A gamer embarks on RDR2 for the first time

This is a person about to embark on a journey in one of the best video games ever made. It takes most people months to complete this game. The game took 8 years, 2000 people, and half a billion dollars to make.

Ebben? Ne Andrò Lontana

From Amira's 18th birthday concert filmed in Pretoria, South Africa in March 2022.

"Ebben? Ne andrò lontana" is an aria by Italian composer Alfredo Catalani, from Act 1 of his 1892 opera "La Wally." The aria is sung by the main character Wally when her father refuses to allow her to marry the man she loves and wants her to marry another or she must leave his home. She chooses to take her chances in the Alpine snows rather than acquiesce to her father's demand. In the end she dies in an avalanche.

Billionaires

Mohammad and Meher Baba

Baba and Mohammad have something in common, but it is not what most Westerners would call good. However, I can show how this trait they shared could be viewed as good when fully understood in its context. 

Both made up revisionist history about religions of their day to make historical accounts conform with their own tenets. 

tenet : a principle or belief, especially one of the main principles of a religion or philosophy.

This is problematic for someone like me who wants to make a case to philosophers that Baba is modern and rational.

Baba's system of sanskaras is logical and consistent, and explains many things that even science and modern philosophy could not. However, the revising of history for instrumentalist reasons makes Baba seem like a liar, and makes his tenets seem made up.

instrumentalism is a methodological view that ideas are useful instruments, and that the worth of an idea is based on how effective it is          

However, such revising of history does not bother non-philosophers, who are most people. For instance Muslims have no such objections to Mohammad having done this.

My answer to this is not complicated. 

Baba often says two things. One for those who would never understand the facts of the matter because they involve education they lack the time or capacity for. And might even be too old to learn. These are very difficult concepts even for many well-educated people. For instance, very few American analytic philosophers can understand Kant, and have to bring in experts to teach it.

So for expediency, and so that these people don't have doubts, Baba tells these people a fairy tale they can understand. It is also very popular among simple people to accept conspiracy theories. They are quick to accept that 'authorities' medaled with history. They feel privileged to know about it. So they not only don't have a problem with it, they delight in it.

Only a tiny few can understand the complex facts of the matter. They have not only the background to make an attempt, but also the temperament to make the time to focus on it. For these few, Baba leaves behind the facts of the matter involved. Baba gave many clues about this. 

"What I explain is a subject beyond the comprehension of the mind and [it is given] only to those who are prepared to digest it, not to everybody. For all can neither grasp it nor tolerate it nor even bear to hear it." 

"What did Jesus really say? To the multitude he said, "God is in heaven; try to go there," and to that end he said [to overcome] certain temptations and sufferings. To his followers he said, "God is everywhere; try to see Him," and gave explanations to that effect. To the selected few [close circle of apostles] he said, "God is in me and in you, too," and actually revealed this to them. Why did Jesus say different things? Owing to the time and the persons, according to their readiness to listen and understand."

But many people believe emphatically in the Old Testament Bible. They are Christians and Jews.

Jesus, Mohammad, and all Baba had to deal with this fact. Zoroaster, Buddha, Krishna, and Ram before them did not.

Frankly I don't believe the Old Testament.

Let us say it is full of baloney. But say Baba is right and he and Mohammad and Jesus were the avatar. Jesus addressed Jews and Mohammad addressed Jews and Christians. Baba had to address all religions, including Jews, Christians, and Muslims who take the Old Testament seriously. 

Even most Baba lovers believe in the Old Testament. This is because the Avatar allows people to approach him from where they are at. And so he does not demolish the faith they had when he came, he makes efforts to find ways to incorporate it partially. He'll give a new interpretation to it, or give a fairy tale conspiracy theory that delights them and increases their faith. 

If one says something that increases your faith and hurries you toward the ultimate truth, you cannot call it a lie. For to speak truth is to give people beliefs that will lead them to truth. Even if that belief is initially just a fairy tale.

This brings up the Intelligence Notebooks found after Baba's death in a box with a note saying they were written by him in 1926. That's the year he said, "What I explain is a subject beyond the comprehension of the mind and [it is given] only to those who are prepared to digest it, not to everybody. For all can neither grasp it nor tolerate it nor even bear to hear it."

