If you want to be free, you have to put forth the mental effort required to comprehend the world for yourself. There is no other option available. No one, including myself and everyone else, has access to occult knowledge that can shed light on the deepest mysteries of the universe. People who claim to have such expertise but do not actually do so are either fools or charlatans. Your mind will only become more corrupted and subject to their control if you continue to believe their lies.

Casting off mental bonds and releasing your mind from harmful and restricting thoughts is an essential step on the way to achieving mental liberty. Many of these damaging views were unwittingly taken in through interaction with other persons who had fallen for the deception. Indoctrination at the hands of the church, the state, and one’s own family may have been responsible for the development of some of your beliefs. If you are willing to make use of this power, it does not matter how old you are, how much schooling you have received, or what position you hold in society; the good news is that you already have it within your power to rid your mind of lies, dogma, and restricting beliefs.

Faith is the primary adversary of lucid thinking and the freedom to think freely in one’s mind. When you accept a concept on the basis of blind faith, you are essentially giving up control of the section of your brain that is responsible for distinguishing between truth and fiction, understanding and deception, and honesty and falsehoods. You have to let go of all ideas and preconceptions that are based on your religious beliefs before you can properly utilize your mind to comprehend reality.

In the context of this conversation, the concept of faith refers to the idea that one ought to believe in the reality of any proposition, religion, or alleged historical event, despite having no intellectual basis for that conviction. I am not referring to having confidence in your own skills or capabilities here. The form of “faith” that is peddled by charlatans is not analogous to the kind of “faith” that is desirable and necessary, which is rational faith in oneself.

The statement that “faith is the evidence of things unseen” is a common one in the Christian religion. But what if, instead of putting my confidence in the New Bible as translated by King James, I put my faith in the Koran? Does this mean that my faith provides evidence for the reality of Mohamed as a significant prophet? If this is the case, does this mean that all devout Christians are now apostates because they have rejected the greatest prophet that God has ever sent? There is a dizzying array of rival belief systems and religions, each of which is clamoring for your allegiance. The urge to exert control over one’s thinking by means of dogma and other forms of irrational belief is a factor that is shared by all of these groups.

When I was a kid, my belief was limitless, and my faith was unshakable. I was properly educated in the doctrines of the Christian faith thanks to a very religious pair of grandparents and their allegiance to the faith given to them by our Spanish colonial heritage. I had an unshakeable faith that, just as Jesus had promised in the Holy Gospel, I too would be able to do miracles such as walking on water and healing the sick. On the other hand, my unwavering confidence was not rewarded. In spite of my childish unbelief, none of my attempts to walk on water, transform water into wine, or any of my other fantasies about controlling the elements were successful. Eloi Eloi Lama Sabachthani?

Pascal famously wager that faith in God is a rational bet, based on the presumption that there are only two possibilities that exist: 1) God exists, and would eternally reward him for a life of belief; or 2) God does not exist, and he would have lost little or nothing by having wrongly believed. Pascal’s wager is famous because it is based on the presumption that only two possibilities exist. The payout that is guaranteed is significantly more than the potential loss, which leads many people to believe that this wager is an acceptable one to make. Obviously, a good number of these same people also think that games like the lottery and roulette with a double-zero layout are acceptable ways to gamble.

Pascal’s Wager does not take into account the variety of beliefs and possibilities that exist outside of Christianity. What if we believe in a different God or no God at all? What if we put our faith in other forms of spirituality, such as Buddhism or Hinduism? What if we believe that our actions in this life, rather than our beliefs, are what determine our destiny? All of these potential beliefs are disregarded by Pascal’s Wager, leaving a gaping hole in his argument. Furthermore, his wager fails to account for the potential consequences of believing in something falsely; it may lead to more suffering rather than less. Thus, Pascal’s Wager is far from a foolproof plan for attaining eternal bliss; it should be seriously considered and questioned before making any decisions.

The underlying false dichotomy in Pascal’s Wager is the first issue that arises with this wager. Pascal assumes that there are only two options available to him: either the Christian God of the Bible exists, and will reward him for confidence wagered on a promised payoff, or his conception of God does not exist. What if there is a God, but he is hostile toward those who put their faith in Jesus? What if there is a God, but he favors those who don’t believe in him over those whose faith was bought with the promise of a reward in the afterlife? What if the concept of Christianity was nothing more than a hoax designed to distinguish those with feeble minds (who are more likely to fall for tricks like Pascal’s Wager) from those with robust minds (who are less likely to give in to promises of eternal happiness and fears of damnation)? What if the adoption of dogma deprived our one and only life of the mental freedom that, in the first place, makes it worthy to be alive?

The world is filled with countless perspectives, and it’s important to recognize that not all of them are valid. It’s easy to understand why so many people cling to their beliefs, but it is ultimately a disservice to our cognitive capabilities. We have the ability to look at our environment objectively and use our intellect to question and evaluate the status quo. This takes courage and effort, but it can often lead to greater understanding and insight than what we can simply be told. However, this can become troublesome when a demagogue leader takes ahold of the national narrative and uses this to their advantage. By taking control of our own minds, we can make sure that we’re not being taken advantage of by those who seek to manipulate us for their own gain. To do this, we must actively seek out knowledge from diverse sources and be willing to challenge our preconceived notions in order to gain a better understanding of reality. Ultimately, it is up to each individual to use their own logic and judgement when assessing their environment, so that they may make informed decisions. Taking the time to think for yourself allows us to become better informed citizens and leads us away from being taken advantage of by those with malicious intentions.

You are nothing more than a prisoner to an idea after you have taken it on trust and made a conscious decision not to examine it further (and its proponents). A mind that is both free and rational is aware of its own limitations and is willing to acknowledge that both its current ideas and level of understanding have a great deal of space for growth. Beliefs that have become outmoded or are based on faulty reasoning are abandoned as new ideas are mastered and new levels of comprehension are attained. The fact that we do not now comprehend everything is not a reason for adhering to ridiculous views on the basis of blind faith. On the other hand, the fact that we have to continually review and update our understanding of reality highlights the imperative that faith-based dogmatic ideas be flushed down the toilet, where they rightfully belong.

We should not be afraid to challenge our beliefs and to think through implications of those beliefs. It is only through this process that we can create a better understanding of ourselves and the world around us. To stay stagnant in our thinking is to limit our potential and deny ourselves the opportunity to grow and develop. We must take active steps to ensure that we are growing, learning, and questioning. To achieve this, we must be willing to accept new ideas, different perspectives and make an effort to understand the implications of these ideas on our own views. Moreover, we should strive to be open-minded and look for opportunities to have our ideas challenged, thereby allowing us to reconsider, refine, and update our views as needed. By doing this, we can ensure that our beliefs are based on sound evidence and reasoning instead of faith or dogma. This will also help us become more aware of our own biases and see things from a broader perspective. Ultimately, it is by challenging our beliefs that we can create a more meaningful life for ourselves and make a positive impact on the world around us.