The Summer University of Ontopsychology (Ontopsicologia), dedicated to the subject of Ontological knowledge and consciousness, was held from 10 to 19 August 2007.
What is the existing relationship between knowledge and consciousness? And what does ontological knowledge mean?
The error that compromises our critical knowledge is not in the nature of intellective and volitive faculties – according to the recently-published Conoscenza ontologica e coscienza (Ontological knowledge and consciousness).
Those same pages describe ontological knowledge as knowledge possessing reversibility with the real, namely knowledge where the idea and the image reflected in consciousness correspond to the reality of things as they really are.
And so it is natural to wonder what is reality and what is truth. Truth is the thing as is, as has been explained during the series of seminars. And the point is that we do not see the real, but the images of reality reflected in the mirror of our consciousness. During his early research, Meneghetti asked himself: do these images that we reflect correspond to reality or not? Although this was a very simple question, no one asked it before. But that’s not all. He continued with his research and discovered that error lies exactly in the reflexive process, in the conquest and determination of consciousness, due to the deflection monitor. Once consciousness is corrected, philosophy and science become the necessary references in the path toward reality and evolution.
This was a subject of great interest for the over 400 members of the audience, who came from every corner of the world (Italy, Brazil, Russia, Germany and Baltic States) to attend the ten-day international conference made in collaboration with the International Association of Ontopsychology1, the Brazilian Association of Ontopsychology, the Slavonic Association of Ontopsychology and the F.O.I.L., under the auspices of the Umbria Region and the Senate of the Italian Republic.
The local press showed its interest in the subject, with articles published on 7 and 18 August in the Giornale dell’Umbria where the philosophy that Antonio Meneghetti spoke about was defined as the foundation or episteme of any rational form of research.
Therefore, man stands at the centre of the problem of knowledge. In fact, during the conference the problem of knowledge was faced along with that of the exactness of man, in particular the exactness of the scientist, since he is responsible for conveying knowledge.
The Umbria region hosted the event. Representing Umbria and Italy there were many personalities linked to the world of politics, including Senator Franco Asciutti and the Hon. Luciano Rossi, representing the Chamber of Deputies. During the inauguration of the conference, a tribute to Europe arrived from the neighbouring Russia, with a performance by the singer Natalia Rojdestvenskaia who sang the European and Russian anthems. Another tribute arrived from the many Brazilian participants in the event, who sang out their national anthem from their seats.
As Dr. Victoria Dmitrieva underlined during her opening speech: “Russia is among the first countries to have institutionalized the important scientific research of Antonio Meneghetti, recognizing his merits as intellectual researcher and scholar of authentic humanism”, founding the Ontopsychology Department within the Psychology Faculty of the Saint Petersburg State University.
“We are all a part of a great project, accomplished and created by the philosopher Antonio Meneghetti”, affirmed Dr. Argenta who made his tribute during his speech in representation of Brazil. “His science reawakens the hidden genius that lies within every human being and that, through his deeds, becomes a co-participant in Being. It is a great honour for Brazil to be present in this international event of great wisdom and humanism”.
And Italy also offered its testimony through its highest academic institute. “We wish the Summer University of Ontopsychology a good working session, as it inaugurates its course of “Ontological Knowledge and Consciousness”.
So recited the message of good wishes by Prof. Paolo De Nardis, Director of the 1st Sociology Chair in the Sociology Faculty of the La Sapienza University of Rome, which is the largest university in Europe. “I wish to personally greet Prof. Antonio Meneghetti, who is always in tune with his ethical tension as a scholar and clinician of the human soul. I wish him a rewarding collaboration with the advanced course of the Sociology Chair, with our Faculty and with La Sapienza University.”
Amongst the authorities present, Hanifa Mezoui (Chief, NGO Section, Dept. of Economic & Social Affairs, U.N.) attended the same event and participated, amongst other things, in the award of the Baccalaureate Diplomas in Psychology and the Postgraduate Diplomas in Ontopsychology to Italian and Brazilian students of the October 2006 degree session held in the Saint Petersburg University. Professor Meneghetti presented a painting to the U.N. and to the Council on the forthcoming theoretical unity conference, which envisages the participation of the world’s most important religious representatives.
Christ, Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius and Moses are depicted upon the canvas, seated around a table set with fruit, bread and goblets of wine. At the centre of the tablecloth stands the image of Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. Meneghetti defines them as the most representative figures of humanism: “great men that humanity still honours, who were concerned about mankind”. Facing one another around a laden table, “the symbol of biological fullness and maturity. They do their best to understand man to their best capacity”. The invitation he addressed to the U.N. through this painting was that of “rediscovering man as a great project of life, the simple man, the man without myths.” Just as happened with Diogenes, who was said to walk about with a lantern looking for man; and as happened for Leonardo da Vinci, who with his intuition took a fresh look at man as depicted by Latin architect Vitruvius, in Umbria during the August session of the Summer University of Ontopsychology, man was at centre stage. That same man that every great genius in his own time wanted and still wants to investigate, understand and resolve.
1 Social Scientific Non-Governmental Organization in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. Headquarters: Rome, Moscow, Sao Paulo, Beijing.
