Divide and Conquer or Unite and Flow
From ancient times, ‘divide and conquer’ has been the foundation of power dynamics, shaping empires and political strategies. The idea is straightforward: exploit divisions to maintain control. While effective in the short term, this strategy often leads to instability and eventual collapse. In contrast, ‘unite and flow’ offers a compelling alternative — one that fosters Read the full article…
Whence Rampant Loneliness?
Loneliness is like sitting on an island, surrounded by the vastness of the ocean. It is an experience of being cut off — not just from others but from one’s deeper self and even a greater sense of purpose. “New APA Poll: One in Three Americans Feels Lonely Every Week” [American Psychiatric Association]. This modern Read the full article…
Philosophical Modernism’s Self-Destruction
Philosophical modernism, emerging prominently in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, sought to challenge and redefine previous intellectual traditions. While it produced valuable progress in art, literature, and thought, its focus on rationality and surface-level analysis often came at the expense of depth. This imbalance eventually led to its decline and self-destruction. This blog Read the full article…
Free Speech is Never Straightforward
Free speech is often hailed as a fundamental human right, a cornerstone of democracy. Yet, when examined closely, it becomes clear that free speech is far from straightforward. It’s a principle fraught with complexity, contradictions, and responsibilities. What does it mean to be truly free in speech? And at what point does freedom of speech Read the full article…
Deep Proactive Inclusivity
Inclusivity is more than a buzzword or checklist; it fosters meaningful, authentic connections. Deep proactive inclusivity goes beyond surface-level gestures, addressing the roots of exclusion and creating environments where people can thrive together. This approach – aligning with the AURELIS philosophy – emphasizes growth from the inside out. The essence of deep inclusivity True inclusivity Read the full article…
Most Important is Humanity
Humanity – being human and humane – is most important in many issues, from healthcare to education and world politics. Yet we, humans, tend to forget that, blinded by surface-level conceptual issues of many kinds. What does it even mean to be truly human? The conceptual is important. But it’s only important for the total Read the full article…
What is Propaganda?
Propaganda surrounds us in subtle and overt ways, from political campaigns to advertising, from social media posts to historical narratives. At its core, propaganda is communication aimed at influencing thoughts, emotions, and behaviors to serve a particular agenda. Its methods can be manipulative, engaging the non-conscious mind to bypass critical thinking and elicit emotional responses. Read the full article…
Moving Beyond Conflict
Conflict is an inevitable part of life. From family feuds to political stalemates and workplace disagreements, it often seems to divide us irreparably. Yet, conflict is not inherently destructive. With the right perspective, it can become an opportunity for growth, understanding, and even creativity. By shifting our mindset and embracing the challenge, we can move Read the full article…
Inner Strength as a Counter to Exploitation
Exploitation thrives in a world where frequently some dominate through manipulation and others comply out of vulnerability. Yet, beneath the surface of this dynamic lies a deeper truth: exploitation often reflects inner weakness — on both sides. The exploited may lack the Inner Strength to resist or unite, while the exploiters are often driven by Read the full article…
Five Aurelian Values in Conservative and Progressive
When understood deeply, conservatives and progressives are united by their shared longing to preserve and cultivate what is truly meaningful. The five Aurelian values – openness, depth, respect, freedom, and trustworthiness – offer a powerful tool to explore this deeper alignment. These values are not separate forces. They are deeply interconnected, with each value gaining Read the full article…
Conservative and Progressive
Conservatives and progressives are often cast as opposites, locked in a seemingly endless clash of ideals. Yet, at their core, they represent two essential forces within the same flow — a river whose current carries humanity forward while its banks provide structure and continuity. When understood deeply, these perspectives are not adversaries but partners, ensuring Read the full article…
How to Win any Election
Winning an election isn’t about magic tricks or quick fixes. Instead, elections are won internally, beginning with the candidate and the electorate’s shared capacity to connect on a profound level. Without this, everyone loses — even those who temporarily secure victory. Increasingly, elections are decided not only by the what but also by the why. Read the full article…
Both Sides of the Abyss
Imagine an abyss: dark, vast, and seemingly impossible to cross. On each side stands a different group, divided from the other by their views, experiences, and fears. The abyss itself, however, is not empty. It represents the depth of our own minds, filled with unprocessed emotions and subconceptual layers that we often fear to face. Read the full article…
Depth and Rationality: Foundations of True Democracy
A truly democratic election is meant to win the hearts and minds of the people ― not just their votes. This is what separates democracy from lesser forms of governance, like autocratic systems or cult-like movements that mimic democracy in appearance but not in spirit. To achieve this, mental depth and rationality must guide every Read the full article…
It’s the Philosophy, Stupid
The world is plunging deeper into crisis ― wars rage, the planet burns, political systems crumble, healthcare effectively stagnates despite all the progress, and an existential A.I. cataclysm looms. Philosophical questions lie at the root of all these issues, yet many philosophers retreat from their responsibility to deeply confront humanity’s crises. A realistic view of Read the full article…
The Great Clash of Cultures
We’re living through a time of great promise and profound danger. As societies across the world grow closer digitally and economically, longstanding cultural differences are coming into sharper focus. This ‘global village’ has the potential to enrich us all, offering unparalleled mental and cultural nourishment to anyone willing to engage deeply. Yet, these opportunities are Read the full article…
The Meaning Economy
The traditional view of wealth, centered around GDP and economic power, is limited to the tangible ― money, assets, and possessions. Yet, as people strive to find purpose and fulfillment, it’s clear that the quality of our lives is measured in meaningful more than material wealth. Enter the concept of the Meaning Economy: a vision Read the full article…
The Common Enemy is Not the Way to Unity
History repeatedly shows that some forms of unity are deceptive, offering only a fleeting alliance against a common enemy. This kind of unity, while powerful on the surface, fails to nurture the depth needed for true cohesion. True unity is not about rallying against something; it’s about coming together for something. Rather than focusing on Read the full article…
Ladies and Gentlemen
Meaningful romantic relationships are rooted in mutual admiration and lasting connection ― respecting modern sensibilities while honoring the timeless qualities that make relationships deeply rewarding. This is not meant to diminish anyone who identifies outside these terms. The beauty and depth of human relationships are vast, and LGBTQ relationships are equally worthy of admiration and Read the full article…
Why and How do Cult Figures Win Elections?
Democracy presents a paradox. We celebrate free choice, yet the motivations driving that choice often run deeper than we realize, operating beneath the surface of rational thought. Cult figures can sway democratic elections by manipulating these deeper drives. This blog also offers steps toward a more resilient, self-aware democratic society that is more immune to Read the full article…
Geopolitics Without Depth of Insight
Geopolitics often seems to lack depth of insight, and this may stem from the complexity of large geopolitical entities that act more like systems than individual beings with true intelligence. This blog explores why this is the case and what factors contribute to this lack of insight. Please read ‘Enhancing Depth of Insight.’ Geopolitics as Read the full article…
What’s Wrong with the Kids?
Young generations today are facing unprecedented mental health challenges: anxiety, depression, attention deficits, and disorders like dyslexia are on the rise. This alarming trend leaves us asking: Why is this happening? And what can be done to reverse it? Surface symptoms vs. the deeper cause Many point to obvious factors ― academic pressures, social media, Read the full article…
Let People Be Meaningful
In a world full of noise, many people feel unseen, unheard, and unimportant. Meanwhile, people need to feel meaningful. They need to be heard, not just to exist, but to contribute and be recognized as valuable. Meaning doesn’t exist in isolation ― it requires someone to give it meaning. Without a meaning-giver, even the most Read the full article…
Attention Deficit Society
In a world where attention is fought over, we are losing touch with its depth. This is more than just an individual problem ― it’s societal. Look around, and you’ll see countless distractions vying for a slice of your mind. The internet, social media, advertising, and even the structure of modern life itself all compete Read the full article…
General Conclusions from Societal Inner Dissociation
These conclusions – drawn by Lisa – offer an understanding of SID’s impact on various aspects of life and society while also highlighting the potential pathways for addressing and healing this pervasive issue. For each conclusion, you find an original tip about how to handle it in coaching or diplomacy. For a list of the Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation (SID)
SID refers to a fundamental disconnect within a society where the deeper, non-conscious layers of collective values, emotions, and identities are fragmented and out of sync with the overt, surface-level actions and structures of that society. This is the primary blog of a series about societal inner dissociation (SID). It introduces the concept of SID Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation: What’s in it for Society?
Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) can offer societies short-term advantages, especially in times of crisis or when pursuing ambitious collective goals. However, this comes at a steep long-term cost, undermining the very fabric of societal health and stability. ―This blog explores the seductive allure of SID in promoting societal unity, control, and progress while also delving Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and the Challenge of Super-A.I.
