Ever since 17th century French philosopher René Descartes uttered the now familiar phrase "I think, therefore I am," the universe has been effectively split in two. On the one hand was the world of matter, incontestable turf of the "hard" sciences, in particular physics and chemistry. As far as the scientists of Descartes' time were concerned, philosophers, mystics and the clergy could help themselves to what remained, namely the "soft" world of mind.

It simply never occurred to either side that the solution to the intractable "mind-body" that has plagued science since the Cartesian schism, lay in relinquishing the most inviolable assumption underpinning classical science: How could something as ethereal and yet so fundamental to human experience as consciousness have originated in or arisen from a physical construct of chemicals and flesh? In fact, the conventional wisdom (CW) the lay public inherited as a result of the astounding advances made over the years by classical science insists that the only true reality is that which may be known by one or more of the five human senses, or their instrumental extensions.

In other words, we occupy a material world where any "thing" that can be seen, heard, touched, tasted or smelled, is by definition real. Furthermore, that every "thing" real exists "out there" separate and apart from what is experienced "in here." Depending on which side of the border between mind and matter you prefer, the credit or blame for the perennial controversy surrounding the notion of consciousness, can be laid squarely on Descartes, although in his defense, he never intended to create such confusion. A devout Catholic, he was only trying to protect the human soul from being sacked by the ever-more powerful of science of his day. Even so, his crucial mistake in offering proof of the existence of mind was his own indefensible assumption: He assumed the existence of a self. It is no surprise that once Descartes took as a given the "I" in his statement, that he could then prove the "I am" with ease. Today as a result of his argument, we unquestioningly assume the existence of an independent objective self apart from the world of "real" things out there. The "I" while broadly and profoundly yet tacitly assumed, is nevertheless assumed without a footing in reason.

But if this is so as science is prone to ask, what is the nature of the self to which we refer? Where is it located? What are its properties? The answers to this enigma of consciousness while impossible to discover from the viewpoint of classical science, have at long last been revealed: A "new" science founded upon the discoveries of 20th century thinkers the likes of Einstein, Bohr, Maxwell and Schröedinger has succeeded in providing a powerful lens on reality which goes by a simple yet often confounding name which, according to the common connotation means mayhem, mess, havoc and implies the complete absence of order. To avoid confusion throughout the remainder of this article, the convention of capitalizing the provocative term Chaos will be employed to distinguish this powerful emerging science cum worldview from its definition espoused by CW.

First formulated in 1977, Chaos was intended to describe, explain and predict the behavior complex, dynamical, non-linear systems, which prior to the quantum revolution of the early 20th century, were considered anomalies of nature and consequently, not worthy of the time and attention of establishment science. However, perhaps one of the most astonishing achievements of the germinal theory was that it proved such a system to be the rule, not the exception to it.

A second accomplishment worth mentioning here is that the burgeoning math theorem succeeded in demonstrating conclusively that chaos and order are not opposites from which to choose, as CW would have us believe: In fact they're two interpenetrated, inter-identical aspects of the very same reality. Consequently, Chaos stands to this date uncontested as the science of chaordic* systems ranging as we now know from the visible universe to the lowly amoeba colony, and including human organizations .

Although Chaos was originally formulated as a mathematical equation by scientists who had little if any interest in its applications to human enterprise, it has continued to evolve at a rapid pace, transforming itself from a theoretical abstraction into a profoundly inclusive and superbly pragmatic conceptualization of the universe. Anyone with the courage to shuck off the CW can grasp the essence of Chaos, making it both applicable and actionable in the modern organization.

But enough of that for now: First, let's return to the story of how Chaos solves the vexatious mind-body paradox, and its corollary in the problem of a self which can neither be explained nor found. It does so by exposing both for what they really are: illusions promulgated by the inherently materialistic nature of CW -- the assumption that matter precedes all existence, even itself. But that doesn't turn out to be the case as demonstrated by another math formula embraced by Chaos and known as the Schröedinger wave equation. Although the thought experiment used to illustrate the accuracy of the theory tends to strike one still caught up in CW as absurd, it works in a way that is perfectly consistent with the experimental evidence.

Schröedinger experiment goes something like this: Imagine a sealed chamber in which a cat has been placed alongside a device set to deliver when triggered by a random event, i.e., the decay of a radioactive isotope, either food or poison to the feline occupant. Since the delivery mechanism is activated randomly, one can say with certainty that the cat faces a 50-50 chance of succumbing to the poison. After sufficient time has passed to know that one of the two substances was delivered inside the closed chamber, the experimental question can be asked: Is the cat now dead or alive?

