Who's to say you're not thinking when you sacrifice yourself? When the computer self-destructs, it first has to go through many complicated processes, it has to think how to kill. It just does it so fast that we don't think about it. If you saw a brickfalling towards a family member you would still think. You would just think faster. And prior thought would also come into effect. If you had recently devoted much thought to why humans should not be saved and how much you hated Aunt Jo and why she should die, then if you saw a brick falling towards her and were truly hateful, you would not save her. But if all your life you had valued human life, you would save her without questioning. I think it's all conditioning.
I think your 'self' has to include everything that 'makes you up'. And that definitely extends the limits of your body.
__________________ The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish,
and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten.
The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits.
When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten.
The purpose of words is to convey ideas.
When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.
Where can I find a man who has forgotten words?
He is the one I would like to talk to. --Chuang Tzu |