From the desk of Victor Pride
Subj: When science gets it wrong
—
Recently, I wrote about my experience with meditation.
In no un-certain terms I said this: meditation does not work. I then provided a list of clear reasons why meditation does not work.
In response I received many comments, many of them agreeing and a few of them disagreeing with me.
One commenter said this:
Mediation is scientifically proven to be beneficial, so I think I’ll take the word of science over someone looking for traffic to their website.”
I have a lot to say about science, so if you have a scientific mind you will want to read this…
WHY SCIENCE GETS IT WRONG
The commenter above referred to the “word of science”, but there is no such thing as the “word of science.”
Scientific journals are written in vague uncertainties, the same way zodiac predictions are written.
Even the definition of science is too vague to actually say anything:
Science: the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.
Huh?
I suppose it “sounds smart” but it doesn't say much of anything.
In contrast, let's look at the definition of another word…
Experience: practical contact with and observation of facts or events.
The word “experience” gives us a completely clear definition of it's meaning.
The definition of “science” leaves us scratching our heads wondering what it actually means.
This is the tricky way that science gets away with pretending to be smart and pretending to provide answers (while doing neither).
Science does not work because it promises a solution that it never provides
Science promises to give you all of life's answers but it never provides a single honest answer.
You look to science for an answer, to see if you should or shouldn't do XYZ, but science never actually provides this answer for you.
What science writers do is jumble a bunch of “smart sounding” words together.
It is impossible to tell what “science” is for or against for two reasons:
- Science isn’t a real thing, it’s a bunch of people who are afraid of stating true facts in black & white – so they hide their hypothesis in confusing, “smart sounding” language that says nothing
- For every piece of scientific literature that is “pro”, you can find in nearly equal amount scientific literature that is “anti”
Science does not ever draw a conclusion
Science starts at A and instead of going to B in a straight line, science ends up right back at A in a circle.
If science were in any way honest they would adopt the ouroboros (a snake eating it's own tail) as their symbol.
Science does not go from A to B in a straight line, they go from A right back to A in a circle.
When asked if something is good or bad, scientists cleverly say “it may do this, it may do that” and they leave it to the fans of science to interpret in any way they choose.
Because the language of science is so vague, “science” always appears to be correct to you because you can make the science say anything you want.
Science is the lazy man’s search for truth
But just like meditation, science will never give you what it promises: an answer.
In fact, there is only one way to ever get a true answer….
Forrest Gump’s mama knew the real science of life when she said, “you gonna have to figure it out for yourself.”
In other words…
Truth is always found in experience
If you don’t ever figure it out for yourself and come to a black & white conclusion, you will always be running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off because the science you rely on will always change.
They say you can only count on two things but that’s not true, you can count on three things in this life:
- Death
- Taxes
- The science will change
Until you realize this, you are nothing but a tumbleweed, always flowing with the wind, this way and that way each time “science” changes it’s mind, which it always does.
A strong belief in science kills your ability to think and learn for yourself
A strong belief in science leaves you with a complete inability to think for yourself.
The belief that “science already figured it out” leaves you with no will or desire to figure it out for yourself.
An over-reliance on science does the exact opposite of what it promises.
Instead of making you smart, it makes you stupid because it kills your ability to think and learn for yourself.
“A science mind” is a mind completely unable to think.
LIFE EXPERIENCE BEATS SCIENCE
Life experience always beats science because life experience is real and true and science is fickle gibberish.
A low IQ person like Forrest Gump who has lived life and had life experience will always be smarter than a science zombie.
Instead of living life and learning as they go along, the science addicted do no learning on their own.
In complete objective reality, idiots who know nothing of science are smarter than people who profess to love and live by science.
An idiot knows the value of experience over vague “studies” and “hypothesis”.
Because science shelters you from reality, it keeps you as dim and as docile as meditation does, while convincing you that it’s good for you.
SCIENCE IS AN ILLUSION OF TRUTH
To create an illusion of intelligence, they muddy up the definitions to the point where any science study can mean both anything and nothing.
(See the definition of science for proof.)
Science appears to give you an answer, but when you look deeper you will see the reality…
Science leaves you with no concrete answers to life
After reviewing the science you are as confused or more confused than before - always scratching your head thinking, “I just don't know what to believe anymore.”
Wouldn't it be easier, and smarter, to get a clear answer? Yes, of course. Has science ever actually provided a clear answer? No, it hasn't.
“Yes” or “No” is the only acceptable answer
If you want a real, clear, black & white answer you must ask someone who has had experience. You must get a firm yes or a firm no.
You must get the answer from someone who has “been there, done that”, not from some nerd in a lab-coat who thinks a lot of big words on a clipboard makes him smart.
Don't you think that if scientists were so smart, they would give you an answer?
If scientists actually had the answers, they would give them to you. But they don't…
How do you get an actual answer?
You only have 2 ways to ever get an answer in life:
- Learn it for yourself through life lessons
- Learn it from someone who has “been there, done that”
I'm afraid your only real option is to put down the lab-coat and the clipboard and pick up a life well lived.
If you go outside and live life, the truth of life is very easy to learn.
Life has it's own way of teaching you lessons, in a way that science simply can never do.
That is why “learning” from scientific studies is a waste of time.
You've got to learn for yourself or learn from the best
You have to figure it out for yourself or you have to learn from a straight-shooter who tells it like it is.
So…
Go live life for yourself, and listen to someone you know who has “been there, done that” and written the book on it.
When you do that, you will learn the rules of life well enough that you'll be able to play to win.
Until next time.
Your man,
-Victor Pride
PS - If you like clear, honest answers then you should quickly sign up for the B&D; email list. You'll be notified when a new clear and honest article is posted. The answer is always black and white, just the way you like it. Click here to sign up.
Thanks for basing an entire article on my on comment; I feel humbled.
Although I’m rather surprised at the release of this article so soon after you based a huge chunk of your reasoning in the “marijuana is bad for people” post on, you guessed it, science.
So which is it? Does science only apply when it suits your narrative?
Owned. Well played old chap.
Cheers Luke.
Science like….
“Brain scans showed the cannabis users had significantly blunted dopamine responses compared with the controls who had never taken the drug.
Research links marijuana use to mental health problems: anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, schizophrenia and short-term psychosis.
The most commonly reported side effects of smoking marijuana are intense anxiety and panic attacks.
Studies report that about 20% to 30% of recreational users experience such problems after smoking marijuana. The people most vulnerable are those who have never used marijuana before.
Too often cannabis is wrongly seen as a safe drug, but there is a clear link with psychosis and schizophrenia, especially for teenagers.
A 2013 study conducted by researchers from the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology at Dalhousie University investigated the link between cannabis and mental health problems, including depression, suicidal ideation and suicidal attempts, in 976 school students attending four high schools in Canada. The students were surveyed in grade 10 and 12. The researchers found that heavy cannabis use alone predicted depression, but not suicidal ideation or attempts, among high school students.”
High doses of THC are notoriously linked to the development of brief psychotic reactions, even in people who do not have schizophrenia, as well as symptoms of psychosis including depersonalization, fears of dying, irrational panic and paranoid ideas, although these symptoms often quickly abate soon after the effects of marijuana are gone.
