To all those who are causing suffering in this world, directly or indirectly: Heed your dreams at night, those nightmares that you most assuredly are having are imploring you to change -before it’s too late… The quality of our dreams is both a reflection of our thoughts and actions as well as a general foreshadowing of the fate of our souls in the next life...A nightly, temporary karma that beckons us to change - for the good - so as to avoid a more permanent karma❤️🔥 Beauty(🌷)+Complexity(🌎) =Intent(❤️) The Figure 8 Analogy: An analogy on life, death, the dream-state and the symbolism intertwined within the human experience. We human beings are not traveling in the abstract motion of a straight line towards death (for instance, the numerical straight line of say 1-89). Instead, we are moving in the motion of a figure 8. The Figure 8 is a natural repeating pattern that is divided into two halves and is thus the perfect symbol to represent the human life cycle and our two primary states of existence that we are continuously moving in and out of -the Awake state and the Dream state. When we awake from sleep we come full circle to when we fall back asleep (represented by the bottom half of the figure 8 )and when we go into the dream state we come full circle to when we awake from the dream state (represented by the top half of the figure 8 ). Upon death; the figure 8 of life untwines, but it’s not the body untwining from the mind that this analogy represents. It's two states of mind untwining to form a larger state of mind (8-0)… Because the awake state is really a state -of mind with our body's physical reality "consciously" intertwined, and the dream-state is also a state of mind with our body's physical reality "subconsciously" intertwined. Therefore; upon death, these two states of mind untwine to form a “larger” state of mind. A state that has all the potentialities of the dream-world (flying, telepathy, psychokinesis, etc) combined with all the actualities of the awake world(nature, form, bonds, etc). This I refer to as the transitional analogy. While conceiving The Figure 8 Analogy, I realized life and death must be perceived -from one point of view- as seperate entities(the transitional analogy(8-0), but must also be perceived -from another point of view- as inseparable entities(the symbolic analogy👇), both of which are ultimately linked by the dream-state. The “Symbolic Analogy” consists of the untwined figure 8 of life/the “circle of death” ( O ) abstractly overlapping the ‘circle of life’ (Earth(🌎)with the overlapping area representing the dreamstate-like the common area in a Venn Diagram-and implies that the dream state is just as much a part of life as is of death (by which explains precognitive dreams, prodromal dreams, "visitations" by deceased relatives, etc) for the dream-state has a foothold in the afterlife; and is based on the premise that “while our body sleeps our dream state symbolically represents the state that awaits upon our body's ultimate rest.” In other words, while we are lying down and sleeping/dreaming, this natural process symbolizes where we go when we're ultimately lying down/dead -to a place like our dream-state...A state "of mind” with our body's physical form+Earthly bonds eternally engrained and intertwined. ~8~
Absolutely brilliant and beautiful. If these thoughtfully articulated ideas were absorbed by the majority of our population, we would forever live in a peaceful, productive, human society.
I took the time to listen to The Consolation of Philosophy prior to listening to this lecture. This lecture brought a depth of understanding to the work that I did not get when listening. I ordered a copy and look forward to reading a hard copy. I have spent some time studying the Stoics and have found there a wealth of wisdom. Boethius undoubtedly was heavily influenced by the Stoics.
Boethius was probably far more influenced by Plato and Aristotle than the Stoics. To be honest, the Stoics are given too much credit today, probably because their writings are relatively easy to access. To a large extent stoicism is little more than sentimental moralism, and as the modern mentality is also overly sentimental and moralistic, this is perhaps another reason for the popularity of stoicism. But as to Boethius, he was far more than a mere sentimental moralist, that is, he was more than a Stoic.
00:48:49 YOU SUDDENLY FIND YOURSELF IN THE SPACE OF QUIET, FOR THE FIRST TIME NOT CONSUMED WITH SOMETHING ELSE. YOUR SELF COMES BACK TO YOU. THE SOUL DOUBLES BACK ON ITSELF. 00:57:29 THE WICKED FAIL TO ATTAIN THE GOOD THEY SEEK, WHILE THE GOOD ATTAIN THE VERY INALIENABLE AND INFINITE GOOD THEY SEEK 00:58:33 COHERENCE AND INTEGRITY OF OUR LIVES IN THE WORLD
The will is in the reason The classical world could not understand this because, for them, the will was blind (Greek drama, anyone?). But It is only when the will is in the reason that, as Boethius says, we (re) discover who we are. Boethius triggered a kind of Copernican revolution in late classical culture.
