On the right side you see four layers as levels. Aristoteles thought of a fifth one, which he called “Hyle”. However. Except the Anorganic Things, each of that levels is relatively free and supported by the level / levels below - according to the positions. The more a level is up the more it is free, but no level is generally free, but relatively free. And the more a level is up the more it depends on the level / levels below. So Anorganic Things “stem” Biological Body, Psyche, and Geist (mind etc.). The Biological Body is more relaively free than the Anorganic Things, the Psyche is more relatively free than the Biological Body, and the Geist is more relatively free than the Psyche. When it comes to that what the levels are by theirselves, they do not depend on any other level - exception: Anorganic Things, which depend on no level anyway. So for example the Geist, which means the most relatively free level, does not depend on the other levels when it comes to that what the Geist is by itself.
Hartmann postulated four laws that apply to the levels of reality:
The first and the second level are spatial, the third and the fourth level are not spatial. An example: You hit a man and this hit causes something physically (=> (1) matter, causality). Maybe you hit that man bcause he has threatened you; so you just want to save your own life (=> (2) life, urge). Maybe you groundlessly hate that man and therefore you hit him (=> (3) Seele, motif). Maybe your hate is not reasonless, and you hit that man because of a reason (=> (4) Geist, reason).
According to Hartmann, many world views contain the basic mistake of the fundamental one-sidedness.
Hartmann’s theory of levels or categories makes much sense. Language in general is very much more than human language, but human language is the greatest one. All the so called „progress“ of human beings is based on the language of human beings. It's just the human language which led to the difference between the ancestors of the human beings and the human beings. That was the beginning of human language, the larynge sank which caused a very complex phonetic, the brain grew in an exponential degree. So one can say that the phonetical sound was important for human beings (=> their language development) and for their very young children (=> their language acquisition) and also has been being important for very young children (=> their language acquisition). But phonetical sound was NOT important for the general language, because in the beginning of general language there were only chemical signs - at that time there was NO possibility for any development of sound. Unfortunately science has been becoming a religion. The reason is control, thus power. And I don't know whether science will ever recover from its dependency, awake from its sleep (sleep is currently perhaps the wrong word, because the current scientists know about their cowardly situation). Probably science will remain as religion until all human beings are eliminated or probably replaced by machines. According to Nicolai Hartmann there are four main strata or levels of being or reality:
This four levels of reality are characterized by the fact that the respective higher (and lighter) levels are carried or borne by the respective lower (and heavier) levels and „free“ towards the respective lower (and heavier) levels - insofar as their „freedom“ is not restricted by the fact that they are carreid or borne -, especially because they show new properties or characteristics against the respective lower levels. The (1) first, lowest, haeviest one is the inorganic level; the (2) second, second-lowest (and third highest), second-haeviest (and third-lightest) one is the organic level; the (3) third, third-lowest (and second-highest), third-heaviest (and second-lightest) one is the level of „Seelisches“, which means properties or characteristics of soul, psyche, emotion; the (4) fourth, highest, lightest one is the level of „Geistiges“, which means properties or characteristics of spirit, thinking, intellectuality, imagery. So, for example, the inorganic level (1) is carried or borne by no other level, whereas the level of „Geistiges“ (1) is carried or borne by all other levels. Inorganic beings (1) do not need an organic body (2), do not need „Seelisches“ (3), do not need „Geistiges“ (4), whereas even the highest spirit of all times (4) needs „Seelisches“ (3), needs an organic body (2), needs inorganic beings (1). The fourth level is not capable of existing without the other three levels, because it is carried or borne by them. The third level is not capable of existing without the second and the first level, because it is carried or borne by them. The second level is not capable of existing without the first level, because it is carried or borne by it. Only the first level is capable of existing without the other three levels, because it is not carried or borne by them. The first level is unfree because of its type of determination: causality. The second level is relatively free in the sense that it is categorially free towards the frist level. The third level is relatively free in the sense that it is categorially free towards the second and the first level. The fourth level is relatively free in the sense that it is most categorially free (but not 100% free), which means categorially free towards the three other levels. 100%-freedom is not possible: the fact that the lower and heavier levels carry the higher and lighter levels means that the higher and lighter levels depend on the lower and heavier levels, although the higher and lighter levels are relatively free towards the lower and heavier levels; and the lowest and heaviest level (1) is not free because of its type of determination: causality. Note: „relatively free“ means here „categorially free“; each level has its own categories. Hartmann postulated four laws that apply to the levels of reality:
The first and the second level are spatial, the third and the fourth level are not spatial. The first level (which is pretty similar to what you called „physical power“) is in fact the most powerful one, has in fact the strongest power in the sense that the other three levels are carried or borne by the first level and that the categories of the first level recur in the higher levels (and never vice versa) as a subaspect of higher categories. An example: You hit a man and this hit causes something physically (=> (1) matter, causality). Maybe you hit that man bcause he has threatened you; so you just want to save your own life (=> (2) life, urge). Maybe you groundlessly hate that man and therefore you hit him (=> (3) Seele, motif). Maybe your hate is not reasonless, and you hit that man because of a reason (=> (4) Geist, reason).
If one looks at the connection of levels and categories, many world
views contain for Hartmann the basic mistake of the fundamental
one-sidedness. Nicolai Hartmann:
We have to consider two realms: (1) the real realm, (2) the ideal or spiritual realm. This means that the existence is either necessary (=> 1) or possible (=> 2). So, we have to consider necessity (=> 1) and possibility (=> 2). „Wenn die Bedingungen der Möglichkeit in ihrer Totalität
da sind, dann bilden sie zugleich Notwendigkeit.“ - Nicolai
Hartmann.
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