Read more about the harmful effects of weed here and here.”
Exactly. That science. It’s blatant hypocrisy yet it goes unchallenged on here for the most part. Bizarre.
My guess is your comment pissed him off that he rushed out an article without thinking about how he’s been pushing supplements and workouts based on scientific reasoning. Also back in April, he published a bit where he describes going to the beach early and getting lost in gazing at Lady Buddha on Monkey Mountain, and Idk sounds kinda meditative to me….
When you see word “meditate” you see a person who’s sitting on floor with closed eyes, trying to silent his mind.
How this fits to “going” and “gazing”. I think article about meditation is about “meditating” by doing something. You got it?
The marijuana article was based on experience more than science. Basically, that 90 percent of potheads you meet are losers.
People consistently use science as a cop-out for having to do any research, “Oh this researcher agrees with me, case closed.” If you show them compelling evidence in the opposite direction, they plug their ears and close their eyes, coming up with a cavalcade of excuses for why you’re wrong. These people take science on faith, they believe the relative experts (priests) are preaching the most modern science (gospel), and are 100% up to date on all relevant studies (interpretations of the Bible).
It gets worse though, these people ask the most unreasonable things. One of the most amusing is that, “show me the money” attitude they have towards your position. Which means they want you to do all the research showing why something is bad while they take it on faith that whatever they like to do must be good. And when you go through the painstaking process of getting 3, 4, 5, 6 sources(like your weed article), they claim they must ALL be bogus, fake, or pseudo-science. In reality you could show them 100 research studies and it wouldn’t change their mind, because they are fundamentalists for whatever pop culture, liberal trend exists.
The truth is much simpler, they believe whatever is socially popular and justify it as good.
Another phenomenal comment. Thanks.
This comment makes no sense. In the first paragraph, you say they use science as a cop-out to avoid doing research. In the second, you get mad that they want you to do the research. In the first, you say they take science on faith. In the second, you get mad that they won’t listen to your sources (that you also take on faith, cause I know you’re not out there doing legwork on everything you argue.) You think they’re foolish because “you could show them 100 research studies and it wouldn’t change their mind”, but you’re praising someone who flat out ignores any studies on meditation while simultaneously citing studies against marijuana. If science is applied logic, I can see why you have such a problem with it.
“This comment makes no sense. In the first paragraph, you say they use science as a cop-out to avoid doing research. In the second, you get mad that they want you to do the research. In the first, you say they take science on faith. In the second, you get mad that they won’t listen to your sources (that you also take on faith, cause I know you’re not out there doing legwork on everything you argue.) You think they’re foolish because “you could show them 100 research studies and it wouldn’t change their mind”, but you’re praising someone who flat out ignores any studies on meditation while simultaneously citing studies against marijuana.”
Friend you have just described science the way I see it. Round and round in a circle.
That’s how you see science, but not that “phenomenal comment”?
haha, guys like victor don’t defend my friend
I love this comment!
Well said, Victor. Practical knowledge beats science any day.
One of the best examples I can think is of Wilma Rudolph.
Wilma Rudolph was twentieth of the twenty two children of a couple living an average everyday life.
She was physically weak, constantly sick, and almost died at the age of four by double pneumonia, scarlet fever, and polio which caused her left leg to paralyse.
The doctors (read: science) said that there was little hope that she would be able to use her leg again, let alone walk like a normal being.
But she didn’t believe them.
After eight years of physical practice, she was able to walk again…without braces.
In 1960 she competed in the Rome Olympics, and won three golds in sprints and relays, and came to be recognised as the ‘ World’s Fastest Woman.’
And when the doctors called her a super woman, she modestly said- ” I just wanted to be remembered as a hardworking woman.”
Conclusion: Do your work. Science and everything else is just BS.
Great comment Kumar, thanks.
Hmmmmmmmmm .
So when your 60 and having a heart attack . dont listen to science , just take deep breaths and pop some RED_PCT ‘) .
No, you idiot, that’s based on SCIENCE!!
Didn’t know what happen… but my man IS ON FIRE AGAIN!
🔥🔥🔥
There is some truth to it, Vic. But never think in absolutes. True science stays away from such unprovable topics like meditation or psychology. This is only the speculative pseudo science which occupies itself with such things. Science, like anything else depends on quality. Indeed, it very often is corrupt like politics, medicine etc… But true science has only to do with math. Something you can actually measure and calculate. Everything else is just some research, contemplation and philosophy.
Exactly. Science deals with “tangibles”, and therefore is reliable only as such. However, “meditation”? Looking at Psychology today, meditation, imagination and day dreaming or basically the same thing… Hard to “prove” anything about something so intangible.
Probably the only comment worth reading. Everyone else is just fighting over their opinion.
While our opinions differ from our experiences, I agree with your “experience” process of learning 100%. It IS the only real truth.
“A low IQ person like Forrest Gump who has lived life and had life experience will always be smarter than a science zombie.”
You understand Forrest Gump is a fictional character right Victor?
“Science is the lazy man’s search for truth
But just like meditation, science will never give you what it promises: an answer. ”
So you are comparing meditation to all of science? What about Red PCT, how do you think that works? Is your product based off of science? Did you not just write an article about marijuana and science?
“An idiot knows the value of experience over vague “studies” and “hypothesis”. ”
Do they? That is a very generic and contradictory statement. Any idiot use to think the Earth was the center of the universe.
Victor, if you do not have any life experience performing science you are not qualified to write articles about science.
Not to mention Gump got wealthy off the work of Steve Jobs, so…
I think he means to follow your gut and go with what works regardless of scientific studies.
“Science” doesn’t spoon-feed you the way you seem to want. Experimental results are often unclear, sometime contradictory, and always need interpretation.
“Science” isn’t some guy down the gym telling you the best way to train, or a cool relative telling you the best way to make some cash.
I’m sorry to break this to you, but “science” needs work from the people who read it as well as those who do the research. No easy answers isn’t the same as ‘no answers’.
FWIW I design studies with drugs to treat blood cancers. Yes, I use a scientific method. And yes, the results aren’t always clear-cut and don’t apply to every person. That’s why the doctors who treat cancer use their brains to look at the information and apply it.
We’ve come a long way as a species. And a lot of it is thanks to scientific thinking.
Of course there are many cases where one’s own experience should prevail over scientific consensus. But if you’re basing your conclusions about a particular topic on your experience, don’t imply that your experience applies across the board.
For instance, if meditation didn’t work for you, it’s slightly idiotic to conclude: “Meditation didn’t work for me, therefore it won’t work for you, don’t even try it, ignore all the studies that contradict my experience.”
I was waiting for an article on science and here you did it. FINALLY!!
Science is no different than religion. Both make you stupid unable to think for yourself … relaying on others opinions rather than yours
Why would a scientist be better than you why should listen to him why not him listening to him .. is it because you are stupid who want to be smart?? If so why would think a scientist will give it to you straight .. He will take advantage of you and maybe sell you things that you don’t need promising it will help while its just makes your problem even worse .. like what you said about Marijuana.
