Beauty, Goodness, and Truth
When Adam and Eva were still in the Garden of Eden, the situation was symbolizing that humans were completely part of the environment just like the other animals. They did never ask who they were and what for they exist in this world on earth. In the same way they were never afraid of death and were never searching for where God was; what or who God was; how He or She could be described. For, they unconsciously knew that they were completely part of God, which means that they were completely part of the environment just like the other animals.
Due to the Birth of Consciousness, however, humans have suddenly separated from the environment or from God. Because of the Birth of Consciousness, they have suddenly recognized "themselves" and they can no longer stand without asking who they are; where they come from; what and whom they are facing on earth.
But then, why did such thing as the Birth of Consciousness happen? In "Life Conditions" I wrote that it was because humans had learned the agricultural skill; in so doing they had learned the Concept of Time. To know that the fruits they have now are the result of their past seeding and to know that the fruits they will have in the future must be the result of their seeding right now, they need the Concept of Time, the concept of past, present and future. In other words, it is the function that they imagine themselves in their consciousness in each category such as past, present and future. Thus, it is said that the Birth of Consciousness is caused by the Birth of Time in the human behaviors.
There is another aspect, however, to explain the Birth of Consciousness. That is language. Once humans have their consciousness and have separated from their environment and God, they can no longer live without asking about the environment and God. This question is almost the same as who they are and where they come from on earth. Needless to say, such questioning or seeking; moreover searching for meaning, is conducted in their consciousness by using their newly emerged skill – language.
Thus, we can also say that while the Birth of Consciousness was caused by the Birth of Time, the Birth of Language is caused by the Birth of Consciousness. And in this stage of human being, they have become truly what we call "humans" who are always questioning about themselves, their community, their environment and their God that are no longer the part of them in their perception. That is why; Aristotle started his writing in Metaphysics like this, "All men by nature desire knowledge."
Such philosophical attitude, in other words, is considered as searching for something supreme, God, or the idealistic forms of the environment by using language. When Plato classified such supreme entity as Beauty, Goodness and Truth, while we can see the nature of human knowledge, we can also regard Plato as one of the extraordinary insightful philosophers.
Because of the Birth of Consciousness, the Birth of Language has occurred in the human consciousness so as to describe what has separated from them. Once humans need to describe the supreme form of what has separated from them, they inevitably make the classifications depending on how they use their language. That is the cause of difference among Beauty, Goodness and Truth. All three, therefore, are each form of how to describe or explain God. In the form of language or the form dimension of knowledge, God can be symbolized as Beauty, Goodness and Truth.
When we use our language as the singular-subjective form, such I-language represents the personal experience. In such personal experience if we encounter something supreme or God, then we feel it as Beauty – the field of Esthetics. This dimension is placed in the Upper Left quadrant in the integral approach (See "True but Partial").
When we use our language as the plural-inter-subjective form, such we-language represents the collective experiences. In such collective experiences if we encounter or search for something supreme or God, then we value it as Goodness – the field of Moral Ethics. For, Goodness can be emerged only when a certain group of people are involved inter-subjectively. Goodness means a kind of mutual agreement in the community. Without such mutuality Goodness can not exist, while Beauty can exist in the personal perception and experience. This dimension is placed in the Lower Left quadrant in the integral approach. Incidentally so-called culture can be also emerged from this dimension. For, culture is what is shared inter-subjectively among a certain group of people.
When we use our language as the third-person objective form, such it-language represents the detached explanation. In such detached explanation if we search for something supreme or God, then we understand it as Truth – the field of Natural Science. In this extreme it-language worldview the environment has totally and completely separated from us; hence we are not supposed to be involved at all with such environments. This is the concept of objectivity. In the field of natural science, the world exists in front of us without our interaction as if we are not part of the world at all. But then, we are still seeking for something supreme in it, which is called Truth in stead of God, Beauty or Goodness.
Incidentally, this dimension is placed in either Upper Right quadrant or Lower Right quadrant depending on the micro/macro scale of it-language. If it-language focuses on the individual behavior such as behavioral psychology or medical treatment etc. it is in the Upper Right. If it is on the collective movement such as social system theory etc. it is in the Lower Right.
