GLOSSARY
Li
Li [pronounced "lee"] is a traditional Chinese word that refers to the organizing principles of the cosmos, the dynamic patterns that connect the qi in different forms to construct the entire universe.
Li refers to the natural patterns of the universe that are continually forming and re-forming around us. These are both fixed and dynamic patterns, patterns within patterns, and patterns in time as well as patterns in space, along with patterns that we create in our own minds through our unique perceptions of these external patterns.
The li can be thought of as the ever-moving, ever-present set of patterns which flow through everything in nature and in all our perceptions of the world including our own consciousness.
Alan Watts describes the li as “the asymmetrical, nonrepetitive, and unregimented order which we find in the patterns of moving water, the forms of trees and clouds, of frost crystals on the window, or the scattering of pebbles on beach sand.” [1]
In the words of the Neo-Confucian philosopher, Zhu Xi: "This li moves in the world in continuous cycles without a single moment’s cessation. None of the myriad things and activities – be they small, large, fine, or coarse would have been possible without the ever-flowing presence of li in them. So is my mind (heart) which also receives it. The li never ceases to stay in my mind for a moment; its creative process never ceases to reciprocate with the physical world." [2]
The li was understood by Neo-Confucian philosophers as the universal set of manifestations of the Tao. Their leading philosopher, Xhu Xi, said: "the word ‘Tao’ is all-embracing, while the Li are so many veins inside the Tao... The Tao is vast and large. The Li is minute and detailed." [3]
The li can be thought of as the ever-moving, ever-present set of patterns which flow through everything in nature and in all our perceptions of the world including our own consciousness.
Alan Watts describes the li as “the asymmetrical, nonrepetitive, and unregimented order which we find in the patterns of moving water, the forms of trees and clouds, of frost crystals on the window, or the scattering of pebbles on beach sand.” [1]
In the words of the Neo-Confucian philosopher, Zhu Xi: "This li moves in the world in continuous cycles without a single moment’s cessation. None of the myriad things and activities – be they small, large, fine, or coarse would have been possible without the ever-flowing presence of li in them. So is my mind (heart) which also receives it. The li never ceases to stay in my mind for a moment; its creative process never ceases to reciprocate with the physical world." [2]
The li was understood by Neo-Confucian philosophers as the universal set of manifestations of the Tao. Their leading philosopher, Xhu Xi, said: "the word ‘Tao’ is all-embracing, while the Li are so many veins inside the Tao... The Tao is vast and large. The Li is minute and detailed." [3]
Li and Systems Theory
In liology, li is understood as corresponding to the organizing principles of the natural world as described in complexity theory and systems biology. This correspondence is seen as not superficial but intrinsic to both systems of thought, which permits each system to build from the other.
The celebrated systems thinker Gregory Bateson, who is regarded by some as a founding figure in cybernetics and dynamical systems theory, once famously wrote in one his books the following:
The celebrated systems thinker Gregory Bateson, who is regarded by some as a founding figure in cybernetics and dynamical systems theory, once famously wrote in one his books the following:
What is the pattern which connects all the living creatures? …
My central thesis can now be approached in words: The pattern which connects is a metapattern. It is a pattern of patterns. It is that metapattern which defines the vast generalization that, indeed, it is patterns which connect. [4]
In terms of the li, this quote from Bateson can be interpreted as referring to the relationship between the Tao – the metapattern – and the li – the innumerable patterns connected by the metapattern.
In recent times, some Chinese scholars suggest translating the word "li" as coherence - emphasizing how the patterns that connect the qi are those which give it coherence. [5]
The word "li" is incorporated into the word "liology," which therefore means literally "the study of the organizing principles of the universe."
In recent times, some Chinese scholars suggest translating the word "li" as coherence - emphasizing how the patterns that connect the qi are those which give it coherence. [5]
The word "li" is incorporated into the word "liology," which therefore means literally "the study of the organizing principles of the universe."
Notes
[1] Watts,
A. (1975). Tao: The Watercourse Way. New York: Pantheon Books, 45-6.
[2] Cited in Yu, D. (1980). “The Conceptions of Self in Whitehead and Chu Hsi.” Journal of Chinese Philosophy, 7(1980), 153-173
[3] Cited in Angle, S. C. (2009). Sagehood: The Contemporary Significance of Neo-Confucian Philosophy. New York: Oxford University Press, 42-3.
[4] Bateson, G. (2002). Mind and Nature: A Necessary Unity. Cresskill, New Jersey: Hampton Press, 7, 10.
[5] See Angle, op. cit.
[2] Cited in Yu, D. (1980). “The Conceptions of Self in Whitehead and Chu Hsi.” Journal of Chinese Philosophy, 7(1980), 153-173
[3] Cited in Angle, S. C. (2009). Sagehood: The Contemporary Significance of Neo-Confucian Philosophy. New York: Oxford University Press, 42-3.
[4] Bateson, G. (2002). Mind and Nature: A Necessary Unity. Cresskill, New Jersey: Hampton Press, 7, 10.
[5] See Angle, op. cit.