An appreciation of subjective phenomena from the first-person perspective can enable you to escape self-sabotaging traps

1. A casual stroll through a lunatic asylum shows that certainty
about one's beliefs does not prove anything
- Nietzsche

2. In eastern philosophy, we are viewed as trapped in Maya
[illusion, deception]. The entrapment results from the tacit but
bogus premise of perception: I see things as they really are.

3. We do not see the
world as it really is.
Everything we hear is
an opinion, not a fact.
Everything we see is a
perspective, not the truth.
- Marcus Aurelius

4. Believe Me!
People who claim to know the
universal truth have been
taken in by an illusion, or
worse: They are intentionally
lying.
Even though you may feel
certain of your interpretation
of the truth, the truth may
appear different from a
different perspective

5. Seeing is Believing?
[There are no black dots]
People act counter to their
interests because they are
taken in by the Soul Illusion -
the tacit acceptance of the
false premise that your
experience of reality is the
same as reality.

6. I will make the case against certainty to two audiences: Viewing the optical illusions will give you the
opportunity to experience the evidence directly that your perception is a creation of your nervous system, not
an accurate and complete depiction of the external world.
But I’ll start with the more conventional case designed for the more conventional audience. The argument is
directed to your rational mind; the kind of argument that may be made in a college psychology course.

7. In eastern philosophy we are viewed as
trapped in "Maya.” The entrapment
results from the tacit but bogus
premise of perception: I see things as
they really are. In fact, what I perceive
is a creative construction of my
nervous system. That this premise is a
destructive lie becomes obvious when
the same events are viewed from a
different perspective – e.g., hindsight.
The lie I tell myself: “I see things as they really are.”

8. Our perception is a creation of our nervous system, not a
complete and valid depiction of reality: Evidence from
rational analysis.
The various forms of self-sabotage result from the
presumed, but bogus, premise of perception, namely
that we see the world as it really is. In fact, what we see
is a creation of our nervous system.
To appreciate the source of your knowledge about the
world outside of you, consider the familiar question:

9. When a tree falls in the forest, and no one
is around to hear it, is there a sound?

10. Sound exists only in
the brain of the
beholder
When the tree falls, it produces a series of
pressure waves in the surrounding air. The ear
drum converts these waves into a mechanical
signal which is transmitted by 3 small bones to
the fluid filled cochlea - the spiral bony canal of
the inner ear. Hair cells of the cochlea are the
actual receptors. Each is tuned to a particular
frequency of the fluid waves. Hair cell vibrations
are converted to electrical impulses, and
transmitted along the auditory nerve to the
auditory cortex where intensity and frequency
of the vibrations are mapped. Neither pressure
waves, physical movements of body parts
[bones, hair], nor electrical signals are sound.
Sound is an experience that is created by, and
exists only in, the mind of the perceiver.
So, if there is no one around to hear it, a tree
falling in the forest produces no sound — only
pressure waves in the surrounding air.

11. Explanatory Emergence
Subjec tive experience emergence from biological processes. The principles that govern
experience are new and different from the principles of biology.
To exerecise will, these principles must be appreciatioed at a first-person level. Like martial
arts or any performance, observers knowledge is insufficient for successful performance,
one needs the muschel skills.

12. There are no black dots; there is no movement.
These phenomena were created by your nervous system
You do not see things as they are

13. Aristotle’s exhortation: “Know thyself” makes the
distinction between the knower and what is
known.

14. Optical Illusions
• The organizational mechanisms
of vision are best demonstrated
by illusions. Illusions illustrate
that perception is a creative
construction that the brain
makes in interpreting visual data
....Learning does not prevent us
from being taken in by these
illusions.
— Eric Kandel
Choosing what is figure and what is background
can determine the reality your experience

15. Ocampo
Look closely. The whole
is different than the sum
of its parts

18. This remarkable work contains embedded figures
that emerge as you shift your focus. How many
can you discern?

19. Illusions of Size
The figures are identical How its done

20. Your perception is a creation of your nervous system, not the
valid representation of objective reality that you take it to be.
Evidence from direct experience.
The organizational mechanisms of
vision are best demonstrated by
illusions. Illusions illustrate that
perception is a creative
construction that the brain makes
in interpreting visual data
....Learning does not prevent us
from being taken in by these
illusions.
— Eric Kandel
6 or 7 cubes?