An epiphany is an experience of sudden and striking realization.
Generally the term is used to describe scientific breakthrough, religious or philosophical discoveries,
but it can apply in any situation in which an enlightening realization allows a problem
or situation to be understood from a new and deeper perspective.
Epiphanies are studied by psychologists and other scholars, particularly those attempting
to study the process of innovation.
Epiphanies are relatively rare occurrences and generally follow a process of significant
thought about a problem.
Often they are triggered by a new and key piece of information, but importantly, a depth
of prior knowledge is required to allow the leap of understanding.
Famous epiphanies include Archimedes's discovery of a method to determine the density of an
object and Isaac Newton's realization that a falling apple and the orbiting moon are
both pulled by the same force.
History The word epiphany originally referred to insight
through the divine.
Today, this concept is used much more often and without such connotations, but a popular
implication remains that the epiphany is supernatural, as the discovery seems to come suddenly from
the outside.
The word's secular usage may owe some of its popularity to James Joyce, who expounded on
its meaning in the fragment Stephen Hero and the novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young
Man.
Referring to those times in his life when something became manifest, a deep realization,
he would then attempt to write this epiphanic realization in a fragment.
Joyce also used epiphany as a literary device within each short story of his collection
Dubliners as his protagonists came to sudden recognitions that changed their view of themselves
or their social condition and often sparking a reversal or change of heart.
For the philosopher Emmanuel Lévinas, epiphany or a manifestation of the divine is seen in
another's face.
In traditional and pre-modern cultures, initiation rites and mystery religions have served as
vehicles of epiphany, as well as the arts.
The Greek dramatists and poets would, in the ideal, induct the audience into states of
catharsis or kenosis, respectively.
In modern times an epiphany lies behind the title of William Burroughs' Naked Lunch, a
drug-influenced state, as Burroughs explained, "a frozen moment when everyone sees what is
at the end of the fork."
Both the Dadaist Marcel Duchamp and the Pop Artist Andy Warhol would invert expectations
by presenting commonplace objects or graphics as works of fine art, simply by presenting
them in a way no one had thought to do before; the result was intended to induce an epiphany
of "what art is" or is not.
Process Despite its popular image, epiphany is the
result of significant work on the part of the discoverer, and is only the satisfying
result of a long process.
The surprising and fulfilling feeling of epiphany is so surprising because one cannot predict
when one's labor will bear fruit, and our subconscious can play a significant part in
delivering the solution; and is fulfilling because it is a reward for a long period of
effort.
Myth A common myth predicts that most if not all
innovation occur through epiphanies.
Not all innovations occur through epiphanies; Scott Berkun notes that "the most useful way
to think of an epiphany is as an occasional bonus of working on tough problems".
Most innovations occur without epiphany, and epiphanies often contribute little towards
finding the next one.
Crucially, epiphany cannot be predicted, or controlled.
Although epiphanies are only a rare occurrence, crowning a process of significant labor, there
is a common myth that epiphanies of sudden comprehension are commonly responsible for
leaps in technology and the sciences.
Famous epiphanies include Archimedes' realization of how to estimate the volume of a given mass,
which inspired him to shout "Eureka!".
The biographies of many mathematicians and scientists include an epiphanic episode early
in the career, the ramifications of which were worked out in detail over the following
years.
For example, allegedly Albert Einstein was struck as a young child by being given a compass,
and realizing that some unseen force in space was making it move.
A similar flash of holistic understanding in a prepared mind was said to give Charles
Darwin his "hunch" during The Voyage of the Beagle.
Another famous epiphany myth is associated with Isaac Newton's apple story.
Though such epiphanies might have occurred, they were almost certainly the result of long
and intensive periods of study those individuals have undertaken, not a sudden, out-of-the-blue,
flash of inspiration on an issue they have not thought about previously.
Epiphanies can be distinguished by a vision, as epiphanies are often triggered by irrelevant
incidents or objects.
In religion
In Christianity, the Epiphany refers to a realization that Christ is the son of God.
Western churches generally celebrate the Visit of the Magi as the revelation of the Incarnation
of the infant Christ, and commemorate the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6.
Traditionally, Eastern churches celebrated Epiphany in conjunction with Christ's baptism
by John the Baptist and celebrated it on January 19; however, many have begun to adopt the
Western custom of celebrating it on January 6, the twelfth day of Christmas.
Protestant churches often celebrate Epiphany as a season, extending from the last day of
Christmas until Ash Wednesday.
In more general terms, the phrase "religious epiphany" is used when a person realizes his
faith, or when he is convinced that an event or happening was really caused by a deity
or being of his faith.
In Hinduism, for example, epiphany might refer to Arjuna's realization that Krishna is indeed
representing the Universe.
The Hindu term for epiphany would be bodhodaya, from Sanskrit bodha 'wisdom' and udaya 'rising'.
Or in Buddhism, the term might refer to the Buddha finally realizing the nature of the
universe, and thus attaining Nirvana.
The Zen term kensho also describes this moment, referring to the feeling attendant on realizing
the answer to a koan.
See also Anagnorisis
Eureka effect Gnosis
Hierophany Lateral thinking
Peripeteia Satori
Theophany Apophenia
References