As I approached David Bohm’s Wholeness and the Implicate Order I anticipated easy resonance with his philosophy, but was concerned I would be lost in his symbolic math. I had no idea that he had any interest in language or anything that might approach a meta-philosophy of linguistics.
I probably don’t understand enough of this to even successfully explain why it feels so compelling to me, much less why I hope it will be compelling to you. Even so, let me set the stage for his rheomode chapter with a few sentences that grabbed me.
…in the present inquiry the rheomode will be concerned mainly with questions having to do with the broad and deep implications of our overall world views which now tend to be raised largely in the study of philosophy, psychology, art, science and mathematics, but especially in the study of thought and language themselves…. …the dominant form of subject-verb-object tends continually to lead to fragmentation, and it is evident that the attempt to avoid this fragmentation by skillful use of other features of the language can work only in a limited way, for, by force of habit, we tend sooner or later, especially in broad questions concerning our overall world views, to fall unwittingly into the fragmentary mode of functioning implied by the basic structure. The reason for this is not only that the subject-verb-object form of the language is continually implying an inappropriate division between things but even more, that the ordinary mode of language tends very strongly to take its own function for granted,… …because the ordinary mode of thought and language does not properly call attention to its own function, this latter seems to arise in a reality independent of thought and language so that the divisions implied in the language structure are then projected, as if they were fragments, corresponding to actual breaks in ‘what is’. (pp 39-40)
Bohm chooses rheo because it means “flow”; so he sees rheomode language structure as flowmodal. For reasons that I hope to support as we go along, I believe Bohm’s rheomode may translate effectively as “ecological.”
My first question has to do with how universally true is this “subject-verb-object” fragmentation of language. Here Bohm speaks of its ubiquitous culturally fragmenting effect especially when discussing things that are Whole Systemic like universal principles and nature and spirituality, dogma and metaphysics. But is it true that nouns always act as static nomials and verbs take all the dynamic action in all languages, is there a linguistic cultural divide in this respect between more Eastern enculturated language, as compared to Western encultured language? Is this as true in aboriginal, unwritten languages, as of post-industrial evolving language? Are there possibly ethological linguistic trends that might distinguish between Northern and Southern hemispheres, germane to this tripartite distinction between progenitive/subject-generative/verb-regeneration/object linguistic functions?
Regardless, Bohm’s ecological rheomode concentrates full language attention on holistic implications of verbs, language as iconic of process, change, development as well as implicating stasis, solidarity, and unraveling. Verbs, verbals, have this binomial function, dialectical form of explicit thesis-function and implied antithesis-appositive dysfunction. Dynamic linguistic function is diametric, binomial analogically and, therefore, binary-balanced digitally. Perhaps analogical information is to binary-coded polynomial information as digital information is to bionically-encoded language-pattern.
Bohm processes us through a 7-stage unfolding of basic verbal bionic function. Language evolves essentially bionic because it grows through a prime relationship between Self (ego) and Other (eco/echo/reiterating environmental input). Self is my information processor, receiving both Interior Landscape (B. Fuller’s Metaphysical Constant Concave Universe) and Exterior Landscape (Fuller’s Physical Convex Universe) messages. Both categories of messages are linguistically articulated only in our left hemispheres. Both categories of messages are temporally-neurally aptic/synaptic affectively received and fractally (4-based logical metric system) co-prehended, intuited, predicated, encoded, implicating memories resonant with RNA/DNA encrypted double-elliptical plasmatic fold/flow/force patterns, defaulting to retain ionic, and bionic, balance.
Just as it is not possible to have a “true” information system that is not binary-balanced, it is not true information that is not binomially structured, with a positive polynomial +form-function that is negatively dipolar correlated with –(-) polynomial equivalently ionic disbalancing chaotic dissonance; an implicit intuited antithesis completing the 100% truth value of each language space-time event. Cognitive awareness, and therefore the development of expressive language, and word choice, is an enthymematic dialogue between right brain’s natural systemic design and development experience, and left brain’s eisegetical hypothesis that what ego’s senses are absorbing remains normatively confluent with our prior unfolding of time encultured memory network.
