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    Carmelics

    A reasoning platform. Break down any belief into clear reasons, explore both sides, and weigh the evidence honestly.

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    Home/Original/inverse
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    Inverse View

    It is not the case that No psychophysical element in a causal series constitutes a self.

    ?Set your confidence on the premises below to see your aggregate.

    Reasons For

    2 perspectives
    Reason for 1 of 2
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    • 1.A causal series requires a principle of unity that binds successive elements into one series rather than many disconnected series.
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      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.This unifying principle cannot itself be merely another impermanent element without generating an infinite regress of unifiers.
      ?

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    • 3.Therefore, the causal series presupposes a non-elemental organizing identity that the no-self thesis cannot account for.
      ?

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    Reason for 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Parfit's reductionism, while sympathetic to anatta, concedes that psychological continuity and connectedness constitute a determinate fact about personal identity over time.
      ?

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    • 2.If there are determinate facts about which causal series a future person belongs to, there must be a fact-maker that individuates series—functioning as a self.
      ?

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    • 3.The Buddhist claim conflates the absence of a Cartesian ego-substance with the absence of any identity-constituting relation, which are logically distinct positions.
      ?

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    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.The ultimate truth about sentient beings is that there exists only a causal series of impermanent, impersonal psychophysical elements.
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    • 2.All elements in the causal series are impermanent and lack the properties required of a personal essence.
      ?

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