The ‘Four Winds’ take you on a journey of discovery in four rounds, around the colourful dialogue tablecloth, full of symbolism. These symbols enrich your conversation with mythological wisdom and intercultural perspectives.
The playful materials help to visualise what is at stake on a quest: “What does your issue look like as a journey? What mythical creatures and animals will you meet along the way? What other questions become relevant when you look at the issue from others perspectives?” A multidimensional approach is enhanced by means of philosophical and intercultural sayings on the playing cards. In the fourth and final circle, the four basic colours green, blue, yellow, and red in the
creative excersise in-between the dialogue
four quadrants, symbolise the reaping of concluding visions from the conversations in the four rounds. With a Quintessence drop, you unroll the dialogue as a journey across the dialogue tablecloth: this symbolic act helps to imagine the essence of the exploration of the issue at stake and to express this in a poetic form
Dialogue as an art: listening, asking questions and answering authentically
Playing Guide Four Winds
Through a dialogue guide, you explore a challenging issue as group of friends, family or team, or, each individual can investigate their own question with the group.
Depending on the size of the group (2 to 8 players), the game will be completed in two hours, half a day or a full day.
In four rounds of dialogue ― visible as the four circles on the dialogue tablecloth ― participants move from the outside in, to the inner circle in which the Four Winds are depicted.
Images tell a story
Butterfly, Scorpion, Fenix
The colours on the dialogue table refer to the four elements earth, water, air and fire. These are connected in the game with a basic symbol, which opens a space for encounter, such as the eye as a ‘mirror of the soul’.
“I dreamed I was a butterfly… or am I a butterfly dreaming of being a human?”
Zhuang Zi (369-286 BCE)
The four rounds
Symbolic objects to enricht the dialogue
In the first round, the images (and rich objects) in the outer circle of the dialogue tablecloth invite participants to imagine the theme they want to investigate.
In the second round you are given one of the eight symbols for philosophical tools with intercultural perspectives: these represent qualities for the art of living to be able to deal with the issue more wisely.
In the third round, you roll the coloured dice and see which creature or animal you encounter in the mythical landscape on the dialogue tablecloth. How could the virtues and vices, as well as divine qualities that they embody, help you to realise the good life? Playing materials for a dialogue workshop
For the fourth round, the wind rose in the four elementary colours on the dialogue tablecloth visualizes the four cardinal directions, from which the harvest of the game might help to get the issue in the right direction. Participants describe their harvest from the dialogue on the Game Fill-in form as a quatrain.
Cards with intercultural perspectives, rich objects around the playful dialogue table.
Duration: 2 hours to one (half) day in a small group up to 8 players.
Plyaing Cards Four WindsDialogue Guide: explaining the game and the symbols
Playing Field:
1 Dialogue table cloth
Game attributes:
1 mirror;
1 key;
1 hourglass as rich object on the Dialogue table;
Small weights;
1 quintessence marble;
1 small talking stick;
1 hour glass
Dialogue Tablecloth with symbolic objectsPlaying Cards:
8 Philosophical Tools with Western perspectives
8 Philosophical Tools with intercultural perspectives
Fill-in forms:
Double sided with instructions for writing a quatrain
Playfulness creates space for establishing meaningful connections between people, which fosters encounters that both entertain, educate and stimulate the participants: by letting go of our compulsion of norms, codes and traditionally learned frameworks and allowing a new interplay to arise in the in-between space…. Feeling free to explore different perspectives together and to agree on appropriate rules for what is at stake.
The Quest for Wisdom foundation has created the Wheel of the Intercultural Art of Living, on which the game Amor Fati elaborates, enhancing Global Citizenship. The book with the same title explains the board game as well as the philosophy of the Wheel as the intercultural art of living. Lecturer Michiel de Ronde says about this book:
“I see your work as a great reassessment, also revaluation, of the pre-modern world orientation. All those profound insights and life-creating practices that were often worshipped or cursed through hierarchical dominance, you present within a depth perspective of an endless horizontal mythic-human field, through which the world can become a home for all beings and people can meet on the basis of dialogue and appreciation.”
NL/EN, 2024, ISBN 978 90 441 3970 9
Also the bilingual Dialogue Tables Four Winds (De Vier Winden) is developed to enhance an open cosmopolitan culture as global citizens. The Adinkra-game consists of a set of cards with Akan symbols and proverbs, ordered according to the wisdom of the five elements earth, water, air, fire and ether — in a way that the Ghanaian elemental wisdom might be compared to European visions on the natural elements.
