Joe Griffin > Quotes

“And the knowledge of how to stay sane in this rapidly worsening situation can seem hard to come by - as if it’s hiding away from our crude, self-obsessed, materialistic culture. Consequently many people live and die without ever knowing such wisdom exists, (though perhaps it was never withheld from those who sincerely sought it).”
― Joe Griffin

“It is this stretching process, as our brains continually resculpt through new learning, that makes us such an adaptable species.[11] We can all feel a sense of flow, meaning and purpose when we challenge ourselves in some way: advancing a project, or developing a sport, skill, craft or art. As we stretch ourselves, something within us is seeking to fulfil an inner need through finding its completion in the environment[12] – a process that might be termed spiritual. Obviously, the challenges people face will vary from person to person. It might be, for a businessman, the process of developing a new business or, for a musician, mastering difficult new music, and, as such, the process will be a spiritual one, because it serves to refine perceptions. And yet an activity that is initially stretching will soon become mechanical if, for instance, the business isn’t developed once it is up and running or if the mastered music is simply repeated. To be stretched further, we need to seek new challenges. The brain always needs new challenges to keep it stretched; otherwise neurons (brain cells) start to atrophy. A busy brain is a healthy brain. Mountaineers, for example, can spend years preparing to do something that to others might seem inherently pointless: to climb the sheer face of a huge mountain, at the top of which the rarefied air is difficult to breathe. Why would they want to do something as uncomfortable and dangerous as that?”
― Joe Griffin, Human Givens: The new approach to emotional health and clear thinking

“A sane action is one carried out in a way the wider consequences demand rather than for narrow, selfish reasons or out of habit or approval.”
― Joe Griffin, Learning from Nature: Solving the mysteries of human behaviour and consciousness

“Seeking personal happiness, more often than not, can make people more selfish. Therefore, feeling happy is better viewed as a by-product of living well rather than an aim in itself.”
― Joe Griffin, Learning from Nature: Solving the mysteries of human behaviour and consciousness