Dear friend,
A philosophical question I’ve been pondering to myself:
Are we more than our memories?
More philosophical musings in ZEN OF ERIC >
For example in the movie the Matrix, Neo has all these memories from the past (when he was still plugged into the matrix). Neo discovers that all of the memories he formed while in the Matrix wasn’t real. Thus, he learned he was beyond, or more than his memories.
Ghost in the shell
Another favorite movie of mine: Ghost in the shell.
So in the movie, androids can be embedded with a human brain and consciousness. The ghost is a soul, and the shell is the body.
So another question:
What’s the difference between our ghost and our shell?
A similar theme comes in the contemporary show, “Westworld”.
In real life, we actually misremenber a lot of our memories.
For example, if you always had this narrative or memory of you being beaten as a child, but one day you discovered that you either misremenbered the details or it never happened — how would that affect your own narrative of your life? Or how would it affect how you peeceive yourself, your soul, your ego — your sense of yourself?
For myself, I think I’m more than my memories. I see myself as my actions, and myself as the stuff I create.
My “ego” is simply the combination of my mind, body, memories, experiences, and reactions to the environment around myself.
I think as an artist and human, to be egotistical and egocentric is a good thing. But we must channel our ego in a positive and productive manner!
For example, if King Leonidas didn’t have his ego, sense of pride, and his warrior spirit; how could he have sacrificed his life for the Spartan people, and have led the 300?
If Steve Jobs didn’t channel his ego to not compromising Apple designs, would we have the beautiful designs of the iPhone, iPad, MacBook, etc that exists today? Remember, Samsung and all Android devices copied Apple and Steve Jobs x Jony Ive’s elegant and minimalist-zen aesthetics.
I’m getting off track but I want to conclude by saying:
- Don’t worry too much about your past memories, trauma, or injustices from the past. You might have misremenbered them.
- You’re your actions. Live a life of action and risk taking, not just words without “skin in the game” (Nassim Taleb)
- Never compromise: Accept “creative constraints”, but never compromise your artistic vision or your personal code of ethics!
Be strong,
ERIC
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