I am Dr Jordan B Peterson, U of T Professor, clinical psychologist, author of Maps of Meaning and creator of The SelfAuthoring Suite. Ask me anything!

Thanks, everyone, for participating. Good night.

What do you think of all of the memes about you?

I think the world is a very absurd place.

Don't you mean it's a very 'abzurd' place?

You say tomato, I say tomahtoe...

You said once that you believe Nietzsche went mad because of the invasion of the hero archetype into the conscious ego, and that that was an experience that was powerful enough to have a psychotic component. Could you expand on that?

Secondly, now that you are embodying the hero archetype in the minds of so many (on Twitter, you even described yourself as a 'meme attractor'), what steps are you taking to keep yourself from falling into the same trap as Nietzsche?

My wife keeps me from identifying too much with the archetype :)

Seriously, though, I have people around who keep my feet on the ground. Sanity is something better outsourced.

Which questions are keeping you up at night? How can we assist you in finding answers to them?

I am preoccupied right now with determining how to go about using YouTube most effectively. I am going to start a series of lectures on the Biblical stories. I want to do a good job of that.

Apart from that, I am trying to keep up with my obligations and opportunities. I have a business and a clinical practice and a family and graduate students and a social media following and a book to finish and another one to write and thousands of emails to try to answer (many of which are extremely heartfelt and thoughtful). I'm trying to figure out how to stay on top of this, and to say "no," when it's necessary without unduly disappointing people.

But most particularly I am trying not to make a mistake in what I say or do because such a thing might well be fatal given the insane amount of attention that is currently focused on me.

I'm not complaining. I have been provided with an amazing set of opportunities. But it's a highwire act and many people are depending on me and I don't want to get careless and fall.

How can you help? You know the answer: sort yourself out. Really. That's the best thing you can do. And if something I have done is helpful during that process then I am absolutely thrilled about that. If you put yourself together, then five other people around you will also do so. Then we'll see where we can go together.

What advice would you give to someone like myself who is suffering from severe anxiety and depression to the point where they can't even leave their bed all day? You are a huge inspiration to me and I would really appreciate your insight.

Go see a mental health professional. Don't delay. There are effective treatments for such conditions. Anti-depressants are very useful for some people. You'd know within a month if they were helpful. They'll be plenty to suffer about in your life. If you can help yourself with a medication, thank your luck stars and do it. It's not a cop-out, particularly if you try to put your life together while you're trying the medication.

Professor, you have talked in your lectures  about wasting time and not operating even close to our potential effectiveness. How can on defeat lethargy and procrastination? (I know you've mentioned things like getting up early and eating breakfast). Do you follow a detailed day plan? Thanks!!

I follow an extremely detailed day plan. I schedule constantly, by the hour, week, month and multi-month period. It's absolutely necessary if you want to be productive. Start with a simple schedule.

If you hate the idea, think about it this way: you are not scheduling what you have to do (what you MUST do). You are trying to design the perfect day, week, month, etc. Some of this will include meeting your obligations, but it shouldn't all be that. Plan a day that you would regard as positive and successful.

As a clinical psychologist and an all-around wise man, what advice do you have on social anxiety?

1. Face it. Practice being in social situations.
2. Concentrate on the other people. Every time you get anxious, you're falling inside yourself, and not paying attention to what is around you. Instead of worrying about how you are appearing, pay attention and try to make those around you comfortable.
3. Listen to what people are saying, and ask them questions about it, or about themselves. Listen to their answers. They'll like you immediately. Hardly anyone listens.

Dr. Peterson, huge fan, been binging on your lectures for a while. What is your opinion on pornography, and masturbation in general? A lot of your supporters are also members of the /r/nofap community that completely obstain from masturbation, as they see it as a part of sorting themselves out and becoming the best human being they can be. Just curious.

Also, if you, or anyone else is interested, there is a discord chat server dedicated to discussion you and your works, you can join with this link: https://discord.gg/RB5c5Bg

I think that pornography entices people away from life. So that's not good. It's a quick, easy, low quality solution to a complex problem. I can't see its use as something that increases integrity and promotes strength.

Should every aspect of one's life promote strength? Is there room for weak indulgences?

I think there's room for indulgence, that I don't think that that's the same as saying that there's room for weak indulgence. Why do something if it makes you weak? Unless you wish to be weak...

What are your top pieces of academic advice for university students?

