Thoughts on existence (part 1)

Before we go further, I must admit that in Book 3 of my notes I apparently was really, really interested in drawing stuff. There are a whole lot of diagrams... I'll do my best to recreate them in words. Let's hope that a decade of speaking and writing will compensate for the energy of harshly drawn lines and energy...

(Originally written May 31, 2006 in Book 3)

How does on philosophize?

Unknown future.

Birth.

In between these two points is the present.

But along one's own history there are an innumerable number of events. Each of these is an event, idea, person, action, etc, that has made an impact upon a man's life in the past.

When it comes to the present we come to the beginning point. This is the moment that one begins to ponder or contemplate. From this point a person can go in unlimited numbers of directions, except backwards, which is the past.

My apologies to the Linehan scholars of the late 21st, early 22nd century. If you ever get your hands on my early notebooks... Good luck. There are parts that I just guess.... (Suddenly, I remember something about vain pride...)

Each of these arrows (my drawing representation), the ones that have impacted the past, play some role in pondering and thus in philosophy. The future is unknown and undetermined (at least to the subject). Thus, philosophy is a science of pondering the past, with all of its influences and predicting a probable outcome of the future philosophy - as it is probability, it is therefore never an exact science. It cannot thus be a never changing entity. If it is stagnant, then it is only so because the person who holds it is stagnant. Philosophy is the eternal process of becoming. It reflects upon the past to hold a probable outcome of the future. If it reflects on the past with no consideration of the future than it is worthless historical data. If it merely contemplates the unknown future than it is solely fiction. Neither of these is useful in a quest for knowledge, which philosophy must be. The former becomes pride of oneself (or shame) and both lead to disaster. The latter creates imaginative worlds which are inhospitable to reality. 

You and I exist in reality and therefore these imaginative worlds are incapable of sustaining our lives for extended periods of time without relinquishing meaningful existence. If we attempt to exit in such worlds (these worlds most certainly exist) then we become mere characters of stories. Are you not more real than Huck Finn? You, I, and dar Huck are most definitely real in the sense that we exist. But even though you or I will never (probably) enjoy the more fame than Huck, do you feel slighted? Is not your life more meaningful than his? I know I fell more meaningful than he; I hope you do as well.

This leads us to the types of existence. Again the definition of existence is simply that which is. Thus, everything that you or I or Huck or anyone else things of exists. But unlike men, all existences are not equal.

Existence - that which is

1) This pad is, therefore it exists.

2) This pencil is, therefore it exists.

3) I am, therefore I exist.

4) You are, therefore you exist.

5) Huckleberry Finn is, therefore he exists.

6) Mark Twain is, therefore he exists.

What then is the difference between you, I, Huck Finn, Mark Twain, this pad or this pencil? If we all exist then we must share some similarities. This is true! At one level all six of us have a common characteristic, which is existence. Yet, you and I (unless I am dead as you read this) moof your st definitely have a different existence then Mark Twain. And regardless of wether you, I or, anyone else is dead we have distinctly different type of existence than Huck Finn.

Let us look at each of these six things and classify their existence. 

Past Existence:

First, there is past existence. Do I have a past? Yes, I have a past that dates back to at least 1983 A.D. Do you have a past? Yes, and it dates back at least to the moment of your conceptions. (We will focus on pre-conception existence later).

Thus, anything at this very moment (10:15 on 5/31/2006) and any thing that was prior to this moment has a past existence. I exist (in some fashion) at 10:15 on May 31, 2006 and have existed (at least) when I was conceived by my parents. When that was (some moment in time in May of 1983 A.D.) and up to, but not this very moment consists of my past existence. Your past existence is composed of the moment of your conception (at least) right up to the very moment you read this, but not that very moment. Therefor all six of things I previously mentioned have a past existence.

1) I have a past existence from (at least) the moment of conception up until this very moment, (which is when I write this) but not including it.

2) You have a past existence from (at least) the moment of conception up until this very moment (which is when you read this), but not including it.

3) This pad has past existence from the moment (at least) from when it was created up until this very moment, but not including it.

4) This pencil has past existence from the moment (at least) from when it was created up until this very moment, but not including it.

5) Mark Twain has past existence from (at least) the moment of his conception up until this very moment, but not including it.

6) Huck Finn has past existence from (at least) he was written down by Mark Twain up until this very moment, but not including it.

Thus, each of the six have a past existence which is eternal, not immortal. The past is ever growing from the point of the objects' creation (thus eternal in the sense that it is continual, but not immortal as it has a beginning). Thus, a pas existence is subjective to the individual object and can be either small or enormous, based on the object's creation point.

Present Existence

However, you may have noticed that past existence for all six of the objects ends at this very moment. This very moment is continually changing but it is the present moment that is the present. This very moment happens to now be 10:49 est on May 31, 2006. It is the present and the present for all things that exist presently. Present existence, unlike past existence which is subjective to the object, is universal to all objects. Thus, past existence is subjective and particular to an individual object; but present existence is universal to all objects. (Present existence is however subjective in the sense that any rational being can determine what the present is to be measured as (moment = year or month or week or day or hour or minute or second, etc.) All six have a sort of present existence (more to come soon).

Future Existence

Since objects have past and present existence it likely follows that objects have future existence. And since objects' past existence is immortal there necessarily must be a future existence.

Now the definition of existence is 'that which is' and future's very definition is 'what will become'. These two definitions seem to be at odds with each other. SInce then the future is yet undetermined and unknown, the very thought of being able to define something as having future existence is quite absurd. How can something be and at the same time be in that which is not yet? It surely cannot!

Therefore future is defined as 'that which is what will become'

No future existence is in reality present and past existence of intellectual thoughts or ideas. The idea that I will exist in some moment beyond this present one is the idea that I will exist in the future, but that idea exists in the present  and will have a past existence when the present becomes past (as it continually does). Thus there is no such thing as future existence, only present and past existence of ideas of what the future may or may not hold.

Up until now we have separated existence into two categories: past existence and present existence. Each of the six objects we pondered had both. Now we will begin to differentiate the objects' existences. This is the existence of an object in reality; is it tangible or sensible existence? (Although God's existence is actual existence, but we will discuss that later). For now let us focus on what exists in the physical realm (which is the realm of existence that is perceivable by the five physical senses).

Opposite actual existence is intellectual existence. Intellectual existence is the existence of an idea. Thus, we can now separate one of our six from the others.

Past Actual Existence	Present Actual Existence
You	You
I	I
Mark Twain (physical)	Mark Twain (physical)
This Pencil	This Pencil
This Pad	This Pad
Past Intellectual Existence	Present Intellectual Existence
Huck Finn	Huck Finn

Notice that Mark Twain is noted as the physical existence. In the past this may mean his lively body or his lifeless remains (as he is dead); but, his present actual existence is solely his lifeless remains. The idea of Mark Twain that we get from studying history would actually fall under intellectual existence.

Now existence is broken down hence.

Sorry, more drawings.

Under existence is both past and present. Under past existence is actual & intellectual existence. Under present existence, likewise is actual and intellectual existence.

It then follows under the actual existence category that we have another set of opposite subcategories. This is organic and inorganic existence.

Organic existence consists of an object that has life. Inorganic existence consists of an object that has no life. Thus, you and I have both past-actual-organic existence and present-actual-organic existence. Mark Twain (physical) has past-organic existence and his works have past-actual-inorganic existence and present-actual-inorganic existence. This pad and this pencil only have past-actual-inorganic existence and present-inorganic-existence.