Abstract
Foreword
M E T A P S Y C H O L O G Y
P S Y C H O L O G Y
- In General: PERSON and PSYCHE
- Specific Information about the I
  - About the Term
  - The Concrete Person and His Analysis of Language
M E T A P S Y C H I A T R Y
P S Y C H I A T R Y
M E T A P S Y C H O T H E R A P Y
P S Y C H O T H E R A P Y
Often used abbreviations
Bibliography of the unabridged german edition
Net References
Index
Author and contact

[I am constantly improving this publication.]

Abstract

Note: The Summary table provides a textual and tabular overview. This enables the reader to turn to subsequent chapters keeping the larger picture in mind.

In part 'METAPSYCHOLOGY', I develop a general classification of everything that is psychically relevant.
• First, I hypothesize that everything that is psychically relevant can best be expressed in language and can be differentiated in analogy to basic language patterns. This 'Differentiation' can include everything that is psychically relevant.
• Second, I assign three principal meanings to each item which is a psychical Relevant: absolute, relative or nothing.
This is what I call the 'Dimensions' of the psychical Relevant. Since the respective Absolute is the determining factor for every psychical Relevant - as well as for every human being (!) - it is the focal point of this study.[1]

In part 'PSYCHOLOGY', this general classification is transferred to the person.

In part `METAPSYCHIATRY´, I also use the classification shown in part `Metapsychology´ and start from the hypothesis that mental disorders are mainly caused by `Inversions´ of the dimensions mentioned above.

Inversion means that by reversal of Absolute, Relative and nothing, basic reversals of meaning take place.
Such reversals of meaning arise, above all, by attitudes that make a claim to absoluteness that excludes other attitudes.
"Isms" or ideologies are typical examples of this.
[I use the terms 'ideologies' or 'isms' as terms for all attitudes with claim to absoluteness, not only for social but also for the doctrinaire and the like attitudes in families and individuals!]
By a claiming absoluteness something Relative is absolutely set and the other is negated, i.e. the absolutized Relative becomes a 'strange Absolute' (sA) and the negated other becomes a `strange Nothing´ (s0).[2].
Strange Absolute and Nothing form pairs of opposites, 'all-or-nothing-complexes', which I have generally called "It"and in the person "strange Self" (sS), since these terms are suitable: `it'= a general, unspecified cause of an occurrence (e.g. It makes me angry / sad / sick ...), `strange Self´= personal It as a strange personal center. [3]
Those Its, or strange Selves, represent new, strange, independent entities which can cause strange, second-rate Realities (general and personal) and thus also mental disorders.
If the entire psyche (i.e. all aspects of the psyche) is involved in this process, psychotic symptoms may ensue. If, however, these events only affect one or a small number of aspects, then, depending on the nature of these aspects, symptoms will arise which are 'merely' neurotic, psychosomatic, or of another category. In my opinion, these diseases can only be explained if they are based on disturbances in the absolute sphere of a person. If a person can accept problems as a part of life, considering them to be only of relative importance, it is highly unlikely that this person will succumb to a mental illness. However, when 'something' Relative is absolutized and becomes established as an Absolute, this Absolute will function as an It or strange Self which determines the person. This "something" will be given too absolute a status, while the person will be attributed too relative a status. This “something“ will attain too much independence, while the person will become too dependent. This “something“ will become the subject, while the person becomes its object. This “something“ will become personified, while the person will become 'something'. This “something“ will dominate the person and not the person the `something´. This is the “victory“ of the Relative over a person.
To understand the genesis of such disorders, it is important to look into a process, that I name 'Spreading and compression'.
By spreading, every inversion may cause multiple disorders, just as a disorder may be caused by a variety of different inversions.
This process is explained in more detail in part 'Metapsychiatry'.

As described in part 'PSYCHIATRY' and summarized in the 'Summary table', these 'Its' or strange-Selves can cause various diseases.
It is in particular at the example of schizophrenic psychoses that this becomes most obvious. From this point of view, I think the problem of the psychodynamic genesis of psychoses is solved theoretically and in principle.

In part `METAPSYCHOTHERAPY´, I analyze the 'psychotherapeutic quality' of the most relevant worldviews and religions.

In part `PSYCHOTHERAPY’, I examine the most well-known psychotherapeutic schools of thought.
In the chapter `Primary Psychotherapy´, I introduce a theory that is free of ideology and which I believe to be the best against mental disorders.

Foreword

Motto: “He is a doctor who knows the invisible,
that has no name, nor matter but still an effect.” Paracelsus

About me, Torsten Oettinger, the author of this book: I am a psychiatrist-psychotherapist and publish here the experiences and knowledge which I have been able to gather throughout the decades that I have worked in this specific area. I believe that the following texts will open up new perspectives in psychiatry and psychotherapy for the following reasons:

1. In these writings, a new theory of the psyche and its disorders is developed.
2. I investigate the influence of different ideologies and worldviews on the psyche and on 'psycho-theories'.

Ad 1. I classify the psyche and the psychical Relevant (pR) in a new way: I derive their classification from basic patterns of language. This means that I use language as an analogy for the psychical Relevant (pR), since our language is the best tool which captures everything important to us and excludes nothing that is psychically relevant. Therefore, in this study, basic language patterns serve to differentiate the psychical Relevant in general and the psyche in particular. According to their meaning, these differentiations are then further divided into the "dimensions": absolute, relative or 0 (insignificant).
This classification includes everything that is psychologically relevant and, in contrast to university psychology, it goes beyond what can only be scientifically ascertained because that is only part of what the psyche is.
(This is thoroughly discussed in the parts `Metapsychology' and `Psychology´.)
"Inversions" (the confusion of the Relative and Absolute) are seen as the main cause of mental illness. In the section 'Metapsychiatry', I show how these inversions generate strange Absolutes, which then form second-rate, strange realities such as mental illnesses.

Ad 2. Although different ideologies and worldviews are of great importance to the psyche and psychological theory formation, this is hardly reflected from academic side.(See more to this topic in `Criticism of materialist science and psychology´.)
The reason for this is that psychology and psychiatry are too one-sidedly defined as science.
What is scientifically not accessible will be largely ignored. [4] But the exclusion of such topics leads to deficient theories and therapies and to a strong increase in psycho-practices (`psycho-boom'), which often gives people dubious answers to questions that are not answered by conventional medicine. (See more to this topic in `Esoterism´.)
In my work, I focus more on life itself than merely on science. Therefore, I attend to that which is of ultimate concern for the patients, regardless of whether or not it is scientifically ascertainable.For me, the credibility of statements is the decisive criterion, not their provability - credibility which includes knowledge and experience but is superordinate to it. [5]
In this study, basic assumptions (such as philosophies resp. worldviews and religions), which are the foundations of current psychological and psychiatric theories, are critically examined as to their psychological and psychotherapeutic relevance and functionality. Furthermore, I develop a specific theory and psychotherapy which includes subjective and spiritual factors. Thus, the theory and therapy of mental disorders are substantially expanded.
One might ask the polemical question whether our psychology and psychiatry themselves do not suffer from poor health. They seem to be affected by disorders which could be called “scientitis” or “dogmatitis”, since they are too focused on science. In scientific writings, reference is made very rarely to philosophical or even religious insights. According to the 'malicious' words of Karl Kraus: “Psychoanalysis is that mental illness for which it regards itself as therapy”[6] we psychiatrists should ask ourselves in which way our theories might be wrong or even 'in ill health' - or even we have reduced "the diseases of the mind to mindless diseases" (Basaglia).
(For more details, see the unabridged German version.)

M E T A P S Y C H O L O G Y

Introduction

                                                                                             In the beginning was God,
                                                                                                             and the Word was with God,
                                                                                                           and the Word was God … (~ by John 1:1-4)

Definitions and Hypotheses

                • Metapsychology is the theory of everything which is psychically relevant. [7]
                • Everything about which a person speaks or can speak is psychically relevant.
                • The psychical Relevant is best expressed by way of language.
                • General language structures are very suitable as analogues for the division of the psychical Relevant.
                • Psychology is the theory of the personal psychical Relevant.

