Page 68 - Knowing The Truth

66 KNOWING THE TRUTH

L. Wittgenstein on this important truth: "… for example, you can't ask …
how it (a lemon) came into existence. A lemon is only a taste perceived by
the tongue, a smell sensed by the nose, a color and shape seen by the eye.
These qualities may be the subject of scientific enquiry and definition, but
science can never know the objective world." 6

AISHA: So we can't be sure whether or not the taste of food or a
sound is the same as someone else perceives it. Is that what we are
saying?

MURAD: Yes, Aisha. You've expressed it very well. The famous
scientist Lincoln Barnett also makes this comment: ''No one can know if
his perception of red or of the note 'do' is the same as that of another
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person.'' We can only know as much as our sense organs communicate to
us, because it's impossible for us to directly reach the concrete reality
outside. It's again the brain that interprets. In fact, we can't reach it under
any other condition. Therefore, even when we think we're talking about
the same thing, each person can actually be perceiving something
different. The reason for this is that the perceived object depends on the
person perceiving it. You see there's no objection to be made and no
counter-evidence to be produced against the fact that every moment we
see only an impression created by our senses and we have no kind of
connection with the reality of any object outside ourselves. Having come
to this point, there's no honest doubt to prevent a person from accepting
this as a fact. Such an impediment could only come from personal
prejudice, attachment to the world or ambition.

AHMED: I have to think about that a little.

AISHA: There's no doubt left in my mind but it's difficult to get used
to it because of the endless number of details in the things I see which
distracts my attention. Murad, I want to ask a question too. Where do
these wonderful impressions come from? I have an idea of what the
answer is but it would be better if you explained it.