In the history of our society, many speak of the dichotomy between Western and Eastern philosophy. Simplistically, the former denotes a separation of mind and body, of environment and individual; while the latter represents ideas representative of a more holistic view of the universe. While this is a generalisation, the spread of the Scientific Revolution in the 1500s, culminating at the start of the Industrial Revolution in 1760s Britain led to advancements never before seen—spreading European philosophical ideas of the time through imperialism and expansionism to various continents. Still, dissenting voices have always and do exist in the past, present and future—ideas that disagree with war, pollution, and hegemonies—which instead align for the spiritual wholeness within and without, towards the actualisation of the self. Such post-materialist philosophical perspectives can aid in influencing psychology’s contribution to sustainability in our current world today.
To begin, wholeness voices have existed in the past, in either the “East” or “West,” such as the philosophies of Plotinus, who spoke of us as limited beings who are with the One; of Heraclitus, who spoke of constant change and flux we need to adapt to the flow of the world; of Thales, who said that everything is water—and is divine and alive; of the Daoists who spoke of the Yin and the Yang, and the ever-changing nature of its opposites as part of the whole of reality; of Buddhists who spoke of the Middle Way and to live abandoning desire, of which letting go is also echoed by the Zen Buddhists; and the Upanishads which spoke of the Oneness of all, that we are all but a drop in the ocean of Atman merging into the Brahman. Unfortunately, developments arose which then led to the loss of confidence in such matters of wholeness, proclaimed by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche as the Death of God, heralding the loss of spirituality in the world. Materialistic perspectives, which saw the world operating as if it were a machine, championed separation. Materialism became dominant, and in the increasingly advanced world during the 1500s, supposedly more “primitive” philosophies that were once sacred became banal.
Nevertheless, aspects of separation have also existed in the “East,” such as the bureaucracy within the imperial courts of emperors, as well as the philosophy of Legalism which dominates such a landscape, alongside systems of hierarchy within Neo-Confucianism that become restrictive rather working towards a truly integrative whole. Still, the Enlightenment period in Europe which led to the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions paved the way for further separation of mind, body, and environment—Descartes and Hobbes are particularly resonant philosophers who set the foundations for this era. The expansionism and imperialism of European countries combined with the steam engine, superior weaponry, naval armies, and technologies spread throughout the world. The geopolitical order had changed and with it, the idea of separation further cemented itself in our society today.
Our capitalist political and economic model, which evolved to serve the Industrial Revolution, is built upon this idea of separation. It adheres to liberal philosophies that value free enterprise, competition, deregulation, and the importance of individual responsibility. As we have become increasingly separated from nature, we have allowed corporations to degrade and exploit its resources for economic growth without feeling its pain. As we have become increasingly separated from each other, we have been encouraged to compete with our conspicuous consumption. As we have become increasingly separated from our spiritual selves, we have been losing the meaning and purpose in our lives, which we are replacing with different forms of consumerist addictions.
Such capitalism spread throughout continental Europe and into the United States, with such Anglo-European thought then materialising throughout the world through imperialism and expansionism in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Various countries and colonies adopted such modes of thinking, and such industrialisation is the current ideal of the 21st century. More recently, currents of neoliberal capitalism, championed by Margeret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, have been spread around the world by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as a precursor for financial support. Sustainability and environmental protection are not the priorities of neoliberalism. Instead, it focuses on increasing production, consumption, profit and economic growth. While the IMF is affiliated with the World Economic Forum (WEF) and has its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals, it currently appears to be a mere front. Ultimately, the original assumption is that we can still have continuous economic growth on a finite planet. Current climate change, pollution, and aspects of mass species extinction are now severely testing this assumption.
Not all is lost, however, as medieval philosophers like Spinoza and Leibnitz continued the tradition of wholeness, while those outside the dichotomy of East vs West have always been there as well. Islamic and Christian mysticism, such as Sufism and the meditations of St. Augustine, come to mind. Native American spirituality, of being at one with nature and animals, as well as African-Zulu philosophies of oneness through Ubuntu are also not to be ignored.
Dissenting voices also exist today. Kastrup, a philosopher and computer scientist, is challenging the materialist perspective to argue that the universe is fundamentally mental rather than physical, while Taylor, a psychologist, is arguing that consciousness is a universal energy that connects us all. This all ties into New Age movements in the 1900s to the present, which also signal a return to wholeness and an end to separation.
Philosophy can then have a great impact on psychology’s contribution to sustainability. The material perspective in psychology assumes that consciousness is produced by the matter in our brain. This assumption makes us all individuals, separate from nature, each other, and our spiritual self. Post-materialist philosophies and transpersonal psychology now offer us paths back to wholeness. These philosophies are open to the idea that consciousness may be a universal energy that connects us to nature, each other, and our spiritual self. Before we embark upon a path back to wholeness, we must first recognise our current materialist perspectives and the history upon which they came from. This cannot be done without acknowledging the unequal realities of the various countries and peoples of today, and the cultural and economic hegemonies which serve as imperialist barriers to understanding such post-materialist and transpersonal perspectives. In the 1920s, while imprisoned by Mussolini, Antonio Gramsci, a philosopher and politician, developed his theory of cultural hegemony, which describes how the state and ruling capitalist class use cultural institutions to maintain wealth and power in capitalist societies. This theory suggests that those who hold the power will cling to the materialist path with its inherent separation. Wholeness means we all have the power.
Inevitably, it is up to us to decide which path to take. Knowing the history of the world, from our more spiritual and whole roots to the spread of industry, advanced weaponry, and recent imperialism of the last 300 years has greatly affected the state of our civilization until now. Understanding the philosophies which led to our histories can aid in the transformation of our current psychological models to a more transpersonal one that is post-materialistic and not bounded by current barriers dictated by the modern demands of today.
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