Synchronicity is, I think, becoming more a part of our scientific and philosophic paradigms. Webster defines it as: the quality or state of being synchronous or simultaneous: concurrence of acts, events, or developments in time: coincident movement or existence; chronological arrangement of historical events and personages so as to indicate coincidence or coexistence; a representation in the same picture of two or more events which occurred at different times.
Jung required a larger framework for his idea of synchronicity, a framework that reveals an underlying pattern for what he called "temporally coincident occurrences of acausal events."
What does synchronicity mean to you? What role does it play in your life?
What do YOU think?
Artwork by Cindy Hesse Many thanks.
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Matt 5:18 "For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled."
The "Jot" is the Hebrew word "Yodh" which is the 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It is also the smallest letter. It's European or English equivalent is the letter "Y" as in the English term Yahweh or in Hebrew YHVH since there were no vowel's used in the ancient script.
The word "jot" itself is an English transliteration of "iota" which is the 9th letter of the Greek alphabet. "Iota," in turn, is the nearest Greek equivalent for the Hebrew yodh.
The "tittle" is the small decorative spur or point on the upper edge of the yodh. If you can imagine a tiny letter with a slightly visible decorative mark.
Tittle is used by Greek grammarians of the accents and diacritical points. It means the little lines or projections by which the Hebrew letters differ from each other. One example would be the difference between the letter L and I. The difference is only one small mark. We use phrases like "the dotting of the i, and the crossing of the t," and "every iota."
To put this into context, the smallest events are important and they have meaning in view of the larger. Synchronicity is the modern day manifestation of what Jesus was talking about. To me it means that there are no coincidences and nothing is by happenstance, no matter how small and insignificant they may seem. Everything is CONNECTED and "fixed" by the Universal, overriding law of Karma.
andras: I was wondering where you were going with that! But I agree with your conclusion. There is, I believe, an underlying cause and effect. The cause is consciousness and its global and local vibrations affected by our thoughts and feelings bringing like vibrational "chance" events into the context of the thinker and feeler.
It all depends on how much we focus. either we shoot like a farmer with a shotgun or like a sniper with his precision weapon. Our focused attention will bring clearer results and expected synchronicity. If only we wouldn't be so distracted!
I am fascinated with/by synchronicity. I always have been. As I grow spiritually, I see more and more of it and experience it more often.
For me, I always want to know WHY it has occurred and sometimes, I am able to tell and sometimes, it just seems like minutia.
In all honesty, I like the randomness and disconnectedness of things. I've never been a big believer in unity or an underlying reality. It delights me to think that no two peas in a pod are alike.
Like a cluster of gears, perfectly meshed... our existence is exactly as we intend it. No surprises. No accidents. Cause and effect are the rule here.
But there is more. That rule; cause and effect, is in play in spite of our ignorance of its functioning. We can become aware of our intentions that make our lives what they are. And we can direct it. Even so, the rule only applies HERE....
Slipping outside this consensual box, we can realize existence in another set of rules! A set of rules that doesn't include opposites, cause and effect, and separation.
Slipping out of THAT perceptual box, we can discover an even finer existence! One. All. From here, synchronicity is clearly understood. From here, we can OVER-RIDE the rule of cause and effect! We can saturate our life with ONENESS. We can manifest the Intent of the Universe. We can merge the opposites into One.
In short, the rules of a particular realm only apply to those imprisoned within it...
I like the idea of Oneness, I believe the visible Universe is manifested part of Oneness. In some processes I used to enter the state of Oneness just for a short while. I can do it again whenever I like it.
However, I am very pragmatic type.
I am so glad you have posed this question, Molly, because it goes to the heart of the contrast between the prevailing science of consciousness and the emergence of consciousness science. While the former views consciousness as an experiential distinction in and of itself, consciousness science views all distinctions as partial experiencings of consciousness as a whole.
