George

Berkeley: The
Life of the Mind
How the $5 you forgot proves
Gods existence.

Do you ever worry that the

room you just left ceases to
exist when you turn your
back?
That a tree
in the
forest will
vanish if
no one is
there to
see it?

NEVER LEAVE ME,

TREE!!!

Remember what John Locke

said?
A primary
Simple
The
quality
mindisis
sensations are
not
tabula
viewer
a passive
rasa
divided
independent;
until
receiver
it begins
of a
between
secondary
stimuli!
taking in
It
primary and
quality
actively
simpleis
secondary
participates!!
sensations!!
viewer
qualities!!
dependent!

But arent ALL sensory

experiences viewer dependent?
Lets say you have
three bowls of
Um I have
water: one hot, one
to
pee?
cold, one room
temperature. You
put one hand in the
hot, one hand in the
cold, and then both
in the room
temperature bowl.

All of your senses are perceived

by your body and transmitted to
your consciousness to assemble
and interpret.

You do not want to be in this

thing after Ive eaten
guacamole!

The little alien in Men In

Black 1 lives in a cockpit
that gives him
information about the
world. But he never
experiences the outside
world with his own
senses. Essentially, all
that exists outside of his
man suit exists as data
on his view screen.

You cannot step outside of your man

suit. All that exists for you is simply
what your mind perceives.

Essentially, all that you perceive exists as an

idea in your mind. Whether it actually
corresponds to the actual world is immaterial
to you.
To exist is to be perceived.

So as long as youre looking at

something or thinking about
something, it exists. Got it?
OMG, Babe! I will
always look at you
and think about
you, and so you will
always, always
exist!!! <3 4eva!!!

Cant..
Breathe
..

Moreover, if no one is looking at

something or thinking about
something, it cannot exist.
After all, if
everything that
exists is an idea
in someones
mind, then an
idea cannot
exist without a
mind to
perceive it.
Cause minds

Waiiiitt a minute. Slow down,

chief!
What about newly discovered
dinosaur bones! Nobody was
looking at or thinking about
those!
And what about newly
discovered species in the
Borneon jungle? No one was
looking at or thinking about I found $5 in my
right pocket! And a
that weird amphibian!

brick of Nazi gold in

the left!

And what about a pair of jeans

that you put on and find $5? If
people were perceiving that
money, it would be spent!

Heres where Berkeley

gets clever.
For things to continue to exist when
they are not perceived by a mind, we
need a greater mind that perceives all
things at all times. Only an omniscient
mind can provide consistency to the
world. But what sort of mind is
perceiving all things at all times?

God.

Im always thinking about you. I

wont forget.

Thus, we all exist within the mind

of God. So does time and distance.

This is what is
meant by an
eternal God.
Because time
exists within Him
(to be perceived
by us), God is
eternal.

While God is eternal and

unchanging, we continue to
perceive things relatively.

This is why an hour

can seem like a day
or a minute. This is
why a mile can
seem like a leap or
a marathon.

Mr. Rossi in mile 1 of

the marathon.
Mr. Rossi in
mile 25 of the
marathon.

Heres a famous limerick to sum

things up:
There was a young man who thought God
Must think it exceedingly odd
That this spritely young tree
Continues to be
While no ones around on the quad.
A REPLY
Dear Sir,
Your astonishments odd.
I am always about on the quad.
And thats why the tree
Will continue to be
Since observed by
Yours Faithfully,
God