Now, what about Mohammad and Baba telling clearly false stories, to make things make sense. Examples are Mohammad telling a whole new Mary story. Or Baba telling 2 different inconsistent and clearly false accounts of Saint Francis to try to make it conform with his teaching. These are what I call fairy tales. They are told in an instrumentalist way, to bring about beliefs that would be good for people if they believed them -- but which are not historically true.

Scholarship can show that these stories were not true.

Keven Shepherd pointed out that Baba gave 2 inconsistent stories about Babajan. He points out they are told as moral tales, not for historicity. 

So Baba told mutually inconsistent stories of both Saint Francis and Babajan. Clearly part of Baba's and Mohammad's missions were not to tell history. What purpose would that serve? They were trying to give a new paradigm meant for the people of their times.

In summary, if we believe Baba about Avatars, it makes sense that different Avatars give different teachings for very different people and times and places.

7th Century Mecca was nothing like 1st Century Judaea. In Judaea he was talking to pompous Pharisees. In Mecca he was talking to warring pagan desert tribes. 

And in both cases he had to address a book (The Bible) that was about 10% true.

We know for a fact that Baba invented historical accounts to syncretize common assumptions of his time with his own sui generis teaching.

Sui generis refers to something that is unique, unparalleled, and fits into no standard category.

This accounts for how Mohammad and Baba could be one, yet give different stories about:

1. The Virgin Mary in the New Testament
2. Adam and Moses in the Old Testament
3. The crucifixion in the New Testament

And a different account of God and the soul. Baba himself says it quite plainly and it makes sense.

"For all can neither grasp it nor tolerate it nor even bear to hear it."

And what he said about Jesus giving three stories for different groups makes total sense.

Underdeveloped - Ayatollahs, Crossbows, and Your Porn Addiction by Scott Mallett

Underdeveloped - Ayatollahs, Crossbows, and Your Porn Addiction by Scott Mallett

On the single path, the radical monopoly, and what it means that we use one word for civilization and another for everyone who disagrees with us.

Read on Substack

Red Dead Redemption - The Best Movie Ever Made

What is Really Happening in the World

Goodbye Tel Aviv

Chris Hedges interviews Gideon Levy

38 Good Geopolitical Analysts

Col. Larry Wilkerson, Andrei Martanov, Stanislav Krapivnik, Sebastian Sas, Rachel Blevins, Lena Petrova, Max Blumenthal, Scott Ritter, Glenn Diesen, Jeffrey Sachs, Richard Wolff, Patrick Henningsen, Caleb Maupin, Carl Zha, Ben Norton, Sean Foo, Mohammad Marandi, Alastair Crooke, Laith Marouf, Michael Hudson, Warwick Powell, KJ Noh, Victor Gao, Li Jingjing, Sabby Sabs, Jamarl Thomas, Alex Krainer, Nima R. Alkhorshid, Danny Haiphong, Dr. Pascal Lottaz, Garland Nixon, Larry Johnson, Alex Christoforou, Alexander Mercouris, Judge Napolitano, Ray McGovern, Pepe Escobar, Col. Douglas Macgregor

THE NEW WORLD CULTURE OF THE FUTURE

BY MRS. INDUMATI DESHMUKH, M. A., B. T. 

