[MD] Quality Awareness

[118]

We create puzzle pieces and then put them together in meaningful ways.
 Once put together, the boundaries disappear, and a seamless picture
emerges.  These pieces can be considered as SQ.  The act of putting
them together involves DQ.  The picture can be one of Quality.  Once
the new awareness is formed, one no longer needs to linger in how the
pieces were put together and one can leave MoQ behind.  Lingering in
MoQ for too long is like staying in a church hoping to find
enlightenment there amongst the pillars and never leaving.  SQ and DQ
can be considered as useful puzzle pieces, for beginning one's
journey.  MoQ exists as a mode for sharing an awareness of the world,
this is why Pirsig created it, so that he could explain the manner in
which he saw the world before words.  He also stresses not to get too
bogged down in the terminology and methods, for that is not Quality.

 It is always important to understand that MoQ as written is SQ, and
that it seeks to embody a grand manner in which to apprehend reality.
SQ must be opposed by something else for SQ to stand out.  This is DQ.
 Perhaps it is important to investigate how these two fit together to
form the puzzle.  Perhaps this has already been done in a meaningful
way by many in this forum and they are free from the division of SQ
and DQ.

In the past I have tried to describe a manner for becoming aware of
Quality by presenting what I called the focussed attention attribute
of our brains.  I distinguish such attention from the underlying
"subconscious" which includes the entire body.  As such, what we are
attentive to is not the same as what we are aware of.  The latter
leads to the former.  Attentiveness is converted to words, awareness
cannot be directly converted since it must first be further
manipulated.  In this post I will present a similar concept except
through the presentation of science.

The enigma of consciousness is not foreign to scientists.  Their
approach is to use a physical paradigm rather than a metaphysical one.
 Both methods are descriptive in nature and often overlap.  While this
scientific study has gone on for quite some time, recent improvements
in measurement techniques, experimental design, and de-convoluting
algorithms have given rise to interesting and perhaps meaningful
results in terms of brain function for generating awareness, which
then gets converted to attention.  These new methods and provisional
conclusions have been reported in recent years in such publications as
Science and The National Academy of Science's journal.  What follows
is an example of how these new "theories" can be relevant to MoQ and
Quality Awareness.

An "awareness of" incoming stimuli can be separated from "attention
to" incoming stimuli through a variety of neurochemical and
psychological techniques.  This separation can be considered as two
pieces of a puzzle which we can then put back together.  (In some
scientific circles, this "awareness" is used interchangeably with
"consciousness".  While I believe this may be an oversimplification,
it all depends on what one terms "consciousness".  As such, I do not
have a problem with the contextual uses of consciousness as the brain
scientists use it.)    One can extrapolate from the data which result
an interesting division of labor in the brain.  it is possible to show
how one can be aware of something without being attentive of it.  The
typical notion that comes to mind here is subliminal messaging.

This separation is best typified by a pathway which starts with visual
awareness and leads to visual attention.  One could call this the
conversion of DQ to SQ.  The eye does not sense color, and color is
manifest in the back of the brain.  One region considered for this
spectral distinguishing is what is termed the V1 are in the visual
cortex.  It was thought for some time that this "V1" was the place
where light became thought.  However it is now understood that this
region is probably more of a sorting area and that visual thought
occurs in a different group of cells.  Further analysis of this area
may point to a more specific area that gives us the ability to "see
light" in a conscious way.

Therefore, we have incoming signals that we are aware of first, which
then become what we call SQ.  This SQ can then feedback to direct the
head to follow a visual cue.  Since Quality is made to be both SQ and
DQ (therefore the "Q"), The sum total of the process becomes Quality
Awareness.  The problem one encounters in Western thought is that only
the attentive portion of reality is considered relevant and DQ is
dismissed.  Since it is not measurable, science will not consider it.
However, as I present above, DQ can be pointed to even though it is
not anything, yet.  This is no different from the hot stove analogy.

Within MOQ we speak of the pre-intellectual.  One may ask then what
defines the intellectual.  If it is a reification of sorts, then what
is that reification.  If indeed the intellectual is a form of symbol
manipulation, then at what point to we consider manipulation to be
happening.  For indeed, as soon a light hits the eye, manipulation
begins.  However, as the intellectual can be considered as a formative
area for SQ, we would then adress though physiology at what point is
the intellect present.  Often the intellect is considered through the
appreciation of logical thinking.  However it should be clear that the
intellect has much deeper roots which lead to logic.  One could
actually consider the whole body to be part of the intellect.  This is
not hard to imagine since thoughts can arrise due to the nerves in the
stomach when one is hungry.

We speak of Quality as being composed of SQ and DQ.  The manner in
which this binary system is put back together is the function of MoQ.
Often in a metaphysics it is much more elucidating to create at least
three components.  For the tertiary components adds the third
dimension.  One manner of introducing a third component is to consider
the interaction of DQ and SQ.  This would be similar to the Holy Ghost
in the Christian trinity.  The other two components are The Father
(DQ) and The Son (SQ).  If one takes a mystical view of Christianity,
the similarity is obvious.  There are, of course more exotic forms of
the trinity than this one which is used in the West for contemplation
of reality.

Cheers,
Mark