Based on the multiple meanings of the prefix 'meta' (above, between, behind, beyond), I define metapsychology as a level of analysis above psychology, from which the latter can be surveyed and scrutinized. At the same time, metapsychology comprises and permeates all subjects which are associated with psychology. Among the disciplines connected with psychology are, first and foremost, psychiatry, as well as sociology, neurology, biology, and linguistics. However, I also include philosophy (metaphysics, which is, to a degree, superordinate) and theology.
The main subject of psychology is the psyche. The subject of metapsychology is all that which is important for the psyche, which interrelates with the psyche, has an impact on it and is able to reflect upon it from a higher level. Therefore, metapsychology examines and reflects upon that which is psychically relevant (pr).
The consideration of the field of metapsychology and its subject-matter, the psychical Relevant, is very adequate, since an isolated analysis of the psyche alone neglects very important connections.
In my view, the examination of all dimensions of our human existence should be undertaken, rather than limiting our analysis to facts which are only accessible by scientific methods.
This means that in addition to all scientific insights acquired by academic psychology, attention should also be given to that which transcends our experiences, which is beyond the demonstrable and perceptible. Thus, all relevant metapsychical, meta-empirical, philosophical and religious phenomena of existential importance should be considered.
In contrast to this perspective, the notion "metapsychology" is used - following Freud - by scholars of psychoanalysis to describe the dynamic, topical and economic interrelations of psychical phenomena.
Regarding the area of topography, Freud was primarily concerned with the concepts of the Ego, Id and Super-ego; regarding the area of psychodynamics, he investigated the mental forces between these entities of the psyche; regarding the area of economics, he examined the benefits of specific psychical processes for the person concerned.
This study, too, discusses structural, dynamic and qualitative aspects which are similar to the psychoanalytic ones. However, these are merely a small part of metapsychology and psychology and are presented in a different perspective. [8]

More generally, one might say, that none of the models provided by conventional medicine are able to transcend the anthropological perspective i.e. they look at the psyche and its illnesses only from a "horizontal point of view", considerably limiting the possibilities of analysis and therapy. Therefore, in particular questions which are most important for a person and which have existential meaning are answered insufficiently or not answered at all. This has been pointed out by existentialists in particular.
Similar to the structure employed in the other chapters, the part “Metapsychology” will first be discussed in general terms and then more specifically, using concrete examples. At the end of this chapter, I will briefly address some metapsychological topics which are important for this publication. This will only be a selection of a variety of topics, since all topics relevant to the person and examined especially in philosophy, anthropology, psychiatry and psychology, are psychically relevant.
• The first section (general issues of psychical relevance) is subdivided into a horizontal and vertical structure.
Horizontal arrangement: Differentiation of that which is psychically relevant by presenting analogies of fundamental language structures.
Vertical arrangement: The psychical Relevant in its dimensions/meanings.
• In the second section, important topics are discussed which are psychically relevant.
The psyche itself is the focus of attention in the next chapter: 'Psychology'.

The General Psychical Relevant

Introduction and Classification

In this chapter, that which is relevant to the psyche is investigated. [9]

Abbreviations: the psychical Relevant = pR; or psychically relevant = pr.
Synonyms: psychic / psychological/ that which is significant, important to the soul/ psyche.

Nearly all things are psychically relevant (pr). An issue which factually might not be psychically relevant can it be potentially. It is difficult to imagine an issue which might not be psychically relevant or which could not become so. The term 'reality' might come as close as possible to that which is psychically relevant. If reality were to be defined as that which affects us, then reality is not merely an objective but also a subjective matter.
It is about to differentiate the psychical Relevant (pR) and to arrange its meaning. One can also say that it is about an adequate classification of the reality/ world according to its importance for the human psyche.

I divide the psychical Relevant (or the reality) in general after:
• Differentiations
• Dimensions.

Concerning the differentiations I deduce basic patterns of psychologically relevant forms as well as the psyche from basic patterns of language. I'm referring here to simple grammars of developed languages.
I use several levels of differentiation and would like to briefly introduce the first: Four "main aspects", which are psychically relevant, are derived from the main word classes: nouns, verbs, adjectives and syntax: forms of being, life, qualities and their connections.
These will be further differentiated in the course of the study.

The dimensions of the psychical Relevant (and thus also the differentiations) I subdivide into:
- the Absolute (A) = absolute dimension
- the Relative (R) = relative dimension
- the nothingness (0).
The dimensions represent the so-called vertical classification of this publication.
They reveal the position and importance of the psychical Relevant and of the respective differentiations.

When differentiation and dimensioning are brought together in a diagram, the following picture will emerge:

By differentiation and dimensioning, that which is psychically relevant, the pr reality, is divided vertically and horizontally. In the horizontal division, basic forms of language differentiate that which is psychically relevant in such a way as if one were to place a co-ordinate frame horizontally across that which is to be determined, so as to arrange it in an order. This division is designated as horizontal, since no evaluative assertion is to be made here as to a specific object's importance (this could be indicated by an elevated level of an entry). Rather, it is the vertical division which provides information about the importance of a subject-matter, the 'dimensions' of that which is psychically Relevant. Therefore, this graph shows the differentiation of that which is psychically relevant through language and in specific dimensions.
One might say: That which is psychically relevant derives from that which one can say about the reality of a subject-matter (people, environment etc.) and whether it has absolute, relative, or nonexistent meaning.

Classification Levels

I distinguish the following 3 stages in the classification of the psychical Relevant
(dimensions and differentiations).

DIMENSIONS	DIFFERENTIATIONS
1st stage of dimensions: the Absolute (A), the Relative (R) and the Nothingness (0).	1st stage of differentiation: 4 main aspects: being, life, qualities, connections (Abbr. BLQC)
2nd stage of dimensions: 7 synonyms of the Absolute and Relative	2nd stage of differentiation: 23 single aspects
3rd stage of dimensions: All terms listed in the overview table, concerning dimensions.	3rd stage of differentiation: All terms listed in the overview table, concerning differentiations.

Note: For the sake of simplicity, I often use only the 1st classification stage (AR0) in order to characterize the absolute, relative or zero meaning of the aspects.
Of the differentiations, I commonly use the 1st and 2nd stage. (More on that later.)

General Differentiations (Analogy Language and the Psychical Relevant)

Language and the Psychical Relevant

“Language is yet more than blood.” Franz Rosenzweig

The differentiation of that which is psychically relevant is based on an analogy formation between patterns of language and patterns of that which is psychically relevant - this also includes the psyche.

I repeat: That which is psychologically relevant (that which, to us, is significant) can be divided horizontally or vertically. The horizontal division differentiates that which is psychically relevant and the vertical division, with its dimensions, provides information about the importance of that which is differentiated. The differentiations resemble a grid, such as the one we use to zone the earth's surface into longitudes and latitudes, so as to guarantee better orientation. In the analysis of that which is psychically Relevant, it is language which offers these 'longitudes and latitudes' ('horizontal division'), while the dimensions of the Absolute, Relative and Nothingness provide us with information about the 'altitude' (significance) of the subject-matter ('vertical division'). Initially in this chapter, the differentiation of that which is psychically relevant (horizontal division) will be discussed in analogy to general language patterns.
No other tool will give us as much information as language about that which is psychically relevant. Language has not only individual but also general meanings and forms of expression. The psyche and that which is relevant to it can only be determined indirectly. One can draw conclusions about the psyche and that which is important to it from the behavior of people, their dreams, from a culture in general and art in particular, from the history of mankind, or even from their language and many other sources. Therefore, language is by no means the only means of expression available to humankind, however, in my opinion, it is the most important means to communicate. This seems to correspond to everyday experience.
Do we not learn the most about the world and humankind by our communication? Is language, therefore, not also the best source of information if we seek to draw conclusions about our inner being? Is not language therefore suitable for drawing conclusions about our psyche because language best reflects psyche and what is relevant for it? I think so.
Language thus appears as a first-rate metapsychological instrument / medium, in order to make statements about the psyche.

