The inadequacy of ideas and ideologies . . . . . . . . .

[aneeshm]

This is a thought that has been revolving in my mind for some time now :

Can human constructs , ideas and ideologies , ever completely grasp or explain reality ? Or is man forever doomed to seeing the world through inadequate glasses of his own making ? Does not the reality of reality diminish by comaprison all ideals and approximations of it ?

[Asher]

Yes. Yes. No.

[Lorizael]

See my profile.

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by Asher
Yes. Yes. No.

I'm not talking of science - there I accept that it can approximate reality with such closeness that the difference becomes irrelevant . I'm talking of other concepts , more general ones , more inclusive ones .

[BeBMan]

No. Maybe. Banana.

[Tattila the Hun]

Could be. Can't say. Never know.

[BeBMan]

In all seriousness, if it's not about science, what other things do you mean (and use to explain reality)?

[Lorizael]

What he means is that some people think the world is being held aloft by four giant elephants who stand on top of a giant turtle. Now, how good a representation of the real thing is that, and can such a representation ever be as good as the real thing?

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by Lorizael
What he means is that some people think the world is being held aloft by four giant elephants who stand on top of a giant turtle. Now, how good a representation of the real thing is that, and can such a representation ever be as good as the real thing?

I confess that I have absolutely no idea what you're trying to say .

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by BeBro
In all seriousness, if it's not about science, what other things do you mean (and use to explain reality)?

Philosophy ? Religion ? Politics ?

[BeBMan]

And how would these completely explain reality, as you wrote in the op?

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by BeBro
And how would these completely explain reality, as you wrote in the op?

Completely explaining reality would mean that you are able to completely recreate , with no loss of detail , the reality you are describing or striving to understand , assuming that you have only these ideas or ideologies given to you ( with appropriate definitions ) .

[BeBMan]

But if you already counted science out which is usually our best tool for explaining something - how can you expect those others to explain reality completely? "Completely" would mean including (especially!) scientific explanations, otherwise it doesn't seem complete to me...how could you hpe to come to a "complete" understanding of reality just by say, religion?