There are more World Games and teaching modules (to be) developed, in which intercultural perspectives are playfully and dialogically incorporated.
One hundred percent of the money raised by the sale of all of the products will be used in realising our upcoming QfWf educational projects, all of which are non-profit and run by volunteers.
“It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us — onze diepste angst is dat we buitenmatig krachtig zijn. Het is ons licht niet onze duisternis die ons het meest bang maakt…” — Marianne Williamson in: A Return to Love.
“Let freedom reign. The sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement!” — Nelson Mandela, 1994.
Leidschendammer Lounge Meeting
Each year the Quest for Wisdom organizes Circles to cocreate an intercultural programme on an annually changing theme of social relevance, to be presented bij the Soul Circle on the Annual Meeting Day. The wider QfWf-Circle is invited to contribute with blogs, essays and artistic materials to be published on the Golden Ratio website as well as in a Golden Ratio Yearbook, thus making on a small scale the QfWf-World Dream come true. In 2024 the theme “Global Citizenship” was documented in Amor Mundi and in 2025 Amor Fati, highlights the cocreative and playful way how the QfWf realizes its vision of the Wheel of the Intercultural Art of Living for an inclusive cosmopolitan culture, in which all people may feel at home and in harmony with all living beings:
“Global Citizenship is open communication between people, without being judgemental.
Respectful to each other, acknowledging that however different we are, we can stay connected, and are able to share!”
A world dream emerges when we start dreaming together. By sowing seeds of love in our own circles — instead of going along with reflexes of indifference, aggression and fear — so that a smile elicits laughter, warmth is answered with embracing. How valuable are the differences between people to create a meaningful world and to make (working) life more colourful and fascinating — whith people developing an eye for (inner) beauty. How beneficial when people are opening up so that en open space between people creates an inclusive society.
World Citizenship – Nour Kayali
A world we dream of is created by dreaming. By not forgetting our ‘childishly naive’ way to be open and confident. And let us not forget that the most beautiful things are born from our hopes and dreams. The most beautiful dreams and positive emotions empower ourselves as communities, by an ethos that reaches to the stars and can change the world – these dreams begin with powerful dreamers like Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King. Like John Lennon sings “I’m a dreamer and I’m not the only one…”. Let’s start dreaming together about a world where each can find shelter and people around to feel at home, by starting small actions in our own circles so that our world-dream-power comes alive. With small steps that are big and loving deeds that are contagious. Weaving threads of soft forces that connects us as global citizens and living beings on Mother Earth, flowing with the stream of life….
Platform for the QfWf yearly theme — Global Citizenship
QfWf-event on Global Citizenship
The QfWf has launched the digital platform De Gulden Snede in 2024 in order to present the development of the — by the Cultural Participation Funding honoured — project “Global Citizenship of the streat”: through different artistic media and channels the QfWf develops a yearly intercultural programme on a social relevant theme. In 2024 the QfWf-projectgroep created an artistic programme, to give voice to intercultural perspectives and an harmonizing view against the hardening migration policies by contrasting their own positive experiences of intercultural encounters. This was done in words, images and music, expressing the central idea and value of inclusion, embodied in a ceramic sculpture: the Rainbow Bird of Paradise with the Cosmic Egg.
Quo vadis: Becoming who you are
Hey you, being on two feet, wandering around the world … Dazedly dividing Mother Earth into mine and thine: Is this commandment of possession mayby theft and the greatest venom by which you have to prove with a document to be a human ‘citizen’ in order not to be treated as undocumented stranger and pariah?
Beyond the boundaries of the nation-state lies the cosmopolis: there, all beings-with-a-heart-that-can-bleed are welcomed and are asked for their names and stories, sitting around the fire with connecting scents, transcultural spices and honey wine in colourful company, where you as stranger and ‘other’ are welcomed.
World citizen where are you? As a fugitive from inner affairs in danger of losing the most precious thing, that is covered by status and power You split the world into friends and enemies, us and them, and your heart becomes hard – yet you feel a nomadic yearning for paradise with melancholy and sorrow.