Meher Baba Journal, Volume 1, No. 4 February 1939

The whole world has been going through a crisis. It is faced with innumerable problems. Racial hatred and narrow nationalism, religious fanaticism and blind aggressiveness, worship of gold and economic exploitation— these have been poisoning and perverting the cultural life of humanity for generations together: and the world' s most imperative and pressing need is more light. In order to meet these forces that tend to create chaos, there have naturally come into existence many spiritual movements which aim at creating order out of this confusion. Our age is, therefore, also an age of spiritual awakening. But as there is a keen rivalry between many spiritual and religious forces, our minds are tossed in the currents and counter- currents of thought. In this critical period of humanity there is in our midst one Person whose teaching is destined to restore steadiness to our minds by inculcating the right outlook and establish unity amongst the people of the world inspite of the differences of sex, nation, creed, religion or culture. He is Shri Meher Baba. He loves all; and His comprehensive philosophy is bound to influence the biggest sphere of human- ity. The modern world-culture has to face the most important problems of synthesising the material and the spiritual aspects of life. Very few per- sons can avoid going to one extreme or the other. There are those who worship gold and are utterly indifferent to spiritual values. And there are others who try to seek spirituality by running away from life and avoiding its responsibilities. Shri Meher Baba' s teaching on this point helps us to have a balance between these two extremes. According to Him, everyday life and true spirituality cannot be separated from each other. If the world-culture is to be sound, it must find a way of uniting the two. Progress of humanity from the material point of view is not in any way unimportant. If a man is required to waste all his life only in the struggle for maintenance, he can have no time for higher things. Shri Meher Baba advises His disciples to discharge their worldly responsibilities completely. If He finds any disciple neglecting, his duties He admonishes him. He teaches that those who can behave properly in everyday life will certainly gain the higher life. And those who cannot attend well even to the ordinary things of life can never achieve anything of spirituality. But at the same time, material achievements cannot be looked upon as ends in themselves. If they are not completely subordinated to spiritual values, they are likely to be used for destructive purposes. Even today many scientific inventions are used in wars for killing each other. The kingdom of eternal harmony and joy can come only through the spiritualisation of life. The way to achieve it is not bloodshed but kindness, not war but friendship, not enmity but love. People have forgotten the true and the lasting values with the result that accumulation of wealth for selfish pur- poses has been the guiding philosophy of individuals and nations. This type of outlook has created in our social structure pernicious class distinctions. There is a wide gulf between the rich and the poor. The rich are in possession of abundance of wealth, whereas the poor are half-naked and starving; and there is exploitation of the poor and the weak for selfish ends. Our political tangle expressing itself through international rivalry and conflict is also due to collective greed for money and power. Shri Meher Baba, therefore, uncompromisingly denounces all forms of greed which is the root cause of all our troubles. But He does not advise the people of the world to give up their worldly pursuits. He only asks them to remain unattached in the midst of worldly pursuits and to spiritualise them by subordinating material acquisition to spiritual considerations. The frame-work of the economic and political structure of society must facilitate sound cultural life; and the application of Shri Meher Baba' s teaching concerning brotherhood and love requires thorough reconstruction in these fields. Not only will the basis of the new world-culture of the future be thus entirely transformed, but our very ideas of true culture will change radically in the light of His teaching. Culture does not consist in possessions or power or academic qualifications. It is a certain attitude to life—the attitude of love and reason. Shri Meher Baba emphasises both of these aspects of Divinity equally; and He is Himself an inspiring example of a perfect development of love and reason. He is an embodiment of true culture. The sign of culture is a balanced mind, not the static balance of a lifeless thing, but the dynamic equilibrium of mind which manifests itself through the creative response of love and reason to all the incidents of life. The spiritual man does not shun life if sorrows befall him; nor does he wish to add more years to his life if years shower upon him. He is not moved by the opposites of joys and sorrows, pains and pleasures, hut transcends both and enjoys eternal bliss in conscious union with the Divinity within. Some persons have a wrong notion that Supermen or spi- ritually cultured persons go away from the world and that they lead a life of inaction, taking no interest in life. But in truth the Super-man is more active than ordinary persons. The common man is engaged in activities concerning his own self; but the Super-man has to consider the good of the world and has, therefore, a much wider sphere for his activities. He takes great interest in life and lives a full life of creative action. He does not trifle with anything, but he does everything with all his being. For the transformation of our cultural life we naturally look to religion. But unfortunately religion has been often misunderstood, with the result that it has deteriorated into sectarianism. Sectarianism makes men fanatically aggressive instead of broadening their minds. Instead of promoting the Truth, it leads to the spreading of dogmas. Instead of reconciling the differences among men, it accentuates them. Instead of increasing the happiness of man, it makes him unhappy and narrow. Thus chaos and the misery in this world are due to the misinterpretation of the true meaning of religion. Shri Meher Baba preaches freedom of spiritual culture. The freedom of the individual in matters concerning spiritual life should not in any way be curtailed by convention or dogma. There are as many diverse paths as there are temperaments. All persons need not accept. the same path to Divinity. The basic belief of sectarianism is that there is only one path to realization and that it is binding on everyone. But this philosophy leads only to external conversions and compulsions. Shri Meher Baba expects from us not only tolerance of all religions, but the active attitude of appreciation for the truths which they reveal. He brings to the forefront the vital truths of all religions and shows them as being identical. In his ex- positions of the Truth we find him using the terminology of the Sufis, of Vedanta, or of the Christian mystics without any sectarian bias. The spirit of tolerance is a very healthy preservative of the uniqueness of individuality. It. secures in the cultural life of the world a rich variety instead of dull uniformity. Everyone has his own path to Divinity, and yet the goal of all is the same. Freedom of spiritual culture, therefore, leads to unity, a harmony in differences. The history of humanity has been a history of blunders. But humanity has been redeemed again and again by the Masters of Wisdom and Love. Shri Meher Baba brings to the world a new dispensation of the spiritual Truth. He has come to promote the life of the spirit which alone can contribute to- wards happiness and harmony. If a person has learnt the art of spiritual life, he is bound to express creative culture in all the different spheres of human activities, and thus transform entire life by the release of love. Not only by his teaching but also by the inspiration of his supreme example, Shri Meher Baba helps humanity in its onward march towards Divinity. He sees God in every person and teaches us the fundamental truth of the unity of all life. The Light which he brings will lead us towards that Abode of Eternity which is God and which is the fountain-source of life, creating harmony out of chaos and giving meaning to all the mundane activities of man.