Therefore, it seems natural to see also in basic language structures analogies or homologies for psychic structures and to use them as a classification of psychologically relevant facts and the psyche itself.
Lévi-Strauss and Lacan had a similar idea, postulating a `homology´ between language and (albeit merely) the unconscious. [10]

I would like to expand and clarify their hypothesis. I believe:
• Basic characteristics of the language in relation to its structure, dynamics and quality statements can also be found generally in the psychical Relevant and specially in the psyche.
• Concerning only the psyche: Psyche shows similar characteristics as the language in terms of its structure, dynamics and meaning contents.

It seems obvious that in the development of language, general language components and rules of grammar can be understood as reflecting what has been psychologically important to people for thousands of years.
That which is important to humankind has not only been defined by means of words but also by means of corresponding language patterns. By using language in this way, humankind not only denoted specific terms with specific phenomena but also reflected whose connections and functions as expressions of our psyches and their world experience. Therefore, general, basic language components, such as the parts of speech, prove to be excellent analogues for the representation of general psychical relevant and psychical "basic elements" - and the syntax, in turn gives us in form of subject, object, predicate and their functions point to analogous psychic forms and their functions, and the semantics shows their meanings. Like language, I also see the psyche as a highly-differentiated system, which on the one hand has certain characteristics but on the other hand is very flexible and always alive. In analogy to the grammar of the language one could speak of a grammar of the psyche.
As said, I use in this paper simple grammars of developed languages which are essentially the same in their rules. Here I can address this topic but briefly.

First stage of Differentiation

A basic classification which can be found in almost all developed languages is one which differentiates between nouns, verbs and adjectives, as well as, syntactically, between subjects and predicates. The table below shows the resulting psychically relevant analogues.

1st stage of differentiation
F o r m s o f l a n g u a g e		P s y c h i c a l l y r e l e v a n t f o r m s
		`main aspects´ correspond with
word class	nouns	I. forms of being	units
	verbs	II. forms of life	dynamics
	adjectives	III. qualities	qualities
syntax		IV. connections	connections, subjects/ objects

Therefore, that which is psychically relevant, as well as language, can be divided into the following four main components: Being, life, qualities and their connections.
As in language, these forms can be found in all that is psychically significant.
That which nouns, adjectives and verbs represent, exists in specific connections which are reflected, linguistically, in syntactic and morphological rules. In this book, they will be utilized as psychically relevant correlates. Their interplay takes place on different levels or dimensions, which are particularized in a subsequent chapter.
By analogy with language, this differentiation is expanded to include 23 aspects. This is the “second differentiation stage” of that which is psychically relevant, and of the psyche itself. At the end of all differentiations one would find what all possible pr words represent in their infinite variety.
Thus far, the following analogies were made in the first stage of differentiation:

I. Nouns (N) = being (= forms of being or pr units)
II. Verbs = life (= dynamics)
III. Adjectives = qualities
IV. Syntax = subjects, objects and their connections. Abbreviation: (BLQC)

In the first stage of differentiation these four main aspects of that which is psychically relevant have been determined.
I believe they also reflect 4 important themes of humanity:
I. Being or not-being, II. Life or death, III. good or evil, IV. subject or object.
These in turn are embedded in the existential theme of the Absolute.
(See also: Fundamental Problems in Metapsychotherapy).|

Second stage of Differentiation

If we further differentiate the four main aspects mentioned above, following a further differentiation of general language components, a different number of aspects will accrue, depending on the method employed and the level of differentiation envisioned.
In my experience, a further differentiation up to 23 single aspects proves most helpful.

Forms of l a n g u a g e	SINGLE ASPECTS of psychical relevant forms
I. NOUNS Articles	Forms of being =	Units 1 Everything / Something (Nothingness) 2 God / World 3 People / Things 4 I / Other(s) 5 Personal Spirit/ Soul, Body 6 - / Gender
II. VERBS Modal auxiliary verbs Full verbs	Forms of life = Modalities Activities Times	Dynamics (and Modalities) 7 to be 8 to want 9 to have 10 can 11 must 12 should 13 may, be allowed 14 to create 15 to do, to produce 16 to perceive 17 to reproduce 18 to judge 19 past 20 present 21 future
III. ADJECTIVES	Qualities =	Qualities 22 right, wrong 23 negative, positive

The single aspects of differentiation are differently dimensioned. In the 1st-5th unit in the above table, the aspects with absolute dimensionality are named first,
whilst aspects with relative dimensionality are shown behind the slash. Further explications can be found in the unabridged German version.

The 3^rdstage of differentiation is presented in the overview table.

The method employed here to categorize that which is psychically relevant or psychological, by determining analogies from language, has the advantage that the single aspects can be expanded indefinitely, so that every psychically relevant term can be integrated into the system.
In this study, I predominately use the 1st and 2nd stages of differentiation.

An objection raised against this kind of differentiation argues that there are languages with basic structures which are entirely different. In fact, even for the most advanced languages there are very different grammatical theories, which differ from the usual simple "school grammar" used here. Doubtlessly, this is a valid objection. However, I believe that, from a certain point, every kind of language and grammar can be used to express what is most important to a person. (Otherwise, adequate translation into many different languages could not be possible.) Therefore, the classification used here is merely one of many possibilities to infer that which is psychically relevant from general forms of language. I intentionally use simple grammar (“school grammar”), since it best reflects the every-day use of language.
Alongside language, that which is psychically relevant is reflected in many ways: It is obvious in our behavior, gestures, facial expressions, art and more. Yet, none of these forms of expressions is as differentiated and yet comprehensible, as is language.

Dimensions

"If names be not correct, language is not in accordance with the truth of things.
If language be not in accordance with the truth of things, affairs cannot be carried on to success.” (Confucius)
"The word, according to its nature, is the freest among the spiritual creatures but also the most endangered and dangerous.
Therefore, watchmen of the word are necessary." Hrabanus Maurus [11]

Similar Ortega y Gasset: " ... it is by no means indifferent how we formulate things. The law of life perspective is not only subjective but rooted in the nature of things ... itself. ... The mistake is to assume that it is up to our arbitrariness to assign things to their proper rank."
[In: „Triumph des Augenblicks Glanz der Dauer“ DVA Stuttgart, 1983 S. 75ff. Tranlated by m.E.]

Explanation and Terms

The following terms are equivalent to the word 'dimensions' : frame of reference, position, status, perspective, meaning, importance, relevance.
As mentioned before, I distinguish between three dimensions of that which is psychically relevant (pr):

• the Absolute (A)
• the Relative (R) [12]
• the Nothingness (0).
The dimensions represent the 'vertical classification' of that which is psychologically relevant. They attribute the respective meaning to the pr units and differentiations: an absolute, relative or no meaning. It is the absolute dimension which is the decisive factor. The Absolute and the Relative have thoroughly different characteristics and effects. This fact is important when considering the theory of the genesis of mental disorders.
The Absolute (and the Nothingness) have a primarily "spiritual nature", while the Relative is more factual.
Absolute or relative adjectives prove helpful in representing the nature of the respective dimensions. They provide information on whether forms of being and forms of life, qualities and their relationships have absolute, relative or no significance. In this study, the relative dimension is marked by gradable adjectives, whilst absolute adjectives serve to identify the absolute dimension.

Classification Overview

Overall, I classify the dimensions according to the following categories :
• their `areas´ (absolute, relative, null = 1st classification stage;
or to the corresponding 7 synonyms = 2nd classification stage),
• their 'rank' (first-rate, second-rate, null),
• their 'orientation ' (pro/+, contra/‒, null )
• their occurrence (e.g., dimensions of the world, the person, the psyche, etc.)
(More on that later.)

In this way, each pr phenomenon can be classified according to the following categories:
absolute, relative or null (0); first-rate, second-rate or null; pro/+, contra/‒ or null, and by its occurrence.

The Absolute

Motto: The ground of things is the unconditioned, the Absolute.[13]

What is it that is our ultimate concern? What is it that affects us most? What, for us, is of utmost importance? Hunger and love? (F. Schiller).
The drives and the unconscious? (S. Freud). The" chow"? (B. Brecht). [14] Religion? (P. Tillich). Genes? Pleasure or reality? Ideologies?
The laws of nature? The views differ. I call it the Absolute (A).
I distinguish
    • first-rate, actual Absolute (A¹) [15]
    • second-rate, strange Absolutes (sA or A²).

