Someone here

@DocWatts @Bobby_2021 To answer the question of what's outside the universe, we first need to define exactly what we mean by "universe." If you take it to mean literally all the things that could possibly exist in all of space and time, then there can't be anything outside the universe. Even if you imagine the universe to have some finite size, and you imagine something outside that volume, then whatever is outside also has to be included in the universe. Even if the universe is a formless, shapeless, nameless void of absolutely nothing, that's still a thing and is counted on the list of "all the things" and, hence, is, by definition, a part of the universe. If the universe is infinite in size, you don't really need to worry about this conundrum. The universe, being all there is, is infinitely big and has no edge, so there's no outside to even talk about. Oh, sure, there's an outside to our observable patch of the universe. The cosmos is only so old, and light only travels so fast. So, in the history of the universe, we haven't received light from every single galaxy. The current width of the observable universe is about 90 billion light-years. And presumably, beyond that boundary, there's a bunch of other random stars and galaxies.

@Gesundheit2 no I'm being honest and real and straightforward. All these things need to change. Including me mentally masturbating on this forum about useless shit . That has to change. I can have a better use of my time. Like working on my life purpose. Discovering my life purpose first. I don't even know what my life purpose is .I don't know why I have to get out of bed in the morning. To go through the same mediocre life that actualizes less than 1% of my true potential. I know my life can be epic and magical. But If I want significant results ,I have to perform significant effort .

So I need a fresh start in my life . I need to take shit seriously more . basically I'm trying to get my shit together in life . Somethings need to change .I need to quit : Smoking. Porn and masturbation. Junk food . Mental masturbation. Procrastination. spending too much time in this forum mentally masturbating. University's new semester begins in mid June . My plan is to finish my business degree. Find a job so that I can afford myself buying a house and finding a girl to marry. This will require time and effort and dedication. It's not a one night deal. Its a life long journey to my dream life. One of my goals also to work out an build a strong body . I can't go to the gym for reasons I'm not going to mention here. But have some basic equipments in the house so I can workout at home . To notice a macro significant change will require years of dedication and work towards the right thing and avoiding the bad stuff . The obstacles I have to find a girlfriend or to get married: I need to fix some issues about my appearance . This can be done in the gym . I need to finish my business degree and that's gonna take few years since I'm still in first grade. Finding a way to earn money to afford for buying a new house and escape mom's basement . Actually finding a girl to marry and that can only happen through social circles. As I'm not expecting that I will attract hot girls from clubs and whatnot. But I'm determined to change my life to the better .. I need to first be fulfilling the basic needs on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Then I can move on to something higher .like seeking god or awakening. I also want kids . My sister recently gave birth to a baby . He is beautiful and cute .I'm a little bit jealous. Why not me ? Why can't I be a father? Well I guess that takes work to achieve.

A theory of everything (ToE) is a proposed theory which combines consistently the two well known and well verified theories in physics of general relativity and quantum field theory. If one could find such a theory, it could help understand questions of dark matter and black holes, as well provide the most fundamental description of our universe. There are two major candidates for a ToE, string theory (or M-theory) and loop quantum gravity. Both, however, still have issues, even after being worked on for 30+ years. My thoughts are that there are three possible reasons why such a ToE has not been discovered. Either scientist are not trying hard enough (doubtful), we need to wait for more data (could take a generation), or more interestingly, such a ToE is fundamentally impossible. This is the question I wish to discuss here: Is a ToE fundamentally possible? I propose there is something fundamental about the universe which is unknowable. Given we live in the universe, and take measurements within it, we interact with the universe. The only completely closed system is the universe itself. Thus one could only completely understand the universe by observing it from outside the universe. Since this is not possible, neither is a ToE. Or is it that a current candidate for a ToE will get closer and closer to the physical reality of the universe as it gets modified and changed, but only reach an exact description as time goes to infinity?

@Preety_India I clearly said that these are long term goals .they won't happen over night. But they require years of hard work first. so it's not like having kids is in my to-do list for today or something like that..it's a long term project towards my dream life .

@thisintegrated what's the philosopher's stone?

I can't do it through academia. I study business in university. I think that Becoming a philosopher is more about developing my own, independent thinking capabilities. Unfortunately, developing the ability to think freely ,to think without the constraints that so severely restrict most people’s capacity for free thinking is incredibly difficult. So, it would really help to have a guide - a tutor. Unlike the previous generation, this era requires doing philosophers and not thinking types. I think the only option left for me is to Get thinking, get doing and keep writing about it in my own personal diary or in a blogpost (if if want to make the world know that I'm a philosopher). I think I know that I can't take the academic route..I will choose the social media path . I'm thinking of compiling my ideas into a book and try to sell it or upload it online on amazon and that way I can start my philosophical business.

