Ep. 37 – Reality, Art and Illusion

Inviting listeners to question the nature of reality, consciousness, and perception, Alan Watts explores the limits of what the mind can truly know.

This series is brought to you by the Alan Watts Organization and Ram Dass’ Love Serve Remember Foundation. Visit Alanwatts.org for full talks from Alan Watts.

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This time on Being in the Way, Alan Watts explains:

  • Solipsism and how it subtly shapes modern human consciousness
  • The philosophical case for idealism and the nature of reality as mind-dependent
  • Relativity and how things exist for the purpose of other things
  • The mind as a mirror and the illusion of an objective, external viewpoint
  • Considering how the spiritual world affects the material world
  • The enduring philosophical question: What exists when no one is observing?
  • The Four Buddhist Inconceivables and the limits of conceptual thought

"Being is always being for something; it is, in other words, relational. The sun is light for eyes. Eyes are organs of vision for a mind. If there are no eyes, the sun gives forth no light. If there are no nerve ends it gives forth no heat. If there are no muscles, nothing is heavy.” –Alan Watts

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