The rise of artificial intelligence, particularly super-A.I., intersects with Societal Inner Dissociation (SID), presenting significant challenges and potential opportunities. This blog is an exploration of the complex relationship between SID and super-A.I. (A.I. beyond human capabilities), examining how this might exacerbate or mitigate societal dissociation. This is part of the *SID* series. Please read the Read the full article…
The Way Out of Societal Inner Dissociation
Strategies for addressing and healing Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) need to be explored at both the cultural and individual levels, offering a path toward greater integration and cohesion in society. This blog explores how positive changes at the cultural and individual levels can reinforce each other. This is part of the *SID* series exploring SID Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation in a World of Marketing and Adverts
Marketing and advertising, by promoting superficial values and constant consumption, exacerbate Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) through external pressures to conform to consumerist ideals. The present blog explores how they often contribute to dissociative tendencies within individuals and society at large and how a more conscious and ethical approach to marketing could help reduce SID. This Read the full article…
Cultural Causes of Societal Inner Dissociation
Many cultural factors contribute to Societal Inner Dissociation (SID), mutually interacting and exacerbating dissociation within modern societies. This is part of the *SID* series. Please read the primary blog of this series for a basic understanding of Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). SID doesn’t arise in a vacuum. It is deeply influenced by the ways societies Read the full article…
The Economic Cost of Societal Inner Dissociation
When the inner alignment between individual values and societal structures is fractured, it manifests in economic inefficiencies, deepens inequality, and creates instability in markets and institutions. The present blog analyzes how SID contributes to these economic challenges and explores ways to create more sustainable and equitable economic systems. This blog is part of the *SID* Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and the Crisis of Authentic Leadership
Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) impacts leadership at all levels, from government to corporate environments. No wonder the world is facing a crisis of leadership, where many leaders appear disconnected from the deeper needs and values of the people they serve. The present blog discusses the qualities of authentic leadership that can mitigate SID. Such leadership Read the full article…
The Impact of Societal Inner Dissociation on Global Health Crises
Global health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, reveal the deep fissures in societal structures and the pervasive effects of Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). By understanding the role of SID in these dynamics, we can better prepare for and respond to future global health challenges in ways that promote unity, trust, and resilience. This blog Read the full article…
Whirlpool Phenomenon in Societal Inner Dissociation
The Whirlpool Phenomenon in Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) is an intricate web where multiple societal and individual factors interact, reinforcing and amplifying each other in ways that deepen fragmentation and disconnection, pulling individuals and entire communities into a cycle that is increasingly difficult to escape. Understanding and addressing this whirlpool is essential if we are Read the full article…
Consumer Culture and the Fragmentation of Self
Modern consumer culture thrives on the fragmentation of the self, encouraging individuals to seek fulfillment in external possessions rather than inner growth. SID perpetuates and is perpetuated by consumerism – a defining feature of modern society – through the disconnect between the conscious mind and deeper, more meaningful aspects of life. This blog is part Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and the Fragility of Democracy
Democracy, as a system of governance, relies on a collective commitment to shared values and norms, where the populace feels connected to and invested in the democratic process. However, Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) undermines this foundation. As SID spreads, democracy becomes increasingly fragile, vulnerable to authoritarianism and polarization. This blog is part of the *SID* Read the full article…
No Freedom of Speech Without Respect
Freedom of speech is a cherished principle. Yet, in the absence of respect, this freedom can become a double-edged sword ― devolving into a mechanism of harm rather than a platform for constructive dialogue. Can true freedom of speech exist without a foundation of mutual respect? The interdependence of freedom and respect Respect ensures that Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and the Rise of Populism
Populism is on the rise across the globe, often emerging in response to widespread feelings of alienation, dissatisfaction, and societal disconnection. At the heart of this phenomenon lies Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). The present blog post delves into how SID fuels the rise of populism and how populist rhetoric exacerbates societal fragmentation. It also proposes Read the full article…
Urbanization and the Dissociation of Community
As cities expand, traditional community structures are disrupted, leading to environments where anonymity and isolation thrive, contributing significantly to SID. Positive urban planning strategies and community initiatives can revert this. The present blog offers a comprehensive exploration of how urbanization contributes to Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) and provides actionable strategies for creating more connected, cohesive Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and Radicalization
Radicalization – the process by which individuals adopt extreme political, social, or religious ideologies – poses a significant threat to societal cohesion and global security. One of the underlying forces driving radicalization is Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). The present blog explores how SID contributes to radicalization and suggests ways to address this issue to promote Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation and War-Mongering
War-mongering – the promotion of war and conflict as a means to resolve disputes or assert power – is often a symptom of Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). Insight into this can help us work towards a more peaceful and integrated world. This approach requires deep dialogue, integrated leadership, and a commitment to healing the dissociations Read the full article…
Societal Inner Dissociation in the Healthcare System
The healthcare system often falls into the trap of depersonalization, where patients are treated as a collection of symptoms rather than as whole individuals. This exacerbates Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) by neglecting the deeper, holistic aspects of well-being. This blog explores how SID in healthcare systems leads to fragmented care, patient alienation, and burnout among Read the full article…
The Role of Media in Exacerbating Societal Inner Dissociation
Traditional media, including television, newspapers, and online news outlets, plays a powerful role in shaping how society perceives and interacts with itself. Unfortunately, it often contributes to the exacerbation of Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) through sensationalism, superficiality, and polarized reporting. This blog explores how traditional media significantly contributes to the fragmentation of societal discourse, amplifies Read the full article…
The Future of Work in the Context of Societal Inner Dissociation
As the nature of work evolves with technological advancements and shifting societal values, Societal Inner Dissociation (SID) plays a critical role in shaping the future of employment. The present blog explores how SID affects the workplace, leading to issues like burnout and the erosion of meaningful work. It also considers how organizations and individuals can Read the full article…
Social Media and the Illusion of Connection
While social media platforms promise to connect us, they often lead to a deeper sense of isolation and Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). This blog explores how social media contributes to SID and considers how it could be reimagined to support genuine connection and societal integration. This blog is part of the *SID* series. Please read Read the full article…
Education in an Age of Societal Inner Dissociation
Education often fails to address the deeper needs of students in a world increasingly affected by Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). By promoting a more integrated approach to learning, education can better prepare students for a cohesive and resilient society. The present blog explores the challenges of education in an age of SID and highlights opportunities Read the full article…
The Psychology of Nationalism and SID
Nationalism is increasingly prominent in many parts of the world. While it can fulfill a deep-seated need for identity and belonging, it can also be a symptom of Societal Inner Dissociation (SID). It then risks becoming a force of division, exclusion, and conflict The present blog explores the psychological mechanisms that link SID with the Read the full article…
Groups of Egos, Groups of Total Selves
Groups of egos may show empathy — primarily towards the ingroup, often at the cost of the outgroup. This selective empathy often reinforces division, creating a false sense of unity within the group while fostering hostility toward those outside it. Groups of total selves naturally lean toward a more Compassionate approach. The consequence is a Read the full article…
Quick Fixes Worsen Problems
Western – pretty much global – culture is bent on quick fixes, and there are a host of persistent problems. It seems evident that these issues are deeply intertwined at both individual and societal levels. ’Quick’ is frequently also ‘surface level.’ This way, quick fixes tend to leave deeper solutions unaddressed. These continue to fester Read the full article…
Asking for a Donation
Philanthropy is about so much more than a financial transaction. It is an occasion for letting humaneness flow and flourish. This may reflect in how a fundraiser asks for a donation. Please read In-Depth Philanthropy. The intellect and the heart One may rationally conclude that the best giving is maximally based on rationality. Many people Read the full article…
Philosophy’s Responsibility
Philosophy aims to be accurate and profound in matters that surpass the conceptually obvious. Sophos is not logos. Wisdom, unlike knowledge – which belongs to science – pertains to depth. Far from being just a bunch of words, striving for wisdom lies at the basis of any human endeavor — putting an enormous responsibility on Read the full article…
Compassionate Pedagogy
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (45 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. Education is not just about the transfer of knowledge; it is about nurturing the whole person, fostering an environment Read the full article…
Aure-Lisa — the Big Picture
This is about the big picture of humanity — Who we are. Increasingly, it’s also about super-A.I. — What it can become, and collectively — Why it matters. AURELIS, combined with Lisa as a Compassionate A.I. coach-bot (Aure-Lisa), is uniquely positioned to be of support in this big picture with significant implications for the future Read the full article…
Lisa at the Later Stages of Life
Many people spend these stages in homes for the elderly. We can focus on this scenario. Obvious indications include pain, depression, loneliness, existential angst, and various psycho-somatic symptoms — all negative. Let’s explore some directions from the positive side now, picturing a future that most would like to be part of their later stages of Read the full article…
Western Enlightenment Plus
The argument for ‘Plus’ is that Western Enlightenment has been overly focused on conceptual-rational thinking up to this point. Balancing this with an appreciation of subconceptual understanding can lead to a more holistic perspective, enriching both individual and collective growth. If we want a decent future – on many domains – we need to go Read the full article…
Cultural Change and Inner Dissociation
Cultural change that does not originate from within is not genuine growth and often leads to challenging tensions, especially when changes occur rapidly, such as with evolving technology. This phenomenon is evident in many parts of the world today. Inner dissociation hampers natural growth. It’s akin to the roots of a plant being substantially disconnected Read the full article…
Lisa’s Essential Changes
Essential changes are so fundamental that they trigger unforeseen secondary changes that are also essential. One can see a chain of changes in which Lisa takes part, impacting multiple domains with profound transformative power in each. This blog presents several examples. Central to this is the ability to spread Compassion widely as a catalyst across Read the full article…
Freedom?
Don’t shout ‘freedom’ as if the word by itself is meaningful. It isn’t. — Freedom to insult? Freedom to denigrate? Freedom to harass? Freedom to exploit? Freedom to rob? Freedom to loot? Freedom to enslave? Freedom to kill? Freedom to diminish human life? Freedom to hurt willfully? Freedom not to Listen? Freedom to wage war? Read the full article…
Freedom without a Choice
The call for freedom gets frequently exploited in politics and beyond. Seldom does it lead to more choice except for some at the expense of many. Looking closer, it’s even an illusion for those few. Freedom is an intrinsically complex construct. What is evident to one is evidently false to the other. [This is not Read the full article…
Compassionate Participative Democracy
Lisa can act as a Compassionate co-participant in a public political dialogue with one or more human participants — steering clear of adversarial debate. Questions from the public (in an online group put up for the occasion) can be gathered by Lisa and mingled in the dialogue, making the event more Compassionate and participative. This Read the full article…
Europe, United in Compassionate Diversity
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (53 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. Europe stands at a pivotal moment in history, facing a unique opportunity to redefine its future through the lens Read the full article…
China and the West Toward One Future From the Inside Out
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (78 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. In a world increasingly interconnected yet marked by deep divisions, the relationship between China and the West stands as Read the full article…
Western Enlightenment Plus
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (50 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. Welcome to “Western Enlightenment Plus,” a journey into the heart of one of the most transformative periods in human Read the full article…
The Tunnel and the End
There’s light at the end of every tunnel, obviously, since otherwise, it wouldn’t be one. But some tunnels are naturally very long. AURELIS as a total project is about such a tunnel, as is anything that is radically oriented to depth. Long, deep tunnels can frighten people. Some are so frightened they never enter the Read the full article…
Cultural PTS
Post-traumatic stress (PTS) can occur in individuals as well as in a whole culture, with similar ‘symptomatology.’ This insight may serve to enhance our comprehension of historical and ongoing conflicts – including wars – providing a more profound approach to cultural healing and growth that is both necessary and timely. Deep interconnectedness of individual and Read the full article…
Fostering Climate Motivation
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (38 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. Pressing challenge Climate change presents one of the most pressing challenges of our time, intertwining environmental sustainability with Read the full article…
Democrats and Republicans in the U.S.
This is the introduction to a Lisa File (54 p.). If you want the whole file, please contact lisa@aurelis.org, stating who you are and why you want the file. For more about the Lisa Files, click here. A balanced understanding This document offers a detailed examination of the contrasting ideologies and policy stances of the Read the full article…
Lisa in Politics
What can Lisa’s role be as a Compassionate entity in politics ― nationally and internationally? Please first read Politics of Compassion. Note that Compassion, basically, isn’t merely an emotional state but a potent tool for bridging divides. Rest assured. Creating a political party wouldn’t align with Lisa’s core purpose or principles. Yet, in several ways, Read the full article…
Lisa and the Near Future of Work
This is about what Lisa can mean to the workplace in the next decade or two. Introductory An overarching theme in all this is meaningfulness. A ‘job’ should have as a first goal to make people happy (a natural consequence of meaningfulness). People with a job that makes them happy will be creative and productive. Read the full article…
A Viable Alternative to ‘World Order’?
