Search found 28 matches

by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 25, 2023 10:22 am
Forum: 1.0. Hypothesis One: Consciousness Based On Language
Topic: Consciousness and Time
Replies: 4
Views: 2054

Re: Consciousness and Time

You're my northern neighbor. I'm an Iowan. That gets to the ancient debate. Is it Iowa Nice or Minnesota Nice? Anyway, The Somali example is interesting, but I'm not sure what to make of it. It would be useful to know when khat was first cultivated. According to the NIH, "Historical evidence su...
by benjamindavidsteele
Sat Aug 12, 2023 11:46 am
Forum: 2.6. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: The Mentality of Pre-Literate & Pre-Modern Peoples
Topic: Vestiges of Bicameralism in the Pirahã
Replies: 4
Views: 22117

Re: Vestiges of Bicameralism in the Pirahã

I am not so sure that the book answers questions on the nature (or origin) of consciousness. Surely, the importance of spirits, the lack of spatialization of time, would be indications of bicamerality. But I find it hard to believe that the Pirahãs really lacked consciousness. One would think that...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 5:24 pm
Forum: 4.0. Hypothesis Four: Jaynes's Neurological Model for the Bicameral Mind
Topic: Where does the autism spectrum fit in?
Replies: 1
Views: 1695

Re: Where does the autism spectrum fit in?

It's hard to say. Autism is a modern category. But one might note that a defining feature of autism is deficiency of cognitive empathy that allows for theory of mind and mind-reading, though many high functioning autistics learn to develop greater capacity of cognitive empathy, if it's unlikely to e...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 5:17 pm
Forum: 2.6. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: The Mentality of Pre-Literate & Pre-Modern Peoples
Topic: Australian Aborigines
Replies: 2
Views: 25445

Re: Australian Aborigines

I remember reading from somewhere, I forget the source now, of someone who observed an Australian Aborigine ritually enacting a Songline. The observer noted that the individual Aborigine seemed to change personality. It seems that each Songline was not merely presided over by an ancestral spirit but...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 5:13 pm
Forum: 2.6. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: The Mentality of Pre-Literate & Pre-Modern Peoples
Topic: Antagonistic Deities (Sedna, etc.)
Replies: 1
Views: 1114

Re: Antagonistic Deities (Sedna, etc.)

In bicameral mentality, it's not merely about obeying a particular voice but the relationship between voices. I bet the Inuit would not only placate Sedna but seek to invoke other gods and spirits. Sometimes there might even be conflict or a struggle, in which the individual's fate might be determin...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 5:08 pm
Forum: 2.4. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: Religion & the Bicameral Mind
Topic: American vs. European Christianity
Replies: 1
Views: 1358

Re: American vs. European Christianity

This is an immense topic. And I wish modern religion and it's developed was brought up more often in Jaynesian scholarship and Jaynesian discussions. There are some obvious examples of Jaynesian study of monotheism, such as Rabbi James Cohn's The Minds of the Bible and Brian J. McVeigh's The Psychol...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 4:18 pm
Forum: 2.4. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: Religion & the Bicameral Mind
Topic: The Prophet Mohammed, Islam, and the Bicameral Mind
Replies: 10
Views: 32097

Re: The Prophet Mohammed, Islam, and the Bicameral Mind

THanks for your explanation, it's rare to see in-depth explanations from an actual Muslim, that sort of long text often comes from people who have never read the Quran, don't speak Arabic, don't talk to Muslims yet are world class experts :lol: You might be interested in my perspective. I've been t...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 4:04 pm
Forum: 2.3. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: Hypnosis, Possession & Altered States of Consciousness
Topic: DMT and Terence McKenna
Replies: 3
Views: 3279

Re: DMT and Terence McKenna

Here are some relevant posts: https://benjamindavidsteele.wordpress.com/2018/11/12/psychedelics-and-language/ https://benjamindavidsteele.wordpress.com/2019/06/30/yes-tea-banished-the-fairies/ https://benjamindavidsteele.wordpress.com/2020/12/13/the-drugged-up-birth-of-modernity/ https://benjamindav...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 2:06 pm
Forum: 2.3. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind | Subtopic: Hypnosis, Possession & Altered States of Consciousness
Topic: DMT and Terence McKenna
Replies: 3
Views: 3279

Re: DMT and Terence McKenna

I'm an old fan of Terence McKenna. I first came across him, back in the mid-to-late 1990s, when he was a regular guest on Art Bell's late night radio show, Coast to Coast AM. He was a great example of an entertaining raconteur with a distinct voice and an idiosyncratic worldview, certainly fun to li...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 9:26 am
Forum: 2.0. Hypothesis Two: The Bicameral Mind
Topic: The Phenomenon of Ancient Trepanning
Replies: 2
Views: 6038

Re: The Phenomenon of Ancient Trepanning

Some have speculated that there was some actual physiological and neurocognitive change that was happening across the human species, in explaining why the practice was so widespread. Maybe there was a change in brain and/or skull growth for some reason (dietary changes?) and the altered physical dev...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 9:05 am
Forum: Book Discussion: The Origin of Consciousness and Julian Jaynes Society Publications
Topic: headed
Replies: 6
Views: 4037

Re: headed

Since the topic is Consciousness in humans, I would say that "headed behavior" refers to the behavior of humans as a result of the things we think, our conscious decisions, the impulses within our head. Since Jaynes was originally a behaviorist researcher, 'headed' likely refers to the co...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 8:51 am
Forum: 1.0. Hypothesis One: Consciousness Based On Language
Topic: Consciousness and Time
Replies: 4
Views: 2054

Re: Consciousness and Time

The forum isn't all that active these days. I randomly stop in maybe a few times every year, at most. Every now and then, a JJS discussion thread comes up in web search results. But otherwise, I tend to forget about it. Stopping back in again, I decided to look around to see if anything new was post...
by benjamindavidsteele
Fri Aug 11, 2023 8:18 am
Forum: 1.0. Hypothesis One: Consciousness Based On Language
Topic: Jaynes and McLuhan and Writing Systems
Replies: 4
Views: 17177

Re: Jaynes and McLuhan and Writing Systems

In particular, when I interviewed him at the end of his life, he had discarded the various "migration" and other "stress" explanations he offers in "Origins" and had replaced them with the *alphabet* as the "cause" of consciousness. Then again, what if Jaynes...
by benjamindavidsteele
Mon Jan 25, 2021 6:18 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Welcome / Introductions
Replies: 35
Views: 92637

Re: Welcome / Introductions

Welcome, Chomer!
by benjamindavidsteele
Wed Nov 25, 2020 3:11 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Welcome / Introductions
Replies: 35
Views: 92637

Re: Welcome / Introductions

@Tanker62 - Not many people comment here at the forums. I usually forget about it, but it occasionally comes up in web search results. That is how I came to notice your recent comments. I hope that people start using the forums. I used to regularly visit the Facebook group but have since decided to ...

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