What is habitual perception?

In his renowned work, Philosophy as a Way of Life, Pierre Hadot uses the following observations made by Henri Bergson to convey something of the character of habitual perception:

Life requires that we put on blinkers; we must not look to the right, to the left, or behind, but straight ahead, in the direction in which we are supposed to walk. In order to live, we must be selective in our knowledge and our memories, and retain only that which may contribute to our action upon things.

Habitual perception is a very useful type of perception – it allows us to do things in a world that requires action of human beings. In other words, in order to do things, we must act, and habitual perception can be a streamlined type of perception focusing on how to get things done quickly and efficiently.

Furthermore, for obvious reasons, we want drivers, pilots, surgeons, engineers, etc., to be masters of habitual perception. They need to get a job done, and not think too much about thinking while doing the job. Reflection on what they do should come after they have done it. They can then adjust what they will do next time around based on their reflections.

Why transform habitual perception?

Since the industrial revolution, human beings have found themselves in situations where there is less time for reflection. People work long hours to earn the money that is required for survival, sometimes having little or no down time. In other words, a person’s life is often directed by habitual perception entirely.

One can describe the plight of the human species as one driven by habitual perception. Human beings have focused so much on becoming experts on their “actions upon things” and, to speak generally, so little on their reflective capacities, that we have become a global civilisation of consumers. This has come at immense costs to human well-being and ecological sustainability.

Transforming habitual perception

Hadot quotes Bergson again, this time in an exploration of the idea of non-habitual perception. Hadot and Bergson are interested in non-habitual perception as compatible with the idea of philosophical perception, but soon I will branch out beyond the context of philosophical perception:

When [people who have undergone a transformation of habitual perception] look at a thing, they see it for itself, and no longer for them. They no longer perceive merely for the sake of action: they perceive for the sake of perceiving; that is, for no reason, for the pure pleasure of it … That which nature does once in a long while, out of distraction, for a few privileged people; might not philosophy … attempt the same thing, in another sense and in another way, for everybody? Might not the role of philosophy be to bring us to a more complete perception of reality, by means of a kind of displacement of our attention?

As a philosopher, I am interested in philosophical perception, and I have experimented with numerous ways of displacing my attention in a manner that is in tune with the song that Hadot and Bergson are singing. I can say with certainty that in transforming habitual perception, a person will find themselves perceiving the world, and their place in it, in ways that have remarkably therapeutic implications for the individual and for the broader social and ecological problems arising from the historical over-emphasis on ‘action upon things’.

A program for displacing attention, or transforming habitual perception

As a daily practitioner of methods that displace attention from ‘instrumental thinking’ to ‘inherent value thinking’, I know first-hand what Bergson and Hadot are on about. I practice philosophy as a way of life as far as it is possible for me to do so in my own life.

I have done the research that justifies why one should transform habitual perception – see my PhD (LINK).

Realising the importance for myself, as well as for rising to some of the challenges facing humanity, I have put theory into practice and I have constructed a menu of methods that can be employed to displace habitual attention and transform habitual perception.

I am pursuing further research into these methods, and I am working on emphasising the importance of implementing programs for the transformation of habitual perception in various contexts – academic and educational, corporate, political, and in more ‘down-to-earth’ settings where ordinary people come to ‘work on themselves’ for their own well-being and in turn for the improvement of some conditions that are less than ideal in the greater ecological, social, spiritual, and economic scheme of things.

Contact

Contact me if you would like to participate in my program, which can be tailored to suit different contexts, e.g. high schools or universities, businesses or corporates, political groups or environmental ones, etc.

Published in the journal Politikon in July 2019.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02589346.2019.1642030

Abstract:

Despite the hopes and political promises of the 1990s that socio-economic transformation would occur in South Africa, the country continues to be plagued by high levels of poverty and inequality. The question of why this transformation deficit exists arises, often with debate surrounding answers where forms of binary logic are foregrounded, for example, coloniality/decoloniality and Eurocentrism/Afrocentrism, among others. I depart from binaries-based approaches and instead focus on analyses revealing mechanisms that prevent transformation. These mechanisms are evident in Mill’s analysis of the development of democracy, Marcuse’s critique of advanced industrial society, Deleuze’s commentary on disciplinary and control societies, and Princen’s descriptions of traffic control measures. Outlines of these analyses are offered in the spirit of ‘knowing the enemy’ that is a mix of structural mechanisms, identifiable without over-reliance on binary relationships, oppositions and tensions. Oppositions and tensions of this binary nature have been prominent in transformation rhetoric in South Africa, but the country’s transformation deficit indicates that a new language (Wallerstein, Princen) might still be helpful in dealing with various conceptual and practical challenges. Adopting a manner of expression less inclined towards emphasis on binaries may be a step in the direction of the new language.

Contact me for a link to a page with a limited number of free copies.

My first rocket stove sauna heater worked well for just over a dozen firings, and then crumbled. Too much water sprayed directly onto bricks. And the thing was badly designed, with an undersized chimney. In fact, I should never have called that unit a rocket stove. It was just a masonry stove, and an inept one at that!

