"Thought *presents* itself (stands in front) of us and pretends that it does not *represent*." We are like actors who forget they are playing a role. We become trapped in the theater of our thoughts (the words "theater" and "theory" have the same root - 'theoria' - "to look at"). This is when thought starts, in Bohm's words, to become "incoherent". "Reality may change but the theater continues." We operate in the theater, defining problems, taking actions, "solving problems", loosing touch with the larger reality from which the theater is generated. Dialogue is a way of helping people to "see the representative and participatory nature of thought [and] ... to become more sensitive and make it safe to acknowledge the incoherence in our thought." *In dialogue people become observers of their own thinking.* What they observe is that their thinking is active. For example, when a conflict surfaces in a dialogue people are likely to realize that there is a tension, but the tension arises, literally, from our thoughts. People will say, "It is our thoughts and the way we hold on to them that are in conflict, not us." Once people see the participatory nature of their thought, they begin to separate themselves from their thought. They begin to take a more creative, less reactive, stance toward their thought. People in dialogue also begin to observe collectively nature of thought. Bohms says that "Most thought is collective in origin. Each individual does something with it," but originates collectively by and large. "Language, for example, is entirely collective," says Bohm. "And without language, thought as we know it couldn't be there." Most of the assumptions we hold were acquired from the pool of culturally acceptable assumptions. Few of us learn truly to "think for ourselves." He or she who does is sure, as Emerson said long age, "to be misunderstood." They also begin to observe the difference between "thinking" as an ongoing process as distinct from "thoughts", the results of that process. This is very important, according to Bohm, to begin correcting the incoherence in our thinking. If collective thinking is an ongoing stream, "thoughts" are like leaves floating on the surface that wash up on the banks. We gather in the leaves, which we experience as "thoughts". We misperceive the thoughts as our own, because we fail to see the stream of collective thinking from which they arise. In dialogue, people begin to see the stream that flows between the banks. They begin to "participate in this pool of common meaning, which is capable of constant development and change." Bohm believes that our normal processes of thought are like a "coarse net that gather in only the coarsest elements of the stream". In dialogue, a "kind of sensitivity" develops that goes beyond what we normally recognize as thinking. This sensitivity is a "fine net" capable of gathering in the subtle meanings in the flow of thinking. Bohm believes this sensitivity lies at the root of real i ntelligence. So, according to Bohm, collective learning is not only possible but vital to realize the potentials of human intelligence. "Through dialogue people can help each other to become aware of the incoherence in each other's thoughts, and in this way the collective thought becomes more and more coherent [from the Latin 'cohaerere' - "hanging together"]. It is difficult to give a simple definition of coherence, beyond saying that one may sense it as order, consistency, beauty, or harmony. The main point, however, is not to strive for some abstract ideal of coherence. It is rather for all the participants to work together to become sensitive to all the possible forms of *incoherence*. Incoherence may be indicated by contradictions and confusion but more basically it is seen by the fact that our thinking is producing consequences that we don't really want. ... - Kirim bunga untuk handaitaulan & relasi di jakarta www.indokado.com -- Situs sulap pertama di Indonesia http://www.impact.or.id/dmc-sulap/ Untuk bergabung atau keluar dari Milis, silakan LAKUKAN SENDIRI Bergabung: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Keluar: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sambut MASA DEPAN BARU Indonesia!
