Journey In Being
ANIL MITRA © 2011
February 13, 2011. Revised March 28, 2011
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Contents
Stars mark essential content
[ All subsections of an essential chapter or section are essential ]
Preface 1
A Journey in Being* 2
The Fundamental Principle of Metaphysics 2
An Individual Journey in Being 3
The Universal Nature of the Journey 3
The Narrative 4
The Fundamental Principle and Related Developments 4
Metaphysics* 4
Definitions* 5
Experience, Existence, and Being 5
On Meaning* 9
Demonstration* 11
The Universal metaphysics and its ultimate character* 12
Intuition, Logic, and Categories 12
On Method 14
On substance and the problems of metaphysics 15
Applied Metaphysics* 16
The importance of demonstration 16
An second and efficient form of the Fundamental Principle* 17
A pattern of demonstration and the role of interpretation* 17
Significant Consequences of the Universal metaphysics 18
Cosmological consequences* 18
The concept of the Normal* 18
Consequences for authorship 20
Individual and Universe have Identity* 20
Consequences for Science and Religion* 20
The order of magnitude of the consequences 20
Sources of Doubt* 21
Faith* 21
Objections and Responses 21
An objection regarding the idea of All Being 21
Objections concerning the demonstration of the Fundamental Principle 22
Objections regarding Experience, Existence and Being 22
Objections concerning metaphysics and its possibility* 22
Objections regarding Religion* 22
Objections from Science 22
Objections from Logic 22
An apparent embarrassment of riches 23
Objections regarding significance and meaning 23
Concerns regarding the value of the metaphysics* 23
Doubts regarding the validity of the Universal metaphysics 23
The Human Endeavor: Religion as the Endeavor of being in relation to All Being* 24
Introduction 24
A modern account of the nature of Science 25
A probable future for Science—the Nature of Science 25
Traditional Religion: Dogma and Significance 26
The responses of Atheism and Agnosticism 26
The response of Secular Humanism 27
The metaphysics of traditional religions 28
Science and Religion will merge in Truth 32
A concept of Ideal Religion 33
Realization—Religion X 35
Template for Religion X 38
Religion X—Implementation 39
Approach to a Journey in Being 41
An in-process endeavor 42
Journey in Being
AN IN-PROCESS WORK
This work is currently in-process. The following work remains:
Edit. Edit for language, paragraph and sentence length, content, brevity, poetry, and charismatic appeal. Edit titles and capitalization (relative to objectives.) Later, read on the topics of practices from the Bhagavad-Gita and Christian Mysticism etc; incorporate to the section Religion X
Preface
The journey of the title is one of discovery and realization—a Journey in Being. The central ideas and narrative are introduced in the first chapter, A Journey in Being
Along the way we reconceptualize the elements of human culture and civilization. We may say, perhaps, that these reconceptualizations which include science and religion and culture and civilization are in fact their first conceptualizations. We assert that the conceptualizations assume forms that are ultimate in a sense to be explained. The assertion is demonstrated; it is not mere opinion. The discoveries of these conceptualizations and their entailments are part of an individual journey. This journey has some foundation in and is part of the human journey. It is demonstrated that these processes are part of and, ultimately, Identical to Universal process; and that Universal process is without limit
This version of Journey in Being is a short one whose objective is to present essential content in accessible form
Ideas are essential to the journey. There is a place for systems of thought that stand independently. There is also artificiality to ideas separated from their organic root. A purpose of the form of this narrative is to present a Universal metaphysics in the context of its roots in an individual story and the worlds of nature, civilization, and ideas
A central system of ideas of the narrative is the Universal metaphysics that reveals that the Universe has the greatest variety, Extension, and Duration of Being. There are no limits to its variety, Extension and Duration. It is also revealed—demonstrated—that realization entails an endless process or journey
The ideas reveal that exciting as thought may be there is a limit to the reach of thought in understanding and realization of Being. This makes a Journey essential to full realization. That there are no limits to variety make a Journey that is endless in duration and variety essential to any limited individual or civilization that would Experience and realize ultimates
In the quest for realization, the narrative finds, as noted above, ultimate reconceptualizations of the nature of science and religion (and of metaphysics, logic and other disciplines.) The reconceptualizations are part of a system that is instrumental to the Journey
