The Meaning of Meaning
As a metaphor, which might give a better perspective of meaning, could possibly be compared to the role and purpose of blood in physiology and the human body. Meaning, like blood is essential to life. We live and breathe meaning. That's what our world is made of - meaning. Similar to how blood circulates through our body and delivers essential substances like oxygen and nutrients to the body’s cells, meanings, symbols, circulate among our worldviews, ideologies, and beliefs - which are all intricately interconnected by these meanings, symbols and their intrinsic goals and purposes. Blood also transports metabolic waste products away from cells, and similarly, "meaning reconstruction," which involves at times, discarding false truths and outdated or useless meanings - is often found for instance in the painful grieving processes. Meaning, which includes, goal-setting, orientation, awareness, as well as purpose and guidance is the life blood of human consciousness and human understanding.
Michael Steger perhaps provides a good synopsis of the role and function of meaning in human consciousness when he states that “meaning is, at its heart, an integrating factor for people. Meaning pulls together people’s ideas about who they are, the kind of world they live in, and how they relate to the people and environments around them. Meaning incorporates these elements into people’s aspirations and overarching aims. (Quest p. 169) As the psychologists, Gary T. Reker and Paul T. P. Wong, remark, “[G]lobal meaning functions as an effective buffer of life stress (health protecting) and as a generalized enhancer of psychological well-being, and self-esteem (health promoting). (Quest p.443) Reker and Wong go on to say, “individuals develop personal meaning orientations that individually and collectively contribute to positive psychosocial functioning. (p. 444) Peterson and Park, who echo Reker and Wong, observe, “Both an orientation to meaning and the presence of meaning were positively associated with life satisfaction and positive affect and negatively associated with depression and negative affect.” (Quest p.289)
Viktor Frankl's Wisdom and Insights
“The meaning of life is to give life meaning!”
That brilliant insight reflects Viktor Frankl’s central concept of Frankl's Theory of Human Consciousness that the human “Will to meaning” is the primary drive of the human being and that it is vital and pivotal one way or the other in all the diverse and various processes of the human mind - that a person's unique understanding of the Meaning of life is the primary force that shapes their way of looking at the world. William Gould observes that Viktor Frankl, who believed human beings have "spirit," argued that "Meaning analysis is based on three essential premises: the freedom of will; the will to meaning, and the meaning of life." (p.42 Frankl: Life...)
Complementing that insight, Viktor Frankl stated emphatically: “We do not ask life what the meaning of life is. Life asks us, what is the meaning of your life. And life demands our answer.” As a transpersonal psychologist rather astutely remarked, in talking about psychology, "The truth is out there but you have to dig to find it." However, in the end the responsibility for grasping and achieving "meaning" lies with the individual. That is, in the final analysis, you won’t find The Answer from other people or ideologies, but you must find the answer within your self, your spirit, and, perhaps, most important, from your purpose.
The True "Truth," as it were, can Not, in the end, be taught - as Frankl emphasizes and it has to be learned. Each individual must in one way or the other determine or "create" their meaning, their reality, their Truth. As Carl Jung rather brilliantly observed, 'The only real truth is the Truth that works' - and i is the individual who in the nd must make it work. As a Zen proverb states, The Only Zen you can Find at the Top of the Mountain is the Zen you Bring with You.
The Dilemma and Paradox as Described by the famous Sufi, Rumi:
The Truth is yourself, but not your mere bodily self.
Your real self is higher than ‘you’ and ‘me.’
This visible ‘you’ which you fancy to be yourself
Is limited in place, the real ‘you’ is not limited.
Why, O pearl, linger you trembling in your shell?
Esteem not yourself mere sugar-cane, but real sugar.
This outward ‘you’ is foreign to your real ‘you;’
Cling to your real self, quit this dual self.
Rumi (The Masnavi, 1258 – 1273)
The Dilemma of Being "Me" in a Sea of Others
It is true that, in the end, it is ultimately the individual's responsibility and decision to determine and decide what "The Meaning of Life" is, the flip side of the coin is that studies have shown that meaning is socially derived - that 'you' get meaning ultimately from and through others and society. Psychology and social psychology recognize that the influence of groups is very powerful force in forming people's identity. In fact Frankl, at one point, says that in the final analysis one gets meaning through [helping] others - intending that compassion for others and giving for others and helping people would be the best way to achieve meaning. Social Psychology now recognizes that the Need for Meaning is probably, as Baumeister argues, the most powerful need or drive of the human being.