The experience of synchronicity is congruent with the ecological psychology of James J. Gibson, which reveals how the totality of a person subliminally responds to the totality of his/her environment, as well as how one can become mindful of one’s wholeness-to-wholeness relationality. Gibson’s insights have been applied most mindfully in sports psychology, as reported in Joan N. Vickers' book, Perception, Cognition, and Decision Training: The Quiet Eye in Action, and in Keith Davids’ book, Interceptive Actions in Sport (both reviewed at amazon.com.) As for Gibson’s psychology itself, see Edward R. Reed’s book, James J. Gibson and the Psychology of Perception and the brief entries at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._J._Gibson and at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_psychology.
From the perspective of ecological psychology we are organically and contextually related to the world as lesser whole-beings who are within a larger whole-beingness overall. It is only psychologically (and therefore experientially) that we "split" ourselves relationally by interacting only partially to an otherwise integral world.
Among the notable exceptions to our experiential partialism are what Abraham Maslow called "peak experiences," episodic experiencings of relating as an inner whole-being to our surrounding whole-beingness.
At the level of worldly experiencing, therefore, when I am mentally, emotionally and psychically "together" I experience the world as being likewise together. When I am not thus together, I experience the world as fractionated.
Thus while “coincidence” signifies our awareness of a partial correspondence (as in science of consciousness), “synchronicity” signifies our awareness of holistic correspondence (as in consciousness science).
I am certain that this does happen and it matters very little to me if it can be explained away or made insignificant. To call it synchronicity sounds a bit sterile to me, I see it as personal and I also see it as an alignment with the Universe, the individual and the Universe are One and that One is directed because h/she is part and whole of all that exists. It works best with the transrational mind because we are asking the questions of the Universe and we are listening from the Universe.
The reason that it does not matter if it is explained away is because that process is counter to the way in which we see and understand, call it rational. But in fact the rational is used and speaks to the mind but this is only to give the individual a piece of that reality. I have always been a dreamer, and I think we call those people dreamers when they focus on that which the rational mind cannot comprehend, but the beauty of a dream is that we are given symbols - it is up to us to translate and make real. Hence synchronicity, we defined it now we can use it.
People tend to use the term "synchronicity" to mean more than "coincidence"... and when they do - it is not a concept science is getting comfortable with.
Simple statistics and a look at patterns will show how easy it is for us to misattribute how "rare" or "odd" something should be.
great blog keep up the good work
hmmm... an adjective....
occurrences happening at the same moment, regardless of time and space. I'm thinking 3+ dimensions. So are the occurrences happening to an individual?
I think a key component to synchronicity is conscience awareness. One must have a question, problem, or issue present upon which he/she keeps in the forefront of their minds. Much like the phenomenon that one experiences when they buy a new car or other material object and then suddenly become aware of how many other people have the same car or object.
The answers to our questions are provided to us if we only learn to slow down and be receptive to them.
I also like the idea of connecting synchonicity to oneness. Mentally. It definitely feels that way too, so it fits in my life. If we think about it there is more synchonicity going on in our lifes than dissynchronicity. For example, how many families appear at the dinner table at the same time, enjoy their meals together? Isn't that wonderfull?
Any instrument you play is a a result of the joining of millions of thoughts of actions, every meal you eat has known a carefull merging of ingredients, every person you speak has been evoked into this world by the miraculous act of love.
But I can't deny that I do not always realise this while I'm playing guitar (not that I do that so often), when I'm eating my salad, and when I'm speaking to my neighbour.
In that sence I think synchronicity is an event that reminds you of oneness. And the more open you are to oneness, the more events will remind you of it. But I also agree with Jag that the more open you are to synchronicity, the "bigger"the synchronous events actually become. The faster you find the people that guide you towards your purpose in this world. Maybe it is because your purpose grows while you grow. But that is just in this world, not in the world of oneness.
Synchronicity, if I understand the word correctly, is the falling together of what may appear as improbable, from a human point of view.
This will increase as time goes by, as information becomes more prevalent, and as we define reality by the information that we have.
