Topic started by Excitement forever? (@ c-66-177-115-58.se.client2.attbi.com) on Thu May 1 20:27:13 .
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Take it as you will.

Responses:

• Old responses
  
• From: Ellen (@ c-66-177-115-58.se.client2.attbi.com) on: Wed May 14 10:42:33 EDT 2003
  
  Now I am wondering where "restlessness" comes from, as the original thread had nothing to do with it. When one is searching for wisdom, knowledge, is one restless? I say no.
  
  
• From: Pavalamani Pragasam (@ dialpool-210-214-8-201.maa.sify.net) on: Wed May 14 13:12:40 EDT 2003
  
  Is not boredom the direct gnawing feeling born out of restlessness, dissatisfaction, discontent- ennui & distaste for all that is familiar & known?A craving for something more exciting?A sort of negative feeling hampering one from enjoying oneself, doing anything hopefully, eagerly, constructively?
  
  
• From: Ellen (@ c-66-177-115-58.se.client2.attbi.com) on: Wed May 14 13:43:31 EDT 2003
  
  I'd say the only boredom is if there isn't any response from people... then... restlessness.
  
  But as far as learning itself and the constant questing for truths (spiritual or otherwise), it has no boredom. Only with people interaction is there restlessness for me, especially with no feedback. I am a person who appreciates feedback. Some feedback is better than nothing at all. Though the person just responds, to me that is like... something very very very great.
  
  I think feedback is the best indicator of where one is headed with thoughts, ideas, etc... One can't see one's own direction as well as many heads, eyes, and perspectives will.
  
  The term, "boredom" is used most loosely. It is not really being brain-sapped, fidgety due to some drying of brain juice. It's more like... why isn't anyone responding? Is the topic mundane for everyone else, here? Perhaps I am talking nonsense...nonsense philosophizing?
  Of course I know my own stand and my own perspectives, but being human is being interactive/communicative/corresponding.
  
  Craving? Perhaps a craving for knowledge and releasing pent up questions (which needs answers). Nothing to do with excitement. And the only restlessness, if any, is not being able to find answers... still "containing" the questions. Not even meditation will help in this case. It is not as bad as it sounds. Just very much desiring (not demanding!) to know.. that's all.
  
  I do other things eagerly... I study eagerly. I eat eagerly, I sleep eagerly. I enjoy arts eagerly.. I enjoy many things.
  
  I am only referring to questions that a human being has. If unanswered, one can get negative feelings... due to a mix of resignation and deadended feelings.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• From: Chenthamizhan (@ 10.cleveland-11-12rs.oh.dial-access.att.net) on: Wed May 14 21:16:32 EDT 2003
  
  
  Hunsur Karshna Moorti:
  
  The word is spelled "dexterous" or more commonly as "dextrous" in American usage.
  
  Ramadas:
  
  What is that with you and your fascination with loo and handcuffs? It sounds like a weird teenager's fanatsy!:)
  Kidding aside, your point, that any stimulant that excites you, if it is kept long and constant, will ultimately fail to stimulate you, and will pass from conscious awareness to become a boring background noise, is well taken. That is mathematical equivalent of a trivial solution. The trivial solution is obvious and true of course but a non-trivial solution ends up being more challenging and interesting.
  
  In our case if the stimulant is periodically applied rather than constantly, you can then obtain excitement or stimulation for an indefinite amount of time so long as you choose the period wisely. If considerable effort is required to obtain the stimulant, it all the more becomes truly satisfying. The effort you put in to obtain the stimulation itself becomes more exciting as you start anticipating the pay off.
  If you come home after hard but satisfying work all day , and have dinner and walk and talk with your loving companion to the nearest beach to watch the sunset, the experience would be worth repeating till the end of time without getting bored. Of course this assumes that you have a satisfying work and a loving companion. Since we are talking ideal, you can easily envisage the above set of conditions. As a matter of fact you can imagine infinite set of such conditions.
  >>Your mind have learned them to be not-boring by reading or hearing about them!
  When are we going to be free from all these myths?>>
  