CW would have it that the answer is "either dead or alive" depending of course, on which of the two materials had found its way to the cat. However, CW would be wrong: In order to fully account for the evidence, Schröedinger claimed correctly: Not only is the cat is both dead and alive, but that it will remain so superimposed on a wave of possibilities until the instant someone looks. In other words, it is only through an act of consciousness...thinking, observing, in technical terms, measuring...that the quantum wave of potential in formation (note the true meaning of information) collapses into a single actuality. In effect, the feline's fate and every other thing we have long-believed to exist independently "out there," as well as the equally independent and separate self we have experienced as residing "in here" -- reality as it were, is as Eddington so incisively observed "mindstuff."

One's difficulty in grasping the fact of consciousness stems directly from the ongoing indoctrination of the Western mindset in CW. This powerful legacy of 17th century science has us convinced in spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that there is really something solid "out there" and a real but non-substantial self "in here" observing it all objectively. Because as Chaos shows, consciousness merely imparts the appearance of matter to what is in fact a purely unsubstantial wave of possibilities, mind is necessarily antecedent to matter.

Therefore, the "problem" of explaining how mind evolved from matter is transformed into no problem at all...unless of course, we remain locked in the conceptual prison of CW. On the other hand, if we instead choose to don the powerful lens of Chaos after relinquishing a view of reality that has heretofore provided us with a soothing sense of certainty and control -- both illusions by the way -- then, and only then can one grasp the cardinal precept that.....

But there's still the issue of Descartes "I," is there not? Unless you "got it" immediately, it may seem that the question of a self we are fond of assuming is "in here" that we nonetheless can't seem to find, has not yet been answered. This particular assumptive inheritance from CW is undoubtedly the most difficult notion we'll ever have to question, but subject it to scrutiny we must if we expect to make any sense of Chaos. As has been seen, the cherished "I" not unlike every other object or event we believe to exist, is merely what consciousness has drawn from the quantum wave of itself, and re-presented to us as reality.

If you're beginning to get the idea that the mind Chaos refers to as the source of all existence is not one and the same as the "thing" we've been led to believe every human possesses somewhere in their person, most likely inside the skull, you're reading this right. If not, it's because you're still caught up in the materialistic rhetoric of CW. Perhaps is would help by distinguishing the object of consciousness some call little mind or ego, from the Chaos sense of the term mind, by capitalizing the latter...Consciousness. Accordingly, it should become clear that one's "objective" human consciousness being generated by Consciousness, turns out to be intrinsically subjective after all. If only Descartes had been able to see his world through the Chaos lens, he might have arrived at a more accurate conclusion: "Cogito, ergo sum" or "Consciousness, therefore I am."

Whether you're a senior executive, a line manager, a staffer or an external consultant, if your aim is to design, lead, manage and/or change a complex dynamical, non-linear system dear to your heart, the implications of the Chaos property Consciousness are profound indeed. In light of overwhelming evidence for the primacy of mind - and none against it, if you aren't yet willing to relinquish the antediluvian 'specs' of CW, won't you humor this writer for just a moment? Imagine if you can, an organization populated by individuals who not only recognize but embrace and readily enact their inborn capacity to create the results they most desire. Envision an enterprise in which its members skillfully and intentionally collapse the "quiff" (pronunciation of QWF, acronym for quantum wave function) of their choice. Picture the vital, robust and eminently sustainable system that would emerge from the shared mind of so thoroughly empowered people.

And what will it take to fulfill this stunning vision? Only this: The courage to remove the blinders of CW and to see what has been before us all along. Although this simple but profoundly difficult act is necessary, the author has been convinced by more than 20 years of experience in the trenches struggling along side people to attain and sustain the vitality of the organization that Chaos helps. Firstly, by awakening to the fact that a growing percentage of the scientific mainstream are now joining hundreds of 'edge' thinkers who intuited but lacked "hard" evidence of the reality described by the "new" science, the effort to give up the defunct mindset of CW will only be lessened. Secondly, through their exposure to the "big picture" painted by Chaos...beside Consciousness, a chaordic system is characterized by at least four additional core properties including Connectivity, Indeterminacy, Emergence and Dissipation, each founded upon a wealth of conclusive and directly observable evidence...those who dare to look beyond the abject limitations of CW will discover an exponentially more powerful set of lenses with which to see the "really" real with unprecedented clarity.

* A chaordic system is one in which chaos and order are inextricably interpenetrated -- a system in which nothing ever happens quite the same twice, and yet enough happens in a tidy enough way to preclude complete havoc.

© Laurie A. Fitzgerald, 1999

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