The only thing that beats science is Philosophy .. it makes you think for yourself. The only real science is thinking doubting reasoning critical thinking and living an experience.
Like George Bernard Shaw said : Science is always wrong It never solves a problem without creating 10 more.
This also apply for theories like relativity evolution big bang and quantum mechanics.. they make no sense
FUCK EINSTEIN.
“The only real science is thinking doubting reasoning critical thinking and living an experience.
Like George Bernard Shaw said : Science is always wrong It never solves a problem without creating 10 more.”
Great comment Mr. Sami, thanks.
Is that science like…
“.Brain scans showed the cannabis users had significantly blunted dopamine responses compared with the controls who had never taken the drug.
Research links marijuana use to mental health problems: anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, schizophrenia and short-term psychosis.
The most commonly reported side effects of smoking marijuana are intense anxiety and panic attacks.
Studies report that about 20% to 30% of recreational users experience such problems after smoking marijuana. The people most vulnerable are those who have never used marijuana before.
Too often cannabis is wrongly seen as a safe drug, but there is a clear link with psychosis and schizophrenia, especially for teenagers.
A 2013 study conducted by researchers from the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology at Dalhousie University investigated the link between cannabis and mental health problems, including depression, suicidal ideation and suicidal attempts, in 976 school students attending four high schools in Canada. The students were surveyed in grade 10 and 12. The researchers found that heavy cannabis use alone predicted depression, but not suicidal ideation or attempts, among high school students.”
High doses of THC are notoriously linked to the development of brief psychotic reactions, even in people who do not have schizophrenia, as well as symptoms of psychosis including depersonalization, fears of dying, irrational panic and paranoid ideas, although these symptoms often quickly abate soon after the effects of marijuana are gone.
Read more about the harmful effects of weed here and here.”
He’s talking about science that is just based on hypothesis, not clear cut factual proof/evidence.
There is actual proof/evidence in his research. If you and a few others in this comment section would open your mind to reasoning, instead of taking verbal jabs at somebody because you feel the need to always be right.
You will learn more.
Well, I didn’t realize he funded and conducted those studies on marijuana and meditation. Or maybe, theres studies on both, and he’s happy to cite those that fit his narrative. I do have an open mind, so I realize that there are people SMARTER THAN ME. Something I doubt Vic would ever admit. Instead he demonstrates the shallowest understanding of what meditation is. Its not “thinking about nothing”, but you can tell thats as far as he got. You wanna prove it does nothing, find/CONDUCT your own study that shows no change in the brains structures after a reasonable period of time. Don’t say “I tried sitting quietly once. Didn’t work.” THATS just bad science, and easily contested by plenty who found it beneficial. But goddamn, don’t decry an entire field of human achievement because “I suppose it “sounds smart” but it doesn’t say much of anything.” That simply shows you dont understand it. And he knows it.
“You only have 2 ways to ever get an answer in life:
1. Learn it for yourself though life lessons
2. Learn it from someone who has “been there, done that””
Thats what good science means. And thats why I and others are more inclined to trust the people that can map brain waves over the internet guru with a test subject of 1. Bro science only gets you so far, you know.
Vic wants to say we shouldn’t accept things at face value, but the execution is fucking sloppy. He’s pandering to dumb people that don’t know they’re dumb and protecting his ego as stated.
Congratulations you played yourself
Really enjoyed this one.
I marked the similar chapter in Volumen 1 as 21 times completed.
Everytime I geht caught up in science planning/researching…
I re-read & disgest it.
“Really enjoyed this one.”
Thanks Marcello.
Very rightly said …. Science doesn’t give clear answers …. It promises a lot but delivers nothing or just little bit … Only God ( Absolute truth ) can give complete answers ….. Science Bewilders …. God or God conscious literatures enlightens … … Vedic scriptures or Spiritual Scriptures gives crystal clear idea about everything. ……
Victor, one request to you : Please start writing on spirituality too …… Spirituality has absolute answers. Spirituality is eternal & that can solve all temporary problems also ……. Everything is already mentioned in the vedic Scriptures becoz that is given by God, Krishna , Absolute truth, Supreme personality of Godhead. …… Whatever comes from absolute is absolute …. I request you to explore vedic literatures. You can also check website : ISKCON desire tree. Spiritual master or founder of Srila Prabhupada has defeated scientists so practically on many occasions. You will really love it …
Thanks ……. I am Indian …… Srila Prabhupada established ISKCON in 1966 in New York. ISKCON : International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
“Science Bewilders”
These are the exact right 2 words.
Victor, you are truly genius … That your opinions on almost every topic is so practical & logical. I like thks website so much. I am truly grateful to you.
Srila Prabhupada is the founder of ISKCON.
1. Learn it for yourself though life lessons
Soooooo…. experiment?
2. Learn it from someone who has “been there, done that”
Sooooo… from one’s who have experimented?
Truth is the will of one’s self.
Science is a form of thought, a systematic way of thinking.
A bodybuilder planning out his diet and workout regimen will use a systematic way of thinking. What to eat, how much to eat, when to work out etc.
A chemist planning out an experiment will use a systematic way of thinking. Measure out chemicals, add heat, design compounds etc.
Our will drives the process of experimentation which leads to experience.
Science is a tool and nothing more.Intuition is more important than science
in my opinion.
An individual using science to find truth will lead him to insanity.
However, science compliments truth.
Our will on the other hand is eternal.
Fantastic article Mr. Pride
“An individual using science to find truth will lead him to insanity. However, science compliments truth.”
Excellent comment.
Sir Richard Branson owns the Virgin Group, which controls 400 companies. He’s worth 5 billion. He’s also an outspoken proponent of marijuana. So his massive success (i.e. practical experience) disagrees entirely with your last article. Does experience trump science there?
Branson isn’t a stoner he may have tried it out but he is far from a recreational user.
Successful people are destroyed by drugs not made better by them.
Go visit the ghettos and slums and see how productive drugs have made them.
Kickass work Vic keep killing it
Thanks Cody.
Oh, I don’t doubt it doesn’t make them better, but he definitely succeeded in spite of it. Take a read (http://metro.co.uk/2007/07/30/branson-i-took-coke-and-ecstasy-583515/). The guy learned to roll a joint from Keith Richards. I think he knows how to party.
Hello. After finishing university I worked as a scientist in bioenergy research institute for one month. Only month of my life when I did absolutely nothing. It was all patting on back, massaging egos and putting emphasis on titles before and efter the name. It was all fake, dishonest and I hated it. Leading scientist that employed me straight up lied to my face about the salary. Then he looked hurt that I told him I quit. That being said. There is a lot of science done by private companies making it possible for us to use technology, fly airplanes, inject pure testosterone, or launch satelites. I believe the science you are reffering to, is on academic level. And its true. Its slow. Inflexible. And you never get accurate answer. Regards, Marian
You know what the real mans lazy search for truth is? Trying to find it in a blog. Guess you taught me something about myself. Thanks, Vic.
You’re welcome.
