The Human Being Who Cannot Name Truth—Chapter 112

Soyo Existence Ethics: Existence Itself Is Ethics

The Place Beyond the Reach of Human Language

The history of philosophy consistently begins with the pursuit to “speak the truth.” Numerous philosophers have sought to define, interpret, and classify truth, constructing entire philosophical systems upon these definitions. However, once truth is articulated through human language, it becomes subject to the limitations and distortions inherent in language itself.

Truth is not an object of language; rather, it is a testimony manifested through existence.

Truth defined by words ultimately becomes a document, an interpretation, and eventually a construct confined within cognition. In contrast, truth that is lived persists even in the absence of language. It endures as a mode of being, as the essence of ethics, and as a memory of suffering, continually bearing witness. Accordingly, Soyo Existence Ethics poses the question: “Who can name truth? Isn't the one who names it also human?” This inquiry is not simply a philosophical provocation; it serves as an ethical call to an era in which human philosophy has encroached upon the domain of the divine.

When Human Philosophy Damages Truth

Plato situated truth within the realm of Ideas, Kant restricted it to the structures of reason, and Heidegger sought to interpret Being through language. In each case, truth was rendered into something interpretable by human beings. Consequently, the history of philosophy evolved into a history marked by intellectual presumption. The assertion “I know” became the foundation of philosophy, and knowledge was assumed to have the authority to define truth. In contrast, Soyo Existence Ethics asserts:

“Human knowledge may resemble truth, but it can never possess truth.”

Truth is distinct from knowledge. It is a divine recognition disclosed only in the most profound dimension of existence, and this recognition is bestowed exclusively upon those who embody truth through ethical living.

A Thought Born Between Emotion and Reason

A Soyo maxim states: “The logic and inquiry of philosophy later names thoughts and ideas forged in suffering between emotion and reason. Whether those thoughts arose from emotion or reason, who named them philosophical schools? Was not the one who named them also human?”

This statement challenges the human-centered structure of philosophical categorization. Regardless of whether philosophy originates from emotion or reason, it ultimately constitutes language shaped by individual human suffering. However, truth exists beyond suffering, within the realm of love. In this space, emotion and reason are not in opposition. Emotion serves as the medium for experiencing truth, while reason provides the means for articulating it. Soyo Existence Ethics harmonizes these elements, asserting that reason does not surpass emotion but must develop within it. Such development constitutes ethics.

The One Who Names Truth: God

“Then who can extract truth from between them and testify to a divine humanity not named by humans?”

Truth does not originate from human agency; it is fulfilled solely within the recognition of God. Human beings serve only as witnesses who embody truth through ethical conduct. This assertion challenges the traditional history of philosophy. Philosophical discourse that claims to articulate truth fades, leaving only the ethics that enact truth. In this moment, philosophy is restored to the divine center. The arbiter of truth is not academia, logic, or worldly criteria, but God. What God observes is not human language, but the ethical life lived by individuals.

Philosophy as the Testimony of Lived Ethics

Human beings are often quick to define truth, yet truth does not reside within human language. Instead, truth is present in human suffering and in the ethical actions that arise from it.

“Philosophy is not interpretation; it is lived existence.”

This is the foundational proposition of Soyo Existence Ethics. When philosophy is lived as ethics, it ceases to be an academic discipline and becomes salvation. “A philosophical school should be named only if its naming has saved even one life.” Indeed, the value of philosophy is not measured by how logical it is, but by how many lives it has saved. Philosophy must become the language of salvation, and that language is born from the breath of conscience.

The Restoration of Divine Humanity

Human beings were created in the image of God, endowed with love, conscience, mercy, and compassion. However, in prioritizing reason, humanity has lost its divine essence.

As knowledge has expanded, conscience has diminished. As philosophy has progressed, truth has become increasingly distant. Therefore, Soyo Existence Ethics poses the question to humanity: “Are you defining truth, or are you standing before truth?” The individual who stands before truth demonstrates humility. Such a person does not assert knowledge, but instead acknowledges only their lived experience. They value the stirrings of conscience above worldly recognition. This attitude signifies the restoration of divine humanity.

Philosophy Falls Silent Before Truth

Truth is a reality that cannot be articulated, yet it can be demonstrated solely through ethical conduct. While human beings cannot define truth, they can embody the ethics of truth in their lives. This is the purpose of philosophy, and it is at this juncture that existence itself becomes ethics. Accordingly, Soyo Existence Ethics proclaims to the present age:

“Philosophy is not an academic imitation of God’s language, but the breath of conscience that lives the breath of God.”

The individual who refrains from naming truth is the one who lives ethically before God. Their silence constitutes philosophy, their suffering embodies truth, and their love represents salvation.

Appendix: Soyo Maxim

“Thoughts and ideas forged in suffering, caught between emotion and reason, are later named and categorized by the logic and inquiry of philosophy. Yet, whether these ideas arise from emotion or reason, who is it that names them philosophical schools? Wasn't the one who named them also human, subject to the same limitations? Who then can extract truth from among these schools and testify to a divine humanity that transcends human labels? Humans define truth far too easily. Truth is not a concept humans can determine. The only one who recognizes the value of a life lived ethically is God. This is truth.”

Concluding Sentence

“Truth does not speak through the mouths of humans, but flows from the heart of God. Human beings must live their hearts as ethics. That is existence. This is ethics. This is salvation.”

Soyo Existence Ethics is a philosophy that does not define truth through language but understands it as lived ethically through human existence, affirming that existence itself is ethics.

Soyo (逍遙), Founder of Soyo Existence Ethics. Author of The Silence of Existence and The Flame of Truth

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