Memories Never Truly Succeed In “Catching” Reality - Deepstash
The Philosophy Of Alan Watts

Learn more about philosophy with this collection

Understanding the concept of the self

The importance of living in the present moment

The illusion of control

The Philosophy Of Alan Watts

Discover 61 similar ideas in

It takes just

8 mins to read

Memories Never Truly Succeed In “Catching” Reality

Memories are abstract things: they symbolize knowledge about things rather than of things. Memory never captures the core and the tangible reality of an experience.

"It is, as it were, the corpse of an experience, from which the life has vanished. What we know by memory, we know only at secondhand. Memories are dead because fixed."

566

1.97K reads

MORE IDEAS ON THIS

The Pain And Pleasure Spectrum

In order to really enjoy the pleasures of life, we need to face the painful parts, too.

Pain and pleasure take turns: constant pleasure is a stimulus that must either lose strength or grow. And this growth will either harden the sense buds with its friction, or turn into pa...

634

4.28K reads

"Spoilers" Of The Present

The real problem doesn't come from feeling pain the in moment, but from the way we use memory and anticipation.

The object or event we fear is not always something happening in the immediate future. It may be the problem of next month’s bills, a social or natural disast...

566

3.69K reads

There Is No Security In Life

So, rather than feeling anxious about it, accept this insecurity as a part of life by being aware of the present moment. This will help you find peace and contentment.

We have no reassurance regarding what the future will bring and even the best predictions are stil...

639

3.04K reads

What Awareness Is

Being aware of life means experiencing it as it is in the present moment, without judgments or ideas about it.

You have to see and feel what you are "experiencing as it is, and not as it is named".

598

2.2K reads

Making Sense Out Of Life

We think that making sense out of life means we have in some way to fit the sequence of events into a rigid framework.

Life is meaningful to us if we can understand it in terms of fixed codes, rules and law. But if this is what “making sense out of life” means, we have ...

552

2.86K reads

Rationalizing Life

There is a viewpoint from which the “rationalization” of life is not rational. The brain is clever enough to see the vicious circle which it has made for itself. But it can't do nothing about it.

You may acknowledge that worrying brings no benefits, but that doesn't sto...

580

2.23K reads

Giving Power To Silence

Giving Power To Silence

Silence is the only way to discover something new to talk about. The person constantly talking, without stopping to look and listen, is repeating himself over and over again.

The same thing happens with thinking, which is really silent talking. Thinking is by nature not ope...

625

1.79K reads

Instinctual Wisdom

We usually don't trust the “snap” solutions our wandering minds find, but the truth is that these easy and almost unconscious solutions is what the brain is supposed to deliver.

When it's functioning the right way, the brain is the highest form of “instinctual wisdom.”

556

2.11K reads

Understanding Comes Through Awareness

Understanding Comes Through Awareness

If a problem can be solved, to understand it and to know what to do about it are the same thing.

Doing something about a problem that you don't understand is like trying to clear away darkness by thrusting it aside with your hands.

566

2.16K reads

ALAN WATTS

"If we are open only to discoveries which will accord with what we know already, we may as well stay shut. (...) It is in vain that we can predict and control the course of events in the future, unless we know how to live in the present. It is in vain that doctors prolong life if we spend the...

ALAN WATTS

579

1.73K reads

The Two Ways Of Understanding An Experience

  1. Compare it with the memories of other experiences, to name and define it. This is to interpret it in accordance with the the past.
  2. Be aware of it as it is, forget past and future, let the present be all, and thus do not even stop to think, "I am ...

549

1.8K reads

Tying Our Happiness To Future Events

Tying Our Happiness To Future Events

Humans seem to be happy just as long as they have something in the future to look forward to, whether this is a good time tomorrow or an eternal life beyond physical death.

584

5.21K reads

Alan Watts

"Tomorrow and plans for tomorrow can have no significance at all unless you are in full contact with the reality of the present, since it is in the present and only in the present that you live. There is no other reality than present reality, so that, even if one were to live for endless ages...

ALAN WATTS

762

6.29K reads

The Happiness Consumerism

The Happiness Consumerism

The brain is in pursuit of happiness, and because it is much more preoccupied with the future than the present, it sees happiness as an assurance of a future with pleasures, that must be cramped into the span of a few years.

And the “brainy” economy...

575

2.14K reads

Related collections

More like this

The different kinds of memories

The different kinds of memories

We hold on to different kinds of memories.

  • Short-term memories last seconds to hours and long-term memories last for years.
  • We also have a working memory, which allows us to keep something in mind for a limited time by repea...

False memories are common

False memories are common

We all misremember things. However, false memories are not so much mistakes but can be very detailed fantasies. Some people remember precise details of an event they attended, only to later realise they were never there.

Being aware of the concept of false memories does not make us i...

Is Reality Real?

Is Reality Real?

The things and people in our lives are merely illusions. How do we know that any of these objects and creatures actually exist? Maybe they're constructs of our own internal mechanisms, spawned by our subconscious for unknown purposes.

We keep discovering new particles and fundamental forces...

stash-superman-illustration

Explore the World’s

Best Ideas

200,000+ ideas on pretty much any topic. Created by the smartest people around & well-organized so you can explore at will.

An Idea for Everything

Explore the biggest library of insights. And we've infused it with powerful filtering tools so you can easily find what you need.

Knowledge Library

Powerful Saving & Organizational Tools

Save ideas for later reading, for personalized stashes, or for remembering it later.

# Personal Growth

Take Your Ideas

Anywhere

Organize your ideas & listen on the go. And with Pro, there are no limits.

Listen on the go

Just press play and we take care of the words.

Never worry about spotty connections

No Internet access? No problem. Within the mobile app, all your ideas are available, even when offline.

Get Organized with Stashes

Ideas for your next work project? Quotes that inspire you? Put them in the right place so you never lose them.

Join

2 Million Stashers

4.8

5,740 Reviews

App Store

4.7

72,690 Reviews

Google Play

Ashley Anthony

This app is LOADED with RELEVANT, HELPFUL, AND EDUCATIONAL material. It is creatively intellectual, yet minimal enough to not overstimulate and create a learning block. I am exceptionally impressed with this app!

Sean Green

Great interesting short snippets of informative articles. Highly recommended to anyone who loves information and lacks patience.

samz905

Don’t look further if you love learning new things. A refreshing concept that provides quick ideas for busy thought leaders.

Shankul Varada

Best app ever! You heard it right. This app has helped me get back on my quest to get things done while equipping myself with knowledge everyday.

Laetitia Berton

I have only been using it for a few days now, but I have found answers to questions I had never consciously formulated, or to problems I face everyday at work or at home. I wish I had found this earlier, highly recommended!

Jamyson Haug

Great for quick bits of information and interesting ideas around whatever topics you are interested in. Visually, it looks great as well.

Giovanna Scalzone

Brilliant. It feels fresh and encouraging. So many interesting pieces of information that are just enough to absorb and apply. So happy I found this.

Ghazala Begum

Even five minutes a day will improve your thinking. I've come across new ideas and learnt to improve existing ways to become more motivated, confident and happier.

Read & Learn

20x Faster

without
deepstash

with
deepstash

with

deepstash

Access to 200,000+ ideas

Access to the mobile app

Unlimited idea saving & library

Unlimited history

Unlimited listening to ideas

Downloading & offline access

Personalized recommendations

Supercharge your mind with one idea per day

Enter your email and spend 1 minute every day to learn something new.

Email

I agree to receive email updates