For now, I want to narrow Bohm’s 7-stage (open-ended octave) taxonomy of nomials into what appear to me to be the more primal 4-base stages. He analyzes several words as rheomodes. We will use his analytical structure for additional words:
Form
Reform—to form again; spatial dimensions+=+, temporal linear dimension (-)before=(+)now
Reformant [reforming, reform-ionic]—is formant in this now, so choice of form is functionally “Truing”
Irreformant [negative reform-ionic]—is not formed now, so choice of form is functionally “Falsing”
When I replace reform with inform, then it becomes easier for me to see not-informant as dissonance, noise, the reception of a message without nutriently redeeming value; lack of confluence, absence of a good as well as absence of truth at this time.
Generate
Regenerate—to conceive again
Regenerant—regenerating now, truing confluent with encoded experience
Irregenerant—negative degenerating-ionic, generative trend is falsing, out of formative and functional potentiating balance.
Nature
Renature—to incarnate, an incarnational linear-string identity of historical continuity
Renaturant—confluent syncing with internal right brain true/good natural experience
Irrenaturant—dissonating from natural systemic order
For me, although apparently not for Bohm himself, the logic implied within these fractal forms becomes more transparent if I use co or eco where Bohm uses re and rheo; these are essentially binomially-fractal flow rhythms and patterns of logic and ecologic.
SINE (enthymematic +e = +c-function) Uracil = winter permacultural language
COSINE right-temporal-only Interior prehension +e-functionally confluent
Cytosine= spring as positive ecocentric hope permacultural logos/logic
Positive [Adonine] + Negative [Guanine] confluent/dissonant neural memory/random-chaos LTR trend-analysis
= regenerating flow-fractal RESOLUTION: SINE equivalently eco-logic, temporally coded function
I realize these thoughts have taken some bold analogical leaps, but I believe that if we embrace the basic prime fractal relationship between Interior Landscape’s right-brain dominant ecologic as a reverse corollary of the Exterior Landscape’s left-brain dominant logic, we can uncover empirical, scientific, deductively sequential, logical, rational, as well as good and beautiful and regenetically effective evidence that cognitive dissonance is what happens when co-incidention does not. In other words, we can only cognize as true and logical, right and fair and just, beautiful and good, graced karma what does not cause chaotic temporal-neural flow chaos between our right and left dominant co-incidental pattern and rhythm code memory, within our amazingly binomial information processing DNA speciated brains.
Both psychological and physical/geometric/biometric evidence combine as I comparatively analyze Buckminster Fuller’s Synergetics, Julian Jaynes’ ethological cultural analysis of the left-brain’s evolution of language (The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind). Jaynes’ conjectures have only been further supported by subsequent split-brain research. However, his choice of “breakdown” was important for his historical interest in the evolutionary relationship between consciousness and identity, and, if he were rewriting for a post-millennial audience, he would probably invest rather more ink in our bicameral buildup of right-left equi-valent permacultural balancing trends. That said, his historical evolutionary analysis remains germane for noticing this fractal flow-trend within language and ecological economies of natural systemic value, virtue, nutrition, medicine, health, mental health, power, function, form, information, and ionic/bionic ergetic frequencies.
I find natural (inclusive of human natural) fractals as deeply embedded in our Interior Landscape as Buckminster Fuller, Gregory Bateson, Guy Murchie, and others find within Earth’s, even the Universe’s, natural design and development stages and frequencies and forms. So much so that analogical fractals and polymorphic fractals resolve as ecological and logical regenerative Prime Relationship Fractal Systems.
Some more developmental-fractal eco-nomials that I have included in an article for the Community Development Association:
Comparing synergetic organic paradigms, the unfolding economy of love (Fuller mentioned love as a synonym for how he understood the action of synergy) and seasoned integrity, perhaps wisdom, becomes analogous with Fuller’s fractal unfolding of Universal Intelligence.
