Illusion

"An illusion is not the same thing as an error; nor is it necessarily an error ... we call a belief an illusion when a wish-fulfillment is a prominent factor in its motivation, and in doing so we disregard its relations to reality just as the illusion itself sets no store by verification."

Sigmund Freud, describing what he meant by illusion when he called religion an illusion.

Toothbrush

"A character in one modern novel commits suicide when she looks at her toothbrush and realize that she will have to brush her teeth again and again for the rest of her life, a prospect that, when thought of all at once, indeed seems pointless."

Robert C. Solomon, The Big Questions

Does anyone know which modern novel is he referring to?

Doubt

You can't pretend to doubt from a distance... the only way to understand it is to go through it; you can't fake doubt.

The Slut Gene

Aati: (in one of her bitter moods) The whole incident was doubly embarrassing, because my father's the one who actually used to insist that these guys go out and 'catch a few girls'; it was awkward finding out my father expected them to then not marry those girls. The reasoning is: if she can be 'caught' by you, she can be caught by anyone! The girl's a slut and sluts are to be enjoyed, not married. And of course, then you marry a 100% respectable woman who can't be caught and, that ensures your daughters will also be free of the slut gene. Haha. My poor miscalculating father, perhaps I inherited mine from him!

Evil

I crave for the Spinozistic perspective of infinity, but my mind is distinctly Russellian: evil does not cease to be evil, just because it is a part of a "greater plan".

Hate

X: I believed in God because i needed to hate someone, and there was no one else to blame.

Joke

What is there to stop God from playing with our lives?

Maybe it's all one big joke.

Normality

The abstract thing called 'normality': madness within statistical limits.

Atheist and God

"Paradoxically, the atheist 'knows' more about God than the sophisticated theist -- he knows so much that he knows no such thing could exist. He 'knows' the divine nature and knows that it is incompatible with the existence of evil -- to mention one line of attack. Aquinas, by contrast, held that the existence of God is far better known than God's nature -- which remains shrouded in a cloud of unknowing."

Bill Vallicella, Maverick Philosopher

Sick

I am sick of having to be sensible all the time; insanity would be a pleasant respite.

Hide and Seek

"The Atheist is God playing at hide and seek with Himself; but is the Theist any other? Well, perhaps; for he has seen the shadow of God and clutched at it."

Sri Aurobindo

Short

Aati: Life is too short to follow other people's rules.