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On the Way to Ithaca: The Somatic Flow of Existence, Pleasure, and Meaning

Mind and Behavior
Ejder Atlas Akmaner Author: Ejder Atlas Akmaner
5 minreading time
On the Way to Ithaca: The Somatic Flow of Existence, Pleasure, and Meaning

Meaning is not an abstract concept suspended in a void. It is a living potential waiting to be discovered in an encounter, a glance, the touch of skin, or a silence. As Elisabeth Lukas emphasizes, meaning is not a tower constructed mentally, but a path already existing within life. Walking this path, the interaction established with another consciousness is not merely an external point of contact. Rather, this contact is a somatic excavation into our own inner depths and shared existence. When the interaction between two beings transcends the superficial words, the silent yet powerful frequency of meaning begins to be heard.

The bond established with another contains an existential alchemy that dissolves the duality between "I" and "they." Deepening in this interaction is not about seeing the other person as an object, a means of satisfying a need, or a social accessory. It is about reading them as a subject carrying one of life's hidden layers of meaning. Here, pleasure is not a reward at the end of the interaction or a targeted climax. Pleasure is a natural, spontaneous echo of that moment when two beings discover their own truth in each other's uniqueness. When meaning is discovered, pleasure spontaneously follows it like a shadow; that is, there is no need to forcibly summon it.

The Ethics of the Gaze: Aesthetic Curiosity from Theory to Practice

In the chaos of everyday life, the turning of attention to another body or "beauty" is often simplified as merely a biological impulse or a shallow aesthetic preference. In Lukas's logotherapy perspective, that initial "aesthetic curiosity" directed towards someone, if it remains only at the level of objectification, pushes the individual into a deep existential void after a momentary gratification. Here, the gap between theory and practice widens, and the individual, while speaking of "wholeness," becomes a "fragmenting" consumer in action. The way to translate theoretical knowledge into action is to preserve the respect and admiration within that gaze by purifying it from a desire for "possession."

When one turns towards the existence of another, one actually experiences reverence for one of the infinite forms of life. At this point, "looking" is not an act of consumption or a hunting process. It is a state of admiration for the aesthetic fabric of life. When the gaze transforms into an act that honors the existence of the other, instead of enslaving them according to our own desires, theory and practice unite in a single breath. This is not about constructing meaning, but about recognizing its already existing brilliance.

The Domination of Image and the Loss of Self-Control

In modern interaction practices, this aesthetic reverence is often replaced by a state of "being overwhelmed by images." Shallow descriptions of "handsomeness" or "beauty" in everyday language position the individual merely as a social label or status symbol. Reductionist approaches such as "Wow, that guy was so handsome" or "That's exactly my type of profile" are the moment when the subject is swallowed up by the images they have created for themselves. At this point, instead of discovering the authentic existence of another, the person imposes ready-made templates in their mind onto that person. This is about not seeing the other person, but only consuming a reflection in one's own mind.

This process is the loss of self-control. Becoming a passive imitator of one's own impulses and societal pressures, the individual is no longer free will. They become a slave to images. Here, pleasure ceases to be an echo of meaning and becomes a tool for social "show." To code another person as merely an object of spectacle is to sacrifice the deep potential for meaning that moment might hold to momentary social approval or false joy. Every "show" performed for society, every "performance" driven by the urgency to gain external approval, is a compromise made by the individual from their own inner center of meaning. The mind, under the dominion of images, becomes unable to hear the silence of meaning and, constantly seeking higher doses of visual/sensory pleasure, becomes trapped in an existential spiral.

A Continuous Flow in Ithaca and Varsak

Kavafis's Ithaca reminds us that pleasure and meaning are not separate poles, but rather different facets of a single journey. Luke's principle of "pleasure as a byproduct of meaning" is like those rare perfumes and jewels gleaned from the Phoenician markets on the journey to Ithaca. You don't chase after those scents. You walk your path honestly, consciously, and with a meaningful purpose. That beautiful fragrance then spontaneously fills your lungs, like a gift.

