What do you think about this statement: Reality is Relative.

Ive done alot of thinking and it seems that all we are, everything we know is based not on solid fact (which in itself is an illusion), but on comparisons. There are no absolutes... there are only comparisons. Without one side, we cant know the other, because there is nothing to compare it to.
In other words, what is Time without Space, and Space without time?

Maybe this idea is a product of human thought. Thats just how we live. Because the only absolute that exists, is beyond our comprehension simply because we are a product of it (the universe).

And thats also why I think religion is so important to many people. They cant handle the thought that there isn't something concrete at their feet, so they must believe in one or many absolute powers that are absolute. They can't be questioned. But thats what makes them so powerful, the fact that they can't be questioned.

Well, enough for now.

Cheers
T :)

There's a big difference between saying that you can't be absolutely 100% sure of the exact nature of reality and saying that objective reality doesn't exist. Yes, we probably can ever be totally sure of anything, but there is plenty of evidence than an objective reality exists independent of our perceptions of it.

Yes, that may be true. But Im not saying that it doesnt exist. Im just saying there are no absolutes. Everything is a comparison to something else.

It is an absolute that you will die, in the physical sense.

There was another thread on truth and its relevance a few weeks ago.
Reality is not relative. Reality = truth. Reality is absolute and it exists. The way I see it, reality or truth ("objective truth" for those of you who like to think that there are many truths) itself is the only thing that is proven to exist. What is subjective or relative is our perception of reality.

It is an absolute that you will die, in the physical sense.

Is it really absolute? Maybe we're living in a dream or a "Matrix" where death (and/or life) is only perceived. Can you prove that this is not the case? Only reality is absolute. We perceive our bodies to die but the reality, however improbable, may be that we do not.

It is an absolute that you will die, in the physical sense.

The absolute is just a theoretical expression. It's like the idea of infinity, you can describe it but you can't live it.

I like that statement, Tristan. If you apply it to the inability for humans to comprehend infinity, then it makes sense and explains a lot.

"Reality is not relative. Reality = truth. Reality is absolute and it exists."

Can you prove that? How does reality=truth? It is relative, thats what is so strange. In any aspect, scientific or otherwise, the way I see things can never be proven to be the same way you see things. Its only based on comparisons and popular opinion.

There is a difference between the statements "reality is relative" and “human perception of reality is relative”. If humans (or all life) would be extinct, would reality be relative? Reality = Truth = what simply IS. What is the difference between truth (“objective” truth for some of you) and reality for you?

A) Truth exists
B) Truth does not exist

Statement A) or statement B) must be TRUE therefore Truth (= Reality) exists.

There is a difference between the statements "reality is relative" and “human perception of reality is relative”.

Reality is the human perception of reality. Take out the human factor and what are you left with? Reality is how you percieve your 5 senses, nothing more. If you dont exist, than does reality? Maybe, but it sure as hell doesnt matter...

If humans (or all life) would be extinct, would reality be relative?
Yes, because it wouldnt be reality anymore. Because reality is just a name tagged onto what we hear, feel, smell, taste, and see. Its not just semantics.

Consider this: An alien race. How do they percieve "reality".

truth ( P ) Pronunciation Key (trth)
n. pl. truths (trthz, trths)
Conformity to fact or actuality.
A statement proven to be or accepted as true.
Sincerity; integrity.
Fidelity to an original or standard.
Reality; actuality.
often Truth That which is considered to be the supreme reality and to have the ultimate meaning and value of existence.

Truth is just a word. its as abstract an Idea as love, hate, good and evil. So to compare reality to it, is like comparing infinity to infinity.

"Reality=Truth=what simply IS"
what you consider "what simply IS", is just bound by human thought and perception of the universe around us by sensory organs specfically tailored for our survival. So who says that there is actually a ground base reality, a supreme undeniable backbone to whatever we percieve as reality.

