Iain McGilchrist on Concepts

I’ve taken issue with Iain McGilchrist in a series of posts lately. This is yet another one. I will soon put an end to this.

Iain McGilchrist writes:

That the concepts may have become vulgarised is not a weakness in the concepts but, rather, in the cast of mind that does not measure up to them, much as a religion is not vitiated simply by the misguidedness of some of its followers.

—Iain McGilchrist, The Matter with Things

Well, concepts are re-presentations, not reality; part of a map, not the territory. And what if religion itself is vitiated by its followers? Don’t mistake concepts for the reality. And don’t mistake religion for the Sacred.

With some hesitation I’ll add a personal note. McGilchrist grew up in a godless¹ home, while I grew up in a religious one. This means I’ve tried to be loyal to the Christian mythos McGilchrist admires so much.² It introduced not so little toxicity in my life. I feel betrayed by the people I trusted. Interestingly enough, McGilchrist doesn’t want to come out,³ as it were, as a Christian. It’s very convenient, of course, not having to commit to the credo. I find it just plain annoying.⁴

Update 2024-10-22:
Text updated. Notes updated.

Notes:
1. McGilchrist uses the word “godless” himself. See Perspectiva, “Attention as a moral Act: Iain McGilchrist & Jonathan Rowson in Conversation”, 20230306, YouTube Video, 1:36:55, https://youtu.be/YHUGuUhB1c4?feature=shared&t=797
2. Perspectiva, “Attention as a moral Act: Iain McGilchrist & Jonathan Rowson in Conversation”, 20230306, YouTube Video, 1:36:55, https://youtu.be/YHUGuUhB1c4?feature=shared&t=3858
3. Perspectiva, “Iain McGilchrist at the Realisation Festival 2023“, 20231207, 1:41:50, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUiBzmYpt68&t=3343
4. Some would say coy. See Perspectiva, “First Principles and Second Sight, with Iain McGilchrist & Alastair McIntosh”, 20231220, YouTube Video, 1:25:38, https://youtu.be/H2UXkiU0oGU?t=3662