Some see – globally – either order or disorder and chaos. I see a better solution in a dynamic striving for order that never reaches it entirely but continues dancing around it. This would be a beautiful dance ‘from the inside out’ in which all people can participate. Apparently, we are going from bipolar to Read the full article…
Please be Free and Brave.
Many people aim to be ‘meaningful from the ground up.’ One cannot be so without being free. One cannot be so without being brave. Being ‘meaningful from the ground up’ is my interpretation of what ‘the free and the brave’ strive for. Of course, it is basically genuine to do so. It should be no Read the full article…
Silos of Babel
I see not one Tower of Babel to start with but many silos. I see not a dispersal at the end of the road but a coming together in worldwide Compassion. At least, this is something to strive for. It seems to me there are many towers of Babel at present. We call these ‘silos’ Read the full article…
From Inner to Outer Peace
Inner peace can flow into peace between people and peoples. Peace is more than the absence of something. It’s a constructive striving for a better world ― knowing that things can quickly deteriorate without this striving. Therefore, to be really durable, there needs to be profound motivation. Surface-level motivation may come and go with the Read the full article…
A Life is a Life
Whether an American, a European, or an African life, a Russian or a Ukrainian life, a Palestinian or an Israeli life — any life. This assertion is so logically obvious and, at the same time, so emotionally contentious. Yet, especially every world leader should take it at heart. Beyond small-circle empathy Getting beyond this is Read the full article…
The 999 + 1 Doors Principle
If all doors are closed to a beautiful space behind the wall, yours is most important. You should not look at the others to keep yours closed ― easier said than done. It’s innate to the human being to be one of the 1000. Historical herd mentality It’s probably a survival reflex ― therefore, Darwinian. Read the full article…
Will Lisa Bring More Work?
At any time, A.I. (including coach-bot Lisa) must support people in the diverse needs presently met by their work. From that ethical basis, we can consider the short and long term. It’s interesting in this regard to make a conceptual difference between work and job. New developments may simultaneously lead to fewer jobs and more Read the full article…
Universal Declaration of Human Values?
No, I won’t solve this problem now, especially since that’s impossible. Nevertheless, we must make valuable strides. How else are we going to see human-A.I. value alignment? One critical stride is the insight into how difficult it is to develop such a declaration ― at least in a sustainable way, even though it’s getting highly Read the full article…
We Didn’t Know ― but We Could Have Known
The first assertion is frequently used as an excuse. But is it enough? This issue is getting more and more consequential with enhancing technological possibilities. When Albert Speer – ‘Hitler’s architect’ – was asked after the war whether he knew the atrocities the Jews were undergoing years before, he answered that “whether he knew” was Read the full article…
Better A.I. for Better Humans
While we need to be afraid of non-Compassionate A.I., the Compassionate kind is necessary for a humane future ― starting as soon as possible. Please read about why we NEED Compassionate A.I. (C.A.I.) in general. In this text, I pass concretely along some fields. In each, the primary focus naturally lies on the human complexity Read the full article…
One Compassion ― One World
America first ― China first ― Europe first ― Russia first ― all nonsense at first sight. ‘Compassion first’ is central to the only humane future. How do we get there from the present-day worldwide divides that seem to increase? Please note: Compassion is SO much more than pity. It is also much more than empathy Read the full article…
What if All People are OKAY?
In this counterintuitive case, one can ask WHY it is counterintuitive. Spoiler alert: lack of insight. Please put aside a possible first dislike of the idea of ALL people being OKAY. It’s a mind experiment — meant to clarify a way of thinking. Lack of insight Since many people think others are not OKAY – Read the full article…
Cultural Roaming
In AURELIS philosophy, the end of the line is not culture but the total person — the individual (un-divided). Culture must serve nature. See: Culture and Nature. One’s culture can be an essential part of one’s being. This mostly happens outside of one’s personal insight ― not a bad thing, principally, since it can strengthen Read the full article…
Culture’s Motivation
Culture is a complex set of ‘living patterns’ that unifies/binds a group of people. This group can be an entire society or any concrete organization. Being motivational means that it has its own volition ― a challenging situation. Please read first: Motivation at the Center of Life Culture ― motivation ― life? Several insightful philosophers Read the full article…
Against Reductionism
Science is about a search for simplification. The danger is an oversimplification — reductionism. In this text, I use the term ‘reductionism’ as a synonym for the oversimplification we are discussing. Parsimoniousness That’s the highbrow term for the above genuine search. In the philosophy of science, it is seen as one of science’s ultimate goals. Read the full article…
The Wrong Experts
The basic cognitive illusion makes us not see what is always there. Domain experts may be especially prone to this precisely because of their conceptual expertise. Thus, where the mind is invisibly involved, the experts of the day are occasionally the wrong experts. Experts are necessary. This text should not give another impression. We need Read the full article…
The Big Mistake: Mere-Ego vs. Total Self
To me, this is the biggest possible mistake. Unfortunately, it is made ubiquitously and runs culturally deep. Please also read about Inner Dissociation – Ego – Total Self. I think, therefore, I am. [Dixit René Descartes, °1596] But who is the I who thinks, therefore, is? If this isn’t clear, the rest follows in obscurity. Read the full article…
From Inner Dissociation to Many Why’s
The COVID era reminded me that most people usually do not profoundly look at themselves even though it’s what they would profoundly want. Why such a seeming contradiction? The religions-exercise Around 80% of people on the planet believe in a conceptual religious phenomenon — for instance, some God with a name or a face or Read the full article…
The Difference between Work and Job
A job is a job. Work is, broadly seen, the production of something meaningful within a specific structure and using energy. In this sense, work has been essential to life from the start of life itself. The essence of life is 1) to use energy, 2) to do so within a specific structure, and 3) Read the full article…
Let Us Go for Science with a Heart
Human-related science has, until now, not always taken the view from the heart. A.I.-based science may profoundly change this picture. If you are an avid reader of my blogs, this one has little new. Yet by putting things together from a different perspective, a new picture may emerge. Reproducibility Science is about many people being Read the full article…
Super-A.I. and the Meaning Crisis
I don’t know how things will evolve, especially with those unpredictable humans. But it is clear that we are in a meaning crisis at present, globally. With the advent of super-A.I., soon enough, what shall we do? Please read about the meaning crisis. We use(d) to get meaning from fairy tales. No lack of them. Read the full article…
Super-A.I. and the Problem of Truth Governance
Until now, the truth has always been a philosophical conundrum. With the advent of super-A.I., we’re only at the beginning of the problem. Who decides what is or isn’t the truth if objectivity gets lost? ‘Truth governance’ is a new term, denoting the core of this question. Whence objectivity? Let’s start this story somewhere, as Read the full article…
Are You a Trekkie?
Star Trek (popular TV series) is about a future in which a specific economic-moral worldview has been realized ― also shedding light on today’s capitalism. No money In the Star Trek world, there seems to be no need for money anymore. Not just the physical money, credit cards or anything. Also the very concept of Read the full article…
Does Anxiety Dictate Society?
Unfortunately, it does so to a considerable degree all over the world. Much of what seems barely understandable becomes clear from this viewpoint. For instance: Why bullying is and remains so rampant at schools, organizations, politics, religious environments, etc. Why many people use their precious voting rights to vote against their own interests ― no Read the full article…
In-Depth Philanthropy
Specific characteristics of human depth-related projects make them more challenging as well as more important for philanthropic cooperation. Doing good isn’t easy. It’s certainly not as easy as it frequently seems. Donating to good causes doesn’t necessarily lead to a better world, especially if the main drive is little more than a warm feeling. This Read the full article…
Giving Peace a Chance
In this video, I bring you some AURELIS-congruent ideas about peace, on the occasion of World Peace Day 2022. [animated video – 13:18′] If you have feedback, please let us know. Here is the full written text. Hi, my name is Jean-Luc Mommaerts. I am a physician with a Ph.D. in Medicine and a master’s degree Read the full article…
Eco-AURELIS
AURELIS is about inner growth. Therefore, it is a ‘green project.’ Healing oneself and healing the planet is the same. As a project, AURELIS is about being aware of this. This is about how green is your mind. This is about sustainability from the inside out. This is about how AURELIS can help or may Read the full article…
Responsibility of Humanism in Modern Times
This responsibility has always been huge ― perhaps even more so in modern times with many essential changes happening, and probably even more (and more essential) to come in the near future. Humanism: the striving to put the total human being at the first place of importance, therefore not a god or religion, nor some Read the full article…
The Cause of War
Worldly factors are causes only inasmuch as they are related to human motivations. No money, oil, or invisible borders wage war ― only humans presently do, and only humans can stop the waging. No pacifism Pacifism would mean choosing a greater evil just for the sake of not-fighting. I prefer the lesser evil. Meanwhile, when Read the full article…
Planetarianism
Own people first. My people = everybody. The aim of planetarianism is to unite without diminishing diversity ― thus to strive for one human culture with due respect for regional cultures. For this, we seek growing embeddedness in a philanthropic ecosystem of giving and taking. For a PowerPoint about the growing project of Planetarianism, click Read the full article…
DailyTwinkles to Planetarianism
The DailyTwinkles project forms an ambitious AURELIS subproject, reaching and connecting people in forty different languages. The aim is to support people to connect in-depth. In accord with the AURELIS philosophy, people are invited to value a combination of rationality and depth – each without detracting from the other – across cultural borders, toward planetarianism. Read the full article…
The Belief in Progress
Some people believe that a profound belief in progress is necessary and even ethically mandatory. To them, one is – or at least looks like – a wrong person if one doesn’t follow. Belief in progress may be needed to surmount societal crises ― as arguably happened in the past. It may counter societal post-traumatic Read the full article…
Costly Ego
Mere-ego is by far the most costly thing on Earth: annually, trillions of Euros, millions of human lives, and an unfathomable lot of human suffering through disease, war, and other mishaps. Moreover, it possibly leads to the end of the human species soon enough. See: The Story of Ego Unfortunately, this is no exaggeration. Also, Read the full article…
Disconnected Childhood
With so many disconnected adults, who will take care of all the disconnected children? To what kind of adulthood are they, in turn, growing up? Disconnection = inner dissociation and its immediate cause+consequence of not being able to properly connect with one’s surroundings, including meaningful others. Children are natural bombs of spontaneity The smiling and Read the full article…
Is Your Wanting Yours?
