Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Cool term: sui generis

"constituting a class of its own; unique"

qo, on USAT F&R forum (link):

I think we would have to come to a common understanding of the meaning of "spirituality."  To me, it's a brain state; an enjoyable one at that.  It's quite possible for two people to experience similar brain states and take from them entirely different "meanings."  Our experiences are, prima facie, sui generis.  They are completely unique because we are the sum total of our individual histories.

We've each developed synaptic structures which are poles apart, one from the other, based on stimuli and experience only we can know.  Frankly, it's a wonder we find common ground at all :-)

-Rusty