Angela Gilds draagt voor in OBA Reigersbos
The 2025-theme is “Practices of Global Citizenship“, in which artists, philosophers and professionals highlight their practices and visions as global citizens through artistic expressions, blogs, podcasts and videos. The launching of the programme took place on Saturday afternoon, the 25th of January 2025, at the Amsterdam Public Library Reigersbos. With the reopening of the Amor Mundi travelling exhibition of artistic expressions on Global Citizenship, as well as the book presentation of Amor Fati! The QfWf-Soul Circle celebrated global citizenship with many stakeholders from the circles around the Quest for Wisdom foundation, together with visitors of the library: in presenting the QfWf-book with Playing Wisdom for the Cosmopolis the quintessence was stressed of seeing each other as humans instead of state(less) and (un)documented persons. Angela Gilds from the intercultural project group and the QfWf Editorial Board:
The indigenous Surinamese cultural group Wehpokamanong
“World citizenship is open communication between people without judgment. Dignity toward each other, knowing that no matter how different we are, we are in connection with each other and can share this feeling together. Getting to know each other, transferring knowledge and experience, recognizing and acknowledging each other’s qualities. Beautiful journey to undertake together.
Last year was a wonderful year with several workshops aimed at connecting with each other through the art of living. Yodeling, modeling, painting, word art, dance, singing. A rich experience that we will continue and pass on this year. Let your light shine. You are unique!”
Practices of World Citizenship will be highlighted with visual and musical expressions, philosophical and professional perspectives. Contributions for The Golden Ratio in 2025 are forthcoming by Angela Gilds, Chiquita and Michel Odjo Seymonsen, Erik Hoogcarspel, Giovanni Rizzuto, Greg Suffanti, Harm Jaap Hartmans, Mitra Muijen, Nivedita Yohana, Tycho Muijen, Wim van de Laar and more wisdom seekers from the QfWf circles.
Quest for Wisdom Foundation (QfWf) stimulates the Intercultural Art of Living in a Globalized World!
The QfWf wants to contribute to a culture of openness and to cultural diversity (inter-esse) by tapping into one’s own and shared historical intercultural roots and wisdom traditions.
The QfWf programs have been honored twice by a cultural fund:
Storytelling programma Animal Wisdom in 2020-2021
With a subsidy from Prins Bernard Cultuurfonds i.s.m. Fonds zuidoost, awarded in 2020, the QfWf has developed a storytelling-Project- around animal wisdom in storytelling traditions from the four corners of the world. The purpose of this program is to bring ancient wisdom into new forms for contemporary ears, which has led to the development of the website Animal Wisdom and the development of an Intercultural lesson for elementary education.
The “Global Citizenship of the streets” project in 2023-2024
Start of the project with world cafe dialogues – photo Marc Broens
With a subsidy from the Cultural Participation Fund, the QfWf has realized the “World Citizenship of the Street”-project in 2023-2024 in the form of a triptych in 3 phases. Reflecting on the history of slavery (phase 1) and collecting intercultural ingredients of collective and individueal dreams of global citizenship in images, music, dance, stories and other expressions of (inter)cultural heritage (phase 2) culminating in a social experiment with collaborating partner organizations (phase 3) for global citizenship. The result is an intercultural program with the wisdom and beauty from the four corners of the world.
The QfWf does this by using Art as a magic and collecting it as ingredients in book form, under the title Amor Fati and Amor Mundi, on a digital platform The Golden Ratio and in a co-creative programme; developed and implemented in collaboration with the Cultural Dream Weavers Foundation and the Curinesa Foundation, independent artists, and with the Wehpokamanong association, which preserves the cultural heritage of indigenous groups from Suriname in the Netherlands and passes it on to young generations. This culminated in a final event in the fall of 2024.
First there was the presentatation of Amor Mundi, the exhibition and the presentation of the QfWf-documentation book in the Pubic Library of Amsterdam (OBA) in Weesp on the 28th of September 2024. Especially the series of aquarelles of Greg Suffanti, in which the harsh (anti) migration policy is denounced and migrants are presented as persons like you and me and their human stories. Also Robin Stemerding, Nour Kayali en Louis van Marissing have contributed to the exhibition. Then the final event was organised on the 19th of October 2024 together with the residents of the Regenbooggroep, the organisation that gives shelter to migrants, refugies, homeless and people in need: sharing an intercultural programme with music, dance and sharing food from each others cultural kitches. A ceramic statue, made by Camile Smeets was presented: this Rainbow Paradise Bird with Cosmic Egg incorporates the world dreams of the intercultural project group. On the 25th of Januari 2025 the exhibition Amor Mundi was reopened in another OBA location, Reigersbos, together with the presentation of the book Amor Fati by giving previews of the seven chapters, in which life themes as world citizens are discussed and portrayed. Read more in Angela Gilds review on intercultural meetings.
