You have seen me using Bennett's term "hyparxis" at some point in this blog. Now, hyparxis is "ableness to be", according to J.G. Bennett. In his book Dramatic Universe, volume 4, we can find a much clearer description of this term. We find him using terms as:
"decision", "commitment", to describe aspects of hyparchic future, present and past. He also puts "interaction" and "ableness to be" on two ends of a line with "present moment" in the center.
There are more factors active in one's awareness of the present moment, but I will give my own interpretation of this "hyparxis" term in relation to eternal patterns.
First of all, the capability to make a decision, freedom to choose between alternatives, is a wonderful capability of living beings. If you wonder about animals making decisions: yes, they can. Think for example of the choice they make between foods growing in the wild or in the meadow. Some animals are very choicy about the things they eat. The giant panda will only eat a certain kind of bamboo, for example.
But back to humans. Regarding decisions: one can only make decisions if there are alternatives to choose from. Even "fight or flight" response implies a choice between two options. But I am more concerned here with choice on a higher level of functioning, on the level of intellect. Having alternatives mean that one can perceive alternative courses of action, alternative goals, etc. It implies that one can see patterns, possibilities, potentialities.
These latter terms belong to what Bennett calls "eternity". I may use this term too (as in "eternal patterns"), but the term pattern or possibility is descriptive enough for our purpose.
So, we have two distinct factors here that enter our experience: possibilities/patterns and decision making. The latter implies a power to make decisions and also a power to see alternatives and make evaluations. The latter implies clearly a power to interpret situations, elements, relations between elements, etc. Power is a kind of potency. So, another way of naming these two factors is to use the words "potentiality" and "potency".
For clarity's sake, however, I prefer the words "pattern" or "possibilities" on the one side and "decision" or even better: "will-process" on the other hand. The latter implies also "agency", an autonomous power to initiate an act.
The process of active will is very complex. It has been described by Assagioli in his book "Act of will". I cannot deal with it here at length. Maybe in other posting. I will mention the steps
involved in the will-process, however.
Reversely translated from my copy of this book, we have:
1. Goal or purpose, based on valuation, motivation and intent.
2. Deliberation.
3. Choice and decision.
4. Reinforcement: command or fiat of the will.
5. Planning and elaboration of a program.
6. Steering of execution.
This is the process of will in it's complete and ideal form.
Remarks, based on Assagioli's treatment of the subject:
1. There is a goal to be reached. One has to clearly define a goal or purpose to be realized. The faculty of Imagination (ideation) is involved in this. This is not enough to get things going. An evaluation or valuation of the goal is necessary ending in a judgment. Then a motive must be generated that provides a drive and intent for one to realize this purpose/goal.
A motive is a dynamic thing. It is generated by the values we ascribe to the goals we want to reach.
2. As there are many goals, we must choose between them. This establishing of a preference is the result of the function of deliberation where we have to investigate several goals, our skills to realize these goals, the consequences of our choice, social desirability, acceptability, etc.
Discrimination is necessary!
3. Deliberation should lead to choice and decision.
4. Then follows reinforcement of the choice and decision. This activates the creative and dynamic energies necessary to accomplish one's goal/purpose. Compare this with Bennett's "commitments".
5. Planning and a program are needed. Methods of execution come into play as are considerations of time, circumstances , conditions.
6. At last there is the steering of the execution.
Will is like a director of a play. It is the supervisor of the whole process.
It looks to me that the whole gamut of human functions is concerned in this process: from will to imagination to motivation to discrimination to planning down to the physical execution
(sensori-motor function). QUite impressive! The physical execution itself is not a function of will, but the steering of that part is.
So, hyparxis is a very wide term. I think I prefer the term will-process as it clarefies much better what's going on (especially as elucidated by Assagioli). Eternal patterns play a role in the will-process as these patterns have to do with the possibilities/goals from which to choose.
This treatment also reveals that there are several energies playing a role in the will-process.
Potentially we are speaking of all the cosmic energies (E1 to E4 in Bennett's system), where the higher energies are working in "transcendent will" (let's say, super-spiritual will), down to,
say, sensitivity/vitality as interface with the biological world.
I already showed that this process needs at least a tetrad to describe important aspects, such as goal vs ground, skills vs deliberation/decision making. See my article on the tetrad. (http://m_euser.tripod.com/newvisiontetrad.pdf)
Higher order systems are needed to express significance, structure, etc., but these can be found in Dramatic Universe, volume 3.
Summarizing, we see that patterns and will have to work together in a complicated process where all human faculties have their role. There remains a ton to be researched. From another point of view for example, I see the six main energies (shaktis) from Vedantic lore playing a role in this
will-process, scaled down from cosmic to human proportion. Another question pertains to the working of Bennett's energies (E1 to E12). It looks now to me that he omitted a number of
important points/elements/elementals in his system. Combinations of energies or "principles" is another thing to have a look at.
But all that is material for other postings at some other time.
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