Hegel's Pendulum Swing Theory

When we look back at our history, it is easy to become distracted by all the chaos. There were many wars, injustices, and suffering by all peoples.

When you look more closely, it is possible to see that the darker times were necessary to our development and growth as a civilization.

Who was Hegel?

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was an 18th century German philosopher from Stuttgart. He led an academic life, studying with fellow philosophers like Schelling, and was particularly interested in existentialism.

He drew heavily on Greek philosophy for his ideas and after observing events that occurred within his own lifetime, found patterns that appeared to reoccur in history. These patterns would prove to radically change the way we view history. History through Hegel's eyes isn't just a chronology of stories that occurred but rather repeating patterns that mirror the human psyche.

The Pendulum Theory

Also known as the Hegelian Dialectic, Hegel pioneered a new theory that aimed to explain the patterns of history. He saw that society tends to move through three stages of development in order to find balance and harmony.

These stages are:

• The thesis; the reaction to the event.

• The antithesis; the opposite reaction to the thesis.

• The synthesis; the solution to the initial problem.

By moving through each state, humans eventually settle with a solution to a problem that is neither the initial "utopian" ideal, nor is the "worst-case" scenario. Hegel's theory of history provides us with a nuanced view of why we react the way that we do, and how this reaction can ultimately lead to a harmonious conclusion.

Hegel's Dialectic Theory of History

The interpretation of Hegel's pendulum swing theory as a basis for historical understanding allows us to view the past through the lens of compassion.

Taking the example of religion, it's easy to see how our concept of the divine has shifted dramatically. In the ancient past, society worshipped the divine in nature. We saw how nature provided us with everything, and so gained reverence for it. Through time this knowledge degraded and we ended up in the opposite position, believing that the divine was found only in the heavens, and those that believed in nature were burned as witches. This was our lowest point. In our society today, we have reached a more or less harmonious conclusion by seeing the divine as coming from above and from nature.

Looking to history, it's easy to see the political pendulum theory evolve through time. The feudal system in medieval ages provided no representation for the average person. Then we revolted with violence and bloodshed in the French Revolution to help bring about peace. Since this time was still in this 'self-centered' phase, this ideal of peace was rebuffed by Napoleon. Now, with the example of Gandhi, we realize that peaceful actions lead to peaceful results - we must all take back our power, and act with compassion, which will ultimately lead to a kind political system. 

A spiritual reading of Hegel

Hegel's philosophy hinges on the need for three stages of evolution. We must try three times to reach the desired outcome. From a mystic point of view, three is a sacred number. In almost every ancient civilization, three was regarded as powerful because it was seen by Pythagorus as a number of pure harmony, wisdom, and understanding. When you consider Hegel based his philosophy on Greek thought, it seems that he was influenced by Pythagorus in more than one way.

It's not just the Greeks that applied math to history and the evolution of consciousness over time. In India, the Vedas see humanity progressing in epochs directly correlated with the movement of the stars and planets, known as the "procession of the equinox".

According to the Vedas, the starting point of humanity is pure wisdom and knowledge. Over time, this deteriorates until the knowledge is almost completely lost, then, there is a revival where supreme knowledge is once again known by the masses.

In our own history, we too have followed this pattern. In our ancient past, the Vedas say that our needs were always met and so, there was no need for wars. We were in an age of purity and wisdom, so perhaps this is why we do not find the typical artifacts of ancestors like arrowheads. We were living in such harmony with nature that there was barely a footprint remaining of them today.

In the medieval era, our world became selfish, and we began to only serve ourselves. This was our lowest point. An age where we committed atrocities against once another that make our skin crawl today. A time when we found legal reasons to burn women who tried to heal and sacrificed children we deemed as damaged in any way.

Humanity then managed to find a more peaceful resolution with the teachings of Gandhi and our realization that now more than ever, we need to protect the environment if we are to survive into the future. This was a far cry from the revolts and bloodshed of the French Revolution, spearheaded by a narcissistic opportunist.

All in all, we collectively realised on a deep level that we can only have a peaceful society if we choose peaceful actions. We had to find the final synthesis of action (political reforms and pressure) and idealism (not getting too caught up in the airy ideals of peace).

Looking through Hegel's point of view, an ethical life can be achieved by working with the philosophy of nature.

Philosophical history: Hegel's Theory of History

History is full of violence and horrors. History provides us with a record of our achievements in technology and ingenuity, but it also exposes the horrors that humans are capable of.

Like Jung, Hegel implores us to consider the consequences of our actions as a society, not just the consequences of our individual actions. Carl Jung, a later philosopher, and psychologist, saw that the actions of society, positive or negative, travel down through the generations as either merits or trauma. We decide which future we want by making sound decisions in the present.

One war can set off a chain reaction down into the future that society will ultimately have to deal with. Hegel brings these ancient theories of societal karma into a science of logic. According to Hegel, if we perform one action to bring out one consequence (like the Huguenots murdering the Catholics in France to stop bloodshed against protestants), then likely the opposite consequence will first occur (persecution of protestants) before a peaceful solution can be found (protestants starting anew in the United States).

As Isaac Newton found, there is always an equal or opposite reaction to every action. Hegel theorizes that if there is suffering, at some stage in the future, peace will be found. This is what makes him one of the greatest thinkers in history.