Both types can have positive or negative connotations. (The sA can also be ambivalent.)
That means I distinguish between:
• a first-rate, actual, positive Absolute (+A¹), a negative Absolute (‒A¹) and the `absolute attitude´ and
• second-rate, strange, positive and negative (or ambivalent) Absolutes (+sA, ‒sA or ±sA).
   (More in the section `Metapsychiatry'.)

I believe: the Absolute is the determining spirit of anything psychical Relevant (pR). Similar to nothingness, it can neither be proven to exist nor compared to another matter; nevertheless, it is of existential significance. Since it is the foundation of our spiritual life, it is always with us. Our live rests upon on it. To what which people consider to be most important or even the Absolute is, of course, very diverse. I believe that every person has its own Absolutes. Subjectively and individually, we have thousands of Absolutes: Gods which we love with all our heart, or devils and enemies that we fear and hate. Some people think security is paramount, whilst others believe that health is the greatest good. A third group might say that the meaning of life is realized as we seek to be good people, whilst yet other are convinced that progress is of the highest significance. Others consider certain individuals to be most important etc. In this way, every one of us has an own outlook on life and a frame of reference, in the center of which there is an Absolute. Mostly, an individual's parents and environment had great influence on the development of this framework. Generally, an individual will unconsciously accept these attitudes. However, occasionally, individuals adopt consciously these opinions. Some of these worldviews are known by a certain name, as is the case regarding the religions and ideologies but others are not. I have experienced that even individuals who are members of a particular church will have a variety of private beliefs which often contrasts strongly with their relevant confession. Therefore, a formal profession of belief in God due to an individual's affiliation with the Roman-Catholic or Protestant Church might not be specifically meaningful. Alongside their formal religion, they might also believe in money, power, progress, a political party, their father, mother, their wife or simply themselves - and is there someone of us who does not?[16]
However, that which is most important may also be negative: It may seem most essential to individuals that they are not immoral, unfaithful, dependent, or not to become like a certain person. This negative goal then needs to be avoided at all costs, it is considered to be the worst possible outcome, an unacceptable condition, the unforgivable, mortal sin, as it may be called, or similar.
- In my view, all approaches to life, all worldviews, be they formalized or private, conscious or unconscious, have different Absolutes which are the basis of these worldviews and ideologies.
Furthermore, the simple conclusion follows that these Absolutes determine also to which extent an individual is able to cope with their own person, with other people and the world around them. Therefore, these respective Absolutes are also crucial for the genesis and therapy of an illness.
- Considering the Absolute to be at the core of the psyche it is not a new concept. The philosopher Karl Jaspers claimed that the kind of God a person believes determines his true being. (More precisely, one might say that the kind of God and the kind of devil a person accepts determines their true being.) S. Kierkegaard expressed similar thoughts. [17] Especially psychotherapists of the “Viennese School” (W. Daim and I. Caruso) were convinced that misabsolutizations are decisive of the emergence of mental disorders. Unfortunately, their work is little known.

Summary

The Absolute (A) is the core of a person's identity. (This concept can be summarized in the mottoes: “I am like my A” or alternatively, “my A is my life”). In addition, the A is the ultimate creative sphere. Whatever a person places above themselves, becomes an Absolute. Though the Absolute cannot be proven, it can be experienced, it is more or less apparent and plausible. It is not possible to prove the Absolute in general, nor is it feasible to prove the Absolute of a person (their Self). It is only possible to believe in it.
In principle, the Absolute is a metaphysical or spiritual category, which means that we can only describe it in words or portray it by using analogies or metaphors etc. In this sense, it is unspeakable, elusive. It is a priori, a basic assumption. The Absolute is only defined by itself. [18] It is self-explanatory. Different rules and characteristics apply to the sphere of the Absolute than to the sphere of the Relative.
(This statement will prove particularly relevant when examining the effects of inversions and the genesis of illnesses, as will be explained in the following chapters.) An investigation of the causes of mental disorders is ultimately (!) a quest for the Absolute.
Similarly, the main and most important answers (therapy) are also found in the area of the Absolute.

The 7 Synonyms of the Absolute (2nd stage of differentiation)

The character of the Absolute (A) becomes more apparent when looking at the origin of the word:
It originates from the Latin word “absolutus” and denotes a matter or subject which is detached and independent.
In this study, I use the following 7 synonyms:
                1. absolute
                2. self
                3. actual
                4. whole, complete
                5. unconditional
                6. primary, first-rate
                7. independent
The term absolute represents the guiding concept.

Short Systematic Overview

Rank of the Absolute

After the rank I distinguish first- and second-rate Absolutes.
• To the first-rate Absolutes (A¹):
         - the first-rate positive Absolute (+A¹)
         - the first-rate negative Absolute (‒A¹)
         - and the personal "attitude toward the Absolute", which I will discuss later.[19]
• To the second-rate, strange Absolutes (sA)
            - positive/pro and negative/contra-sA (+sA and ‒sA)
            - strange nothingness (s0 or only 0).[20]
            They play an essential part in the emergence of mental disorders and will be discussed in greater detail in the following chapters.

Spheres of the Absolute

The following spheres can be discerned among the first-rate Absolute (A¹):

A-center = the core-Absolute is only resp. exclusively-absolute.
A-external = the external Absolute is relative resp. also-absolute.

In the first-rate reality, the Relative is co-absolutized by the Absolute, so that this Relative is here `also- absolute´.

Preview: Areas of a second-rate, strange Absolute (sA).

Representatives, Occurrences

• Representatives of the 3 actual Absolutes

- Representatives of +A¹:
   God / love as the +A¹; Personal: the + `absolute attitude´ toward the Absolute´.
- Representatives of −A¹: `the absolute evil' and its choice.
- Representatives of the `absolute attitude´: the absolute sphere of person.

• Representatives of strange Absolutes (sA)
   +sA: general or individual +sA parts e.g.
                        ideal of itself = 'Ideal-I' or 'Self-Ideal',
                        ideal of others (e.g. ideal of other people, of the world as idol, ideologies, etc.)
   ‒sA: general or individual ‒sA-parts with absolutely negative connotations (e.g. taboos etc.)
   0 = negated or repressed first-rate matters.

Overview and Preview of Important Terms and Abbreviations

A = the Absolute
sA = strange Absolute
sS = strange Self (the personal sA)
∀ = strange All in an all-or-nothing relations.
0 = Nothingness
It = complex of strange All and 0 (`dyad') or of pro and contra and 0 part (`triad') in the core.
C = general abbreviation for complexes that dominate personal and other areas of reality. [21]

Pro-sA and +sA on the one hand and contra-sA and ‒sA on the other hand will be viewed as equal throughout this book.
The terms will be explained in detail in the section 'Metapsychiatry”.

The Relative

The Meaning of the Relative [22]

The Relative is created by the Absolute. The Relative is subordinate to the Absolute. It has a relative meaning in relation to it. Other than the Absolute, which only has one meaning and is first-rate, the Relative has a great variety of meanings. It could be compared to the interpretations of dreams or of symptoms, which are also not limited to one single specific meaning. So basically, you cannot think of the Relative as an independent. When we use the term “the Relative”, we should actually say “the Relative of the Absolute”. Therefore, the Relative is not as independent as the term might have you expect. The word relative mainly describes a relation. The Relative cannot exist without the Absolute, in a similar way as there is no part without the whole - just as no illness exists in isolation from the affected person - or it is said, it would have a relatively independent existence.
The Relative can be proved, the Absolute may only be believed. [23]
The Relative is best defined from the Absolute.
The first-rate relative sphere forms a continuum with its components but our language divides this continuum into separate entities. This also applies to the classification of diseases.
Contrary to the Absolute, the Relatives can only be in a relative opposition. Also, two Relatives can only be set in relative opposition to each other. Therefore, there is no dualism or absolute opposition of body and soul, health and illness, subject and object and so on in the first-rate reality.
Absolute opposite and separation only exist between A and ‒A.
The Relatives as strange Absolutes (sA) however, can be of absolute relevance to the individual. Then they are not only ambiguous but often appear to be contradicting and paradoxical.
The qualitative meanings of Relatives are not absolutely distinct, which means that something that usually has a negative meaning, can appear positive (and vice versa)- i.e. everything Relative has one relative positive (+) and one relative negative (‒) side, or several of these sides. There is no Relative that is solely positive or negative. Then it would not be relative but absolute. The sayings: “Everything (Relative) has two sides” and “Everything has its advantages and disadvantages” are well-known. This fact is also important when it comes to mental disorders, which are also Relatives. It relativizes the statement that illness and its causes are solely negative and health and its causes are only positive. Only God, also the first-rate Self, spirit, and life can be seen as actual Absolutes. The terms “person”, “personality” and “self” can be used best to show the Absolute part of a person. Also, terms such as sense, truth, fairness, dignity, freedom, and love are indicators for the actual Absolute.
Terms such matter, body, thing, object, the worldly or functions are important representations of the Relative.

