Truth In Opposites
Well I know my theory of opposites is tuning into a personal obsession. But the theory of human choices and existence does reside in between the YES & NO options we exercise. Somewhere the notion of opposites also CRUNCHES the theory of choice.
Derek Sivers talks about open mindedness and tolerance using some unexpected examples of how easily we jump to conclusions and how always the exact opposite can also be true. Derek tells actually four stories: about a Japanese man asking for his way on a street somewhere in the U.S., an American (or any Westerner) asking for his way somewhere in Japan, about Chinese doctors being paid slightly differently, and the special rhythm of West-African music. All stories are real-life examples of things that we take for granted: addresses and street plans, doctor bills, music and rhythm. The genuine surprise and wonder they evoke prove how deeply entangled we all are in our own cultural conditioning and how that limits our view of the world. If true art means disguising the effort, making things look light and breezy, then Derek Sivers is a great artist.
whatever brilliant ideas you have or hear, that the opposite may also be true ... what could be more egalitarian.
the point is that the world can be seen from very different angles and that it is up to us to understand the differences and to incorporate them into our own lives.
here is a case in point - your world is either logical and fact-based, my world is emotional and based on belief. Another story tells what happened when Alexander the Great met a Gymnosophist (a naked wise man) at the banks of the river Indus in 326 B.C. They asked each other what they were doing. The Gymnosophist said, “I’m experiencing nothingness.” Alexander said, “I’m conquering the world.” And both laughed thinking the other was a fool. Having grown up in the Greek culture, with stories about heroes such as Achilles, Theseus, and Jason, Alexander had only one lifetime to achieve all glory. In the eastern cultures nothing lasts forever, not even death. To them life is an endless chain of reincarnations until “you get the point of it all”. Two different ways — which is the right one?
Devdutt Pattanaik uses the traditional form of a mandala throughout his talk as a visual metaphor for antithetic and highly abstract concepts such as world view, destiny, and reincarnation. The mandala becomes a visual anchor, a “red threat” leading from point to point. Derek Sivers uses the map as leitmotiv, starting with a street map of a typical American city, ending up at a world map in South-North direction, charging his presentation with a virtual pan-and-zoom move.Both tell wonderful stories and make the intercultural experience tangible. Both employ a minimalistic visual style to illustrate their talks.
Being familiar with his own, complex Indian culture as well as Western philosophical, religious and cultural concepts, Devdutt proves that even fundamental ideas such as fate, destiny and death are only constructions and not universally shared between cultures. He offers new ways of enriching our understanding of reality and approaching the challenges of our time: “Depending on the context, depending on the outcome, choose your paradigm.
Paradigms are human constructions, they are cultural creations, not natural phenomena.”
Derek Sivers talks about open mindedness and tolerance using some unexpected examples of how easily we jump to conclusions and how always the exact opposite can also be true. Derek tells actually four stories: about a Japanese man asking for his way on a street somewhere in the U.S., an American (or any Westerner) asking for his way somewhere in Japan, about Chinese doctors being paid slightly differently, and the special rhythm of West-African music. All stories are real-life examples of things that we take for granted: addresses and street plans, doctor bills, music and rhythm. The genuine surprise and wonder they evoke prove how deeply entangled we all are in our own cultural conditioning and how that limits our view of the world. If true art means disguising the effort, making things look light and breezy, then Derek Sivers is a great artist.
whatever brilliant ideas you have or hear, that the opposite may also be true ... what could be more egalitarian.
the point is that the world can be seen from very different angles and that it is up to us to understand the differences and to incorporate them into our own lives.
here is a case in point - your world is either logical and fact-based, my world is emotional and based on belief. Another story tells what happened when Alexander the Great met a Gymnosophist (a naked wise man) at the banks of the river Indus in 326 B.C. They asked each other what they were doing. The Gymnosophist said, “I’m experiencing nothingness.” Alexander said, “I’m conquering the world.” And both laughed thinking the other was a fool. Having grown up in the Greek culture, with stories about heroes such as Achilles, Theseus, and Jason, Alexander had only one lifetime to achieve all glory. In the eastern cultures nothing lasts forever, not even death. To them life is an endless chain of reincarnations until “you get the point of it all”. Two different ways — which is the right one?
Devdutt Pattanaik uses the traditional form of a mandala throughout his talk as a visual metaphor for antithetic and highly abstract concepts such as world view, destiny, and reincarnation. The mandala becomes a visual anchor, a “red threat” leading from point to point. Derek Sivers uses the map as leitmotiv, starting with a street map of a typical American city, ending up at a world map in South-North direction, charging his presentation with a virtual pan-and-zoom move.Both tell wonderful stories and make the intercultural experience tangible. Both employ a minimalistic visual style to illustrate their talks.
Being familiar with his own, complex Indian culture as well as Western philosophical, religious and cultural concepts, Devdutt proves that even fundamental ideas such as fate, destiny and death are only constructions and not universally shared between cultures. He offers new ways of enriching our understanding of reality and approaching the challenges of our time: “Depending on the context, depending on the outcome, choose your paradigm.
Paradigms are human constructions, they are cultural creations, not natural phenomena.”
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