Later
T

Reality is the human perception of reality. Take out the human factor and what are you left with? Reality is how you percieve your 5 senses, nothing more. If you dont exist, than does reality? Maybe, but it sure as hell doesnt matter...
You’re making humanity the center of everything and you are dismissing any “realities” which you can not perceive. Reality (and Truth) is not bound by human experience and understanding. Whether or not reality matters if I didn’t exist is not the point. The point is that REALITY exists and is absolute whether or not there is anyone (or anything) to perceive it.

Yes, because it wouldnt be reality anymore. Because reality is just a name tagged onto what we hear, feel, smell, taste, and see. Its not just semantics.

Well I guess you believe that if a tree falls in the forest and nobody there to hear it, it doesn’t make a sound. Actually, according to you, the tree does not exist or is not REAL until someone sees it or hears it. I’m saying there IS a reality in the forest. The reality may be the existence (or non-existence) of a tree that may (or may not) make a noise when (or if) it falls. The only thing I am absolutely sure of is that the reality, whatever it is, exists.

Consider this: An alien race. How do they percieve "reality".

I don’t know. It may be different than the perception of reality you and I have on earth. The closest we humans or any alien race will ever come to the Truth or Reality is through our perception of it. But we cannot dismiss Realities that we do not perceive. If humans would have taken that approach, the earth would still be flat and the sun would still be rotating around the earth.


Truth is just a word. its as abstract an Idea as love, hate, good and evil. So to compare reality to it, is like comparing infinity to infinity.

Again, I don’t consider the words “Truth” and “Reality” to refer exclusively to what we humans observe and experience. I feel (philisophicaly) there is value in admitting there are relevant things which we do not know of. Love, hate, good, evil are all subjective “human” words. “Truth” and “Reality” are objective and universal (even beyond the universe if the universe doesn’t exist).

"Reality=Truth=what simply IS"
what you consider "what simply IS", is just bound by human thought and perception of the universe around us by sensory organs specfically tailored for our survival. So who says that there is actually a ground base reality, a supreme undeniable backbone to whatever we percieve as reality.

No. “What simply IS” is not bound by anyone or anything. “what simply IS” may or may not be “simple” for us humans to perceive.

What do you think about this statement: Reality is Relative.

Ive done alot of thinking and it seems that all we are, everything we know is based not on solid fact (which in itself is an illusion), but on comparisons. There are no absolutes... there are only comparisons. Without one side, we cant know the other, because there is nothing to compare it to.
In other words, what is Time without Space, and Space without time?

Maybe this idea is a product of human thought. Thats just how we live. Because the only absolute that exists, is beyond our comprehension simply because we are a product of it (the universe).

And thats also why I think religion is so important to many people. They cant handle the thought that there isn't something concrete at their feet, so they must believe in one or many absolute powers that are absolute. They can't be questioned. But thats what makes them so powerful, the fact that they can't be questioned.

Well, enough for now.

Cheers
T :)

Consider this. Velocity is relative, however, that things change states is absolute. That is, the rate at which something is changing is measured relative to the rate at which the observer is changing. However, that the thing being observed is changing is not arguable or relative. So, the manner in which we measure rates is where relativity comes to play. As another example, we say that things are "large" relative to the size of the point of observation, but that the object has definite scale is absolute.

And thats also why I think religion is so important to many people. They cant handle the thought that there isn't something concrete at their feet, so they must believe in one or many absolute powers that are absolute. They can't be questioned. But thats what makes them so powerful, the fact that they can't be questioned.


That's an interesting theory but I think that people need to beleive in God because they are afraid of death and also a way to deal with the horrors of life. Most people do not have the luxury of pondering about what is real and what is not real.

dsdsds, Ill accept defeat in the argument. Great Job :) It works wonderfully in my mind, but I try to type it out or write it down, and it just doesnt seem to make sense, as you have proven.

Yes, that may be true. But Im not saying that it doesnt exist. Im just saying there are no absolutes. Everything is a comparison to something else.

If objective reality exists, then there has to be absolutes.