7 Synonyms of the Relative (2nd stage of differentiation)

Just as I named 7 synonyms of the Absolute in the 2nd stage of differentiation, I also name 7 synonyms of the first-rate Relative:
The Relative (compared to the Absolute) is:

1. relative, relational
2. different
3. possible
4. partial
5. conditional
6. secondary
7. dependent [24]

Preview: For comparison, the most important characteristics of second-rate Relatives (R²).
The adjectives on the far left are dominant.
(See also in the Summary table columns I and L, lines 1-7. Character of the sA ibid. Column K, lines 1-7).

            1. inadequate/ hyperabsolutized/ unrelated
                2. strange/ hyperidentical/ without identity
                3. unreal/ hyperreal/ essenceless
                4. split/ one-sided/ detached
                5. accidental / determined/ undetermined
                6. second-rate/ extreme/ unconnected
                7. too heteronomous/ pseudoautonomous/ detached.
       More on that later.

Assignment of certain absolute and relative aspects (Tab. 4)

Absolute	Relative
absolute self actual whole unconditional first-rate (primary) independent	relative different possible partial conditional secondary dependent

More about 'The Absolute and Relative in comparison' - see unabridged German version.

Symbols which Show the Relations between A and R

(Fig. 5) These symbolic pictures show the priority of A compared to R: (from left to right) the Absolute is the center/ the superior/ the basis/ the first-rate/ and the comprehensive. Therefore, the Relative is the peripheral/ the subordinate/ the superstructure/ the secondary and the limited. Nothingness is outside of AR.

The Nothingness (0)

I believe that the actual nothingness is a result of the negative Absolute.
The strange second-rate nothingness may be seen as a result of the sA or else as a category of second-rate realities. Something became worthless, meaningless, nothing, null, void, negated, etc.
(See also `Genesis of the nothingness´).

General Units/ Systems

Terms/ Definitions

I distinguish the following pr systems/units that will be described more specifically later on:
(I denote the more absolute before the Relative).
1. Everything, All - Something 2. God - World 3. People - things 4. I - Others 5. Spirit - Body, Mind.

If you look at the dimensions, there is an absolute and a relative area in every system/ unit. In the absolute area, there are one or more Absolutes. If it is a first-rate pr system, there is only one actual Absolute.
Is it a strange, second-rate pr system however, there will be at least two if not more strange Absolutes.
Shortcut: system, unit = Σ (The term unit is also used for system, to make it easier to understand.)

World, Person and the I as they are

The world, the person and the I (= WPI) are made of one first-rate reality and a lot of second-rate realities. Whether our world is „the best of all possible worlds“, as Leibniz said, or whether one is, as Schopenhauer (and Buddha) said, stricken by “the sorrow of life“,or the person is considered good or bad - philosophers have very different opinions about that. I think everything from ‒A to +A is represented, although most of them are probably somewhere in between. People live in a world between heaven and hell - sometimes belonging more to one side than the other. This is a world that will always be in need of redemption, just as we are.
A commonality of all realities/ systems (Σ) is that they are determined by different Absolutes (A or sA).

Fig. This illustration shows how different systems
are interconnected by equal absolute areas.



                        For details on the following topics see the unabridged German version:
                   Basic relations in pr realities / systems.
                   Relations between spirit, psyche and matter.
                   Interplay of general language forms and differentiations.
                   Relations between various pr units.
                   Human between +A / ‒A and R.

Summary

n the chapter 'Metapsychology', you will find the introduction of the classification of any kind of psychical relevant topics.
The classification has a vertical and a horizontal axis. The vertical axis consists of dimensions of the Absolute, Relative and nothingness. The differentiations make up the horizontal axis. These are deduced from fundamental forms of language. All psychical relevant realities have specific dimensions and differentiations, where the absolute dimension determines the specific reality. It is divided into first-rate and second-rate, strange dimensions and thus, into a first-rate and second-rate realities. Usually, those have very different characteristics. Especially the second-rate, strange realities (particularly the second-rate psychical and personal realities) create the basis for the emergence of mental disorders. I divide the named dimensions into spheres, ranks and orientations and differentiate up to 23 single aspects.

To specify this classification, you could say:
1. In general: metapsychology, or else, whatever is psychical relevant has to do with the Absolute, the Relative (and the nothingness), with their rank and orientation and what subjects, objects and predicates represent. (1st classification stage).
2. The `2nd classification stage´ corresponds to the first vertical column of the Summary table.
In keywords: Metapsychology or the psychical Relevant (and psyche) have something to do with:
the Absolute, with sense, with identity, truth, unity (wholeness), unconditionality (security), causes, independence (a1-a7); Further with: Everything and nothing, God and the world, I and other people, spirit, mind and body, gender, conditions, aspirations, ownership, necessities, obligations, rights, the new and the old, actions, information, portrayals, meanings, mistakes, the past, the present and the future, with qualities and with all `movements', i.e. actions and processes that are connected to them.
They all have (actual or strange) absolute, relative or no importance.
3. To the `3rd classification stage´, one could allot all pr terms of the Summary table
4. Infinitely differentiated, one could say: metapsychology or anything psychologically relevant or the psyche ultimately have to do with every psychical relevant word and sentence. This also means that every pr word in a particular area could be categorized in the "summary table", for example, in a particular cell of the table.
To me, it makes the most sense to use the usual grammar as an analogy. With that, the given categorization (such as language) appears as an open system that can be extended or shortened if needed.
It seems to me that this categorization gives more options than the usual classifications in psychology and psychiatry to present anything psychical Relevant in general and anything psychical in particular.

Summary of the Dimensions and Differentiations and their Classification

L A N G U A G E			P S Y C H I C A L R E L E V A N T
Comparation (Comparative forms of adjectives)		absolute / and relative adjectives	DIMENSIONS (absolute and / relative)
			a1 absolute / relative a2 self / different a3 actual / possible a4 whole / partial a5 unconditional / conditional a6 primary (first-rate) / secondary (second-rate) a7 independent / dependent
			MAIN ASPECTS (General Differentiation)
Word class		Nouns Verbs Adjectives	Being Life Qualities	I Units: Spirit / Matter II Dynamics: Life / Functioning III Qualities: abs./ relative Qualities
Syntax			Contexts	IV Contexts: Subjects/ Objects
			SINGLE ASPECTS (Single Differentiation)
	NOUNS		Forms of being	Units 1 All / something (nothing) 2 God / world 3 People / things 4 I / other(s) 5 pers. spirit / soul, body 6 Gender
	VERBS Modal auxiliary verbs		Forms of life Modalities	Dynamics (and Modalities) 7 to be 8 to want 9 to have 10 can 11 must 12 should 13 may, be allowed
	Full verbs		Activities	14 to create 15 to do, to produce 16 to perceive 17 to reproduce 18 to judge 19 past 20 present 21 future
	ADJECTIVES		Qualities	Qualities 22 right, wrong 23 negative, positive

Individual Metapsychological Topics

Here, I focus on the topics of the `2nd classification stage´. I will try, in particular, to find answers to the following questions: Which are the most important psychical relevant (pr) topics? What is reality, truth, freedom, the Self, the I and so on? Is there only one reality, just one truth, one freedom, one Self, etc.? Or are there a lot of them: a lot of realities, a lot of truths, a lot of freedoms, many Egos and Selves? And if so, what are they?

