Standalone Essays · Sojournism
Grasping the Ideal in Sojournism
The Ideal, the heart of Sojournism’s secular philosophy, is a mental blueprint of the “best” way to live — guiding actions, interactions, and pursuits like building a house or fostering community. The Ideal isn’t physical; it exists in the mind as a perfect archetype we strive toward, knowing we’ll never fully reach it. Yet this pursuit of “better” is the point, fueling growth and ethical decision-making.
Like Plato’s Forms, but evolving
Think of the Ideal as similar to Plato’s Forms — perfect, timeless concepts like the ultimate “chair” or “justice” that exist beyond the physical world. In Sojournism, the Ideal is a mental model of perfection for every action, object, or quality. Unlike Plato’s static Forms, the Ideal is dynamic, evolving with our knowledge and experience, reflecting a world in constant flux.
Like the Tao, but secular
The Ideal echoes the Tao’s “Way” — a path to harmony through continuous improvement, like a chef refining a recipe. Unlike the Tao’s mystical essence, the Ideal is secular, grounded in reason and instinct, focused on ethical behavior.
Common ground and key differences
All three frameworks — the Ideal, Plato’s Forms, and the Tao — offer paths toward a better life by emphasizing order and virtue. But they differ in important ways.
The Ideal and the Tao are dynamic and flowing, adapting to change and progress: when crafting a table, you envision the Ideal table, flawless in design and function, and the table you build falls short due to imperfect materials or skill, but each attempt brings you closer. Plato’s Forms, by contrast, are static, eternal, and unchanging.
The Ideal blends both rational understanding and intuitive, moment-to-moment feeling. Plato’s Forms demand rational inquiry and intellect to be understood. The Tao emphasizes intuitive flow and spontaneity over analytical reason.
The Ideal is secular, viewing the framework as a powerful mental construct that connects things within our universe. Plato’s Forms are transcendent, existing in a separate, perfect realm apart from our flawed world. The Tao is non-dual, uniting all things and apparent opposites within the natural universe.
The Ideal views perfection as a process — an exhilarating, ever-moving goal that inspires a continuous chase for improvement. Plato’s Forms represent a state of absolute, unattainable perfection to be contemplated. The Tao finds perfection in naturalness itself, embracing imperfections as part of the whole.
The Ideal in action
The Ideal shapes everyday decisions by acting as a dynamic blueprint for excellence, guiding Sojourners beyond rigid rules. Imagine a manager addressing a workplace dispute: the Ideal prompts her to envision a just outcome, balancing fairness, empathy, and resolution, rather than blindly applying a policy. Her decision may not be perfect, but each attempt refines her sense of justice.
Similarly, when choosing honesty, the Ideal goes beyond avoiding lies. It pushes for a compassionate truth, like gently addressing a friend’s mistake in a way that fosters growth. Facing rising neighborhood crime, a Sojourner officer, guided by the Ideal, asks what is driving this — and might design a community outreach program to mentor youth, or address economic hardship, preventing crime while protecting citizens.
Every moral choice becomes a step toward a better, more refined way of being, aligning with the Ideal’s call to strive for excellence while embracing the journey. For an individual seeking greater patience, the Ideal guides them to envision a calm, composed self, refining their responses during a heated family argument, step by step.
In essence, the Ideal is a living, evolving guide — a beacon for Sojourners to navigate life’s complexities with purpose, always reaching for excellence while embracing the journey. Striving for an ideal, even one that seems unattainable, is a fundamental catalyst for growth and achievement. It establishes a “North Star” that provides direction, clarifies purpose, and pulls us forward, ensuring our efforts are aimed at a meaningful summit rather than scattered across the plains of mediocrity.
Objections
But isn’t chasing an unattainable ideal inherently discouraging? If we can never reach the goal, won’t that lead to inevitable frustration and a sense of failure? This concern mistakes the purpose of an ideal. The primary value is not in its final attainment, but in the caliber of the journey it inspires. The ideal is a compass, not a destination. Success is measured not by arriving at an impossible endpoint, but by the distance traveled and the personal growth achieved along the way. The runner striving for a world record may not achieve it but gains strength and discipline, proving the chase itself is transformative.
Doesn’t this mindset lead to constant dissatisfaction? On the contrary, the gap between our reality and our ideal can be a profound source of humility and motivation, rather than inadequacy. It prevents the stagnation that comes from complacency and arrogance. Seeing the ideal ahead of us fosters a healthy recognition that there is always more to learn and room to improve.
Isn’t it an inefficient use of time to pursue something you know you cannot catch? This overlooks the focusing power of a grand ideal. By providing a unifying purpose, an ideal helps us prioritize our actions and make coherent decisions, filtering out distractions and lesser goals. The architect striving for the “perfect” building may never achieve it, but the relentless pursuit of that ideal ensures every blueprint, every calculation, and every choice of material is made with the highest degree of excellence in mind.
For societies, can’t chasing grand ideals lead to dangerously unrealistic policies? The danger lies not in pursuing grand ideals but in enforcing rigid, dogmatic utopias. A true societal ideal is a guiding standard, not a fixed policy, offering a moral compass to critique the status quo and chart progress. Totalitarian failures stem from inflexible ideologies, not aspirational principles. The ideal that “all are created equal,” though far from eighteenth-century America’s reality, gave abolitionists and civil rights activists moral leverage to drive transformative change.
Ultimately, chasing an unattainable ideal is not about grasping perfection but about embracing a journey that sharpens our focus, fuels our growth, and lifts us — individually and collectively — toward a brighter, more purposeful horizon.