r/DeepThoughts

To an extent, independence is a good thing. But just like too much dependence is a bad thing, so is too much independence. Humans are tribe animals after all, and we were wired for interdependence, social bonds and belonging.

I constantly see the same rhetoric online that interpersonal relationships don’t matter. And I see people getting scolded whenever they express loneliness and say that they wish they had people to rely on, or even people that just care. You’ll die alone, sure, but that doesn’t mean you should have to live alone.

I see therapy constantly being recommended for what used to be basic community support. Having somebody to vent to, or get advice from. Or just having a relationship with any emotional depth at all. Sure, therapy is a vital tool, especially if you have complex trauma. But we shouldn’t have to pay somebody to get a basic intimate relationship.

What are your thoughts on this all?

The human experience is very meaningful. So deep, so painful, multifaceted, so much beauty, so much art.

But imagine youre viewing humanity from the perspective of a being high enough from us to be the likes of ants to them, all of this seems trivial, all of this almost feels meaningless and small.

There's only 2 conclusions to derive from this. Either its true that our experience is just ant-like and meaningless patterns, or second, it is indeed meaningful, simply because it is meaningful to *us*, and thus, even the experience of ants are meaningful.

Just made me fundamentally realize why all life is sacred and deserves respect.

Question for yalls who have come across traumatic scenes. How has seeing such horrible things out there affect the way you view the world? If you're a believer in Jesus, did it ever make you question why such horrific things happen? Did you stop believing? Did you start believing? What has your work taught you about life? What made you want to do what you do? Tell me your stories. About the reasons you became who you are today.

So if you think about books like the giver, where everyone has everything they need and everything is fair, and no one suffers, it really seems strange how the characters refuse to accept the world they have, which comes down to a fundamental part of us humans. We humans are designed to appreciate the work that went into getting to the goal, which could be food or money or power, etc., but having that joy or pleasure for extended periods of time becomes boring to people, so it becomes impossible for people to accept a perfect world. If we want people to get exactly what they want (and arguably what we were meant to get) we cannot have a utopia, because if it was a utopia, then we wouldn’t accept it. So what is this non utopia? It’s going back to how we were when we learned these mechanisms which reward accomplishments, which were learned when we were hunters and gatherers living by a fire.

I am not saying that we should abandon all innovation, but that there is a certain paradox in utopian ideas.

Please point out any problems in my stance, like an example of a functional utopia where it would be accepted, or a reason why we we would be able to function inside one. I did not use ai to write this (just in case)

I feel like it is an existential paradox. I know, we are hard wired to be hyper aware of things surrounding us, things happening to us. But don't you think, after knowing so much more about our existence and universe, we should have been evolved to care less? Like why does it matter if my piece of toast got burnt, someone doesn't like me, or I made a mistake at work?

Been thinking about the subjectivity of perception and how people's thoughts can be easily influenced via programming. If you take away the judgment of things and the language we use, it seems to comes down to: either you're accepting or tolerating the conditions you find yourself in, or you don't. That's it.

Why do people tolerate so much nonsense and unnecessary suffering? Because they're attached to the stories that are given to them and internalize it.

Beliefs are powerful. So when people are attached to their stories, and build their identity around it, trying to change or let go of that narrative creates a felt sense of threat to their very identity, which perhaps has been conflated with existence itself.

This identity gives them a role in the story. Even if the role is not necessarily the one they want. Maybe there are expectations being fulfilled. Maybe there's some sort of familial or societal acceptance with the role.

I wonder how much longer people will go on like this while we continue ignoring our rapidly declining quality of life. We are such an odd species.

Most of us were never really taught how to build a life that can hold a career. Instead, we were taught to build our lives around one.
I think we should be aiming for a meaningful life, not just meaningful work. Expecting a single job to carry our identity, purpose, stability, and self-worth all at once feels like a setup for disappointment.

I had this thought that kind of fucked with me:

If you somehow knew the actual truth about existence - what reality is, why we’re here, what consciousness is, what happens when we die, whatever the real answer is..

There a decent chance everyone would think you were completely insane and it will be such a burden that you wish you could forget it.

