Compulsive thinking

I have many compulsions, but up to now, I have not seen thinking as one of them. I need to reconsider.

Eckhart Tolle’s soft voice whispers strange messages from my iPod to my mind. I listen to his book The Power of Now. I learn that I am a compulsive thinker. My thinking defines my identity, and not before I stop thinking will I be truly free. I think, therefore I am, said Descartes. Wrong, says Eckhart. It is quite the opposite, actually. You are when you do not think. Being conscious, present and in the now is impossible when you think.

Moreover, you are not your mind; your thoughts are not your identity. Thinking is just a stage in the evolution of consciousness. The mind is a tool; you can pick it up and use it when needed. When it has done its job, put it down again.

The compulsive non-stop thinking most of us suffer from is damaging. Thought alone becomes destructive when it disconnects from the realm of consciousness.

This realm of consciousness is a bit harder to grasp and explain. I get that it is a kind of presence, closeness and connectedness to an intelligence beyond us. Some call it the universe. Others call it God. Eckhart prefers the Being.

The mind is a survival tool, developed to help you avoid perishing by thy neighbour’s axe or eaten by a lion. All true artists create from a place of no mind, from inner stillness. The mind comes later, and gives form to it. Great scientists receive their most profound insights in a state of inner stillness. Creation and creativity is not a product of thoughts, and people who consider themselves not creative, often will find that it is not because they do not know how to think, it is because they do not know how to stop thinking.

Eckhart’s message makes me curious. There is a paradox, an ambiguity in them. Listening to him, I observe my mind, just as he tells me to. What I see? I see myself thinking. I truly cannot grasp his message about not thinking, without thinking. If I do as he says, stop thinking, the message does not come through.

What do you think about that?

Link to Eckhart Tolle – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Building a Central Nervous System for the Earth

HP wants to build the world’s central nervous system, using nanotech devices that measure everything. Absolutely everything.

Imagine walking down the supermarket aisle with a cheap device you could hold up to a tomato. If the sensor detects a pesticide residue, you’d know the “organic” label is a lie.

This is probably the world’s most ambitious nanotech project, according to Fortune. HP aims to build ‘a central nervous system for the earth.’ Nothing less.

Well at least this makes my central nervous system a little shaky.

The company aims to develop a panoply of microscopic-scale nanotech devices that will be able to measure essentially anything. Viruses, bacteria, the chemical composition of molecules, vibration, moisture levels, particular sounds.

Fortune: HP’s grand vision: measure everything

Eye of God

 

The Power Puzzle

A new morning coming up. Gray day in May, green trees outside my window. Little Lisa laughing in the doorway.

Newspaper speaks about the crisis in Burma. Pictures of the generals in their parade uniforms. There are pictures  of men with medals, lots of glitters, pomp and circumstances. One of them is the boss, a fat, middle-aged scared lump of meat, with a face that hasn’t felt the joy of a smile in ages.

This man’s shit stinks just like other’s. When he studies himself naked in the mirror morning, it’s with the same disillusioned unloved pathetic sigh as anyone else having to live in fear and luxury.

Who gives him power?

Power puzzles me. How come we allow single individuals to acquire so much power over other people’s lives? How come the zillions of people in Burma just don’t eat him for breakfast? What is it in man’s mind that craves humility towards abusers?

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Language change

From this post and onwards, this blog will be written in English. I realize that all the important stuff I have to say should be presented in a format that slightly more people than the 1% of humanity that speaks Norwegian can adhere to.

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Nepalesere lærer å leve uten mobilen

For en måned siden grep kong Gyanendra overraskende makten i Nepal. Han beordret straks alle kommunikasjonslinjer, inkludert telefon og mobiltelefon, avslått.

Stygg sak i Frankrike

En rettsak om pedofili som involverer 66 voksne og 45 barn er i gang i Angers i Frankrike.

39 menn og 27 kvinner er anklaget for voldtekt og salg av sine barn. Saken har satt i gang en sjelegranskende nasjonal debatt om forsvinnende moralske verdier og statens evne til å beskytte barn.

Myten om den kvinnelige intuisjon

Norske toppledere legger vel så stor vekt på magefølelsen som analyse når de fatter strategiske beslutninger i nytt og ukjent terreng.

Hunter S. Thompson – den første blogger?

I mange av nekrologene til nylig selvdøde Hunter S. Thompson beskrives han som en forgjenger til dagens bloggere.

Thompson hadde en tilnærming til journalistikk som mange måter speiler moderne blogger, disse hjemmelagde kommentatorene som blander nyheter, meninger og personlige dagboknotater på sine nettsteder.

Også CBS sin politiske redaktør

Slaget om 3G vil stå i Asia

Asias mange nye mobilprodusenter utfordrer vestens etablerte i slaget om 3G, mener Gartner.