The Fifth World:First Virtue

From The Fifth World

I Own only that which you must presently use, for all else is deceit. Use little, as virtue is derived from experience, not consumption.

Contents 1 Jeff Vail's Expansion 2 In the Fifth World 2.1 Infrastructure 2.2 Structure 2.3 Superstructure 3 The Four Virtues

[edit] Jeff Vail's Expansion

Original source

It's actually three concepts, all grouped around the interesting use in our culture of the abstract concept of ownership--and the resulting feeling of entitlement to consume anything that we "own".

First is my concept of ownership-by-use. "Modern" civilization seems to accept the abstraction that a person can "own" something--a plot of land, some one else's house, shares in a company, etc. This abstraction is the glue that holds together the hierarchal structures in our civilization. Without ownership, there can be no hierarchy, no centralization, no stratification, etc. We can see this in the remnant hunter-gatherer groups that do not recognize the concept of abstract ownership. What they do exhibit is the concept of "ownership-by-use". This is an ethical control that one should only assert "ownership" over something that they must currently use to meet their basic needs. If we can begin the transition from abstract ownership to ownership-by-use, we will break down the centralized, hierarchal, stratified institutions of society and begin the return to a more egalitarian life.

Second is the simple instruction to "use little". This is the first mention (the second virtue elaborates on this concept) of the merits of moderate consumption. It also provides the guidance for how much one should "own-by-using": little. It does not suggest harsh self-deprivation, but rather the realization that:

Third, the joys of life are "derived from experience, not consumption".

Use little, experience much, do not assert ownership unnecessarily. This is an introduction to the depths of the first virtue, and the start of the return to a society that is compatible with our genetic ontogeny.

[edit] In the Fifth World

[edit] Infrastructure

[edit] Structure

[edit] Superstructure

[edit] The Four Virtues

1. The First Virtue: Own only that which you must presently use, for all else is deceit. Use little, as virtue is derived from experience, not consumption.
2. The Second Virtue: Simplicity is virtue. The most beautiful form of simplicity is the elegant circle of self-sufficient consumption and creation. In all forms of accounting, do not consume more than you have already created.
3. The Third Virtue: Virtue is found not in secrecy or in the constraint of freedom, but in acknowledgement, and accepting responsibility for all costs of one's actions.
4. The Fourth Virtue: Understanding the universe of connection is virtue. Connect with space through silence. Connect with time through experience. Free yourself from ego through awareness. Protect transcendent beauty.