Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.
Viktor Frankl (Man’s Search for meaning)
The question of whether we have free will is a longstanding and complex debate in philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology. The internet is full of amazingly detailed and intriguing videos & podcast episodes talking about this concept in much detail. In today’s episode, I wanted to talk about two extremely crucial concepts that I think are often overlooked in most debates and discussions around this subject.
Join me, Chetan Narang, as I dive deep into the concept of free will. I am sure that by the end of this episode of The Unlearning Playground Podcast, you would be well equipped to understand what is mostly missing in the various perspectives of this question from philosophy, neuroscience, psychology & theology. You will also be able to digest the classic debates between determinism, libertarian free will & compatibilism better.
Whether you have or haven’t listened to big names like Sam Harris, Andrew Huberman, Robert Sapolsky or Jordan Peterson, my hope is that you would find this video to be the missing piece in the jigsaw puzzle of the ever evasive question – Is Free Will an illusion?
As I uncover what is often missing in most debates and discussions about free will – whether among philosophers, scientists, or laypeople, you would see that we actually need to go beyond the surface arguments to explore the real nuance of this question.
Let’s meet in the playground then. Until next time. Peace out.
00:00
Coming up next
00:20
Intro to today’s episode
01:09
Intro to the concept of Free Will
02:31
My PERSONAL experience with the question
04:12
How this question is USUALLY addressed on the Internet
08:48
What is MISSING from almost ALL videos on Free Will
20:35
Self Awareness – The MISSING variable in the Free Will equation
We understand death only after it has placed its hands on someone we love.
Madame de Staël
Dealing with the loss of a loved one is a profound and personal journey. In today’s heartfelt episode of The Unlearning Playground Podcast by Chetan Narang, we discuss practical and emotional tips to help you process grief and navigate the complex emotions that follow.
I feel that conversations around the topic of death are few & far compared to the emotional turmoil this event can cause in our lives, and hence this topic appears to me to be one of those non-negotiable ones that I should pick in this new series of podcast episodes. This is also an extremely personal episode for me, because I share some updates to my life that actually pushed me to sit in front of my mic with this subject, no matter how emotionally challenging.
From understanding the stages of grief to finding ways to honor and remember your loved one, this guide is here to support you at your own pace. Whether you’re seeking comfort, guidance, or simply a sense of connection, join me as I explore the path toward healing, acceptance and moving on. Remember, it’s okay to grieve and it’s okay to seek help. Let’s take this step together.
In sincere hopes that this lands. Until next time. Peace out.
00:00
Coming up next
00:35
How we usually think about Death – A Short Story
02:34
Why talk about this at all?
06:39
Mahabharata & Death
09:36
A personal realisation around the death of a loved one
13:07
Death & Shame
17:10
Death & Fear
20:33
The Grieving Process – How to heal from grief & loss
S02 E02 – How to live a better life by being more childlike?
Man suffers because he takes seriously what the gods made for fun.
ALAN WATTS
A thought that every adult encounters ever so often is centred around the idea of how life was better when they were a kid, when they were more childlike. I think there are a lot of life lessons in this train of thought, and that is the epicentre of today’s episode of The Unlearning Playground.
Even The Bible reportedly says something to the tune of “No one enters the kingdom of God until he is childlike.” Please note that the call is to be childlike, not childish. There is a world of difference between the two words, and I explore that too in this episode.
I think that the various tips I give out here are central to living a good life as an adult, central to living your life to the fullest as a grown-up. The playfulness, spontaneity and flexibility of childhood is something that has captured the imagination of so many philosophers already – Alan Watts, Osho, Sadhguru, Jordan Peterson, Sandeep Maheshwari to name a few. So, here I am throwing my hat in the ring too on the same.
I hope this episode lands, and leaves you with a better life. Until next time. Peace out.
S02 E01 – What is the purpose of Life, and how to find yours?
What you seek, is seeking you.
Rumi
One of the most fundamental questions every person asks at some point in their lives is – “What is the purpose of life?”. Not surprisingly at all, this is also one question that most of us learn to suppress very early on in our lives.
In this episode, the first of season two of the unlearning playground podcast, I dive into this question head on. I think that the modalities discussed here – of being & becoming, of life & Life, of priorities, of sacrifices and of our soul’s calling – are of utmost importance in truly grasping this ever-evasive question.
It is ok to feel lost sometimes, it happens to everyone. It is ok to feel stuck sometimes, it happens to everyone. It is ok to not know what to do next sometimes, it happens to everyone.
However, I have come to realise that we should not be ok with not doing anything about such feelings. Most of what needs to be done has more to do with the stance we approach them with.
As you will find it in this episode, this is not a direct invitation to change WHAT you do, in the sense of quitting your job and following your “passion”. Although there is something to be said about that being absolutely necessary at times.
Rather, this is an invitation firstly to change HOW you are going about your life – how you’re looking at your life, how you view your job, your relationships, your career, your purpose, your questions, your conversations and all the rest of Life.
