The Dynamics of Unity and Wholeness
While the concept of unity and the notion of wholeness both strive to describe the integral relationship among parts, they imply different aspects of this unity. Unity is understood as an integral result—a synthesis of diversity—in which each component loses its individual character when strictly separated. As noted in one of the sources:"Any unity of diversity, as unity, thus has its own special meaning, which is lost when it is deconstructed into parts and sequentially reassembled from them, much like how a chemical mixture has qualities different not only from the qualities of each of its elements in isolation but also different from those of all of them together." (source: link txt)Here, the emphasis is that unity is not simply the sum of individual elements, but a qualitatively new result of their integration that disappears when the parts are considered separately.On the other hand, the concept of wholeness addresses the inherent, internal completeness and indivisibility of an object or phenomenon. Wholeness is linked to the notion of organic health and the fullness of life forces, which can be illustrated with the following definition:"The word 'καλός', which we cited, is derived (from the same root as) the Russian word 'целый' ('whole'), but by itself does not denote wholeness. Essentially, this word meant 'healthy' in the sense of having full life forces, those forces that sustain the organism." (source: link txt)Thus, the concept of unity emphasizes the process of integrating multiple elements—a process that results in a new quality that cannot be reduced back to the original parts—while the notion of wholeness characterizes a state of stable, organized completeness in which all parts exist in harmonious and functional unity. The difference lies in unity emphasizing the dynamic process of formation and integration, whereas wholeness signifies a state of organic, indivisible completeness.