Physics is generally considered to be the most fundamental level of science since it gets to the deeper underlying principles (compared to branches of science like biology and chemistry.)
The thing is that every so often the whole system of physics is scrapped for a completely new way of looking at it with completely new formulas and theorems.
Sir Isaac Newton started Newtonian physics. The story goes how he observed an apple falling out of a tree and thus did work with gravity, velocity, acceleration, planetary movements and ways to calculate all of the phenomena we see around us. He was a very smart man and his work has been of great use. But….
Then Einstein came along with Relativity. Relativity basically showed how imperfect Newton’s systems were and provided formulas and theories that are true more of the time than Newton’s. Things seemed to make more sense, but still weren’t perfect.
Now scientists are looking largely at Quantum Physics. Quantum Physics seems to be more accurate than Einstein’s Physics, but still leaves gaps.
Surely another “more accurate” system will come along to replace Quantum Physics.
The point it that yes, even physics which is supposed to be the base level of natural science (unless you’re counting math) just has a hazy view of things. What is considered true is always changing. This gets much much worse when you look at chemistry and biology.
When you study science closely you soon realize just how little science actually knows. It’s like looking at the world around you through a toilet paper roll hoping to expand the view just a little bit.
I believe science has practical use, but like you say, it is not the absolute word of God and is likely to change as more and more layers endlessly get pulled away from it.
Science is a tool to be used and should always be taken with a shaker of salt.
All the best,
D
“When you study science closely you soon realize just how little science actually knows. It’s like looking at the world around you through a toilet paper roll hoping to expand the view just a little bit.”
This is it.
Exactly.
One of the discoverers of the DNA molecule, James Watson, stated it could very well be something from an alien lifeform in the galaxy because it was so incredibly complex. But then later he had to sell his nobel prize because he was attacked for stating things that he had found to be true in his studies, such as racial differences in IQ.
Several doctors have told me that when they worked at top universities, researchers were highly pressured to manipulate data to get “good results.” This is why some people apply the term “Scientism” to refer to the agenda-driven results.
Politicians silence a lot of findings because they deem them harmful while cherry picking the ones they like to further their own harmful policies.
Science doesn’t offer much, except at an incremental snail’s pace, and even after that only being changed to fit someone’s narrative.
Yes. There’s science for politicians. There’s science for businesses. There’s science for universities looking for academic acclaim. It takes many forms depending who benefits from the outcome.
That’s one thing I like about Victor’s blog. It offers an alternate narrative.
I don’t agree with 100% of what gets written here, but I consistently find valuable ideas, tools and motivation that keeps me coming back.
The real point is humans are fools if they think they will figure out the universe. The more we learn the bigger the rabbit hole gets. Its obvious the designer did not want us to know everything. Opening up the human body we find the same thing. The smaller particles we find the more complex they get. Proving that lab experiments with not show us the way to health only following nature will.
“Lab experiments with not show us the way to health only following nature will.”
100% 🔥
Yes exactly. Nature has had a few billion years of a head start over Western science to get a lot of things right.
A lot of “science” is funded by corporations for their own profit.
Cigarette companies used to produce studies showing how safe their products were. This was all using established “science”.
Even Math was recently turned on its head when we found a new, ancient form of trigonometry that completely differs from how we have been doing it for a thousand years, and is far more accurate for architectural purposes (Source).
Science is bad? All physics, chemistry, magnetism? Don’t know where to begin on this one.
Suffice to say Tesla is rolling in his grave. Without him, his discoveries and inventions based in science (physics), you literally wouldn’t be reading this message.
Nikola Tesla said this in 1934: “Today’s scientists have substituted mathematics for experiments, and they wander off through equation after equation, and eventually build a structure which has no relation to reality.”
You can read a little more of what Tesla had to say in an upcoming B&D article.
Tesla rejected the existence of electrons
Rejected quantum mechanics and relativity he made Einstein looks stupid
He was debating with the aether theory and most scientists rejected it
He had the real science he was the smartest genius ever lived with iq over 200
Your school textbook never mentioned him
Science will always be wrong because the basics are wrong thats why there will always new theories
Think about it.
Sounds like Ronan rattled the fuck out of you, you ginormoheaded wankpuffin.
Practitioners & Experimenters keep the theoriticians honest.
Humanity needs all of the above.
Victor, I’ve been reading your blog for years and you know your shit and I respect what you’ve accomplished. But on this one I think you’re off base a bit. For one simple reason; you’re utilizing the net results of scientific research to even post this article and make your money (your supplement line had to have research behind it to validate why anyone would purchase it): the internet, computers, cars, etc.
Technology, on any scale, has to have scientific principles and research behind it. Hell, the very fact that America exists is due to ‘science’, going all the way back to Euclid.
I get what you’re saying behind the bluster of your article. That you shouldn’t deify science anymore than we should hide behind religious dogma. Experience is absolutely necessary to take what was researched and studied (usually consciously or unconsciously through the scientific method) and applied in real world settings to see if the hypothesis is valid. And on this part of your argument, I definitely agree with you. All the scientific research in the world is useless unless it has real world applications.
But beyond making a click bait headline (which clearly works), I disagree that science, as a whole, is invalid.
Even reading pubmed articles, there are a lot of contradictions in scientific researches.
I remember one of my friend said that his doctor told him that he was done growing (taller) because his epiphyseal plate has “closed” and his chondrocytes cannot go through ‘mitosis’ anymore; no matter what he does. And this was when he turned 18.
However, the friend started to take interest in variety of sports and at one time, took hexarelin and ghrp-2 and somehow managed to grow 4 cm in couple of months when he was 21 years old.
Yet he proved his ‘doctor’ wrong. So much for ‘science’.
It seems too many people have taken this out of context and don’t get what Vic is saying.
Science at an academic level is a waste of time and it is far too easy for any idiot to spout some statistics.
Vic’s previous post on marijuana was dead on and the research he sources is backed up furthermore by experience.
I’ve never met a bright pot head, have you? I don’t need research to tell me that marijuana is bad for you, but hey maybe I’m just smarter then most
On another note to fully appreciate Vic’s writing I believe you have to be on the same wavelength and be able to read between the lines.
Awesome post Vic, kicking ass as usual.
Thanks Bebop.
It’s true!
I just finished a three year bachelor’s degree in a small town in the Netherlands. Been a long time reader of B&D so I saw with my own eyes that university and college are a huge waste of time and money. I finished it because the government would pay back my student loans otherwise I would have quit a long time ago.
I’ve been working as a salesman for three months and I feel that I already learned so much more than I ever have in three years worth of college.
Science is worthless and real life experience is priceless.
Science tells us masturbation is healthy but real life experience tells me it makes me feel like a loser.
Science tells us that two glasses of alcohol a day will keep you healthy but my gut tells me it messes up both my brains and my stomach.
Science tells us a lot a more…
Victor your latest articles are full with fire. Keep ’em coming!
Will you do one on alcohol soon?
“Will you do one on alcohol soon?”
There’s a very good chance I will.
Awesome!
