April 15, 2008

Farewell for Now

I have decided to embark on another hiatus from blogging.

I will return when I have mastered the art of building, as Socrates instructs Callicles in Plato’s Gorgias :

Socrates: Well, then, if you and I, Callicles, were intending to set about some public business, and were advising one another to undertake buildings, such as walls, docks, or temples of the largest size, ought we not to examine ourselves, first, as to whether we know or do not know the art of building, and who taught us? - would that not be necessary, Callicles?

Callicles: True.

Socrates: In the second place, we should have to consider whether we had ever constructed any private house, either of our own or for our friends, and whether this building of ours was a success or not; and if upon consideration we found that we had had good and eminent masters, and had been successful in constructing many fine buildings, not only with their assistance, but without them, by our own unaided skill - in that case prudence would not dissuade us from proceeding to the construction of public works. But if we had no master to show, and only a number of worthless buildings or none at all, then, surely, it would be ridiculous in us to attempt public works, or to advise one another to undertake them. Is not this true?

In response to those who believe that more political organization, not less, is the order of the day, I am not in disagreement. But neither am I willing to continue thinking of the unenlightened self as an organizing force. Consider this anecdote from Mysterium Conjunctionis, in which Carl Jung repeats a story shared with him by Richard Wilhelm, a western sojourner in China:

There was a great drought where Wilhelm lived; for months there had not been a drop of rain and the situation became catastrophic. The Catholics made processions, the Protestants made prayers, and the Chinese burned joss-sticks and shot off guns to frighten away the demons of the drought, but with no result.

Finally the Chinese said, ‘We will fetch the rain-maker.’ And from another province a dried up old man appeared. The only thing he asked for was a quiet little house somewhere, and there he locked himself in for three days.

On the fourth day the clouds gathered and there was a great snow-storm at the time of the year when no snow was expected, an unusual amount, and the town was so full of rumours about the wonderful rain-maker that Wilhelm went to ask the man how he did it.

In true European fashion he said: ‘They call you the rain-maker; will you tell me how you made the snow?’

And the little Chinese said: ‘I did not make the snow; I am not responsible.’

‘But what have you done these three days?’

‘Oh, I can explain that. I come from another country where things are in order. Here they are out of order; they are not as they should be by the ordinance of heaven. Therefore the whole country is not in Tao, and I also am not in the natural order of things because I am in a disordered country. So I had to wait three days until I was back in Tao and then naturally the rain came.’”

I am aiming for a return in December of 2012, but who knows - maybe sooner, mayber later.

This anecdote points toward a profound vision of harmony between self, nature, and human community. I am challenging myself to refrain from further publication until I know that my thoughts, actions, and words are truly in tune with this higher order.

In the meantime, if you’d like, feel free to contact me at jonathan (dot) maxson (at) gmail (dot) com.

4 Comments

Posted by Jon Olsen on Thu 5/01/08 at 7:00 pm:

Good commentary! I have always liked Socrates, being a philosopher myself. I also like the famous quote of Marx: “Philosophers have always studied history; the point, however, is to change it!” I recently came up with a variant on another famous quote of Marx, mine being: “Satirists of the world UNITE! You have nothing to lose but your Cheneys.” A year ago, I read, for the first time after having been encouraged by a close friend years ago, “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” by Robert Pirsig. I hadn’t read it since I was not particularly interested in either, but found the book extraordinary! I am glad I finally got to it. The focus was his working through the concept of QUALITY, going back to the pre-Socratic philosophers, and taking Aristotle apart. A very unusual book! Let me know if you have read it or will do so. Then let’s talk. Jon
Posted by Jonathan on Thu 5/08/08 at 11:56 am:

Thanks, Jon, for your feedback, which reminds me of a passage in Hadot’s wonderful What is Ancient Philosophy?:

“Plato’s intentions were political. He believed in the possibility of changing political life by means of the philosophical education of those men who were influential in the city…But as a result of the death of Socrates and his examination of laws and customs, he discovered how difficult it was to administer the affairs of the city correctly. Ultimately, he realized that all the cities which existed in his time possessed a defective political regime. This is why, he says, ‘I was irresistibly drawn to praise true philosophy and to proclaim that by its light alone can one recognize where true justice lies, both in public and private life.’ Yet this is no simple matter of abstract talk; for Plato, the ‘philosopher’s task’ consists in action. He tried to play a political role in Syracuse precisely so that he might not appear, in his own eyes, as a ‘big talker,’ incapable of action. Many students of the Academy did in fact play a political role in many cities, as counselors to rulers, legislators, or opponents of tyranny. The Sophists had claimed to train young people for political life, but Plato wanted to accomplish this by providing them with a knowledge far superior to that which the Sophists could give them. On the one hand, this knowledge was to be founded upon a rigorous rational method; on the other, in accordance with the Socratic concept, it was to be inseparable from the love of the good and from the inner transformation of the person. Plato wanted to train not only skillful statesmen, but also human beings. In order to realize his political goal, Plato thus had to make an immense detour: he had to create an intellectual and spiritual community whose job it would be to train new human beings, however long this might take” [pp. 58-59].