General Hypotheses

In this chapter, I distinguish with regard to every specific, psychical relevant topic between absolute and relative forms and between first-rate (= actual) and second-rate (= strange).
• The first-rate forms consist of only one +Absolute (divine/ celestial form), which comprises many relative forms.
• The second-rate forms consist of many strange absolute and strange relative forms. Here, the strange absolute forms are separated into two opposites and one zero part. (Why this is so, I explain later.)
So I distinguish between one first-rate Absolute (+A), which forms with its Relatives (R¹) a manifold unity: one first-rate reality/ world (W¹) - and on the other hand many second-rate, strange Absolutes (sA) with many second-rate, strange Relatives (R²) which create diverse second-rate realities/ worlds (W²).|
(These statements are basically statements of belief, although a lot of the specific literature gives the impression that this is not the case..
Phrases like “there is no absolute truth!” can be found often. However, the author should say: “I believe, that there is no absolute truth!”)

Regarding the Dimensions

In the following section, the 7 aspects of the dimensions are sequentially ordered (`2nd stage of dimensions).
What applies to +A and the sA, also applies to their synonyms: therefore to first-rate or second-rate identity (a2), first-rate or second-rate actuality, truth (a3), first-rate or second-rate unity (a4), first-rate or second-rate unconditionality/ safety (a5), first-rate or second-rate causes (a6) and first-rate or second-rate autonomy and freedom (a7). They will be specified further in the following.
At each first-rate aspect, I mention a `Meta'-term. So I want to make it clear that this first-rate meta-stage is the highest, includes everything Relative and is stronger than any sA, which have only relative importance from this perspective.

Solutions (a1)

The Absolute and the Relative were discussed above in `hypotheses' and as `general conceptions' in chapter `Dimensions' (1st level).
In relation to their (main?) function one can say:
• There is one first-rate absolute solution (= salvation and redemption) and many first-rate relative solutions.
• In contrast, there are many second-rate solutions: second-rate (pseudo-) absolute, when a relative solution has been absolutized, or second-rate relative, when other solutions have been derived from a pseudo-absolute solution. (For details, see section `Solutions´)

Identity, Self (a2)

Identity can be understood as the 'inner unity of a person' or as 'essential likeness'.
I distinguish first-rate, actual identity and second-rate, strange identities:
• The first-rate, actual identity encloses all possible relative identities, no matter if they are positive or negative. I think that the identities we give ourselves, such as 'a good person', our profession or our status, are not the absolute identity but more relative/ attributive identities. In my opinion, the highest identity is the identity that God gives to us, (theomorphism), which also continues to even if we are not at ease with our own idea of our identity. It represents itself personally as the positive Self. It also integrates our second-rate, strange identities. That means, that I can always feel identical to myself, even if I am strange to myself or can't see who I actually think I am. Even from that perspective, entirely alienated, I receive a fundamental, indestructible identity (from God / the love). One can identify this identity also as `meta-identity´ because it stands above all other relative or strange identities and compensates these.
• In contrast to that, there is a lot of second-rates (pseudo-)absolute identities. They consist of one hyper-identical and one contrary, strange and one zero part. They are fixed on specific identities and exclude other, mostly negative ones. In this case, the affected person has either the sense of a strange or even unacceptable identity, of a hyper-identity, or no identity at all.
Example: If my status as psychotherapist establishes my absolute identity, then I would feel as if my entire identity is lost when losing this status. Also, relativistic over-identifications may lead to a strange or non-existent identity, although many authors see it differently, e.g.: “The structure of the complete Identity is a reflection of the whole social process”.[25] The definitions by the Self of Kernberg and others goes into the same direction.
It appears good, to define the above named attributes (nationality, profession ...) as something that is part of one’s actual Self. Stronger, however, is the first-rate core identity, which can be found deep within a person that causes me to be myself. But whenever relative identities become absolute, the person is confronted with a lot of different, sometimes paradoxical identities, that cannot be integrated anymore. Isn't that one of the main problems of our clients, that the free and unshakable identity is being limited and bound to severe requirements, so that we can only feel comfortable and identical to ourselves if those internalized requirements affirm it? Isn't it obvious, how vulnerable, questionable, delicate and potentially pathogenic such an image of man is? But we need an indestructible identity.
(See also `Disorder of the person's identity´ and `a2 Identity and otherness´).

Truth (a3)

"The higher a truth is, the higher you have to look to understand it." (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry)

I am convinced, that there are several “truths”.
I distinguish between first-rate, actual truth and “second-rate, strange truths”.
• The first-rate, actual truth includes all potential, relative truths.
The first-rate, actual truth is an entity with a variety of relative sections of truth.
More specifically: Every relatively true statement is connected to a relatively opposing statement, which is also relatively true.[26]
Both “truths” are neither absolutely true nor absolutely untrue. Those relative truths only stay true if they are embedded in the first-rate actual truth. The first-rate truth does not only include objective truths but also subjective truths. One could identify it as 'meta-truth'.
Also: objectivity will be the most truthful if it does not attempt to be solely objective but also includes subjectivity. And subjectivity will be the strongest and most true when it involves objectivity.
The first-rate truth is stronger than the second-rate, strange truths, and can compensate those.

• In the case of “second-rate, strange truths”, a relative truth is turned into an absolute truth, and a relative opposite becomes an absolute opposite. Then, there is only absolutely true or absolutely untrue, right or wrong, black or white etc. Also: If a (relative) truth will exaggerate, a relative untruth arises.

Similar to the realities, the various truths also depend on the Absolute. They are subordinated to an Absolute and this Absolute determines if they are first-rate or second-rate. Those statements go hand in hand with the conceptions of the modern logic. For example: “The correctness or falsehood of a system can only be determined from outside of the system” = Gödel's incompleteness theorems.[27]

Truth and Rightness

Truth is stronger than rightness because the latter is often "short lived". (P. Bamm)

Here are just a few keywords: We need to differentiate between truth and `rightness'. Truth is an important topic in philosophy, rightness/ correctness in sciences. The truth one can believe, the rightness one can prove. Truth first and foremost captures the essence, correctness the thing in itself. Similar statements: truth is a semantic category, correctness a syntactic category.
Truth is believable, the rightness is provable but the credible is stronger than the provable. "The dignity of man is inviolable" and similar statements are truths to me. But one cannot prove that they are right.
Although the truth is often defined as accordance between reality and intellect ("Veritas est adaequatio rei et intellectus"), I see no accordance because reality is only partially logically comprehensible.
The rightness should be embedded in truth and the search for truth should not be independent of the search for that which is correct. To me, rightness appears as a kind of relative truth.

Unity (a4)

I distinguish between first-rate, actual unity and second-rate, strange “units”.
• The first-rate, actual unity may be absolute or relative.
There is only one first-rate unity, in which all relative units are embedded.
Personally, I believe that the unity of a person with God is an absolute unity. This unity contains all the (positive and negative) Relatives, also splits and dissociations. From that standpoint, nothing can separate us from God and there cannot be any kind of dissociation within us because we are always protected and secure in that unity. Therefore, I believe that this is the strongest force against any psycho-pathological division and dissociation because every society and every individual tends to split off the negative, and our human power is often not strong enough to overcome these splits.
This first-rate, actual unity is a kind of `meta-unit´
• In contrast, there are many second-rate, strange "units" that are determined by strange Absolutes (= 'It'). These It and their units are self-contradictory (→ The It as a nine-sided triad), have a contradictory dynamic (see, for example, `Disorder of the person's identity´) and are found in all mental illnesses (e.g., schizophrenia).

