Jeff wrote:
IQ and deep meditation
Having a high IQ and discovering deep meditation might be related. I
happen to score in the top .1% of the human IQ bell curve. While I knew
that my IQ was above 145 during my freshman year of high school;
nonetheless, I did not know until recently that my IQ was in the top
.1% of the human IQ bell curve. If I did my career would have been much
different. I also happen to be a polymath.
The point here is I stumbled across the deep meditation experience in my first year of taking up a contemplative life more than 40 years ago; whereas, most people who practice meditation never find the deep meditation experience. Thus, I believe it is reasonable to consider that possibly all of the people who stumble upon the deep meditation experience might be geniuses. So, it would be very useful if those posting their case histories here also posted their IQ, if you are comfortable with doing so.
Related concepts are genius and polymath.
The point here is I stumbled across the deep meditation experience in my first year of taking up a contemplative life more than 40 years ago; whereas, most people who practice meditation never find the deep meditation experience. Thus, I believe it is reasonable to consider that possibly all of the people who stumble upon the deep meditation experience might be geniuses. So, it would be very useful if those posting their case histories here also posted their IQ, if you are comfortable with doing so.
Quote from: wiki
An intelligence quotient, or IQ, is a score derived from one of several standardized tests designed to assess human intelligence...When current IQ tests are developed, the median raw score of the norming sample is defined as IQ 100 and scores each standard deviation (SD) up or down are defined as 15 IQ points greater or less...By this definition, approximately two-thirds of the population scores an IQ between 85 and 115, and about 5 percent of the population scores above 125...IQ scales are ordinally scaled.[32][33][34][35][36] While one standard deviation is 15 points, and two SDs are 30 points, and so on, this does not imply that mental ability is linearly related to IQ, such that IQ 50 means half the cognitive ability of IQ 100. In particular, IQ points are not percentage points...The correlation between IQ test results and achievement test results is about 0.7.2.1% of the population scores above 130, and 1% of the population scores above 140 and .1% of the population scores above 145.
Related concepts are genius and polymath.
Quote from: wiki
A genius is a person who displays exceptional superior intellectual ability, creativity, or originality, typically to a degree that is associated with the achievement of new advances in a domain of knowledge. A scholar in many subjects or a scholar in a single subject may be referred to as a genius.[1] There is no scientifically precise definition of genius, and the question of whether the notion itself has any real meaning has long been a subject of debate, although psychologists are converging on a definition that emphasizes creativity and eminent achievement.
Quote from: wiki
A polymath (Greek: πολυμαθής, polymathēs, "having learned much")[1] is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas; such a person is known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. The term was first used in the seventeenth century; the related term, polyhistor, is an ancient term with similar meaning.[2]
The term is often used to describe great thinkers of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment who excelled at several fields in science and the arts. In the Italian Renaissance, the idea of the polymath was expressed by Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472), in the statement that "a man can do all things if he will."[3] Embodying a basic tenet of Renaissance humanism that humans are limitless in their capacity for development, the concept led to the notion that people should embrace all knowledge and develop their capacities as fully as possible. This was expressed in the term "Renaissance man" which is often applied to the gifted people of that age who sought to develop their abilities in all areas of accomplishment: intellectual, artistic, social and physical. This term entered the lexicon during the twentieth century and has now been applied to great thinkers living before and after the Renaissance.
"Renaissance man" was first recorded in written English in the early 20th century.[4] It is now used to refer to great thinkers living before, during, or after the Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci has often been described as the archetype of the Renaissance man, a man of "unquenchable curiosity" and "feverishly inventive imagination".[5]
Many notable polymaths lived during the Renaissance period, a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th through to the 17th century and that began in Italy in the late Middle Ages and later spread to the rest of Europe. These polymaths had a rounded approach to education that reflected the ideals of the humanists of the time. A gentleman or courtier of that era was expected to speak several languages, play a musical instrument, write poetry, and so on, thus fulfilling the Renaissance ideal. The idea of a universal education was essential to achieving polymath ability, hence the word university was used to describe a seat of learning. At this time universities did not specialize in specific areas but rather trained students in a broad array of science, philosophy, and theology. This universal education gave them a grounding from which they could continue into apprenticeship toward becoming a Master of a specific field.
