Is it possible to grow with imagination only?

[toasega]

And by that I mean internal growth.

I read a story once, though I can't remember the name of it, about two men (we'll call them Bill and Steve) who made a wager. Bill would be placed in a single room in the Steve's house for a set number of years. The room would be filled with books, and every need would be met. Bill would win a good deal of money (I think) if he completed his years without attempting to leave, but if he did leave, he would get nothing. So the years passed, and Bill just kept reading books and accumulating knowledge.

But on the last day, when Steve went to check on him, he was gone. He had left a note about how the money meant nothing to him anymore, because it was as if he had lived a hundred lifetimes, loving the most beautiful women, laughing and weeping with good friends and seeing things few mortal men could dream of. All of this he had felt and experienced even though he had been alone all those years. He wished Steve the best at the end of his note, and was never seen again.

So I was wondering how much could one person grow internally, if they never spoke to anyone but simply observed their world and gained knowledge through books. Could a person who had never been in a relationship somehow gain wisdom about relationships? Or understand things from the side of a criminal? How much experience could be gained? Or would it all be just theories?

And if the body is fully and absolutely controlled by the mind, what might we be truly capable of, both physically and mentally?

Just wondering......

[Glorious Leader Luna]

Given the whole ethnics of isolating a human from the moment of conception.

We don't know and likely will never know.

[Ask Jappleack]

d**k Cheney has a little story on visualizing golf when eh was held captive before to stimulate the mind when he couldnt exercise or anything, so he wouldnt get psychological deterioation.

And form what science I know, golf, tennis, and ping pong are the best sports for the mind, they acheive the highest brainwaves (their athletes) out of any other sport.

Plus, theres a type of meditaiton which has similar brainwave levels.

Plus, there were studies on visualizing techniques, in russia for instance, they found of three groups the ones who visualized the most improved the most

it was like 3/4 exercise, 1/2 exercise, or 1/4 exercise, with the rest being visualization.

The ones who visualzied the most did best.

But socializaiton is very important for the mind too.

[fun giraffe]

lol.

i think reading books and observing the world isn't how you should go about growing internally but instead wouldn't you like meditate all the time or sit in one spot or a bare room?

i think that's how you'd see if you could grow internally

[Suicidesoldier#1]

No, you don't need to experience or do something to be able to understand it. xp

[1aphy]

It depends on how closely the books resembled reality and if the ideas in them had any practical use. Sure, the person could live in a fantasy world for years and certainly imagine that he is experiencing life and meeting these people, but unless the books resemble reality in some way then he'll only have experience of a fantasy world and it wouldn't apply well to reality

If the body is fully controlled by our mind, then we are limited by the capabilities of our bodies and also our minds. Our bones and muscles fail under a certain weight, we age, we die, we go insane. We are in no way 'limitless'. Our only limitless quality is the liberty to act with what we have. We're fully free to utilize our properties in any way we desire.