This paper was presented in October 2001 for the ICSID (International Council of the Society of Industrial Design) held in Seoul, South Korea. The paper discusses Oullim, (meaning Harmony) the Tao and Design. I believe many of the observations described in this paper became the source for Lao Tzu’s own work. He put into verse a hidden series of forces he believed existed beyond form. Lao Tzu and others viewed these forces as representing an ultimate mystery, i.e. the Tao (Dao), the "Way" or the "Path" of Life. Lao Tzu realized that Life expressed its power in the form of a journey of events and experiences. He believed we could live in harmony with Life's impressions by observing and responding to these natural forces in a manner that brought balance to every situation. Through simple observation and symbolic interpretation Lao Tzu recognized that humanity was intimately connected and solely dependent upon sustaining a degree of balance with Nature to survive.
Lao Tzu was a designer. He viewed and interpreted his world symbolically. He learned from what he sensed, felt, and recognized though observation and experience. Lao Tzu was sensitive to the subtle nuances that found unique expression in Nature ... in addition to the many correspondences they created. It was upon these same impressions that Lao Tzu created a symbolic system of his own called the I Ching.
Lao Tsu was sensitive to the mysterious forces that appeared before his awareness. He realized that only through paradox, rhyme, symmetry, symbolism and metaphor would he be able to share with others what he personally felt and observed. Lao Tzu was aware of the Tao and became more and more sensitive to its’ forces by means of a design that linked his awareness to both the known and the unknown symbolically.
What is unique about the Tao is that it is not necessarily a rational philosophy, belief system, nor is it entirely ideological in nature, but rather the Tao symbolically presents a map suggesting how one might live gracefully and in harmony with Nature. The Tao is more about the art of living than creating a set of rules by which to live. The Tao doesn’t tell us how to live but rather encourages us to live in the present while remaining cognizant of the symbolic nature of a more expansive concept of the universe. The Tao asks us to become conscious of the many patterns expressed in Nature while simultaneously adjusting to its nurturing forces.
The Tao discloses how to live in harmony with Nature's creations. It implies that we each must find our own path as it relates to the unknown. We each contribute to the realization of Nature in our own special way. We give form to our consciousness through a creative process that corresponds to forces that appear to emerge from within our imagination. We share in the imaginings, observations and impressions that give relevance to what we perceive as consciousness ... only the contexts of time and space change. By design everything changes yet remains the same.
Edited: 12.06.2013
Oullim and the Tao of Design
Abstract: Thirty-five years of design practice, teaching and personal investigation into the phenomenon we’ve come to understand as design has led me to the Tao. Oullim: the “Great Harmony”, is an expression of the Tao and in my opinion instrumental in generating a greater understanding of the design function. In my opinion, design describes the act of creating and perceiving our world symbolically, which appears consistent and essential in both understanding and experiencing consciousness itself.
Design appears to be an expression of a unified awareness, a unified field if you will, that describes the expansiveness of the Tao. Design is consequential in humanity's perception of reality. Through design the qualities of yin and yang find expression in the concepts of meaning and purpose. Design gives meaning and purpose to a “conscious awareness” we experience every day. Together meaning and purpose create every situation necessary to experience, discover and perpetuate the ancient concept of Oullim.
My objective is to present design as an instrument of consciousness. It is my hope that this paper will encourage a revision in the interpretation, definition and understanding of design and its function.
1. Design Beginnings?
There are those who argue that the origins of design can be traced to approximately two and a half million years ago, when early humans began the deliberate creation of tools. However, such a position reflects not the birth of design itself, but rather humanity’s awakening to it. Design, as a structuring principle of existence, preceded human cognition and was already manifest in the natural world—evident in biological systems, geological formations, and the cyclical motions of celestial bodies. In this sense, design is not invented; it is recognized.
Early human toolmaking can therefore be understood as a response to patterned forces that impressed themselves symbolically upon human consciousness. While the forms and materials of design have evolved over time, the underlying mode of engagement—interpretation, adaptation, and response to patterned reality—remains fundamentally unchanged. Humanity, though initially limited in its understanding of the universe, gradually came to recognize itself as an active participant within a dynamic and interconnected field of life.