Safety (a5)

I distinguish between first-rate, actual safety and second-rate, strange safeties.
• The first-rate, actual safety may be absolute or relative. There is only one first-rate absolute safety with a large number of first-rate, relative forms of safety. One can speak of a `meta-safety´ because it is higher than all relative safeties or uncertainties and compensates these. That means, that in spite of uncertainties, a person might still feel safe at a "higher level".
• In contrast to that, there are many second-rate, pseudo-absolute and strange relative safeties.
The pseudo-absolute safeties have one “over- secure” variant, one opposite too insecure and one zero variant.
Example: Something can cause a person to feel absolutely safe: such as being absolutely sure, to reach a certain goal. However, if this safety is questioned lost, the safety may become a big uncertainty. Anything in-between is missing. Also, there is no awareness of other safeties (zero variant).

Causes and Results (a6)

I distinguish between:
a) first-rate, actual causes, which can be first-rate and absolute (“primary cause”), or hereinafter relative (“first-rate relative causes” from R¹).
b) second-rate, strange causes (“strange causes”), which emerge first from sA, or hereinafter from their Relatives (R²).
To be more exact:
• To a) One may think of one first-rate, actual cause with a large number of relative causes from R¹.
Personally, I see the first “primary cause” in God.
A second, “primary cause”, corresponds to the basic attitude of a person, which can be the foundation of multiple other causes. For our topic, it is important, that people do not only see themselves as victims of a complex interplay of conditions and requirements but also as a person who can primarily and independently bring new positive to a system.
• To b) Second-rate, strange causes emerge if relative causes are given pseudo-absolute importance. These are causes for certain behaviors, perceptions, etc., that often not correspond to the actual fundamental attitude of a person. They are products from It/sA or their systems. Those have two opposite parts and one zero part. That means, that the second-rate causes, especially the heteronomous desire, are divided into a pro-part (“I want this”), into its opposite (“I want the opposite”) and into a zero part (“I want nothing”).
The It/sA are typical second-rate causes.[28] They create second-rate worlds/realities, second-rate personal and individual changes (WPI²). Those may become further second-rate causes, especially of illness. The It/sA as second-rate causes have very special characteristics and effects, which will be listed in detail later on (s.`General effects of the Its´). It is worth mentioning that they mainly have indirect and ambivalent effects. They also extend far beyond the original range of action (s. Spreading and compression). They are the cause for vicious cycles. [29]

Six Hypotheses on Cause of Changes of the Psychical Relevant (pR)

1^st hypothesis: The primary causes of a pr occurrence come from the absolute sphere of a personal subject (`individual´). That “subject” may be a person, God or ‒A. Put otherwise: The above-named subjects are able to bring something totally new into pr systems. So, as said before, the person is not just a product of some relationships but may add something new to his own healing process.
2nd hypothesis: In a pr system, any pr cause may have any relative result. That also means, that, put the other way around: Any relative result - negative or positive - (such as health or sickness) may come from every kind of cause. But with very different probability! (Exceptions s. below.) That also means, that any psychical symptom of illness, may have a large number of different causes, even if the probabilities are very different.
E. Bleuler said something similar to that: “It took very long until one realized that a psychopathological disorder can be caused by very different noxas and that one noxa may lead to different disorders.” [30]
That also means there is no absolute clear interpretation of symptoms, dreams and other kinds of pr phenomena but interpretations may only have high or low validity. (In that context, it is good to mention that opposite interpretations of second-rate realities are more likely than one would assume.)
When it comes to therapy, that means that: There is a great variety of therapeutic possibilities, even if the quality is very different.
3^rd hypothesis: Is about an exclusion of the 2nd hypothesis: An absolutely positive cause has no absolutely negative result, and the other way around: An absolutely negative cause has no absolutely positive result.
Expressed in religious terms: There is nothing absolutely negative coming from God but something relatively negative sometimes (something that feels negative, such as sorrow and illness). Also, there is nothing absolutely positive that can come from ‒A but something relatively positive. God focuses on the +A, while the goal of ‒A is the absolutely negative.
4^th hypothesis: Results of causes may become causes for other results. These can occur as circular or systemic causes, or as web or bundle of causes.
5^th hypothesis: First-rate causes originate from the spiritual sphere.
Although the primacy of a spiritual (or ideational) causation cannot be proved, nor the primacy of material causation, there is presently the danger of one-sidedly searching for causes of mental illness in the material-somatic sphere and, accordingly, of treating them unilaterally (KW Psychotropic drugs).
[Since it is known that traumatizations can cause brain and gene changes that can be inherited, some ideas of heredity are also relativized. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transgenerational_trauma.]
6^th hypothesis: If the principles (axioms) are wrong, then their derivatives too.

(Further see `Causes of mental disorders´).

Autonomy and Freedom (a7)

We, as humans, are only total independent when it comes to our absolute ability of choice. Otherwise, we are more or less dependent. I believe that only God is absolutely free. We are only free in relation to the Absolute.[31]
S. Kierkegaard said something similar. Therefore, I believe that the goal of absolute autonomy and independence, that a lot of people and therapists have, is unreal and overexerts us.
I distinguish between first-rate, actual freedom and second-rate “freedoms”.
• The first-rate, actual freedom may be absolute or relative. There is only one first-rate, absolute freedom with a lot of first-rate, relative forms of freedom.
• In contrast to that, there are a large number of second-rate (pseudo-)absolute and relative² “freedoms”. Those are split into one too free, 'libertarian', one strange and one unfree part.

Freedom is first-rate if it is connected with responsibility and embedded in love, in God. Whenever freedom is isolated from responsibility and love and still put as absolute, it becomes a second-rate, strange Absolute.
first-rate quasi celestial freedom also exists, when I can say that I am free, even though I am actually not. Put in other words: I also have the freedom of being dependent/ not free.
The first-rate freedom is stronger than the second-rate freedoms/ unfreedoms.
An important sign of second-rate freedoms is the limitation of choice.

Differentiations

The 4 main Differentiations

Forms of Being

In this section, I want to contrast forms of being that represent Relatives (matter, etc.) to those which are close to the more absolute (spirit, soul, etc.).
I assume that in the first-order reality there are fluid transitions between these entities, without the respective entities losing their own characteristic features. Limitations and divisions only occur in the second-rate realities on account of the sA. That´s why I believe that the human person is only unity in its first-rate reality. But since we also live in a large number of second-rate realities and also exist as such ones, we, like our environment, are more or less torn.
That also means that there are usually splits, contrasts, disassociations (and other sA-results) between spirit and body or within the psyche or the spirit. Put in other words: There is a great variety of forms of being in the first-rate reality but which together form a single entity. In the second-rate realities, however, there are a large number of forms of being, which are partly strange or opposite to each other. Therefore, they might become incompatible and the cause of illness.
They are, however, relativized and integrated by the +A. In other words: if I still feel so torn and broken, I can feel complete and safe in myself at a higher level.
Matter and spirit: Which one is the dominant one? I assume that the spirit is dominant in relation to the matter, i.e., the first-rate spirit determines the matter and not the other way around. As mentioned, spirit and matter are not necessarily opposites, since the matter may be a possible expression or result of the spirit. Surely, the matter can also determine the spirit but only the relative sphere of the spirit, not the absolute spirit. But matter can dominate a person as a strange Absolute. The actual absolute spirit, however, remains free and can be chosen at liberty.
I think of a similar hierarchy when it comes to humans. The hierarchy would be: spirit > psyche > body.
In the best case, there would be no kind of contradiction between those “parts”.
The latest findings of natural science raise doubts about the primacy of the spirit in relation to the matter. But it will probably depend on a person’s belief, what is seen as the primacy. I have little doubt as to the fact that the spirit has the most power (positive and negative).
The following questions are of great relevance when it comes to practical aspects and everyday life:
Is the body more important than the spirit or vice versa? Is the matter more important than the spirit or vice versa? Is the soul more important than the body or vice versa? Is the outside more important than the inside or vice versa? What are the top priorities of therapy and analysis of mental disorders? Are the priorities mostly found in the spirit or in the somatic area?
Can one not be happy, although one's body is “broken”, while it seems to be impossible to be happy when one has a broken soul but a body that is perfectly in shape?
Doesn't the spirit eventually determine the personality and not the genes? Fanatic ideologies that took millions of lives; children of Nazis, such as the son of Nazi Borman and others, who lived in an absolutely different way than their parents, are important examples of the power of negative and positive mindsets, that cannot be explained with the genes alone. [32]
(See also later on connections of body, soul and spirit).