@VeganAwake @WelcometoReality What you (perhaps) don't understand is that all these things are relative. "you" "ego" depends on the definition. If we define "me" as the physical body.. Then certainly "me" exists. If we define "me" as a unicorn.. Then certainly "me" doesn't exist. Also.. Unity doesn't make sense without the concept of separation. Nothing makes sense without its opposition (that which is not it). None of these things are Absolute Truth. if there is no me.. Then who is it that you are trying to discredit? And if there is no me.. How can me realize that there is no me? ... This whole' no self ' business.. The entire Buddhist doctrine that teaches no-self could be easily debunked by simply saying "I'm this body right here. This organism that breaths and eats and sleeps..".are you going to say body is a thought and whatnot? Sorry but that is just utter nonsense. I'm really not baby-sitting anyone or here. I'm a hardcore Truth seeker. I identify as that. And I ask you to respect this. Body is an object that you have actual sensual direct experience of. I'm sorry I need to point such obvious things.

That doesn't Rob me from my motivation to become a philosopher. We are no longer living in the dark ages where people get burned on the stake for their thoughts. And Nietzsche actually did lose his goddam mind at the end of his career. So what? Doesn't mean I will end up like him .

I like to think that the most important philosophy,in the sense that it touches on every other facet of philosophy is the type that cannot be classified. The broadest branches of philosophy are often said to be ethics, metaphysics, and epistemology. But would you say that Kant was an ethicist, metaphysician, or epistemologist? He was all of these. And it was not merely that he worked in all three fields, but rather his philosophical system based on transcendental idealism inevitably touched on them all. Similar things can be said for Wittgenstein, Socrates, Heidegger…

That's nice but this isn't a handy or practical advice. I want to be a professional philosopher. Like it has to be my "job ". It has to be what I do for a living . How exactly to do that? I still haven't figured it out yet. Maybe I should start read the Greek classics: Plato, Aristotle, etc. The entire Western culture has been brought up on these classics, they were required reading for anyone who could read for 2,000 years and so have shaped Western culture and thinking. Almost all of modern Western thought derives from the Greek classical philosophers as its foundation.

@Michael569 @Leo Gura Of course I'm serious and I care about understanding reality accurately. That's why I follow your work and that's why I post in this forum. I use this forum as a good outlet to my philosophical inquiries. But even though I follow your work..I want to be an independent thinker rather than a reader of philosophers.that’s exactly what i SHOULDN’T do. The people who recommend me to read as much philosophers as i can clearly do not know what philosophy is about. I'm young, i will have plenty of time to read about what other philosophers have to say about life and everything that goes with it. Reading them will stunt my growth in terms of independent thinking (i will just quote what others have said instead of critically thinking on my own). In case i don't make it to a philosophy degree..I'm also interestedI in the following fields : anthropology(all of them, especially physical and cultural), Science or similar(biology/chemistry/math/computer sci, physics, etc), psychology, and even art. I like to study the world and the people and the laws we are governed by (man created and natural). When I'm filled with all this knowledge, then i can start discussing topics that are controversial (i should start with simple things at first) and see how i can criticize or back it up. So yes..I'm totally passionate about philosophical fields. The only question is I don't know how to Make a career out of it .as I study business in university. I don't know should I start a blog or a website or a YouTube channel and start publishing my insights ? Should I write a book ?like what are all the practicalities of becoming a true philosopher .? I think by asking that question, i have started. Philosophy is about questioning what we think we know, and how important it may be. I don't believe that will lead me down a paying career, though.

Everyone knows the truth very well . The only question is do you have the balls to handle it? Most people don't.

All of that is imaginary. Notice this. anything you are NOT directly experiencing right now is something you are imagining. There is only the what's in front of you right this very moment and nothing else

I have two conflicting urges regarding this topic .. On the one hand, a burning ambition to create, build and succeed, in the traditional sense of the word. On the other, an intense desire for a simpler, less complicated life..a minimalist life. It always felt like I had an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other, advocating for two distinct approaches that were in irreconcilable conflict. A big part of my struggle stemmed from (what turned out to be) an unfounded fear. a belief that minimalism is a bastion of the unambitious. I had big things I wanted to achieve, so I resisted adopting the identity of someone who would settle for less. I finally became so sick and tired of my mental machinations and scarcity thinking that I committed to finding the antidote to fear, which is knowledge. By studying minimalist philosophies, I came to understand that my seemingly contradictory impulses could coexist. A revelation and reconciliation: It became clear that a minimalist mindset doesn’t stand in the way of ambition. It’s what enables the pursuit of big dreams. I realized that owning less could free me to achieve more.

I recently figured that the less stuff that is going on in my life..the more happy and fulfilling my life becomes. The more crowded and busy my life is ...the more anxious and depressed and harder my life gets . I'm really considering being a minimalist. I mean there is no need for great ambitions and building a wealth and banging hot women ...all of that is nonsense and it will never make you truly happy . If you have food ,water, shelter, health etc and the basics of life handled .then you can bask in the beauty and joy of just existing. The problem is..After a human is born, their life bends toward a sequence of stockpiling. They flounder through puberty, become an adult, and accumulate possessions and relationships and careers and credit cards until they feel the weight of excess. To “remedy” their situation, they attempt to organize their hoard, trading their “wrong” things for the “right” things, going into debt, working hard to collect cars and clothes and cosmetics that merely get in the way. None of it makes them happier. When the stuff ceases to fill the void, they create new clutter.mental clutter, emotional clutter, spiritual clutter..always chasing more as the antidote to the chaos. They never stop to consider less. Maybe now is the time. For your consideration: Less Is Now. Less is more .

