BOOKS
A w or d to th e w i se
by A l i r eza H ejazi
Th e st u d y of w i sd om an d v i r t u e h as
been p ar t of Th om as L om bar d o?s
p u r su i t as t h e d i r ect or of t h e Cen t er
f or Fu t u r e Con sci ou sn ess an d of
Th e W i sd om Page w ebsi t e f or m or e
t h an a d ecad e.
The Pur suit of Vir tue: The Path to a
Good Futur e is Lom bar do?s ten th
book . In h is view, ?wisdom is a fu tu r e
focu sed psych ol ogical l y h ol istic,
eth ical l y in for m ed, an d evol u tion ar y
capacity an d vir tu e. It is th e ideal
over ar ch in g m en tal gu idan ce system
for both con str u ctivel y addr essin g
ou r con tem por ar y pr obl em s an d
cr eatin g th e good fu tu r e? (2018, p.
109).
Th e n ew book is a con den sed u pdate
of section s of h is pr eviou s book
W isdom , Consciousness, and the
Futur e: Collected Essays, pu bl ish ed
in 2011, as wel l as h is m or e r ecen t
book Futur e Consciousness,
pu bl ish ed in 2017. Lom bar do says th at
ar ou n d 2004-2005 h e r eal ized th at
wisdom was th e h igh est expr ession of
fu tu r e con sciou sn ess. H e bel ieves
th at it can be u n der stood as an ideal
m odel of h eigh ten ed con sciou sn ess,
an d th at it can be tau gh t with in
edu cation al system s.
W isdom , h e says, in tegr ates al l of th e
im por tan t ch ar acter vir tu es th at can
be discu ssed in th e con text of
edu cation an d con sciou sn ess
r egar din g th e fu tu r e. It is th er efor e
th e appr opr iate ideal towar d wh ich we
sh ou l d str ive in ou r in dividu al an d
col l ective psych ol ogical evol u tion .
Th r ou gh th e fou r ch apter s of th is
sh or t book , Lom bar do offer s a
com pr eh en sive descr iption of
wisdom . In th e fir st ch apter ,h e poin ts
to th e path of ?good fu tu r e.? Fin din g
th is r equ ir es a k in d of awar en ess h e
cal l s 'h eigh ten ed fu tu r e
con sciou sn ess,' wh ich is ou r m ost
distin ctive an d em power in g h u m an
capacity. In an ear l ier book , h e
defin ed fu tu r e con sciou sn ess is as
?th e set of psych ol ogical capacities
th at focu s on th e fu tu r e, in cl u din g, for
exam pl e, for esigh t; an ticipator y h ope
an d fear ; pl an n in g; goal settin g; an d
pu r posefu l beh avior ? (Lom bar do,
2017, p. 11).
The Pursuit of
Virt ue: The Path
to a Good Future
by Thomas Lombardo
Wood Lake, 2019
In Ch apter Two Lom bar do iden tifies
wh at h e bel ieves ar e a set of k ey
pr obl em s in th e con tem por ar y wor l d.
Pr esen tism ? excessivel y im m er sion
with in , an d focu s on , th e pr esen t? is
on e of th ese. On e big pr obl em with
pr esen tism is th at ?an essen tial an d
em power in g capacity of an evol ved
con sciou s m in d is an expan ded sen se
of tem por al con sciou sn ess, of both
past an d fu tu r e. Livin g in th e r el ative
n ow, u n con tam in ated by past an d
fu tu r e, is th e state of a pr im itive m in d;
it is th e state appr oxim ated to
(al th ou gh n ever com pl etel y r eal ized)
in h u m an in fan ts an d th e sim pl est of
an im al l ife for m s? (2019, p. 17).
Oth er pr obl em s th at con tem por ar y
h u m an ity su ffer s fr om ar e
egocen tr icity,in dividu al ism , an d
r el ativism . Egocen tr icity pl aces th e
sel f at th e cen ter of th e wor l d;
in dividu al ism is th e ph il osoph ical
Contemporary humanit y suffers from
present ism, egocent ricit y,
individualism, and relat ivism.
APF COMPASS
|
OCTOBER 2019
|
PAGE 24
BOOKS
view th at each of u s is distin ct,
separ ate, an d u n iqu e. H e bel ieves th at
egocen tr icity an d in dividu al ism
con tr ibu te to a var iety of h u m an
pr obl em s, in cl u din g depr ession an d
n ar cissism . Th ey can be am el ior ated
th r ou gh th e exer cise an d pu r su it of
cer tain k ey vir tu es.
Rel ativism is an expr ession of
extr em e in dividu al ism becau se it is
based on th e idea th at each of u s l ives
in ou r own pr ivate an d in dividu al
r eal ity. Rel ativism posits th at ?al l
cl aim s of tr u th an d val u e ar e seen as
cu l tu r al , h istor ical , an d per son al
per spectives on r eal ity; th er e ar e n o
ever yth in g, especial l y h appin ess, bu t
th at it actu al l y is h appin ess. Th e
con sequ en ce of su ch a bel ief is th e
n egation of ever yth in g el se in l ife.
