January 31, 2007

Symbolic Origins


The words signs and symbol are derived from the Greek word "symbolon". Knowing the history associated with these words is important in understanding the concept of design and its origin in reference to humanity. In early Greek culture it was custom to break a vase or plate into pieces at the end of certain private gatherings or meetings. Each participant would then keep a fragment of the original object as evidence of their being present. The piece would later serve as proof that they participated in the assembly and was witness to the event. The pieces would be then reassembled at the beginning of the next conclave in order to prove that the person in possession of the piece participated in the first or earlier meetings. Each served as a symbol* describing and identifying the owner of the piece as sharing a common belief, experience or activity.

symbol |ˈsimbəl|
noun
a thing that represents or stands for something else, esp. a material object representing something abstract : the limousine was another symbol of his wealth and authority. See note at emblem .
a mark or character used as a conventional representation of an object, function, or process, e.g., the letter or letters standing for a chemical element or a character in musical notation.

a shape or sign used to represent something such as an organization, e.g., a red cross or a Star of David.

Over time many groups used and applied a wide variety of designs, i.e. images, signs and symbols, to identify themselves from others within the collective.

Symbols were a simple way to identify each person as being part of a group. Each person took possession of a distinguishable part of the "puzzle" for purposes of symbolic identification, recognition and collective unity. 
It is noteworthy to compare this original concept of design with today's understanding of holograms, fractals and the concept of a quantum interpretation of matter and a collective order.

Each fragment had a purpose. Each piece was an identifiable part of an object** that gave "form" to a concept or idea. Each fragment had a meaning. Each fragment became a symbol by virtue of its contribution to an intangible "feeling" or experience represented by the piece's contribution to the formation of a purpose greater than itself. A vase or pitcher was typically used in such situations. They served as great metaphors for the realization surrounding each group experience. 
Each piece held its own meaning and purpose (design). When reunited with other fragments they created a vessel (form/container) that can serve a greater meaning and purpose than could never be attained individually. 
** Typically this object was an artifact, an object made by a human being and separate from an object naturally produced.

Each fragment identified a participant. The fragment and the participant became one ... symbolically. Collectively the group was dependent upon everyone's contribution in bringing meaning and purpose to every meeting. Each piece was identified as an important element in the creation of a larger group, geometry or matrix. Each participant discovered their own identity and power both as an individual and as a group by means of the symbol, i.e. by means of design.

Every person could demonstrate their contribution to the collective in their own unique, intangible and symbolic way. In some circumstances the meaning and purposes describing the group needed to be protected, hidden or kept secret from others. 

When members chose to reunite they submitted their pieces in order to be reassembled. When a member of the group chose to identify themselves to another member they merely showed the piece they had in their possession. Each member was validated and identified as being a member of a certain group by virtue of owning a piece of the puzzle. By reassembling the artifact before their colleagues they confirmed and identified themselves as being part of the collective. By merely possessing the piece they confirmed that they were witness to a previous event/experience and shared the same beliefs.

It could assumed that such events were ritualistic in content, but that may not have always been the case. Many hidden, secret and/or private organizations and groups used such methods to identify their members and/or continue their heritage with the original cast. The entire phenomenon centered about the symbolism surrounding the event and the experiences that over time became synonymous with the concept of design and the design process.

What was originally considered a single form, unit, or whole by virtue of the artifact was purposely broken into an assortment of individual parts that together gave the artifact its "form". The group became whole again when reunited. Each member/part represented an idea greater than itself. Each member/part had a different meaning and/or a purpose when viewed individually or collectively. Together they gave "form" to a concept that was greater than the sum of their parts. Each element became an agent of something greater than itself. Each association within the circle became an integral part of a greater de-sign. Each element symbolized something greater when reunited within the parametric constraints of 3D space/time.

The design process is very similar. You break a situation into manageable parts solely for the purpose of reassembling them within a different context. Over time elements change yet unlike the fragments of a plate, not all changes are recognizable. Symbols deal with the known in a manner that represents the unknown by sometimes veiling and fooling the senses. (See The Mind of Hermes).