Society grants you an acceptable and high-status identity as a student. It's a gift. You get four years, or more, to explore and learn. But it's your responsibility to learn. Everything you need to know, that people know, is in the library. Read great things. Don't waste time.

Consider your education a full-time job. Schedule your time. Discipline yourself. Learn to write. Learn to read. Make yourself powerful.

So, what does the B stand for?

Bucko

Good one. Bernt. Pronounced Bear-ent. It's Norwegian, after my great grandfather.

Hi Dr. Peterson, we hope that you will join us some time on /r/jordanpeterson or /r/Maps_of_Meaning.

• What do you make of your popularity among atheists?

• Have you read much of Rene Girard? If not, I think you will be struck by the many complimentary parallels with your views.

• What does the 'B' stand for?

• Top 5 favourite music acts/albums? and why is #1 Tom Waits?

• Does your world view require belief in a conscious agent's ability to suspend the natural order?

• Do you have any thoughts about M-103 passing?

edit: a typo

Atheists can like me too. I don't mind. Tom Waits is a genius. Life would be a lot more miserable without him. I really like Arcade Fire. But I'm old, so I like 70's dinosaur rock most of all. Supertramp's Crime of the Century, Dark Side of the Moon, Creedence Clearwater.

M103? Not surprising. A mistake, but not surprising. At least it didn't make it through unanimously.

Creedence eh? Do you have an archetypal interpretation of The Dude?

He's a trickster figure, precursor to the archetypal savior.

What should low conscientiousness people do?

They should do the Future Authoring program at www.selfauthoring.com. We designed it exactly to help people that have a hard time sticking to their plans (or a hard time planning). I would also say that you might have more luck doing so if you take advantage of your other high level personality traits. So if you are extraverted, try to plan to be around people; if agreeable, concentrate on relationships; if open, do something creative.

Do you believe in the supernatural and specifically the god of Christianity? I don't mean as a metaphorical concept or mythical ideal. I mean a being somewhere in the "heavens" that watches people and is omniscient and omnipotent? That Jesus was this being and had powers that allowed him to walk on water, turn water to wine, and resurrect himself? I've seen forms of this question asked in multiple interviews with you but haven't seen, what I understood as, a clear and direct answer.

Yes. I've met Him. He put me into a Roman coliseum with Satan himself, who I defeated. When I asked why He would do such a thing, He said, "because I knew you could win." He's a tough dude. Mess with Him at your peril.

Am I serious? That's up to you to decide.

Oh you ;) You have no idea how excited I was when I saw you replied to a question like that... But for real, though?

For real, nahro316. For real. But then, what exactly is real?

(Pain. Pain is real.) Or at least everyone acts like it is, and that's good enough for me.

I also want to know about this question, and as a a follow-up: how do you conceive the ontological basis of being? Do you agree with Christian theology, that God is the "backbone" of everything that is, or do you conceptualize this somewhat differently

I believe that Being is potential actualized by Logos.

Dr. Peterson,
I have often felt that the phrase "love the sinner, hate the sin" was imprecise, but could never put my finger on exactly how. Do you think it is an accurate statement of how we should treat each other and our actions, and if not, how then should we act?

"Love the sinner" is precisely what a good psychotherapist practices. When someone comes to see me, I am on that person's side (but not on the side of the part of them that is working towards destruction). I help people separate the wheat from the chaff -- not to eliminate the chaff so much as to gather the wheat.

90% Male - 10% Female visit your You Tube videos. What type of female do you think make up that 10%?

Amazing, beautiful accomplished women with impeccable taste in lecturers.

Hello, Dr. Peterson,

How would you define your God? Do you believe in the supernatural? Do you pray?

Thank you

My God is the spirit that is trying to elevate Being. My God is the spirit that makes everything come together. My God is the spirit that makes order out of chaos and then recasts order when it has become too limiting. My God is the spirit of truth incarnate.

None of that is supernatural. It is instead what is most real.

It depends on what you mean by pray.

I don't ask God for favors, if that's what you mean.

How do you feel about how online communities bearing your name have understood and disseminated your ideas? What instances of your name or arguments made have you come across that you find disagreeable?

Kudos and thanks for inspiring so many buckos to sort themselves out!

I don't really feel anything about such things, in a determinate sense. I'm exceptionally curious about it. It's as if I have launched a thousand messages in a thousand bottles. They drift where they will, and land where they will. I watch from a distance and see what will happen. I don't know enough yet about what any of this means to draw a conclusion.

