought, word and deed. In fact our internal world is often far more responsible for what happens in our lives. Considering yesterday's blog (Tea pots and Roses) we are unduly influenced by our beliefs even when they are totally irrational and not supported by material or factual  'evidence'. Often even when we see, hear, touch, taste or smell something we are left in a position of disbelief. Often even when all the material and measurable evidence shows us that something is 'true' we can still find ourselves in a state of disbelief and uncertainty.
   Seeing is not believing and believing is not seeing despite all that western science tries to indoctrinate us with. There are alternatives to this view, so keep an open mind. Afterall, it is how you feel about the 'evidence' that will most strongly influence your acceptance or denial of the 'facts'.