I have a huge, multi-year project ahead of me that both excites me and makes me a little nervous.
This task involves creating a Zettelkasten for sanctuary.
What is a Zettelkasten, you said? I’m so relieved that you asked.
A Zettelkasten, literally translated from German, is “slip box” - a box where one would keep note cards or paper slips. German sociologist Niklas Luhmann created a system using a slip box and thousands of paper slips to record and (more importantly) to connect the thousands of thoughts and ideas discovered in the course of an entire career of reading and researching. It worked very well for him: he authored over 70 books, wrote almost 400 scholarly articles, and is considered one of the most important social theorists of the 20th century.
These days we can do it with a computer rather than cases of paper slips, but the idea is the same.
Imagine how powerful such a tool would be for the purpose of exploring everything written on the interaction between the built environment and the human spirit.
So much is written about this energetic alchemy, but it is locked in theoretical philosophical treatises, dry academic papers, and dusty translations of ancient manuscripts. Imagine having all of this thought in one place, where each can be traced across the millennia and across continents and connected freely with related thoughts - that’s where magic happens.
Creativity is often discussed as a new connection between two previously existing ideas. Viewed like this, a sanctuary Zettelkasten might well be the most creative project I have ever undertaken.
My very best,
Philip
PS: you can read an English translation of Niklas Leumann’s own description of how he used his Zettelkasten here.
Jumping up and down over here. I cannot WAIT for this.