When we consider the relationship between meaning and pleasure from a non-dual perspective, neither is pleasure superior to meaning, nor is meaning a cold discipline that excludes pleasure. Theory and practice are a whole, just like breathing in and out. Resisting the noise of images in every interaction of life, preserving that "pure meaning" within the gaze, and maintaining self-control, transforms pleasure from an "end" into the most faithful "companion." Unlike those who surrender to the illusion of images, the person who remains centered finds pleasure not in a momentary flash of brilliance.

Meaning is found in the depth of every step of the journey. The only truth to be understood upon arriving in Ithaca is this: Meaning is not a treasure awaiting us at the end of the road; it is the very way we walk that path, with the courage to transcend images. Meaning is revealed in the depth of the person we are communicating with. When we turn toward discovering the potential for meaning within the person we encounter, without succumbing to images, we simultaneously bridge the gap to our own true potential.

Kaynakça

  • Batthyány, A. (2023). Threshold: Terminal Lucidity and the Border Between Life and Death. St. Martin’s Essentials.
  • Cavafy, C. P. (1992). C. P. Cavafy: Collected Poems (E. Keeley & P. Sherrard, Trans.; G. Savidis, Ed., Rev. ed.). Princeton University Press.
  • Lukas, E. (2020). Meaningful Living: A Logotherapy Book. Logotherapy Press.
  • Wong, P. T. P. (Ed.). (2012). The Human Quest for Meaning: Theories, Research, and Applications. Routledge.
Ejder Atlas Akmaner Ejder Atlas Akmaner
Ejder Atlas Akmaner is an interdisciplinary writer, Logotherapist and Existential Analyst, as well as a Somatic Meaning Guide. Akmaner holds two undergraduate degrees, in Archaeology and Philosophy, and completed a thesis-based postgraduate degree in Comparative Literature. Akmaner also holds an associate degree in Marketing and chose to leave an associate degree programme in Laboratory and Veterinary Health on ethical grounds. In addition, Akmaner has completed certified training in psychology and related fields through a range of international institutions and universities, as well as advanced training in Logotherapy and Existential Analysis accredited by the Viktor Frankl Institute. Drawing on diverse fields of science and art, Akmaner developed the Somatic Meaning Guidance approach, which explores meaning across mental, bodily and relational dimensions. While grounded primarily in Logotherapy and Existential Analysis, the approach also draws on somatic practices including fascia-sensitive yoga, mindfulness and breathwork. Somatic Meaning Guidance understands established patterns of thought, behaviour and relating not as fixed structures, but as processes that can be reshaped through awareness, experience and new learning. Scientific findings on neuroplasticity and the nervous system’s capacity for experience- and learning-dependent change provide one of the scientific foundations for this understanding of transformation. Akmaner carries out this work under the independent brand Ejderhane. Akmaner is also a Dynamic Ving Tshun practitioner. Direct embodied experience within this discipline — including contact, distance, centre, orientation, balance, boundaries and response — is incorporated into training and explored through the perspective of Somatic Meaning Guidance. In writing and creative practice, Akmaner uses worldbuilding, myth, narrative, symbolic systems and poetic expression as tools for exploring psychological and existential meaning. Through different narrative and conceptual models, Akmaner examines identity, relationships, values, culture, transformation and the search for meaning. Akmaner also develops public-facing work through the Atlas of Meaning and İletişim Çıkmazları (Communication Impasses) series, as well as the podcast series Bedenin Bildiği Anlam (The Meaning the Body Knows). Across these projects, Akmaner explores how language, historical concepts, social categories, boundaries, interpersonal patterns and embodied experience shape the lives of sentient beings, while also examining the possibilities for change that can emerge within these patterns. Through an academic connection with the University of Iceland, Akmaner remains open to developing this interdisciplinary work within an international academic setting. Alongside independent fieldwork, training, creative practice and applied work, Akmaner also writes for Psychology Times.