What Is Humes Theory Regarding Causation How Does It Show The Limits Of Human Understanding - Essay Example

Philosophy, Essay Topic: What is Hume’s theory regarding causation? How does it show the limits ofhuman understanding? Is his theory correct? Introduction - David Hume The problem with philosophers like Hume is simple. They think up to the physical, mental and intellectual levels. At this stage they find themselves blocked. They try to knock at the levels of spirituality, but due to their egoistic approach of trying to know the necessary connection, they get stuck up. They are unable to transcend the mind level, and enter the realm of bliss, where there are no differences. It is the conflict-free zone. For every mind-level argument there is a counter argument. By such arguments the solution is impossibility. Whether the philosophers like Hume agree or not, theory regarding Causation cannot be solved by applying secular methods of proofs. Human understanding, power of discriminations has limitations. “The Philosopher David Hume is famous for making us realize that until we know the Necessary Connection / cause of things then all human knowledge is uncertain, merely a habit of thinking based upon repeated observation (induction), and which depends upon the future being like the past.” This is an example of getting stuck at the mind-level. By mind-level thinking, the functioning and limitations of the mind cannot be understood. The power that is above the mind can only understand and control the mind. For example, the Major in the army takes orders from Colonel, the higher authority. Further, look at the wavering mind and how David Hume tries to grope in the dark, hankering to see the light. “I must confess that a man is guilty of unpardonable arrogance who concludes, because an argument has escaped his own investigation, that therefore it does not really exist. I must also confess that, though all the learned, for several ages, should have employed themselves in fruitless search upon any subject, it may still, perhaps, be rash to conclude positively that the subject must, therefore, pass all human comprehension.” Good confession by Hume, but what next? “Every action has an equal and opposite reaction,” this is the third of Sir Isaac Newton’s Laws of physics. Application of this law is not only confined to the space flights science, but to the entire universe. The intensity and magnitude, with which an act is performed, will necessarily have an equivalent effect in the opposite direction. It means that the intensity of your action is directly related to the intensity of its effect being experienced by you. No act goes unnoticed or unaccounted. A human being must strive to get and experience the knowledge of both the outer physical and inner psycho-spiritual world. Hume must know that there is something beyond the sensory experiences, known as metaphysical experience or the supra-sensory experience. The lower knowledge of the empirical world is kindergarten stuff as compared to the supra-sensory experiences. Hume asserts as stated in paragraph one above, “until we know the Necessary Connection / cause of things then all human knowledge is uncertain.” What is the remedy then and is there a procedure to know the “connection and the cause”? The different approaches to everything, physical, social, religious, cultural, scientific, even all the cosmic occurrences seem to be following just “One Cause.” The one who realizes the truth about that “One Cause” does not give much relevance to the mundane occurrences of daily life to conclude that “future being like the past,” as articulated by Hume. Intellectual philosophers (like Hume) remain unaware of the Cause of grand unification of everything because they are experiencing only on the physical level, which is just the part of the Cause. The Cause cannot be known by physical instruments and experiments. One has to dive within to know it. One cannot watch every part of the macrocosm but can look inside the microcosm to know the Cause which is reflected inside. The journey from “One to all” is easier than the journey from “all to One.” Your mind apparatus keeps adding so that you are kept engrossed at the mind level only. So, awareness, which is you, think yourself as the one who is involved in the cacophony of the happenings all around you. We can say that circumstances and incidents in the form of the various emotions are piled up on awareness according to various circumstances. Now, there is no fun if a show is going on and you remain aloof. So, the trick of the mind is in creating a false sense of self and projecting as if, all that is occurring is actually getting inflicted on this Self. An unconscious person thinks that he is this false Self and a conscious person knows that he is not. This is the only difference. Take the example of an actor. He does various roles and portrays a range of emotions, knows who he is although he is acting out the various characters. Same with us, the only difference is we have lost ourselves in the characters that we play and think (which is a mighty trick of the mind) that we are such and such role. This role is the false Self or the egoistic Self that is created by the mind to confuse us. The fall from the paradise, which is cut off from bliss or unity with the Universal Cause happens when you take yourself to be the Self projected by the mind. A brilliant student decided to take management as his career and wished to become an expert on the subject. He visited the college library and asked the librarian “How many books are there on the subject of management?” On learning that there are many thousands of them and each day some new books arrive in the market, the student understood that mastering the contents of all the books is impossibility. He had read the observation of Voltaire (1694-1778), “The magnitude of books is making us ignorant.” Hume’s Problem of Causation and Necessary Connection is somewhat similar. We never can discover the Cause for one following the other by secular scrutiny. We can observe and conceive the tie that binds all together, only though investigations from within. How the mind functions and what are its limitations can be understood only by the power that controls the mind or the power that is superior to the power of the mind. No events are loose and separate, only the connecting thread needs to be investigated. Philosophical reasoning is not absurd, as concluded by Hume. The procedure for experiencing the philosophical truths needs to be followed by intellectual giants like Hume. Does Hume know all the secrets of Nature? His contention that everything should be available for the scrutiny for Reasoning is in itself the wrong Reasoning! Agreed, civilization has always progressed through man harnessing Nature. All is fine till the macrocosmic as well as the microcosmic natures both are harnessed. As soon as there is dis-balance, creation is threatened. This is what has happened today. In our pursuit to conquer the outside Nature, we have in fact let her capacity unharnessed inside our microcosm. That is why there is great imbalance today and creation is threatened. Outside Nature is harnessed to make the inside Nature go absolutely unharnessed. Conclusion: Hume’s Problem of Causation has remained unsolved for 250 years. Even after say, 2500 years it will not be solved, unless the correct procedure is understood and experienced by the one who is out to investigate the Cause. His theory is incomplete and therefore incorrect. It is inadequate to find the Cause. Read More