The main purpose of the Journey is realization of Being. Topics that are essential to this purpose and its processes are marked with a star. For a chapter so marked all its sections are essential
This version omits much that is of interest. Omitted material may be currently found on the Internet at the Journey in Being website. From the home page http://www.horizons-2000.org, the main sources of supplementary material may be accessed via the links under the heading Journey in Being on the right of the page
The main concepts of the narrative are designated by common words. However, meanings are carefully chosen and specified. It is important for understanding to be aware of the meanings as used here; these are provided in the narrative, mainly in the section Definitions. Terms that are used with specific meaning are typically capitalized, e.g. ‘Logic’
Some of the claims of the narrative may appear expansive. Therefore, I have been immensely careful to raise and address doubts and objections and to note where residual doubt remains (we find that acceptance of essential doubt is a sign of being fully alive.) Therefore, also, I have generally used the term we rather than I. However, in essential humility—distinct from humbleness—we neither over nor understate that what is demonstrated or that in which we have confidence where we are careful to state the degree of confidence. This applies equally to conclusions of this essay and to criticism the thought of others—where criticism is essential to the argument
A Journey in Being*
The Fundamental Principle of Metaphysics
In 2002 it was demonstrated that Being has no limits
A demonstration is given in the section Demonstration
The statement Being has no limits was named the fundamental principle of metaphysics or, simply, the fundamental principle. The principle is a center piece in the development of a worldview or metaphysics that we call the Universal metaphysics or, simply, the metaphysics. A consequence of the principle that Being has no limits is that the metaphysics is ultimate—this ultimate character will be clarified and demonstrated later
An Individual Journey in Being
This development was fundamental. The path leading up to it went through many systems of ideas and experiences; the process was incremental and branching. I began to think of the way as a Journey… an individual Journey
Many of the systems of ideas were conceptual experiments with some well known paradigm—evolution, mind, matter, idea, the immediate, the absolute, the temporal, the atemporal and the trans-temporal. Finally, we decided to abandon the idea of deciding on the choice of central idea in advance of development of understanding. The central idea would emerge as the result of investigation. We first focused on Being as that which is most fundamental. The term ‘Being’ is significant in western thought and this very general meaning seems to lie behind what many thinkers and mystics have sought in using the term
There are however, two concerns with this assignment of meaning to ‘Being.’ The first is that although it is indeed very general, it is still particular. The word ‘fundamental’ suggests something beyond or behind the immediate and the phenomena or appearances but why should we want to go behind anything? There may be reasons to do so but should this not be the result rather than the prejudice of investigation? A second concern regarding the idea of Being as the most fundamental is that it opens the way to assuming the prejudices of prior thought. Even though this thought may be immensely insightful we would prefer to avoid prejudice. We therefore sought an even more neutral meaning for Being. We would seek perhaps the most neutral of meanings. The insight of prior thought could, where it is valid, be introduced later
We therefore decided to choose ‘Being’ as a container term for what would emerge as instrumental to understanding and living in the world. While the meaning of Being itself would—and will—emerge, it shall be a very neutral term—it will refer to be-ing rather than kind of being and will therefore be appropriate as a container term whose role is similar to that of the unknown variable in elementary algebra. After much experiment we arrived at the meaning of Being stated in the section Definitions, below. This meaning will not exclude the more particular but still general meaning of Being as that which is most fundamental and which will be retained as a secondary and specialized but still significant meaning
This many faceted, incremental development was one in which there was a general goal of understanding but the mechanics and means of its realization remained open until achievement acquired concreteness
This was a source of the idea of a personal or individual Journey in being
The Universal Nature of the Journey