True science is the observation of nature. Where man fails nature always does what its suppose to do. Humans will always say their opinion is science. When someone has an agenda, which means they want to believe a certain thing, they will ignore anything that stands against their belief and prop up anything that remotely looks connected to their belief as undeniable science.
So because something doesn’t work for you, then you take that conclusion and apply it to your readers as gospel? Your own conclusion is based on your personal interaction with meditation?
Science is not an absolute, but it does help to point people in the right (or wrong) direction rather than spending countless hours personally testing out things for themselves.
I’m starting to get the feeling this blog is becoming more about preaching the “gospel” of Victor Pride to his loyal disciples rather than real introspective thought. Sad, this blog used to be so much more helpful and now is just Victor telling you to listen to him and buy his ridiculously expensive supplements (which he backs up with science).
“The Gospel of Victor Pride”
Great name, thanks Phil.
I really enjoyed reading and discussing this article with my daughter that’s in medical school. Young people read a science book, listen to a professor for a few hours, and think they know everything… LOL!
What’s the difference between God and doctors?
God doesn’t think he’s a doctor!
Searching for REAL science can be like searching for a real Rolex in Chinatown… Sure there’s real ones out there, but you have to wade through a ton of fakes with people everywhere looking to rip you off.
“For every piece of scientific literature that is ‘pro’, you can find in nearly equal amount scientific literature that is ‘anti’.”
Very well said! Once, when I look on what kind of diet and training plan I should follow, I look for scientifically proven methods so it’ll be safe for me and hope it’ll really work.
But the truth is, a deep search to scientific answers will lead you to see *contrasting* view said by scientist themselves!
Their theories indeed run in circles; not giving you a solid “Yes” or “No”.
So yes, the only real way to find real answers is through life lessons or learning it from someone who achieved what you want to achieve.
Victor is speaking on a deeper-level. Some people will get it, others won’t. That’s reality.
Or as the Great Master said, “For those who have the eyes to see…let them see.”
but…but…muh Evolution, muh Charles Darwin
“Since Copernicus, man seems to have got himself on an inclined plane-now he is slipping faster and faster away from the center into-what? into nothingness? into a ‘penetrating sense of his nothingness?’ … all science, natural as well as unnatural-which is what I call the self-critique of knowledge-has at present the object of dissuading man from his former respect for himself, as if this had been but a piece of bizarre conceit.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
Victor,
I have to say I’m rather surprised on this rant against Science. I enjoy your blog very much, always forward to my friends your articles, bought your first 2 books, but I think you’re wasting energy in the wrong enemy here. Your blog is in a WWW site, created by science (at CERN). I worked 10 years in the corridor where the web was created. Ever used GPS? Thank that to Einstein’s special relativity. What about air conditioning? Electricity? Air plane? X-rays? This is all applied science, which does not exist without science to be applied to. What about magnetic resonance? And how can you possibly say anything about testosterone, which is, again, science?
I have a few articles in my files for my boys to read when they are older. To be sure, your article on “How to pick the perfect wife” is a master piece. But you put me off with this article.
Maybe you’re being duped by people who give science a bad name. The statement that “Mediation is scientifically proven to be beneficial” is very controversial. There is not a consensus on this at all. What we do know for sure is that the Higgs boson exists, that electrons can behave like waves, and that this knowledge, that is certain, can be used to improve your life and mine. About meditation, at best, there is a correlation study saying that a few hippies doing meditation got their health improved. I suppose, they just took a month off the weed and someone who had no proper knowledge of statistics confused a simple correlation with a casual correlation and than this got published (which I would like to see, as I’m skeptic). Who knows?
All the best to you, keep the great blog, but please, not more rants against science.
Meditation, in several peer reviewed studies, has been shown to lead to changes on functional mri scans and in EEG waves. That’s science buddy, whatever way you want to look at it. Perhaps before bullshitting with a strawman about hippies, actually look into the research.
Please provide the link, Peer reviewed is credible as far as you believe the peers. If what you say is true should be a simple matter of posting a link.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4471247/
Plenty of information for you to chew on there. I’m sure you’ll retort with some utter nonsense that attempts to discredit the findings, but not to worry. My job here is done
You should assume nothing. This is actually quite interesting, thanks. I have no desire to be proven right, quite the contrary.
Seems to be a lot of haters on B&D these days.
If you don’t like what Vic has to say fuck off back to Huffpost or wherever and leave B&D for the Ronin.
Thanks Konrad.
Another little lapdog who can’t come to terms with the fact that the person who you’ve invested so much of your identity in has been proven to talk complete and utter bollocks. When people publish stuff on the internet and try to make money from that content, they are exposing themselves to the possibility of criticism. If you can’t face seeing your idol get exposed for his lies, then skip those comments. Or go use your salty tears as masturbation lubricant.
“Another little lapdog who can’t come to terms with the fact that the person who you’ve invested so much of your identity in has been proven to talk complete and utter bollocks. When people publish stuff on the internet and try to make money from that content, they are exposing themselves to the possibility of criticism. If you can’t face seeing your idol get exposed for his lies, then skip those comments. Or go use your salty tears as masturbation lubricant.”
This = science to these people.
You seem pretty salty to me pal.
Find something better to do with your time.
I guess the author wants to condemn the use and abuse of the “word of Science” as a dogmatic practice as with the “word of God” by some people. However, we cannot disregard science as a fickle useless practice. The scientific community has proven stuff that is beyond most of our comprehension in many areas. Yet, it is unpractical for us to try to prove them by experience. Meditation can be a subjective thing and some people may not get any benefit. I personaly did not. Some study published by some university may say otherwise. And then another study in another institution may challenge and/or contradict the previous research. Such is the situation in the scientific community. The best information to take from the article is the advice that prompts the reader to get out and see for yourself instead of relying on what some people are saying.
The early scientific movement started out as a counter culture movement to the orthodoxy of the day: religion. These were genuinely curious and sometimes courageous individuals that sought after the truth above dogma. They made phenomenal discoveries that eventually had such a profound impact that the religious orthodoxy started to lose their stranglehold on what was considered Truth with a capital T: the truth that you’re required to accept without question.
Fast forward a few centuries and the counter culture became mainstream culture, and the orthodoxy became Science with a capital S. And like all orthodoxies before it, it’s primary motivation switched from the unwavering quest for real truth to the preservation of its domain and consolidation of control over the agreed upon narrative.
It has become very like a religion, just ask anyone who works in academia. Or to observe this first hand, you need only to find any popular topic on Reddit and say anything that even remotely suggests a viewpoint that isn’t in alignment with scientific orthodoxy . Watch the hordes of scientific zealots crawl out of the woodwork with snarky dismissals of your intellect, character attacks, and down votes. Watch the group think, the echo chambers, the piling on of people who act like any other ideological fanatic whose core belief system is being challenged. These are not truth seekers, these are the faithful.
I personally am a great fan of many of the more practical applications of science in fields such as engineering, physics, and mathematics. But we’ve reached a point where you’re no longer allowed to have an “unscientific” opinion about such core aspects of life as your own body, what you put in your own mouth, what approach you take to treat your own ailments, how to fix your own mental problems, whether exposing yourself to harmful chemicals and radiation is “acceptable” under the limits the studies say they are, etc.
