Eigenwelt, Mittelwelt and Umwelt are terms borrowed from Jungian psychoanalysis. They refer to our own or inner world (Eigenwelt), the world immediately surrounding us (Mittelwelt) and the broad Universe of which we are in integral part (Umwelt). A better understanding of what might really be going on can be attained by looking at what influences Eigenwelt, Mittelwelt and Umwelt and how they influence each other as a system.
Eigenwelt is the self. It is our genetics, our biology and our qualitative experience of the world – qualia for short. Qualia are the ‘what it is really like’ of consciousness that can only be known from a subjective point of view. The Eigenwelt is influenced by the things you consume (food, beverages and drugs), your ability to learn, the things you think, the things you know, the things you say and the things you do. Your Eigenwelt is completely unique – no-one has the same genetics (nature) and experiences (nurture) as you.
The Mittelwelt refers to the environment that is immediately accessible to us. The room where you are sitting, for example. The things you can see, hear, touch and smell even though you might not be consciously aware of them. Your Mittelwelt is what you respond to – you immediately become aware of unusual sounds and changes in objects around you – all of which influence your Mittelwelt. We are continually attentive to changes in the world around us because, biologically, it is vital for our survival.
Where are you right now? What are you aware of right now?
Right now you are aware of a continuous stream of perceptions, thoughts, feelings, or sensations generated by various cognitive processes, such as sleeping, dreaming, concentrating, and making decisions. Your awareness of yourself (the eigenwelt), your immediate environment (mittelwelt) and the environment beyond that (the umwelt) constitutes your universe – the world in which you move.
Assess where you are right now……..roadmap your own experience. What is occupying your mind right now?
The Umwelt refers to the universe that contains us and of which we are an integral part. We know about the Umwelt through the storytelling of the news media and we experience the mittelwelt through direct observation. The fact is that the universe is a very, very big place and since we are very small in comparison, our senses cannot reach into this space. So science develops instruments such as microscopes, telescopes and PET scanners enabling us to see into the Umwelt. And what these instruments tell us is reduced to story. It is the story of a particular aspect of the Umwelt that we respond to and not the Umwelt itself. It is said that power lies in controlling the story and our Eigenwelt certainly responds to stories of war, death, horror and crime – even though the events described on the news are already in the past, our behaviour is changed by the fear generating nature of these stories. For example, a newspaper report about rising crime rates might make you emigrate or buy burglar bars for your house.
The Umwelt also consists of those organising myths or stories that guide and influence our experience and how we see the world. For example, Hinduism says that a day in the Mind of God, a Kalpa, is made up of four cycles (aka yugas) and/or ages known as the:
The Age of Wisdom/ Satya or Krita Yuga
The Age of Ritual/Treta Yuga
The Age of Doubt/ Dvapara Yuga
The Age of Conflict/ Kali Yuga
According to this model, we are in the “Twilight of the Kali Yuga.” At the end of the Kali Yuga, the Prime Creator gathers its data-collecting vehicles (i.e. us) back into the Mind of God--- to make way for the next cycle, the coming new age. Can you see how such an organising myth could change your experience of the world? How would you be different if youfelt you were a data collecting vehicle about to be taken into the mind of God? How do the Umwelt stories influence your behaviours and expectations and experience of this existence? Examples of Umwelt stories include:
This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius
This is the African Millenium
The world will end soon
The most loved Bank
The Universe is unlimited