Ep. 88
Metaphysics takes us beyond the visible world into the deepest questions of existence. This philosophical journey bridges ancient wisdom with modern scientific inquiry. It invites us to consider what lies beyond our sensory perceptions and invites us to grapple with inquiry into the very fabric of being. In doing so, it offers a profound exploration of the nature of reality itself—what it is, what it means to exist, and what constitutes the essence of things.
To embark on this monumental journey requires us to engage with the thoughts of great philosophers whose intellectual pursuits have shaped metaphysics. We can trace the roots of this philosophical discipline back to the ancient Greeks. Thinkers such as Parmenides and Heraclitus set the stage for complex metaphysical inquiry. Parmenides famously posited that change is an illusion and that being, in its most fundamental sense, is unchangeable and eternal. In stark contrast, Heraclitus proclaimed that everything is in a state of flux, famously stating, “You cannot step into the same river twice.” These early dialectics set forth the paradoxes of existence: should we view the universe as a stable construct, or is it a dynamic, ever-evolving tapestry?