Holographic Archetypes
Introduction
by Iona Miller, ©2011-2012
As science progressed toward a better understanding of the material world, the picture that emerged from the investigation of the smallest constituents of matter was very puzzling. At the level of our senses the world seams to be real and objects normally behave the way we expect them to. But when scientists tried to understand what matter is made of, they made a strange discovery.
The smallest building block of matter is the atom, which itself is made of fundamental particles. Those particles do not obey the classical laws of physics, so a new set of laws had to be formulated and this is what we call Quantum Mechanics. What this theory teaches us is that matter does not really exist! Particles of matter are potentialities that become actuality only when we observe them. In other words there is a direct link between our consciousness of them and the manifestation of their existence.
Some particles pop out of nothing and immediately return to the vacuum of space. This is why we call them virtual particles. Yet if they did not "exist" there would be no exchange of energy in the universe. What allows them to exist and not exist, at the same time, is the haziness that permeates the quantum world. There is even a mathematical law to express that haziness and it is called the Uncertainty Principal. This principal puts a limit to what we can know about the outside world. For example if we want to know where a particle is, we will not be able to know it's momentum, or vice versa, if we want to know it's momentum we won't be able to ascertain it's position. We have to make a choice, because we can't know both at the same time.
This new insight about matter was developed at the beginning of the twentieth century at approximately the same time Einstein came out with his Theory of Relativity which demonstrated that space and time were not absolute references but that space could expand or contract, and that time could slow down or run faster. What both theories made us aware of is that our senses give us the illusion of a "reality" and that an other "reality" can be devised by our mind alone.
The smallest building block of matter is the atom, which itself is made of fundamental particles. Those particles do not obey the classical laws of physics, so a new set of laws had to be formulated and this is what we call Quantum Mechanics. What this theory teaches us is that matter does not really exist! Particles of matter are potentialities that become actuality only when we observe them. In other words there is a direct link between our consciousness of them and the manifestation of their existence.
Some particles pop out of nothing and immediately return to the vacuum of space. This is why we call them virtual particles. Yet if they did not "exist" there would be no exchange of energy in the universe. What allows them to exist and not exist, at the same time, is the haziness that permeates the quantum world. There is even a mathematical law to express that haziness and it is called the Uncertainty Principal. This principal puts a limit to what we can know about the outside world. For example if we want to know where a particle is, we will not be able to know it's momentum, or vice versa, if we want to know it's momentum we won't be able to ascertain it's position. We have to make a choice, because we can't know both at the same time.
This new insight about matter was developed at the beginning of the twentieth century at approximately the same time Einstein came out with his Theory of Relativity which demonstrated that space and time were not absolute references but that space could expand or contract, and that time could slow down or run faster. What both theories made us aware of is that our senses give us the illusion of a "reality" and that an other "reality" can be devised by our mind alone.
As early as 1912, Jung referred to 'primordial images' to describe motifs of myths, legends, and fairy tales that have a universal character and appear as images or perceptual patterns. In 1917 he wrote of 'dominants of the collective unconscious' which he characterized as 'nodal points' of psychic energy. Jung compared psyche's luminous experiences with the light impressions described by the alchemists.
Considering the primordial nature of the psyche, he reflected on the 'seeds of light broadcast in the chaos' (Khunrath) , of the 'scintillae' (Dorn), of fish-eyes at the bottom of the sea, or images of luminous serpent eyes. He spoke of the virtual light of such luminous nodal points emerging from the abyssal depths of psyche, eventually including dynamical processes and all types of universally recurring patterns of behavior in the psyche. Jung did not begun to use the term archetype until 1919, which at first he used interchangeable with 'primordial image' and 'dominant'.
Archetypes are formative principles and structural elements, as well as typical preconscious modes of apprehension and action. Frey-Rohn characterized them as, "...not only the focal point of ancient pathways but also the center from which new creative endeavors emanated... "The archetypes, then being inherent in the life process, represented forces and tendencies which not only repeated experiences but also formed creative centers of numinous effect ". Archetypal images designate typical basic forms, prefigurative determinants, and the tendency to repeat the same psychic experiences. They conceal the unborn eternal archetype while they reveal particularized meaning and form.