This recognition catalyzed a process of inquiry driven by imagination. Humans sought to interpret the world by constructing relationships between observed phenomena, translating experience into meaningful frameworks. Through this process, they discovered that their capacity to influence their environment—and thus their survival—was contingent upon aligning with, rather than opposing, the forces of nature. Design emerged here as both mediator and method: a means of translating perception into action.
The images and ideas that arose within early consciousness were often not fully understood, yet they were persistently engaged. Through imitation, reflection, and symbolic interpretation, humans refined their sensitivity to the “signs” of nature. These signs—designs—enabled survival and, eventually, flourishing. Amidst this process, one constant remained: change. Change was not merely an external condition but an intrinsic aspect of existence, guiding humanity toward increasing awareness and adaptive intelligence.
A circumstance that could only be described as an "intelligent affirmation of their own being" made in conjunction and association with the world around them, led humanity to naturally expand their horizon. These associations together eventually initiated a certain "quickening", or greater sense of awareness brought forward through symbolic means.
Associations triggers expansion, sensitizes awareness and guides growth. Design perpetuates this atmosphere by expressing and displaying these associative qualities in a symbolic manner. Design is the vehicle by which Life symbolically expresses itself. The observation is the receiver, the mind and emotions together create the incubator where Life's symbols are consumed, digested and transformed into action. Design is a vehicle and a facilitator that allows humanity the opportunity to blend and express this energy in the most unique and intimate ways. Responding to this reality through the virtue of the imagination initiates new associations, particularly between the realms of the tangible and intangible, i.e. spirit and matter.
Design facilitates every requirement for a creative adventure brought forth by the imagination. Design’s ability to affectively simulate our imagination nourishes a natural growth in awareness, i.e. consciousness, which in turn generates a greater knowing and understanding of oneself and the world. Design is substantiated by means of the interplay between the unseen forces of the mind and the emotions. In this fashion the universe can symbolically join and guide us in our evolutionary journey.
2. Taoism – An Ageless Wisdom
The origin of Taoism is said to have extended back to 3000 BC. The first written material concerning the Tao was attributed to Lao Tzu and Chaung Tzu and first appeared near 500 BC. The Tao has been described as a philosophy, and for some has become a religion.
The word Tao translates as the Way or Path, which includes the way we perceive the world, how we interact with Life, and how we perceive ourselves in relation to the world. The Tao’s central principle is all Life is part of a unified whole or unity, that originates from an unexplainable source ... which is the Tao.
Taoism likewise states that all Life tends to move towards balance and harmony, i.e. Oullim, because of its' nature to do so while operating and adapting to a unobservable system of natural yet unyielding laws. According to the Tao, the universe is considered a vast Oneness, i.e. unity, where change is the only constant, and balance the primary principle required of survival. The Tao moves through the universe, flowing effortlessly according to its own directives as expressed in nature. The great sage Lao Tzu once said, "The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao. ”
The Tao Te Ching is based upon the study of the natural order of things and how to work and interact with nature and not against it. Lao Tzu’s writings were focused upon a spiritual level of living and he discouraged the need of trying to look and/or search for results. Lao Tzu encourages us to seek the clarity and the stillness of the mind, and to be receptive and act upon the unseen influences surrounding us.
Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu provide us with direction on how to achieve a state of harmony and balance within the Tao. They describe each of us having the choice to either align ourselves with the Way, or remain ignorant and resist the natural order. The Tao has been described as a guide towards self-exploration, growth and transformation, allowing us to communicate deeply within ourselves and with the world around us.
The Tao does not describe a particular philosophy as such, but rather comments upon the art of living. The Tao is often nameless, formless and unpredictable and so expansive that it cannot be understood merely by rational means alone. Taoist also believe that humanity is an integral part of this divine order and that all things have an active role in its expression.
It has already been demonstrated over the centuries that no one system devised by humanity can fully define or explain the intricacies surrounding Life. And rather than observing Life as a detached observer, as mandated by the scientific paradigm, the Tao encourages us to realize that Life is a path that must be entered and fully experienced to make any real sense out of it. Ironically, however, Life cannot be fully understood by any one of us, because we are all integral parts and active participants in its very creation and existence. Subsequently, Life makes it impossible for any one point of view, belief system or perception to become the sole possessor of the truth.
