The Conscious Experiment

Update – due to a special donation, lunch is subsidised and is now 90 baht/person instead of 206 🙂

The final social gathering and movie at the Tai Pan Hotel of this decade!

The Conscious Experiment

Lunch/movie at the Tai Pan Hotel

Saturday 28th November

Film: The Illusion of Consciousness

Dr Susan Blackmore

Followed by a 15 minute summary of the Buddha’s own ultimate experiment in consciousness according to The Way of the Elders (Theravada)

Finally we’ll leave the floor to Dr Georges Dreyfus to define some of the concepts, problems and theoretical solutions according to the great Mahayana Buddhists of history.

Everyone welcome! These events are a good chance to meet some of the other faces in an informal setting and swap some viewpoints later after the documentary. We are always a diverse crowd so everyone will fit in ..

Lunch

The usual 206 baht buffet lunch at the Tai Pan Hotel – good food, wide choice. With soups, salad, make-your-own pizza, and Thai & Western dishes. Lunch is specially discounted and will be just 90 baht each – it’s a big range of food, coffee, desserts … for 90 baht.

Come any start time between 11:15 and 12:15

If you can’t make lunch you are also welcome to come just for the film (or just for lunch as skip the movie). It’s an informal day so feel free.

Film

A thoroughly interesting 45 minute taped lecture of Dr Susan Blackmore (Wikipedia biography . And  her homepage here) called The Illusion of Consciousness that was presented at the Skeptics conference on consciousness in 2005.

Susan Blackmore is a skeptic, psychologist and student of consciousness. Not to mention a long time student of Zen Buddhism, and prolific writer including authoring 3 books on consciousness :

 Conversations on Consciousness
Consciousness: An Introduction,

and A very short introduction to consciousness

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Consciousness in Buddhism

Any ultimate experiment in consciousness must be subjective – only you can taste and feel it. The Buddha followed consciousness to its roots and discovered what he called the Unconditioned, or the Amata (deathless) – a base of consciousness, the attainment of which is perfect enlightenment.

We will rattle through a 10 (ish)  minute presentation of this discovery, and purportedly replicable experiment, according to The Way of the Elders (Theravada Buddhism)

Then we will leave the floor to the very interesting Georges Dreyfus – Sanskrit scholar and former Tibetan monk of 15 years. Georges gave a very lively and stimulating talk on the nature of consciousness in Chulalongkorn university last year, which left an impression on a number of us Little Bangkok Sangha who attended. He is an experienced lecturer in top US universities, and an enthusiastic speaker.

Schedule

Saturday 28th November

11:15 – 1 pm Lunch (arrive any time)

1:15 – 2pm The Illusion of Consciousness

2:00 – 2:15 Consciousness according to early Buddhism

2:15 – 3:15 (ish) Presentation and discussion led by Dr Georges Dreyfus.

Finish around 3:30 (people welcome to stay later and chat afterwards)

Directions:

Goto Asoke BTS or Underground line. Walk East and go down Sukhumvit 23 for 336 meters (thanks Google Earth). Turn left into the Tai Pan Hotel. Restaurant is on the ground floor as you enter the building. Make sure to come and announce yourself – or they might not give you our discounted price for lunch!