24 Jan The Essence of Conversation – The humanist, consciousness that awakens other consciousnesses by Michel Dongois
Renée Cossette, Bodo von Plato and Arie van Ameringen (photo Michel Dongois).
What is a human being? This question was the starting point for a spontaneous four-way conversation over coffee and croissants which took place in Montreal in early November. The conversation was full of warmth, while outside, winter was preparing to make its yearly appearance over the city. The four individuals seated around the table were: Renée Cossette, Bodo von Plato, Arie van Ameringen and Michel Dongois.
What is a human being? This question has been asked during every period of human history. The great philosophers, artists and politicians have approached it in a multitude of ways. “If one does not ask (oneself) this question, consciousness cannot take hold of it. And consciousness is the very essence of a human being’s autonomy, and, in today’s world, the sign of an individual’s capacity for taking responsibility for the planet.” This notion was put forward by Bodo at the very outset of the conversation.
Arie then went on to say that “It is up to us to make this question relevant for today’s world, and to individualise it. And this becomes increasingly essential, since our traditional points of reference – social, cultural, spiritual – are rapidly being lost.” But it is only the human being who can take the initiative to ask the question, and do so in complete freedom.
Risks
What risks must we take today in order to expand our awareness? And what risks must society take in order to become more human, and therefore more aware?
On the subject of risk taking, Renée gave the example of her own field of expertise, that of workplace safety and security. Even though clear rules and regulations are absolutely necessary, they are not enough to minimise the risks of accidents. The workers themselves must be educated, “formés pour transformer” – trained in such a way that they themselves can bring about a transformation. This means creating awareness of the risks inherent in one’s own surroundings, since prevention is the best protection.
In her humanist approach, Renée uses the Enneagram, a tool for self-knowledge and behavioural awareness based on personality profiles. By means of this tool, a worker becomes more aware of his or her personal predisposition in relation to various risk factors and learns why he or she takes undue risks.
Speech is Gold
At this point in the conversation, the four participants agreed that the thing that connects us all is “otherness.” We can even go so far as to speak of the “mystery of otherness.” Bodo von Plato advocates a pragmatic humanism that cultivates care for a fellow human being’s inner life and that represents our innate desire to serve others. Carrying on a conversation “at eye level,” he says, is one sign of our search for the human quality in our meetings with others.
In today’s world we seem to be intent on destroying everything on both the social and ecological levels; we risk causing disruption in the hopes of seeing some sort of new consciousness emerge. In point of fact, we must become co-creators, because creation itself is in an unfinished state; the spiritual world needs the help of human beings who act in complete freedom. Mankind must provide assistance in creating a new order, one that is in accordance with cosmic evolution.
Gold is Sun transformed into matter. But better than gold is Light – the origin of being itself. And even higher than Gold and Light is conversation, when two consciousnesses raise each other to a higher level. Referring to Goethe’s view on the matter, Bodo says that this phenomenon is indeed the future of existence itself. “True conversation elevates us towards a more expansive consciousness; we seek the other person’s Light. Gold makes you rich, Light illuminates you, but conversation alone can awaken and heighten your consciousness.”
Order and Chaos
Our conversation then turned towards the idea of order and chaos. Renée referred to the novel by Michel Tournier entitled Vendredi ou les limbes du Pacifique. In the novel, Robinson, lost on a deserted island, is haunted by his own inner chaos. He is reduced to reading his Bible at the same time every day and making perfectly straight furrows in his rice paddies. But when Vendredi suddenly comes into his life, he begins to ease his stringently conditioned existence and make way for a more relaxed world order. This event opens up new horizons for him.
Bodo then admitted the following: “Paradoxically, I hate order, but I also crave order; it is impossible to live in chaos, it is impossible to live without chaos. We need both. Michael, the Spirit of intelligence, of Cosmic Order, causes us to seek to create order ourselves by exerting our attention, our care for knowledge and for doing the right thing – yet all this must go through a state of chaos.” We are now called upon to bring about a new order – not only privately or personally, but also on the truly human level – in order that human beings acquire the possibility of meeting what is universal. “Human awareness and human evolution constantly swing back and forth between order and chaos, and they do so in a necessarily tragic manner.” Chaos naturally tends towards order, and then, when an excess of order creates rigidity and “impedes life,” we have to bring in a certain amount of chaos.
Coming back to Vendredi, this “savage” brings a sort of awakening. And here, “savage” means that he is not yet organised, still irrational, and waiting to find the order that lies within. On the opposite side of the scale, rigidity can be exemplified by what is overly academic, totally structured, fixed.
What is a human being? In our current times, with the gaping chasm existing between an excess of rationality on the one hand and a lack of awareness on the other, we are in danger of becoming sub-human, says Bodo. Mankind could then sink below the human level, unable to bridge the two sides of this chasm of modernity, unable to deal with spiritual reality. “Advanced technology, which is a result of the rational thinking that has numbed us and closed us off from nature, has created a one-sided world free of risks, hiding the reality that, though it is beyond our immediate perception, makes us who we are.”
Science and consciousness
All those around the table recognised that science, which is only interested in studying matter, evolves much faster than does human consciousness. Bodo made it clear that it cannot be a question of disregarding or slowing the pace of technological advancement, but rather a question of strengthening our belief in the capacity of consciousness to evolve.
