Wednesday 1 April 2020

Outward And Inward

"Space exploration opened a new external frontier while the Psychotechnic Institute that grew out of Professor Valti's theories probed an old internal one."
-Sandra Miesel, interstitial passage IN Poul Anderson, The Complete Pschotechnic League, Volume 1, p. 19.

"...the long and savage past of the race...the adolescence of a species...
"So men fought each other instead of wrestling with themselves. The bravest sought to evade the currents of hatred by turning outward to the nearest planets in the solar system..."
-Brian Aldiss, Galaxies Like Grains Of Sand (London, 1979), ONE, p. 21.

Whereas the Psychotechnic History opens by showing a positive approach to the outer and inner frontiers, in Aldiss's future history, by contrast, inner psychological conflicts are avoided first in outer political conflicts, then in outward space exploration. (See also When Does The Future Begin?)

"Since the flaws in human society were the products of flaws in each of its members, fundamental improvement had to begin with the individual."
-Miesel IN Anderson, p.101.

This is what the Transcendental Meditators claim. For a long time, I argued the same way. Changing people changes their relationships and thus society. Now I think that the combination of meditation with political action is the optimal approach.

3 comments:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

I have to respectfully disagree with your last paragraph. My view is that the best we will ever be able to hope for are socio/political systems which are not too bad. And I believe that was also Anderson's belief as well.

Ad astra! Sean

paulshackley2017@gmail.com said...

Sean,
No disagreement about what Anderson believed.
Paul.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

But not, I suspect yours! You don't entirely share the skepticism real conservatives have for political action.

Ad astra! Sean