Archetypes, Holarchy & Meta-genetics
We suggest extending Jung's argument toward the existence of self-organizing holographic archetypes, excited manifolds in the psychoid field, that exert both top-down and bottom-up control of phenomenology. There are as many approaches to archetypes and phenomenology as there are people. We intensify our efforts when we find what doesn't fit. Old definitions, speculation on heritability, static snapshots, extracted symbols, and qualitative correspondences of gods and goddesses fall short of full descriptions of nonlinear dynamic process.
Since Jung's era, the public has become passingly familiar with the terms of quantum physics, the fractals of chaos theory, and the holographic paradigm. Many understand that it relates to consciousness, synchronicity, and their holistic experience of reality.Synchronicity is the experience of two or more events, unlikely to occur together by chance, being observed to occur together in a meaningful manner. They are wrapping their minds around paradoxical notions such as multiverse, superposition, coherence, torsion fields, and entanglement.
Archetypes aren't limited to myth, dream, and the hermeneutic interpretations of the consulting room. They permeate our experience. Jung called the non-psychic aspect of the archetype 'psychoid', forming a bridge to matter in general, extending beyond a neurophysiological basis into the general dynamical patterns of all matter and energy. Archetypal pre-conditions describe the transcendent, unitary existence that underlies the duality of the mind (psyche) and matter (physis).
Though other alternative models will naturally arise, by choosing a scope of analysis and approaching cognitive dynamics and characteristics on their own terms we can actually get something done. We have to wrap our minds around the notion that our "living region" is indissolubly welded to the vastness of unknowable reality. Jung suggested as much in the language of his day in his concept of the Collective Unconscious and its archetypal dynamics, which he constantly sought to update. Nearly a century later, we should consider doing the same.
It can be useful to relinquish or recontextualize old reality assertions. A 21st Century inquiry into reality explodes the normative of space, time and matter, and thus destroys the context in which something like an evolutionary narrative makes sense to us. Yet, by choice or by wearing intentional blinders, the evolutionary narrative continues to inform very useful analyses of our condition. That is also a useful point in consciousness studies (since there is actually no other alternative) . We have to construct and build upon useful analyses of consciousness, and not divert ourselves with unverifiable speculations about the true nature of all of reality.
Our notions of 'consciousness' exist independent of that reality, which is the lens through which we encounter our experiences. Cognition, itself is a holographic archetype. Many essential qualities of the whole are reflected or contained in each of the parts that make up that whole. Whatever else it may be, the holographic domain is also a subtle yet dynamic net of preferential metaphors, analogies and similes which characterize our experience of our experiences. Just as we are not constrained by retrievals of our ancestors beliefs, rituals, superstitions and faulty theories, we are not constrained from rewriting psychological theory from best practices to clear a Golden Path to our future.
Holographic archetypes effectively echo their nested-structure and resonant patterns throughout the field as phenomenological, biophysical, literal and symbolic "reflectaphors" -- fractal expressions and reiterations of psychic life. Archetypal morphogenetic fields (or attractors) emerge harmonically withinin nested domains. The interweaving transient forms of the holographic archetype include the hologram, psychic structure, wave-genetics, and synchronicity.
We can and must recontextualize Jung's intuitive notion of archetypes in terms of today's science, pursuing his dream of a unified language that unites psyche and matter. Archetypes are more than just metaphors of chaos theory, strange attractors, and dark energy -- they are the eternal sources of such notions and perceptions. It's as if these supersensible realities are enfolded potentials in the scalar field of the virtual vacuum, awaiting their synchronistic moment of unfolding.
