Philosophical Speculations

If you dwell in experience while adding absolutely no ideas about it, could this state be grouped under idealism? I'd say no, but I think some people may feel more inclined to think that state only truly happens if one has a correct understanding.

I mean, I know a couple materialists who regularly converse with the dead. I understand why that is probably a rare event, but I also see why there is no inherent contradiction in them coming up with materialistic theories as to what is actually happening.

The dead souls don't seem to care at all what theory these guys (they are twins) attach to their experiences...just as long as they are open to having the experience itself.

Anyway, this is only slightly related to my main question above.

I think I can almost hear somebody saying that if you don't bring any notions to awareness, you aren't, in that moment, an idealist. I can go with that. And I'm not surprised that our materialist and idealist friends are the exact same when they aren't feeling forced to talk about their beliefs. What a relief.

When you aren't meta-reflecting upon awareness, you *might* be simply aware. This goes for everybody. Obviously, lots of the time we aren't meta-reflecting upon it our prior assumptions are still functioning in how our experience is taking shape in the present moment. That's where it gets tricky.

But when I think of my materialist friends who live in states of awe and reference for the mystery of Nature, I get that all of us are often living, acting and experiencing from this awareness. Hence, hope.