"I am, because we are"

So thinking a little deeper into this oscillation between the concepts of the individual paradigm and the relational paradigm, the article I was reading goes on to say that for some people the self doesn’t exist as a separate entity that can be studied on its own. Now that I can agree with!

For me the self only comes into focus through the lens of the relationships it is embedded in. And likewise the relationship only comes into focus through the lens and co-creation of the individuals – back to two sides of the same coin!

I think Africa captures that exactly in a proverb saying: 

‘I am, because we are.’ This is a fundamental philosophy of African Ubuntu.