Apart from that, I find it amazing, and absurd, and ridiculous, and embarassing. It leaves me speechless at times.

Doctor, you know your wife for a long time. At some point you decided to always speak the truth.

The question is: did you tell your wife about the decision at once, or after some time?

We knew each other as children. When we met up again as young adults, I talked to her about this decision right away. She decided that she would do the same thing, and as far as I can tell, she always has. I trust her as much as it is possible to trust anyone.

What is your opinion on climate change?

I'm Canadian. Anything that makes winter warmer is fine by me.

Seriously: We'll solve it before it gets dangerous, to the degree that it's man-made. Assuming we don't let everything go to hell in a handbasket first.

What five books have been most influential to how you view the world today?

Dostoevsky Crime and Punishment Solzhenitsyn Gulag Archipelago CG Jung Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious Jeffrey Gray Neuropsychology of Anxiety Nietzsche Beyond Good and Evil

You mentioned the current ideological war sitting atop the philosophical war, which may itself be atop a metaphysical, or theological war. Could this metaphysical war be contextualized as occurring within the psyche of all individuals? Like an ecosystem of archetypes or "egregores", nourished by the genetics and culture of the person in question in order to project themselves (the archetypes) through unconscious agencies in our brains? These archetypal thought-forms seem to make up the philosophical conflict at its deepest level. This model is a bit far-out, but seems to map very neatly onto the psychedelic experience, which demonstrates that you as a person are not "doing living", you are in a sense "being lived through" by some abstract life force outside yourself. Is your interpretation similar?

You would be interested in learning more about CG Jung's idea of the pleroma, which is roughly the meta-space inhabit by archetypes. If you can imagine ideas battling with one another across the centuries, and then posit a meta-space in which that battle is occurring, then you have conceptualized, to some degree, the pleroma.

Doctor Peterson, I have watched many of your lectures and videos, and I find your material to be excellent, encouraging and should be shared as much as possible. However, from a philosophical perspective, why do you believe that what you're teaching is correct? What proof do we, as students, have? Further, as you gain more and more popularity, support and admirers, do you feel at risk of becoming a demagogue of your own ideas, or a self-absorbed "prophet"? It's an archetype that is prevalent throughout history.

It depends on what you mean by "teaching" and "correct." I certainly do not think that I am providing any final answers. But I think I am correct in the manner that I teach. When I lecture, I am not saying what I believe to be the case but thinking on my feet, trying to extend and clarify my knowledge while also communicating. To the degree that I do that properly, I am modeling how to learn -- how to become wise. To the degree that I do that properly, what I am doing is "correct."

The danger of become your own imitator is clear. I think I would be more prone to becoming a demagogue if I wanted to be a demagogue -- if I wanted power of that sort. I don't. I could have had a successful political career, and people still call on me to do so. But I am more interested in sorting things out and helping other people do the same thing. I know there is danger in popularity. I try not to confuse myself with who people think I am or might be. I try not to make a fatal mistake and consider it a miracle currently that the house is not falling apart in pieces around me. I am grateful that people find what I am doing useful. That's what I was hoping for. Hopefully the monster that is forming around me -- so to speak -- won't eat me.

Dear Dr. Peterson,

In my literature of the mind class we are beginning a discussion on fairy tales. The first question we were confronted with was "are fairy tales misogynistic?" The majority of the class responded in the affirmative, citing the frequent depiction of women in a helpless or lower stance compare to the man. I responded in the negative, with several claims as to the great goals of different stories. My question to you is: are fairy tales misogynist? And if so, should authors restructure these tales to reflect different, arguably more contemporary structures of society? Thank you very much.

Don't discuss the deeper meaning of literature with people whose primary concern is whether or not the literature in question conforms to this week's obsession with identity politics.

That's the correct answer to your question.

Authors should leave stories they didn't write alone and go write their own classics -- if they can. Some fairy tales are ten thousand years old. Anyone who thinks they can write something for the ages is welcome to try.

Hello Dr. Peterson,

How would you differentiate someone being part of a movement, religion or someone other comprehensive belief-system versus succumbing to ideology?

You mentioned during the Resurrection of Logos talk that you study the Sermon on the Mount quite a bit, what is your favourite excerpt?

Also, what is your favourite cookie?