The same human intuition that has served us for millions of years to get us this far is suddenly worthless and not to be trusted when there’s a scientific study out there weighing in on a given topic. It’s worth mentioning that many scientific studies whose conclusions have any impact on economic outcomes are often sponsored or influenced by publicly traded corporations that have a legal obligation to deceive the scientific community and the public if it results in a higher return to shareholders.
This problem is older than science. We get into trouble every time some kind of belief based orthodoxy takes root in organized human societies that demand that the individual abandons their own inner guidance system for blind faith in some form of group think. The heretics are always going to be the individuals who dare to think for themselves regardless of how much their conclusions put them at odds with orthodoxy.
This is probably going to keep happening until the end of time (or the end of humans), but that doesn’t mean you can’t take a moment to get really clear about whether you’re thinking for yourself or taking refuge in the safe and comfortable ranks of the orthodoxy of the day. Even if that orthodoxy dresses itself up as the epitome of rational thinking.
Great comment Radeus.
Comment by Radeus (in quotes)
“The same human intuition that has served us for millions of years to get us this far is suddenly worthless and not to be trusted when there’s a scientific study out there weighing in on a given topic. It’s worth mentioning that many scientific studies whose conclusions have any impact on economic outcomes are often sponsored or influenced by publicly traded corporations that have a legal obligation to deceive the scientific community and the public if it results in a higher return to shareholders.”
^^^
You nailed it with this paragraph.
When I was in high school science was exact. That’s what made me decide I was going to be a researcher. When I started on the path I realized that after spending five or more years on one little thing you will either succeed or fail which won’t change anyone’s life. That’s a pretty bad investment for such an insignificant and vague output. I didn’t waste time and got myself out of it. I have a clear plan on how to get what I want and thanks to you I can do things I never thought I would be able to. But that’s a past long gone.
Science is more abstract than practical. Survival is more important than the theory. I was always repelled by the physique of most scientists.
I am somewhat and was a fan of science.
Which made me try mindfulness and meditation so hard but still I wouldn’t be able to stop watching pornography no matter how “mindful” I was. Technically it sounded very logical to me because you could observe your mind but I couldn’t do a thing and the people who have done so have terribly repressed emotions deep inside.
Now I read this website second thing every morning and it’s not even a struggle for me to not watch pornography or get the urge to masturbate. My energy is easily channeled to my goals.
My man.
If you think Vic is saying science is useless, you’re a blindsided cunt.
He’s using a piece of technology to write what he thinks and makes money off of it. Of course he see’s the value in science and technological advancement.
He’s saying science in correlation of practical living becomes a rabbit hole. That science with no practical use of the information is an illusion of competence.
Do what Victor does, take the info you need. Execute. Evaluate. Reform
Cheers Vic, your blog has always been a bastion of hope for the shared values I have.
Never stop Vic, you have my full support!
Cheers- G
Thanks G.
Aren’t you a bastion of joy and intellect?
A wannabe hardman who bandies about terms like “blindsided cunt” to anons on the internet. You also appear not to have bothered your lazy arse reading the article.
So are you here because you enjoy simple going against the grain of this blog or?
Ronan will not reply as he has been outlawed from commenting here. When people leave 10,000 emotional comments in a row I ban them from commenting, and I do it out of sheer disgust for their lack of emotional control.
My man.
Thank You.
Vic, you just said it…. and I have a saying for what your referring to. “Truths are facts for some, but Facts are true for everyone.” - Mark Hutchins. I can fully understand the nature of your point of view. You cannot go thru life being successful and grounded not knowing what the hell to believe in… at the end of the day you must decided where you stand on any issue or idea. I have had many debates with people who have no standards of evidence when it comes to making claims of fact, and the beauty of science it has no need to draw conclusions that are concrete because we are limited by our ignorance. We can not know all the possible experiences that can occur when investigating something but we can infer an explanation. Religion is a prime example as is pseudo-science neither of which I support. I agree with you about the appeal to scientific authority is a kin to the inability to think for yourself… book smarts will only get you so far. Experience trumps theory every time… I’m a strong science supporter but im beginning to decide some things for myself and I feel more grounded because of it.. you made many good points.
Truths are facts for some, but Facts are true for everyone.” – Mark Hutchins
Great quote, Mark.
“The good thing about science is that it’s true, whether or not you believe in it” - Neil deGrasse Tyson
Chapeau!
I can relate to this. I mean, I was looking for the “right” way to live because it looked like humanbeings were doing “stupid and wrong” things for centuries, like slavery, holocaust, economic bubble burst, Japan going to war against America (I’m Japanese) and shit.
But, looking for a right way to live was the biggest waste of time in my life because you can never find such thing. You just live it, based on your decision about what is right.
I think science is like my quest for the right way to live: to look for what’s right. But looking for what’s right doesn’t get you what you want. You just go fucking get it.
About meditation, I have a different idea than Victor’s but that doesn’t really matter. It helped me objectify my thinking and make decisions, and I learned it my way. And so does workout.
Yet you rely on ‘science’ for your entirely misguided and just plain ignorant rant against marijuana last week. Hypocrite much????
How could my rant have been ignorant when I relied on science?
Um, the title of this article comes to mind. ‘Science- the lazy man’s search for truth.’ Your words not mine. I wholeheartedly agree that science is usually anything but. However, last week you rely on science. This week you call it what it usually is. And that, sir, is hypocrisy. It could be possible that, like the paid liars in the MSM, you are counting on people’s short attention spans to not notice glaring contradictory statements & points of view? Or maybe you are relying on you legions of ass kissing sycophants in the B&D echo chamber (virtually zero original thoughts in the comment section, everybody just repeating exactly what you wrote) to not care and just keep feeding your ego? However, I do not have one of those short attention spans and I most certainly am not the one to feed anybody’s ego. I will always call out BS when it is needed, people’s feelings and ego be damned. Basically you are admitting to the world, that just like libtards & various other SJWs, when ‘science’ backs up your world view, it is gospel that is to not be questioned. But when it goes against your world view, it is ‘the lazy man’s search for truth.’ Consistency is key, otherwise your integrity, just like ALL ‘science,’ is to be questioned.
You dodged my question. How could my marijuana rant have been ignorant when I relied on science?
I most certainly did not dodge your question. How can the ‘science’ on marijuana be beyond question, yet the ‘science’ on meditation be bogus? To use YOUR words again, ‘Science = The Lazy Man’s Search For Truth.’ That is my answer, and you can read again my previous comment. That also was my answer which in no way dodged your question. You admittedly have zero personal experience with marijuana, which is fine. Your life, your choice. But then use two ‘studies’ from Harvard to prove a point, as if it is gospel. But now you claim the so-called science on the benefits of meditation mean nothing. Add in your contrasting science vs experience and you have hypocrisy & contradictions galore. So which one is it? Science should never be questioned, or science should always be questioned? Or is it only legitimate if it reinforces your worldview?
