I have this friend, N, that has recently started believing things very out of the ordinary. He said that he's been getting into paganism and studying runes and candles. I told him that was very interesting, it sounded like a fun time and a good hobby to have. N let me know that it wasn't just a hobby, but that it had a function and purpose, a sort of witchcraft.
I come from an academic background; it doesn't seem healthy to me to actually believe and try to practice witchcraft, not because it might be real, but because of the mental health associations with it. So I told my concerns to N but he brushed them off, saying that people have the right to believe in what they want. I respect that, but I do not want N to fall into delusion. I let him know, as respectful as I could, that believing in witchcraft does not make it real and that it wasn't healthy to believe otherwise. He got really bothered when I told him he should talk to his therapist about this stuff. N has a history of mental health issues and was in a deeply abusive relationship for a few years which cause him a lot of grief. I was accused of being rude and trying to impose my beliefs. His last message to me was him asking me to stop and that anyone has a right to believe what they want.
I cherish N a lot as a friend, I do not wish them any harm. I respect that anyone has a right to believe what they want, but I really don't think this is healthy for my friend. Is there any way I can help him? Is the best way forward to just stop and let him be?
@tikitaki
@Valhaitham
Let’s not compare an invention (ie money/borders) to something completely made up that has no basis in reality.
Just because money isn’t in nature and we invented it doesn’t mean it’s a societal delusion that we simply accept. You could say the same for cars and bikes and planes and video games. Literally everything fabricated is “a fake delusion”.
Democracy is closer to what you’re saying but still not right.
You have to compare a belief to a belief. You can compare religions and other philosophies using your logic but shouldn’t bring in real things cause it falls apart.
the only reason a piece of paper or a pixel on a screen has any value to trade for goods and services is because we collectively agree that it has value
the belief creates the system. it's an ideology, a religion. is it a useful construct? absolutely.
the point is that our existence is full of these beliefs. it's a prerequisite for being a human that can interact with the world. we need these constructs otherwise the Real would not make sense and we would essentially be monkeys