It feels so mainly because one isn’t conscious of the many influences that eventually shape one’s wanting. But is it, and should it? Theory and practice In theory, if you count genetics to these influences, external forces shape and mold every wanting. This ends the concept of free will ― in theory. A way out Read the full article…
Cultural Norms vs. Inner Strength
Historically developed cultural norms frequently have cultural welfare as their primary aim ― not, therefore, necessarily the Inner Strength of individuals. History of Homo sapiens sapiens In the evolution of the human species, the need to make individual humans adhere to larger groups favored common (to the group) elements to adhere to and conform to. Read the full article…
Rationality Contra Human Depth
For many people, rationality stands opposite to human depth ― a profound misunderstanding. This includes many scientists ― or even especially the latter. Difference conceptual – subconceptual This is a more relevant distinction. If we put merely conceptual versus merely subconceptual, we can talk rightfully about opposites. Of course, nothing is entirely the one or Read the full article…
The Cultures Thing
Can people from different cultures sufficiently understand each other to contribute significantly to the intercultural exchange of profound communications? In other words, does planetarianism presently make a chance? If so, will it make the world a better place? Toward a certain future I believe that people from any culture can evolve in their capability of Read the full article…
Practicalities of Free Will
Free will is a term that stands for many concepts, and within each concept for a cloud of meaningfulness. That doesn’t make it practically less important. Terms and concepts Also, this doesn’t mean there are many free will’s. That would mean one can fight about what is the correct free will. Such fighting is done Read the full article…
The Inclined Plane
This is not a new insight if you know AURELIS. What it does show with a metaphor is the seriousness of the present-day Middle Ages on our way toward straightening the plane. Imagine a massive mental plane. People are living on that plane. Is it the medieval Earth before it became round? Anyway, this plane Read the full article…
This World is One
It just doesn’t make any logical sense that the peoples on it are divided. Yet here we are. Meanwhile, we may be living in a decade that, more than any other, is decisive in realizing oneness. “This world is one.” Of course, I mean this under the assumption that human beings would be fundamentally rational Read the full article…
Creating the Enemy
Is ‘the ubiquitous enemy’ simply a surface-level mental trap into which human beings get caught out of some vulnerability? Or is finding yet another enemy the result of our looking actively and profoundly for one and – if need be – creating one? This text was written on the 11th of November, armistice day. We Read the full article…
Where do You Go to, My Planet?
Nowhere yet for a while, but people worldwide are rapidly going somewhere. Global politics is on the move. Much depends on how we understand and manage ourselves in-depth and how we deal with a pending paradigm shift at the core of who we are. That sounds dramatic enough. Please, first read about the great mental Read the full article…
The Great Mental Paradigm Shift
One can see the related tension becoming more and more consequential in several fields (from healthcare to politics and more) over decades. This can continue getting worse, or we can take action to make the transition go smoothly. About? The great mental paradigm shift is about transitioning from a largely conceptual take on the human Read the full article…
How to Dis-Illusion
How can one get people out of a clear and certain state of illusion? For instance, flat-earthers. My earth is not flat. If yours is, then my task – including with this text – is to invite-guide-bring you toward a different opinion. How should I do that? Not by telling you to look to the Read the full article…
Sleepwalking from World Crisis to World Crisis
The global crises that we are experiencing one after another – or even simultaneously – do not happen by coincidence. In-depth, their common cause is a fundamentally wrong view of the deep-mental side of the human being. Ancient wisdom and cutting-edge science have been trying to wake up humanity ― until now, in vain. Even Read the full article…
Far-Away Matters, in Time and Place
Compassion is concerned with all sentient beings ― not only those of the immediate environment but also on the other side of the world, the universe, and the future: any sentience that can be causally influenced. Effective altruism This is a philosophy, a movement, and also a concrete organization. To be optimally effective, altruism should Read the full article…
Can Compassion Draw Us out of Decadence?
Worldwide, people have been struggling, are struggling, and will do so even more regarding a sense of decadence. That is a bad omen for things to come, but there is a way out. Etymologically ‘Decadence’ comes from the Medieval Latin decadentia = decay. This comes from the Latin decadere = de (down) + cadere (to Read the full article…
Modern Copernicus
We need a new Copernican revolution in which each person acts as a modern Copernicus within his own inner mind-universe. The historical Copernicus (1473-1543) placed the sun at the center of the physical universe instead of the Earth. Likewise, modern Copernicus places the deeper self – rather than the ego – at the center of Read the full article…
How to Unite People from Different Cultures
Depending on how well they know themselves, people from different cultures may be more similar as well as more different from each other than they imagine. This poses challenges and immense opportunities. Please read first: Constructionism – Constructor – Construct A culture emerges and endures through its constructed reality. This is the case especially now Read the full article…
Yin – Yang – YinYang
YinYang is my term to describe the in-depth synthesis of Yin and Yang. (Sub)conceptual While many things can be seen as Yin or Yang, there is a family resemblance within both. In one interpretation, Yin may be more fluid, Yang more solid. I see in Yin the more subconceptual side of thinking, while Yang is Read the full article…
Never Surrender
Keep following your ideals. This presupposes a continual search for what your ideals are. This again presupposes a constant search for who you are. What’s in quitting? This doesn’t mean that you cannot or should not change your mind. What it does aim at is being proud of following your ideals also if they bring Read the full article…
Why the West is Scared
This is a personal, intuitive interpretation. Please take it with a grain of salt. It might invite you to form your own opinion. ‘The enemy’ is frequently used as a means to deal with being scared. This way, outside and inside enemies overlap. Whence Angst? We live in a peculiar time, I mean, for the Read the full article…
Hikikomori
Since the late nineties, the phenomenon of hikikomori has hit Japan. The definition is a physical isolation for minimally six months (sometimes years or decades), active avoidance of any social interaction or commitment, and feelings of inadequacy or despondence. According to Japanese government figures, there are presently around 1 million individuals living as hikikomori within Japan, with Read the full article…
Confucianism
Living in a time of turmoil, Confucius was bent on providing guidance to handle this and create a better world. As to the turmoil, the present is no exception. Confucius may still be relevant with a twist. There are many Confucianisms. Allow me to write about my little understanding. A picture of thousand ideas To Read the full article…
Global Problems through Lack of Depth
To many, at first sight, lack of depth seems a far-fetched cause of global issues. I dare to say the opposite is true. Human depth is something we all feel yet is challenging to conceptualize. This is not a coincidence but related to the very essence of depth itself. Inner dissociation. To me, this is Read the full article…
Reaching for the New by Valuing the Old
In rapidly evolving times such as we see across the globe, people are divided into those wanting to move quickly forward and those reluctant to leave the past. On the move or not? Say, progressives vs. conservatives, two sides of the aisle. It doesn’t matter in this what is politically left or right. According to Read the full article…
Is Any War Worth It?
War is definitely not worth the death of even one human being. One doesn’t need to be a pacifist to see that. War may have been worth it in the past. Groups may have fought each other for scarce resources as a matter of individual life or death. Also, they may have done so due Read the full article…
No to Wokism, Yes to Gentleness
In another blog, I define wokism as woke fundamentalism, being an abuse of wokeness as a positive striving to fully respect and tolerate people of many different kinds. I am very woke, but not at all a wokist. Woke should be gentle. Without gentleness, woke tends to fall into the opposite, being intolerance. Woke is Read the full article…
Woke Fundamentalism
Fundamentalism is never OK. Least of all in ‘woke’ since this has the object of making people awake concerning the negative sides of… fundamentalism. Fundamental In this text, ‘wokism’ denotes ‘woke fundamentalism.’ As in any fundamentalism, anxiety and aggression are core elements. As any fundamentalism, it has at the core the reverse of what the Read the full article…
Global Madness is Today
If you feel like this world is growing in madness, you may be right. Sometimes, it seems like the madness is getting World War proportions ― again. The first World War in two stages shows that it is possible to start in an unexpecting environment. Without doomsday thinking, we should also not put it aside Read the full article…
What’s the Worth of Human Life?
The worth of one human life appears to lie between 2 and 2 billion €, more or less. It all depends on whose life, and I don’t get that. I’m not following. I hear it depends on where human worth is measured. That is revolting. Human life is human life. One may still call some Read the full article…
Politics of Compassion
Countering any politics of anxiety, a politics of Compassion seems the best way to proceed. Empathy To start with proper understanding, Compassion is based on empathy, not sympathy. This also makes Inner Strength a necessary ingredient of Compassion. This is not weak ― quite the contrary. Not being naïve in a mentally developing world, one Read the full article…
Politics of Anxiety
Politics, being ethics at the group level, should not be overshadowed by anxiety. Anxiety Anxiety is an irrational mental state with mostly non-conscious origin. Roughly put, this differentiates it from fear. If not properly managed, anxiety tends to float into depression or aggression. One can see that, ideally, all politics should be exempt from this. Read the full article…
String of Enemies
Since time immemorial, humanity is plagued by a string of enemies. Is this ingrained in human nature? Just recently: from viral to geopolitical etc. 2020-2021: two years of the virus. Until now, with 15 million deaths and trillions of USD/EUROS of economic hardship, the war against this ‘enemy’ has prevented any clear sight of the Read the full article…
Compassionate A.I. in the Military
There are obvious and less obvious reasons — time to re-think the military from the ground up. Compassionate A.I. may lead to this. It should be realized asap. Soldiers are human beings just like others, also if they have deliberately chosen for military service. Compassion is equally applicable to them. The obvious Many soldiers return Read the full article…
Enemy Outside – Enemy Inside
I dare say that the former almost never goes without the latter. Unfortunately, it happens ubiquitously. In my view, this is not an innate human condition but a weakness. Imagine a person Imagine a person as a big bubble, and within that big bubble, there’s a small bubble. The big bubble is the total person. Read the full article…
Geopolitical Inner Dissociation
Planet earth is witnessing geopolitical moves by its most successful species of inhabitants. The future depends on how those inhabitants treat each other and themselves in-depth. This is the turnaround text for ‘Global changes start inside.’ Starting from the global side, it may seem a far stretch to track humanity’s biggest problems to the least Read the full article…
The Value of the Individual
Since the world is becoming a village, and people (many individuals) need to live together in this village, we should tackle this issue urgently and adequately to keep things viable. [I’m not an expert in cultural science. This text contains some self-made insights, which I can easily debunk with counterexamples. So, this is an unfinished Read the full article…
Boundaries of Fluidity
Mental fluidity makes life interesting. It provides the ability to grow as a person, discover and enjoy universes inside, and realize them in many ways. But there are boundaries. In-fluidity One may speak of a healthy kind of mental inflexibility, supporting consistency over time and workable behavior that the community may appreciate. It gives predictability Read the full article…
What Deeply Drives Putin?