I know there’s a theory that we exist here on this reality plan of existence not knowing because of this very reason, it’s a relief.

Because how would you prove it?

Imagine knowing something so far outside normal human understanding that you couldn’t even properly explain it. You’d try to tell people and they’d look at you like you’d lost your mind.

You’d have no one.

You could know the most important truth in the universe and still be completely alone with it. You might actually go insane.

Depending on what the truth was, you might literally end up institutionalized for talking about it.

Which makes me wonder if knowing everything would actually be a gift at all.

Or would being the only one who knows all all be psychologically unbearable

I’ve always found it funny and sweet that kids, animals and old people seem to be drawn to me. Animals just come to me, had them jump into my car.. random little kids I don’t know just bring me things or start talking to me, old people will abscond me randomly out in public. It’s always fascinated me but when my daughter’s friends told me that there’s just something about being around me that makes them feel like they can be who they are, they feel comfortable and safe.. it hit me pretty deep. People really do pick up on the unspoken, a persons vibe/aura.. whatever you want to call it, without even realizing it. It’s probably the best compliment I’ve ever gotten honestly. Being a safe, comforting, kind person. What a beautiful gift.

Think about it: if we only care about ourselves, we only benefit ourselves. But if everyone acts to benefit everyone, everyone's life will be lifted. For example, 10 people thinking about everyone means 9 people will care for you.

I think hard about how we could achieve this, but it seems much more complex. Even when there is a good system, corruption will always lurk. That's why it's important to reassess and fix things every time. But that's basically the core of religion: to repent. Yet, some of the biggest corruption is in religion. So what will work?

Acting on and sharing this so it spreads? And keeping practicing it, hoping it will affect others and create a ripple effect? At least if someone already knows about this, it's the only thing they could do.

This concept is more than just philosophy; it's the mechanics of how our reality is created. The universe isn't simply responding to what you want, but rather to who you are being.

Your self-concept writes the script, and your identity sets the tone for everything that unfolds around you. Reality is constantly following the signal you broadcast from within. As within, so without – it's a fundamental principle.

When you change your inner posture and stabilize a new sense of self, the outer world has no choice but to rearrange itself to mirror it back. You aren't merely a passive observer in the universe; the universe is moving through you, in verse, line by line, thought by thought, belief by belief.

If you want to change your story, change the author. Who will you be today?

As I have met people through work and travel I see how much we are all the same. People are people no matter the amount of melanin in their skin or their cultural background. All have intelligent and the not so intelligent, the good and the bad. Yes the world has different ethnicities, but there is only 1 race. The HUMAN race.

Think about the applicability of climate science to interplanetary exploration. You need to understand the climate to think about habitability, how to terraform, how to keep people alive and weather systems predictable.

In funding climate science today, it’s not just about saving the world. It’s about creating the next one too. And what we learn here, we can apply there.

If we put all our money into rockets and the engineering element, we’re going to really struggle with the people/survival element, which ultimately is the whole point of going out there anyway.

I know some of you billionaire technobros use Reddit. Seriously consider what I’m saying!

In my home country, Norway, politicians are currently debating whether or not to help the people deal with rising prices, specifically for gas and electricity. That led me down a rabbit hole of wondering who politicians actually work for, especially since we are a wealthy nation that can afford to help.

It made me think: why aren't politicians fighting harder to improve everyday life for ordinary people? We have the money and the means, yet they still struggle to decide if 'they' want to support 'us'. But in reality, they were elected to serve us. 

I recognize that balancing inflation and state spending is complex, but when basic living costs skyrocket, protecting everyday citizens must remain the primary duty. The discrepancy between what we get and what we need is huge for many, and I can't understand how we accept it.