You will meet people that will shock you with ideas that you have already discovered.
You will wonder how can that be, as you have never told anyone of your discoveries.
These events will appear to you as synchronicity.
Then again, I may be just thinking out aloud.
If You felt something in the words you read, you may have felt a connection.
That's what it is all about.
Synchronicity can show us our truest connections to others, and be a light onto our paths of discovery. http://www.infinitesouls.com/page2.html
The French writer Émile Deschamps claims in his memoirs that in 1805, he was treated to some plum pudding by a stranger named Monsieur de Fontgibu. Ten years later, the writer encountered plum pudding on the menu of a Paris restaurant and wanted to order some, but the waiter told him that the last dish had already been served to another customer, who turned out to be de Fontgibu. Many years later, in 1832, Émile Deschamps was at a diner and was once again offered plum pudding. He recalled the earlier incident and told his friends that only de Fontgibu was missing to make the setting complete—and in the same instant, the now senile de Fontgibu entered the room.
Maybe it is just the natural (unsurprising) convergence of very long paths ie something that is inevitable such as the discovery of calculus that is often held up as an example of synchronicity. Two people apart making the same discovery receiving equal world recognition. http://www.angelfire.com/md/byme/mathsample.html
Watson & Crick did not "discover" DNA, they only discerned its structure! Or, more specifically they were first to make a model of it using cardboard cutouts! The structural discovery was synchronus with other researchers x-raying it to "see" its structure and Linus Pauling who was first to make 3-D models of other molecules. http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/Discovery-of-DNA-Structure...
Synchronicity doesn't get me too excited, but, serendipity does!
I'll go with the less wordy definition: Meaningful coincidence.
I am reminded whenever I hear or see the word of that old chestnut about when you are ready the teacher will appear.
It has seemed to happen a fair bit to me, but who knows huh!
Let me offer the other one, known as Kaag Taaliya ( Nyaya ) or the Logic of the Crow :
A crow comes flying and lands on the cocnut tree, when at th4e same instant a coconut falls. It's so apparent to conclude : The coconut fell because the crow landed.
When there is no truth in the conclusion, no meaning in the ' synchronicity.'
I think I'll throw my spanner in, here. Could it be that synchronicity is evidence of an holographic aspect to reality? A couple of weeks back, I was walking into work and noticed a perfectly formed pigeon tail feather sticking up out of the grass. I picked it up and stuck it into my coat pocket. Later that day, there was an email that went around announcing redundancies, but NOT for my department. See the synchronicity? Ahh, but through the eyes of a shaman, the pigeon is a bearer of messages and tail feathers are used for stability. So there was foreshadowing of a message that would be indicative of stability (the fact that my department was not affected). The whole universe shows us little reflections of ourselves all around us, always. The more you look, the more you see. The more you see, the more you learn about how to read them.
It is also interesting to note that I had formulated the response above after Molly had posted this message but BEFORE anyone had responded. So, I was already thinking about using birds as an example, only to come back from my lunch-time walk to see that Vam had used a bird-based example. As above, so below! This universe is holographic, if we but DARE to look into all the mirrors. ;-)
I would completely agree, Pat, that as our viewpoint changes, our perception of the patterns change. Where there seemed to be no pattern yesterday, becomes a pattern of deeper meaning today. Our conscious contemplation of our own ascemic symbolism and collective archetypes can provide dramatic changes in view.
I would though Pat be weary of attaching to much meaning to things like this or run the risk of seeing 'signs' everywhere.
How much meaning is too much meaning?
Aha now that is a question Molly, yep indeed it is.
Yeah, well, I suppose if one inspects every dust particle, one will, invariably, hear a Who. Yes, indiscriminate discernment is not discernment. ;-)
I just hoping for some serendipity, my watch needs a new battery.