Meditation. Concentration (Concentrate on a single object for a fucking hours). Self inquiry as taught by Raman Maharshi. Watching Leo's videos .

"This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes" Here there is a hint that taking some psychedelics (5-meo), mystical experiences (Samadhi) will turn you into a seeker for life. The blue pill is never having enough faith to seek one of those experiences, and continue to live an ordinary life. The red pill is having the courage to have one, taking the risk to see that everything you thought to be true is a lie. "What is real ? How do you define real ? If you're talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain" "Have you ever had a dream Neo, that you were so sure was real? What if you were unable to wake from that dream? How would you know the difference between the dream world, and the real world?" Pretty straight forward teaching about how what we call « reality » as no more legitimacy than our dreams. There is no way to differentiate the two, because unless you have a lucid dream, you have no idea you’re dreaming. Your last dream was also full of realistics perceptions (electrical signals interpreted by your « brain »). So by definition, there is never a time that you can be sure that this life is « real » in the traditional sense of the term. "You ever have that feeling where you're not sure if you're awake or still dreaming ?" Early line from Neo in the movie, it hint something extremely simple. If you actually stay alone for a long enough time, and if you had some experiences in lucid dreaming you can’t say you’re not dreaming. You would honestly not know.

I agree. And furthermore..when you consider the alternative to existence, which is nothingness. Although we can abstractly conceive of nothingness, it is impossible to have a nothing, it is impossible to create a nothing, and there is no such thing as pure emptiness or nothingness. Nothing does not exist, and it cannot exist, because if it existed then it would not be a nothing anymore it would be a something. In other words, reality exists because the alternative, nothingness, is impossible. The notion that reality was somehow created out of nothing is an inherently human idea. The fact that reality exists indicates that it has always existed and it must always exist in one form or another, stretching or collapsing infinitely through time in all directions. If something exists, that something must have always existed, because it is impossible to turn a something into a nothing; where would you put your something when you created your nothing?

I think the metaphor is like this..When Morpheus asks Neo to choose between a red pill and a blue pill, he essentially offers the choice between fate and free will. In the Matrix, fate rules .since the world is preconstructed and actions predetermined, all questions already have answers and any choice is simply the illusion of choice. In the real world, humans have the power to change their fate, take individual action, and make mistakes. Neo chooses the red pill...real life.and learns that free will isn’t pretty. The real world is a mess, dangerous and destitute. Pleasure exists almost entirely in the world of the Matrix, where it’s actually only a computer construct. Cypher, who regrets choosing the red pill and ultimately chooses to return to the Matrix, views any pleasure, even false pleasure, as better than no pleasure at all. Neo, Morpheus, Trinity, and the others in Zion, of course, value free will and reality no matter how unpleasant they may be. The trilogy simply suggests that everyone has the individual responsibility to make the choice between the real world and an artificial world.

@Osaid I think the film makers most certainly did not intend to hint at what i said, although too many similarities for it to be a coincidence.

Because what else am I? I mean I'm here .here is my body ,my face ,my arms, my legs ,my balls etc ..apparently I do have some kind of existence. Otherwise this entire conversation couldn't happen . I like to distinguish between the false ego self and the true Self. The ego self is a construction of mind. Even the tree you see is a construction of mind so it is not so far fetched that this elaborate mind construction of a self is nothing more than delusion. It is however very necessary and useful . Without a sense of self you wouldn't know who's shoes to put on in the morning, as Alan Watts puts it lol. Well..you then need to observe it more carefully next time you fall asleep .

You have no experience of time when you are sleeping. Whether you slept for 10 hours or 5 hours makes no difference from your POV while sleeping. Both happen like a blink of an eye.

Instead of “No Self” we should use No fixed Self. To cut this short (and speak about no-self) is a mistake. And if you want a deeper understanding of this, then the original concept was not about the “self’. It is rather about rejecting having a fixed soul (as taught in Hinduism) Buddhism is based on the Principle of Impermanence. Nothing is fixed forever. Because the “soul” is something you cannot change to another soul .. then it becomes like a permanent mental prison Hence, Buddhism teaches the No Fixed Soul. Now if you observe your perception of your won “Self” - when you were 10 years of age, you’ll agree that it is much different than when your life expanded and perceived your “self” when being 20 or other age. The Self is dynamic. So No fixed Self is true. But that doesn't mean there is no self at all .that's definitely false and contradicts your direct experience. Why are you always angsty on me bro? If you don't like my stuff ,just leave me alone . Simple ,right?

You going around saying that there is no self, that everything is impermanence, that we are void of self, that we are nothing but our memory and our sensation. That is some Buddhist bullshit. Who is having the thought 'there is no self'? Imagine yourself being a bat. You can imagine how it is, but you shall never know what it really feels like to be a bat, thus there is something intrinsic in being something. If we can't simulate being a bat that would mean that there is another unknown component that only the thing itself can know.