A Beautiful Triangle

"Cogito, ergo sum"

-René Descartes

If one closes ones eyes and pictures an equilateral triangle in their mind and then visualizes the words “mind”, “body” and “soul” at each of the three vertices, one can transform intangible elements, such as the mind and soul into something more observable, something that can be examined, protected, and even strengthened if necessary. The significance of this symbolism is self-explanatory. While each of these three entities (angles) are of a separate nature, they are all equally dependent on one another for both reinforcement and support. Each 60° angle is equal in consequence and equal in its connection to the other two angles. Alone, these angles would be nothing more than a vertex with plural vertices, composed of two infinite lines that never connect. But together, they form something whole, something beautiful, something connected. Together, they form a 180° triangle that can encompass the entire nature of a human being and all that gives us existence.

But this is not my methodology. French philosopher, René Descartes was one of the first humans who attempted to deduce the existence of the being to a mere matter of geometry. In fact, Descartes argued that the mathematical dimensions of a triangle is a concept that packs the same level of certainty to that of "God’s" existence and documented these beliefs in his work titled A Discourse on Method, published in 1637. It was a discourse that inspired several more treatises that sought to transform the very foundation of our thinking, the groundwork from which “the age of reason” was assembled. From a general perspective, it was a “modern” era in which the foundations of Christianity were somewhat replaced by the foundations of science. For better or worse, the abstract reasoning once erected by the ancient Greeks was pulverized, which made space for new institutions, edifices built from entirely new material, using an observational method which stood independent from other former methods that were less predictive and less powerful in nature.

As someone who takes immense pleasure in connecting knowledge and areas of knowledge, for me, one of the most devastating consequences of the scientific revolution was the separation of the different realms of knowledge, tearing apart disciplines (and triangles of knowledge) like politics, divinity and philosophy that traditionally and more importantly, naturally connected and overlapped. So, if we now picture politics as a body, philosophy as a mind and divinity as a soul we can again, see the significance of this beautiful triangle that seeks to explain the interconnectedness, or rather, the oneness of our global political landscape and our collective purpose on this planet which is embedded into this simple yet seemingly flawless mathematical design.

However, because the mind, body and soul are so highly interconnected, this does create various points of contention within this triangle for our species. Unfortunately, there are many external forces that can disrupt the function of these parts individually and/or collectively. Sometimes, our plight for survival may even prevent these individual entities from developing to their full potential or prevent them from working in sync with each other, or both, if we are faced with extreme circumstances during our lifetime. Sometimes, fear can overpower all three of these elements, throwing us off our path to wisdom or cornering us into dark places where no real truths can ever be found.

In other words, some of us need to strip our minds of all past beliefs at some point in our journey. We need to rid our brains and bodies of all the toxic, nonsensical truths that we’ve been fed throughout the duration of our lives which threaten our perspective of the world and the attitudes we have about it. It’s an unstable foundation to build anything on, especially one’s truths. Furthermore, any structures (truths) built on top of such a foundation are susceptible to premature decay and hasty patchwork. And beware, patchwork of the mind is a visceral and unsteady process. It's unsteady because it accounts for one of the most complicated parts of our existence. The hodgepodge of facts, biases, fears, physiology, trauma, and falsities that seek to shape our identity and sense of self. Some of us have carried these toxins within the structure our minds for years or decades even. For the lucky ones, the starting foundation may have been just steady enough that they were able to avoid a full demolition of the mind and instead only rebuild the few essential areas, the areas in most need of rejigging. So, you see, this is not just any architecture. This is architecture of the mind and therefore, the architecture of our body and soul as well according to our triangle analogy.

For Descartes, it was essential to start fresh in matters of the mind as opposed to “buil[ding] only upon old foundations.” In A Discourse on Method, he describes the path he followed that led to this reformation of thoughts which then led to the formation of a method which he then used to conduct his own reasoning and quest for knowledge, or more specifically, his quests for truths. And if you are a seeker of the truth, it is important to retrace the steps of this thinker in as much detail as possible due to his level of influence. Because if we can pinpoint the ideas that changed the course of history, in doing so, we also gain the power to change them back too if necessary or at least moderate the effects of some of the most highly influential ideas.

So, in reaction to Descartes philosophy and the era of modernity, I will end this post with a couple of ”why” questions to inspire some theoretical analysis among my readers.

1. Why do we tend to equate change with “progress” and can this false notion of progress be reversed somehow?

2. Why would we treat matters of the body any differently than we would treat matters of the mind and soul?

Sincerely,

Heather