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Philosophy

Recognize how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence

September 1, 2021August 15, 2022MyInfo Basket.com 5 Comments8 concepts on How The human body imposes limitations and possibilities FOR transcendence, Differentiate the limitations and possibilities of your body for transcendence, Distinguish the limitations and possibilities for transcendence, how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence, Possibilities for transcendence meaning, Recognize how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence, Recognize how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence brainly, Recognizing how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence

It is important to recognize how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence. For, regardless of who we are or what status and position we occupy in society, we are still a human being—and this means that we have limits.

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Actually knowing oneself entails being aware of these limitations imposed by one’s body. And this is even important to become successful and to eventually lead the life that we like.

For a Filipino/Tagalog discussion on this topic, read: Nakikilala na: Binibigyan ako ng hangganan at posibilidad ng aking katawan

How the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence

We human beings are corporeal beings. As such, our human body imposes limits upon us. Nonetheless, it also imposes possibilities for transcendence. (Related: Self-transcendence: Some Suggestions to Transcend One’s Limitations)

Man and His Body

As being with human (biological) body, an alive human person is necessarily undergoing biological processes like cell division, metabolism, digestion, respiration, circulation, and the like.

A human person, being part of nature’s physical order, naturally develops weight, size, shape, color and other biological traits as determined or affected by his genes and the environment.

We are physical beings that occupy space, have mass, move through time, and are subject to gravitational laws.

Moreover, our biological or physical bodies are also in a constant change as they grow, mature, and develop. Nevertheless, with the passage of time, they also weaken, become sick, deteriorate, and perish. Our bodies also wear out as their energy is not limitless.

From these conditions alone, we can have a glimpse of the limits and transcendence being imposed on us by our body.

How the human body imposes limits

So how does the human body impose limits? The human body imposes limits upon a person in many ways. For example, it makes a certain person improbable to do the following:

– fly without the aid of any tool;
– be in two distant places at the same time (in the same dimension, at least); and,
– space travel

The last one is improbable so far, as there is the cosmological speed limit which most probably limits our maximum speed at the light of speed that is 3×10^ 8 m/s.

Furthermore, we cannot see and hear everything that is happening around us at the same time. Also, we can carry only so many with our (only) two hands.

Death As a limit

Our biological or physical body also makes us subject to the “law of death,” which is a sure form of limitation.

As a matter of fact, it is said that one’s probability of dying during a given year doubles every eight years. This was first noticed by the British actuary (a business professional who deals with the measurement and management of risk and uncertainty) Benjamin Gompertz in 1825 and is thus called the “Gompertz Law of human mortality.”

For example, if the probability of dying during the next year of a 25-year-old person is 0.03%, about 1 in 3,000, when he turns 33, it will be about 1 in 1,500; when he is 41, it will be about 1 in 750, and so on.

So if that is true, then our mortality rate is increasing exponentially with our age.

Read: The Worldview of Atheism

How the human body imposes possibilities for transcendence

In philosophy, one way to express transcendence is to say, “I am my body but at the same time I am more than my body.”

Among other things, it means that the things that we do, all those physical activities and traits that are made real through our respective physical body, manifest the human person that we are.

This means that a human person is not just the physical-corporeal-tangible man, for he is also a meaningful whole, an embodied spirit whose life has meaning. We can say therefore that “a human person is more than his body.”

But this does not entail however that man’s body is a mere adornment. In fact, our body is fundamental to our being integrated persons as it is important for our spirit to be embodied.

Expounding the importance of man’s body, philosophers explain that the word “have” in the statement “I have a body” is distinct from that in “I have a ball pen.” While the word “have” in both statements refer to possession, they have dissimilar meaning or sense.

For one thing, I cannot get rid of my body in the way I can throw away my ball pen. It is not senseless to say “I am my body” whereas it is absurd to say “I am my ball pen.”

Going back to the fact that the human body imposes possibilities for transcendence, our being in the world is largely experienced and felt in our direct involvement in the world through our body.

The meaning of human existence is not purely abstract and ideal as it is also found in the awareness of the concrete ends of human action—which is made possible through his body. Being aware of our essence or the meaning of our existence is a form of, or a stage in, transcendence.

Our body allows us to multiply through sexual reproduction. Being able to transfer one’s genes to our offspring and to future generations is a way of achieving transcendence.

Furthermore, the way we feel about our own bodies and see the things around us significantly contribute to the way we sense and view the world. Using our body and its senses, we draw inspiration from what we observe and we find meaning for our existence. These things also imply and manifest transcendence.

Read: Why I Am Not an Evolutionist

Finally, in expressing faith in God, which is a form of transcendence, a person is exhorted to take care of his body as it is that which he uses in serving the Divine in various ways.

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*Free lecture for the next lesson (Philo of Man MELC): Evaluate own limitations and the possibilities for transcendence

*If you want to look for other topics in Intro to Philo of Man or other subjects, search here:

Note: Teachers may share this as a reading assignment of their students. For other free lectures like this (especially for students), visit Homepage: Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person

*Available also: Free lectures on the subject Pambungad sa Pilosopiya ng Tao

Free Lectures for MELCs of Intro to the Philosophy of the Human Person subject:

Distinguish a Holistic Perspective from a Partial Point of View (Holism vs Partial Perspective)

Realize the Value of Doing Philosophy in Obtaining a Broad Perspective on Life

Do a philosophical reflection on a concrete situation from a holistic perspective

Distinguish Opinion from Truth

Realize that the methods of philosophy lead to wisdom and truth

Evaluate truth from opinions in different situations using the methods of philosophizing

Related Article/s:

The Blind Men and the Elephant: Attaining a Holistic Perspective

Methods in Philosophy:

Socratic Method: The Elenchus