La Vergine Degli Angeli - Amira Willighagen - 2020

La Vergine Degli Angeli is an aria from the 1862 Italian opera La forza del destino by Giuseppe Verdi. It is sung here by 16 year old Dutch-South-African soprano Amira Willighagen as part of her 2020 streaming concert "African Christmas with Amira and Friends." The full concert is available both on CD and DVD as "Streaming Shows of 2020" exclusively at Amira's website https://www.gelukskinders.org/en/store/. The concert was recorded in Pretoria, South Africa in late November 2020 and premiered December 23, 2020. Amira is accompanied by a men's choir compiled for the occasion by Christo Burger and a string orchestra. Piano and musical arrangement by Professor Charl du Plessis.

"Ave Amira" Documentary – 2016

Amira Willighagen was catapulted to stardom at age 9 after auditioning for Holland's Got Talent in 2013. In this Dutch documentary made when she was 12, Amira reflects on her unexpected meteoric rise. In 2023, I had the privilege of meeting Amira at a fan event in Madison, GA (U.S.A.) and took these adorable photos of her. She was 19.

Stranger Than Paradise – I Put a Spell on You – 1984

Stranger Than Paradise opening scene, 1984. The song is I Put a Spell on You by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. Below, Norwegian singer Angelia Jordan records her own cover of the same song at 9 years old, in 2015.

'The State of Things,' 1977 – Wim Wenders

After being temporarily kicked out of Zoetrope Studios while making the film Hammett, German director Wim Wenders filmed The State of Things, a self-reflexive film written extemporaneously while filming, in which Wenders reflects on the state of things in cinema. In this scene the fictitious producer Gordon waxes on to the director Friedrich about the reaction of some loan sharks he borrowed from to complete Friedrich's most recent black and white film. The scene was shot in a moving van while driving up and down Hollywood Blvd and ends with Friedrich and Gordon both being killed by the mob. The State of Things was filmed in Portugal and Hollywood, California.

The song What did you do out in Hollywood? was written by actor Allen Garfield, who played Gordon, especially for the scene.

"One of Us" Joan Osborne - 1996

End Credits for 'Nema Aviona Za Zagreb' (2012)

Filmed noncontinuously from 1964 - 2012, the self-reflexive film Nema Aviona Za Zagred ends with the filmmaker Louis Van Gasteren reflecting back on his life at the age of 90. Van Gasteren died two years after completing the film at the age of 92. See the full film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7BhnI81P8w 

Louis Van Gasteren in 1964

Alice in den Städten 1973 – Wim Wenders

Civil War 2024 Sammy death montage

Tomorrow is a Long Time, from Walking Dead Season 1 Finale

Six of my favorite Westerns

1. Westward the Women (1951)
2. High Noon (1952)
3. Rio Bravo (1959)
4. Man in the Wilderness (1971)
5. Westworld (1973)
6. Tombstone (1993)

In Westward the Women (1951), women hold a wagon upright to keep it from capsizing as a baby is born inside. The women strain as they wait to hear the baby's cry. Based on a story by Frank Capra.

