From: a_rod_777@yahoo.com   
      
   On Tuesday, July 17, 2018 at 1:31:54 PM UTC-6, litewave wrote:   
   > On Tuesday, July 17, 2018 at 6:42:48 PM UTC+2, a_rod_777 wrote:   
   >   
   > > Refer to Joseph Campbell on the function of mythology and symbolism in the   
   human psyche.   
   > >   
   > > "“Mythology is not a lie, mythology is poetry, it is metaphorical. It   
   has been well said that mythology is the penultimate truth--penultimate   
   because the ultimate cannot be put into words. It is beyond words. Beyond   
   images, beyond that bounding rim    
   of the Buddhist Wheel of Becoming. Mythology pitches the mind beyond that rim,   
   to what can be known but not told.”   
   > > ― Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth "   
   >   
   > I wouldn't say that the ultimate truth cannot be put into words. You can   
   make up a word for anything, that's not a problem. The problem is that if it   
   is something that is radically different from what people normally know or   
   experience and you want to    
   communicate it to them you must use words that are familiar to them and that   
   simultaneously denote things that are similar in a relevant way to the thing   
   you are trying to communicate. So you use analogies, metaphors - the stuff of   
   poetry and myths.   
   >   
   > And if the people know that these are analogies and not literal   
   descriptions, they may open their minds to a larger set of things that are   
   similar to each other.   
      
   Well this is a relative argument for sure. Words are simply symbols   
   representing some type of information. The act of representation is a   
   transference of information and by nature requires an input and an output.   
      
   For instance I can say the word "carrot" represents the ultimate truth to me,   
   however communicating that experience to someone else through only the use of   
   the word "carrot" may or may not convey that deeper meaning depending on the   
   receiving ends    
   ability to assimilate the information. As you stated, everyone's internal map   
   is different and there must be some congruence between the input and output   
   channels of two separate communicating channels for information to be   
   successfully relayed.   
      
   So with that said I would agree with Mr. Campbell that the ultimate truth can   
   not be put into words, as words do not possess the required diversification to   
   describe such a complex concept, however I would agree with you that words can   
   REPRESENT the    
   ultimate truth and even convey that conceptual information between two   
   conscious beings who share similar understandings and experiences of what "the   
   ultimate truth" is.   
      
   We may not be able to force someone to experience enlightenment through the   
   use of words, but we can talk about enlightenment with someone who has any   
   amount of experience with the concept.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)