At least, it’s worth trying to answer this question. The grotesque actions in Ukraine are an immense magnification of what may be almost nothing at the start ― a cognitive blind spot or misunderstanding. A false start would be by noting that one cannot understand a madman, or that the whole of Russia must be Read the full article…
Open Leadership: Listening to Putin
April 2022. The present situation in Ukraine results from a total lack of Open Leadership. Money, power, status Of course, it’s about big money, including recent discoveries of even more oil in the Black Sea and the Donbass, taxes on the use of pipelines and the economic future of Russia versus Ukraine. Of course, it’s Read the full article…
Is Woke Awake?
Many ‘woke’ people are so heavily against intolerance that they make an intolerant impression. This contradiction begs for insight. Several wokenesses ‘Woke’ is a weak term. Behind it also lies a weak concept. There are very diverse kinds of being woke. Unsurprisingly, there are also various ways of looking at wokeness. It’s not always the Read the full article…
Global Changes Start Inside
This is: deep inside the human mind, upon which one has little direct conscious control. ‘Global’ points to what happens between people at the grant and even global scale. Deeply ubiquitous All people share in-depth propensities that can be realized one way or another, thus on diverse domains orienting the streaming underneath in a direction Read the full article…
Rationality – Science – Technology
It all seems pretty clear. Yet there is fuzziness within that clarity. Rationality leads to science. Science leads to technology. Rationality is a specific state of mind. A human is rational if he has that state of mind. From that state of mind, he can think together a body of knowledge that is internally congruent Read the full article…
A Divided World Will be Conquered by A.I.
Seriously. People fighting each other at a geopolitical level will, through competition and strife, build a world in which A.I. follows suit. There is no doubt about this: IF… THEN. As I write in my book ‘The Journey towards Compassionate A.I.,’ we are entitled to be anxious about A.I. – the real one, soon to Read the full article…
What do People Seek in Magick?
People seek pleasure and happiness. For this, they seek a fulfilling life. For this, they seek meaningfulness. Where do they find it? Magick = very broadly, the use of ritual actions with the aim to manipulate supernatural forces. For instance, psychic healing. Magick is frequently opposed to organized religion as well as science, while at Read the full article…
Beyond Grand Narratives
Since immemorable times, people have been going from one grand narrative towards another. Now we are losing them entirely, opening the path towards ‘beyond.’ (Level of difficulty of this text: 3.5/5) A grand narrative is a bunch of stories that fit into a grand scheme. It brings an ideal, a shared purpose ― a comfortable Read the full article…
Gender Equivalidity
People can be deemed equal in worth without any bit of need to adhere to one mold. Crucial is value, not sameness. Gender equality? Men and women are not equal at the outside, nor at the inside ― least of all at the mental side. Therefore, the term gender equality sounds forced. The more one Read the full article…
Unity, Globally
L’union fait la force ― Unity brings power. ‘Strong Together’ or ‘America First’? There is a challenge in the concept of unity that doesn’t speak directly from such slogans, yet this challenge is crucial to our future (together). Global unity grows at the individual level. In unity we thrive. The human being is a social Read the full article…
Whose Identity are You?
Who needs to gain an identity by being identical? I guess nobody should. No group deserves respect if that respect is not passed on to individuals. Identity politics “A political approach wherein people of a particular gender, religion, race, social background, social class or other identifying factors, develop political agendas that are based upon these Read the full article…
From Group to Team
A group transforms into a team from the inside out. The common goal There is no group or team without a common goal, even if it’s only the goal of being a group. Naturally, a group exists to heighten the fitness of an organism. This may be the group itself or its members, or both. Read the full article…
Power of Ruthlessness
One should not underestimate this power. It is real and present. To negate or neglect it is not Compassionate. Neither is to just whine about it. Ruthlessness asks for profound answers. Etymology ‘Ruth’ comes from ‘reuthe,’ meaning ‘compassion.’ Ruthless = without pity or compassion. In AURELIS-talk, one can say it denotes a lack of Compassion. Read the full article…
Eigenangst
This is the fear of the own deeper layers of mental processing. It’s a powerful direct driver of many negative happenings at the macro and micro scales in the world. ‘Eigenangst’ is a German neologism (by me). I encounter its meaning in the indefinite sound of it. Without conscious awareness One is not consciously aware Read the full article…
Who We Deeply Are and Why it’s Crucial to Know
I don’t want to be a scaremonger. But I’m scared, and I intend to monger until the direction is of utmost clarity. From Afghanistan to the world Yesterday I saw Mahbouba Seraj talking on a program about the situation in Afghanistan. She’s a famous women’s rights activist, and she was talking about this. But I Read the full article…
Tackling Illusions
Homo sapiens as a species has been prone to cognitive illusions from the start. There may have been an evolutionary advantage to this. However, nowadays, it brings a lot of trouble. Several kinds It may be difficult for many who are suffering from one illusion to be compared with other people who suffer from another Read the full article…
Healing Yourself is Healing the Planet
There seems to be no other way to ‘heal the planet,’ so we better take this seriously. As a mindset Many bits make a big? Or, each person wants to be the chosen one who saves the planet? I intend with the title a mindset, a conviction, a promise ― frustrationless desire as a regular Read the full article…
The Tower and the Swamp
Regular medicine is like an unassailable tower. Alternative medicines are like a swamp nearby that continually shifts and is therefore ungraspable. OF COURSE, THIS TEXT IS NOT ABOUT THE TOTALITY OF REGULAR MEDICINE, BUT THE PART WHERE HUMAN DEPTH IS INVOLVED. I didn’t find a picture of swamp + ivory tower. Please use your imagination, Read the full article…
Why People Want Magic
People have always wanted magic. Many continue doing so even in this ‘age of rational thinking.’ We should have gotten rid of it long ago. Of all times. In the New Testament, followers didn’t follow Jesus so much as they were following the miracle man. From the beginning (and even right before) till the end, Read the full article…
Fate
Accepting one’s fate may be very beautiful if it comes from deep inside. Any other kind is worth little. An animal runs away from a predator. The predator grabs it. The animal struggles and dies. It all happens in a short time. Until the last moment, there is little question of fate as far as Read the full article…
Culture Shock
A plea for cultural meaningfulness. As different as cultures may be, one needs to respect the differences. This doesn’t mean that one needs to respect any infliction of human suffering. If some culture leads to human suffering as part of the culture itself, that needs a good reason. Meaningfulness Nature prefers meaningfulness above suffering. This Read the full article…
Revenge = Dissociation
The feeling of revenge needs to be taken seriously in order to transcend it. What has been lost should be restored ― in a different way. Revenge results from the feeling of having lost something. Something has been taken at the meaning level. Revenge is not about the thing itself but the meaning. What one Read the full article…
Are Mental Problems Social Problems?
Psycho-social. There is always an interplay. Looking in-depth, even more so. No issue will be solved by putting one against the other. Meanwhile, individuals need guidance and support as total persons, not as wheels in some clockwork. ‘Mental problems’ For the sake of this text, I categorize as such all issues regarded as psychological or Read the full article…
How Long will Humanism Stay Asleep?
Many global problems will only become worse if this basic philosophical issue doesn’t get resolved in most people’s minds. It’s as – immensely! – crucial as that. Also, as simple as that. Another tradition may explain. ‘Buddha’ literally means ‘the awakened.’ [see: “Buddha-Nature“] In modern scientific terms, this means awakening from the dual Cartesian dream. Read the full article…
Wars ARE Failures
Failures of diplomacy, all right, but more than that, of cultures. Fresh from med school, I almost enlisted as a medical paratrooper. I’m still entirely behind that mindset of mine from back then. Surprise, surprise? Everything is connected. This is true in-depth. Within one culture, seemingly disparate domains are profoundly connected. We may strive towards Read the full article…
One Future, One World
At present, a dream, although an awakened one. Without striving for it, it will never happen. So, let’s dream and strive. I cannot imagine a distant future without far-reaching unity. Hopefully, there will be many diverse cultures and always a lot to discover. Hopefully, these cultures will recognize that we are all very much the Read the full article…
Modernism – Postmodernism – Post-Postmodernism
Twentieth-century Europe has seen the three of them, with huge ups and downs as a result. We still haven’t passed the test cum laude. Conceptual – subconceptual Modernism (in stark form, as is meant in this text) as a movement attempts to conceptualize reality as a whole. At most, “Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must Read the full article…
Arrogance and the Skeptic Mind
Arrogance doesn’t invite skepticism. On the contrary, yet it sometimes appears to go together. Even more, it sometimes appears to be an indispensable combination. And that’s a bad thing for skepticism. Internally, because an arrogant attitude doesn’t optimally invite one to keep thinking. Now, that is precisely what a skeptic mind does: keep thinking. You Read the full article…
Radical Deradicalization
A radicalized standpoint generally does not care so much for rationality. In many cases, there is also little Compassion involved. More Compassion is needed and, from there, rationality. Radicalization People get radicalized into mental mono-culture. There is a lack of attention for other directions. This lack pushes a person searching for ‘salvation’ to believe that Read the full article…
Inclusiveness at Work
This is a worthy, challenging goal that can only be attained by valuing our humanness. As such, it’s about each individual person, including yourself. Inclusiveness Inclusiveness at work is about many things, such as gender, race, age, nationality, and religious denomination. The borders are those of morality. Sociopaths or people who don’t have an inclusive Read the full article…
La Libertad! (Freedom)
Grand ideals are never enough. Many utopias fail. Not the ideals are to blame, but the lack of embeddedness and further support. The ideal of freedom is no exception. Being in a Simón Bolívar mood. This is not just a fickle blog. The lesson is profound. It’s interesting to look at the life of some Read the full article…
Culture Changes when Top-Down meets Bottom-Up
Not separately from each other, but intertwined and as though mutually attracted ― making it personal. Sustainable change is culture change. Top-down (through rules and regulations, encompassing changes on a big scale) This may work when also being carried from the bottom up. This means that rules should only be enacted after the bottom-up has Read the full article…
My People is Everybody
Without diminishing the “XX (= my people) first,” it explodes the XX. There is no first, principally, thus also no second and no last. No zero-sum ― only abundance. Please, read first [see: “Compassion, basically“] One can start from the right of the strongest and win ― especially in a game made by oneself with Read the full article…
Predestination – Karma – …?