Remodeling Process
Arthur Koestler called holarchy a connection between holons – as both a part and a whole, across scales and domains. The universe as a whole is an example of a holarchical system, in which every holarchy is part of a larger holarchy. Holarchy is commonly considered a form of hierarchy, however, hierarchy implies both an absolute top and bottom. For a holon, this is not logically possible, as it is both a whole and a part. Like a fractal, the top can be a bottom, and a bottom can be a top. An advantage of the holarchy model is that it may be easily mapped to hierarchy of agents (or archetypes) in which an agent is composed of agents and may have its own ecological behavior as a partial consequence of these part's behaviors.
Functioning like "psychic DNA", archetypes are the strange attractors organizing the psyche. The psychoid level of archetypes is analogous to the heritable DNA biohologram, whereas their expressive nature can be likened to epigenetics. Epigenetics is typically defined as the study of heritable changes in gene expression that are not due to changes in DNA sequence. Every cell in the body has the same genetic information. What makes cells, tissues and organs different is that different sets of genes are turned on or expressed.
Environmental factors and our choices alter the way genes and archetypes are expressed and characterize our being. Jung claimed that "the gods have become diseases." The field of epigenetics is now revealing a molecular basis for how heritable information other than DNA sequence can influence gene function, morphology, and plasticity. These advances also add to our understanding of transcriptional regulation, nuclear organization, development and disease.
Archetypes characterize and particularize perennial wisdom, language, images and ideas (theories), and emotion-laden complexes. Sometimes, such complex expression looks like pathology or pathologizing but psyche is trying to tell its perennial story in particularized form. We exist in relation to ourselves, to others, to myths, to images, or to archetypes. Their expression is the essence of our being.
Considering the primordial nature of the psyche, he reflected on the 'seeds of light broadcast in the chaos' (Khunrath) , of the 'scintillae' (Dorn), of fish-eyes at the bottom of the sea, or images of luminous serpent eyes. He spoke of the virtual light of such luminous nodal points emerging from the abyssal depths of psyche, eventually including dynamical processes and all types of universally recurring patterns of behavior in the psyche. Jung did not begun to use the term archetype until 1919, which at first he used interchangeable with 'primordial image' and 'dominant'.
Archetypes are formative principles and structural elements, as well as typical preconscious modes of apprehension and action. Frey-Rohn characterized them as, "...not only the focal point of ancient pathways but also the center from which new creative endeavors emanated... "The archetypes, then being inherent in the life process, represented forces and tendencies which not only repeated experiences but also formed creative centers of numinous effect ". Archetypal images designate typical basic forms, prefigurative determinants, and the tendency to repeat the same psychic experiences. They conceal the unborn eternal archetype while they reveal particularized meaning and form.
Archetypes, Holarchy & Meta-genetics
We suggest extending Jung's argument toward the existence of self-organizing holographic archetypes, excited manifolds in the psychoid field, that exert both top-down and bottom-up control of phenomenology. There are as many approaches to archetypes and phenomenology as there are people. We intensify our efforts when we find what doesn't fit. Old definitions, speculation on heritability, static snapshots, extracted symbols, and qualitative correspondences of gods and goddesses fall short of full descriptions of nonlinear dynamic process.
Since Jung's era, the public has become passingly familiar with the terms of quantum physics, the fractals of chaos theory, and the holographic paradigm. Many understand that it relates to consciousness, synchronicity, and their holistic experience of reality.Synchronicity is the experience of two or more events, unlikely to occur together by chance, being observed to occur together in a meaningful manner. They are wrapping their minds around paradoxical notions such as multiverse, superposition, coherence, torsion fields, and entanglement.
Archetypes aren't limited to myth, dream, and the hermeneutic interpretations of the consulting room. They permeate our experience. Jung called the non-psychic aspect of the archetype 'psychoid', forming a bridge to matter in general, extending beyond a neurophysiological basis into the general dynamical patterns of all matter and energy. Archetypal pre-conditions describe the transcendent, unitary existence that underlies the duality of the mind (psyche) and matter (physis).
