Atheism and the Unexplainable

PJfanwillneverleave1

^^^
Good speech.
But
Do you like pecan pie?

HughFreakingDillon

Free said:

Perhaps you can now have the mods close this thread then Hugh. You've been down that road before apparently, whatever you want to make it.

Or you can just leave it alone. Up to you.

HughFreakingDillon

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

PJfanwillneverleave1

^^^
Careful.
You're becoming neutral on a moving train.
Smack yourself in the face again and make sure you're not alone in the atheists.

hedonist

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

HughFreakingDillon

hedonist said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

not to kiss anyone's ass, but @benjs continues to amaze with the apparent wisdom of a 200 year old monk.

mickeyrat

HughFreakingDillon said:

hedonist said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

not to kiss anyone's ass, but @benjs continues to amaze with the apparent wisdom of a 200 year old monk.

quiet, thoughtful, openminded, knowledgeable

shall I go on?

benjs

You guys. I'll just chalk it up to a recent good batch of Strawberry Haze.

HughFreakingDillon

mickeyrat said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

hedonist said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

not to kiss anyone's ass, but @benjs continues to amaze with the apparent wisdom of a 200 year old monk.

quiet, thoughtful, openminded, knowledgeable

shall I go on?

he's the guy I'd want to talk to at a party.

Free

chadwick said:

paranormal is my absolute favorite. it's on like donkey kong. one of my more recent experiences, a favorite of mine... whatever it was would slam a rock down on my dresser where i had rocks sitting there minding their own affairs... im talking a mighty slam not some bullshit rock tumbling off a pile of rocks, that'd be stupid-weak sounding & there were no piles. im talking full on as hard as you could mustar, bring a rock down on a wooden dresser-top as i stood there hanging clothes just a few feet away. that was pretty gnarly. neck hairs as erect as buffalo johnson. cool stuff. to clarify i was not having a apnea spell, nor sleepy & it was daylight.

who punches a wall as hard as they physically can yet there is not anyone there only feet from me? & this would be from a heavy weight wrestler type of wall rattling. i got up calmy, turned off the tv, went into my bedroom & locked the door. had a g/f once whose kitchen cabinets would be wide open all by themselves. that spirit enjoyed getting inches from my face as i layed in bed tryin to sleep. weird as frig.

don't even get me started here. i'll be up all night telling of experiences, arguing back & forth with you good folks & enjoying myself. ask the lady of the house, she'll tell ya i'm a spooky bastard with certain shadows (if shadows is the correct term, most are light) lurking around. she won't allow me to go to gettysburg or wherever else to do a ghost hunt type activity. she's afraid they'll follow me home & she's probably right to be perfectly honest with you

Tell us more, quite interesting!

benjs

HughFreakingDillon said:

mickeyrat said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

hedonist said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

not to kiss anyone's ass, but @benjs continues to amaze with the apparent wisdom of a 200 year old monk.

quiet, thoughtful, openminded, knowledgeable

shall I go on?

he's the guy I'd want to talk to at a party.

I'd love to party with all you fine folks It'd be great to do a Pearl Jam Community meet-up... Agree to head to a show in some town like Moline where the event would be getting to know each other in person and have a good time for a few days.

vaggar99

do you smoke? i smoked herb for 20 years and developed some bad snoring in that time. starting vaping a couple of years ago and no snoring

mickeyrat

benjs said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

mickeyrat said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

hedonist said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

What does atheism have to do with your thread title question OP?
Not getting it.

It was difficult to reconcile my beliefs with my experience.

It's a process...at least, it has been for me...and, as a now-agnostic raised with religion and "god" (never forced on me, but did play a huge part in my life and history).

Sometimes these little winds and whiffs and...awarenesses?...come about. Likely from within, from my own perception, but if not, if either way - it's OK. They usually bring comfort, and always make me think.

benjs, this got me: Once that's ruled out, embrace the beauty of the random and/or unexplainable, and attach the meaning to it that brings you the most comfort and direction, and the least dread and confusion.

Hugh, my dad also had the fine name of Paul.

not to kiss anyone's ass, but @benjs continues to amaze with the apparent wisdom of a 200 year old monk.

quiet, thoughtful, openminded, knowledgeable

shall I go on?

he's the guy I'd want to talk to at a party.

I'd love to party with all you fine folks It'd be great to do a Pearl Jam Community meet-up... Agree to head to a show in some town like Moline where the event would be getting to know each other in person and have a good time for a few days.

I'll be in the corner listening quietly.

HughFreakingDillon

vaggar99 said:

do you smoke? i smoked herb for 20 years and developed some bad snoring in that time. starting vaping a couple of years ago and no snoring

rarely. my snoring only seems to coincide with my weight.

LongestRoad

Shawshank said:

Ugh, I can't even believe I'm going to tell this story, but here goes. I had a dream almost 14 years ago...I remember it vividly. From off to the side I could see myself standing in front of this table with three figures that appeared to be men on the left and right, but the one in the middle I could not see the face. It was blinding white in the middle. I could see myself talking though, having a conversation. The room was not ornate, but I guess the best way to describe it was...it was clean. Pure. Everything seemed to be absolute perfection.

I could not hear anything. I could not hear a word that I saw myself saying, and I could not hear anything that was being said to me. The conversation seemed to be serious in nature. The demeanor just seemed to be stern I guess.