Life

Life is a characteristic of the first-rate reality/ world (W¹). In W¹, the functioning is subordinated to life.
The first-rate reality lives essentially (in the core) on its own accord.
In the second-rate realities, the functioning dominates the life of the individual. If we have the feeling that we are only functioning and not living, then we are in a second-rate, strange reality.

Qualities

The question of good and evil is one of the most central questions of our lives. Not without reason, we lost paradise after eating the forbidden fruit that promised knowledge of good and evil (or of right and wrong?). If something is good or bad is basically a question of belief. There is a general consensus, that the good and positive benefits a person, while the negative causes harm.
Subjectively positive or negative is whatever one feels or defines as positive or negative.
The subjective and objective view of positive and negative may be the same but often, it is different. Sometimes, we make something into our inner or outer enemy, although it is actually something positive (→ Resistance) or it also happens the other way around: We think something is positive and good for us, although objectively, it is something harmful and negative. At times, we love or hate the same thing/ a person too much, even though the “object” is unchanged. Such ambivalences and contradictions are ubiquitous.
Whatever a person labels as good or bad does not only play a big part when it comes to 'peace or war' but is also relevant as 'inner war' for the development of mental disorders. What is thought of evil, devilish, hostile, etc., is usually hated and fought. One cannot identify with it, not integrate it, and, if necessary, splits it off.
The positive, much-loved things are usually loved too much, so that the person over-identifies him-/herself with it.
That which we consider being the absolutely positive (+sA) or negative (‒sA), is split in two opposites. In itself, it is only relatively positive or negative but it is reduced to the two opposing sides: either solely positive or solely negative only. Whoever has idols (+sA), with whom he identifies, also has corresponding devils, enemies (‒sA), which then threaten him.

    If we continue with the above-mentioned classification, we could say:
• There is the one, first-rate absolute good / positive (see +A below) and a large number of first-rate relative good/ positives.
    And there are many second-rate “good” / positives.
• There is the one, first-rate absolute evil/ negative (‒A) and many first-rate, relative "evils" / negatives.
    And there are many second-rate "evils" and negatives.
• The good is not necessarily associated with well-being.
• The +A integrates everything relative negative or absolutized.

+Absolute (+A)

I distinguish between the following first-rate positive Absolutes:
• God - as the unconditioned, comprehensive, positive personal Absolute - so far as a "definition" is possible at all. (God is, of course, more than the +A. He also includes all the Relatives, also the absolutized Relatives!). +A (God) without the Relative would be absolutistic.
• The absolute attitude of a person towards the +A .
(For more information, see section: "The absolute attitude").
Both of these together express a loving relationship that includes the possibility of free choice. (Such as it is in human relationships.)
This +A (God, love, and the Self) cannot be proven. If it was provable, it wouldn't be absolute. No proof is necessary. They are self-explanatory and self-evident. “I love you!” and not “I love you, because...”. That means that love is basically absolute. It is causeless, unprovable, not disputable. It cannot be 'produced', but wanted and given. It appears by itself. So it is basically very simple but does not mean that you should not put effort into keeping the love. Love, at its core, is something spiritual. (It is also something spiritual and physical - but first and first-rate spiritual.) Love represents something godly and heavenly.
I believe, man was made for love and freedom (God), that is also: the man has the freedom to reject God and love.
Also the universal human rights are not provable but obvious such as love, the Self or God and therefore it may only be believed.
To me, the Ten Commandments, morals, good deeds, etc. would be of relative first-rate positive relevance only in comparison with God, like altogether, all the positive sides of worldly life. Those and other first-rate +Relatives such as +realities, truths, freedoms and so on, create only a peaceful unity with the +A.
As positive Relatives, you could also say: they are also-love, also-in-God.
Important: +A integrates anything Relative and also the strange Absolute (sA).
(See also `Absolute and relative will´and `Right and wrong´.)

‒Absolute (‒A)

One could make the following distinctions:
1. An outer- or supra-personal negative Absolute (which was formerly called the devil).
2. A personal negative Absolute.

About 2): I believe that the personal negative Absolute is a fundamental, unrevoked, destructive attitude of an individual in favor of the absolute evil. I also believe that it is justifiably unforgivable because such an individual does not want forgiveness. In the bible that is called mortal sin.
Unfortunately, a large number of people, theologians included, view some other negative behavior or attitudes as unforgivable, as a mortal sin.
So: No fear of mortal sins, which are not mortal sins.
For details, see: `Right or wrong - To the guilt question´. On the topics: Is there evil at all? And to dualism. See the unabridged German version.

(Note: Although I consider the ‒A to be very important for the development of diseases, I have limited myself mainly to the pathogenic effects of sA in this work, since these are alterable and the former (‒A) is not.)

Subjects, Objects and Subject-Object-Problem

About the Subject

I am dealing here above all with the person (P) as a subject.[34]
• We can distinguish between two parts of the first-rate person (P¹) as the subject:
- P¹ as an absolute subject = the absolute
te I-self, with an absolutely free choice of the A and with absolute attributes such as uniqueness and singularity.
- P¹ as a relative subject.
A first-rate subject (P¹, God) compensates or integrates all relative and absolutized objects without becoming identically with them.
• As a second-rate subject, P² is a surrogate-subject because it is determined by an It/sA and acts as such. Therefore, I also call it “Sobject” because it is half subject and half object in its core.
Mentally ill people often see themselves as an object because they are determined by a strange subject (It/sA) as a sign of second-rate personality (P²).

Object

As first-rate object, the object can probably not be first-rate absolute but only first-rate relative.
As second-rate object, it will be controlled by an It/sA , or it is absolutized itself.

Subject-Object-Problem

- In P² there is either a subject-object-split, a subject-object-fusion or a subject-object-negation.
- P¹ is a first-rate subject at its core; otherwise, in its relative sphere, it is subject and object at the same time. Here, there is no subject-object-split, no dualism but only a difference between a subject and object.
That also means, that as long as the subject is connected to +A, it can integrate all objects, even the negative ones, so that it will not come to a subject-object-split or fusion. That is very important for the therapy of psychoses.
However, the subject-object issue is not only relevant for psychiatry but it is also a superordinate problem. Therefore, it is briefly mentioned here because the problem's solution offers practical consequences.
“The subject-object issue is a major problem of epistemology and of the occidental way of thinking in general, which consists of the question, as to determine the, in principle, two-parted relation between the subject and object."[35]
In my opinion, dualisms and monisms prevail in the second-rate realities - but in the first-rate reality, diversity dominates. Because our world is both, first-rate and second-rate, the question of what is dominant can only be answered with regard to a specific situation.
Additional questions:
Can I, as a subject, view the world completely objectively? Only in part.
Can one objectify a subject completely? Probably just as little as you can turn an object into an actual subject.
I think objectification of a subject or an object is only relatively easily possible.
And: subjective things can be captured best using subjective methods.

Further Examples

Belief and Knowledge

"Cogito, ergo sum“ or „Credo, ergo sum“?
"Nil sapientiae odiosius acumine nimio.” (“Nothing is more hateful to wisdom than too much cleverness.”) Seneca

Abstract

Introduction

Introduction and Classification

Classification Levels

First stage of Differentiation

Second stage of Differentiation

Explanation and Terms

Classification Overview

Summary

The 7 Synonyms of the Absolute (2nd stage of differentiation)

Short Systematic Overview

Overview and Preview of Important Terms and Abbreviations

The Meaning of the Relative [22]

7 Synonyms of the Relative (2nd stage of differentiation)

Symbols which Show the Relations between A and R

The Nothingness (0)

General Units/ Systems

Terms/ Definitions

World, Person and the I as they are

Summary of the Dimensions and Differentiations and their Classification

Solutions (a1)

Truth and Rightness

Six Hypotheses on Cause of Changes of the Psychical Relevant (pR)

Sense/ Meaning

Relativity of Illness and Health (resp. Death and Life)

1. All /Everything, Nothingness and Something

2. God and the World (Transcendence and immanence)

3. and 4. People, Individual (I)