After a few years of research and tinkering, and a few more builds of properly designed and built rocket thermal mass heaters, I arrived at version 2 of the sauna rocket engine. The stove could heat a warehouse. Instead it heats just less than 6 square meters!!!

System size is roughly a 20cm diameter, or an 8 incher. The sauna is up to temp in 25 minutes when the stove is run on full power. Thereafter I let it die down to about half power so that I don’t kill myself and whoever I have managed to lure into the oven with me.

No, this is not a post about feet! It’s a post about yoga, specifically yoga for senior citizens.

I, David, did not write the post. Someone named Harry Cline did. Harry contacted me and asked if I would post it to my site, and I said yes. If you would like to contact Harry, here is his email address: [email protected]

Here is what Harry produced (.docx attached):

A Brief Introduction to Yoga and Meditation for Seniors

It is easy to dismiss yoga and meditation as just another health craze, but the body of research surrounding both practices has only increased over the past few decades. Science is now more convinced than ever of their potential for physical and mental health, and it has also never been easier to start practicing them at home. This is great news for seniors, who are under a lot of pressure to create healthy routines that sustain and nourish their mind and bodies.

How Yoga and Meditation Work

Yoga in the original Hindu sense is a series of movements designed to prepare the body for meditation. Nowadays, we use the term yoga to define a series of different practices that combine precise body movements with breathing techniques. Some are geared toward meditation and spirituality, while others are similar to a conventional workout.

Similarly, the origin of meditation is ancient and religious, but it is now becoming a practical tool for relaxation and stress relief. While there are many forms of meditation, the most common involve deep breathing combined with visualization or body-scanning techniques.

So, why are these practices beneficial? And what do these benefits mean for seniors? The answer is made up of a combination of elements:

• Movement – Yoga involves a series of postures that work on flexibility, balance, and full-body strength. Flexibility and balance tend to deteriorate naturally with age, while muscle loss (known as sarcopenia) is strongly linked to lack of exercise. The health benefits are also more complex and wide-reaching; exercises like yoga can boost gut microbiome, leading to improved gut health and a healthier digestive system.

• Breathing – Both yoga and meditation involve controlled deep breathing. Deep breathing has several health benefits, the most well-known being its potential for stress relief. This is a large part of what makes yoga a mental health practice as well as a physical one, and what makes it so ideal for seniors struggling with mental self-care.

• Spirituality – Yoga and meditation started out as spiritual and religious practices and, for many, they still are. According to the Conversation, spirituality can be an invaluable tool in dealing with the challenges of growing older. Engaging with the spiritual part of yoga and meditation, not just the practical parts, can greatly boost the benefits.

How To Get Started

Yoga and meditation are easy for seniors to start at home. It is a good idea to start by clearing out a dedicated space in your house, as this can help with motivation. If you don’t have a lot of room, you can move around some furniture or even put some clutter into storage — this in itself can be great for your stress levels. Just be sure to budget for the added monthly expense.

Then, just go online. There are thousands of free yoga videos available, with the gentle style of Yoga with Adriene being a worldwide smash hit. You can also pick up a yoga mat on Amazon for $11.99 (before shipping). For meditation, you need only search the words “guided meditation” to open up a whole world of mindfulness. You can also download a free meditation app. Headspace is a great beginner option, with a 30-day free program that gently introduces you to all the core concepts. After that, monthly subscriptions are $5.74 to $14.95.

Yoga and meditation came come a long way. From their humble beginnings in India several thousands of years ago to their current status as wellness cure-alls, their influence has been long-standing and complex. Nowadays, we are lucky to live in an age where we have science-backed proof of their effectiveness as well as free, easy ways to bring them into our lives. Seniors should start taking advantage of this opportunity and reaping the rewards.

A Brief Introduction to Yoga and Meditation for Seniors (Attachment, .docx of this article)

Published in Acta Academica:

http://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/aa/article/view/3695

Abstract

Democracy is an open system, while capitalism is a gated one. Yet the dominant global political economy is democratic capitalism. The presence of a gated capitalist core within democracy results in the political prioritisation of capitalist business as usual, thereby resisting substantive changes to the political economy because economic growth is a prerequisite of capitalism. Responses to some of the challenges facing humankind – challenges such as the ecological crisis, which has arisen in part from unrestrained economic growth – cannot occur if economic growth dictates the democratic political agenda. Acknowledging this open- closed problem means acknowledging democratic capitalism’s incapacity to deal with some of humanity’s current challenges, such as the ecological crisis. A pressing question arises: what does one do? Arguably, if ecological decline is to be slowed or averted, choices must be made that result in ways of thinking and ways of living notably different from those systematised under democratic capitalism. The need for choices incommensurable with democratic capitalism is a sign that a philosophical situation has arisen, because, as explained by Alain Badiou, part of the role of philosophy is to confront incommensurability. In positioning democratic capitalism (and its implications for ecology) against incommensurable alternatives, a full philosophical situation arises. Permaculture is an example of an arena offering such alternatives, and an outline of an implementation of permaculture principles is provided in order to illustrate what a potential remedial candidate entails.