Thank you for your answers, this AMA and all your work.

I can't eat cookies. But if I could, my favorite cookie would be 100% dark chocolate chips. But I can't eat chocolate either.

Ideologues assume the problems of the world are someone else's fault. Or they assume that broadscale systemic change (according to their dictates) is a prerequisite to utopia. A truly religious person tries to change him or herself, which is a more difficult and less grand task.

Kermit doesn't eat cookies. They have a cookie monster for that.

I was going to say that. But I'm glad you did instead.

Hello, Dr. Peterson. I came across your wonderful work via Gamergate and the Joe Rogan Experience podcast.  I apologize if the opening of my post comes off too autobiographical and lengthy, so feel free to skip to my questions at the bottom-most of my post if you are pressed for time.

I consider video games to be my most favorite past time. I'm a little ashamed to admit that in my childhood and adolescence I used it as an escape from a rocky, turbulent childhood. But I would go so far as to say they literally saved my life and I learned valuable life lessons from them, granting me irreplaceable memories and friends.

I consider them to be one of the highest forms of art, because they reflect the human struggle to me in ways books, music and film can't, although recent games do misguidedly try their hardest to emulate them at the expense of Gameplay. Gameplay is the main component of video games that to me reflect the human struggle almost perfectly. The combination of rules, limitations, tools, interface and goals that the game bestows upon the player. With games, I've come to know that fun and victory requires repeated failure and learning from failure, struggle for the acquisition of skill and leverage, and the grace that ever-growing confidence brings.

These days, instead of as an escape, I use video games as an ice breaker between friends, bringing a small television and a console to social gatherings or making my own social gatherings at home with multiple displays and hardware, inspired by the arcade aesthetic of old.

ANYWAYS, QUESTIONS:

1. What do you think of video games and how they resonate with people?

2. Do you play or have you played video games? What was your experience? Which are your favorite?

3. Are you at all familiar with the 2014 Gamergate controversy?

I think video games are a perfectly valid a form of art/engagement. I think the tech involved in their production is miraculous. We are building entire worlds, and getting better at it all the time. I think that playing video games to the exclusion of real life is, however, a mistake -- but you can say that about anything that becomes an overarching obsession, if it's being used as an escape.

I'm old enough to have missed the video game boat, so I can't name a favorite. Yes, I'm somewhat familiar with Gamergate.

Why do you think ideological thought is pushed so heavily at the universities?

1/3 laziness, 1/3 ignorance and 1/3 malevolence. Laziness: it's easier to apply a doctrine to everything at once than to think through complex issues; Ignorance: the less you know about a problem the easier you think it is to solve; Malevolence: it's great to find the enemy in others so that you have someone against who to direct your resentment.

Good evening Dr. Peterson.

1. In a previous AMA (on youtube) you've called Frozen - and other later era Disney movies - "propaganda" - that is, only half the truth. This probably has to do with the presentation of masculine/feminine achetypes. Can you expand?

2. How does one choose, and adhere to, transcendent values without falling into ideological possession? It seems to me both things involve service to a higher value.

Thank you!

It depends, I suppose, on the transcendent value. I think that truth is the highest value, although it has to be embedded in love. What I mean by that is that truth should serve the highest good imaginable. For me, that is what is best for each individual, in the manner that is simultaneously best for the family, and the state, and nature itself. But you can only want that good if you love Being.

Frozen served a political purpose: to demonstrate that a woman did not need a man to be successful. Anything written to serve a political purpose (rather than to explore and create) is propaganda, not art.

Frozen was propaganda, pure and simple. Beauty and the Beast (the animated version) was not.

Dr. Peterson, like many I find your analysis on creation myths fascinating. Do you have any similar thoughts regarding end-time myths like Revelations? Thank you

Revelation is, in my opinion, the first-person account of an experience with hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Is this coming from experience as someone who has experimented with hallucinogenic mushrooms (or other psychedelics)?

Can a mystical psychedelic trip be akin to the descent into chaos/the unknown with the potential of finding truth and then coming out the other side at a place of higher order?

It's not akin to it. It is precisely that.

What concepts of Nietzsche's writings are the most important or useful to your thinking?

Last answer: Nietzsche's realization that the death of God would necessitate the utter collapse of Western values.

