I fear a
life without meaning. I am afraid of being swept away by the sands of time
without leaving some sort of unique mark, some symbol that I was here at one
point. That fear can be dangerous if not kept in check but it has nonetheless
propelled me to strive for excellence in my life. Above credentials, I believe
in contribution. As an academic always striving for the truth, it is my duty to
contribute my thoughts as so many have done before me. Recently, I created the
term ‘Psychosynosis’ and its theoretical orientation. Literally translated from
the ancient Greek, it means a union of our soul/mind with knowledge and reason
from different areas to create a higher form of self-understanding. I am very
proud of this theory and firmly believe in the possibilities inherent to its
application. However, the question may still arise: what can it do? It involves
mental flexibility, awareness, discovery, choice, knowledge, connection and
understanding but what does it look like when applied? I intend to answer that
here.
Recently, I
viewed an archived video on the TED website from 1972 where Viktor Frankl
discusses his theory on meaning in life. Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and
psychiatrist as well as a Holocaust survivor. The experiences he endured lead
him to develop his existential theory called ‘Logotherapy’ and he argued for
the importance of meaning in people’s lives. He realized that even in the most
horrid conditions, meaning could provide the silver lining people need to get
through their circumstances. Many of his brilliant and inspired thoughts ring
true even to this day but what struck me more than that was how I could
suddenly make connections between what he said and other areas of life I was
familiar with. You wouldn’t think that I would start making bi-directional
connections to Shakespeare and modern day mythology, but there is an underlying
current beneath Frankls words which seems to resonate throughout life.
Viktor
Frankl attempted to illuminate his concept of meaning by analogizing between
his recent flight instructors’ advice during pilot lessons and how we perceive
a person’s potential. He uses the example of going from point A to point B in a
straight line, or west to east. The instructor told him that if he encounters a
cross-wind, and he continues on route in a straight line, he will end up below
his targeted destination and get dragged down with the wind. So, he should fly
north and tilt the plane up, that way he will end up at the desired location
straight ahead which he originally intended. This allows you to compensate for
the winds of fate, as it were. Frankl would contend that this is true of life
in general and when treating a man (forgive the phalocentric representation; it
was the 70s). He said that if you take him as he is and ignore his need for
meaning; you make him worse, make him frustrated and denigrate his potential.
However, if you overestimate his being, you will end up promoting him to what
he truly can be. He further states that we need idealism in a sense; because
that is the only way we can get at the true, real essence of what he is capable
of, his pure potential. A wondrous guide to our ‘Ultimate Selves’.
Frankls
notion of idealism has a ring of truth in it and can be traced back even to
Shakespeare’s own words. However, his path to self-realization or the evolution
of potential was to align himself to an ideal which cloaked our humanity. One
of his famous quotes from Twelfth Night:
“Conceal me
what I am and be my aid; for such disguise shall
become the form of my intent.”
What
Shakespeare is saying here, is that when man becomes unable to achieve the
impossible, he must graft himself to something higher. This will both hide his human
vulnerability and take the form of his virtuous intentions so he can evolve
into his ultimate self. It will allow him to morph into something beyond the
mortal flesh and move beyond the fragility of human existence. He will become
one with what he intends to achieve. This one sentence is the epicenter behind
one of the most well-known, critically acclaimed and embellished examples of
modern day mythology: the legend of Batman.
The story of
Bruce Wayne has been well-documented through his origin in comic books, to TV
shows, animation and the recently popular film franchise directed by visionary
Christopher Nolan. As a young boy, he witnesses the murder of both his parents
by a common street mugger and vows to never let the same injustice happen
again. So, he dons the cape and cowl as a masked vigilante who stalks crime
from the shadows. He employs a state of the art arsenal, supreme physical
conditioning and a mind that would rival Sherlock Holmes himself. However, at
his core he is still human. He possesses no special power and in many ways, is
one of the more physically vulnerable super heroes in comic books. After years
of wandering, training and soul searching he decides to pursue this lifestyle.
However, he recognizes his vulnerability and mortality during his first year as
the dark knight. In the first few months of fighting crime, Bruce attempts to do
the impossible as a mere man. With nothing but a ski mask, black sweater, basic
tool belt and some martial arts, he would find that being a vigilante is not as
easy as it looks. He realizes he is not ready yet and more importantly, criminals
know he is just another man with the same mortal weaknesses.......they did not
FEAR him. They did not yet have a reason to fear him. In the film adaptation of
the story, Bruce remembers what someone once told him: A vigilante is just a
man lost in the scuffle.....he can be killed, destroyed, locked up......but if
you make yourself MORE than just a man, if you devote yourself to an
ideal......then you become something else entirely: A LEGEND. Bruce would soon
realize that as a man, there was not much he could do. However, as a symbol
shrouded in mystery, he could do more. He could instill fear in the hearts of
those criminals who align themselves with the darkness and shadows by evolving
into something else. He chose the bat as a symbol because that is what he was
afraid of as a child. Ironic isn’t it? To evolve into something more than you
are, by becoming that which you fear to instill the very same in your
adversary. To create a symbol shrouded in darkness and mystery, to BE the
unknown. Now, criminals would have to deal with something they did not know,
and therefore could not understand. They had to look over their shoulders while
in the shadows and wonder if someone was hunting THEM. They had a very real
reason to be afraid. The rest as they say is history.
Whether its
Viktor Frankls’ idea of overestimation leading to a realization of potential,
or Shakespeare’s call of aid in an external identity or Bruce Wayne’s evolution
through iconography....the common denominator is meaning and personal growth.
The same lack of meaning haunts us in the present and the same lesson applies to
us all, which has managed to slice through time, literature, history, fiction
and reality. The same call for meaning cries out from all of us as we try and
find our way in the world. The same frustration at what we are, the same desire
for what we can and should be. The same need for personal growth and evolution
of our true potential. The same answer lying in three men, three stories, three
dimensions. The same theme which connects all three forms of knowledge to help
us reach a higher state of self-understanding. The same place where we lose
ourselves in purpose but find ourselves in meaning. That my friends, is what
Psychosynosis looks like.
