I was thinking of this quote the other day and happened across it again tonight by accident. It’s from an Alan Watts lecture entitled the Value of Psychotic Experience.
You must have some completely concrete vision of what you would like, and therefore I’m making a serious proposition that everybody who goes into college should as an entrance examination have the task of writing an essay on his idea of heaven, in which he is asked to be absolutely specific. He is not allowed, for example, to say ‘I would like to have a very beautiful girl to live with.’ What do you mean by a beautiful girl? Exactly how, and in what way? Specifically. You know, down to the last wiggle of the hips, and down to every kind of expression of character and socialbility and her interests and all. Be specific! And about everything like that. ‘I would like a beautiful house to live in.’ Just what exactly do you mean by a beautiful house? Well you’ve suddenly got to study architecture. You see, and finally, this preliminary essay on ‘My Idea of Heaven’ turns into his doctoral dissertation.
Fits it rather nicely with some of the ideas about self-directed education I’ve been exploring here lately…
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6 Comments
so what is your idea of heaven?
i know fell’s is cocaine & hookers . . . .
I guess I’m sort of working out one side of it with this site, really
the more accurately you describe something, i believe, the more likely you are to attain it. manifest destiny and all that. i like article though……. psychotic experience. i have to add one fear that i didn`t comment on earlier. the fear of being institutionalised and having to explain my ideas about society and nlp and media etc to the release committee. i`d never be allowed to leave!
Attributing value/endorphin production to an idea of heaven is again, xian denial of responsibility and flying in the face of one chance, one temporal thread, on the way to the ol’ dirtnap.
Get your rocks off before they send you downstairs in a plastic bag, you dork.
-tc
i watched the movie constantine last night, starring keanu reeves, speaking of psychotic experience. striking coincedence to what alan watts was talking about in the article above.