“And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost. History became legend. Legend became myth. And for two and a half thousand years, the ring passed out of all knowledge.” A quote from J.R.R. Tolkien‘s trilogy The Lord of the Rings.
The word “ring” could be anything else and this quote would (probably) still apply. Why do humans have a disbelief when it comes to our past?
Our past is clearly not an object in the 7 Belief systems, being Love, Money, Philosophy, Politics, Religion, Science and the Truth. The unbelief in certain parts of our past is, however, a belief in a different Truth (eg, fake news, Holocaust denial).
There is a Dutch proverb that states “Wat de boer niet kent, dat vreet hij niet.” In English, it translates like “what the farmer doesn’t know, he doesn’t eat“. I think, feel and believe that this proverb could also be read as follows: “what a human being doesn’t know, he doesn’t accept”. Disbelief – rather than the 7 Belief systems – seems to be at the core of humans. Why?
One explanation is that we do not trust our own memories, let alone those of others. Even events that take place now, will have different accounts by different eyewitnesses. The truth is usually a perspective on how, what, when, where and why events took place. Hence, the Truth as one of the 7 Belief systems. We believe in our own truths.
The origin of the 7 Belief systems provides another explanation (my 2016 blog). It seems that Love is its oldest and its only selfless belief (my blog#1, blog#2). The ancient Greeks recognised 4 types of Love: Agápe (divine/spiritual), éros (romantic), philía (brotherly/sisterly), and storgē (parental).
All other beliefs are selfish, either for Knowledge (ie, Philosophy, Science, the Truth) or Power (ie, Money, Politics, Religion). These additional 6 selfish beliefs are intriguing. I think, feel and believe that urbanization (my blogs) is – once again – at the heart of this development.
The transfer from a tribal model to an urban model occurred at least before 3000 BC (Wiki). One could argue that this was also the transfer from selfless (“we”) to selfish (“I” or “ego“). It’s quite remarkable that selfless Love has survived Time and Space ever since. See a similar Russell Brand quote: “Love is the one thing we’re capable of perceiving that transcends time and space”.
Nevertheless, the absence of a tribe removed social control and/or restrictions and allowed humans to follow their egos. Such egos would normally have been banned from a tribe. Banning often equalled death in a tribal model. In urban life, you will find other customers or principals.
Six out of the 7 Belief systems may compensate for our fundamental (urban) disbelief.
Can I Kick It? (1990) by A Tribe Called Quest – artists, lyrics, video, Wiki-1, Wiki-2
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