In Man in the Wilderness (1971), a man left to die after being mauled by a bear reconciles with God and men as he survives and returns homeward to raise his son. Based on a true story.

Immersion, Wisdom, Perfection

The Covidiot

Nine year old Amira Willighagen sings "Nella Fantasia"

From her first CD, Amira, 2013. Sony Masterworks.

In the Sony recoding studio in Salisbury, England, February 15, 2014. Her mother wrapping her in a coat to keep her warm while she records.

Amira Willighagen was by far the greatest classical singing prodigy since recording was invented. She is now 21 and still studying music at the University of Prague in South Africa, where she emigrated in 2018.

Achatnis Dichongta sings an Amira Willighagen cover, 2026

Achatnis Dichongta is a fourth-year student at the Margaret Shishak School of Music, Patkai Christian College in India. At the inaugural programme of the 4th Patkai Badminton Open Tournament, she performed “With All My Heart,” an Amira Willighagen cover from her 2018 album by the same name. It is reported that her perfomance captivated the audience. Yet there is almost no publicity about Dichongta that I can find. So I am creating this post partly in hopes of search engines capturing the information. The language is Liangmai.

The Liangmai people are a Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group and one of the Naga tribes primarily inhabiting the Tamenglong, Senapati, and Kangpokpi districts of Manipur, and the Peren district of Nagaland in Northeast India. They share a similar culture and language (Lianglad/Liangmai) with the Zeme and Rongmei tribes. The tribe, numbering around 50,000 to 80,000, has a rich, traditionally oral culture and is largely Christian.

My favorite Reaction Video to Red Dead Redemption 2

Prymbra (often referred to as Jenni) is a German content creator, YouTuber, and Steam partner known for her gaming and "Let's Play" videos. She creates immersive content and often shares her emotional, often highly invested, experiences with video game characters. She has over 30K subscribers on YouTube and is active on Instagram. She describes herself as getting easily attached to game characters and often refers to her community as her "blazers". 

The Most Well Developed Character in History

Roger Clark Wins Best Performance for Red Dead Redemption 2

I was wrong about Red Dead Redemption 2

Amira Willighagen

Amira Willighagen appeared as a guest performer at the annual MAX Proms concert held in Utrecht, Netherlands on December 2, 2017. The program was later broadcast on Max TV on Christmas day. Amira was 13 years old. It was her last European performance before moving to South Africa. "Your Love" is the theme song from the 1968 spaghetti western "Once Upon a Time in the West," composed by Italian composer Ennio Morricone.

Arthur Morgan Tribute | End Of The Path

Arthur Morgan: Another Love

Encapsulation of the story in Red Dead Redemption 2

The love story in Red Dead Redemption 2

Twenty Years, Three Books, One Theme (2004 – 2024) The Evolution of Perception

I have written three books, 100 essays, and recorded over 100 videos describing my concept of an evolution of perception. Many subjects interest me that I would love to discuss. However, I don't because I don't want to distract from this one original idea, that I remain confident will be important to people one day. In short, I spent two decades writing about and communicating in any way I could think of this one theme, an evolution of perception.

The Evolution of Perception & The Cosmology of Substance: A Simpler Theory of Everything – June 24, 2004

Evolution of Perception Re-Explained: A radical new view of reality – February 25, 2021

Further Reflections: A discussion of the concept of the evolution of perception with a deep dive into the subject of causation – November 21, 2024

And two anthologies.

Two Philosophical Works: A Republication of The Evolution of Perception and Evolution of Perception Re-Explained, with a new introduction – April 13, 2024

EOP TRILOGY: The three original books on the evolution of perception concept – January 26, 2025

See my web hub at https://sites.google.com/view/chris-ott-hub/home.

"Unshaken" – Music from Red Dead Redemption 2 performed live at The Game Awards 2018

The song Unshaken (the second half of this video) is from the 2018 video game Red Dead Redemption 2. Written by singer-songwriter D'Angelo and produced by Daniel Lanois, the words are based on the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda who often stated, "You must stand unshaken amidst the crash of breaking worlds," emphasizing remaining fearless and centered in God’s peace despite external chaos.

