Practical Philosophy, Individuation and Systems Change
Finding and living a philosophy has two purposes.
On the one hand, it supports our individuation.
Individuation, according to Carl Jung, is the lifelong process of personal development and self-realization, where an individual seeks to integrate and reconcile different aspects of the self to achieve a more balanced and authentic existence. I believe non-humans also have a longing for individuation.
It was also what Arne Naess believed. His “second norm” that he lived by was
"Self-realisation for all living beings!"
The process of individuation involves becoming aware of and integrating both the conscious and unconscious elements of one's personality. Jung emphasized the importance of exploring and understanding the contents of the unconscious mind, including aspects like archetypes, personal complexes, and repressed experiences. Worldviews, or the philosophies we live by, are also part of the unconscious. By bringing these elements into consciousness, we can develop a more comprehensive understanding of ourselves.
“One truth is manifested more in the simple being of bodies than anywhere else: that a force pervades the world that craves existence, and with it individuation and self-awareness.” Andreas Weber
Critical components of individuation include:
The recognition and acceptance of one's unique identity.
The integration of conflicting aspects of the personality.
The development of a sense of wholeness.
Individuation is not a linear or fixed process. It's more like a lifestyle you choose and commit to for the rest of your life. Jung believed that individuation leads to:
a greater sense of purpose, meaning, and connection to the collective unconscious, which contains universal symbols and experiences shared by all of us
and fulfilling one's true potential and thus contributing to the collective well-being.
On the other hand, finding and living a philosophy are potential catalysts for transforming larger systems.
One reason why finding and living a philosophy are potential catalysts for transforming larger systems is because the process of individuation is always already systematic.
The metacrisis requires that we live differently. By living differently, the association is often to change individual lifestyle choices, like living with zero waste and buying organic food and second-hand clothing. And while it is also all of this, understanding sustainable lifestyles in this way reduces us to mere consumers. But, of course, we are more. We are part of socialecological systems and thus also always influence these systems. Changing how we live then can extend into how we run our company, teach, or care for people. And with that, the question of how to live is also always a question about systems change (as I also attempted to point out in this peer-reviewed paper).
Second, while the notion of "living a philosophy" may conjure images of individual actions and lifestyles, it can also invite us to translate philosophical principles into systemic practices, enriching not only individual lives but also the socialecological realities we inhabit.
Philosophy-gyms may be places to contemplate how an ecophilic philosophy influences the larger systems we are part of: what, for example, would a business look like that is grounded in an ecophilic philosophy? Unlike conventional sustainability approaches that often prioritize technological or organizational solutions, such a philosophy may advocate for the importance of inner transformation in fostering sustainable business ethics. The way we design our systems depends on our philosophies; the question then is, what would a redesign look like based on ecophilic philosophies?
“…the implications of Newtonian atomism for social thinking reach beyond methodology: Newtonianism incorporates not only a methodology, but an ontology, and this ontology cannot fail to find expression at the social level. Since the only principle of individuation available within the framework of Newtonian atomism is the substance principle, the individuation of human beings will be conceptually effected in purely substance terms.” Freya Mathews
Finding and living our philosophies, then, is not just a personal choice; it is also a blueprint for a collective metamorphosis.
📚Things I enjoyed reading, watching or listening
📝 Article: Psychedelics and inner dimensions of sustainability: A Literature Review
📚 Book: How the World Thinks by Julian Baggini
🎥 Short film: Living in the Metacrisis with
📝 Article: Should we abolish busyness by