Winter Solstice & Self as Worldview

Hello humans,

Happy new years eve!

I'm playing with writing and plan to write weekly for the next while - I hope something here is of interest to you. Replies & comments are always welcomed and appreciated.

Planetary Perspectives

I appreciate winter solstice for it presses upon us, the peak darkness of our nights. And now that we're on the other side, while it's still plenty dark, daylight continuously grows until our summer solstice in June. Recognizing our equinoxes and solstices helps me remember the natural cycles of our world, and connect to the planetary perspective.

And speaking of perspective, this month I explored worldviews. As Museum of Self is deepening humanity's self understanding, it's become clearer to me how much the way we see the world influences the way we see ourselves.

Quick Tour on Worldviews

• The term worldview comes from German weltanschauung (Welt|world) +‎ (Anschauung|outlook/view), attributed to Immanuel Kant in the late 1700s.
• Some academics in Religious Studies programs want to change their field to 'Worldview Studies'. Makes some sense as worldviews includes beliefs about divinity & metaphysics, yet also includes other important philosophical vectors such as being, meaning & ethics.
• I struggled to find a comprehensive and pragmatic framework for worldview definition (here's the closest I found) and believe a consistent framework remains an opportunity both for academia and laypersons to better understand themselves and other cultures.
• I also was rather surprised to learn there's research indicating psychedelics impact metaphysical beliefs. If we're in the psychedelic renaissance than we might also be in for a metaphysical shift in worldview.

Self as Worldview

Michelle Holliday's poetic & persuasive book The Age of Thrivability argues there's a new worldview emerging - one that integrates previous worldviews of the past.

Michelle approaches this worldview model as a living system, which states there are four basic aspects for life: 1) parts 2) relationships 3) whole 4) integration of 1, 2 & 3. Each of these four aspects has its own worldview, complete with the overarching story of the life which influences the role we see for ourselves. She makes the argument that all four of these aspects are needed for life to thrive and now is the time for a worldview that recognizes and integrates the story of parts, relationships and wholes.

I had the honor of interviewing her about book Age of Thrivability;  I'll be publishing our conversation soon.

Artifact of the Week

Artifacts in Museum of Self are works of cultural significance, that invite us into the question "what am I?".

One Word Sawalmem, co-directed by Pom Tuiimyali & Natasha Deganello Giraudie.

This 20 minute film (free to watch yet requires an email) offers a worldview different than the one I was born into - one that honors the sacred relationship with life and sees humans as stewards and protectors of nature. It follows the journey of Pom and his tribe as they fight for the return of salmon to northern California. I was moved by the resilience of the community. Hope you enjoy.

Wishing you a beautiful 2023!

David Zangwill, human @ Museum of Self