Article #200
Subject: Dr. Herbert Dreyfus's lectures on Kierkegaard
Author: Andrew W. Harrell
Posted: 7/14/2013 12:44:49 PM

Notes and thoughts on Dr. Herbert Dreyfus’ lectures on Kierkegaard from his
undergraduate class in Existentialism . As posted on Utube.



Lecture 1

We are not the self in ourself [itself],… as the Mandukya Upanishad teaches,
but the self in half ourself[itself]. Fascinating and thoughtful. Jesus
Christ in the Gospels said, "I AM the door [to bringing heaven on earth our
purpose in praying with God] " If this is so His Father's name is the key to
this door. I believe there are five basic belief steps we need to take in
order to understanding His Father's name in each of us [subjectively]. 1) God
exists, 2) I AM, 3) God thinks, 4) I pray and meditate, 5) God lives in us.

Three relations which define the Self in relation to half itself:

R1= Self

R2=Spirit

R3= Spirit happy

The self establishes itself as relating to itself, by establishing itself
relative to that which establishes other. A relation that relates to itself
(that is itself) and is in itself or has been established by something else
(1) God exists and 2) I AM) and in anotherAnd infinite passion for something
finite gives you a world.







“Contemplation by itself is not enough to complete this process ( by 4) I
pray and contemplate, 5) God lives in us) but you must have an involvement
and commitment more than just contemplation.



Lecture 2

I would disagree that "there is no way to love the God that Kierkegaard is
talking about [a God of infinite possibilities]". I would argue that if we
open our heart's to our own specific possibility of understanding Him and let
God's Mind [replying], and not own own, be the way we understand Him [after
affirming His existence and our Self...I AM] then when we pray and meditate
on what His mind is telling us to do.. and do it... if that not loving HIm,
then He didn't make us after all



“To be grounded transparently in the self means that everything we do
manifests our commitment to that higher part of yourself.”



Lecture 3



What is the difference between despair and anguish.

Anguish is the positive feeling when the night of faith has a defining
commitment. Anguish is a tension which goes with bliss. Why is it necessary
to be in a constant state of the possibility of despair? Because, it is not
possible to decide anything about someone who is not in despair. (or course
this assumes we are the one doing the deciding by figuring things out and not
God)

“Despair is like the negative version of having a defining commitment in your
life.”

“Christianity is both the cause of the disease [being in despair] and the
cure. According to Dante we can only have bliss because we first have
postulated that we are in a state of original sin and in despair from it.”

“We might be lucky enough to get through our whole life without thinking that
our defining commitment is not intact. But, we will still have the
possibility of despair and in some future moment realize that you are
actually in despair now.”

According to Kierkegaard and Dr. Dreyfus “we can’t be blissfully happy until
we have been in despair and been assured of it [ assured by who? Presumably
by our higher self or God or both].” The question becomes then, can anyone
else, even God, actually be able to believe for us that we are happy? I
guess, in that case we are left to our higher self dwelling with God or
another “the self in half itself or another” to be the one to tell us we are
happy. “Then that creates us as a new being.”



Lecture 4



For some of us “Jesus is the paradigm” [how to take a risky unconditional
commitment]… Jesus is a teacher and an elder brother. This is true.

For others of us, Jesus is more than just a teacher.

The for those who believe he is just a teacher the one part of the five
steps explained above in comments to lectures 1,2 is steps 3)and 5):

1) God exists, 2) I AM, 3) I think, 4) I pray and meditate, 5) I live .