LECTURE: Jungian Symbols and the New Science: The Mandala and the Mandelbrot Set

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_GBwuYuOOs

So, what exactly is the Mandelbrot Set? Have you heard? Have you seen? How does one describe that which must be seen in order to be perceived? It is much like describing music which must be heard in order to be comprehended. And like music, this phenomenon is rooted in math, yet takes on a beautiful stirring form that transcends its foundation. The equation is as simple as e = mc²: z = z² + c (discovered by the mathematician Benoît B. Mandelbrot, father of fractal geometry). It is rendered as a kind of mesmerizing visual music or dance of geometrically located dots on a plane by modern computer technology creating a kaleidoscope of colorful patterns. Out of its fractal nature it unfurls as an infinite number of self-similar, yet slightly differing patterns thus mimicking nature herself spinning creation into existence. Upon close examination, the universe of the Mandelbrot Set ever expands, never resolving and continuously recreating various and intricate forms of the original larger form. Viewing a computerized and colorized unfolding image of it takes one along a fascinating and mesmerizing psychic journey. There is something numinous about it. It resembles the universe itself, in a way, with all its inhabitants containing patterns similar to the larger whole.

On February 14 at a salon, our own board member Dr. J. Linn Mackey introduced to our awareness this intriguing mathematical-visual phenomenon and his accompanying thesis. He proposed that along with modern cosmology this Mandelbrot set has developed into a contemporary symbol truly and dynamically representing the boundless Self in a way comparable to and complementary of the symbol of the mandala. The mandala represents the centralizing ordering quality of the Self and the Mandelbrot set symbolizes the boundless nature of it. As a foundation for his argument Mackey provided a primer of related Jungian concepts such as the psyche, Self, signs, symbols and archetypes as well as tracing the evolution of humankind’s cosmology and its changing visual representations. He showed how the Mandelbrot set fits Jung’s definition of a symbol including having a partially hidden meaning and being numinous or fascinating. He showed how the mandala was used to symbolize cosmology in times past and how now the image representing the Mandelbrot set seems to represent modern cosmology and its fractal science. It has grown in popularity, being brandished on tee-shirts and such. Consciousness has expanded to embrace the irregularity and possibly infinite expanse of the universe and in parallel, the Self. We now apparently have a new symbol for our place in our awareness: The Mandelbrot set.

Upon visual examination, it certainly does seem, as Dr. Mackey proposed, that this amazing phenomenon that has gained such popularity in recent times symbolically captures and renders dynamically the infinite and lively unbounded Self that Jung saw as being symbolically contained and ordered by the mandala. It may well be a symbol of awareness and acceptance of the infinitely expansive quality of the soul that has captured the imagination of those who know of it. The mandala symbolizes one level of psychic management and acceptance of this infinite spiritual “material” and the Mandelbrot might represent another more elastic level of embrace that tolerates irregularity and boundlessness. It is amazing that the Mandelbrot set itself periodically takes on a pulsating mandala-like quality, then spins off into various spirals and branches. Seeing is believing.

For more on the Mandelbrot set, visit the following links from the documentary Arthur C. Clarke - Fractals - The Colors Of Infinity. (Jung is mentioned in parts 5 & 6)

http://vodpod.com/watch/572393-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-1-of-6

http://vodpod.com/watch/572398-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-2-of-6

http://vodpod.com/watch/572423-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-3-of-6

http://vodpod.com/watch/572433-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-4-of-6

http://vodpod.com/watch/572489-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-5-of-6

http://vodpod.com/watch/572498-fractals-arthur-c-clarke-6-of-6

Also view an awesome Mandelbrot Animation at this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-q-SZEUEHM