Featuring Daniel Lanois and Rhiannon Giddens.

In this cover of Unshaken below you can hear the words better.

Lyrics (Song by D'Angelo)

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

Did I hear a thunder?

Did I hear you break?

I can't quite remember

Just what guided me this way, oh

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

The pines, they often whisper

They whisper what no tongue can tell

He who drinks from the deep water

May he know the depths of the well

Well

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

Mmm, oh, traveler

What have you seen?

Were there crossroads

Where you been, where you been?

I once was standing tall

Now I feel my back's against the wall

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

The morning light

When it comes to me

It was there but I could not see

Am I to wander

As a wayward son?

Will the hunter be hunted

By the smoking gun?

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

Darwin vs. Meher Baba on Evolution

I recently asked ChatGPT to explain the difference between Meher Baba's teaching about evolution and Darwin's theory of natural selection. I was surprised that it got it quite wrong. The way AI programs work is they scour the internet for what is written on a topic and regurgitate it, often with very good grammar. But if other people have misunderstood or misrepresented something, it will robotically mirror those falsehoods as true. It has no way to study something and discern.

For this reason I want to re-clarify the difference between Baba and Darwin on evolution. Meher Baba does not agree with Darwin about the control mechanism of evolution. He does not say it is random mutation and natural selection. Baba agrees that evolution has occurred, but says it has an entirely different cause.

Baba is not talking about "another level" of cause. He disagrees with Darwin. Baba and Darwin cannot be right at the same time, a common misconception about what Baba taught. They are mutually exclusive. Either Darwin was right about the cause of the origin of species or Baba was.

While Baba's teaching on the force behind evolutionary change does not agree with Darwin's, he does not teach Intelligent Design. In Baba's teaching, an intelligence could not have designed evolution, because it is the kind of intelligence required to do such things that is part of what evolved. In Baba, while there was originally Infinite Intelligence in a cosmic sense, it was not the kind of intelligence that can think, though that capacity was a latent potential in it. The ability to think and consciously realize thoughts was what the evolutionary process largely took place to bring about. So Baba definitely did not teach Intelligence Design.

However, Baba also did not teach the Darwinian principle that evolution is random, purposeless, aimless, and accidental, or that it continues once human form is reached. Baba teaches that evolution occurred to bring about the human form to bring about the capacity for God-realization.

Darwin concluded that evolution lacks any directionality or purpose. It occurred through random accidents. Darwin did not appear to notice that over the course of evolution, consciousness is always increasing and never regressing. Baba points out what anyone can see if they take notice, that consciousness increases over evolution, and he says this is the real underlying drive behind evolution. Evolving consciousness must constantly forge more and more complex media for its expression. And this is the subconscious underlying driver of evolution.

ChatGPT also said another falsity. It said what is commonly taught, that random mutation and natural selection as drivers of evolutionary change is scientifically observed and proven. This misconception about science is a relic of what has come to be called 'scientism.' In the field of philosophy of science, which played a major role in philosophy in the 20th century, it has been realized that science is theory laden (See Norwood Hanson's Patterns of Discovery). This means scientific procedures and its emphasis of specific facts and not others are often directed by its theories, rather than the other way around. It has also been realized that science works within changing explanatory paradigms when seeking and interpreting data (See Thomas Kuhn's Scientific Revolutions). In other words, science, including scientific observation and interpretation, is far less objective than most people realize.

I have frequently brought up an example to show this. The most common example given of observed evolution in schools is the example of the 19th century peppered moths that changed from mostly white to mostly black over time due to the trees in a certain forest becoming darker due to soot from London smokestacks, allow birds to better see and pick off the white ones. 

This is supposed to be an example of natural selection observed. In Baba, evolution refers to new species evolving, not the color of a species being selected through culling. The color didn't change. Rather the white moths were simply culled from the gene pool. To conflate this with evolution is lazy thinking. This is not an example of the origin of a new species. For Baba's teaching on evolution see his main book God Speaks: The Theme of Creation and Its Purpose.

I am surprised that ChatGPT got this wrong, because the difference between Baba and Darwin is prominently stated in the Introduction to the Second Edition of God Speaks.