Suddenly it vanished and this booming voice in my right ear rang through my head. I know this sounds stupid, but it resembled James Earl Jones...didn't sound like him, but that is as close as I can come to having heard something similar. If you have seen the Lion King, when the cloud appears...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCXEO1N5ijQ

...that is almost exactly how it sounded as far as tone goes. It was authoritative, booming, and deep...it echoed...almost like the sound reverberated through my entire body.

All it said was Matthew 10:27. That was it. But it was like someone was lying right next to me saying that to me in my right ear, and I always slept on the left side of the bed. My eyes instantly opened, as if I hadn't even been asleep. I looked over just knowing someone had to be next to me, but no one was there. It was sunny out, no one else was around, no TV on, nothing. I was scared at first, thinking someone was in my house. Then I thought I was crazy. Then I figured well, there was probably no verse like that in the Bible. Then I went to my wife's Bible and opened it only to find that verse.

" 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops. "

That's my weird experience.

Tell everyone.

Gern Blansten

LongestRoad said:

Shawshank said:

Ugh, I can't even believe I'm going to tell this story, but here goes. I had a dream almost 14 years ago...I remember it vividly. From off to the side I could see myself standing in front of this table with three figures that appeared to be men on the left and right, but the one in the middle I could not see the face. It was blinding white in the middle. I could see myself talking though, having a conversation. The room was not ornate, but I guess the best way to describe it was...it was clean. Pure. Everything seemed to be absolute perfection.

I could not hear anything. I could not hear a word that I saw myself saying, and I could not hear anything that was being said to me. The conversation seemed to be serious in nature. The demeanor just seemed to be stern I guess.

Suddenly it vanished and this booming voice in my right ear rang through my head. I know this sounds stupid, but it resembled James Earl Jones...didn't sound like him, but that is as close as I can come to having heard something similar. If you have seen the Lion King, when the cloud appears...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCXEO1N5ijQ

...that is almost exactly how it sounded as far as tone goes. It was authoritative, booming, and deep...it echoed...almost like the sound reverberated through my entire body.

All it said was Matthew 10:27. That was it. But it was like someone was lying right next to me saying that to me in my right ear, and I always slept on the left side of the bed. My eyes instantly opened, as if I hadn't even been asleep. I looked over just knowing someone had to be next to me, but no one was there. It was sunny out, no one else was around, no TV on, nothing. I was scared at first, thinking someone was in my house. Then I thought I was crazy. Then I figured well, there was probably no verse like that in the Bible. Then I went to my wife's Bible and opened it only to find that verse.

" 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops. "

That's my weird experience.

Tell everyone.

Only if you want everyone to think you're nuts.

23scidoo

Mare nightmare..

LongestRoad

It's a message. Tell everyone.

catefrances

HughFreakingDillon said:

Ok. This kind of fucked me up over the weekend. I do not believe in the afterlife or god, etc.

I have been snoring a lot lately, so my wife has been sleeping on the couch here and there. She now tells me the other night she noticed my breathing was rhythmic, but then stopped, then started abruptly again. Sounds like sleep apnea, which can be fatal if your breathing doesn't start up again, obviously. So I sometime during the night I awoke, absolutely frozen in terror. I had heard a soft voice saying "hello paul". I swear it wasn't a dream. it sounded as if this "woman" was in my room. It took a moment to register, and I then realized what had happened and all of a sudden I took a big breath and let out a "HUH???" and then just lay there. i couldn't move. I was terrified. Not sure why. it wasn't a threatening voice. But I didn't want to look.

A near death experience? not likely
A dream? probably (hopefully)

Either way, it seemed incredibly REAL. had a very difficult time sleeping last night.

i remember years ago being in bed asleep and having a black apparition float over, and through me as i gasped for breath. it felt so real, yet it could have been a very very vivid dream(i do have a wild imagination). i too am an atheist. i dont think it was anything much of anything. it was what it was.. whatever that was...def not a near death experience but most likely a wild dream.

PJ_Soul

HughFreakingDillon said:

Ok. This kind of fucked me up over the weekend. I do not believe in the afterlife or god, etc.

I have been snoring a lot lately, so my wife has been sleeping on the couch here and there. She now tells me the other night she noticed my breathing was rhythmic, but then stopped, then started abruptly again. Sounds like sleep apnea, which can be fatal if your breathing doesn't start up again, obviously. So I sometime during the night I awoke, absolutely frozen in terror. I had heard a soft voice saying "hello paul". I swear it wasn't a dream. it sounded as if this "woman" was in my room. It took a moment to register, and I then realized what had happened and all of a sudden I took a big breath and let out a "HUH???" and then just lay there. i couldn't move. I was terrified. Not sure why. it wasn't a threatening voice. But I didn't want to look.

A near death experience? not likely
A dream? probably (hopefully)

Either way, it seemed incredibly REAL. had a very difficult time sleeping last night.

HFD, it doesn't look like I replied to this post yet, but I want to, because I've done a fair bit of research on this 'hearing voices' in bed, because I experience the same thing. Same as you, sometimes while I'm lying in bed just on the edge of sleep I'll hear a clear voice calling my name and whatnot. So, knowing I'm not nuts, I looked it up. This is actually a pretty common thing. While there is no clear explanation, many people hear their name being called, and small sentences like "Hi Paul." This phenomenon is called hypnagogic hallucinations, and they are not a symptom of any kind of mental illness (by themselves). Sleep paralysis is also in this realm, something I have experienced exactly once, and I'll never forget that, because it is terrifying. But one thing these experiences are not is supernatural.