Design deals with the unknown by means of recognizing the symbolic relationship between elements, i.e. the parts that by virtue of association give relative form to a concept of wholeness or unity never before revealed. Design is sensitive to the elements and forces that remain hidden to our senses. Design consciousness allows us to transcend these thought forms. Design consciousness gives rise to greater knowledge and understanding. Design conveys the concept of spirit into the role of an observer that actively monitors the ego and all that it senses.

“Whereas signs provide a stimulus which signals something of immediate significance … a symbol may have a meaning which is entirely divorced from the here and now. We can communicate about the past as well as the future, about our immediate surroundings as well as about remote and ever abstract and imaginary things.”
Ervin Laszlo

“We have learned that the exploration of the external world by the methods of the physical sciences leads not to a concrete reality but to a shadow world of symbols, beneath which those methods are unadapted for penetrating.”
Sir Arthur Eddington

"Meta-representation is the ability to represent a representation — being able to attach an abstract concept or meaning to a separate entity — and enables humans to adapt to their environment in real-time unlike most animals who can only adapt through slow genetic change over evolutionary time. Examples are using symbolism and metaphor, which for humans are second nature and taken for granted. But verbal and written language are only possible because we can abstract the idea of a thing and assign it a name — a symbol — that can be spoken and written. The perceiver understands that the symbol refers to a thing that is not the symbol itself."  
Mitchell Diamond 
https://darwins-apple.medium.com/about 

Design awareness doesn't focus on form alone, e.g. the shard of clay or piece of bone. Nor does design merely focus on the identifiable differences between forms. Rather, design focuses upon the symbolic relationships between form and formlessness; the connections between the parts, the whole and the origin. This is design consciousness.




Edited: 11.29.2013, 04.11.2014, 11.19.2014, 04.06.2017, 04.15.2017, 11.11.2020, 01.24.2021, 11.09.2021
Discernment is an integral part of self-mastery. You may share this post as long as author, copyright and URL https://designconsciousness.blogspot.com/ is included as the resource and shared on a non-commercial no charge basis. Please note … posts are continually being edited over time. Copyright © 2019 C.G. Garant. All Rights Reserved. (Fair use notice) You are also invited to visit https://designmetaphysics.blogspot.com/,   and https://sagariandesignnetwork.blogspot.com.
 
 

January 27, 2007

The Tao of Design


Before I go any further, it might be best to discuss some of the influences surrounding my first book, "The Tao of Design". I was originally inspired by the works of Ray Grigg , specifically his book, "The Tao of Relationships". I found his writing to be extremely insightful. Through him I began to appreciate the wisdom surrounding the Tao and the works of Lao Tzu.  His influence brought to mind new perspectives concerning past interpretations and understandings supporting the design function. New insights concerning design and the design process were slowly revealed to me and brought to my awareness. Meaning and purpose had a new meaning and purpose, and I wanted to share these revelations with others.  

Not until I visited China in1994 did I have the opportunity to experience the region that birthed the concept of the Tao. I was fortunate to be one of the first designers invited to visit the Peoples Republic of China soon after pronouncing its "open door policy". It was an honor to be invited by the People to People Organization  to visit China as a delegate representing the USA. I was part of a delegation of design professionals, business leaders and educators that visited an array of cities, universities, international designers and manufacturers.   

"The Tao of Design" introduces the reader to the concept of design and its relationship to the importance of meaning and purpose in the design process. I strived to focus upon the dynamic relationships between what we perceive, believe, imagine and create. Trying to put into words impressions that are difficult to describe was and continues to be, challenging.  It was during these incommunicable moments that I referred to the unspoken insights expressed by the writing style of Professor Grigg. 

At times certain verses appear to be confusing and/or redundant. Not everyone will resonate with my method of presentation/expression. Each vignette attempts to describe phenomena that might be considered vague, confusing or outright unintelligible. 

Design is a very subjective language that perpetuates a mysterious discourse through the use of symbol, metaphor and analogy. Design is a language unto itself, a language that speaks from within every day and every moment. 

The Tao has inspired me to venture deep into the connection between design and consciousness. I hope you find The Tao of Design as enlightening and challenging as it has been for me to bring it to manifestation.