The very force of evolution of form becomes, not a random selection of the fittest, but a result of the necessity of the residues of experience to express themselves through increasingly more complex instruments. The evolution and perfecting of consciousness is itself described as the entire purpose of Creation. (God Speaks, 1973 2nd edition, p. xxxi)

I wish to add and emphasize what some do not understand about Baba's teaching on evolution. Baba is not talking about a second 'spiritual' evolution occurring concurrently with biological evolution. Baba is speaking of the only evolution that is, which includes biological. He is not describing 'another level' of Darwin's. For Baba, Darwin't theory of natural selection is simply wrong.

And, in regard to the evolutionary process, it is well to remember always that the beginning is a beginning in consciousness, the evolution is an evolution in consciousness, the end, if there be an end, is an end in consciousness. (Ditto)

You don't have to believe Baba on this, but it behooves one to know what he taught, and not pretend he gave a teaching consistent with a more popular and common narrative. And incidentally, for the many who likely don't know this, Darwin's theory, along with our current theory of reductive materialism, is no longer universally accepted by intellectuals. Philosopher Thomas Nagel, professor emeritus at New York University, expresses his skepticism boldly in his 2012 book: Mind and Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature Is Almost Certainly False. Other professors, such as professor of mind David Chalmers, have come close to suggesting ideas quite close to the evolution of perception concept I have talked about. 

We don't have karma; we are our karma

If we follow Meher Baba, ordinarily we think of ourselves as a person first, who has acquired specific karma in previous lives that we must play out. But really, if we think about it, we don't just have karma, but are our karma.  

Let me give an analogy to clarify what I mean. We’ll use the analogy of a first person computer game.  

Consider the popular computer game Red Dead Redemption 2. The game takes about 70 hours to complete its main missions and most people become extremely immersed in its story. In such a game a player not only becomes immersed in the story but even identifies with the character they are playing. If you watch reaction videos of the game you will see players refer to the main character Arthur in first person. Of course we all know that Arthur is really just the visual representation of scripted computer code. 

Arthur Morgan in Red Dead Redemption 2

Arthur is not a character who simply has a code added to him that determines his physique and actions. He is none-other than that code. Arthur is that code.

This gives us a good analogy by which to explain our relationship with our karma, as well as the sanskaras we have gathered that determines that karma. 

Let me give an example of how events in the game are predetermined by the script embedded in its code. A main turn in the story is when Arthur visits a man named Thomas Downes and contracts Tuberculosis from him. People have asked if they can avoid this occurring. This is what ChatGPT had to say:

You can't put off visiting Thomas Downes indefinitely in Red Dead Redemption 2; the game forces the mission after a certain amount of time, usually when you try to rest or trigger another event, making it mandatory to progress and ultimately leading to Arthur contracting tuberculosis. Trying to avoid it too long results in Strauss intervening, locking you into the mission, and skipping it leads directly to the inevitable cough. 

Now of course, the player playing the game is not controlled by such code. The player, like the soul of a man, is not really in the illusion of the game. He or she are simply observing it and identifying with Arthur.

Using this as an analogy, we can compare the scripted story to Arthur's karma. And the code in which that story is embedded can be compared to Arthur's sanskaras or impressions.

So the analogy goes like this:

• The player is the soul, the conscious witness. He or she is not in the game, but immersed in it, and identifies his or her self as Arthur and feels the full emotional impact of the story.
• The story is Arthur's karma.
• The code that determines the events in the story can be compared to sanskaras.

Playable characters like Arthur don't have code. They are code. They don't exist and then someone adds code to them. They are that code. A person is his karma.

Everything about our lives, including the shape and look of our body and even the moment we will die is determined by our karma. Our body does not have consciousness. You who identify with your body and its actions have consciousness. And you are really a transcendent soul.

Clearly, Meher Baba says that we are not really our bodies or our actions, but are really the Oversoul, the witness. But those qualities we take ourselves to be before God-Realization, along with our life and all that occurs in it, is simply code. Sanskaric code. 

So, though one’s real self is God, all that one currently takes himself to be, i.e. his body, his thoughts, the story of his life, are an illusion determined by his sanskaras.