However, as Carl Jung emphasizes, the critical notion is the idea of the individual as, “the one source of moral and spiritual progress for society”. Jung’s view of the primacy of the individual and the importance of the individuation process he puts succinctly when he says, “Resistance to the organized mass can be effected only by the man who is as well organized in his individuality as the mass itself ” (Jung CW Vol. 10 par. 540, italics Jung). As Tolstoy realized the group related instincts connected with patriotism, groups, and ideologies are very powerful and should be kept at arms length. Jung also emphasized that the influence of the group's norms and values can overwhelm an individual's sense of identity and autonomy, effectively reducing an individual to the status of a psychological slave, lacking any independent thought. You can see that clearly in much of contemporary politics and religious beliefs. So, the dilemma is how to be you and have your own independent meaning without totally submitting your will and independence to others, groups, or society - Not an easy question! As a transpersonal psychologist I met so astutely observed about psychology - though it would apply equally well, or even better, to "Life" itself - "The Truth is there but you have to dig for it!"
Brief Bio of Viktor Frankl (1905 - 1997)
Viktor Emil Frankl was an Austrian psychoanalyst and founder
of logotherapy, a form of psychoanalysis based on the principle that man’s “Will to meaning” is vital and central to human consciousness and human behavior. As a
Jew, Frankl survived several concentration camps (Theresienstadt, Auschwitz,
Kaufering and Türkheim). Frankl’s book, Man's Search for Meaning, examines the
human “Will to Meaning” in context of his experiences in Nazi concentration
camps. Frankl is widely regarded as a founding father of existential and positive
psychology as well as influential in humanitarian psychology.
However, the issue and question of Frankl’s alleged “accommodations” of the Nazis as a medical doctor made Frankl a very controversial person both with Jews, holocaust analysts, and even psychiatrists like Thomas Szasz. Assuming the worse, it is important to note that everybody makes mistakes. Even the Holy prophet of God, Ezekiel made a mistake. Tim Callahan, the religious scholar, pointed out that Ezekiel in the Bible “prophesied” that the island fortress, Tyre, would fall to the Babylonians and be utterly destroyed. The city Tyre, actually, historically, ended up making a deal with the Babylonians who were besieging the city, and it wasn’t captured until Alexander the Great came along a couple of hundred years later.
That being said, without question, Viktor Frankl, was very brilliant. All of his insights, observations, and analyses were pretty much right on the money. Many people have quite often remarked to me that Vitktor Frankl's book, Man's Search for Meaning was very helpful for them, One woman who is bipolar stated Viktor Frankl book literally saved her life. According to tradition, after Viktor Frankl founded logotherapy in Vienna, Austria the suicide rate in Vienna dropped to zero.
Spirit and Spiritual Processes Create Meaning
Viktor Frankl argued that 'Spiritual processes are the source of creativity, guidance, and conscience.' That is, according to Viktor Frankl, "Meaning" has a Spiritual Core, and it is through Spirit and Spiritual processes that human beings actually understand and grasp the world. Paul Wong, the prominent positive psychologist, observes: “Park (2007) regards religion and spirituality as meaning systems. In contrast, Frankl considers meaning seeking as stemming from one’s spiritual nature. According to Frankl, meaning, compassion and other positive psychological resources belong to the spiritual dimension.” (p.156 Batth anthology)
In the anthology, Meaning in Positive and Existential Psychology (2014), edited by Batthyany and Russo-Netzer, Paul Wong, the prominent positive-existential psychologist, observes: “Frankl considers meaning seeking as stemming from one’s spiritual nature. Paul Wong elaborates on Viktor Frankl's views regarding the nature and characteristics of spiritual or noetic (from “nous”) processes in the mind "in the following quotation: "The noetic (spiritual, specifically human) dimension contains such qualities as our will to meaning our goal orientation, ideas and ideals, creativity, imagination, faith, love that goes beyond the physical, a conscience beyond the superego, self-transcendence, commitments, responsibility, a sense of humor, and the freedom of choice making. (Fabry 1994 pp.18-19) (p.156) That is, spiritual processes (to a large degree, unconscious) are deeply involved in meaning creation, guidance, judgment, and, perhaps even more importantly, built into the "drives" of the Will To Meaning - which most likely are either closely associated with or connected to the very core of survival instincts, as well.
Furthermore, Frankl believed that "spirit" and conscience were inextricably and intricately connected. as William Gould notes, the famous philosopher Kant firmly believed that conscience is "the representative within us of the divine judgment-seat: it weighs our dispositions and actions in the scales of a law which is holy and pure..." (Kant Ethics, p.133) (WG p.55) William Gould observed that "Frankl insists that the noetic [spiritual] dimension gives the self the power to choose what one will be and what one will be and what one will become. A noetically empowered conscience is the key." (WG p.41) Frankl put a slightly different spin on "conscience" than Kant, and emphasized that "Only conscience is capable of adjusting the 'eternal' generally agreed upon moral law to the specific situation a concrete person is engaged with." (p.41 WG) However, the bottom line is that the spiritual dimension and the 'eternal divine drive' is responsible for creating the ideals and morals of society.