The quality of our dreams is both a reflection of our thoughts and actions as well as a general foreshadowing of the fate of our souls in the next life...A nightly, temporary karma that beckons us to change - for the good - so as to avoid a more permanent karma❤️🔥 Beauty(🌷)+Complexity(🌎) =Intent(❤️) The Figure 8 Analogy: An analogy on life, death, the dream-state and the symbolism intertwined within the human experience. We human beings are not traveling in the abstract motion of a straight line towards death (for instance, the numerical straight line of say 1-89). Instead, we are moving in the motion of a figure 8. The Figure 8 is a natural repeating pattern that is divided into two halves and is thus the perfect symbol to represent the human life cycle and our two primary states of existence that we are continuously moving in and out of -the Awake state and the Dream state. When we awake from sleep we come full circle to when we fall back asleep (represented by the bottom half of the figure 8 )and when we go into the dream state we come full circle to when we awake from the dream state (represented by the top half of the figure 8 ). Upon death; the figure 8 of life untwines, but it’s not the body untwining from the mind that this analogy represents. It's two states of mind untwining to form a larger state of mind (8-0)… Because the awake state is really a state -of mind with our body's physical reality "consciously" intertwined, and the dream-state is also a state of mind with our body's physical reality "subconsciously" intertwined. Therefore; upon death, these two states of mind untwine to form a “larger” state of mind. A state that has all the potentialities of the dream-world (flying, telepathy, psychokinesis, etc) combined with all the actualities of the awake world(nature, form, bonds, etc). This I refer to as the transitional analogy. While conceiving The Figure 8 Analogy, I realized life and death must be perceived -from one point of view- as seperate entities(the transitional analogy(8-0), but must also be perceived -from another point of view- as inseparable entities(the symbolic analogy👇), both of which are ultimately linked by the dream-state. The “Symbolic Analogy” consists of the untwined figure 8 of life/the “circle of death” ( O ) abstractly overlapping the ‘circle of life’ (Earth(🌎)with the overlapping area representing the dreamstate-like the common area in a Venn Diagram-and implies that the dream state is just as much a part of life as is of death (by which explains precognitive dreams, prodromal dreams, "visitations" by deceased relatives, etc) for the dream-state has a foothold in the afterlife; and is based on the premise that “while our body sleeps our dream state symbolically represents the state that awaits upon our body's ultimate rest.” In other words, while we are lying down and sleeping/dreaming, this natural process symbolizes where we go when we're ultimately lying down/dead -to a place like our dream-state...A state "of mind” with our body's physical form+Earthly bonds eternally engrained and intertwined. ~8~
There are many wonderful English translations, but I especially like the Loeb edition translated by H. F. Stewart, which is a handsome volume and which also includes the Tractates as well as facing Latin-English. I also recommend Joel Relihan's translation, which gives a great sense of the poetic rhythms. Happy reading!
Why does the orator keep referring to The Consolation of Philosophy as "..a wonderful little book..." as if it is somehow so brilliant for being such a short book? I never really liked long works of literature and find shorter works quite good actually. Thank goodness everything isn't as long as Moby Dick or Harry Potter ! Thanks for the lecture, it is very good. 🇺🇲♥️👍
Seems a contemporary hyper-individualist spin on Boethius and traditional philosophy more broadly (as the love of learning and wisdom). Both Plato and Aristotle supported income caps and called for major checks on poverty, and both recognize the importance of social inclusion and other goods that are not entirely internal. Aristotle goes so far as to say that without friends, even if one has all other goods, life is not worth living. He took it that the academic pursuit of philosophy requires an entire civilization to be a real possibility. While a person of virtue/integrity may not become fully wretched even if being tortured, because “foursquare beyond reproach,” he said, external goods clearly matter a great deal, even after we are dead. Traditional philosophy aims after justice as well, which is said in the Republic to be a matter of each having their due. It doesn’t say: to each, cultivate your inner stability as that is all you truly need and when you see people in dire circumstances, tell them the same, and then use their plight to share the same message again in a fancy room full of people far more well-off than common, especially when considered on a global scale.
Applications for Ralston College's MA in the Humanities for 2023 are now open: www.ralston.ac/humanities-ma
To all those who are causing suffering in this world, directly or indirectly: Heed your dreams at night, those nightmares that you most assuredly are having are imploring you to change -before it’s too late…
The quality of our dreams is both a reflection of our thoughts and actions as well as a general foreshadowing of the fate of our souls in the next life...A nightly, temporary karma that beckons us to change - for the good - so as to avoid a more permanent karma❤️🔥
Beauty(🌷)+Complexity(🌎)
=Intent(❤️)
The Figure 8 Analogy:
An analogy on life, death, the dream-state and the symbolism intertwined within the human experience.
We human beings are not traveling in the abstract motion of a straight line towards death (for instance, the numerical straight line of say 1-89). Instead, we are moving in the motion of a figure 8. The Figure 8 is a natural repeating pattern that is divided into two halves and is thus the perfect symbol to represent the human life cycle and our two primary states of existence that we are continuously moving in and out of -the Awake state and the Dream state.
