Following up a bit on my comments in posts 8 & 19, I return to the Gita.

For years prior to throwing down his bow and slumping into a panic attack on his chariot, Arjuna had be itching for a fight; he had grievances (pretty good ones too). But now, this brave warrior wanted to run away from the blood to be shed on the fields of Kurukshetra.

Krishna told Arjuna to suck it up, saying all that was about to unfold was due to desires. Arjuna's desires and those of his cousins who had usurped the throne.
The desires led to actions, the actions had consequences and the results were out of Arjuna's control.

Krishna also explained how to avoid such dramas in the future, clarifying many common human errors and explicating an entire life-style of self-defense without being defensive, offensive, or confused about the nature of "self-defense".

In the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna faced the situation of protecting some family and loved ones and killing others.
The answer is not easy.

Everyone claims to know their self, but apart from the obviously changing body wrapper, the constant "self" is very hard to pin down.
One might say that one's self is actually unknowable as the self-conscious self can not be revealed by the five senses or science.

The Bhgavad Gita expounds upon this human dilemma of desire, defense, action, inaction, killing, dying and self-identity.

In the village, under the shade tree, three sadhus sat around a small fire boiling water in a pot.
Villagers watched as each sadhu unwrapped a small packet revealing a smooth stone, perfectly palm sized and, like any good worry stone, polished to a shine.

The sadhus had no worries. They placed the three stones in the pot.
When asked what they were doing, they replied, "Making stone soup" and sat silently, simply stirring.
Word spread and more astonished visitors gathered to watch.

One sadhu said, "You know, an onion would be a great addition, considering the heat."
Said another, "Yes, and turmeric and sal ..." but the third interrupted with, "Remember the potatoes in the previous village?"
The sadhus sat and stirred and villagers came and went home and returned, and long after the sadhus left, everyone agreed it was the best 'stone soup' they'd ever had.

When I am asleep, I am conscious-being aware of the dream ideas.
When I am awake, I am conscious-being aware of world ideas.
Awake or asleep, I am simply conscious-being observing mind-thoughts.

Asleep I create worlds that disappear when I wake.
The awake world also disappears, when we fall asleep.
Worlds come and go; conscious-being is constant.

A continuing-conscious-identity, existing with all the knowledge, memory, impressions of previous adventures -
- is suddenly the conscious-center of a different existence.

It is as though he woke each week into an unscripted, improvisational role that he was (as though) karmic-ly destined to play out, gathering experience and knowledge, until the denouement of this life-story.
To be reborn next week, again and again.

Almost like we all are, infants born center-stage, the star of our life, and having no idea what is going on.

One might say that the entire manifest Universe is the sum of infinite little bits.
Indeed, the search for 'what-is-it?' continuously finds smaller and smaller 'little bits'; it is a quantum mystery.
Odd that in the search for some 'unified field theory', one 'little bit' (un-measurable and formless) is essentially ignored.
The consciousness of the searcher, the consciousness of the knower of little bits, the wielder of the math that reveals that the outcome is not accurately measured when consciousness is ignored.
Non-negatable 'consciousness' is the integral unified-field by which the measure of all little bits is known.

Oh, so sad is the life of one living, trapped in the cognitive-dissonance-delusion that must exist in those who, for the sake of a self-identity, deny any awareness of right and wrong, selfishness and sanity, commandments, God and one's own Mom*.

This is mental-imbalance manifest in elevating the wardrobe of many colors** above the wearer of the wrappers.
So many self-help books on the shelves show that so many are unhappy in their selves and seek succor. Can't help the self if you do not know what the self is.

* I will use this word as a simple stand-in for 'having learned any sense of self-morality' as opposed to self-mortality.
** body, gender, nationality, state, ethnicity, religion, employment, age, status, hobbies, desires, confusions, illusions- all the possible answers to the question, "Who are you?"

There was an episode wherein young Sheldon was challenged by a philosophy teacher. I see that as the take off point for a new show, The "Alternative Sheldon"

Sheldon pursues philosophy, becomes a professor, an ethicist; for elder Sheldon, that is perfect because no one wants to talk ethics and philosophers are never invited to parties. However, because the answers to life's questions, as in physics, continue to elude, Sheldon becomes jaded.

The same big questions can be pursued, like "what the hell is consciousness anyway"? and "do we need Gods to be good?"
Some of the first show's tropes, characters, places could be used, like Sheldon renting a flat from Penny and Leonard.
Eastern and western philosophies might clash with a new, more alpha maharaj, the swami-acharya of the yoga center on the ground floor.
And of course the answers to the ancient questions of mind and matter will certainly be found, in next week's episode.

Old Sheldon, The Petulant Philosopher"
If any of you know those, who know how to run with idea, go for it.
But take care running because ideas, like scissors, can stab one.