trees

Give a man a fish and he has one day to eat.
Teach him the use of a fishing rod and he can provide for a lifetime.
Confucius

We know the family-tree, the organization-tree. A tree is the symbol of gradual growth and strength. The greater part of a tree is not visible, the roots. Interesting is the Japanese character for tree [ki]: The part above the horizontal line is above the ground, i.e. visible. This is very much like the human being, we only see part of others. I would like to use this Japanese character as a metaphor to explain the following.
Professor Jung has made the distinction between extravert and introvert people. The extravert develops her/himself with an eye to the outside; lives by breathing out : is outward oriented. The introvert type uses the outside especially to develop her/himself; lives by breathing in: is inward oriented. The balanced human lives by breathing in and out. Graphically shown: The difficulty seems to be that the unconscious part, which tends to be denied, plays its own tricks, especially at moments of stress or relaxation. And though I am an introvert I compensate by acting in a an extravert manner. This I would like to compare with the tree. The person known to others is the visible quality. Each of us has a more developed side:This may be either extravert or introvert.



And besides it may also be strongly animus :When developing our creativeness it is imperative that we first become aware of our stronger developed qualities as these will determine our outlook and way of perceiving the world. The extravert personality will tend to be of the problem-solving type. For the main aim is to satisfy direct needs as perceived by others. Problem solving tends to be mainly concerned with the short term. The introvert personality, on the other hand, tends to have more regard for the longer term and her/his own needs: the opportunities present albeit not easily seen. Creativeness can best be achieved when a balance is achieved. Just as in the case of the tree, the larger part which nourishes should be made conscious for it will always influence our outlook and acting. The soil is like the collective subconscious feeding our imagination (cf. shadow & archetype)
This same tree metaphor I would like to apply to Maslow's internal hierarchy of needs. It is a description of the basic needs that determine our behavour.
'Ki' compared with the internal hierarchy of needs of A. Maslow

The energy is obtained by the basic needs such as food and breathing space. We then need protection and safety. These are the basis to act. We then want to belong to a group, after all we are social beings. Then we develop our ego. This is a crucial point because the stronger the ego the better are the chances of actualizing myself. However, a strong ego may also prevent further development when it turns inside and makes me egocentric. By breaking down the ego I build up my self and start on the way of development. The search for the reason and sense of my being here. Egocentric behaviour will take away attention from my contribution to the world. As the above explanation will have shown this is an individual way, it never will be alike for two human beings. Creativity will mean that I don't ask other people what their problems are. It means that I help by showing them how I deal with problems. It is what the Bhuddist call the Bhudda nature and the Taoists see as the person who has been present and has made the world somewhat better. It is the upper part of the tree, visible to all but taking its nourishment from the roots which remain in the dark.

creativity>> growing both up and down to learn my potential