  Well this is as much an experience as a brick wall in front of you. You can call it a myth and walk into it and break your head or you can go around and enjoy life for another day. To live is to experience and experiencing the moment when it touches your soul is the bliss that makes the life worth living.
  You can turn into Plato and say the human condition is like being chained in a dark cave watching the shadows on the wall, not able to turn the head and see what casts the shadow, and call the shadows a myth and look for a deeper reality.Or you may deny an ultimate reality and call every thing a Brahma Maya - Whatever way you pursue at the end of life you will find only thing that truly matters are your built up memories that touched your soul. That won't be a myth!
  Or as Omar Khayyam said:
  "Ah, make the most of what we yet may spend,
  Before we too into the Dust descend;
  Dust into Dust, and under Dust to lie,
  Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer, and-- sans End!"
  
  
  
• From: Ramadas (@ dclient217-162-113-235.hispeed.ch) on: Thu May 15 14:58:02 EDT 2003
  
  Oh What a Learned person Chenthamizhan is! He reads PGWodehouse and quotes OmarKhayyam!
  
  (This was the comment you expected from all forum hubbers, by your postings! All forum hubbers, please cut and paste the above comment of mine and repeat postings so that Chenthamizhan is happy, or gets "bored" of it!)
  
  What else? You did not understand a word I posted before!
  
  
• From: Ramadas (@ dclient217-162-113-235.hispeed.ch) on: Thu May 15 15:05:19 EDT 2003
  
  Chenthamizhan,
  For the last time I repeat my point from another direction:
  
  The moment you think of something as "interesting", or "not boring" or "stimulating" or "enjoyful" or "satisfying" (all words used by you), you have already entered the threshold of boredom of that something. After that it is a matter of seconds of minutes before you break away from it and your mind goes to some other activity! None of the conditions will satisfy your mind. It will still jump from one to another thinking that the other is "not-boring". It is the way with the mind! Challenge you that you cannot keep a thought (however superb it is) constantly in your mind. The mind will get bored and jump to another thought!
  
  
• From: Seshadri (@ 219.65.204.80) on: Thu May 15 22:02:10 EDT 2003
  
  The various sense organs of the body enjoy favourable stimulations for a short (or reasonable) time only. Immediately later, the senses saturate and numb into inaction. The pleasurable stimulants no longer satisfy.
  
  To avoid boredom, new stimulants and environmental situations (real and imaginary) have to be devised constantly, by the zestful individual.
  
  Exceptions:
  
  (1) Lovers in each others' company (physically or mentally) in the state of anticipating pleasurable culmination.
  (2) Various daily activities, in anticipation of pleasurable culmination.
  
  After the successful culmination, the original stimulants no longer satisfy.
  (Couples can look forward to various enticing possibilities and keep the flames of passion alive, depending on their imagination and abilities for meaningful dreams - even over years and decades! )
  
  :))
  
  
• From: Chenthamizhan (@ 248.cleveland-18-19rs.oh.dial-access.att.net) on: Thu May 15 22:21:04 EDT 2003
  
  Ramadas:
  
  I am guilty as charged - I do like Wodehouse and Omar Khayyam and a host of others. It may be difficult for a mythical mind with loo and hand cuff fixation to understand, but there do exist people who like things of that sort and it is no myth.
  
  Having said that, I fully agree with you that nobody can constantly keep one thought or stimulated by one stimulus continuously without it becoming just a background noise or boring. What I was talking about was that you can have an infinitely long exciting existence so long as you space the stimulus in time; it is like some one who enjoys the cigarette, can enjoy it indefinitely so long as one does give reasonable amount of time between the lighting up of cigarette (if the lung cancer does not kill that person early).The key word I wanted to convey here is a "periodic" stimulus and not a "constant" stimulus.
  
