| | The Inner Measure of Things | ...[I]n the West the notion of measure has, from very early times, played a key role in determining the general self-world view and the way of life implicit in such a view. Thus among the Ancient Greeks, from whom we derive a large part of our fundamental notions (by the way of Romans), to keep everything in its right measure was regarded as one of the essentials of a good life (e.g., Greek tragedies generally portrayed man's suffering as a consequence of his going beyond the proper measure of things). In this regard, measure was not looked on in its modern sense as being primarily some sort of comparison of an object with an external standard or unit. Rather, this latter procedure was regarded as a kind of outward display or appearance of a deeper 'inner measure', which played an essential role in everything. When something went beyond its proper measure, this meant not merely that it was not conforming to some external standard of what was right but, much more, that it was inwardly out of harmony, so that it was bound to lose its integrity and break up into fragments. One can obtain some insight into this way of thinking by considering the earlier meanings of certain words. Thus, the Latin 'mederi' meaning 'to cure' (the root of the modern 'medicine') is based on a root meaning 'to measure'. This reflects the view that physical health is to be regarded as the outcome of a state of right inward measure in all parts and processes of the body. Similarly, the word 'moderation', which describes one of the prime ancient notions of virtue, is based on the same root, and this shows that such virtue was regarded as the outcome of a right inner measure underlying man's social actions and behaviour. Again, the word 'meditation', which is based on the same root, implies a kind of weighing, pondering, or measuring of the whole process of thought, which could bring the inner activities of the mind to a state of harmonious measure. So, physically, socially and mentally, awareness of the inner measure of things was seen as the essential key to a healthy, happy, harmonious life. It is clear that measure is to be expressed in more detail through proportion or ratio; and 'ratio' is the Latin word from which our modern 'reason' is derived. In the ancient view, reason is seen as insight into a totality of ratio or proportion, regarded as relevant inwardly to the very nature of things (and not only outwardly as a form of comparison with a standard or unit.) Of course, this ratio is not necessarily merely a numerical proportion (though it does, of course, include such proportion). Rather, it is in general a qualitative sort of universal proportion or relationship. Thus, when Newton perceived the insight of universal gravitation, what he saw could be put in this way: 'As the apple falls, so does the moon, and so indeed does everything'. To exhibit the form of the ratio more explicitly, one can write A:B::C:D::E:F where A and B represent successive positions of the apple at successive moments of time, C and D those of the moon, and E and F those of any other object. Whenever we find theoretical reason for something, we are exemplifying this notion of ratio, in the sense of implying that as the various aspects are related in our idea, so they are related in the thing that the idea is about. The essential reason or ratio of a thing is then the totality of inner proportions in its structure, and in the process in which it forms, maintains itself, and ultimately dissolves. In this view, to understand such ratio is to understand the 'innermost being' of that thing. It is thus implied that measure is a form of insight into the essence of everything, and that man's perception, following on ways indicated by such insight, will be clear and will thus bring about generally orderly action and harmonious living. In this connection, it is useful to call to mind Ancient Greek notions of measure in music and in the visual arts. These notions emphasized that a grasp of measure was a key to the understanding of harmony in music (e.g., measure as rhythm, right proportion in intensity of sound, right proportion in tonality, etc.). Likewise, in the visual arts, right measure was seen as essential to overall harmony and beauty (e.g., consider the 'Golden Mean'). All of this indicates how far the notion of measure went beyond that of comparison with an external standard, to point to a universal sort of inner ratio or proportion, perceived both through the senses and through the mind. Of course, as time went on, this notion of measure gradually began to change, to lose its subtlety and to become relatively gross and mechanical. Probably this was because man's notion of measure became more and more routinized and habitual, both with regard to its outward display in measurements relative to an external unit and to its inner significance as a universal ratio relevant to physical health, social order, and mental harmony. | — David Bohm, Wholeness and the Implicate Order, Appendix: Resumé of Discussion on Western and Eastern Forms of Insight into Wholeness | Indexes/13 |
1 comments:
Great quotes, thanks.
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