When we awake from sleep we come full circle to when we fall back asleep (represented by the bottom half of the figure 8 )and when we go into the dream state we come full circle to when we awake from the dream state (represented by the top half of the figure 8 ). Upon death; the figure 8 of life untwines, but it’s not the body untwining from the mind that this analogy represents. It's two states of mind untwining to form a larger state of mind (8-0)…
Because the awake state is really a state -of mind with our body's physical reality "consciously" intertwined, and the dream-state is also a state of mind with our body's physical reality "subconsciously" intertwined. Therefore; upon death, these two states of mind untwine to form a “larger” state of mind. A state that has all the potentialities of the dream-world (flying, telepathy, psychokinesis, etc) combined with all the actualities of the awake world(nature, form, bonds, etc). This I refer to as the transitional analogy.
While conceiving The Figure 8 Analogy, I realized life and death must be perceived -from one point of view- as seperate entities(the transitional analogy(8-0), but must also be perceived -from another point of view- as inseparable entities(the symbolic analogy👇), both of which are ultimately linked by the dream-state.
The “Symbolic Analogy” consists of the untwined figure 8 of life/the “circle of death” ( O ) abstractly overlapping the ‘circle of life’ (Earth(🌎)with the overlapping area representing the dreamstate-like the common area in a Venn Diagram-and implies that the dream state is just as much a part of life as is of death (by which explains precognitive dreams, prodromal dreams, "visitations" by deceased relatives, etc) for the dream-state has a foothold in the afterlife; and is based on the premise that “while our body sleeps our dream state symbolically represents the state that awaits upon our body's ultimate rest.”
In other words, while we are lying down and sleeping/dreaming, this natural process symbolizes where we go when we're ultimately lying down/dead -to a place like our dream-state...A state "of mind” with our body's physical form+Earthly bonds eternally engrained and intertwined.
~8~
Boethius made me cry. That's an absolutely beautiful book.
This is a THICK lecture . The story of Boethius is a great springboard into the maelstrom of living, thinking, and simply being.
Ralson college is for thiccness only, anything else is forbidden and I think that is beautiful
Dense, very dense. A forest of ideas.
This video should have millions of views by now
Absolutely brilliant and beautiful.
If these thoughtfully articulated ideas were absorbed by the majority of our population, we would forever live in a peaceful, productive, human society.
I took the time to listen to The Consolation of Philosophy prior to listening to this lecture. This lecture brought a depth of understanding to the work that I did not get when listening. I ordered a copy and look forward to reading a hard copy. I have spent some time studying the Stoics and have found there a wealth of wisdom. Boethius undoubtedly was heavily influenced by the Stoics.
Boethius was probably far more influenced by Plato and Aristotle than the Stoics. To be honest, the Stoics are given too much credit today, probably because their writings are relatively easy to access. To a large extent stoicism is little more than sentimental moralism, and as the modern mentality is also overly sentimental and moralistic, this is perhaps another reason for the popularity of stoicism.
But as to Boethius, he was far more than a mere sentimental moralist, that is, he was more than a Stoic.
Boethius was not so much influenced by Stoicism as by his great and true Light, Plato
Years ago I found a copy of this book at a Dollar Tree store and loved it instantaneously!
This may be one of the best and most moving lectures I've ever heard
This lecture is absolutely marvelous! Thanks
such a great lecture, I was really touched!!!!
Tremendous talk. Well done.
That was magnificent and moving. Thank you for sharing.
Theory of Recollection one of my favorite topics.
Wow that was excellent! Really enjoyed, thank you Mr Blackwood :)
Wonderful lecture.
Finding that inalienable self sufficiency ... also thru Epicurous and stoicism and others ++
00:48:49 YOU SUDDENLY FIND YOURSELF IN THE SPACE OF QUIET, FOR THE FIRST TIME NOT CONSUMED WITH SOMETHING ELSE. YOUR SELF COMES BACK TO YOU. THE SOUL DOUBLES BACK ON ITSELF.
00:57:29 THE WICKED FAIL TO ATTAIN THE GOOD THEY SEEK, WHILE THE GOOD ATTAIN THE VERY INALIENABLE AND INFINITE GOOD THEY SEEK
00:58:33 COHERENCE AND INTEGRITY OF OUR LIVES IN THE WORLD
Boethius is one of Philosophy’s less-sung legends. The Consolation is a beauty.
The will is in the reason The classical world could not understand this because, for them, the will was blind (Greek drama, anyone?). But It is only when the will is in the reason that, as Boethius says, we (re) discover who we are. Boethius triggered a kind of Copernican revolution in late classical culture.
Well done. I imagine the 4K views were from human goldfish unable to sit still and listen for the whole hour.
