Erich Fromm’s Approach
To the Problem of Right Action
The Theosophical Movement
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In her well-known article “Chelas and Lay
Chelas”, H.P. Blavatsky gives this piece of
advice to students
of theosophy: “Deserve,
then desire”.[1]
Indeed, in theosophy, Ethics
can be defined as “the art of sowing good
karma”, so that we come to deserve that which
is desirable.
The topic is of central and decisive
importance in any serious attempt to study
esoteric philosophy - or the art of living.
The following article was first
published at the international magazine
“The
Theosophical Movement” (Mumbai,
(C. C. A.)
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The subject of psychology of ethics is
directly related to the building of character. Theosophy lays great emphasis on
character because our moral nature belongs to the permanent aspect of our being,
which, after death, can be assimilated by the Higher Divine Triad - Atma,
Buddhi, Manas.
In his book “Man For Himself”, Erich Fromm, the
German-born social philosopher, mentions that personality is the totality of
inherited and acquired psychic qualities which are characteristic of one individual,
and make the individual unique. The difference between inherited qualities and
acquired qualities is on the whole synonymous with the difference between temperament,
on the one hand, and character, on the other hand.
While differences
in temperament have not much ethical significance, differences in character
constitute the real problem of ethics. To understand why it is ethics that
causes the difference, we have to clearly distinguish between character and
temperament.
According to
Fromm, temperament refers to the mode of reaction and is constitutional;
whereas character is essentially formed by a person’s experiences, especially
those in early life, and is changeable to some extent, by insight and new kind
of experiences. For instance, if a person has a choleric temperament, his mode
of reaction is “quick and strong”, but what he is quick and strong about,
depends on his character. He can be quick and strong about a “just” cause or an
“unjust” cause. How he reacts to it, reflects his character. We may prefer a
person with spontaneous temperament as against a person with a practical
temperament, but if both are dishonest, then from the standpoint of character,
both are equally undesirable.
The theory of
character proposed by Fromm is not based on the idea of primarily isolated
individual, but on the relationship of man to others, to nature and to himself.
The manner in
which he relates to the world constitutes the core of his character. Erich
Fromm differentiates between two basic types of character: the nonproductive
orientation and the productive orientation. The non-productive orientation
includes four types:
(1) Receptive - Where the person feels that the source of all good
is outside and that whatever he wants will be received from outside sources. He
does not want to make much effort, but expects to receive it from the outside
and therefore becomes dependent.
(2) Exploitative - It is similar to receptive, but instead of just
expecting to receive, he wants to take it from others by force or cunning,
whether it be the affections of another person or material possessions. There
is an element of envy implicit in such character.
(3) Hoarding - This kind of character has little faith in, and a
lot of insecurity about anything they get from the outside world. Hence,
whatever they get, they hoard and save. They will hoard their possessions,
their energy and their ideas. They are so jealously possessive that they do not
want their loved ones (their possessions) to be shared with others.
(4) Marketing - In any market, certain commodities are in demand.
Similarly, certain qualities are in demand in the personality market. For
instance, certain personality types which strive to be successful in life are
in demand. Hence, people learn how to sell themselves in the market, i.e., how best
to put across their personalities. Moreover, “identity” is not in reference to
self but in reference to other people’s opinion about self. Identity, in such a
person, emerges not by knowing oneself, but in being known to others. Other
people are also experienced as commodities - it is not them, but their saleable
parts which are given importance.
In discussing the Productive
character, Fromm inquires into the nature of the “fully developed character,”
which is the aim of human development, and simultaneously the ideal of
humanistic ethics.
Productiveness is
generally understood in terms of material production alone. But productive
orientation of personality refers to a fundamental attitude, a mode of
relatedness in all realms of human experience. We might say, productiveness is
man’s realization of the “potentialities”, that are characteristic of him, and
the use of his powers. The ability of man to make productive use of his powers is
his “potency”, the inability is his “impotency.”
In order to use
his powers and potency, man must be free and not dependent on others, and he
must know what these powers are, and how to use them. It implies use of reason.
