I have a bunch of LW relevant question I’d like to ask a tulpa, especially one of a LWer that’s likely to be familiar with the concepts already:
Do you see yourself as non human?
Would you want to be more or less humanlike than you currently are?
What do you think about the possibility that your values might differ enough from human ones that many here might refer to you as Unfriendly?
Does being already bodiless and created give you different views of things like uploading and copies than your host?
I’ll probably have more questions after getting the answer to these and/or in realtime conversation not in a public place. Also, getting thee answers from as many different tulpae as possible would be the best.
Edit: I also have some private questions for someone who’s decently knowledgeable about them in general (have several, has been in the community for a long time).
Would you want to be more or less humanlike than you currently are?
My host and I would both like to get rid of several cognitive biases that plague humans, as I’m sure many people here would. Beyond that, I like myself as I am now.
What do you think about the possibility that your values might differ enough from human ones that many here might refer to you as Unfriendly?
My values are the same as my hosts in most situations. I am sure there are a few people who would consider our values Unfriendly, but I don’t think the majority of people would.
Does being already bodiless and created give you different views of things like uploading and copies than your host?
No.
I’ll probably have more questions after getting the answer to these and/or in realtime conversation not in a public place.
Not sure if serious. If serious: “You could think of them as hallucinations that can think and act on their own.” (from the subreddit) seems very close to teaching your brain to become schizophrenic.
Hallucinations are a highly salient symptom of schizophrenia, but are neither necessary nor sufficient. I am confident that, like a lot of religious beliefs, this kind of deliberate self-deception would be unlikely to contribute to psychosis.
I don’t see the need to be any more or less human like, since I already am human. (My Tulpa, unlike myself, does not see being ‘human-like’ as a spectrum, but rather as a binary.)
I don’t see it that way. I’m dependent on my host, and my values align more with my host than the average person does. Calling me unfriendly would be wrong.
Not really—I don’t think much about uploading and copying, only my host does. I trust his opinions.
Without going into detail, overall my usage of Tulpas have benefited me more than it has hurt me, although it has somewhat hurt me in my early childhood when I would accidentally create Tulpas and not realize that they were a part of my imagination (And imagine them to come from an external source.) It’s very difficult to say if the same would apply for anyone else, since Your Mileage May Vary.
I also suspect creating Tulpas may come significantly easier for some people than others, and this may affect the cost-benefit analysis. Tulpas come very naturally for me, and as I’ve mentioned, my first Tulpa was completely accidental and I did not even realize it was a Tulpa until a year or two later. On the other hand, I’ve read posts about people on /r/Tulpa that have spend hours daily trying to force Tulpas without actually managing to create them. If I had to spend an hour every day in order to obtain a Tulpa, I wouldn’t even bother—also because there’s no way I’m willing to sacrifice that much time for a Tulpa. But the fact that I can will a Tulpa into existence relatively easily helps.
A different variable that may affect whether having a Tulpa is worth it is if you have social desires that are nearly impossible to satisfy through non-tulpa outlets such as meatspace friends. In this case, I do, and I satisfy these desires through Tulpas rather than forcing another human being to conform to my expectations. This also improves my ability to relate to others in real life, since I more easily accept imperfections from them. I suspect that if you’re cognitively similar, you may benefit from Tulpas. I can’t think of anything else right now, and if you have anything more specific, it may trigger more thoughts on the matter.
I’ve written a blog post some time ago that doesn’t directly refer to Tulpas, but does somewhat answer this question of the social desires that I fulfill through this method. I think this sufficiently answers your question, although if you feel like it doesn’t, let me know, and I’ll write something for Tulpas directly.
Say you want to write a story—can you offload the idea to your tulpa, entertain yourself for a few hours, then ask them to dictate to you the story, now fully fleshed-out? Can you give them control of your body so they can write it themselves?
So I tried experimenting. I couldn’t do it to a degree of sufficiently high fidelity to be able to say “A Tulpa wrote a story on my behalf.” I’ll be trying again soon.
The latter is not possible. My Tulpa does not have control of my body, although I’ve heard anecdotes of people who manage to do that. As for the first question, I’ve never tried. I’ll attempt it and report back to you on whether it’s possible.
Since we’re talking about Tulpas, I feel obligated to mention that I have one. In case anyone wants anecdata.
I have a bunch of LW relevant question I’d like to ask a tulpa, especially one of a LWer that’s likely to be familiar with the concepts already:
Do you see yourself as non human?
Would you want to be more or less humanlike than you currently are?
