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From: wware@world.std.com (Will Ware)
Subject: Re: Thought Question
Message-ID: <D8Mo15.KD3@world.std.com>
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Date: Mon, 15 May 1995 16:19:53 GMT
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Peter L. Buschman (stevax@vinny.csd.mu.edu) wrote:
: John Hey (jhey@iii1.iii.net) wrote:
: : From a straight line:  Does consciousness require intelligence?
...
: Consciousness ... is _directly_ related to the level of
: intelligence. The constant buildup ... of new logical procedures
: builds consciousness. 

I've been reading a book by the Dalai Lama on Tibetan Buddhism wherein
he discusses, among other things, the Tibetan Buddhist concept of
rebirth. The idea is that one's "consciousness", after death, enters a
nether region called the "bardo state", where it is subjected to various
terrifying stimuli and tempted to seek rebirth as a more comfortable
alternative. This "consciousness" is viewed as a free-floating entity
that could connect itself with equal ease to a human mind, animal mind,
or super-human mind. I have a hard time imagining this (much harder than
imagining the model you discussed) but it's an intriguing idea. I guess
this "consciousness" is supposed to be the purely subjective and
experiential component of one's "self", devoid of intellect or reasoning.
-- 
=====================================================================
"Government is not reason. It is not eloquence. It is a force. Like
fire, a dangerous servant and a fearful master." - G. Washington
Will Ware <wware@world.std.com> PGP fp 45A8722CD14910CC F0CF48FB93BF7289
