Fragility is the strength of the self

So what could explain the strange combination of fragility and robustness that characterises the self? The answer is perhaps that the fragility is the strength. A pearl may be hard and distinct, but smash it and it’s utterly destroyed. A composite or amalgam, on the other hand, is of its nature a collection of things. That means items can come and go, or be damaged, without necessarily terminally destroying the character of the whole.

Saved 23 April 2015

#self #unity #complexity