Specially for Ah Beng

I just coincidentally came across an interesting blog that's discussing on the topic of is there an absolute truth?

I was telling this to my friend "Ah Beng" and he said he was interested in this topic, but then again, he is interested in everything, and so I will post the comments which I wrote on that interesting blog here.

Here's a small part of what the author said,"

"Now I thought well what do people believe in the most generic of terms possible: either there is an afterlife (some sort of heaven) or we just die. To me, the earth being the end-all-be-all to the meaning of our existence (Atheism) seems just so limited when you really look at how amazing life itself is"


Me: Since life is so amazing, it's enough just to have experience this life on earth alone and perhaps an afterlife is not needed? True there may be a design but perhaps the design merely ends here and there is no after life, so perhaps the creator thought it sufficient for us just to live once through this beautiful world.

Why do you think that with a higher power around, there should be a heaven or after life?

The whole world is a mystery and perhaps that is what the creator meant it to be, a mystery and our purpose is to admire and enjoy this mystery. Perhaps the purpose of this life is to discover there really is no purpose. However, innately, we all have a need for stability and it might be a reason for the existence of religions. (Haha, I think sometimes I'm very long-winded)




Author:
"While it all is a mystery, there is a logic to it that gives my life stability. With relativity (ie. you're right and I'm right and he's right...etc) there is nothing stable to believe in... because if everyone is right we are just contradicting our own belief. That is why I believe in absolute truth."



Long-winded old man:

It's true that you say with relativity, everyone is right.

(Warning: This part is damn boring and an old cliche example but can't help it, it's too good an example)
Certainly there are absolutes in this world, for instance, killing is definitely wrong. However, that is if we examine from the perspective of the act of killing itself. However, if we see it from the point of view that perhaps the doctor killed the patient to relieve him of more sufferings, mercy killing, then killing wouldn't be an act of evil.
The essense of relativity is that people view things from different perspective and different point of views.

(Very dry theory)
The world is so complicated, there are so many factors we have to consider. True there are many absolutes, but most of the times these absolutes contradict with each other and hence we have dilemmas. for instance in the above example, the absolute of helping others relieve their suffering contradicts with the absolute of not killing. Therefore, relativity comes in when people see this from different frames of references or points of view. It's identical to the Einstein's theory of relativity, (haha, super interesting!). If we were all to see it from the same perspective, then we would all arrive at the same conclusion.

For instance, you said that you believe that all religions all lead to the same path, absolute truth. So you're saying that Hinduism is right, christanity is right, buddhism is right, taosim is right. But how can that be? just compare buddhism and christanity, in buddhism there is no god, in christanity, there is only one true god and all the other religions are false. (Pardon me if I'm wrong)

However, what you said was right too if we examine from your perspective, that is all the religions are just different paths to getting to the afterlife.

"Change is the only constant in life" But this statement means that nothing is constant, except change, which again requires relativity, a frame of reference to judge this. There is nothing absolute about this statement until you define you r frame of reference, so if you are getting a headache, that is because you have yet to define your frame of reference. If you view change as an object, then it is a constant. If you view change as change, that the statement means nothing is constant. It's the same in this world, till you define your frame of reference, you can't say anything is absolute.

If you study quantum physics, there is law and order in uncertainty. So what is absolute here? uncertainty? but how can uncertainty be an absolute?

The only certainty I've learnt in this world is there nothing is for sure and it's true we must have a stand and belief, but we have to leave perhaps some space for error otherwise there is no point in human communication for if everyone believes they are 100 percent right, than nothing will get through to the other person.

Must there be an absolute to everything? just like what George Bush said, "You're either with us or against us in the fight against terror.", isn't the idea of an absolute absolute dangerous? Because it's when both parties think they are absolutely right and that the other party is wrong and that's when the fighting starts.