C.G. Garant

Edited: 11.29.2013, 04.07.2017, 02.14.2019, 11.24.2019
Find your truth. Know your mind. Follow your heart. Love eternal will not be denied. Discernment is an integral part of self-mastery. You may share this post as long as author, copyright and URL https://designconsciousness.blogspot.com/ is included as the resource and shared on a non-commercial no charge basis. Please note … posts are continually being edited over time. Copyright © 2019 C.G. Garant. All Rights Reserved. (Fair use notice) You are also invited to visit https://designmetaphysics.blogspot.com/,   and https://sagariandesignnetwork.blogspot.com.


 

January 22, 2007

It's About Design.


I believe design is a universal phenomenon, archetypal in Nature and a metaphysical language that through the use of signs, symbols, metaphor and analogy becomes key to unlocking the creative process. Design, by virtue of its ability to bridge issues of contrasting nature and circumstance, conveys a sense of revelation to consciousness by means of its awareness.  

Design is made conscious by means of an array of events and experiences, i.e. inputs and outputs leading to a multitude of revelations and creations sensed, perceived and observed in space and time. More specifically, Design Consciousness defines, describes and discloses the relationship between both a subjective and a collective interpretation of meaning and purpose

Design consciousness is universal - overseeing, linking and distributing an unknown energy in perpetual motion, i.e. change. 

Design Consciousness creates a protective, non-linguistic umbrella over all patterns and forms of energy, light and information. Design invites, allows and compensates for the transition and transformation of energy from one state or agency, to another. 

Design consciousness harbors the ability and capacity to symbolically represent all Life in its most appropriate fashion and circumstance.

Design can define, describe and influence the relationship between the tangible and intangible, the known and the unknown, thoughts and feelings. Design consciousness describes the uniquely subjective and collective experience/feeling typically sensed in every situation and circumstance.

Design Consciousness is paradoxical yet essential to describing and defining awareness as awareness is to describing and defining design.


I'm of the opinion that further discussion and investigation into the concept of Design Consciousness and the creative processes that embraces it, will reveal new forms of knowledge founded upon facts that symbolically lead to greater understanding. 


Knowledge without understanding has no merit, meaning or true purpose. Understanding overrides false information by capturing it and knowing it for what it is.

The relationship between design and consciousness is an intimate one, a correspondence where facts, knowledge and understanding expand Consciousness beyond any synthetic attempt to reproduce it.

Masterful gains in design consciousness are not considered an easy task. There are no common conventions, protocols, specific paths, plans, directions, recipes or processes that must, or need to be taken in this regard. We determine the right path for ourselves by fully experiencing and responding to every moment, subjectively, collectively and symbolically. 

This is a major design characteristic. Free will, free choice. Absorb as much as you can by surrounding that to which you are greatly attracted/resonate. Honor the choices of your fellow humans, love them for who they are and be willing to share your knowledge/love with others so that the species and planet may thrive and prosper. 

Design provokes us to know, learn and further inquire as to who you/we are. This challenge opens the door to greater choice, progress and opportunity. 

* * *

Therefore, in the process of "knowing thyself" it becomes imperative that we learn to respond to change. We become aware of ourselves by means of exercising a number of symbolic processes through observation, interpretation and expression. We intuitively exercise these processes by means of experiencing the situations and circumstances we encounter every day. We achieve this awareness by virtue of first comprehending, interpreting and then responding to the signs and symbols veiled behind the imaginings of a three dimensional space and subjective interpretation of time. 

Learning how to respond to change by properly adapting to its influence, is vital to human survival. Learning how to properly respond to change describes the next step in our evolutionary journey.  

My desire is that this series of blogs offers the reader an array of opportunities, i.e. paths, he/she might choose for themselves. It is an effort to bring a new awareness to that which sustains the concept of design through the acquisition of a design consciousness


 







Edited: 11.24.2019, 11.26.2019, 08.03.2022, 10.21.2022, 06.10.2023, 07.10.2023
Find your truth. Know your mind. Follow your heart. Love eternal will not be denied. Discernment is an integral part of self-mastery. You may share this post as long as author, copyright and URL https://designconsciousness.blogspot.com/ is included as the resource and shared on a non-commercial no charge basis. Please note … posts are continually being edited over time. Copyright © 2023 C.G. Garant. All Rights Reserved. (Fair use notice) AI usage prohibited. You are also invited to visit https://designmetaphysics.blogspot.com/, and https://sagariandesignnetwork.blogspot.com and https://www.pinterest.com/


       
 
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