Jesusbudda’s Weblog

Ahhh, the idea of Free Will….

Do we have ‘free will’ or is it simply that we’ve convinced ourselves that free will exists?

The idea that we control our path or direction in life is often taken for granted, but what if we have no control and instead are pre-programmed?
What if our destiny is not actually ‘ours’?
And if our destiny is out of our control, who or what the hell is in control of our thoughts and actions???

Before I go on, I’d like to point out that this is probably the most I’ve ever written on one of my postings ever! Do not be afraid. The following posting has pictures to make it all more bearable!

Oh, I see you there smirking as you lay back in your chair and smugly rub your chin.
You’re thinking: “What a load of Jesus Budda bullshit! That stupid, ignorant cult leader is talking crap again”.

So you think you have free will, eh?

Well then, how come I could read your mind?
The very fact you are reading my posting should make you stop and think: “did I read this post by Jesus Budda by choice or am I simply following orders to read this post?”

And even if you now stop reading because you believe I am talking shit, how do you know that I didn’t want you to stop reading at this point?

What are ‘you’?

I’m talking specifically about you and not humans in general?
What makes you think that you have choice?
Is it because you decide what you want to do on a day-to-day basis?
What pair of underpants you do/don’t put on?
What you watch on television?

Surely most of those things are merely society-induced actions?
What you can view on television, for example, what others have predestined what have created; what the TV networks decide to put on the schedules.

The same goes for your underwear.
The very idea of underwear is a society invention, which was beyond your control.
Wearing or not wearing them is a choice given to you by others. If underwear didn’t exist, you wouldn’t have the choice to wear them.

It’s the supermarket theory.

Supermarkets are full of stuff. People go to them and think that they have all the choice in the world as regards value, quality of items and price.
But you can only buy what is on display.
You can only choose what is before you.
What is put in supermarkets is a selection.

The same goes for free will.

The alternative to free will is pre-destiny.

Well, I should say that pre-destiny is an alternative.
There are probably an infinite number of alternatives to free will.
But, because we like the idea of free will so much we tend to only think that the only other alternative is the direct opposite.

When you are born you are basically a sponge for learning or picking up things.
You learn to walk.
You learn to smile.

You learn to speak. If you are surrounded by Chinese, French and Indonesian headhunters as a baby you learn to speak Chinese, French and…whatever the hell Indonesian head hunters speak.
Why you would grow up in such a bizarre situation I have no idea!

You adapt to your surroundings.

You start crying at birth but as time goes on you start to notice that your crying attracts attention and you start doing it more often so as to get what you want.
But is it what you want?
Surely it is more what your body needs?
Surely when you cry to be fed, it is more an automatic response to your body demanding sustenance.
When, as a baby, your mother/father leaves the room you freak out and start crying (again). Is this because you genuinely miss them or the learned response that being alone leaves you vulnerable and the body wants to protect itself from harm?

These are reactions rather than actions.
It’s a bit like putting your hand in the fire by accident and then withdrawing it quickly by instinct.

If free will existed, surely there would be more strange stuff happening amongst people?
But instead, people tend to be remarkably similar.
You could say that the group mentality destroys a certain amount of individuality but what if the group is the individual?
What if we – including both humans and all forms of ‘life’ – are just cells in a greater ‘thing’?

When you think about it, everything is a theory.

Nothing can be proven or unproven for definite – because who decides what is definitive and the idea of something being definitive in the first place is a creation of the mind. And as we’ve (I’ve?) discussed, the mind may not exist in the first place or be controlled by some other process.

The Giant Shoe

My friend Eksith made a comment on this blog a few weeks ago in which he pondered the existence of the Giant Shoe Temple that is so central to the Cult of Jesus Budda.
He wondered (I’m sure after much deep, considerationJ) whether the Shoe already existed or whether it was something that was in process of awaiting to be made.
I know we are talking about a Giant Shoe here, but it has implications for free will and existence in general (as if you can get any less general than ‘existence’):

Either there is and has always been a Giant Shoe Temple or there is no Shoe Temple.
If you choose to believe there is a Giant Shoe Temple or that there has never and never will be one, how can you be sure you are right or wrong – plus how can you be sure that you in fact were in control of your choice in the first place?
If I hadn’t put the idea of a Giant Shoe Temple into your mind you wouldn’t be aware of it.
And if you weren’t aware of the Giant Shoe Temple, you wouldn’t have been in the position to choose to believe or not believe in it.
Your choice was a reaction – a simple ‘on-off switch’ type situation.
Ignore the Giant Shoe Temple and move on, or accept the Giant Shoe Temple and all that goes along with such a mighty architectural beast!
Not so much free will but a primitive survival instinct, really.
Pleasure or pain?
Tea or coffee?

I’d love a mug of tea and a piece of cake right now…..

Whichever way you ‘choose’, I will accept all PayPal donations to the Jesus Budda Cult Fund. Your payment through PayPal will be safe and secure.
You can donate as little or (preferably) as much as you can afford.

May the power of Jesus Budda be with you!