Creating an Integral Environment

I would like to talk to you about the concept of “boundary.” When modern children get together, something very strange happens to them: It’s as if they turn into uncontrollable animals. Adults constantly complain that children are unruly and don’t yield to any upbringing. What is this that is happening and how should we relate to children’s hyperactivity?..

They cannot fit into our outdated boundaries, and this is not their fault but ours. Therefore, we must immediately revisit our behavioral standards and develop a different attitude toward children so we don’t keep them “imprisoned” all the time. We are trying to impose our norms of behavior and our limitations on them. But they can no longer live that way...

In psychology, a “boundary” is determined as the place where my interests collide with the interests of the people around me. As it often happens, the desired resource is limited. In that case, two scenarios might unfold: Either I yield that resource to the other person, or I fight to possess the resource. Does the concept of the integral society, the human being of the future, lie in yielding or fighting?..

Social psychologies that study modern Western society say that this society is operated by the law of trade off: “You give something to me and I give something you.” They say that even friendship is defined by this “You give me and I give you” concept, only in this case it is stretched out over time. This means that the modern person is entirely imbued in this idea of trade off, and what you are describing is a fundamentally different paradigm, a different worldview...

You say that a child has to be raised in a way that lets him perceive the world holistically from early childhood...

Parents worry that a child growing up in this kind of society may become excessively dependent on the opinion of others and will lose his independence...

In different societies, people perceive the notion of “mine” differently. Some consider only their apartment to be their own and don’t care what is happening on the bus or in the subway, so they throw their garbage on the floor there. But another person considers an entire city his own. Does the integral person you describe consider the whole world his own?..

Like many uncorrected people, I still have many questions, worries, and fears: What will happen to criminals, thieves, and other people who might use this delicate reality, built on an ultra-sensitive balance? What if they come and steal everything, and take over the whole system?..

The picture of the future school where children interact this way is very attractive for many people who are familiar with it. Can the same examples be used for adults?..