This is an absolutely vital episode in the grand scope of all of my work at the unlearning playground I would say.
00:00
Introduction
02:50
Why talk about this at all? The crisis of meaning today’s age
Episode 42 – The end of season 1, and the start of something better
“Enough. These few words are enough. If not these words, this breath. If not this breath, this sitting here. This opening to life we have refused again and again, until now. Until now.”
David Whyte, Where Many Rivers Meet
Endings are hard indeed. But if we keep ourselves stuck in the same old same old, we hold ourselves back to what might be.
And therefore, like a snake must shed its old skin someday to allow a new layer to flourish, I end season 1 of The Unlearning Playground podcast today with this episode.
I talk about 2 major updates about the content you can expect from The Unlearning Playground in the months to come, with the first major announcement being the launch of my new series of content – Ask a human, not an AI.
Episode 41 – What should all parents & managers realise? (9 min)
In the end, we’re all walking each other home.
RAM DASS
As we grow up, we take up positions of power or at least aspire to do so at some point. That could mean becoming a parent, taking up a managerial position in your workplace, or any other relationship where you can have a substantial impact on the life of another person.
In all such relationships, I think there is something that is usually missing in the advices, suggestions and trainings all of us seek out and therefore, receive.
In this short episode, I discuss that one missing advice, and try to make a case for it. I think it’s fundamentally applicable to all our relationships, especially the kind I talked about above.
Check it out, and share with your friends & family to help it reach out to more people. It’ll be worth their time too, I promise. Until next time. Peace out.
Episode 40 – Powerful life lessons from the Jason Bourne movies (5 min)
BE HERE NOW.
There are some movies that sometimes, out of the blue, end up teaching you life lessons that stay with you forever. I understand it to be very unlikely that an action thriller movie franchise would make the cut to such a list, but it is what it is I guess.
What is Jason Bourne about? If you had asked me this question some years ago, my answer would have been very different than what I can say about it now.
Having recently revisited these brilliant movies, I can safely say that the perspective with which I watched Jason Bourne this time around really helped me catch the drift of the storyline much better than before. And one powerful life lesson came striking out at me, which is what this short video is all about.
I would really recommend everyone to watch all the movies again, and this time with the perspective I talk about in this episode.
So without further ado, let’s get into it. Let’s see what Jason Bourne has to teach us. And was he any good at it.
Episode 39 – What is equality & where is it going absolutely wrong in 2023 (19 min)
In terms of outcomes, nobody is equal to anybody. Even the same man is not equal to himself on different days.
THOMAS SOWELL
Equality is a topic that is central to any relationship, family, community and society.
And that makes it an extremely important subject to discuss, especially in today’s world where like anything else it is subject to a host of interpretations and biases and opinions.
In this episode, I delve into this topic in some detail.
I talk about what is equality, how we are measuring it, how we ought to think about it and (I can’t stress enough how important this is) where we are going wrong with it as of 2023.
I think this is one topic that must be properly understood by everyone, especially in 2023. And what’s more, if misunderstood, it can lead to the divisions we find so prevalent in our society even today.
Let’s see if I can do justice to the claims above. Only one way to find out. Dig right in. Until next time. Peace out.
Episode 38 – The courage to be disliked book summary : 4 powerful life lessons (14 min)
“Your unhappiness cannot be blamed on your past or your environment. And it isn’t that you lack competence. You just lack courage. One might say you are lacking in the courage to be happy.”
I do not say the above statement lightly. As someone who has spent a good few years reading, devouring & digesting multiple non fiction books, of the self help kind, of the philosophy kind, of the psychology kind etc, I have a certain level of discernment now when it comes to recommending books.
This book is, in fact, the most recent addition to my list of favourite books.
In this episode of the unlearning playground podcast, I wanted to get into a brief summary of what the courage to be disliked is all about and why I recommend it (and in fact also gift it) to almost everyone looking for some must read books.
I also share 4 key unlearnings (read life lessons) I think everyone should gather from this book, so even if I am not able to encourage you enough to pick this book for yourself, at least spend 14 minutes with me on this episode so that you get a glimpse of the nectar it has to offer.
If I’m able to encourage you enough, you know what to do with the button below.
Episode 37 – Apple vision pro launch | The good, the bad and the ugly (12 min)
There’s no wifi in the forest, but I promise you’ll find a better connection.
Just this last week (early-June 2023), Apple released a video introducing The Apple Vision Pro.
It is a first-generation AR/VR headset, and Apple claims that with this device, the era of spatial computing is here. They claim this to be a life-changing technology.
In this episode of The Unlearning Playground podcast, I decided to record my first impressions about this new device, which is a part of a booming field in technology now – Augmented reality and Virtual reality. My thoughts are divided into three broad categories – the good, the bad & the ugly.
I think what you are about to consume in this episode would serve to be a contrarian viewpoint, when compared to most other videos out there on the internet about the apple vision pro.
Also, consider it to be a genuine request from my side, I want you to stay with me till the ugly part of this episode. That is where the real nectar lies. Trust me.