Consensus that Spiritual Processes Create Meaning
Besides Viktor Frankl, Carl Jung, William James, and Emile Durkheim all agreed that spiritual processes create meaning and a sense of reality. Carl Jung, a psychoanalyst and contemporary of Sigmund Freud, stated unequivocally that "Spirit gives meaning to his [man's] life" - couldn't have been clearer or more succinct when he made that simple but profound statement. (CW8:643) Jung elaborated that in saying, “Life and spirit are two powers or necessities between which man is placed. Spirit gives meaning to his life.... But life is essential to spirit, since its truth is nothing if it cannot live.” (CW8: 648 -1968 revised)
William James emphasizes in his classic work, originally published in 1902, The Varieties of Religious Experiences “ that "They [spiritual experiences] determine our vital attitude as decisively as the vital attitude of lovers is determined by the habitual sense,..…if you do have them, and have them at all strongly, the probability is that you cannot help regarding them as genuine perceptions of truth, as revelations of a kind of reality [my underlining] which no adverse argument, however unanswerable by you in words, can expel from your belief" (P.47) It would only stand to reason, in at least a limited sense, that, without any emotional [spiritual] experiences or beliefs, it is possible a person, in a sense, wouldn't have any solid foundation for "reality" at all. William James goes on to say that religious experiences and spiritual experiences create and generate a “sense of reality” (p.48)
Along similar lines, Emile Durkheim, a founding father of sociology, stated that “It makes no sense that systems of ideas like religion, which have held such a major place in history and from which people have always draw the energy needed to live, are merely tissues of illusion. Today we understand that law, morality, and scientific thought itself are born from religion, have long been confused with it, and remain imbued with its spirit.” (p62 el) That is, religious and spiritual beliefs create social ideals such as compassion - which is a prevalent and vital principle and tenet of every major religion - and other norms, rules, and laws embedded within the Collective Consciousness.
Beyond Comprehension
"Ultimate meaning necessarily exceeds and surpasses the finite intellectual capacities of man... What is demanded of man is not, as some existential philosophers teach, to endure the meaninglessness of life, but rather to bear his incapacity to grasp its unconditional meaningfulness in rational terms. Logos is deeper than logic." Mirroring what Frankl says, Albert Einstein, eloquently observed that “The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science..... A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, our perceptions of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty, which only in their most primitive forms are accessible to our minds.....” (p.11, Ideas The World As I See It (included in Living Philosophies (1931) ).Pauli observed that “although [particle physics] allows for an acausal form of observation, it actually has no use for the concept of ‘meaning’” — that is, meaning is not a fundamental function of reality but an interpretation superimposed by the human observer."
Long before any of these scientists and psychologists, St Gregory of Nyssa, an early Christian mystic (roughly 335 – 395 AD), and t he early Christian mystic Dionysius the Areopagite (c. late 5th to early 6th century) both stated unequivocally that God - and "Absolute Truth" are beyond words and beyond comprehension. St. Gregory of Nyssa states, “According to the true words of the Lord [Mt 5.8, the pure in heart will see God. They will receive as much as their minds can comprehend. However, the unbounded incomprehensible divinity remains beyond all understanding.” (SoS J.246 & M.941, p.161) The early Christian mystic Dionysius the Areopagite mirrored St Gregory of Nyssa, when he states, “I said in my Theological Representations that one can neither discuss not understand the One, The Superunknowable, the Transcendent, Goodness itself….”! In human consciousness, perspective and judgment will always be very important and critical - especially in light of the fact that, generally historically, when religious leaders or politicians start talking in absolutes they seem to veer far off the straight and narrow.
I can't help but briefly mention my mother's observation, that it seems a bit ironic, to her, that science (in this case medical doctors actually) has gone full circle - from being harshly critical of religious and spiritual beliefs to now saying how these teachers like Christ, Buddha, and Mohammed, as well as Hindu teachers turned out to be right, after all.
She specifically mentioned Dr. Amit Sood's book, which spoke about the health benefits and sense of well-being created, for instance, as studies show, by volunteering (compassion) - as well as the positive and benefits of spirituality. It is worth noting that the principle that "Spirit Creates Meaning!'
was clearly articulated roughly two thousand years earlier, by Jesus Christ who clearly that "Spirit is Truth" (John 5:6). Of course, Truth is the Ultimate Meaning or Meaning Structure.
Meaning
“Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose.” [suffering]
“Ultimate meaning necessarily exceeds and surpasses the finite intellectual capacities of man... What is demanded of man is not, as some existential philosophers teach, to endure the meaninglessness of life, but rather to bear his incapacity to grasp its unconditional meaningfulness in rational terms. Logos is deeper than logic.”
“Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality”
“Being human is directed to something other than itself.” (p.33 Will)
“Only to the extent to which man fulfills a meaning out there in the world, does he fulfill himself.” (p. 22 Will)
“Because of the self-transcendent quality of human existence, I would say, being human always means being directed and pointed to something or someone other than itself.” (p.11-12 will)
“Man is not fully conditioned and determined but rather determines himself whether he gives in to conditions or stands up to them. In other words, man is ultimately self-determining. Man does not simply exist but always decides what his existence will be, what he will become in the next moment.”
Everything can be taken from a man or a woman but one thing: the last of human freedoms to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.
Other Quotes and Insights
“We [concentration camp prisoners] had to learn ourselves and, furthermore, we had to teach the despairing men, that it did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We need to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life—hourly and daily. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answers to its problems and to fulfill the task which it constantly sets for each individual.”
“Even though conditions such as lack of sleep, insufficient food and various mental stresses may suggest that the inmates were bound to react in certain ways, in the final analysis it becomes clear that the sort of person the prisoner became was the result of an inner decision, and not the result of camp influences alone.”
“Sigmund Freud once asserted, "Let one attempt to expose a number of the most diverse people uniformly to hunger. With the increase of the imperative urge of hunger all individual differences will blur, and in their stead will appear the uniform expression of the one unstilled urge." Thank heaven, Sigmund Freud was spared knowing the concentration camps from the inside. His subjects lay on a couch designed in the plush style of Victorian culture, not in the filth of Auschwitz. There, the "individual differences" did not "blur" but, on the contrary, people became more different; people unmasked themselves, both the swine and the saints.”
“An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior.”
Excerpt from mini-critique of academic materialism with over 80,000 views
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” - Albert Einstein
With 366 school shootings since Colombine in the U.S & 46 school shootings alone in .2022, "we" really need to rethink our thinking!
"Our" thinking today originates to a degree from the teachings of universities - which are "teachings" and like any other teaching or ideology has norms and stereotypes. From my research, "Mainstream Psychology" has not factored in that materialism - especially academic materialism - is an ideology and mindset (Mannheim) and that some of the norms like "there is no psychology of groups" and no social consciousness have a downside which may play into the "epidemic" of narcissism in western society (Twenge, Avite)
“Why stay in prison when the door is open!” Rumi
Rupert Sheldrake: “[S]ome people have made science into a kind of religion and are often exceptionally dogmatic. They accept the scientific [materialist ideology – mindset] worldview on faith, impressed by the authority and prestige of scientists.” (p.161) I would add the problem is that "science" has a serious materialist bias - which is very unscientific.
Emerging evidence of internalization would be the increase in narcissism. There is widespread agreement among psychologists that narcissism is a growing problem – especially in western society. “Narcissism scores are higher in individualistic cultures compared with more collectivistic cultures.” Aline Vater goes on to explain his study: “Our results showed that grandiose narcissism was higher and self-esteem was lower in individuals who grew up in former West Germany compared with former East Germany.”
Link to full mini-essay
https://independentscholar.academia.edu/CharlesPeckJr
Mannheim & Materialism as Ideology vs Social Consciousness –
For nearly one hundred years, materialists have argued that 1) “There is no psychology of groups” (Allport’s Taboo – 1927) or 2) human consciousness is restricted to the firing of neurons in the brain and so there cannot be any social consciousness. That is an absurd argument.
It does not follow from the fact that neurons fire in the brain that there is no social consciousness!
Content Copyrighted Charles E Peck Jr. Copyright ©
References and Footnotes
Profile of Dr. James Doty: https://profiles.stanford.edu/james-doty
The Center for Compassion And Altruism Research And Education: http://ccare.stanford.edu/
John Bargh, PhD:
http://bargh.socialpsychology.org/
Viktor Frankl:
http://www.viktorfrankl.org/
Dr. Harold Koenig: https://spiritualityandhealth.duke.edu/index.php/harold-g-koenig-m-d
Dr. Paul Wong:
http://www.drpaulwong.com/
Carl Jung:
https://www.biography.com/people/carl-jung-9359134
Carl Jung: https://www.psychologistworld.com/cognitive/carl-jung-analytical-psychology
William James:
https://www.biography.com/people/william-james-9352726
William James: https://study.com/academy/lesson/william-james-psychology-theories-lesson-quiz.html
Dr Amit Sood Mindfulness:
https://www.mindfulleader.org/amit-sood
Dr. Harold Koenig Director, Center for Spirituality,
Theology and Health: https://spiritualityandhealth.duke.edu/index.php/harold-g-koenig-m-d
Dr. Koenig on what spirituality can do for you: https://www.beliefnet.com/wellness/health/2006/05/what-religion-can-do-for-your-health.aspx
Keith Karren – Body, Mind, Spirit:
http://pgrpdf.abhappybooks.com/mind-body-health-keith-j-karren-ph-d-pdf-5716009.pdf