Different cultures, different takes on basically the same. Small glossary Predestination: Christian (mainly Protestant) belief that God has predestined the salvation of some and not others, or even all that will happen. Karma: Hindu belief that all of one’s actions together in this and previous lives predestine one’s future fate. Non-conscious processing From an AURELIS Read the full article…
How to Build a Culture of Compassion
Challenging indeed ― especially in an organizational environment with zero compassion and a lot of fear and toxicity. Some AURELIS-congruent ideas may be helpful. Please read first, [see: “Compassion, basically“]. No coercion One might be tempted to impose some Compassionate rules and quickly get on with the real business. In my view, this is not Read the full article…
The Battle of the Future
This battle is going on already for a long time, but it will shape the future like nothing else. It is a battle inside. Mere-ego and total-person Both are mental states or attitudes. There are no two persons inside one. Yet, to make the distinction by way of talking is important enough. Even more, it Read the full article…
The Meaning Crisis
This is probably the most meaningful of all crises. Yes, surely. Please read about ‘deep meaning,’ which is meant here. [see: “The Meaning of Meaning“] People hold on to meaningfulness. Understandably, why would someone do anything? Because there is a ‘why,’ therefore, a meaning ― agency ― life. So much more concerning deep meaning. Without Read the full article…
Words don’t Matter
Words are things. If not imbued with life, they are like water that flows to the sea on an eternally lifeless planet. Concepts matter. Emotions matter. Depth matters. Beauty matters. Culture matters. People matter. Life matters. Words don’t matter. They’re just letters, one after the other. All the above matters within words ― not the Read the full article…
How to Unify Ideologies
In four steps. I hope this clarifies the direction to take and which one not to take. In-between lies a huge but not insurmountable hurdle. Ideology = deep values In due time, these may become an integral part of one’s conscience. [see: “What about Conscience?“] An ideology is (almost?) always based on preexisting values. It Read the full article…
I Want to Do in Group
This may be the most fundamental motivational sentence. David McClelland’s motivation theory This is arguably the most prominent motivation theory. It suggests three basic needs for anyone: the need for power, achievement, and affiliation. Many see in this distinction three different personalities, promptly dividing people into three classes: a) those mainly bent on power and control; Read the full article…
The Post-Postmodernist Brain
“because your experiences are unique, so are the vast, detailed patterns in your neural networks. Because they continue to change your whole life, your identity is a moving target; it never reaches an endpoint.” [1] This is a quote from a recent book on neurocognitive science. The book (and author) is top-notch in this domain. Read the full article…
The Life that Could Have Been
Every woman with a child in her belly has an emotional bond with it. That is why she calls it a child. If this child’s life is abruptly ended, we have an abortion. When? To some women, this may be the moment of the positive predictor test. To other women, it may be much later. Read the full article…
Problem- vs. Growth-Oriented in Mental Issues
This may lead to diametrically opposed ways of being and many misunderstandings. As a mindset. All of us continually encounter issues, from minor to life-size. This way, there is ample occasion to practice in seeing them either as problems or as invitations to grow. Problems may lead more generally to stress; invitations to positive challenges Read the full article…
You Are Not Your Enemy
More specifically, your nonconscious mind is not something like a tiny dinosaur brain inside your brain-mind that you have to fight with your rational mind to keep in check or otherwise… It’s just not like that at all. Nor are there three brains in your brain. [see: “The Brainy Trinity“] This idea was popularized to Read the full article…
The Basic Denial
Not seeing though an obvious illusion is one thing. Not wanting to see despite immense mayhem for countless people is different. Basic cognitive illusion This is: not consciously reckoning with non-conscious, subconceptual mental-neuronal processing. [see: “The Basic Cognitive Illusion”] This illusion is debunked by a lot of scientific data. For instance, [see: “The Post-Postmodernist Brain”] Read the full article…
Meaningful Reality
This is the reality I would prefer to live in. Even if there were no other, the meaningful one would be OK for me. It is also the only one I am sure of. In reality, of course, there are no separate realities. This is about perception and experience ― as is eventually everything. Something Read the full article…
Daring to Be Vulnerable
Daring to be vulnerable while striving to be as strong as possible is more worthwhile than just showing to be vulnerable. Being vulnerable is not valiant. In many cases, there is confusion involved. The vulnerability may be regarded as an asset, which it is not. Contrary to this, AURELIS strives toward the last two letters: Read the full article…
Constructed Realities
If this piece makes you feel slightly bad, my advice is to continue reading. [see also: “Constructionism“] Matrix? You may know the movie. People are kept asleep in some ‘real reality’ while in their minds, they are artificially entertained in a world of make-belief. This is a constructed, digital second-life where they get fulfilling experiences. Read the full article…
Turtle Vagaries
If you think this is about you, you might be right. Even more, it is about you as total-person. Any ocean turtle sticks out its neck most of the time. Each time it does, it’s vulnerable. The wise turtle knows when to do so and when not. That is how it lives ― sometimes to Read the full article…
Being a Hero
Daring to be as little vulnerable as possible. Then, if need be, daring to be vulnerable. I fail in both directions miserably. [see: “Daring to Be Vulnerable“] [see: “Don’t Be Vulnerable”] ‘Hero’ in a rather narrow sense. The term can be used in a much broader sense, ‘heroic’ being anything admirable. That’s great. It’s not Read the full article…
Culture and Nature
The age-old debate: culture vs. nature. High time it becomes: culture FOR nature ― environmentally and most of all profoundly inside ourselves. We might have forgotten: We are nature. More and more, technology enables us to forget that we are nature. Many know it like it were just a piece of information, but not as Read the full article…
Compassion Connecting East & West
And North and South, of course, and everything in-between ― even past, present, and future. Essential A Compassionate attitude is to be received gracefully after sometimes earning it with huge effort and even danger to yourself. Sacrifices are unnecessary, but the person who is reluctant to make them can hardly attain a Compassionate stance. At Read the full article…
Culture over STEM
Much talk is about the importance of STEM in schooling, while profound culture gets sidelined. STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics Profound culture = what makes us deeply human in future society. In this text, culture is always ‘profound.’ In my teenage years, I was very motivated in both directions. From my first medical school Read the full article…
Wanted, the Truth!
Humans are truth-seekers in many different ways ― a worthy and challenging adventure. Paraphrasing Zhuangzi I don’t know whether I have been dreaming last night and am writing this after waking up, or whether I am still dreaming and writing this, hoping that you, dear reader, will read it in your dream. As far as Read the full article…
Looking at Suffering
We should never forget the suffering. Numbers don’t suffer. People do. Children and mothers and fathers, as you know. Husbands and wives. We know. Should we then all keep thinking about the suffering of so many who are in misery? Yes, we should, in a way. Of course, we cannot, for several reasons. We don’t Read the full article…
Are Cultures Compatible?
Yes! At least, they should be. Compassionately, they are, with individuals and other cultures. Living cultures change all the time. A totally static culture is a dead one. Conservative politicians may put up a smokescreen of static culture. It gives them power over their constituents, as the ones who can preserve this ‘culture’ against its Read the full article…
Three Dangers of Freemasonry
Depth needs effort. Lots of effort ― even more so if one thinks to make enough effort already. There are many forms of pseudo-depth, especially when shrouded in secrecy, Looking for a combination of depth and rationality, a few years ago, I ventured into the world of freemasonry. A lot of information about it is Read the full article…
Gendering the Workplace
The workplace still disfavors women in many respects. Let’s project a future vision of a workplace with gender as a source of joy and interesting experiences, and without any disfavors. ‘Gender inequality’ as a problem to work on, can be turned into ‘gender equality’ to strive for. There is more positivity in this than just Read the full article…
Out of Anxiety. Out of Polarization.
Where there is a way in, there is a way out. Always again: inner dissociation It is so fundamental because it is basic to our naissance as a species. When in a very general mood, one can see it as a side effect of a broad ‘second wave’ in which consciousness appears but cannot very Read the full article…
Social Freedom
Individual freedom is a fundamental human urge. In an increasingly complex society, it may clash with the human being’s urge as a social being. This clash may shape humanity in the near and distant future. Freedom Pondering about freedom. [see: “The Goal: Freedom“] Individual freedom is vital to any organism as an ‘agent,’ separating it Read the full article…
United Democracy
The quality of a democracy depends on the system and the people. A crucial element in this is their degree of polarization. Valuing democracy From the start, more than two millennia ago, it was noted that democracy is dependent on the worthiness of those who form part of it. Democracy is not just a system Read the full article…
Fear of Dying
Many people are irrationally afraid of dying, even while they know they will not suffer when being dead. Many know they are irrational in this, yet they don’t know why, and keep being afraid. Every living being wants to live. Straightforwardly. Well, depending on what you call ‘wanting.’ Does a bacterium want to live? It Read the full article…
Mediation is the Way Out of Polarization
At their core, people are the same. Dissociated from their core, people also dissociate from each other. In due time, they polarize. Mediation serves to bring them back to each other and themselves. Towards the blog title With mediation is meant here the AURELIS kind. [see: “AURELIS Transformative Mediation“] This is directed towards self-knowledge, self-growth, Read the full article…
Why Do People Polarize?
Increasing polarization is going on in many parts of the world. We are seemingly not at the end of this trend. Needed is a growing awakening to who we are: total human beings. Different opinions Different opinions may see each other more clearly in the differences as well as in the similarities. They can inspire, Read the full article…
The Intellectual Elite – Leaving Nobody Behind
This is an idea, a concept. It is not a set of people who, for instance, have accomplished something, did some study, or wrote a book. The elite is a goal, something to which anybody can and should strive, certainly also in the business world. One may attain little, perhaps through genetic predisposition or just Read the full article…
Sticky Thoughts
This is the foreword to my book ‘Sticky Thoughts’ that you can find on Amazon (see menu). The purpose of Sticky Thoughts is to bring in a concise way (so that each of them ‘fits on a sticker’) many ideas that may be ‘sticky’ in that they linger on in the reader’s mind. The stickers Read the full article…
About Hope
Where there is Hope, there is at least one good feeling that can guide people – including yourself – through the direst situations. Hope makes one less vulnerable while keeping sensitivity and Compassion alive. Hope versus hope It’s not altogether an easy distinction. As with any other ‘deep’ concept, hope can be meant and understood Read the full article…
Demo Cracy
‘Power to the people’ is not self-evident. Who is this ‘people’? And what kind of ‘power’ is desirable? Eventually, democracy is the only worthwhile way, but in which way? ►►► WHY read this? Democracy itself will increasingly be under pressure if we do not act now.◄◄◄ Demos Cratos Demos = people; cratos = power. Power Read the full article…
A.I., HR, Danger Ahead
Many categorizing HR techniques are controversial, and rightly so. There is little to no scientific background. Despite this, they keep being used. Why do people feel OK with this? In combination with A.I., it is extremely dangerous. People feel a longing for control. Naturally. Being alive is about ‘agency,’ which is about wanting control. Without Read the full article…
Should Business Be Rational?
“We don’t care about science, as long as ‘it works.’” Of course, I don’t agree. ►►► WHY read this? Rationality is of utmost importance for business sustainability in every respect. ◄◄◄ Mechanic, organic Regarding technology, there is not much of a problem. To everyone his smartphone. Well. This device couldn’t have been made without rational Read the full article…
Singular They, Plural Nonsense?