Renée pointed out how our society is quick to invest money in science, technology, computer science, and objects in general, but is much less generous when it comes to investing in developing essential human qualities. We only have to look at the feeble budgets allocated to universities or to personal development sessions, other than technical training, in the context of the workplace. And we can also see how relational occupations such as health care workers, teachers, etc. are not given the respect they deserve.
Ethical individualism
And as for anthroposophy, it offers us a new way of asking the age-old question: what is a human being, and what is the human being’s place in the universe? A century has passed since its introduction to the world, and, Bodo states, we can recognise that the most important notion anthroposophy has introduced is that of ethical individualism (The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity).Rudolf Steiner began to speak of ethical individualism in the late 1880’s, referring to great historical figures who dared to risk being individuals (Aristotle, Saint Augustine, Fichte, Stirner, and also Friedrich Nietzsche.).
Bodo stressed the need for creating an ethical individualism by becoming fully consciousness of the “incredible tension” existing between total individualism (narcissism) and care for our fellow human beings (altruism).
Bodo explained how it is now left up to each individual to forge his or her own moral outlook, because a major reversal took place during the 20th century with respect to what had until then been the human being’s concept of beauty, truth, and goodness – and conversely, the notion of what is ugly, false, and evil. Auschwitz and Hiroshima/Nagasaki overturned this moral system, said Bodo, referring to the work of philosopher Hannah Arendt (1906-1975).
With whom do I want to work?
In 1965, Arendt arrived at the conclusion that the most important decision facing an individual at the present time is the choice of whom one wants to live with and whom one wants to work with. Bodo summed this up in the following words: “What really interests Me is You. Between the two of us, a new world can come into being. I choose to live in an atmosphere of authenticity and friendship on my path forward towards my true self, which also means moving towards the world and into the world. I choose to live with those who will allow us to move forward together, and I choose to work with those who are also treading a path towards the future.”
What then is a human being? Besides ethical individualism, Bodo also brought up the practical undertakings Rudolf Steiner became involved in at the request of those who would be his collaborators in the projects they themselves asked for. “He wanted to be able to show that through inner and outer practice, another world becomes possible.” But if we truly want to stand at the vanguard of a new humanity, he added, the development of a new culture is indispensable. And this was the reason for Rudolf Steiner’s establishing the School for Spiritual Science, which he founded before his death – an institution of higher learning designed to connect the transformation of consciousness with endeavours in daily life, having at its very heart 19 mantric verses given for the inner meditative work of its members.
Meditation
Previously, we were prisoners of tradition; today we are prisoners of the narrowness of our daily lives, completely caught up in external circumstances. Everything combines to distract us if we do not make a conscious effort to meditate. Bodo pointed out the importance of cultivating an inner life through meditation, with the following affirmation: meditation is “an invisible, conscious act which is carried out alone; and each individual act establishes relationships.” And Renée added: “Yes, like love, which is an act requiring a conscious decision.” If we cling to tradition, we run the risk of forgetting that we are required to act out of our own volition. Rudolf Steiner encouraged us to take initiative, in spite of the fact that the undertaking might seem to involve inherent risks.
In our 21st century, the message of anthroposophy must not be dogmatic, but must rather become humanist in its approach. Arie van Ameringen went on to say: “What matters is that we awaken the other person’s awareness. This is the principle of reciprocity, one consciousness that awakens another consciousness.” He then added that now, one century later, we cannot speak of a mission as such, but rather of a reciprocity of consciousnesses. This also includes working with individuals whose awareness has been awakened through other spiritual approaches.
“Another person’s consciousness – another “I” – awakens me if I am truly attentive during the encounter,” was Arie’s reply. He pointed how important it is to also work with individuals who are not anthroposophists. “Anthroposophy takes on its full meaning when it urges me to act in response to the needs of the world.”
And if we can say now that the notion of reciprocity has replaced the idea of mission, this means that the former one-way teacher-pupil relationship is now outdated and has been replaced by the idea of conversation, of truly engaging with another human being. Bodo reminded us that Rudolf Steiner himself needed others in order to launch his initiatives (Ita Wegman for medicine, Emil Molt for Waldorf education, etc.). and Arie added that “awakened consciousness attracts awakened consciousness.”
Freedom for each individual, of course! Yet this freedom requires entering into conversations with one’s fellow human beings. In short, the art of human conversation must be given once again its rightful place. And friendship allows this to happen in an atmosphere of joy and human warmth.
Bodo ended the conversation by quoting Hélène Cixous, an author and playwright. The following line reflects beautifully the miraculous contemporary human quest for true human encounters: “Being together without losing one’s individual loneliness. Remaining alone as an individual yet without losing the reality of togetherness; this is the mechanism that creates the miracle.”
*Bodo von Plato earned degrees in philosophy and history. He served as a member of the Goetheanum leadership from 2001 to 2018. He created a public service foundation in Berlin and an action-research project to study the change in attitudes that has occurred at the end of the 20thcentury and the beginning of the 21st century.
Renée Cossette, psychologist, researcher and lecturer. Founder of Creanim, a training firm aimed at establishing workplace health and safety prevention awareness through a humanistic approach, both in Quebec and in France.
Arie van Ameringen, received a degree in linguistics. He has worked as a teacher at all levels within the educational system, notably in Waldorf schools. He served on the council of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada (2003 – 2018) and as the Society’s General Secretary from 2011 to 2018. Arie speaks several languages and is active as a translator and publisher.
Michel Dongois, journalist, recently retired.
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