2.8 Non-duality during the Industrial Revolution
82. German philosopher Friedrich Hegel portrayed non-duality as the fundamental unity of reality, where opposing elements gradually merge and acknowledge a common focal point: self-awareness. He termed this process a dialectic, which is essentially a form of dialogue—the art of discussion which involves two parties using common language and meaning systems.
Portrait entitled The Philosopher Georg Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel by German painter and restorer Jakob Schlesinger (Berlin, 1831) Source: Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
Hegel’s philosophy is influenced by Christian mysticism, and extremely poetic. This is perhaps due to his friendship with poets at the time, one of them being Friedrich Hölderlin, a poet worthy of your attention, dear reader.
« The truth is the whole. It is not an abstract whole, but is filled with differences […] The absolute whole, however, is spirit. »
–Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (19th century)
- Non-duality as “Dialectic”
- Time: 19th century
- Era: Industrial Revolution
- Geography: Germany
- Key thinker: Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
- Movement: Absolute Idealism
- Key event: Industrial Revolution
83. In Hegel’s framework, dialectic unfolds through the interplay of thesis (a statement), antithesis (its opposite), and synthesis (union, convergence). This progression towards unity reflects the natural flow of human history. It begins with the assertion of a thesis or idea, followed by its development or assertion of power. This is then met with an antithesis or opposing viewpoint, leading to conflict, rejection, or struggle. Finally, synthesis occurs, bringing together the opposing perspectives into a unified whole.
A diagram of I Ching hexagrams owned by Leibniz (1701). The author’s intention is not to mystify you, but to demonstrate an important aspect of the 18th century: the ongoing dialogue and intellectual exchange between East and West regarding the essence of reality and the concepts of harmony and change. Leibniz likely added annotations, now faint due to the passage of time, which include numbers familiar to us and historically recognized as the Arabic system of notation. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Public domain
This ends subchapter 2.8 on Non-duality during the Industrial Revolution, the most recent era before our hypermodern age. Let’s observe the evolution, the dialectic, of Non-duality throughout the ages. Please remain alert.