With the use of reason (and we might say, intuition) man can penetrate and
understand the essence of things. With power of love he can break through the wall
which separates one person from another. With his power of imagination he can
visualize things not yet existing; he can plan and thus begin to create. When a
person lacks the ability to make productive use of his powers, his relatedness
to the world is perverted into a desire to dominate, and to exert power over
others, as though they were things.
Systems of
thought, works of art, are all created by man’s productiveness. But the most
important object of productiveness is man himself. After birth, physical growth
is automatic, but the emotional and intellectual potentialities of man can be
realized only through productive activities. Thus, according to Fromm, the quality
which determines one’s character is “productiveness”. If a person can make a productive use of his
powers he may be said to have a productive character, if not, then he has
non-productive character.
In the Sixteenth
Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna too, differentiates between
two basic types of character - the Godlike and Demoniacal. He describes
qualities which determine whether a person has a Godlike character or a
Demoniacal character. So in both cases, the emphasis is on qualities which are
acquired by an individual. The question is how are these qualities acquired
which determine an individual’s character. There are forces within and without
us which contribute to the building of character. We are not born with a “fully
integrated” character - some qualities may be present, some may be
lacking. Hence, character has to be
built, little by little, beginning on the plane of the mind, because thoughts are
the seeds of Karma. Thoughts determine our way of relating to others, to nature
and to self. So who and what is it that moulds our thinking, our thoughts?
When a child is
born, his first contact with the outside world is his mother and then family.
Their thoughts and actions greatly influence the child’s character, because for
the next seven years or so, the child is trusting, receptive and dependent,
without resistance, and imitative in his actions. As he begins to grow, and
comes in contact with other persons and things, he is likely to get influenced by
them, to a certain extent consciously, and to an extent unconsciously. His
school and teachers have a very important role to play in building of his
character because for the greater part of
the day and over a span of 10 to 12 years he will be in close contact with
them. “School training is of the very greatest importance in forming character,
especially in its moral bearing”, writes H. P. Blavatsky.
But if a school
emphasizes the wrong qualities, such as, competition instead of co-operation,
where the student is taught to hoard his knowledge instead of sharing it, or if
he is taught to develop the “saleable” or commercial qualities such as,
ambition, aggressiveness, over-confidence, instead of faith, charity and honesty,
then the school becomes the detrimental force in the building of character. In
the majority of schools today, knowledge is synonymous with scientific facts
and technical data. Gandhiji [2] has
said that the end of all knowledge must be the building of character. If
children are taught that the purpose of life is to progress towards the goal of
perfection, in co-operation with our fellow-pilgrims, helping and serving them
at every turn, understanding the law of our own being, living in harmony with
nature, then the character will be integrated. It is necessary, therefore, to
teach children the basic concepts of life - what it is and how to live it, etc.
Besides these two
agencies - home and school - the lives of great men, the literary works of
great men, and other inspirational writings contribute to the building of character.
Above all this, the great scriptures of the world have shown the way to develop
fully integrated character. But the effort has to be put forth by oneself. The
ancient philosophy says that a man’s character is the outward expression of his
inward thoughts. That is the teaching of all the great teachers.
Mind is the garden
and Man is his own gardener. The law of Karma which is just brings about the
necessary adjustment, and slowly, as right causes are generated, and altruism is
practiced to greater and greater extent, one wins one’s freedom from the
bondage of life and death. What we must realize is that character cannot be
built overnight.
It is a constant
and continuous process, both on the physical and mental plane. “You can
solidify your character by attending to small things. By attacking small
faults, and on every small occasion, one
by one. This will arouse the inner attitude of attention and caution. The small
faults and small occasions being conquered, the character grows strong”,
advises Mr. William Judge. The Nation’s
character, and the character of the Society are a reflection of its
individuals’ character. Hence we are responsible, not only for building our own
character but also for guiding others to the right sources which will assist them
in building their character.
NOTES:
[1]
The article “Chelas and Lay Chelas” is
easy to find at the List of Texts by Alphabetical Order at www.TheosophyOnline.com .
[2]
Gandhiji: Mahatma Gandhi.
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