3. Taoist Principles
The first principle of Taoism is that the universe and everything partaking in it, is part of an inseparable whole, a great Unity, a vast Oneness, with everything being interconnected. The Taoist philosophy is based upon observing nature, but unlike science, which observes nature as separate from the observer, Taoism observes nature subjectively, which includes both the observed and the observer as part of the whole.
Quantum physics has demonstrated that the observer is fundamental to the existence of the universe, and that the universe is a dynamic web. or network of interconnected and inseparable energy patterns. Known as the "Observer Effect", this discovery implies that before anything can manifest in the physical universe, it must first be observed. Observation cannot occur without the preexistence of some form of consciousness doing the observing. The "Observer Effect" clearly implies that the physical universe is a direct result of what we would consider consciousness.
A second principle of Taoism is that there are always two basic distinctions in nature symbolized by the yin and the yang, or what could be more correctly considered as a particular dynamic between complementary elements. These twin concepts of yin and yang are peculiar to Chinese cosmology and are often symbolized as two opposing elemental forces active in the universe. Yin exists in yang and yang also exists in yin. It is said that the principle of polarity can be found everywhere in the universe: above and below, heaven and earth, the visible and the invisible. It is this circumstance that allows for movement, expansion and perpetual change with all "things" remaining flexible.
Generally Yin is considered a feminine principle associated with earth, and a force that materializes things, completing, solidifying, organizing the material aspect, conservative, passivity, dark, winter, absorbing, soft, cold, negative. Yang is considered a masculine principle associated with heaven, and a force that is active, initiating, moving, loosening, expanding, and changing what is already in existence, light, sun, summer, fiery, powerful.
There is no good or bad associated with the Tao when considering the laws of yin-yang, it is only the representation of opposite positions. The symbol for yin-yang shows a balance between opposites and portrays the fact that there is no masculine nature or feminine nature. Each is naturally contained in the other. Both powers are represented in one cycle and are held together in a rhythmic flow as two mutually interdependent parts of the whole.
Within the context of the second principle of the Tao there are five points to consider when reviewing the law governing Yin and Yang. One is that everything has two opposing aspects that struggle with and control each other. Secondly, that Yin and Yang also define each other and therefore cannot exist entirely without the other. Thirdly, each affords access to the other to nurture and nourish the other. Fourthly, each can transform and, in a sense become the other. And fifthly, there is a little of each quality in the other, which accounts for the ability of everything to be subdivided ad infinitum.
4. Design Revisited
First we need to re-examine the definition of design, where we discover that the origin of the word stems from the Latin meaning "to mark, mark out", or more specifically to "sign". Design’s primary definition has to do with the art of signing and in essence, the act of creating symbols. Further definitions describe the act of design as being an expression of purposeful planning, conceiving, drawing, mental projection, devising, modeling, etc. These are expressions of design, i.e. communicable events, which are themselves symbolic in character. Design encompasses and gives precedence to the process of symbolic interpretation by which we objectively and subjectively perceive and experience Life as it is presented to us. Design attempts to reveal the underlying meaning and purpose in support of the forms that accompany us in our personal Life journey.
4.1 Yang’s Purpose and Yin’s Meaning
When we begin to apply the Taoist classifications of yang, it should be interpreted as being purposeful, primarily non-material, in essence, infinite and active ... all which brings about change, illumination, and what might be considered mental in character.
Yin should be regarded as a presence which appears meaningful, concrete, solid, finite, conforming, stable and somewhat "material" in essence. When together they perpetuate movement and change. In design, change is one perspective and symbolic interpretation brought together and forward by both mental and emotional impressions, i.e. characteristics, to which we are attached and observe.
First we need to re-examine the definition of design, where we discover that the origin of the word stems from the Latin meaning "to mark, mark out", or more specifically to "sign". Design’s primary definition has to do with the art of signing and in essence, the act of creating symbols. Further definitions describe the act of design as being an expression of purposeful planning, conceiving, drawing, mental projection, devising, modeling, etc. These are expressions of design, i.e. communicable events, which are themselves symbolic in character. Design encompasses and gives precedence to the process of symbolic interpretation by which we objectively and subjectively perceive and experience Life as it is presented to us. Design attempts to reveal the underlying meaning and purpose in support of the forms that accompany us in our personal Life journey.
