Positive Applications of Synchronicity
Being a mindful, honest and open person trying to live your best life can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Things like maintaining a healthy diet, putting a focus on proper hydration, and strength building and cardio can help a lot of us to feel more in control.
By now, a lot of us who are committed to wellness and self-improvement are also aware of, if not partaking in, some form of mental or spiritual practice as well. Over time, the ideas of “the power of positive thinking,” mind-cures and visualization have become a part of mainstream discourse when it comes to self improvement.
In step with all this, the idea of synchronicity can be a powerful tool in your life, as someone looking for improvement and evolution. But what does this mean?
Synchronicity is the simultaneous occurrence of two or more seemingly unrelated events. The interest comes in the connections that you, as a subjective observer, assign to these occurrences. This takes us into some examples of the kinds of things that can constitute the impression of synchronicity. A lot of people talk about noticing the time on a clock. It is believed that seeing a clock strike 11:11 over and over again may be something significant. Another situation could be thinking of a friend only to have them call you in the next couple minutes.
There is a loose approach to defining the powers or psychological effects behind the phenomenon. Whether you ascribe the happenings to a message from the universe or a higher power, or to something you are noticing because of its psychological import to you, synchronicity can help you. From understanding yourself and your desires more deeply to feeling more comfortable being both an individual and a part of a system larger than yourself, this concept can make a big impact.
The concept of synchronicity was first introduced by Carl Jung in the 1930s. He had coined the term, for European scholars, as an attempt to describe the eastern practices of I Ching and other seemingly random practices that were believed to deliver information to the person examining them. He went on to recommend the practice to a select number of his patients.
Jung’s understanding can really be summed up by his exposure to the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer. Schopenhauer, in 1851, stated that there is “...a subjective connection which exists only in relation to the individual who experiences it, and which is thus as subjective as his own dreams.”
This is the crux of the modern concept of synchronicity. It lives in the idea that our personal connections and observations could have meaning to us that can be instructive, if only we could learn to look.
The best way to integrate this practice is to be aware of the synchronistic events that happen in your life. Keep a journal, fill in a calendar. Use meditation to help nurture these understandings. Being observant and open is the first step!
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