Last week, at the invitation of my world religions teacher from my time at Belmont University a decade ago, I gave a talk to two sections of her World Religions class about what spirituality means to me while being an atheist. I have re-recorded it for people who expressed curiosity at the subject material, aiming to make a case for how I arrive at a concept of “god” through an analytical understanding of the natural world that rejects any kind of supernatural element.
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Introduction
2:41 - My background
5:46 - Thought Experiment: Multiple Personalities
8:37 - Memories In Dreams
9:50 - How Computers Work
12:12 - Thought Experiment: The Rubber Band Ball
14:28 - Tiny Yet Huge
19:02 - What is "Me"?
24:21 - Bending Physics
26:53 - Free Will
28:22 - Determinism vs Fatalism
34:53 - Back To The Beginning
39:39 - Where Is My Consciousness?
45:03 - The Source is Irrelevant
47:04 - Mysticism
50:17 - Psychedelics
54:00 - Free Will and Flat Earth
56:31 - Integration Into Life
1:03:33 - Overestimating Free Will
1:07:09 - Hating People
1:09:11 - Cultivating Curiosity
1:11:21 - Deconstructing Consciousness
1:16:01 - The Role of Wonder
1:20:39 - Resources
EXTERNAL RESOURCES
Guided meditations (including introductory course)
“free will” argument from Sam Harris (“Theory” tab, bottom)
Lectures on nature of mind (“Theory” tab)
Lectures for ideas to actively apply to daily life (“Life” tab)
Alan Watts’ entire audio catalogue (“Theory” tab)
Brené Brown – “Unlocking Us” Podcast (on Spotify)
(episode topic: are people actually doing their best?)
Rami Shapiro
Audiobook – How To Be A Holy Rascal (totally separate set of information)
Stephen Batchelor books (Buddhist ex-monk)
“You Are Two” (5-minute YouTube video)
what happens when the left and right brain can’t talk to each other?
The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat - Oliver Sacks (Book/Audiobook)
Explores a number of neurological disorders, revealing (to me) all of the constructs of everyday consciousness we are unaware of being pieces of a precariously balanced whole
Chimp Empire – Netflix
4-episode series following the activities of two tribes of chimps in Uganda, and the striking parallels to human behavior
“I Was Almost A School Shooter” – Aaron Stark’s story, and how he has since prevented multiple suicides and shootings
TED Talk (7 minutes)
Spotify Podcast (1 hour; includes graphic descriptions and language, listener discretion advised)
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