For me, as always, being synchronous with the cosmos brings about anything and everything. All I have to do is put out that bit of mental stimulus and soon the tumblers drop into place, unencumbered by the mundane. I know that if I set my mind to something it will come about when the synchronicity aligns, whether it be that car, that house or that woman across the street. I think it is a powerful dimension that has yet to be realized by the many and is still so limited among the few. I feel in control through that synchronicity, like there is something more about me than just that of the common mass. I sometimes wonder if that synchronicity will one day over power me, meaning that when it becomes so fine tuned that any and every thought actually finds it's way to fruition, that casual, not really intended event comes about simply because I thought about it. I've already had that happen once, where I was just idly thinking about something and it came about, but it was sad and depressing. I still often wonder why it happened.
As a believer I wonder why Jung calls synchronicity 'acausal' in that essay "Synchronicity, An Acausal Connecting Principle". Does he embrace a Humean notion of causality as constant conjunction in which causes precede effects temporally?
Yet I do find myself reluctant to jump in with both feet and call something a meaningful coincidence. This is no doubt my inner atheist whispering. As a believer I know synchronicity under a different name: providence. God always meets our real needs. Sometimes I see the pattern and call it providence.
I would wonder the same thing about it all being acausal. I remember when my mother in law died my wife, a life long devout catholic, mentioned something about a sign, a butterfly that would appear. I always thought that to be coincidence but at the cemetery, there it was, a large white butterfly that landed and stay for several minutes then casually flew off. I guess there is some synchronicity there, in the death, the mention of and appearance of the butterfly.
I am not expert of Jung, but have enjoyed his writing and work now and then. I think what this means is that there is something more than what we think of as cause and effect at play here. That while, as Slip suggests, sychronistic events for us are responsive to our individual thoughts and feelings, we do not cause them to come about like we cause a stone to roll by kicking it. Synchronicity is, I
think, always at play in our lives, but our awareness of it increases
as our perception of the more subtle levels of being changes. We
don't cause it, we become aware of it by tuning into it.
The concept of self, or more specifically the sense of unity of self, has both synchronic ('I seem to be a unified self at any given moment') and diachronic ('I seem to be the same self as I was a few minutes/hours/months/years ago') aspects.
Quine was quite good at this sync-dia chronic stuff. We are this network of stuff built from the past, stuck trying to make sense of what is here and now, and this, at bottom, is what evidence is. Too individual for my liking as I rather like to be taught what works and have a concept of self in social context. I'd like to see us move into authentic production on a local basis, making sure the hard work put in is protected and make this about half our working week (2 days). We could all work for the same wage in such endeavour and do 2 more days in the private sector. The last three days, would, of course, be put aside to watch England thrash Australia.
Self in social context does seem to make sense, Neil. The old layers of silt are revealing like years of misspent youth now lying in old age waiting to be crushed into mortar. A standard wage across the board, a new strata of even handedness including the ruling class, not the commensurate method you say. But who will reside in the palace, the docklands the shires? Not I, says the peasantry who will by some order continue to serve others, as monetary disparity converts to domains and abodes, stylish wear and motorcars, seriality thrives. Number 358293 please step aside, are your papers in order? Jean-Paul had other ideas, perhaps taken too far for the demonstrative statement but nevertheless the final act in the play, exit stage left. Disappointing though, the lack of communication, the failure to let us know how it really plays out on the other side. On this side what might be evidenced is that England's days of thrashing are over. The third world is closing in, the mortar cracking and crumbling like bits of Feta under the weight of lying hordes of power mongers, the wagon is full and over loaded, dump the dead weight or sink. Don't fret old chap, your just another rock within the milestones of eternity.
But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.
Romans 11
I think it depends on the area of your life that "Synchronicity" occurs. If it is on a spiritual level it is a "clue" to future events beginning to unfold and is proven through this process. That is why "the more than coincidence" understanding is applied.
However when it is in an area of study such as the cosmos, "synchronicity" should be viewed objectively until further proven.
For me synchronicity and awareness of these events reassure me that i am on the path of divine will xx
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