Virtual Engine

The virtual engine is the usage of Mithra-Varuna within the context of the Virtual Generator (Varuna) and Virtual Governor (Mithra) being used in company of each other "Now notice... what I'm trying to get you to see is - first all this is important! I mean I wish I was Charles Darwin! This is one of the great great theories! He gets to sail around the world and... What a life! He gets to sail around the world, go to some amazing places and then he comes back and makes a world changing theory! It's just, it's amazing! But notice how much this Darwinian theory that is at the foundation of biology, how much it is beholden to Aristotle. How much it depends on Aristotelian ideas. Now, Juarrero talks about this as a "Virtual Governor".

A governor is any device that limits what you can do on a system, like if you have a governor on a steam engine it sets the range, it limits the range at which you can cycle. She calls it a virtual Governor because it's not an actual machine. It's the shaping of possibility. She stops there and work that I've done with Leo Ferraro and Anderson Todd and Richard Wu, we think she should continue to finish the metaphor. This is a virtual generator ("enabling constraings" part of the cycle; written on the board there) because it's a set of conditions that are generating options for a self-organizing system. And here's the idea: when you put a virtual governor systematically together with a virtual generator, such that you are systematically regulating a feedback cycle, this whole thing is a virtual engine because when you attach a governor to a generator you get a "virtual engine" (diagram with terms drawn on board)."

- John Vervaeke

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The concept of a Virtual Engine is a key idea in the philosophy of John Vervaeke, who refers to his worldview as the "Awakening from the Meaning Crisis." According to Vervaeke, the Virtual Engine is a mental construct that individuals use to create meaning and purpose in their lives.

Vervaeke argues that humans have a fundamental need for meaning and purpose, and that this need is often met through a process of meaning-making that involves creating narratives and beliefs about the world. The Virtual Engine is the mental mechanism that individuals use to create these narratives and beliefs, and to give structure and coherence to their experiences and understanding of the world.

The Virtual Engine is described by Vervaeke as a kind of mental "machine" that operates in the background of human consciousness, continuously shaping and transforming the way that individuals understand and experience the world. It operates by generating meaning from information, and by constructing a coherent narrative that integrates the individual's experiences, beliefs, and values.

Vervaeke argues that the Virtual Engine can be a source of both creativity and suffering, as individuals use it to construct narratives and beliefs that either support or undermine their well-being. He also argues that the Virtual Engine is not fixed or determinate, but rather is subject to continuous revision and re-creation, as individuals encounter new information and experiences and engage in ongoing meaning-making processes.

Overall, the concept of a Virtual Engine is central to Vervaeke's philosophical perspective, and provides a framework for understanding the role that meaning and purpose play in human life. By highlighting the role of the Virtual Engine in shaping human consciousness and experience, Vervaeke aims to provide insights into how individuals can better understand and transform their relationship with meaning and purpose, and awaken from the meaning crisis that he argues is at the root of many modern-day problems.