Intro to Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Intro to Philosophy - Essay Examplethe individual private conversations with ourselves that we conduct in our heads. People therefore talk about devising up my creative thinker changing my mind or of being of two minds about some matter about which a decision is required. This fits in with the persuasion that the mind is a very private and personal area to which no other person has access. The etymology of the word of honor in position shows how there is some confusion as to what mind actually means. In superannuated English it was gemynd, a word used to refer to memory and intention as well as thinking (, Harper 2012), tear down having the mind aroused. In Greek the word memona referred to both keen for something and withal madness. In Latin, as in Old English, the word was linked to recall and memory. In English by the 14th century to mind meant to remember. In French however the word is esprit or spirit, and in German geist i.e. ghost, both referring to an intangible some thing. The brain is obviously a material object, it can be measured, observed, even weighed. With modern imaging techniques it is even possible to see it in action, chemically, neurologically and electronically. The mind however is much slight tangible something we all know exists up to now cannot quite explain. It is a separate entity. Our body can be totally relaxed, even asleep, but the mind can be very active. The reverse can also be true - we are running along perhaps, pushing our body to its physical limits, while at the akin time the mind is simply ticking over, thinking of almost nothing. The mind can be defined as that part of conscious beings which reasons, perceives, thinks, wills and judges. The Free Dictionary defines the mind as being - The valet consciousness that originates in the brain and is manifested especially in thought, perception, emotion, will, memory and imagination. It is also described in the same dictionary as - The collective conscious and unconsc ious processes in a sentient organism that broadcast and influence mental and physical behavior. All cognitive being are born with amazing brains and minds, yet it is something about which humanity in general knows relatively very little. This essay will consider unhomogeneous views on the subject, looking at research, at opinions, secular ideas and religious texts. It is likely that man, from earliest time, has been aware that he is made up of more than physical things, more even than what he perceives through his senses - man is afterward all a dreamer and also capable of spiritual experiences. Probably the oldest known ideas about the mind come from Zoroaster who may have lived as long ago as 2000 B.C.E.(Parsa, undated), although estimates of his dates vary considerably. According to his biographer Zoroaster, a Persian philosopher and the founder of the Zoroastrian religion taught that - By keeping the mind healthy and by making use of creative forces, individuals can find sat isfaction and passion in what they do. In Buddhism the body is compared to a house and our mind to a guest staying there. According to this belief when a person dies their mind moves on into the next life or place , and the house, as houses do, stays behind to be taken aid of. (Kadampa 2010). The same article also points out that, as the mind is formless, it is totally unrestricted by physical objects which explains why it is possible to dream or to consider something without being in its