  
  
  
• From: Pavalamani Pragasam (@ 61.1.207.72) on: Fri May 16 04:26:48 EDT 2003
  
  It is unfair to treat the human mind like a "chekku maadu", trudging in a doomed groove. It is also an insult to the human mind to think it has the perversity to love, the predisposition to relapse to the "chekku maadu" mood & mode. Also, contrary to the proverb, "familiarity breeds cotempt" or "custom stales" there are certain factors for each individual ( example, mother's recipes as cited in a previous posting) Which provide constant, unchanged , perennial solace & fulfilment Whenever they are sought. There is no denying the fact that a feeling called boredom is real- like any other feeling, anger, jealousy, fear etc. The point is do we, can we, shall we allow ourselves to be bored for long enough to feel its impact, to be submerged in it? Life is short, too short to be spent in being a stickler for literal meanings of words & improbable, useless theoretical propositions.
  Insincere praises politicians hear from their minions are silly things which any self- respecting individual will shun.These praises may also cloy! But in real life spontaneous,unexpected praises do come one's way for any number of causes - praises neither I, Chenthamizhan nor Ramadas need feel reluctant or ashamed to pocket. Let us learn to appreciate the little joys of life!Then boredom will become a word to be found only in the dictionary.
  
  
• From: Seshadri (@ ppp-219.65.162.29.hyd.vsnl.net.in) on: Fri May 16 21:11:39 EDT 2003
  
  "you can have an infinitely long exciting existence so long as you space the stimulus in time" - Chenthamizhan
  
  You have hit the nail on the head :))
  The various pleasurable situations can be thoroughly and continuously enjoyed (and savoured), by judicious juxtaposition and imagination. Dreams and imagination can play wonders.
  ----------------------------------
  "There is no denying the fact that a feeling called boredom is real- like any other feeling, anger, jealousy, fear etc. The point is do we, can we, shall we allow ourselves to be bored for long enough to feel its impact, to be submerged in it?" - Pavalamani Pragasam
  
  Well said.
  I think that summarizes he topic.
  Like towards all negative emotions, one learns to minimize it :))
  --------------------------------
  "unexpected praises do come .... need not feel reluctant or ashamed to pocket"
  
  Sincere compliments emphasizes the fine quality of the job turned out and produces enthusiasm towards work of higher calibre
  
  
• From: Ramadas (@ dclient80-218-20-252.hispeed.ch) on: Sat May 17 03:34:47 EDT 2003
  
  So you have all agreed to the point of "time". Wihtout time flowing between experiences there is is always boredom. This is what I have been telling right from the beginning of the thread. Please click Old Responses and see!!!!
  
  
• From: Chenthamizhan (@ 165.cleveland-16-17rs.oh.dial-access.att.net) on: Sun May 18 20:59:24 EDT 2003
  
  
  Ramadas:
  
  Now that at last we are talking periodic rather than constant pleasure experinces, it may be time to go to the next concept; i.e. anticipation can be as exciting as the pleasure. If you have seen the kids waiting eagerly for arrival of the festivals with attendant gifts and good cheer, you will understand how exciting the anticipation could be. That is if you have a string of pleasure (excitement)-> anticipation(excitement)->pleasure(excitement) experience lined up you can in theory extend the excitement for a very long time. You don't have to necessarily get into "boring" phase immediately after "pleasure" phase and rather settle into an exciting "anticipation" phase.
  
  Let me illustrate it with an example; If we take the case of a newly married couple, the wife after pleasant companionship with her husband during the previous night gets ready for the day for her hubby to leave for work; she keeps every thing ready for him to come back in the evening to enjoy what she has prepared for him with great anticipation. The excitement of the lingering scent and remanants of her husband is enough for her until he comes back. The routine repeats day after day without "boring" part coming in.
  For most couple it may last six months, for some it may last two years, and for a fortunate very few till death do they part.
  Pleasure->Anticipation->Pleasure....
  This is the only way you can have an indefenitely long excitement in your life.
  
  Personally I think we have mined this topic to its limit; I would rather talk in future about something more interesting , especially what pavalhamaNi had to say about physics and metaphysics.
  
  

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