What is this website for
Although by “language” we mainly refer to verbal, vocal organ induced communication, it can also mean a communication using signs, gestures or commonly accepted and perceived directions shown through other mediums like painting, music or scientific formulas. Physically and metaphysically, language is a tongue, a moving organ vibrating and resonating with other parts of the body to manifest the meaningful. How such complex phenomena of language was created? Although we cannot say precisely how language started, main theories commonly boil down to:
- onomatopoeia – the copying of sounds to explain the objects or motions. For instance: chirp, boom, roar. All these words sound as they are perceived as sounds coming from animals or objects
- divine origin – this theory suggests that our language has god as its origin. It’s discussed in Cratylus, which is a conversation on the divine origin of language with argumentation of Socrates
- primitive sounds – perhaps we have just moaned and groaned until it has evolved into the language we use now
- and a few more
Perhaps we will never find out the truth behind the language. However, by examining the words separately and deconstructing them, going to their origins, we can explore and re-discover their meanings. Partly because we use the language simply as objects to throw at others, without being properly aware what power they have and what meaning they will convey to the person they are communicated to. For instance, we might suppose that we all know the meaning of success. However, when we start thinking about success and what semantic property it has, we can see that we cannot attach a proper designation for it. Is success a simple point in the plane of life? Or is it some moving point that one can reach in order to reach to the next point? Or is it just an illusory word that is as ghostly as a smoke? In this case, as it’s not properly defined, should we rather not use it or change it with some other word in our daily life? And you might ask, why do I even bother about it? Because if we hardly know what meaning it has, why should we go on letting everyone try to reach unreachable success as it’s advertised consciously and unconsciously in schools, households and the mass media? No wonder that many Americans are workaholics and overworking compared to other nations. If you build a culture around the idea that is unreachable, you will get people running the treadmill trying to get that… success!
The moral flabbiness born of the bitch-goddess SUCCESS. That — with the squalid interpretation put on the word success — is our national disease. — William James
Another word we can give as an example is “god”. Many people ask this question: “Do you believe in god/God?” This question is rather limiting. It tells the other person that god is definable and you have no other choice but say yes or no. Or start explaining that god is not definable and that god is more like a movement, a wind or constantly happening like our consciousness. Moreover, this image of god is polluted with the paintings of god as an old man or grandfatherly figure and many youngsters will move on with life with this image molded into their subconscious. This is life changing event, as this idea itself will be part of your deeds and destiny. Plurality of gods, pantheism is more interesting, as in this way you look at everything as divine and accept the multidimensionality of god as in Greek culture and Hinduism.
The words should be questioned and explored in a much more artistic way. Instead of explaining the words with words, we can as well use music, painting, poetry to communicate the “symbolism” of the word. Interestingly, the word “symbol”, deriving from Greek, means throwing together, to cast together in order to differentiate between the genuine and fake.
In this way, my blog is dedicated to the re-search (go around) of the words and their meaning to look at our lives in more interesting ways through curiosity. As I am residing in Hungary and currently learning Hungarian with a big help of my 4 year old daughter, there will be a bigger focus on Hungarian words.