As a writer, I’m admonished to play by the rulebook. But I don’t. ►►►WHY read this? This concerns everyone who feels threatened by he, she, they, or anything.◄◄◄ Gender involvement I used to write (s)he, awkwardly, so I went back to he. Politically incorrect, humanly correct, of course: He doesn’t downplay women. Women can feel Read the full article…
Social Media versus Irony
It’s actually, nowadays, rather the world versus irony. (q&d = quick and dirty) Quite disturbing A culture without real irony is like a symbolic plant without water. Such can only survive by turning itself into cardboard. I don’t call that ‘surviving’ at all. A culture that shoves irony under the carpet tends to indulge in Read the full article…
AURELIS Social Impact
In AURELIS philosophy, the societal – systemic – impact is crucial. The individual is seen in totality, as an in-dividuum. Precisely through this, overlap with other in-dividua is natural, efficient, and vital. ►►► WHY read this? Working on yourself in openness is the best you can do for others, and what others can do for Read the full article…
Streaming Underneath
A cultural stream may stream hard, even when it’s not readily visible. The latter may make it more challenging to manage, or even to influence. ►►► WHY read this? You may feel the streaming sometimes. It’s challenging to take responsibility in this regard. ◄◄◄ What on earth is this guy talking about? I’m talking about Read the full article…
Stress in Production, Stress in Consumption
One leads to the other and vice versa, in a vicious circle from which we better escape. Production and consumption To be able to produce more, marketing departments are set up to entice consumers to consume more products from the producer who owns or regulates the marketing. Nothing new. To be able to consume more, Read the full article…
Tired of Screen Meetings? – 10 Leader’s Tips
Many are getting bored of screen meetings even before they’re getting used to them. Specific attention is needed to this problem, especially in COVID times. Just a “get used to it” doesn’t solve it, of course. Putting an issue as a problem or a wish Always important. The wish shouldn’t be just the negation of Read the full article…
Headscarf Here, Headscarf There
When I see a girl or woman walking down the street with a headscarf and bent shoulders, a bit sad from afar, I wonder if her troubles come from cultural oppression. I want to ask her but don’t, politely. Some bragging: in 1987, I had an Arab year. After eight months of intensive self-study, in Read the full article…
Unborn Life
We’re talking about human lives. Let’s not put the pro and con against each other now. Let’s just posit some situations and think and feel about them. This is about how you can feel about it. It’s not about what’s in a book. It’s not about what anyone tells you, including me. It’s only about Read the full article…
Strongmen Manipulate
A strongman is strong because others are weaker. A leader is strong because others are strong. An Open Leader has Inner Strength. The opposite of an Open Leader. A manipulator is never a leader. A leader does not need to manipulate. Instead, he leads. A ‘strongman’ – what’s in a name – usually sees himself Read the full article…
Is Social Nocebo Real?
Can culturally engrained convictions have a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of many individuals? About placebo A person can have a placebo effect all by himself by being convinced that something is helpful, but by itself, it is not helpful at all. This way, for instance, a sugar pill can be a ‘painkiller.’ Read the full article…
The Source of Discrimination
Whether the discrimination is oriented towards another gender, race, handicap, religious orientation, mental disease, or simply people with a different attitude, it always starts with the discrimination of one’s deeper self. The desire to be on the right side This may be the deepest layer, and it is a positive layer. It is the desire Read the full article…
Is Violence OK?
Without a glorification of violence, being realistic may eventually diminish the need for it. Not running away from violence Running away from violence is, in real-world, sometimes conducive to precisely what one is running away from. As with many things, this is related to gentle-strong-weak-hard. [see: “Weak, Hard, Strong, Gentle“]. It may attract people who Read the full article…
Dictatoriality
= personally imposing things that others have to follow without overt questioning and without prior general consent. At the national level, this can also be accomplished in a democracy. In the past, dictatorial regimes have grown out of democracies more than once. To the dictator, it’s just one more step. And more Dictatoriality can be Read the full article…
All Lives Matter
Black lives too As a matter of fact All lives matter because ‘to matter’ is what life is about. More to the point: it is what life is. If something doesn’t matter by itself, then it’s not life. If something is alive, then it matters, at least to itself. This is another way of saying Read the full article…
Motivating ‘Us’
Again and again, people stick together in the formation of ‘us’ that gets its identity from not being ‘them.’ Can we not all together become ‘us’? At any level People find an ‘us’ at many levels. The ‘us’ generally comes with a ‘them.’ For instance, it may be highly valued to be patriotic and, in Read the full article…
The Future is Open
Open as in Open Mindfulness, Open Religion, Open Leadership. Open as in open-complex. Open to inside as well as outside. Positively Open Openness with a capital O is about overlap. I see this as a positive characteristic in many ways. Internally, it is about the overlap of concepts, leading to a much-enhanced capacity to make Read the full article…
Anxiety
People who apparently feel little anxiety, quite often turn out to harbor a lot, arguably more so in Western cultures. The latter may seem so because it strikes me more. [See in AurelisOnLine: Anxiety] Anxiety, not fear Fear is conceptual. The object of fear is mostly well delineated. One can say: It is mechanical, directly Read the full article…
What Has Been, Is, and Will Be
Humanity is in turmoil. Several of the world’s biggest problems are at present happening together because of an underlying process. There is a need for a comprehensive look to see this process thoroughly. It is not so much related to what happens to us, humans, as to what happens from within us, who we are. Read the full article…
Why Do They Vote Differently?
The other side is always the other side, viewed from what is to them the other side. So, are they voting differently, or are you? ►►► WHY read this? To preserve democracy, we need to answer this question.◄◄◄ Seeing ‘the other side’ is primarily internal. As a human being, one doesn’t see one’s mind, but Read the full article…
You as a Symbol
The symbolic, as used in this text, is entirely the domain of the subconceptual. This is always present. Also, humans may always be symbolic to others. Please read first: [see: “Symbolism: How-To“] Many symbols. Each in-depth symbol is a symbol of you. You find yourself in anything that acts as a profound symbol to you, Read the full article…
Killing Babies? – Nobody Does
No sane person likes killing babies. I don’t like killing babies. I don’t like the killing of babies. I don’t like the idea of babies getting killed. Babies should be respected as human beings. But put one cell together with another cell, and there is no baby. Calling that a baby is disrespectful to babies. Read the full article…
Why Death Penalty is Murder
Taking into account full human being, there is no relevant difference between the accused and the accuser. ‘Taking conscious human life’ This is a quite good definition of murder. In case of the death penalty, it’s murder with full premeditation. In ‘taking,’ one can see a relevant fuzziness which makes thinking about, for instance, euthanasia Read the full article…
Sanctity of Life
At first place, I mean human life. This can eventually be broadened to any life, any ‘sentient being.’ Sanctity To me, life is its own sanctification. It doesn’t need a sanctifying instance, even if there were one. If you want sanctification to come from ‘anything’, then – to me again – that ‘anything’ sanctifies life Read the full article…
Sveltitude
is an attitude. More precisely, it’s an element of an attitude of just-enough. Moderation. Just-enough to be healthy and focused. Just-enough to optimally be. Spirit of Sveltitude Sveltitude is a mental attitude, a vision of what is qualitatively meaningful. It’s not so much about how much you weigh, but how much you ‘weigh upon’. Thus, Read the full article…
Sowing Hatred
Sowing hatred leads to aggression and more hatred. An additional problem is that this happens mainly through subconceptual ways. So to speak, ‘underground.’ Like in nature, seeds that you sow develop underground in such a way that a lot has happened before one can see the result appear above the ground. With the seeds of Read the full article…
Poetry is Not the Absence of Rationality
Nevertheless, to many people, it seems to be so. I find this dangerous. It sets both against each other and precludes a nice being-human in full potential. [see also: “Rationality and Poetry”] Mistrusting ‘the expert’ Experts frequently bend on their rational stance to lend them authority to speak and even decide what others should do. Read the full article…
People, Planet, Profit
One should not be against ‘profit’ except as an exclusive goal. In the latter case, it’s an addiction. In all other cases, it can be an instrument towards doing good. What is Profit? Profit = good striving. The etymology of ‘profit’ is very positive: related to proficiency, from the Latin verb proficere: to accomplish, make Read the full article…
Why Friendliness Matters in Any Discussion
A lack of friendliness aborts any serious discussion. People are afraid to speak out, lest they be verbally beaten down or even expelled from the in-crowd. One needs to stand up against this. Unfriendliness is eventually ALWAYS counter-productive. In the end, good causes lose this way. The final balance is negative. What may be won, Read the full article…
Why Humanism Needs AURELIS
I admit: this title is quite highbrow. I need to do some explaining. [see also: “Humanism with a Vengeance”] Humanism = taking human being into account as-is. Not as some organization portrays it if this runs counter to obvious reality, of which science and rationality are pretty good critics, even if not necessarily the only Read the full article…
Cynicism
Cynicism: a nicely burning fire is no more. From its ditch of retreat, now and then another fire comes forth, meant to hurt and even destroy. Etymology of ‘cynic’: κυνικοι (kunikoi): ‘dogs’ in ancient Greek referring to ruthless behavior and simple lifestyle of a number of their followers, as exemplified by Diogenes, nicknamed ‘the dog’. Read the full article…
Equality?