However, the fundamental principle, as will be seen, showed (1) The Individual—the Self—and All Being have Identity (2) The power and variety of Being in the Universe is without limit, and (3) The realization by the individual of this identity is not a static realization but an unending process or adventure in ideas and transformation, enjoyment and pain
The idea of a Journey in Being emerged as Universal
That the metaphysics that illuminates and empowers the Journey will be seen to imply that the Journey is one of ultimate—and immediate—realization
It will, however, be seen that realization is not achieved in a single step. Realization is a process and, further, once some height of realization has occurred, there will be dissolution and the ‘cycle’ will repeat—endlessly and without limit to the variety and heights of realization
The Narrative
The narrative Journey in Being, recounts the personal Journey, the formal elements, e.g. the demonstration of the fundamental principle and many related themes and the Journey as Universal and unending process
The Fundamental Principle and Related Developments
The demonstration given here is brief and omits numerous corollaries that are given in longer versions (see the Preface for web-links)
Definitions, important for the usual reasons, are essential here especially because common words and their combinations—concepts and systems of concepts—are used with carefully chosen and sometimes unusual meaning and articulation
Metaphysics*
Although not used in the demonstration, it is useful to define metaphysics here. Metaphysics is the study of Being. There are many objections to such a simple definition, first of which is that it may be simplistic. There is today, in the literature, no consensus on what metaphysics is and no sense that we have a final grasp of it—or even that such a grasp is possible. It will turn out however, that it is precisely the simple notion metaphysics that is given here that enables and immensely empowers metaphysics
In fact there is no consensus regarding even the possibility of metaphysics. The essential source of doubt regarding the possibility of metaphysics is as follows. Regarding a concept as mental content, there almost invariably a gap between a concept and any intended Object (I am tempted to say that the fact of the gap is invariable; however, the case of the concept of the concept, may provide an exception.) Therefore, there is nothing inherent in concepts that guarantee faithfulness to Objects or even that faithfulness has meaning. This is the source of the doubt; it is the doubt that knowledge must have origin in Experience. This doubt has been taken to mean that metaphysics as knowledge-of-things-in-themselves is impossible. However, this is not at all implied for it remains open that at least for some Objects, meaning may be given to faithfulness and some demonstration of faithfulness may be found—even in face of the gap between concept and Object. Such meaning and demonstration is implicit in the sections Definition and Demonstration below and is taken up explicitly in the sections Experience, Existence, and Being and Objections and Consequences
Because metaphysics is the study of ‘Being as it is’ there can be at most one metaphysics (which may of course be developed to differing degrees and in patches concerning kinds of Being)
The Depth of a metaphysics will be the degree to which its foundation is secure, the degree to which no further foundation is necessary (that an alternate foundation may be found may remain open; in longer treatments, alternative foundations are given—see the Preface for web-links to more detailed versions of the narrative. If the foundation is secure, if no further foundation is necessary for a metaphysics, it will be called Ultimate with regard to Depth
The Breadth of Being will be the variety (and Extension and Duration of) of Being in the Universe. That Being is without limit shows that its Breadth is without limit, i.e. that there can be no greater universe than the actual Universe. The Universe will be called Ultimate if there can be no greater universe
The Breadth of a metaphysics is the degree to which it captures the Breadth of Being. If a metaphysics captures the Breadth of Being, it will be called Ultimate with regard to Breadth
If a metaphysics is ultimate with regard to breadth and depth, it will be called, simply, Ultimate
The Universal metaphysics will be seen to be Ultimate and to show that the Universe itself is Ultimate
Definitions*
The idea of Existence, i.e. what is there is so basic that it requires no definition in terms of other concepts to establish its soundness but may instead noted and Named (clarification is useful and given later.) An entity is said to Exist in the Trans-temporal sense if, in normal use, it did, does or will Exist; the trans-temporal sense may be used without comment. Being is that which has Existence. The Universe is All Being. A law is a pattern read into the Universe or a part of it; the pattern itself is the Law. A Domain is a part or whole of the Universe; the Complement is the part outside the Domain. The Void (or a Void) is the absence of Being