Critical Thinking & Engagement in Discourse

Yesterday, I spent quite a long time reading a lot of what Julian had to say. I was so happy that Martha referred me to his latest blog entry and, after reading that post, I had to go back a bit and read more of what he had to say. I was happy to see his invitation to engage…. 

I believe that many of us here on Zaadz are compassionate AND intellectual/intelligent AND questioning AND open-minded. The forums are so numerous where we can put forth our thoughts and sometimes, it's difficult to know where they best fit…

I, for one, think that the pods serve as a better platform for conversation and debate….and individual blogs are great forums for people to articulate and espouse upon their perspectives and points of view….and comments and email are great venues for a bit of  dialogue.

Given the current Zaadz technology (which I think is absolutely phenomenal), there seems to me to be a bit of a disconnect on how we can optimize the EXCHANGE of information, the FLOW of ideas and the DISCOURSE.

This morning, I woke up with the thought that I might attempt to do that here in this pod, via this discussion board and by means of this title.

Critical Thinking - I agree with Julian wholeheartedly on the absolute necessity of critical thinking. Whenever we read, whatever we read, we should be aware of the ways in which the author(s) attempt(s) to persuade us to buy into their point-of-view.

A slice of Julian's perspectives
I loved reading Julian's point-of-view in the blog that Martha forwarded to me. I would like to put his point of view on the table here, in the Planetary Enlightenment pod and in the Revolutionary Psychology section, because I believe that this is good forum to engage in the conversation that he is welcoming….
Enlightenment One, Oh One?
Enlightenment: Tears in the Rain

A slice of Donan's perspectives
There's another man's voice that I would like to add to the mix here, my friend Donan. Just like with Julian, I have spent time reading what he has to say on his blog and I find my own viewpoints resonant with his. I submit these contributions for your contemplation:
The Critically Thinking Mind
Layers of Self
This I Believe

By way of this discussion topic, I am hoping for two things.
1. To engage in discussion and debate about some of the deep, rich, (and perhaps sometimes overwhelming) meaning to the points-of-view that have been already been expressed by thoughtful, contemplative Zaadzsters.

2. To offer a forum for more voices to be added to this discourse about the Psychology of Enlightenment…. Have any of you already written, or come across others Zaadzsters who have written, any perspectives about the psychology of enlightenment? If so, I encourage you to include links to those works here.

I've put forth this venue because I have yet to make friends with everyone here on Zaadz…and I wanted to create a place where I could be enlightened to more than just the points of view of people whom I already know…. and thank you Martha for planting the seed/zaad in me that evolved into the idea to do this :-)

Here's to my hope of fostering community via discourse, dialogue and debate!

Re: Critical Thinking & Engagement in Discourse

this probably isn't quite what you had in mind, but I love this post by Jay and what he has to say in it about enlightenment – he posted it on his blog The Zero Boss and posted a link on his Zaadz blog (be forewarned that The Zero Boss is subtitled “Cultural Commentary for the Mentally Belligerent”) – after reading his post, I got to thinking about how so many people talk about enlightenment the way fundamentalist Christians talk about heaven – as a far-off-in-the-future thing you'll achieve if you're reeeeeeeally good – I have no doubt that meditation can be a beneficial practice for observing the mind and stepping outside of automaticity, but I'm not sure about the rest

and as for planetary enlightenment, are we waiting for some miraculous day when everyone is awake and aware – or is evolution more likely to happen how it does in individual lives, as developmental steps that have a cumulative effect?

Re: Critical Thinking & Engagement in Discourse

Kira, I love the link to the Zero Boss…the article I read today was debunking some of the messages of the Buddha….done with great humor and wit and love, I thought…..very easy to digest (and debunk if you are so inclined)….perfectly appropriate for this discussion thread (in my opinion).

Re: Critical Thinking & Engagement in Discourse

There's are a number of conversations brewing all over this beautiful oasis called Zaadz…. Perhaps there are conversations that you have been wanting to have and didn't even realize?

Check out this one that I started in the Pleasures of Discourse section of the Gemutlichkeit pod…And remember “Critical Thinking!”….

Re: Critical Thinking & Engagement in Discourse

Hmmmmm.   Sometimes I'm critical of critical thinking. 

If it means we gotta think with our head and not our HEART, I'm outa there!

Is there a Critical Thinking of the Heart?   Ah!