A Centertao member recently said on the Forum, “Philosophers see a subtle difference between two anti-Realist philosophies: “Dialectical Monism” and “Non-Dualism”. Well, I don’t doubt it!
It is difficult, if not impossible, for anyone to communicate things as simply as they are. The difficulty lies in subtle semantic differences. Oddly, we readily discount this, the weakest aspect of cognition, and so end up talking passed each other.
We might better avoid talking passed each other if we mutually knew what we meant by the words we use for thinking and speaking. Evidently, that is asking for too much. The impatient human mind wants to nail down its thoughts as quick as possible and move on to greener pastures of cognition. We innately care more about the result than the process that gets us there.
Without thoroughly examining the tools — the words and names — we use to frame our thoughts, we just keep beating around the bush of reality. Chapter 81 hints at why we take semantics so lightly: Truthful words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not truthful. Good words are not persuasive; persuasive words are not good. He who knows has no wide learning; he who has wide learning does not know. (Note: The Correlation process, p.565, can help examine humanity’s “tools” of thought.)
From Nature’s point of view is there any “beautiful” or “ugly”, “true” or “false”, “good” or “bad”? Indeed, that we see such polar distinctions says volumes about our biases, our needs and fears. There is nothing wrong with this naturally! This urge to classify and judge our experience makes the world go round. Still, how different would the human condition be if everyone were aware of the molehills of reality that lie beneath the emotional and cognitive mountains we feel and imagine?
Yet, we may be more aware of nature’s non-polarized unity than I feel. In truth, we all are ‘wise sages’ in life until the moment we have an emotional stake in any one of life’s situations. Our emotional stakes blind us; all we see is the reflection of what is important to us. I find this spooky because it is so obvious and yet such a disregarded fact of life.