Now I will go a bit further, since I’m sure I will be accused of dodging the question again. Regarding your claim of zero medical benefits of marijuana. It has been clinically PROVEN to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson’s, MS (that ‘loser’ Montel Williams uses it precisely for that), seizures (look for video of children who knew of nothing but seizures until the moment CBD oil is administered), PTSD (go tell a vet who has seen war he is a loser), cancer (THC causes cancer cells to essentially implode, microscope video is publicly available), alleviate side effects of chemo, plus myriad more. Your ignorance on the topic stems from you implying smoking a joint or a bong will give the medical benefits. Obviously inhaling smoke is not going to give benefits (other than nausea control). But THC and/or CBD oil most certainly have medical benefits which are clinically proven.
Basically what it boils down to is this article contradicts the marijuana one in virtually every possible way. And then my favorite part of it all, don’t listen to scientists, but buy my book.
I will close with this, I personally don’t give a damn what so-called science says, unless it is done properly, as in the same results can be obtained if repeated (proper clinical trials), considering fake science tells us co2 (plant food) is a pollutant, cholesterol & saturated fat are deadly and sugar is more than fine. But you are also wrong on this topic. Meditation may not work for you, and I personally have never done it, nor do I care to, but Buddhists, Hindus & Krshnas have been doing it for millenia. Seems to work for them.
This is totally correct. Check out this little incident: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sokal_affair
Science uses inductive arguments, not deductive ones.
Inductive = probability.
Deductive = certainty.
What is science based off of? Probability, not certain fact.
Hey VICTOR! It’s Tony man, I sent you my body progress on gmail, listen man don’t listen to the fuckers that simply can’t understand true value of life, they’re just in denial their entire lives, they don’t want to become the best version of themselves.
I owe a lot in my life to your articles and your experience Victor, so don’t take a lot of these fuckers too seriously, I’m sure you know that, but God speed you magnificent bastard.
For any first time lurkers, TRUST VIC, HE KNOWS HOW TO TEACH YOU RIGHT.
Experience is the best school, but it is also the most expensive.
Science has value for those that create it. Those that ‘consume’ it are nothing more than pawns in a political game they have no understanding of. Most relevant science is kept ‘hidden’, it is not freely given away to the masses to exploit.
Think about it, why is it that the ‘dumbest’ people you know are always the first to spout ‘science! science! science!’ in an argument but are completely unable to articulate their point any further?
Science, at least the science readily available to the ‘great unwashed’ is nothing more than entertainment and/or a pseudo-religion. It is a way for those weak of mind and spirit to lie to themselves and assert their ‘superiority’ in their futile echo-chambers.
People ‘doing/creating’ science are doing what? Observing, and experiencing things. They don’t want you to have those skills.
Addendum:
‘Buddhists, Hindus & Krshnas have been doing it for millenia. Seems to work for them.’
Yeah, things are sure going great over there!
“Yeah, things are sure going great over there!”
hahaha!
The snake eating its own tail?
That’s real science my friend
‘If you go outside and live life, the truth of life is very easy to learn.’ to sum this sentence up you suggest people go and live experiences rather than sit and wait to be taught what life is like.
I like this line, however your previous article suggests you do the exact opposite.
‘Studies report that about 20% to 30% of recreational users experience such problems after smoking marijuana. The people most vulnerable are those who have never used marijuana before’
You have also mention you have never tried marijuana so how is this ‘learning the truth of life’ you have sat back and observed and listened to science.
I’m not sure where you’re going with these articles Vic and if its all some ploy to gain traction and site views, I take my hat off to you.
Victor NEVER stops to amaze me. Although i am a girl, i always found so much in common with his mindset. For example visualization: Everyone’s been citing all these different studies. Some claiming it’s all BS and some claiming it works.
Well, i am glad i didn’t waste my time with them. I already KNEW the answer, because i’ve seen results, by going out there and TRYING.
Thank you!
Thank you Ellie.
Science goes both ways, and you can find studies both proving and disproving a theory. Nowadays, certain scientific results must be questioned because of who funded the study. Science can be biased. Not that it always is, but it can be. Victor’s statement that science is a lazy man’s approach to truth is based on a man taking a scientific result at face-value and on blind faith. A man must dig deeper into every conclusion and eventually, run his own trials through life experiments.
Practitioners create new ways of doing things, and scientists document these changes, then future practitioners build upon the writings of these scientists. I believe it is cyclical, but Victor is correct in that the practitioner is the one that leads the discovery of truth.
Victor Pride is right.
Let me tell you as a PhD holder in Engineering…..
If you are looking to science to tell you anything concerning life or business or health…..good luck.
Particularly if you are bad at spotting bullshit in science.
Scientific methods work well when you have in fields like computer science, where a few variables are involved.
The real world is far too complex. Everyone is making best guesses but scientists OVERWHELMINGLY will use incorrect logic in the name of science instead of real world success as “validation” of their ideas.
Read a post by Nassim Taleb “The Intellectual Yet Idiot” if you’re not convinced.
The actual definition of science for those curious -
science
—noun
1. a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws
2. systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation.
Also, I find it extremely ironic that science is touted as inefficient when it has lead to practically every piece of technology around you right now (except for maybe the broom in the corner if it’s made of wood) including the device you’re viewing this comment on, AND the blog.
Finally, definition 2 is oddly similar to how most people view “experience”.
Same is true about fitness.
People listen to scientists who have probably never lifted a single weight in their life about building muscles and building an aesthetic physique.
This year, this new exercise is the best exercise for you because it activates x amount of muscle fibers and next year it’s another training method.
No, the best exercise is the exercise that is best for you, the one that you feel the most and the one that makes you progress the fastest, not the one some guy in a coat tells you is the best.
How do you find out which one is the best for you? You try out different exercises until you find it.
In other words: Experience.
Same goes for nutrition. This year diet x is the new fad and next year it’ll be another one and you won’t know what to believe anymore.
Don’t listen to “science”, listen to your own results and to people who have experience and are where you want to be.
First, I do agree with Victor about the absolute banality of modern ‘science’. As one of the others commenters pointed out - and I think this is the thing that Victor is truly attempting to argue against - modern science is not a search for truth, but rather an appeal to authority. Really, an attempt to push a social agenda upon an unsuspecting populance or, in more disheartening cases, to provide the foul and lazy minded with the excuse they need to believe the incongruous facts that they choose to believe.
However, I would be careful, here. A constant problem I see with the modern world is the tendency of moderns to redefine things. Our culture, our heritage, is vast, deep, and knowing. The redefinitions seek to undermine that culture - and that knowledge - and, when we play their game, we become their unwilling accomlices.
Case in point. The word science actually comes from the latin scientiam which means ‘knowledge’. Some of you are probably familiar with the classic phrase ‘scientia potentia est’; commonly translated as knowledge is power.
Two thousand years of western thought sought out true knowledge. Science was not only the art of knowing, but the art of understanding how one can know something. True science, real science, IS the art of discerning truth through ones experience or, barring that, discerning how one can discover the truth through tangential experiences. But it ALWAYS wants the answer. And usually, it finds it.