In the Greek philosophy such Big Three (Beauty, Goodness, and Truth) were somewhat clearly differentiated due to the Plato's extraordinary insight. In the institutionalized religion such as the medieval Christianity, however, the Big Three are not clearly distinguished. That is why, the medieval Christian church used to take care of all these Big Three related areas together from the individual faith (Beauty) to the moral ethics of the community (Goodness) to the individual behaviors (Truth) and to the institutional authority over the natural phenomena (Truth).
Thus, the differentiation of the Big Three could take place only in the emergence of modernity only when we could be free from the institutionalized religious authority, though in the post-modernity again the confusion have taken place to some extent because of the unnecessarily spiritual restoration such as the New Age movements, contemporary religio-political warfare etc.
In the postmodern age people are again beginning to confuse among the Big Three, the confusion between religion and science, the confusion between the individual esthetic satisfaction and the collective moral ethics, and the confusion between the magical symbolic expression and the scientific causality. The great achievement of modernity is the differentiation of the Big Three. Because of this differentiation we could be free from the premodern concept of God, which was so superstitious and sometimes so cruel – people killed each other and tortured innocents for the name of God.
However, there is the negative side of modernity, which is the dissociation of the Big Three. The Big Three differentiation can no longer be effective but rather have become antagonistic. Science (Truth) has lost their moral ethics (Goodness). Individualism (Beauty) has destroyed the traditional community life (Goodness). The authoritative discipline and ideology (Goodness) has dehumanized our individual human right and freedom (Beauty) and community ethics (Goodness). Modernity has produced a lot of problems because of such antagonistic dissociation of the Big Three.
In the post-modernity, then, the Big Three are supposed to be integrated, while the sound differentiation (not dissociation) can be maintained. In reality, however, people in the post-modernity have just returned to the premodern confusion of the undifferentiated Big Three.
What really we need, therefore, is the true integration of the Big Three -- how we can clearly recognize and handle the Big Three so as to understand something supreme or God in front of us, then at the end we will be able to realize that these Big Three have been already and yet ever since part of us from the very beginning. They have never separated from us in the non-dual realization.
Due to the Birth of Consciousness, however, humans have suddenly separated from the environment or from God. Because of the Birth of Consciousness, they have suddenly recognized "themselves" and they can no longer stand without asking who they are; where they come from; what and whom they are facing on earth.
But then, why did such thing as the Birth of Consciousness happen? In "Life Conditions" I wrote that it was because humans had learned the agricultural skill; in so doing they had learned the Concept of Time. To know that the fruits they have now are the result of their past seeding and to know that the fruits they will have in the future must be the result of their seeding right now, they need the Concept of Time, the concept of past, present and future. In other words, it is the function that they imagine themselves in their consciousness in each category such as past, present and future. Thus, it is said that the Birth of Consciousness is caused by the Birth of Time in the human behaviors.
There is another aspect, however, to explain the Birth of Consciousness. That is language. Once humans have their consciousness and have separated from their environment and God, they can no longer live without asking about the environment and God. This question is almost the same as who they are and where they come from on earth. Needless to say, such questioning or seeking; moreover searching for meaning, is conducted in their consciousness by using their newly emerged skill – language.
Thus, we can also say that while the Birth of Consciousness was caused by the Birth of Time, the Birth of Language is caused by the Birth of Consciousness. And in this stage of human being, they have become truly what we call "humans" who are always questioning about themselves, their community, their environment and their God that are no longer the part of them in their perception. That is why; Aristotle started his writing in Metaphysics like this, "All men by nature desire knowledge."
Such philosophical attitude, in other words, is considered as searching for something supreme, God, or the idealistic forms of the environment by using language. When Plato classified such supreme entity as Beauty, Goodness and Truth, while we can see the nature of human knowledge, we can also regard Plato as one of the extraordinary insightful philosophers.
