SYNCHRONICITY
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 3301 ▶ |
| Object type | General information |
The coincidence in time of events or patterns.
The concept is somewhat ambiguous.
It could have an absolute theoretic meaning: two (or more) events are truly synchronic when they occur at the same instant. However, they could very well not appear as synchronic to different observers, while observers are who decide on synchronicity, as they observe events: Referentials are relative.
Furthermore, observed synchronicity is easily spurious. The simultaneous observation of many stars by an astronomer does not make their existence synchronous, nor even possibly contemporary of each others.
F. DAVID PEAT uses the concept in a somewhat dubious manner, quoting for example C.J. JUNG, who abundantly used it, speaking of “meaningful coincidence” (1988, p.1). What does however mean “meaningful” and for whom?