As a r esu l t, peopl e m ay n o l on ger
pu r su e wisdom , fr ien dsh ip, or
k in dn ess. W h en peopl e th in k th ey
sh ou l d get r ich , as th e cen tr al goal in
l ife, th e h u m an val u es su ch as l ove,
affection , an d k in dn ess m ay l ose th eir
pr ior ities. Th is can en dan ger th e
su r vival of h u m an s on th is pl an et.
Com m odification an d con su m er ism
ar e two sides of th e sam e coin .
Com m odification r efer s to ?th e
W isdom integrates all of t he import ant
character virt ues t hat can be discussed
in t he context of educat ion and
consciousness regarding t he fut ure.
absol u te, u n iver sal , or objective tr u th s,
or gu ar an teed m eth ods for fin din g
su ch tr u th s? (p. 41). Su ch attitu des
l ead to ch aos an d discon n ectedn ess.
Lom bar do ch al l en ges th e l ogical base
of r el ativism by ask in g, ?if we ar e al l
r igh t, n o on e is wr on g. H ow can we
distin gu ish wh at is tr u e an d wise,
fr om wh at is er r on eou s an d fool ish ??
(p. 28). H e ar gu es th at both r el ativism
an d au th or itar ian dogm atism
dim in ish th e capacities of th e h u m an
m in d an d bl ock ade th e way of
pr ogr ess towar d n ew k n owl edge.
Ch apter Two al so addr esses oth er
pr obl em s, in cl u din g m on etization ,
com m odification , con su m er ism , an d
affl u en za. M on etization r edu ces
ever yth in g to m on etar y val u e. Su ch a
bel ief m ay con vin ce peopl e to bel ieve
n ot ju st th at m on ey can bu y
pr ocess by wh ich goods an d ser vices
ar e pr odu ced by capital ist fir m s for a
pr ofit u n der con dition s of m ar k et
exch an ge. In oth er wor ds, it is th e view
th at n on -com m odified pr actices ar e
in dem ise as th e m ar k et or
com m odified sph er e col on izes th ese
r eal m s? (W il l iam s, 2005, p. 1146).
Con su m er ism h as becom e a way of
l ife, in wh ich ever yon e is a cu stom er
an d con su m ption is th e cen tr al
activity of l ife. Com m odification an d
con su m er ism ar e expected to l ead
peopl e to th e good l ife, bu t don ?t.
Lik e Lom bar do, Bu ch h ol z an d
Rosen th al (2010) h ave war n ed th at
?th e con su m er ism of today is par tial l y
th e pr odu ct of a desper ate su bstitu te
for th e exper ien ce of fel t val u e an d
th e dem an ds of con cr ete h u m an
existen ce for on goin g gr owth . W h en
con su m er ism becom es su ch a
su bstitu te, th en th e h ol istic sk il l s
n eeded for th e r econ str u ction an d
expan sion of val u e-l aden ,
sel f-com m u n ity gr owth can n ot
occu r ? (p. 122).
Lom bar do r efer s to ?affl u en za? as a
psych o-social addiction . It is ?a
pain fu l , con tagiou s, social l y
tr an sm itted con dition of over l oad,
debt, an xiety,an d waste r esu l tin g fr om
th e dogged pu r su it of m or e?
(Lom bar do, 2019, p. 46). In h is view,
affl u en za h as been in ter pr eted as a
m en tal disor der th at absol ves a
per son of r espon sibil ity for cr im in al
acts. H e con cl u des th e secon d
ch apter by descr ibin g th e pr obl em s
cau sed by th e im pacts of tech n ol ogy
an d m edia im m er sion . A
tech n o-dom in ated vision of th e good
fu tu r e m ay excl u de con sciou s vision s
th at em ph asize sel f-r espon sibl y in
im pr ovin g m in ds an d ch ar acter s.
Th e th ir d ch apter of th e book deal s
with th e vir tu es of fu tu r e
con sciou sn ess. Lom bar do?s h ol istic
per spective of fu tu r e con sciou sn ess
em br aces al l of ou r psych ol ogical
pr ocesses an d m odes of
con sciou sn ess fr om per ception an d
beh avior to th in k in g an d
u n der stan din g. Based on th is
appr oach , fu tu r e con sciou sn ess is
cen tr al to ou r distin ctive h u m an
n atu r e.
?Fu tu r e con sciou sn ess m ak es
possibl e pu r posefu l evol u tion with in
h u m an r eal ity. W e can desir e an d
im agin e, an ticipate, th in k an d pl an ,
an d pu r posefu l l y act towar d th e
cr eation of a better wor l d an d better
h u m an s? (p. 63).