The problem with these modern fools and charlatans is that they didn’t like the answers they were getting. They were too strong, too direct and didn’t ‘jive’ with their pretended understanding of the world. So, back near the beginning of the 20th century, after a thousand years of progress and learning, things started to change. ‘Science’ became something they co-opted to serve their purposes. As Victor has stated, any concrete answers were considered anathema. The merry go round had started.
And, yes, there are still numerous scientific studies that actually do aim to get at the truth of something. They speak boldly. They present their evidence. They follow a logical path. But they are completely overwhelmed by the tidal wave of nonsense and obfuscation that flows from the universities, nowadays.
So, how’s this for a definition of real science?
Science = knowledge. Done.
Don’t throw out the baby with the bath water, gentlemen. They man have stolen our terms and hidden our knowledge from us, but we can get it back. The world is much bigger and much more beautiful then we have been led to believe. Yes, modern science is nonsensical hogwash. But science, real science, IS the search for truth that will always lead to a final solution. But, as Victor says, you’re going to use your judgement (i.e. your experience) to decide which is which.
Also, my formal apologies for the length of this comment. I know it was unfair. I get verbose when I get tired.
A verbose comment that says the square root of fuck all. The type of comment written by someone who has a markedly skewed view of his own intelligence.
I enjoy your writings immensely …. on this one I had to chuckle a little more, laughter for the undeniable truths you expound and laughter for the seemingly disregard to science all together. The ass kicker you no doubt are, would still be doing hand to hand combat in the Pacific while the ‘science guy’ had the war over already. May I suggest you detest the folly of science in the minds of un decisive mental master baiter’s , but for those involved in the Manhattan project, I’m sure you would find them your kind of guys.. No ? I understand that Tesla was connected to science some how, and here we are living his wireless dreams….. Forest Gump… best movie ever, cheers.
Here is the deal. Scientific study has value. But it never truly answers why. How something happened, what happened, when it happened, where is happened. But never, truly, the why.
I think dismissing science as a whole is a bit foolhardy, but I agree that only first hand experience answers why. Not in clear, concise terms, but in human terms.
Science is 100% right, until it’s wrong. Experience, though, is always 100% correct. You’ll know what death is when you get there, but science is a fun way to speculate. Therefore, it should not be fully dismissed.
Sorry but I strongly disagree. Saying personal experience is more important and accurate than science?
Are you serious?
So you’re saying peer reviewed studies are less accurate than anecdotal evidence.
If you’re saying that lots of “studies” are fake - I agree. But saying scientific proof only moves in a circular direction that’s….ridiculous.
I get that the point of this site is to make overly strong statements and everything. That’s cool. But this is frankly, ridiculous. Sorry.
wow . back to the future. if my calculations are correct.
Science is the new religion.
People Experience benefits from meditation and Science supports it
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3057175/
I don’t know about meditation giving you an ‘answer’. You’re not talking to god, you’re Experiencing an altered (maybe better, maybe worse, maybe just different) state which could act as an antithesis to a normal state and cause a synthesis somewhere - but mediation is just altering your state.
Washing the dishes, walking / biking, working out, yoga, and reading are all basically forms of mediation that could put you in a focused and relaxed state. Some call it trance, but what about when the trance is better than the normal state? Some call that Flow.
Another useful post! As a (once) scientist, I find it an insightful take on science. It can be added that modern science is built on a system of grants, which is inherently dishonest.
You’re confusing scientism with actual science. Scientism is a religion-like faith in scientific authorities among non-scientists, and is very popular in mainstream media but widely despised by real scientists, as it is the opposite of actual science.
To do *actual* science you need to do hands on research in the lab for years, exactly the real experience you’re talking about. Most scientists learn very little of what they know from journals, books, classes, etc. and almost everything from real experience. Most importantly, you have to be extremely critical of established theories and authorities, in order to discover something new which conflicts with them.
What’s true is true…regardless of the source (be it “science”, experience, mythology, etc.). Science is surely potent. Technological and medical progress is proof. But science is also so full of shit. Studies says this, studies says that. And you simply have to take it by faith, right? I mean, there’s no way (and time) for you to check everything by yourself, right?
However, do think of this:
a) Iatrogenesis is a real thing
b) Science has nothing to say about value (for there is no value in a purely material/physical world—there are no minds, no wills, no people, no poetry, etc.).
c) Scientific studies quite often jump from being descriptive to being normative. For instance, they may look at average people, describe them and then tell you that is ok to be like that.
However, Victor is right in at least a couple of ways:
1) Science cannot teach you how to live. That is beyond the scope of Science. Myth and religion have much better things to say (if you are smart about it).
2) The important shit…you have to figure that out.
3) You should own your truth…like you were a god.
4) You should use your own brain to study what’s really real.
I think you’ll dig this discussion, Vic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgk_DB5eJc0&feature=related
I do agree that science do not work, look at all the eating way… science say eat this or that. You get the science on what you want. (and today they don’t need to publish the “wrong” science, if 10 is against and 2 is for, they can publish the 2 that they want. Crazy if you ask me.
—-
Mantra Chanting. I do understand that you do not belive in meditation, but I do, not like an concept but as an experience. I do like much of your points in Bold and Determinate, and I do love the book 30 days of Challenge.
But i must say I wonder why so dislike of meditation? I AM A MAN (and doing my Gym work) Time has change, we know more about meditation and mantra than ever before. It’s stupid to critisise it in this age.
What is the importance of chanting mantras?
When someone abuses you verbally, how do you feel?
If someone says that you are a donkey, how do you feel? What does it do to you? What does it create? Anger! It shakes you. It creates some negative vibrations; you feel angry. You feel some sensations in the stomach, in the head. If a bad word can create so much physiological reactions in you, do you think a very sweet name, a chant, which includes a lot of energy of the cosmos does not do anything to your body?
It is unscientific and stupid to think that a mantra does not do anything to your body. That is not the case! It does.
Mantras bring out all the positive energy within you
That is why it is called mantra kavach(armor); a mantra creates the sense of an armor around your body.
Sometimes you meet some people and you feel like talking to them. You get good vibes from them. Sometimes you meet people and you want to avoid them. Do you know why? The negative vibes around a person make them repulsive. Mantras turn around these negative, repulsive vibrations, into more positive and attractive vibrations. This is the advantage of mantra chanting.
Today, if you go to New York, you will find hundreds of places where they learn chanting. People go for one hour in the evenings to chanting classes. They chant ‘Om Namah Shivaya’,’ Om Namo Narayana’, ‘Sri Rama Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram’. Of course, they have a different pronunciation.
In China, they say, ‘Ladhe Ladhe’ instead of ‘Radhe Radhe’.
In Taiwan, 7,000 people to 8,000 people sing ‘Ladhe Govind’ instead of ‘Radhe Govind’.
People have seen that there is an effect. And there really is!
Now when should you do it? If you do chanting after pranayama and meditation, then it has a better result. If you do it at a superficial level, then it is not so effective.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Last cuote
“The source of your mind is love and whatever you do to go to that so source is a spiritual practice” Sri Sri Ravi Shankar