Xenn Polarity

Cognitive Framework

Our cognition, which includes awareness, knowledge and understanding, is based on what might be called our cognitive framework. We have formed this framework or structure of reality over time from what we receive through our senses, our percepts. We use this framework to interpret and organize the percepts we have of reality so that we can make sense of, and deal effectively with, this reality. The framework we presently use was formulated primarily from our awareness of the physical world. It in turn is based on duality, giving concepts like hot/cold, far/near, tall/short, rough/smooth. Even Aristotle talked about this, but Aristotle is the one who was behind the concept of "a or not-a", the groundwork of what is called Aristotelian logic. We have refined this somewhat by adding what we sometimes call a "middle ground", which is like adding grey to black/white. This has helped to a great degree.

Middle Ground

When we apply this cognitive framework to the non-physical world, including things like feelings, ideas, emotions, thoughts and such, that's a totally different landscape, and we leave out a wide spectrum of reality. Unfortunately, so much is left out that our understanding and communication about it often breaks down. This landscape is much more complex than the physical one and so using our old system causes us to function here in a clumsy way. We need a different cognitive framework that offer greater resolution to see clearly here. Even with the addition of a grey "middle ground", our understanding and use of polarity does not adequately fulfill the role of accurately understanding and depicting it. Using a linear understanding of opposites gives a very rough picture of what exists or is going on in that landscape. To gain a clearer picture of reality, what we need is a refinement of how we work with polarity.

Xenn Polarity works with that middle ground or "grey area" and takes it a step further. It does this by breaking linear polarity down into further polarities, in other words by applying polarity to itself. Instead of the space between black and white being merely grey, think of it as a space potentially filled with many different colors. With Xenn Polarity we can achieve greater clarity and a better understanding of the non-physical because the framework it uses corresponds much better to the structure of the relationships between things there. More than that, in that realm we are getting away from things themselves and moving more toward qualities and energies, which is partly why a linear approach to polarity soon breaks down and often does not give us an adequate picture of what is going on there.

Interlinked or Nested Dualities

Another aspect of Xenn Polarity is that the greater clarity it offers is provided by the use of two interlinked and nested dualities. This is able to depict reality with much greater resolution, and the difference is staggering. It is like painting a picture using a fine brush instead of a paint roller. The picture we now get lifts a veil from our eyes and reveals much that was not seen before. Using only one duality to form our perception of the world leaves us to see only half the world. Another person who bases his or her perception on the complementary duality constructs a totally different world or reality. This can result in much misunderstanding and disagreement, possibly conflict, as to what is real or true and what isn't. To make things more complicated, the double duality can support more than just two realities, making the situation next to impossible to sort out without applying an understanding of Xenn Polarity.

The Source of "Xenn"

The term "Xenn" comes from three sources. 1) First of all, it is a take-off on the term "Venn Diagram" which is found in mathematics in working with set theory. This diagram is composed of two intersecting circles, which creates a common area between them. It is often used to try and explain the connection between polarities but in my opinion often leads to confusion. Xenn Polarity starts with polarities that are independent of each other and from there goes on to discover what could reconcile or bridge them, which might be called the "X" factor.

2) This "X" factor is the reason for the term "Xenn" as opposed to "Venn". The "X" factor stands for what has been unknown and missing in our present understanding and perceptual framework. When it becomes known, it will give us a much fuller and clearer perception and understanding of what we call reality or the universe. A "Xenn diagram" has been formulated that elucidates Xenn Polarity more fully and provides a map for discovering this "X" factor that bridges opposites and contraries. This diagram will be offered in a later edition of this website as well as in the forthcoming book Polarity Dynamics.

3) Thirdly, term "Xenn" was used because its pronunciation is similar to "Zen". In my university studies I was introduced to the particle/wave theory of matter. For something to be both a particle and a wave is logically impossible; yet results from scientific experiments unequivocally show this to be true. This came to be my personal Zen koan, which I grappled with for quite some time. My struggle to resolve this dilemma was one of the initial motivators behind what has emerged as Xenn Polarity. Perhaps the missing "X" factor mentioned earlier that is needed to bridge oppositions and contradictions can be thought of as an answer to a "Xenn koan". This missing factor has been totally elusive up to this time, but Xenn Polarity offers a real hope in being able to bridge the gap between previously irreconcilable factors.

Different Differences

Xenn Polarity helps us to distinguish between what I call "different differences". One type of difference is such that in their present state or condition these differences (i.e. these particular aspects or qualities) are unwilling to cooperate or collaborate with other differences. As such these differences can only engender animosity. Even though they are part of the whole, the whole cannot come together because of their way of dealing with what differs from them. On the other hand, the other type of difference is willing or able to cooperate or negotiate with the other parts of the whole to create harmony and effectiveness.

If one part of a person's reality is uncooperative, it is for all intents and purposes stuck in its place and nothing can change. This is generally because it feels threatened, and sometimes it needs to stay in one place. But if this condition persists, some intervention is required for a change to occur. This is best done by motivation from within and can sometimes be facilitated by a person with sensitive listening skills who is able to elicit the other person's own resources. A stuckness that does not change can create significant difficulties, both for the person involved and also for those who come into contact with him or her.

Xenn Polarity also demonstrates the existence of different types of polarities, including opposites, polar opposites, complementaries, and others. An ability to distinguish these helps us to clear up confusion in communication and perception.

Applications

Xenn Polarity can be applied to many areas because it deals primarily with polarities in a world that goes beyond the inanimate and physical, i.e. the realm of ecology, ideas, feelings, relationships, and so on. Areas include:
-- politics, with polarities having to do with freedom, democracy, rights, control, and many others.
-- psychology, working with concepts of self, society, dependency, boundaries, as well as feelings and emotions such as guilt, etc.
-- religion, with the many polarities both within a religion as well as between them.
-- ecology, biology, interaction and communication.
-- all humanities.

The specifics of Xenn Polarity will be offered later on this website, but one area that will be looked at in more detail are the polarities of unity and diversity in the dynamics of a group. A synopsis of this web page is given below.

The formation of groups and communities is presently based on what its members hold in common. When differences start to emerge, this can create a crisis which often marks the beginning of the end of the group. If there is no clear understanding of how to deal with the differences that will inevitably emerge, the result is often dysfunction and eventual dissolution. Polarity Dynamics provides a new cognitive framework that offers a solid foundation for the formation of groups by discerning and managing differences, and expanding the concept of common ground. As such it provides a foundation for the presence of both unity and diversity in a group in such a way that they both support each other.