Lao Tzu and Magritte Walk Into A Bar

The Necessity of Models

The universe is multidimensional and simultaneous. We may be able to be ‘one with the Tao’ or ‘grock’ the universe, but communication and to some extent rational thought is sequential and linear. How then can we think and communication about the world? This is what ‘Models’ are for. Models emphasizes and compresses aspects of reality so we can cope with existence.

The Dangers of Models

First, do not get confused into believing that the model is the universe. This is pointed out by our two wags. Rene Magritte painted a pipe, but then reminds us that what we are looking at is not a pipe. Like was, Laozi writes the ‘Tao Te Ching’,  a book  about the source of all, but roguishly starts the book by saying that the tao that can be written about is not the true Tao.

Second, the model that we pick determines the conclusions and solutions which we will find. Choose your models well and do not try to use the same model to think about everything. ‘If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything will look like a nail.’ A single model cannot contain the infinite diversity of the universe or the unfolding of the 10,000 things.