The need for an intercultural art of living
Being able to deal effectively with our differences is a delicate matter in our current times.
The objective of the foundation calls for an intercultural art of living as developmental path of ‘the multicultural society’ and visualises its mission with the Wheel of the Intercultural Art of Living.
The QfWf sees Global Citizenship as the right answer facing the collective fear for strangers, migrants and ‘the others’. Instead of hatred and agression we follow dialogical and spiritual traditions, that see ‘otherness’ as a call for openness and inclusion.
The intercultural art of living is the ability to move as nomads between cultures and to be able to see the beauty of cultural differences. To enhance the art of living as world citizens the QfWf-Soul Circle organises every year around a social relevant theme an intercultural programme and presents this on its digital platform de gulden snede as well as by living encounters such as the yearly QfWf-Meeting Day.
Just like the beauty of the Golden Ratio in natural forms such as the rhythmical growth of leaves and snail shells, as well as in cultural expressions such as the principles how cathedrals are built and the musical harmony in chords.
This QfWf-vision and mission to contribute to a cosmopolic world order and culture of inclusion is the core of our
Quest for Wisdom, meandering along
Quest 1 — the Wisdom web with wisdom from all corners of the World and a digital platform to exchange ideas.
Dealing with differences has been raised as a social issue by Paul Scheffer, in his controversial article Het multicultural drama (2000). Before that, the international debate had been heated up by Samuel P. Huntington’s terrifying perspective on the Clash of Civilizations (1996). Since then, there has been a heated political debate in many lands with multicultural populations, and the social debate in the social media is getting louder and more troubled ….
The QfWf wants to play a role in tilting the debate
Diagram met de 17 duurzame ontwikkelingsdoelen
The QfWf wants to help turn the polarized debate about migration, refugees and religious strife from a problem for ‘political experts’, to a relevant issue for all of us, making an ethical appeal to everyone, from the current administration to our neighbours on the street.
How do we deal with, and how do we want to deal with ‘the strange other’?
That strange other can be the foreigner, the outcast, the fringe figure, the refugee and sometimes ourselves …
In order to tilt the debate, the QFWF sees it as a call to recalibrate the awareness of who ‘we’ are as citizens of the cosmopolis: nomads with intercultural identities.
These geopolitical landslides affect all of us as co-inhabitants of our shared planet Earth.
That is why the QFWF addresses this issue as a question, an ethical issue of a practical, social and political nature:
Museo Nazionale Archeologico di Taranto, Italië — foto Joke Koppius
How do we not exclude the other and the others ― the ‘stranger’, of a seemingly different nature ― but to see them as part of us, as ‘the strange other(s)’ in ourselves?How do we create growth inducing inter- and transcultural connections, instead of a divide and rule philosophy, us versus them mentality and an increasingly aggressive environment, as can be heard in the cry: “Who does not belong to ‘us’ (culture, race, religion, ethnicity) is against us …?”
By stimulating the recognition of the beauty of our differences and shared commonality, instead of a fear of ‘otherness’.
The world of the arts and (inter-)cultural expressions create space both in and between people and establish meaningful connections between cultures!
Creating inter- and transcultural connections
QfWf-event in the Library of Amterdam – photo Michel Odjo
The QfWf aims to collect artistic, philosophical and practical forms of cultural wisdom from East and West, North and South and to further develop them into useful forms that inform and inspire the intercultural art of living … so that people interact as willing players in an in-between space (as defined by Hannah Arendt) and also keep in touch with their core selves, so that we can fully develop and happily share our world with each other in a spirit of cooperation, openness and hospitality.
Hospitality, respect and openness and other shared values of humanity are what truly connect people as sisters and brothers ― open to a common playing field for all!
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the four rounds. With a Quintessence drop, you unroll the dialogue as a journey across the dialogue tablecloth: this symbolic act helps to imagine the essence of the exploration of the issue at stake and to express this in a poetic form
With a subsidy from 
