On impact.

As we set goals for the year ahead, a road map to having impact greater than ourselves.

“Yes, man is in danger. He may be on the verge of destroying himself.”

So begins the famous speech “On Courage” which Heinz Kohut, a world famous Psychoanalyst and a Vienna born Austrian Jew (who fled Austria to the US in 1939), gave in Berlin on October 7th 1970.

In his speech, the founder of Self Psychology himself, went on to criticize the common understanding of psychoanalysis and propose a rather daring one in its stead.
Spoken like a guru or a shaman, Kohut proposed psychoanalysis not merely as a tool for individual improvement but a collective one.

I think of evolution as a team sport played by individuals. Sub psychoanalysis for psychedelics / medicine work and Kohut’s words echo today as relevant as ever.

“We must show that… psychoanalysis medicine work makes a contribution to the activation of wholesome social, cultural, and historical effects, which may influence the future of not only a handful of individuals, but of large groups, whole layers of society, and – yes! – even of mankind as a whole… as an important civilizing force will become actively engaged in man’s battle for his biological and spiritual survival.”

Greater impact- how?

Leaving ceremony, coming out of a workshop or any meaningful modality of self work, many of us are inspired to be better people and have impact greater than ourselves. But where does one start?
The word for responsibility in Hebrew- אחריות holds a very special magic. Letter by letter, it provides a roadmap to the 6 circles of responsibility, from the self to the greater collective.

Circle 1: א: Self
The first letter- is the letter for I, capital S Self. Coded in it (in ways too complex to get into in English) is a representation of the “I”- our first and foremost responsibility is to take care of our beings, our vessels. .

Circle 2: אח (Ah) Brother= Those like us
Extending outwards, the first two letters of the word responsibility spell the word Brother. It symbolizes those like us - it may be our families, employees, students or people of our town. After caring for ourselves we are to care for our circles and those around us.

Circle 3: אחר (Aher) Other= Those unlike us
The first 3 letters in the word responsibility spell the word Other, reminding us to next look out for “the other”. It may be the homeless on the subway, the disabled, kids in Africa or women in Iran. We aught to extend our impact to those unlike us.

Circle 4: אחרי (Aharai) Follow me= Leadership
The first 4 letters in the word responsibility spell a word which translates in English to “Follow me”, a call a commander will exclaim going into battle. It serves as a reminder that when we see something that needs mending, we are not to wait, but to take initiative, take risks and take a lead.

Circle 5: אחריו (Aharav) After one= Sustainability
The first 5 letter of that very same word, spell a word which translates to “After one”. It is a remind us to not only look at the world around us but to think ahead of the world we leave behind us, both the physical world and its inhabitants as well as the legacy of our individual and collective actions.

Circle 6: אחריות (Ahrayut) Full Responsibility
Finally, the entire word is spelled- responsibility. Accepting full responsibility is the embodiment that life does not happen to us, but it is by us, for us. That we have a part to play in the great collective, what is also known as world repair, Tikkun Olam.

These are the 6 circles of responsibility. While the six circles may not always act in this outward progression, they provide a framework that allows one to apply themselves to the greater good in a measured way, reducing the chances of skipping steps or falling into overwhelm.

Dawn of a new year

As the new year is upon us, as we wish for and work towards our individual goals and intentions, may we have the awareness to wish for and work for goals outside of ourselves, all the way to the greater collective. May we bring these greater layers of awareness into our communities and co-create mechanism to follow up on them. To do our part in tikkun olam, world repair. The state of this world needs all hands on deck.

_____
Community: www.Houseof42.club
Events: www.Houseof42.co/events