In th e pu r su it of ?h eigh ten ed fu tu r e
con sciou sn ess,? ch ar acter can
pr ovide cl u es. Ch ar acter vir tu es th at
con tr ibu te to h eigh ten ed
con sciou sn ess in cl u de
APF COMPASS
|
OCTOBER 2019
|
PAGE 25
BOOKS
'Fut ure consciousness makes
purposeful evolut ion possible. We can
desire and imagine, ant icipate, t hink and
plan, and act tow ard t he creat ion of a
bet ter world and bet ter humans'
sel f-awar en ess, sel f-con tr ol ,
sel f-efficacy,an d sel f-r espon sibil ity.
H is accou n t of th ese vir tu es in br ief,
bu t th ey ar e al l vital to th e con tr ol of
ou r in n er sel ves as th e ar ch itects of
ou r l ives an d ou r fu tu r e. H is
descr iption of th ese vir tu es
con vin ced th is r eader to accept th at
a fu tu r e-con sciou s sel f is th e on e
th at is awar e, con tr ol l ed, effective,
an d r espon sibl e for h is/ h er
fu tu r e-or ien ted evol u tion , an d th at of
oth er s.
Lom bar do con cl u des th at we ar e on
th e path of pu r posefu l sel f-evol u tion
as h u m an bein gs. Kn owin g an d
u n der stan din g th is, we n eed to in vest
m or e in h ope, optim ism , an d cou r age
in ou r for war d-th in k in g. W e n eed to
h ave a r eason abl e degr ee of
com m itm en t, per son al l y an d social l y,
to discipl in e, ten acity,an d deep
pu r pose.
Th is com m itm en t can be gen er ated
th r ou gh th e l ove of l ear n in g, wh ich
m ean s to val u e l ear n in g an d be
in tr in sical l y m otivated to l ear n . Th e
u l tim ate goal of l ear n in g is to
im pr ove on e?s own beh avior ,wh ich
l eads in tu r n to tem per an ce, bal an ce,
an d r ecipr ocity. H e al so says th at
h eigh ten ed fu tu r e con sciou sn ess
in vol ves cosm ic con sciou sn ess an d
tr an scen den ce.
wisdom n ar r ative. Lom bar do?s
h istor ical r eview su ggests th at th e
pu r su it of wisdom is an an cien t
qu est, exten din g back to Ar istotl e,
an d fu r th er.
H is defin ition of wisdom is: ?Th e
per son al l y in ter n al ized, con tin u al l y
evol vin g u n der stan din g of an d
fascin ation with th e big pictu r e an d
per son al dim en sion s of l ife an d th eir
con n ection , an d wh at is tr u e an d
good, an d th e desir e an d cr eative
capacity to appl y th is u n der stan din g
to en h an ce th e wel l -bein g of l ife,
both for on esel f an d oth er s? (p. 110).
References
Buchholz,R.A.,&Rosenthal,S.B.(2010).
Spirituality,consumption,andbusiness. In
Giacalone,R.A.,&Jurkiewicz,C.L. (Eds.)
Handbookof workplacespiritualityand
organizational performance(114-125).
Armonk,NY:M.E.Sharpe.
Lombardo,T.(2017). FutureConsciousness:
ThePathtoPurposeful Evolution. Hants,UK:
ChangemakersBooks.
Lombardo,T.(2018). ThePursuit of Virtue:
ThePathtoaGoodFuture. Kelowna,British
Columbia: WoodLake.
Lombardo,T.(2011). Wisdom,
Consciousness,andtheFuture: Collected
Essays.Bloomington,IN:Xlibris.
Williams,C.C.(2005). Workorganizationin
post-socialist societies. Futures, 37(10),
1145-1157.
Dror,Y.(1989). Memofor systemreforming
rulers,Futures, Butterworth,UK.August,
Lom bar do?s cen tr al m essage in
book is th at th e con tin u in g
devel opm en t of wisdom sh ou l d be
th e cen tr al aspir ation for ou r own
pu r posefu l sel f-evol u tion an d th e
fu tu r e evol u tion of h u m an ity. Fr om
h is r eview of fu tu r e-or ien ted wor k s
fr om an cien t to m oder n er as, h e
pr oposes th at th e ?n ar r ative? is th e
m ost r eal istic an d effective way to
con ceptu al ize th e fu tu r e. The
Pur suit of Vir tue: The Path to a
Good Futur e con tr ibu tes to ou r
fu tu r e-or ien ted evol u tion in a
descr iptive an d in spir ation al
m an n er. ?
Ch apter Fou r is abou t l ivin g th e
APF COMPASS
AlirezaHejazi istheadjunct professor
of BusinessLeadershipat California
Instituteof Management and
Technology. HeistheAPFwebmaster,
andwasacontributingeditor tothis
editionof Compass. Hecanbereached
at: webmaster[@
]apf.org.
|
OCTOBER 2019
|
PAGE 26