Dr. Peterson,

I am wondering how you typically address motivational issues that stem from chronic depression. Is there a real answer on how to create meaning, enthusiasm, and inspiration in your life in spite of the apathy and numbness that comes from depression, or is this a simple matter of biting the bullet and getting things done through diligence and willpower and hoping everything else will fall into place?

And a follow up: How do you feel about using psychedelic drugs (psilocybin mushrooms in particular) for introspective purposes in order to get a leg up on depression?

The depression question is a very difficult one to answer. It requires careful diagnostic interviewing. I would ask, first, what have you tried to treat your depression? I would never say that mere "biting the bullet" is sufficient, although maintaining what structure you can in your life despite your pain and immobility is generally for the best.

Hello Dr. Peterson,

Two questions if I may:

If Jesus is the archetypal hero, whom which there is no person more heroic, then who is the antithesis? This question stems from my having read just a chapter into M.o.M and derived it from the concept of existence as a forum for action. Should the historical Jesus have actually acted as the most-hero, then I imagine the most-villain must also exist to act out the part.

Edit: DO you believe this antithesis will manifest itself as Jesus may have?

2nd question: Is Jesus Lord?

Thank you for your time

Satan.

And it depends on how you define "Lord."

Archetypally? By definition. Hence the mythologizing of the historical figure.

Evil is just the absence of good. And since God defines good, and Jesus is God incarnate, the antithesis is anyone who exists without God. To blaspheme the Holy Spirit is the only transgression God does not forgive, because that is an act which would entirely seperate you from God. It is impossible to do this by accident, thus the person doing this would not want to be with God, and therefore must be put in a place that is seperate from God, which is the Lake of Fire.

Is Jesus Lord? I would assume so, as John 1:14-15 says: And the Logos (which means either word or logic) became flesh, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognise Him.

You could be right. But I would be very careful to say "just" when talking about evil. Absence of good though it may be, it is still a force that can destroy the consciousness of gods.

What are your thoughts on Veganism?

Do what you have to do.

Or, I could paraphrase something in the New Testament: It matters more what comes out of your mouth than what goes into it.

Thanks so much for taking the time to do this! It is a real joy for many here. :)

i) I recently had the either revelation or strong illusion that my personal character was in such disarray, it was truly beyond repair. I simply have too many deeply seeded and complicated bad "habits", ill call them, and they have affected my surroundings in so many ways, that i couldnt even hope to ever identify them all, let alone fix them. What are we to do when we find ourselves in this situation? Practically speaking

1) Can you comment on the inversion of the Judeo-Christian myth, espoused by Satanists and various esoteric groups, where God is depicted as an Evil Tyrant/Demiurge, and Satan the great emancipator, who gave us free will via the tree of knowledge?

2) When someone "accepts Christ into their heart" (in conjunction with the beleif that Jesus was a historical figure who was also God, rose from the dead, and has personal relationship with them), what is really taking place?

3) How can we best protect our future chldren from post modernism, without being overprotective?

It is very frequently the case that someone's personal character is in terrible disarray. That's what Jung described when he discussed the confrontation with the shadow side of the psyche. It's no laughing matter. It's a terrible realization.

Start by fixing the things about yourself that you can fix. Pick the low-hanging fruit. Even if you can't put yourself back together completely, you might be able to generate a functional wreck out of the pieces. That's better than nothing.

It's also the case that improvement begets improvement. So even if you are in a deep hole, you might be able to escape faster than you think, if you are willing to let go of the things that are holding you down.

Dig up, stupid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b97zJxKEqAk

Dr. Peterson, are there ever moments where one should lie? Or is it best to sometimes say, "I'd rather not discuss that" than to lie?

"I'd rather not discuss that" is a good way to not lie. You also aren't required to break confidence or reveal anything private. Telling the truth (or not lying) is complicated.

To tell the truth you have to have decided that (1) that truth will in fact save the world and (2) that the world is in fact worth saving.

How can I learn to raise my children properly or wisely? What books or lectures are useful?

In my new book, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos I have a chapter called "Don't let your children do anything that makes you dislike them." It will be available in January.

In the meantime, that's a good thing to know. Don't pretend with your children. Don't let them to things that are humiliating to you (or to them). If you don't like them, neither will anyone else. That's a start.

Before I get to the question I just wanted to say thank you. I think what you have to say about open discourse and totalitarianism is extremely important, especially given the widening gap between the left and the right. You've also helped me out of a slump of rather life-destroying nihilism, so I can't express my gratitude enough with regards to that.