Though other alternative models will naturally arise, by choosing a scope of analysis and approaching cognitive dynamics and characteristics on their own terms we can actually get something done. We have to wrap our minds around the notion that our "living region" is indissolubly welded to the vastness of unknowable reality. Jung suggested as much in the language of his day in his concept of the Collective Unconscious and its archetypal dynamics, which he constantly sought to update. Nearly a century later, we should consider doing the same.
It can be useful to relinquish or recontextualize old reality assertions. A 21st Century inquiry into reality explodes the normative of space, time and matter, and thus destroys the context in which something like an evolutionary narrative makes sense to us. Yet, by choice or by wearing intentional blinders, the evolutionary narrative continues to inform very useful analyses of our condition. That is also a useful point in consciousness studies (since there is actually no other alternative) . We have to construct and build upon useful analyses of consciousness, and not divert ourselves with unverifiable speculations about the true nature of all of reality.
Our notions of 'consciousness' exist independent of that reality, which is the lens through which we encounter our experiences. Cognition, itself is a holographic archetype. Many essential qualities of the whole are reflected or contained in each of the parts that make up that whole. Whatever else it may be, the holographic domain is also a subtle yet dynamic net of preferential metaphors, analogies and similes which characterize our experience of our experiences. Just as we are not constrained by retrievals of our ancestors beliefs, rituals, superstitions and faulty theories, we are not constrained from rewriting psychological theory from best practices to clear a Golden Path to our future.
Holographic archetypes effectively echo their nested-structure and resonant patterns throughout the field as phenomenological, biophysical, literal and symbolic "reflectaphors" -- fractal expressions and reiterations of psychic life. Archetypal morphogenetic fields (or attractors) emerge harmonically withinin nested domains. The interweaving transient forms of the holographic archetype include the hologram, psychic structure, wave-genetics, and synchronicity.
We can and must recontextualize Jung's intuitive notion of archetypes in terms of today's science, pursuing his dream of a unified language that unites psyche and matter. Archetypes are more than just metaphors of chaos theory, strange attractors, and dark energy -- they are the eternal sources of such notions and perceptions. It's as if these supersensible realities are enfolded potentials in the scalar field of the virtual vacuum, awaiting their synchronistic moment of unfolding.
Remodeling Process
Arthur Koestler called holarchy a connection between holons – as both a part and a whole, across scales and domains. The universe as a whole is an example of a holarchical system, in which every holarchy is part of a larger holarchy. Holarchy is commonly considered a form of hierarchy, however, hierarchy implies both an absolute top and bottom. For a holon, this is not logically possible, as it is both a whole and a part. Like a fractal, the top can be a bottom, and a bottom can be a top. An advantage of the holarchy model is that it may be easily mapped to hierarchy of agents (or archetypes) in which an agent is composed of agents and may have its own ecological behavior as a partial consequence of these part's behaviors.
Functioning like "psychic DNA", archetypes are the strange attractors organizing the psyche. The psychoid level of archetypes is analogous to the heritable DNA biohologram, whereas their expressive nature can be likened to epigenetics. Epigenetics is typically defined as the study of heritable changes in gene expression that are not due to changes in DNA sequence. Every cell in the body has the same genetic information. What makes cells, tissues and organs different is that different sets of genes are turned on or expressed.
Environmental factors and our choices alter the way genes and archetypes are expressed and characterize our being. Jung claimed that "the gods have become diseases." The field of epigenetics is now revealing a molecular basis for how heritable information other than DNA sequence can influence gene function, morphology, and plasticity. These advances also add to our understanding of transcriptional regulation, nuclear organization, development and disease.
Archetypes characterize and particularize perennial wisdom, language, images and ideas (theories), and emotion-laden complexes. Sometimes, such complex expression looks like pathology or pathologizing but psyche is trying to tell its perennial story in particularized form. We exist in relation to ourselves, to others, to myths, to images, or to archetypes. Their expression is the essence of our being.