It's becoming increasingly difficult for me, especially as the years go by, to feel well or at least at peace, in general. Looking at the world around me doesn't help, i don't know if it's the fault of my personal "lens" with which I look at things, but trying to be objective, I see more negative things than positive ones. I probably tend to dwell a lot on the injustices of the world, on the inability of human beings to be more understanding towards others, whether they are humans or animals. I don't want to get into the merits of why we tend to do bad or cruel things, because i believe that looking at it from a higher perspective, no one is really responsible for who it is. I can't help but feel sorry for the way the world is now, and I can't help but see it and suffer because of it, feeling helpless. Even when I'm distracted and happy, those moments are very few and last too little. I often think that it would have been better not to have been born, because I am like a helpless ant that doesn't know where to turn. I write all this with a heavy weight on my chest, and I hope that anyone who feels the same way can find some relief.

I hope this is the right sub to write these things in, otherwise i apologize.

So, I’ve been manifesting a lot of things into my life for a long time. And I finally figured out that this paradox is actually the realist thing in the world!

So here’s the paradox:

Whenever I really wanted something - that’s when it would never come.

Whenever I didn’t care if I got it or not - that’s when I got it without effort!!

So, I eventually realized that the feeling of wanting is a feeling of lack which pushes what you want further away from you.

SO NOW, I only focus on feeling like I already have it. I give thanks knowing that the only things I will get in this life is not my manifestations, BUT things that are even better than my manifestations! Things I’m not even thinking about, but that would be amazing to have!

And now after working on shifting my mindset (takes a lot of effort but worth it) I’ve seen so many great things come into my life… but even better than the manifesting things, life feels so great! It’s great loving the moment you’re in instead of trying to be somewhere else.

If you want a great life, remember this… life gives you who you are NOT what you want. Once you stop wanting your desires, is when you actually start getting them!

That’s the paradox…. Now you know ❤️🙏

We were built to survive, not to be "successful" — and I think that's the biggest scam of modern life For most of human history, our biggest daily problem was simple: find food before the day ends. That was it. That was the entire job description of being human — survive today, repeat tomorrow. Somewhere along the way, "surviving" turned into "succeeding." And the checklist got insane: good grades, good looks, the right job, the right girlfriend or wife, the right car, the right house, a "perfect" relationship. None of that existed when we were just trying not to starve. We added all of it ourselves, and now we act like failing to hit every box makes us worthless.

Here's an example that messed me up. I have a friend — genuinely one of the smartest, most decent people I know. Great grades, landed a big job, did everything "right." Then he got married, and it fell apart in the worst way — his wife filed cases against him, he lost his job fighting them, and the stress of it all was part of what led to his father's death. This is a guy who chased the "perfect life" checklist better than most people ever will. And it still broke him. So what does "success" even mean? Is it grades? A job title? A wife or a girlfriend? A car? None of that was on the menu when we were just trying to hunt something to eat and survive the night.

We've built this entire tower of expectations — be smart, be attractive, be married, be rich, be respected — and act like it's natural, like it's just "life." But it isn't. It's man-made pressure stacked on top of a brain that was only ever wired for one thing: survive today. I'm not saying don't try. I'm saying maybe we should stop treating "success" like some objective truth we're all failing to reach, when really it's just a very convincing, very exhausting scam we all agreed to buy into.

I believe that reality is a battle between good and evil. Psychopaths are that evil. They damage people who aren’t psychopaths, who are inherently good, who in turn, damage other inherently good people. The cycle continues. It’s a cycle of trauma. Many of these people don’t realize they have been traumatized and are traumatizing good people. Many damaging things have been accepted as “normal” when really they are harmful to people. Psychopaths also blend their cruel actions in with societal norms. It is not even that they intend to “do evil”. It is that they want things, and will do things that hurt people to get what they want. They often do so in a manner that blends in with “societal norms”.

It’s best to avoid psychopaths, but since it is difficult to know if someone is a psychopath for sure, you should avoid people who do harm to you or are doing things that are harmful to people as a whole.

The more I practise and observe myself, the more I notice how much energy can go into trying to fix things that aren’t actually problems.
A thought comes. I analyse it.
An emotion comes. I analyse that too.
Something happens. I immediately want to understand why it happened and what it means.
Sometimes I feel the better thing is simply to notice what is happening without immediately turning it into a project.
I don’t always manage it, obviously. 😄
But I’ve found that even noticing this tendency changes something.
Does anyone else find themselves doing this — constantly trying to understand an experience instead of just experiencing it?