Alan Wilson Watts, the British-born philosopher and author of such books as The Way of Zen, Psychotherapy East and West, and The Joyous Cosmology may not be that well-known but the fact remains that he is one of the very best philosophers of the 20th century. If you have never heard of him and his work, this short film will make for a great introduction. Created by the YouTube channel Tragedy & Hope and featuring Watts' original speech, it digs deep on the phenomenon of worry.
Watts' begins saying "So then let's consider first of all what is a mind in the grip of vicious circles. Well, one of the most obvious instances that we all know is the phenomenon of worry. The doctor tells you that you have to have an operation. And that has been set up so that automatically everybody worries about it. But since worrying takes away your appetite and your sleep, it's not good for you. But you can't stop worrying and therefore you get additionally worried that you are worrying. And then furthermore because that is quite absurd and you're mad at yourself because you do it, you are worried because you are worried you are worried. That is a vicious circle."