panegalli replied:
I don't know my IQ, since I have never been tested by a psychologist or
psychometrician, IQ is not a big deal here in Brazil, I don't think I
have ever met anyone personally that has taken an IQ test. I've done a
Raven progressive matrices IQ test online and got a 120 score, not
anywhere near what you guys report here, not really genius level, I hope
that doesn't make me unsuited for experience jhana or to progress in
the contemplative/mystical path.
Alexander replied:
I'm not sure if IQ is exactly the right term, but I definitely think
making your way to a place like this, seeing, understanding, and valuing
the accounts of mystics, and valuing the premise mysticism presents, is
a function of intelligence.
I remember growing up, panegalli, intuitively understanding the premises of mysticism. I would be in the classroom and think to myself, "this is all pretend right?" or "this is like Plato said, we're in the shadow world or the false world, this isn't reality itself" or "as above, so below; just like we can play a virtual reality computer game, so too my existence in this body is the same."
I was constantly trying to find someone who perceived things in the way I did (I particularly hoped for an attractive young lady to think the same haha) but I found no one shared my views.
I remember when I studied philosophy in college, how far it went off-topic. In an academic setting I don't even know what "philosophy" means. Plato and Socrates were very clear philosophy was a preparation for death, that philosophy purified and elevated the soul, and that the goal of the philosopher was to separate from the corrupt body and to return to Reality.
And don't get me started about religious people haha. It is interesting how universal religion is, that it is inherently human to value it and have a sense of the spiritual. But how it is interpreted is amazing.
I find the symbolism of Christianity very heroic myself. Of Christ, the god-man and Crucified One (as Teresa called him), calling the Christian to forsake the body and embrace the life of the spirit. Yet this call isn't followed by any Christian I know. Particularly here in America Christians are so far removed from the life-negation and self-transcendence of Christ it is astonishing. They do none of the aid to the poor, sick, alienated or imprisoned. I expect most of these Christians will find themselves making their way right back here again.
So, I definitely get what Jeff is getting at when he says "IQ." It is certainly a faculty of intelligence to value these topics and come here. And, the fact your Inner Director brought you here is evidence you have what Jeff describes.
I remember growing up, panegalli, intuitively understanding the premises of mysticism. I would be in the classroom and think to myself, "this is all pretend right?" or "this is like Plato said, we're in the shadow world or the false world, this isn't reality itself" or "as above, so below; just like we can play a virtual reality computer game, so too my existence in this body is the same."
I was constantly trying to find someone who perceived things in the way I did (I particularly hoped for an attractive young lady to think the same haha) but I found no one shared my views.
I remember when I studied philosophy in college, how far it went off-topic. In an academic setting I don't even know what "philosophy" means. Plato and Socrates were very clear philosophy was a preparation for death, that philosophy purified and elevated the soul, and that the goal of the philosopher was to separate from the corrupt body and to return to Reality.
And don't get me started about religious people haha. It is interesting how universal religion is, that it is inherently human to value it and have a sense of the spiritual. But how it is interpreted is amazing.
I find the symbolism of Christianity very heroic myself. Of Christ, the god-man and Crucified One (as Teresa called him), calling the Christian to forsake the body and embrace the life of the spirit. Yet this call isn't followed by any Christian I know. Particularly here in America Christians are so far removed from the life-negation and self-transcendence of Christ it is astonishing. They do none of the aid to the poor, sick, alienated or imprisoned. I expect most of these Christians will find themselves making their way right back here again.
So, I definitely get what Jeff is getting at when he says "IQ." It is certainly a faculty of intelligence to value these topics and come here. And, the fact your Inner Director brought you here is evidence you have what Jeff describes.
