What is Subtlety?

April 1, 2018 General Insights No Comments

Subtlety is not weakness, nor evasiveness. In many cases, it demands courage, especially when at risk of being misunderstood.

Subtlety is not plainly vague, nor elusive, nor ‘indistinct’

but on the contrary: as distinct as possible in a domain in which distinctness is difficult. It’s not indirect but precisely to the point. Subtlety is about making very precise distinctions, as clearly as possible but not therefore plainly clear to anyone. At least, this is the way I want to use the term.

This way, striving towards ‘being clear’ while losing subtlety in the process, is not being clear at all. It’s just being wrong.

‘Subtle’ may have the connotation of ‘brittle’ by default.

That’s also not always correct. Yes, the receiver may quickly lose the point. That doesn’t break the subtlety itself, but only the subtlety-for-the-receiver.

Subtlety clearly demands a two-way endeavor of sender and receiver.

For subtlety to be alive, both need to invest… themselves. Time and energy, at least. Dear reader, I’m also talking about you and me. I try to bring ideas that each are more or less subtle. Sometimes quite so.

Humbly, I ask you to spend enough time on reading…

contrary to what is mainly done with Internet blog texts.

Subtlety is very much like the wings of a butterfly. They are functional if handled well, yet fragile if mistreated. They may be delicate, yet a lot can only be accomplished through them, especially in the domain of ‘deeper’ layers of psyche.

You are the butterfly.

Spread your wings. Enjoy the sun. Search a flower. Dance with other butterflies. Supporting this is my endeavor, through trial and trial again, through these blog texts. Try to see in them mainly invitations to grow, again and again.

People may be(come) aversive to subtlety precisely because of the difficulty to grasp it.

This may lead to frustration each time when one tries to ‘do something with it’, with the eventual conclusion that it’s ‘all about nothing.’

But it’s all about you.

Most subtle of all, for any one of us humans including me, is the difference between ego and total self, referencing both as ‘I’. For instance, when saying “I want”, we almost always think and act as if the ‘I’ is obvious. On the contrary, it is in many cases not obvious at all and it makes a huge difference. At the same time, it is a subtle difference. If this is not accurately understood or ‘realized’, it may lead to dark consequences at personal scale as well as on a very wide scale.

Subtlety is where small errors can mean a lot.

Thus, in matters where subtlety matters, one needs to be careful and as gentle as possible. How you handle your wings may culminate into the difference between ‘heaven’ and ‘hell on earth’.

Each of these blog texts contains subtlety.

I may have made many mistakes.