Permaculture Positive Affect Learning Seasonal Metaphor
Decompose form/function Attend/Presence Notice/Apprehend Winter/Advent
Consume function Hope? Question/Doubt Spring
Produce form Faith! Understand Summer
Regenerate information Love/Peace… Comprehend[1] Fall/Harvest
Regenerative systemic process follows a redemptive economic cycle, in which we intend to “buy back,” reinvest in those outcomes with the best sustained yield-value and least risk of over-unbalancing-investment. Risk aversion itself seems to recommend becoming as cooperatively self-invested as environmental circumstances allow, as a first-tier priority for OCQI yield development. Self-redemptive economies lead to mutually-(co)redemptive economies, lead to self-regenerating Climax Community development, into perpetuity, or permaculturally.
I suspect there may be profound implications for merging linguistic and nutritional health paradigms. For example, I am aware of two psychotherapeutic models rooted in Buddhist philosophy: dialectical behavior and compassionate. They each have their strengths and they are not in any way dissonant with each other. Their primary distinction may be their point of original linguistic perspective. Dialectical behavior therapy comprehends self-identity within a fundamentally Thesis v Antithesis logos/language intellectual and feeling environment. Here we are encouraged to balance our grasping instincts with our immune-aversive instincts. Compassion therapy begins with a Basic Attendance Self-EcoEnvironmentally co-passionate mutual mentoring enthymematic hypothesis, which implies an equivalent +/(-) binomial Thesis/Antithesis Zen Vortex of mindful potential. Compassionate awareness, or love, or synergy, becomes the synergetic holonic balancing of +Thesis-ego-identity with –(-)Antithesis-bionic economical individuation. Mutually appreciated therapeutic benefits now, and anticipated for the future, is what sustains healthy interdependent minds, communication, relationships, intentional communities.
Switching to a Taoist frame, where I have more familiarity and linguistic comfort, this Positive Teleological self-identity information string, following the regenerative evolutionary and revolutionary trends of enculturing history, is the convex force/form-power/solidarity of Yang; regeneratively completed and dialectically-binomially-economically cooperatively and mutually balanced by concave flow/function-dipolar reflective subsidiarity of co-incidentally reverse proportioning/distortioning/torquing/wavilinear/individuation unraveling Yin’s bi-functional role within Yang-quantic, or ionic, identity. Regenerative Tao balancing trends may be temporally viewed as Yin-prescient to Yang’s linguistic self-consciousness moment, as well as coincidentally wavilinear within each regenerative trending primal event-moment relationship.
Within binary information systems this seems to translate into +1.00% Polynomial information is temporally-linearly equivalent covalent with (+/-)0 QBit Polynomial Bayesian analysis trends.
Why do I think you would care about this?
Perhaps because I read Laura Brown’s feminist psychotherapy work (Subversive Dialogues) before I ran into Compassion Therapy, and something going viral that I think is called Health Home, I have trouble seeing any difference in how they describe an optimally therapeutic linguistic, or rhetorical, or dialectic/dialogical multisystemic environment. When I began my current journey toward verbally and sometimes nonverbally silencing my aversion to what I don’t find compelling in my Oppositionally Disordered daughter, and, instead actively looking for ways to appreciate her Positive functionality, reinforcing and growing her strengths and assets, assuming her screechy-scratchy dissonance has a positive-functional ethological evolutionary role for her, and for our relationship, then I find myself enjoying her more, and she appears to enjoy me more.
Anyway, I have certainly not done justice to the linguistic potential you might find in David Bohm’s rheomode, whether it works as a synonym for ecological flow function for you or not. Unfortunately, like Buckminster Fuller, he was an even worse writer than am I. It is easy to get lost in our long, complex strings of interactively dynamic analogies. This, however, is an unfortunate communication challenge for those with a polypathic way of using our nutrient-absorbing sensory receptors. Something I intuit that we might share, or you would not still be reading this.
[1] All systems are subject to comprehension, and their mathematical integrity…and trigonometric interfunctioning can be coped with by systematic [eco]logic. (Fuller, 1975, p. 97) The fourness of self and the fourness of otherness = [binomial and bionic] comprehension. (Fuller, 1979, p. 49)
