Mind melds, primary intentions, and the expression of Platonic truths

Primary intention and secondary intention are key concepts to keep in mind as we progress in our language abilities.

As quantum consciousness expert and UC Berkley/FSU professor Justin Riddle explains, primary intention refers to what a person’s words mean to themselves – their authentic intent – while secondary intention refers to how their words are understood by another person.

In fortunate moments we find ourselves in the bliss of “mind-meld,” connecting with those who understand intuitively our primary intentions and we are free to express ourselves, especially regarding abstract concepts of deep meaning which may include spiritual concepts. In other moments, we find ourselves uncomfortable as it becomes clear that the other person isn’t grasping our primary intent and we may be accidently offending them.

This confusion between primary and secondary intention can rattle conversations between persons of the same culture and according to the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis can lead to communication problems between members of different cultures as syntax (arbitrarily determined, culturally specific sounds) clashes with semantics (universals, platonic concepts shared by all humans).

Though I do not think this is an example, I often find in religious discourse the term “Son of God” to be a key source of confusion, with some thinking that we mean that God fathers children as humans do. (Why not simple come up with a new label?)

What is to be done? Nietzsche was very clear on this: avoid the rabble, the marketplace, and find your type of people to have a mind-meld with. This is not to say do not have dialogues with others, it’s just don’t make yourself hoarse trying to convince a carcass to wake up.