4.1 Yang’s Purpose and Yin’s Meaning
When we begin to apply the Taoist classifications of yang, it should be interpreted as being purposeful, primarily non-material, in essence, infinite and active ... all which brings about change, illumination, and what might be considered mental in character.
Yin should be regarded as a presence which appears meaningful, concrete, solid, finite, conforming, stable and somewhat "material" in essence. When together they perpetuate movement and change. In design, change is one perspective and symbolic interpretation brought together and forward by both mental and emotional impressions, i.e. characteristics, to which we are attached and observe.
Meaning and purpose struggle with, and sometimes control each other. Similarly, our mind struggles with our emotions in knowing the right thing to do can be in conflict with what we feel in our hearts. Likewise, meaning and purpose cannot exist without each other. Our mind cannot function without an emotional counterpart qualifying every thought. In addition, meaning and purpose give of each other to nourish each other. The mind feeds our emotions while our emotions willingly offer food for thought.
Over time we may begin to recognize this kinship as our mind follows the flow of thought, making its transition between the realities of meaning and purpose. Suddenly what was once meaningful has purpose and what had purpose is now meaningful. Through design meaning and purpose often become the other.
There is always a bit of meaning in purpose and purpose in meaning, which is a relationship demonstrated in each form. Meaning and purpose can be subdivided ad infinitum into every form that constitutes the universe. Meaning and purpose are powerful tools that can be used in the analysis and understanding of Design’s close relationship with the Tao.
5. Oullim: The Emerging Paradigm?
Oullim describes the cooperative energy that emerges from the source, i.e. the Tao. Taoism states that all Life’s forces tend to move towards Oullim, i.e. harmony, and that it is based upon the dynamic relationship created between yin and yang. Oullim is always adjusting to the shifting flow of the universe and describes the natural and spontaneous process of balancing, which is always changing.
Everything is always balancing within itself. Balancing is a process that attempts to restore harmony in every instant. Each change creates an imbalance, which will likewise initiate a challenge to awareness. This conflict could also lead to yet greater harmony.
In design, harmony brings about a balance between meaning and purpose. Simultaneously, meaning and purpose nourish each other in a fashion that leads towards a fuller understanding of Oullim. This is a natural and harmonious dynamic that emerges between thought, emotion, feeling and the Tao.
Meaning and purpose are the active participants in an ever-present reciprocity towards greater and greater harmony. The relationship deepens awareness without confining understanding. The result is the development of an intuitive sense for being in the moment and making choices that allow us to integrate our own journey within the constraints of the Tao.
We are mental beings, and design is the symbol making process that represents thought. What each symbol means resonates to the frequency that that symbol will vibrate to in others. Forms, images, thoughts and emotions are not replications of experience, but symbolic representations – designs that bring meaning and purpose to the Tao and our relationship to it. The connective leaps between meaning and purpose illustrate the dynamics of design but are not design itself. Likewise, meaning and purpose are not the balance. Nor is the balance the Oneness of the Tao. Ironically, Oullum, cannot be found through our attempts to attain, explain or discover it. We only become entangled in the metaphoric tendency and limitations of language attempting to describe it.
Everything is contained within the nature of itself. Balance is felt and experienced as a "centering stillness", a natural force revealed from within the entangled parameters of meaning and purpose. The result ... a more encompassing awareness of a Design of our own making.
This is the same stillness of mind that Lao Tzu beckons us to experience. He urges us to seek clarity of mind, to be receptive, and to act upon the unseen influences that surround and symbolically emerge and appear before our consciousness by design.
A paradigm is a set of rules that we choose for the purpose of experiencing "reality". Oullim will become the paradigm of the future when design becomes duly recognized as the primordial facilitator of a conscious universe.
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Edited: 09.19.2016, 12.09.2016, 01.11.2017, 03.16.2018, 10.21.2019, 12.06.2019, 01.29.2020, 04.28.2025
The imagination and the intuition work in conjunction with each other. Together they open doors and
offer insights into dimensions veiled within the subconscious. Together
they bring a kind of formative awareness to a virtual field of energy, light and information, i.e. the universe. Design is the catalyst for the transmutation and transformation of these unseen agents.