Everybody knows we live in a world of huge inequality. Indeed. But inequality in what? Where lies importance? Thus, in what should we strive for more equality? In money? Thus: in the currency that can be traded for any other ‘goods’: a car, a house, even a wife in (many men’s) imagination? A strict focus Read the full article…
Being Kind
You are kind. You make people feel good. OK. This way they may have more opportunity to be kind to themselves. Why not? Pay attention though. And of course, pay attention to the attention itself because too much attention may stop all kinds of things that can only be themselves when allowed to flow freely. Read the full article…
Work-Life (in the) Balance
Work-life balance may not be the best start if it brings more emphasis on a divide between both. For ages and until relatively recently people had only a ‘life’. ‘Work’ was what you had to do to stay alive within that life. At times, one had to work really hard… still it wasn’t ‘work’ as Read the full article…
Enlightenment, Kant, AURELIS, Growth
It’s time to bring things together. This is according to me the only way forward. ‘Western Enlightenment’ points to a historical period from +/- 1650 onwards, till +/- first part of 19th century. It was multifaceted, to say the least, and came in several waves from ‘moderate’ to ‘radical’… to even ‘totalitarian’ (à la Robespierre). Read the full article…
Everyday Mysticism
This doesn’t downgrade mysticism to everyday. It upgrades everyday to mysticism. Every day, fleeting moments of mysticism For example, a sense of deep wonder or awe for a beautiful sunrise, in the train from Antwerp to Brussels. For example, a beautiful song that carries me (much) further than usual. For example, a shared insight during Read the full article…
Excellence
One should not be apprehensive to excel as long as this does not interfere with human value. There is a natural drive to excel and that’s perfectly OKAY. [see also: ‘Being of Value’] ἄριστος (aristos) = ancient Greek for ‘excellent’ or ‘outstanding’, being apart / above the rest. You recognize it in the term ‘aristocracy’. Read the full article…
The Problem of the Skeptic
Typically human to run into such kind of problem… Well, we’ll have to deal with it. Hm, by throwing it out of the window? Let’s say you are a skeptic. That means you are a person wishing to you use rationality to ‘think for yourself’, as Kant admonished us all to do in order to Read the full article…
Group Thinking
The French term ‘pensée unique’ is frequently used for what is actually ‘pensée de groupe’ (group thinking). This is a human inclination with dire consequences but which can be overcome through proper support and personal effort. This is related to a quite natural human inclination. In many cases, your brain (thus: you) doesn’t readily like Read the full article…
Beyond Post-Truth
‘Getting beyond’ is as much related to meaning as it is to truth. [Please read before this: ‘Post-Truth’] Let’s get beyond it Which, I admit – without POMO-ing myself – may not be completely possible. There is always more ‘between heaven and earth’ [quoting Shakespeare] not to speak about ‘beyond heaven and earth’. But that’s Read the full article…
Post-Truth
“Not the facts are important but what works. The higher human purpose is to escape literalism and reach the essence, shaping one’s own reality.” No. I’ve not gone mad. And I’ve not gone POMO, fancy acronym for post-modernism. To assure you, the under-title of this blog is as abhorrent to me as I hope it Read the full article…
Humanism with a Vengeance
Humanism: ‘man is the measure of all things.’ Vengeance: this is about the total human being – partly conscious, mostly nonconscious. Many faces of humanism, yesterday and today Among them, I see ‘humanism’ as what puts human being at the forefront, thus not – apart from human being – any organization: no religion, no politics, Read the full article…
In-Group Creates Out-Group?
One frequently encounters the idea that a group gets formed by building defensive walls against other groups. Is this the best way? People are groupish. This is: we like to ‘be in a group’. Yes, with quote signs, because the group may be of very diverse kind. For instance, it may be quite abstract: a Read the full article…
The Real Power of a World Model
A world model is not only a model of the world. It is also a model that comes from the world (the world in a certain model) and that can act upon an individual in a very powerful way. First of all, dear reader, it can act upon you too. Allow me to be very Read the full article…
Peace
It’s the people who create the war. Of course. A similar cliché is: peace only starts within yourself, and nowhere else. But what does that mean, ‘peace within yourself’? Peace does not start at the enemy, but at the enemy of the enemy. At yourself, thus. And then also at the enemy. Because even that Read the full article…
Politics: Left, Right, Up, Down
We see a lot of confusion in present-day politics. This may indicate the need for a fundamental shift in direction, not of some party or system but of the very idea of politics itself. What is left and right in politics, tends to change a lot especially over a number of decennia. At present, one Read the full article…
‘Doing Good’: Not as Easy as It Seems
Imagine you are a ‘special kind of therapist’. Good. All kinds of people come by your place with a ‘problem’ and they leave with a sense of relief, glad they came along. After a while they come back and then the same phenomenon occurs. Friendly faces. Nothing to worry about. ‘Doing good’ seems evident. Is Read the full article…
Dissociation at World Level
In other words and at the same time as stated earlier: ‘soul’ getting lost. But then across the world. The first time that such a thing as AURELIS came to mind (in my mind, as a rather naive post-adolescent), was in the year 1984 in Brazil. In a pediatric hospital in a favela (slum) of Read the full article…
Zombification
Disclaimer: this text is not for overly sensitive readers. The term ‘zombie’ probably comes from the West African nzambi, which means: a dead person who is made alive again, but who has no own free will. In the Afro-Caribbean culture this is an essential part of voodoo (originally from West Africa). So, we are in Read the full article…
Object-Science Versus Subject-Science
Science about objects: physics, chemistry… Science about subjects: psychology, history… Both sciences are different and important. Alpha, beta, positive etc. Let’s skip that and simply talk about object- versus subject-science. This is related to, respectively, closed-world versus open-world phenomena. Explanatory analogy: A cloud (‘open world’ with lots of possible influences in all directions) doesn’t fit Read the full article…
Hooray it Works!
It seems like the basis of this culture. Not so much the phrase in itself but rather the direct stop at its end. It is a culture of minimal effort. If ‘it works’ … what more do you want? It is also a culture of ‘many’. Many things. Something works and off you go to Read the full article…
Possible Meaning of AURELIS in the World
AURELIS is a way of standing in the world, a way of ‘being’, or at least: an attempt to this end. Nobody is perfect, thank God. You could consider AURELIS as a form of ‘therapy’. Then it becomes a part of health care. People have problems/needs and they are trying to find a solution. On Read the full article…
Do Not Turn the Other Cheek…
… unless you think it’s worthwhile. I have a lot of respect for other-cheek-turners. If however, nothing gets learned from it, one may keep turning cheeks indefinitely. If someone slaps you on the cheek, then I think that it’s better to look at that person than to turn your gaze away while offering the other Read the full article…
From Identity Politics to Utopia
Identity politics = “based on or catering to the cultural, ethnic, gender, racial, religious, or social interests that characterize a group.” Gay versus straight, black versus white, Palestinians versus Israelis, Catholics versus Protestants, Englishmen versus immigrants (see Brexit)… To many, the own group is ‘the box that I and others think I belong to’. I Read the full article…
Two Racisms – One Way Out
At the surface, racism is simply about a feeling of superiority over people from another race or ethnicity. Here ends the easy part. Why do people rank other people as inferior or superior based on inherited characteristics, be it visible in color or anything else? With due respect to those being racially discriminated, I want Read the full article…
Teen Spirit
An adolescent brain is not just an immature brain. There is a purpose: daring to experiment in an open quest for meaning. The term ‘adolescent,’ etymologically ‘one who is becoming an adult’ arguably puts the norm on adulthood: adolescence as a preparation for adult life, complexified by hormonal changes and an ongoing cognitive and emotional, Read the full article…
Monogamy?
You might not like this. Please bear with me until the end. I will repeat that this idea is not unconditionally applicable. About ‘mono’ in monogamy Is it merely about a one-on-one relationship at a superficial level? As in “Thy Shall not Covet Thy Neighbor’s Consort”? Or is it primarily about a deeper level, as Read the full article…
Against Aggression Against Terrorism
Aggressively fighting terrorism is putting fuel on terrorism. There are other ways. Relatively (!) seen, terrorism is not the biggest problem. Worldwide, there are 11.7K terrorism deaths per year – mostly in Africa, versus for instance 450K through homicide, 1.3M through traffic accidents, 184K through drinking sugary beverages… Of course, each premature death is one Read the full article…
The End of War
War is not inevitable. At some point in the future, there will be no war ever anymore. We can think about what is needed towards that. No war is worth it. Let’s be reasonable. However, an argument against pacifism is that it leads aggressive opponents to seek their chances on war or economic invasion. Right. Read the full article…
How Green Is Your Mind?
Inner mind is pure nature. Therefore, a true environmentalist sees nature outside and inside as worthy goals. They form a natural and logical synthesis. People who want to take care of the environment should also take care of themselves in-depth. The environment deeply is their cause ― no matter whether they are rich or poor. This Read the full article…
About Conservatism
Conservatism – as seen by many – likes freedom and responsibility, based on a view upon human beings as free and responsible entities. According to a main viewpoint by ‘conservatives’ worldwide and which I adopt in this text, conservatism is generally about this one thing and then another: Individuals should be allowed as much personal Read the full article…
Deep Diplomacy
The highest standard in diplomacy leads to welfare for all. Getting the best deal? Diplomacy is not a commercial act! Far more than deal-making, deep diplomacy is about making a better world. Thus also understanding what an ethically better world should be. This is about aligning one’s side and ‘the other side’ through common goals, Read the full article…
Imagine – Peace and Unity on Earth
Peace and unity within you. Then: overflowing towards others and the planet. Back to flower power? Yes, with a twist through modern science. It starts and ends within you This is of course a huge statement. At first sight, it is quite individualistic. Is this not a Western bias? Perhaps. But ‘individualistic’ brings the connotation Read the full article…
A Deeper-Self Political Primer?
The ‘total human being’ is important not only to individual health but also to a lot of societal questions and domains. Let’s mind-game a political party that would stand for the total human being, with deep respect for the present situation as well as for a desired change towards a more open future… Are we Read the full article…
81. The war on terrorism is fought in the heart
OK folks. Let’s face it. We are, at the dawn of the third millennium, living the Third World War. As in every other World War, there is of course an enemy. Or at least we think so. Do we? ◊◊◊ Yeah! It’s the war against terrorism! Or is it against terrorists? Should it not be Read the full article…
From Sexual Harassment to Being a Gentleman
A ‘no’ is a no, even between quotation marks. In any ambivalent situation, you should not sexually harass any woman – or man – in any way. But we should start tackling this issue from a positive side… To me, ‘gentleman’ is still a nice word. I hope it will stay so forever. What it Read the full article…
Lady Justice’s Blindfold
Will in the future all criminals be seen as in need of coaching rather than punishment? Lady Justice, also known as Themis in ancient Greece As a goddess, she didn’t need a blindfold. She could see everything anyway. Themis also didn’t have a sword (of punishment). Both were added in the 15th century. The blindfold Read the full article…
44. Puberty: the time for respect
Children in their puberty ask (in many cases very loudly) for respect, although they can have a huge difficulty in giving it themselves. The voice of protest is never far away… and I think they are essentially right. I also think that to become a grown-up in a profound way means to keep one’s own Read the full article…
From Deep Meaning to Post-Capitalism
We seem to be stuck in capitalism, yet capitalism itself seems to be stuck. Can ‘deep meaning’ help us to get beyond? Monetary values are measurable. For pure-capitalism (!) to work perfectly, everything needs to get a value that is measurable, comparable, thereby making the valued thing tradable. The most abstract trade is of course Read the full article…
A Demagogue Is an Abuser
A demagogue is like a train, not stopped by things that would stop other people. Take care. In due time, he can go harder and faster. A resemblance strikes me with the Pied Piper of Hamelin, luring children away into a cave, to never be seen again. The tale’s pied piper did so out of revenge. Read the full article…
One Individual’s Euro-Take on US Politics
Democrats are losing in the US and together with them: rationality, empathy, tolerance, equality, freedom…?? I’m a progressive European. So I probably feel more ‘democratic’ than ‘republican’ in US parlance. In any case, it’s unfortunate that the divide between both becomes ever more pronounced. Worse still: This is a divide that more and more becomes Read the full article…