There are multiple ways of understanding existence.
Concept of existence
The notion of existence can be analyzed in different ways. This is a topic frequently examined in philosophy and also has relevance in other sciences and subjects, such as psychology and biology .
Broadly speaking, it can be said that what is has existence. However, the definition of being has enormous complexity. What is it ? Why is something one thing and not another? When does it stop being?
These types of questions have been the subject of study of many thinkers throughout history . In this way, the approach to the question of existence can occur from multiple perspectives.
Existence can be associated with life.
Relationship with life
When it comes to a living being , existence is associated precisely with life . It is usually indicated that a person has existence while he or she lives: that is, from birth to death. Then it ceases to exist.
This consideration, however, entails difficulties and is a matter of debate. There are those who support biological and religious arguments to affirm that life begins from conception (that is, before birth). As for death , it can be defined by heartbeat, brain activity, or homeostasis, to name a few possibilities.
This association of existence with life does not consider other issues. If existence only has to do with the functioning of the organism, what happens to the soul or spirit ? Are human beings just bodies or do they have something more?
Take, on the other hand, the case of public figures or celebrities. Death could mean the end of their existence, but at the same time they continue to be present in the collective memory and can even still influence others. Stating that John Lennon has no existence today may be true if we focus on biology, but he clearly continues to have an existence in music and culture in general.
Existence in philosophy
For philosophy, existence is the reality of an entity . It is important to indicate, at this point, that an entity (also mentioned as entity ) is that which is a particular way.
As the centuries passed and the development of different currents and schools of thought, what is understood by entity and existence changed. Existence has been related to the arché (the first element of things), to the sensible (what is perceptible through the senses) and to ideas (creations of thought), for example.
The problem of determining what existence is can be appreciated if we orient ourselves to the figure of God . According to one position, the existence of God can be demonstrated from theology, cosmology and ontology, among other areas, while another position states the opposite: the lack of existence of God can be proven from the empirical, the logical, etc