FROM SEPARATENESS TO CONNECTION TO WHOLENESS, PART II

Consider that traditionally we have viewed life as a movement – a movement that is chaotic, aggressive, enriching, depleting, etc. – among sets of polarities. This is frequently a movement of ‘either-or.’ It appears to me that what is needed is not a disconnection between the two elements of a polarity but a connection of the two. This connection will result in a ‘third’ way emerging. It is not a ‘unity’ that is sought (e.g. the two becoming one where by both identities are lost) but a ‘wholeness.’ The ‘wholeness’ will maintain and support each identity AND will evolve into a ‘third’ identity that is more complex and of a higher order than either of the separate identities.

Many years ago, Arthur Koestler in his superb book, ‘The Ghost in the Machine’ coined a term for this: ‘Holon.’ A holon is complete within itself and it also contains at minimum two separate identities that are also complete within themselves. In addition, each holon is also part of a greater holon – it is holons all the way up and all the way down. For example, a man and a woman marry (two separate holons become a ‘third way’ holon). They are also part of a larger holon (say their extended families) and these holons are complete within themselves and are also part of a larger holon (say their neighborhoods or communities) and these holons are also complete within themselves and are part of a larger holon – and the beat goes on. It also works the other way. Each man and each woman contains multiple holons that contribute to who they are a human beings (a heart for example is complete within itself and is also part of a larger holon; the cells of the heart are complete within themselves and are also part of a larger holon – this occurs ‘all the way down’ – as far as we are able to determine today; it was once thought that the atom was the ultimate ‘thing’ and we know that this is not true – it appears as if there is not a ‘one thing,’ it is holons all the way down. Another way of looking at this is to view all as ‘relationships’ all the way up and all the way down.

One way of conceptualizing this is to image a bridge that connects two separate territories; when viewed from ‘above’ one will then see the ‘third way’ – a large, more complex territory and if one looks closely one will see the two separate territories that are complete within themselves. Here is a photo taken by my Singaporean friend, Mi Yin – talk about bridging, natural and human-made.