I read parts of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance at the recommendation of my high school English teacher. I recall only the concepts of quality, gumption, and technophobia - I either did not read the parts about Aristotle and the pre-Socratics, or didn’t know what I was reading at the time (the latter is probably more likely). I will consider looking it up again, but I have such an intensive reading program going right now that I must ask you to provide a bit more justification for the recommendation. I am, for example, slowly working my way through McEvilley’s magnum opus The Shape of Ancient Thought: Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies, which among other things includes brilliant consideration of each of the Pre-Socratics in relation to Indic antecedents of Zen. Also, I am still digesting Evangeliou’s incredible The Hellenic Philosophy: Between Europe, Asia and Africa, which has completely recast my understanding of Aristotle. Here’s a sample:

“In this important sense, then, Aristotle would seem to have been something more than a mere ‘rationalist,’ simple, cold and dry. If this be so, I would like to believe that I have done my Peripatetic duty of defending Aristotle against the unfair charges of those (from the East or the West) who would like to dump on him all the accumulated intellectual and other waste of the Western world in the last two millenia. Neither Aristotle nor any other Platonic, or genuinely Hellenic philosopher, would have approved of what the modern European man, in his greedy desire for profit and demonic will to power, has made out of Hellenic philosophia.”

“For, in the eyes of the Ancient Hellenes, genuine philosophers were supposed to contemplate the cosmic beauty, not to deform it by changing it; to comprehend the cosmic order and to live in harmony with it, not to pollute it by exploiting it; and to provide prudent suggestions for the appropriate organization of human affairs so that the free spirit of inquiry and the flourishing of the human life of excellence would become possible for human beings, conceived as living, sensitive, reasonable, communal, political, noetic and, potentially but essentially, god-like beings. Hence the urgent need felt by the philosophically minded few in Europe and the Western world today to return to our primordial philosophic roots which were pre-Christian and pre-Islamic. The Platonic Aristotle, like the Socratic Plato, and the Hellenic philosophy in general, perhaps can guide our steps toward this sensible goal” [p. 71].
Posted by Colie Brice on Thu 6/19/08 at 12:19 pm:

I apologize for being off subject.. I was wondering if you had any recommendations for progressive communities in Northern Maine. I too am interested in sustainability, social justice, etc.

Thank you for any prospective advice,

Colie
Posted by Jonathan on Tue 6/24/08 at 7:30 pm:

Hi Colie,

Your question is a very good one and actually not at all off-topic. I think of northern Maine as coterminous with Aroostook County, and what I would say about the County is that while the building blocks of a strong progressive community can be found up here, right now they are mostly just building blocks.

If you are considering relocation my point is not to discourage you. I just want to make it clear that Aroostook County is a LONG way, say, from Portland, ME, or Northampton, MA.

We’ll get there, but it’s going to take some time. At least I can buy tofu in the supermarkets.

Okay, that said, there are Unitarian Universalist congregations in Houlton, at the southern end of Aroostook County, and in Caribou, in central Aroostook County. These are progressive convergence points but they are modest in size and influence. I’m actually gearing up to help the Minister of the Caribou church expand and regionalize the liberal ministry. We’ve had conversations about starting a Unitarian Universalist intentional eco-village of sorts - something that I am very excited about - but those conversations are still in the earliest and most tentative of stages.

Presque Isle in Central Aroostook and Fort Kent in northern Aroostook are home to UMaine campuses and as a result have a more liberal feel.

The landscape is ruggedly beautiful with a long, cold winter. The entire eastern side of the County looks more like parts of western New York or even the midwest than northern Maine: mostly rolling hills, farmlands, and big old farmhouses. The western side of the County is largely undeveloped paper company land. There is some organic farming going on up here but it’s not nearly as far along as the organic farming/slow food movement in the southern and coastal regions of the state. Over the long term, I’d like to see Aroostook County become the organic/slow foods breadbasket of the entire state, but that’s 15-30 years and a lot of organizing down the road.

Let me know if there are any more specific questions I can answer and I’ll do my best. I’ve only lived here for a couple of years now, so be sure to gather data from additonal sources if any kind of major life decision is in the offing!