Beautiful is life
The quality of our dreams is both a reflection of our thoughts and actions as well as a general foreshadowing of the fate of our souls in the next life...A nightly, temporary karma that beckons us to change - for the good - so as to avoid a more permanent karma❤️🔥
Beauty(🌷)+Complexity(🌎)
=Intent(❤️)
The Figure 8 Analogy:
An analogy on life, death, the dream-state and the symbolism intertwined within the human experience.
We human beings are not traveling in the abstract motion of a straight line towards death (for instance, the numerical straight line of say 1-89). Instead, we are moving in the motion of a figure 8. The Figure 8 is a natural repeating pattern that is divided into two halves and is thus the perfect symbol to represent the human life cycle and our two primary states of existence that we are continuously moving in and out of -the Awake state and the Dream state.
When we awake from sleep we come full circle to when we fall back asleep (represented by the bottom half of the figure 8 )and when we go into the dream state we come full circle to when we awake from the dream state (represented by the top half of the figure 8 ). Upon death; the figure 8 of life untwines, but it’s not the body untwining from the mind that this analogy represents. It's two states of mind untwining to form a larger state of mind (8-0)…
Because the awake state is really a state -of mind with our body's physical reality "consciously" intertwined, and the dream-state is also a state of mind with our body's physical reality "subconsciously" intertwined. Therefore; upon death, these two states of mind untwine to form a “larger” state of mind. A state that has all the potentialities of the dream-world (flying, telepathy, psychokinesis, etc) combined with all the actualities of the awake world(nature, form, bonds, etc). This I refer to as the transitional analogy.
While conceiving The Figure 8 Analogy, I realized life and death must be perceived -from one point of view- as seperate entities(the transitional analogy(8-0), but must also be perceived -from another point of view- as inseparable entities(the symbolic analogy👇), both of which are ultimately linked by the dream-state.
The “Symbolic Analogy” consists of the untwined figure 8 of life/the “circle of death” ( O ) abstractly overlapping the ‘circle of life’ (Earth(🌎)with the overlapping area representing the dreamstate-like the common area in a Venn Diagram-and implies that the dream state is just as much a part of life as is of death (by which explains precognitive dreams, prodromal dreams, "visitations" by deceased relatives, etc) for the dream-state has a foothold in the afterlife; and is based on the premise that “while our body sleeps our dream state symbolically represents the state that awaits upon our body's ultimate rest.”
In other words, while we are lying down and sleeping/dreaming, this natural process symbolizes where we go when we're ultimately lying down/dead -to a place like our dream-state...A state "of mind” with our body's physical form+Earthly bonds eternally engrained and intertwined.
~8~
Is there a transcript?
10/23/24 was the 1,500th anniversary of Boethius's martyrdom...
What is the piano piece used in the intro? It’s so captivating, I need to know!
Fugue from Bach's Toccata and fugue in d minor
Yes what is it??
@@andrewliu9744 THANK YOU!
Who is speaking in this video. He does a wonderful job.
It's Stephen Blackwood, president of Ralston College.
🧘♂️🤝
26:48 It's like what happened to me 😢
Dr Blackwood, which (edited?) edition of the text would you recommend please?
There are many wonderful English translations, but I especially like the Loeb edition translated by H. F. Stewart, which is a handsome volume and which also includes the Tractates as well as facing Latin-English. I also recommend Joel Relihan's translation, which gives a great sense of the poetic rhythms. Happy reading!
@@s.blackwood8574 Thank you so much for replying. I’ll start with the Loeb!
Why does the orator keep referring to The Consolation of Philosophy as "..a wonderful little book..." as if it is somehow so brilliant for being such a short book? I never really liked long works of literature and find shorter works quite good actually. Thank goodness everything isn't as long as Moby Dick or Harry Potter !
Thanks for the lecture, it is very good. 🇺🇲♥️👍
the example of the homeless man and the stability as a mere spiritual condition almost ruined the whole lecture for me
fragility indeed
Pls explain
Seems a contemporary hyper-individualist spin on Boethius and traditional philosophy more broadly (as the love of learning and wisdom). Both Plato and Aristotle supported income caps and called for major checks on poverty, and both recognize the importance of social inclusion and other goods that are not entirely internal. Aristotle goes so far as to say that without friends, even if one has all other goods, life is not worth living. He took it that the academic pursuit of philosophy requires an entire civilization to be a real possibility. While a person of virtue/integrity may not become fully wretched even if being tortured, because “foursquare beyond reproach,” he said, external goods clearly matter a great deal, even after we are dead. Traditional philosophy aims after justice as well, which is said in the Republic to be a matter of each having their due. It doesn’t say: to each, cultivate your inner stability as that is all you truly need and when you see people in dire circumstances, tell them the same, and then use their plight to share the same message again in a fancy room full of people far more well-off than common, especially when considered on a global scale.