Bunny Paine-Clemes

Creative Synergy


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in creativity because consciousness is transcendent.”76 In certain types of creativity, inspiration seems to come from beyond past experience; it is “discontinuous” with past knowledge and practice and seems a gift from the universe. The same idea may be coming to many different artists and thinkers, but its expression will be different, depending on the individual artist, the unique filter through which it emerges. There seems to be a Unified Field, the equivalent of a radio station, beaming information to receivers on its bandwidth.

      All of these explanations are complementary rather than exclusive. Like the blind men touching different parts of the elephant, they explain different aspects of the same beast.

      This unity of physics and monistic idealism appears also in new theories of cosmology that seem to be echoing ancient Eastern texts such as the Bhagavad Gita. It is possible that we may soon integrate diverse fields such as science, mysticism, and art in a “Unified Field theory” that explains phenomena of nature and art and the connection of universal patterns with individual efforts. By doing so, we will examine the deep structure of theories about the creative personality, process, and product. We will learn to see patterns and follow heuristics that will enrich our understanding and practice of creativity.

      A case in point is that concentration techniques developed in other traditions enhance creativity. This book contains some suggestions on how to use them but is by no means the only source. The text for a Stanford course, Creativity in Business, abounds with yogic exercises and concentration techniques. It supplements anecdotes from businessmen with philosophy from the conjunction of Eastern thought and science. Those who integrate the best of many traditions are being practical in this era of globalization.

      The fact is, we are now in the midst of an integrative paradigm shift.

       A History Lesson:The Paradigm Shift

      Basil Willey explains how such shifts occur:

      Such a “demand for restatement” occurred in the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century. Amid the upheaval caused by scientists such as Galileo and inventions such as the telescope, philosopher René Descartes tried to make sense of how the new truths offered by science could coexist with the old truths of religion. He became famous for his solution: “I think; therefore I am.” In other words, “I may not be able to prove my consciousness in the same way that a telescope can verify objects in the heavens, but I know that it exists because I know that I think.” With this maxim, Descartes split mind and matter, declaring them fundamentally different and not accessible by the same means of knowing. Though his intent was to protect religion from science, this “Cartesian split” had the opposite effect. It ended by promoting logical positivism: the extreme view that only matter accessible through the senses is a valid reality. The universe, stripped of its mystery and wonder, became a great machine, powered by the laws of Newton.

      Many thinkers believe that we are now undergoing a shift away from this paradigm. The new definition is holistic rather than fragmented, systemic rather than atomistic. As long ago as 1981, Toffler predicted that “a new age of synthesis” was being born:

       Specialization