Because of the Birth of Consciousness, the Birth of Language has occurred in the human consciousness so as to describe what has separated from them. Once humans need to describe the supreme form of what has separated from them, they inevitably make the classifications depending on how they use their language. That is the cause of difference among Beauty, Goodness and Truth. All three, therefore, are each form of how to describe or explain God. In the form of language or the form dimension of knowledge, God can be symbolized as Beauty, Goodness and Truth.
When we use our language as the singular-subjective form, such I-language represents the personal experience. In such personal experience if we encounter something supreme or God, then we feel it as Beauty – the field of Esthetics. This dimension is placed in the Upper Left quadrant in the integral approach (See "True but Partial").
When we use our language as the plural-inter-subjective form, such we-language represents the collective experiences. In such collective experiences if we encounter or search for something supreme or God, then we value it as Goodness – the field of Moral Ethics. For, Goodness can be emerged only when a certain group of people are involved inter-subjectively. Goodness means a kind of mutual agreement in the community. Without such mutuality Goodness can not exist, while Beauty can exist in the personal perception and experience. This dimension is placed in the Lower Left quadrant in the integral approach. Incidentally so-called culture can be also emerged from this dimension. For, culture is what is shared inter-subjectively among a certain group of people.
When we use our language as the third-person objective form, such it-language represents the detached explanation. In such detached explanation if we search for something supreme or God, then we understand it as Truth – the field of Natural Science. In this extreme it-language worldview the environment has totally and completely separated from us; hence we are not supposed to be involved at all with such environments. This is the concept of objectivity. In the field of natural science, the world exists in front of us without our interaction as if we are not part of the world at all. But then, we are still seeking for something supreme in it, which is called Truth in stead of God, Beauty or Goodness.
Incidentally, this dimension is placed in either Upper Right quadrant or Lower Right quadrant depending on the micro/macro scale of it-language. If it-language focuses on the individual behavior such as behavioral psychology or medical treatment etc. it is in the Upper Right. If it is on the collective movement such as social system theory etc. it is in the Lower Right.
In the Greek philosophy such Big Three (Beauty, Goodness, and Truth) were somewhat clearly differentiated due to the Plato's extraordinary insight. In the institutionalized religion such as the medieval Christianity, however, the Big Three are not clearly distinguished. That is why, the medieval Christian church used to take care of all these Big Three related areas together from the individual faith (Beauty) to the moral ethics of the community (Goodness) to the individual behaviors (Truth) and to the institutional authority over the natural phenomena (Truth).
Thus, the differentiation of the Big Three could take place only in the emergence of modernity only when we could be free from the institutionalized religious authority, though in the post-modernity again the confusion have taken place to some extent because of the unnecessarily spiritual restoration such as the New Age movements, contemporary religio-political warfare etc.
In the postmodern age people are again beginning to confuse among the Big Three, the confusion between religion and science, the confusion between the individual esthetic satisfaction and the collective moral ethics, and the confusion between the magical symbolic expression and the scientific causality. The great achievement of modernity is the differentiation of the Big Three. Because of this differentiation we could be free from the premodern concept of God, which was so superstitious and sometimes so cruel – people killed each other and tortured innocents for the name of God.
However, there is the negative side of modernity, which is the dissociation of the Big Three. The Big Three differentiation can no longer be effective but rather have become antagonistic. Science (Truth) has lost their moral ethics (Goodness). Individualism (Beauty) has destroyed the traditional community life (Goodness). The authoritative discipline and ideology (Goodness) has dehumanized our individual human right and freedom (Beauty) and community ethics (Goodness). Modernity has produced a lot of problems because of such antagonistic dissociation of the Big Three.
In the post-modernity, then, the Big Three are supposed to be integrated, while the sound differentiation (not dissociation) can be maintained. In reality, however, people in the post-modernity have just returned to the premodern confusion of the undifferentiated Big Three.
What really we need, therefore, is the true integration of the Big Three -- how we can clearly recognize and handle the Big Three so as to understand something supreme or God in front of us, then at the end we will be able to realize that these Big Three have been already and yet ever since part of us from the very beginning. They have never separated from us in the non-dual realization.
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