In this video (I lost the time stamp of the specific quote, I apologize) you give a Nietzschean/Darwinian definition of truth: "truth serves life." When you elaborated on this definition of truth, you said "if a truth makes you insane, then it's not a truth - there is something wrong with it." Given this definition, if refusing to use gender-neutral pronouns makes somebody's mental state deteriorate to the point of insanity or suicide, does it follow that refusing to use gender-neutral pronouns is not acting in accordance with truth?

I wanted to ask you that question in the spirit of challenging all ideas when you came to McMaster last week, but I was unfortunately prevented from doing so.

If you have time for a second question, I have one about the people that influenced your thoughts on totalitarianism. Could you explain what led you to take Hannah Arendt's definition of totalitarianism - as well as the charges she makes against Stalinism - and apply it to all of Marxism? Are ideological Marxists inherently totalitarian because their belief system commands them to serve the law of history?

Edit: damn, I should have put the totalitarianism question first

I'm glad to hear that you've escaped the purgatory of nihilism. It's a very difficult trap for intelligent, critically minded people to avoid. But it's a cop-out, too, because nihilism means that you don't have to take responsibility for anything.

Generally, I can't answer questions that involve very detailed hypotheticals, because the Devils always in the details. So I could say, if I refused to use a gender-neutral pronoun and that made someone's mental state deteriorate to the point of insanity then it would be a mistake, in all likelihood. But that's a very unlikely outcome, and I presume I would be perspicacious enough to pick that up when I was communicating with the person, who would likely be in a substantial amount of distress, if they he or she (or they) were that fragile.

Is Joseph Campbell underrated or overrated? Why?

Hey was a very effective popularizer of Jung's ideas. Over-rated, if considered as the original source, which he was most definitely not. Under-rated, as effective popularization is extraordinarily difficult.

Welcome to reddit!

With your rare outspoken expressions of truth from your position as a professor I am curious to know how you are seen by the other faculty at UoT and in the eyes of other academics. Is there support behind the frontlines of this recent SJW war waged on you? Because I seldom see others in your profession rise to defend your truth.

Love and support from Eastern Canada.

Now and then a colleague rises to support me, at least privately. Not very often, however. More frequently, I hear that I have support, but that it would be better if I was being nicer while I'm doing what I'm doing.

1. In my experience, having ambitious, meaningful plans often generates stress and overexcitement that interfere with their realization. What would you recommend as a remedy to that and, in general, what is your advice on actual day-to-day carrying out of such plans?

2. In your lectures, you often talk about the importance of paying attention. Attention is also an important theme in Buddhism, and in fact developing attention through meditation (shamatha) and then applying it to aspects of one's experience in order to gain insight (vipassana) is said to be a key factor in achieving enlightenment. What are your thoughts on that and were you aware of this connection?

3. Another theme that you often return to in your lectures is the phenomenological manifestation of meaning. How in your experience does one distinguish between what is genuinely meaningful and what is simply beautiful, or just makes a particular strong impression on the mind? Is it primarily a matter of ethics?

I was and am aware of the connection. If you pay attention to something, you allow it to speak to you. That will change the way you see the world. Each change in the way you see the world is, however, a little death (and sometimes more than a little). So it's easy to be resistant to it. But it's better to prune your own branches. You'll bear more fruit that way.

Thank you for doing this AMA! Can you go into detail about what you find objectionable about moral relativism? Secondly, can you describe how you see post-modernism and what its biggest faults are? Thank you!

I believe in the existence of evil.

Postmodernists notice the complex problem of the ever-present subjective interpretive framework and then, instead of facing the problem squarely, assume that there is no world. They take the easy way out, intellectually. Then second-rate intellects hijack their work to justify their refusal to take responsibility as individuals.

I have told this story to three different psychologists, and none have ever heard of anything like it.

By the time I was 35, I had sunk into severe social anxiety and dysthymia. I mostly stayed at home and let my brother do the shopping, etc. Even ordering a coffee was a stressful experience. The future appeared to be an endless stretch of unbearable suffering. I kept going because I am so stubborn that it would drive Satan himself mad. I imagined that at the end, I would flop into a grave with relief, tired of life and the soul-crushing weight of it all.

My immune system became dangerously weak. I was opening antibiotic capsules to stuff the powder into the nail folds of my fingers. They were all infected, swollen, detached and oozing pus. I had chronic atypical pneumonia.

