SYNERGY AND THE 100TH MONKEY PHENOMENON
“Synergy” is coined from the words “synchronised energy”.
When
it comes to human energy, synergy involves the physical, mental, emotional
and spiritual energies. By using this synergy principle, we can clearly
see how relatively easy it is to change society’s course of evolution.
When sufficient synergy is created, a critical mass phenomenon occurs causing
a rapid snowballing effect that is described in the well-known 100th Monkey
story that follows:
Several years ago a scientist, whom we shall call James, was engaged in
a research program to explore the learning habits of monkeys. The program
was located on one of a group of islands off the Japanese coast –
the native home of a species of monkeys whose main diet was a variety of
sweet potato.
The task that James had set for himself was to see if he could teach some
of the monkeys to wash their potatoes before they ate them. He found this
quite a long and laborious task as it seemed to take an eternity before
he saw any semblance of a result. However, one day he discovered to his
delight that one of the monkeys washed its potato in the sea before eating
it.
With renewed vigour, James set forth to see if he could teach others of
the monkey's family to do the same. After a time he saw it start to happen
– first one, then another, then another started to wash its potatoes
in the sea. He also noticed that it was taking less and less time to teach
each new monkey.
Soon, just by showing a new monkey the washing process, it washed the potato.
Then, suddenly and without doing anything else, all the monkeys on the island
spontaneously started to wash their potatoes with no additional tuition
at all. What was even more amazing was that all the other monkeys, on all
of the other islands, also started washing their potatoes, too! Hence, the
100th Monkey story was born.
The number 100 is of course, the symbolic number that is required to bring
about the critical mass phenomenon – the rapid snowballing effect
that results in an idea, reality or action being accepted, quite spontaneously,
by the whole species in such a natural way that its members hardly even
realise the change has occurred. As a point of interest the 100th Monkey
Phenomenon is very well documented and demonstrated quite conclusively over
several decades by researcher Rupert Sheldrake of Cambridge, England.
The 100th Monkey Phenomenon can also be observed within humanity. As an
example of negative synergy, it has been seen that peace-loving people in
mob violence situations can act in violent ways even though they would not
normally. This phenomenon can also work in positive directions and explains
why mass meditation works. Maharashi International University (MIU) in Iowa,
USA, has indisputable evidence of the effect 5000 students’ meditation
had on the Lebanese people’s conflict and violence. They meditated
on three separate occasions, visualising Lebanon living in peace. Each time
they did, the incidence of violence and casualties fell dramatically. After
the third such meditation, the conflict ceased.
INTER-COOPERATION –
THE WIN-WIN
PARADIGM
The
notion of win-win is being spoken about quite a lot nowadays, but how many
people really understand the concept of win-win, as distinct from win-lose?
The word “win” is used in this context to mean the feelings
and benefits we experience from achievement. It is NOT used from the old
perspective of winning and losing. Actually, win-win is somewhat of a misnomer
and could more accurately be called no-lose but we will use the win-win
terminology as it is already commonly accepted.
The idea of win-win is a completely different mind-set to win-lose. When
we operate from the win-win paradigm we not only think just about ourselves,
we also think about the effects our choices and actions have on others.
This is the mind-set that brings about co-operation and inter-cooperation.
Inter-cooperation is when two or more co-operative groups co-operate with
one or more other co-operative groups.
The Win-Win Paradigm of inter-cooperation is not some “pie in the
sky” idea. Many people, in many places, have tested it, for example,
the huge Mondragon Co-operative in Spain. This group is a very good example
of how the win-win, inter-cooperation system works. This win-win concept
is true in our personal and family lives too. In fact, the broader application
of win-win will only come about when people start being co-operative and
living co-operatively.
Win-Win occurs when the following is understood and lived:
BUILDING THE ROAD AS WE TRAVEL
Building
the road as we travel is a phrase that describes how we “get things
done” in the new paradigm society.
In the old paradigm society, in order to do something, we would first make
sure that we had the wherewithal (usually the funds) before we went ahead
with plans to do something – whether that was going on a holiday or
building a house. If we didn’t have the money, we didn’t do
it, right? In the new paradigm society, this works the other way around.
As we step out and start doing the thing we want to do, the resources are
provided to us, as and when they are needed; hence the phrase “building
the road as we travel”. What this means in practice is that we do
not have to wait for the funds, or more accurately, the resources, e.g.
building materials, before we can do something. All we have to do is act
from the conviction that we will be provided with what we need when we need
it. Acting in the direction of our excitement with conviction is the key.
This is the way positive synchronicity works, remember?
OLD AND NEW BEHAVIOUR CHARACTERISTICS
The
following chart is designed to help facilitate the differentiation between
old and new paradigm characteristics, habits, attitudes, beliefs, etc:
OLD
WIN-LOSE PARADIGM |
NEW
WIN-WIN (NO LOSE) PARADIGM |
Winners
and Losers |
No
Losers – Everyone benefits(Win-Win) |
Competing
and/or Opposing Forces – Conflicts |
Co-operation
and inter-co-operation – Peace |
Solutions
that create more Problems |
Solutions
that create more Solutions |
Rigid
Ideas, Beliefs, Structures |
Flexible
Ideas, Beliefs, Structures |
Rewards
and Penalties |
Mutual
Benefits |
Rules
and Regulations |
Guidance
and Assistance |
The
Unconscious Creation of one’s own Reality |
The
Conscious Creation of one’s own Reality |
Domination/Victimhood,
Disempowerment |
Self-Empowerment,
Mutual Empowerment |
Boundaries
and Barriers, Restrictions |
Freedom,
Autonomy, Self-Determination |
Parasitism
(take and no give) |
Symbiosis
(Mutual give and receive) |
Struggle,
sorrow and Pain |
Joy,
Effortlessness, Play, Ecstasy and Fun |
Dependence
and Co-Dependence |
Independence
and Inter-Dependence |
Self-Perpetuating
Conflicts |
Co-Operation,
Agreements and Sharing |
Closed,
Dishonest, Dysfunctional Relationships |
Open,
Honest, Functional, Fulfilling Relationships |
Scarcities
and Surpluses |
Abundance
for All (sharing) |
Path
of Obligations – Pain and Suffering |
Path
of Excitement – Joy and Fulfilment |
Dis-Integration,
Separation |
Integration,
Connection, Unification |
Living
in the Past and Fear of the Future |
Living
in the “Now Moment” with an Eye to the Future |
Conditional
Love |
Unconditional
Love |
Disharmony
- Conquering (destroying) Nature |
Harmony
– Living in Unison with Nature |
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