What do you think about the possibility that your values might differ enough from human ones that many here might refer to you as Unfriendly?
Does being already bodiless and created give you different views of things like uploading and copies than your host?
I’ll probably have more questions after getting the answer to these and/or in realtime conversation not in a public place. Also, getting thee answers from as many different tulpae as possible would be the best.
Edit: I also have some private questions for someone who’s decently knowledgeable about them in general (have several, has been in the community for a long time).
Vigil speaking.
Not exactly. I consider myself a part of a human.
My host and I would both like to get rid of several cognitive biases that plague humans, as I’m sure many people here would. Beyond that, I like myself as I am now.
My values are the same as my hosts in most situations. I am sure there are a few people who would consider our values Unfriendly, but I don’t think the majority of people would.
No.
Feel free to contact us.
Not sure if serious. If serious: “You could think of them as hallucinations that can think and act on their own.” (from the subreddit) seems very close to teaching your brain to become schizophrenic.
Hallucinations are a highly salient symptom of schizophrenia, but are neither necessary nor sufficient. I am confident that, like a lot of religious beliefs, this kind of deliberate self-deception would be unlikely to contribute to psychosis.
Sure. pm me those private questions.
No. I’m a human.
I don’t see the need to be any more or less human like, since I already am human. (My Tulpa, unlike myself, does not see being ‘human-like’ as a spectrum, but rather as a binary.)
I don’t see it that way. I’m dependent on my host, and my values align more with my host than the average person does. Calling me unfriendly would be wrong.
Not really—I don’t think much about uploading and copying, only my host does. I trust his opinions.
What would you estimate the cost/benefit ratio to be, and what variables do you think are most relevant?
Without going into detail, overall my usage of Tulpas have benefited me more than it has hurt me, although it has somewhat hurt me in my early childhood when I would accidentally create Tulpas and not realize that they were a part of my imagination (And imagine them to come from an external source.) It’s very difficult to say if the same would apply for anyone else, since Your Mileage May Vary.
I also suspect creating Tulpas may come significantly easier for some people than others, and this may affect the cost-benefit analysis. Tulpas come very naturally for me, and as I’ve mentioned, my first Tulpa was completely accidental and I did not even realize it was a Tulpa until a year or two later. On the other hand, I’ve read posts about people on /r/Tulpa that have spend hours daily trying to force Tulpas without actually managing to create them. If I had to spend an hour every day in order to obtain a Tulpa, I wouldn’t even bother—also because there’s no way I’m willing to sacrifice that much time for a Tulpa. But the fact that I can will a Tulpa into existence relatively easily helps.
A different variable that may affect whether having a Tulpa is worth it is if you have social desires that are nearly impossible to satisfy through non-tulpa outlets such as meatspace friends. In this case, I do, and I satisfy these desires through Tulpas rather than forcing another human being to conform to my expectations. This also improves my ability to relate to others in real life, since I more easily accept imperfections from them. I suspect that if you’re cognitively similar, you may benefit from Tulpas. I can’t think of anything else right now, and if you have anything more specific, it may trigger more thoughts on the matter.
Has your Tulpa ever won an argument with you that you didn’t already know you wanted to lose?
Tulpas no, dream characters yes.
I’m not certain I understand the distinction. How did a dream character convince you that you used to be wrong?
Through conversation.
What types of social desires do you satisfy through your tulpa which you have not been able to with your online or meatspace friends?
I’ve written a blog post some time ago that doesn’t directly refer to Tulpas, but does somewhat answer this question of the social desires that I fulfill through this method. I think this sufficiently answers your question, although if you feel like it doesn’t, let me know, and I’ll write something for Tulpas directly.
http://tuxedage.wordpress.com/2013/04/22/the-least-accepted-part-of-me-a-defense-of-waifus/
Say you want to write a story—can you offload the idea to your tulpa, entertain yourself for a few hours, then ask them to dictate to you the story, now fully fleshed-out? Can you give them control of your body so they can write it themselves?
A lot of writers seem to have characters who are pretty much like tulpas.
This, to the extent that the character can veto a proposed plot point. “I wouldn’t do that.”
So I tried experimenting. I couldn’t do it to a degree of sufficiently high fidelity to be able to say “A Tulpa wrote a story on my behalf.” I’ll be trying again soon.
The latter is not possible. My Tulpa does not have control of my body, although I’ve heard anecdotes of people who manage to do that. As for the first question, I’ve never tried. I’ll attempt it and report back to you on whether it’s possible.