A cinema operator who is cranking the projector with his own hand and is at the same time deeply absorbed in watching the images on the screen. He becomes so deeply absorbed that he forgets that it is his own hand which is cranking the machine, out of which is being projected all of this which he sees on the screen. He laughs and weeps according to the scenes presented on the screen. In the process he forgets the unreality and non existing state of the scenes on the screen. (Meher Baba, Intelligence Notebooks, Second Notebook, p. 32)

Arthur Morgan's Last Ride

The Future of the Baba World

First of all, the United States Baba world, as it is currently put together, has no future at all. Throughout history, numerous minor religions and cults have vanished due to cultural shifts or outright self-destruction. Examples from the ancient past include Neoplatonism, Manichaeism, Donatism and the Adamites. More modern examples include the Peoples Temple, Branch Davidians, Aum Shinrikyo, and Heaven's Gate. An example of a dying religion is the Shakers, who have dwindled from thousands in the 1800s to only two remaining members as of recent records.

The Baba followers will not commit suicide, nor will they be exterminated or banned by any authorities. The reason for their disappearance will be loss of interest. The Baba followers are 70-90 years old. Their children drifted away long ago and there are no new converts.

Why the loss of interest? 

The current surviving followers of Baba came from the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s. They were adverse to authority, certainty, any fixed orthodox interpretations of Baba's writings, and anything they perceive as organized. This is a recipe for extinction as no one agrees on anything except that the community never organize into a religion. There is no positive conception of what they are. They also happened to be hostile to young people and fresh ideas due to a kind of generational narcissism common to their generation. They were also adverse to relinquishing positions. So instead of retiring, they just lost their vitality. Essentially they were afraid of the future and wishing things to remain stagnant. They became a very uninteresting gerontocracy with no clear ideas. 

So, why is this paper titled The Future of the Baba World? For while I think the Baba community in its current state is doomed to die out, I see Baba himself leaving behind a legacy that will endure. It simply needs to be rediscovered by a generation in the future. When they do die off this will liberate enormous potential to be put together in numerous vigorous and interesting ways.

Why would anyone bother? What would be the allure? Why would it spread? And what would the consequences of such a vibrant movement, based on Baba's actual teachings, be? A lot of good questions. I'm going to try to answer each one.

Andre Rieu playing Romeo and Juliet

Looking for Dumb Ideas to Improve

It sounds terrible, but philosophy would not exist if there weren't people who need straightening out. A philosopher doesn't think in a vacuum, but most of his deeper thoughts are inspired from hearing other people say the most absurd things, and his desire to help them with those thoughts. There is no better example of this than Socrates, who walked with his followers in the streets of Athens helping people with their thinking -- and in doing so leaving the first great written legacy of wisdom on nearly every subject. Philosophy can actually be described as hearing thinking and seeking to improve upon it. So a philosopher should never condemn ignorance, but be grateful for it. As it is his life's blood.

This of course will never thrill the people around a philosopher. Socrates was, after all, sentenced to death for his efforts. And rather than discouraging future thinkers his sacrifice only inspired more to want to be like him. Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake. Galileo spent the last years of his life under house arrest. 

Most people don't like to hear they might be wrong, though real contemplatives enjoy learning they are wrong, for it opens up new vistas.

Socrates condemned to drink hemlock for his words

The First Avatar to Emphasize the West

Meher Baba is the first avatar to focus on the West. 

Baba was born in British India in 1894. London was the new Rome. Baba's Discourses were worked up from his notes by Dr. Deshmukh, a philosopher with his Ph.D. from the University of London. In 1944 at Breton Woods the capital of the Anglo-American Empire turned to the USA. God Speaks was published in the U.S.

While Baba toured the world during his lifetime, he spent the most continuous time in the U.K., the U.S.A. and Australia. All of these are considered Western nations, and all speak English.

All of Baba's books were originally published in English.

In his lifetime most of Baba's followers were in India and the English speaking West. 

At the time of Mohammad the seats of world power were the Eastern Roman Empire and the Persian Empire. England at that time was just a collection of competing Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, not a major power. The Americas and Australia had not even been discovered yet. 

So it makes sense that Baba was the first Avatar to stress the West. 

Meher Baba in London's Chinatown, April 1932

"And did those feet in ancient time / Walk upon England’s mountains green: / And was the holy Lamb of God, / On England’s pleasant pastures seen?" – William Blake