One night, spontaneously, I let my imagination run wild. My favorite escape was to create rich, intense visualizations, and I made full use of it that night. I unleashed my creativity and emotion to the absolute maximum. It was a bizarre experience. Whatever was keeping me in that hellish state was utterly blown away by it. The effects were immediate and dramatic:

• My infections vanished, never to return.
• I wanted to move out alone, meet people, and travel. I did all of these.
• Before, I had repressed anger which would emerge after petty frustrations. I would pound my fist on the table, sometimes hard enough to hurt. I remember looking at my fist that day, wondering why I ever did that. I never did it again.
• I enjoyed moderate drinking, and would drink every weekend. It made me happy. The next weekend, I drank as usual, but it didn't feel good. I felt tired, subdued. I no longer drink.

My mind was a mess, and I've spent years resolving past traumas, questioning everything about my personality, who I am, what I believe. At one point I was lying on my bed, tormented, with images of collapsing structures repeating over and over in my mind. I knew of the theory that the mind builds structures of meaning to navigate the world. I was hell-bent on erasing most of who I'd become. I considered much of my childhood to be abhorrent, turning me into a living lie.

Is this kind of transformation a known phenomenon? Is there any literature on it that I can read to learn more? I am still changing. I'm much more stable now, but would like to know as much as possible about where this is going.

Familial pathology had a great deal to do with my condition, but also, as a teenager I encountered a character who was, as you say, malevolent to the core. Long story, but one question for you: is it possible for a malevolent person to cause serious mental damage by words alone, while I was vulnerable and in a suggestible state? In total I was with him for several hours at different times. I was lucky he did little more than that.

I can provide more information about what he was up to, but it's not for redditors who need trigger warnings, that's for sure.

Malevolent people cause serious damage by words all the time.

Hey Jordan.

One of my favourite topics that you cover is your interpretation of the story of Cain & Abel. You’ve said that: “Before a creature becomes self-conscious there is no distinction between good and evil... With the dawning of self-consciousness, there seems to be the emergence of a moral sense that’s essentially unique to human beings.”

You’ve referenced in another video the phenomenon of wolves exhibiting something to the effect of mercy when an alpha ‘defeats’ a wolf that contests his position as the pack leader. Do you think that what appears to be this sort of ‘moral compass’ in wolf culture is then an emergent property of self-consciousness? Or, perhaps, something more like proto-rationality? Neither? What do you think this phenomenon says about human morality considering we often attribute our morality to our rationality (perhaps incorrectly)?

I think it is a behavioral proto-morality. The wolves act "as if" they recognize each others' value. But they are not following a rule, or abiding by a principle. They are manifesting a behavioral regularity. It is in the observation of such regularities, within their own species, that human beings have "discovered" morality proper (and were therefore able to represent that morality in story and with lists of rules).

It is a great mistake to assume that morality was derived from rationality. It built itself from the bottom up over hundreds of millions of years. Rationality played its part, but certainly did not serve as the fundamental source.

How do you pray? Do you go to church?

I pray that I don't make a fatal mistake.

No. In my experience, the ministers are too-frequently lying. I can't stand to hear them say words they don't believe. Not when I know what the words mean.

Dr. Peterson sorry if this query sounds a tad bit too technical but there are very less people who advice young upcoming psychologists on these matters, so i am writing to you. I am 24 years old and I have recently completed my Masters in Social and Personality Psychology and i want to pursue my PhD. from a university in U.S. or Canada. I have been interested in the exact topics that you discuss in your personality and maps of meaning classes since i was 18 (that's when i had found Frankl and Camus and also found social psychological studies like Milgram experiments and Zimbardo prisoner-guard studies). As someone who is obsessed with these topics i want to pursue it as an active research interest and also maybe translate it into a PhD. degree. But do you think it's worth pursuing a PhD. in an U.S. or Canadian universities anymore ? (I live i an another country..so going and studying in an U.S. or Cannadian University is mostly likely going to cost me a considerable amount too..) And also what advice would you give to people like me, who are interested exclusively in the topics that you discuss and want to pursue academic research projects on these very topics ? Thank you

The utility of pursuing a Ph.D. depends to a great degree on the knowledge, intelligence and integrity of your advisor. Find someone who is doing great work. Work with him or her. Read everything you can. Make yourself into a credible researcher. All of that is certainly still possible. But the advisor/student relationship is paramount.

(Question at the bottom in bold. Top part is to see where I am coming from.)

I am a scientist and an atheist, but not a radical one. If I understand correctly, your access to religion is through a set of stories, ultimately composing the holy book of the religion in question. And these stories serve as moral guidance system to society. They tell us how to be a decent person and how to live a meaningful live.

I like this because it doesn't rely on many of the aspects of 'old-school religion' which atheists commonly object to, such as the literal existence of god, a creation, etc., while at the same time allowing religion to be adopted as moral guidance system. Formulated a bit sharper: it doesn't need any backwards aspects of religion, but still allows for holding up those aspects for which there is no alternative from science yet, nor from elsewhere.

Now while I like it that you do hold up these parts of religion, I do not like that you do not explicitly reject the backward parts - or at least I didn't see you do that. And who guarantees that society and the church would not fall back into the middle ages? Who would guarantee that people wouldn't pick up again the backwards aspects of religion, if we don't explicitly reject them? I do not trust society in this matter.

Would you put more emphasis in the future on explicitly stating those aspects of religion which you would feel comfortable to leave behind? If not so, why not?

Let me conclude with a quote by a Chinese guy named Kong Deyong, who is just a common Joe, but also a descendant of Kong Zi, i.e. of Confucius:

Our morals are decaying. Mao beat Buddha, Laozi and Confucius to death. And in Jesus we don't believe. So what do we have left?

The quote is out of the German book "Gebrauchsanweisung für China" by Kai Strittmacher.

It is not obvious to me, precisely, what constitutes the "backwards" part of religious belief. Is it the ritual? The stories? Religion has to appeal to all people, regardless of their intellectual capacity, and it has to do that simultaneously. So what appears backward to one person may be absolutely necessary for another. There are simple paths, for example, to Christianity, and paths that are sophisticated beyond understanding. But both are necessary.

That does not mean that religious truth and scientific truth should be confused with one another. That is simply a category error, and it is certainly one made by religious fundamentalist (but no more frequently than committed atheists, who merely reverse the error).

Both confuse religious accounts of Being with scientific accounts of objective reality.

Dr. Peterson, many of us who belong in what you would refer to as the "alt-right", can not envision a future for Western civilization and values unless we return to a more nativist, traditionalist society. I understand you have denounced the emergence and revival of the far-right as being too patriarchal to maintain civilization(at least without causing great and unnecessary suffering) for a comfortable extended period. A moderate, centrist, or reserved approach will undoubtedly result in the displacement of respective natives in each of the Western nations by a conglomeration of openly aggressive and domineering people. This is self evident in the comparison of birth rates and the fiscal shackles applied on the natives by the state, whilst the "replacements" have freedom to maneuver, unbound by tremendous financial burden.

Simply sorting ourselves out as individuals will not guarantee our children to have the opportunities for prosperity and liberty that we take for granted today. What is the option for people who prefer for strong tradition and values to remain intrinsically tied into our national societal structures, if our governing bodies and political opponents will not allow so? What if we want our children to remain in countries with others of their own ethnic origin? Thank you.

If you sort yourself out properly as an individual, you will be able to hold and wield political power in a manner that allows your values to be served in the best possible manner. There is nothing wrong with being conservative. But there is something wrong with being a weak, confused conservative, just as there is something wrong with being a weak, confused liberal. Don't underestimate the utility of putting your soul in order.

Can you clarify if and how what you propose is different to polytheism? Why or why not is it valuable to label oneself "Christian" or "Religious" to practice what you preach?

The logos occupies the pinnacle of the value structure, in my understanding. That's a monotheistic view. The utility of the label Christian (for example) depends on the context. Sometimes it's helpful; other times, it's not. People often ask me if I'm a Christian. But I can't answer that because I don't know what they mean, and neither do they. The same applies when they ask "Do you believe in God?" It's not a question: it's a trap. So what's the proper answer? I don't know. "You have no business setting a trap for me?" That's probably the right answer.

So how can I answer? Do I believe that Christ died for the sins of man? Yes. But I don't think that what I mean by that is what people typically mean when they say they believe it.

Do I believe that Christ was the Son of God? Yes. But the same restriction applies.

It takes me forty hours of lectures to explain what I mean. Compacting all that into a single sentence cannot be done without fatal loss.