Note 28. To the Section “II. Unification Epistemology”
Some of the major points of Divine Principle, on which Unification epistemology is based, are the following:
(1) “The process of God’s creation begins when the dual chara-cteristics within God form a common base through the prompting of His universal prime energy. As they engage in give and take action, they generate a force which engenders multiplication. This force projects the dual characteristics into discrete substantial object partners, each relating to God as its center” (DP , 24). “Multiplication takes place through origin-division-union action which is built upon good interactions [give and receive actions]” (DP , 31). The pheno-menon of the increase in new knowledge can be explained through this principle.
(2) “The spirit can grow only while it abides in the flesh” (DP , 48). “All the sensibilities of a spirit are cultivated through the reciprocal relationship with the physical self during earthly life” (DP , 49). “Good or evil in the conduct of the physical self is the main determinant of whether the spirit self becomes good or evil” (DP , 48). Through these points of Divine Principle, we can come to understand that cognition through the five physical senses necessarily corresponds to cognition through the five spiritual senses, and that cognition and action (practice) originally are intended to fulfill the purpose of good.
(3) “The natural world returns beauty as an object partner” (DP , 38). “They [human beings] must earn certain qualifications to gain their God-given mandate to govern” (DP , 78). “The purpose for which the universe was created is to have man feel joy and peace.” Explaining the Principle (in Korean) (Seoul: Sejong Moonhwa-sa, 1957), 50. From these points of the Principle, we can understand that cognition and dominion (practice) are in an inseparable relationship, and that the purpose of cognition and dominion lies in the realization of joy and peace.
(4) “Every human being embodies all the elements in the cosmos” (DP , 30). “In a human cell, there is life and consciousness, and the mystery of the universe is contained there” (a sermon by Rev. Sun Myung Moon). From these points we can derive the concepts of protoconsciousness and protoimage as the criteria through which all things in the external world can be cognized.
(5) “In give and receive action, there are various types, and among them there is also a contrast type” (Rev. Moon’s answer to a question from the author). From this teaching, it was possible to obtain the concept of “collation” in cognition.
(6) “The body resembles the mind and moves according to its commands in such a way as to sustain life and pursue the mind’s purposes” (DP , 17). “Thinking is also a kind of give and receive action”; “There are give and receive actions between mind and body, and give and receive actions within the mind” (Rev. Moon’s response to the author’s questions). Through these points of Divine Principle and Rev. Moon’s teachings, it was possible to come to understand such phenomena as the correspondence between the invisible mind and the visible body, that is, the will and the movement of the body, and the cognition (judgment) of the mind about the information (codes) coming through the body (nerves).
(7) “God created human beings to be the rulers of the universe” (DP , 46). “What will the world be like when the natural world abides under the direct dominion of human beings? When a fully mature person relates with the diverse things in nature as his object partners, they come together to form a four position foundation” (DP , 45). “God created the invisible substantial world and the visible substantial world, and He created man as the ruler over them” (Explaining the Principle, 44). “The universe was created as the substantial object to the subjective Sungsang of man” (Ibid., 50). From these principles, we can realize that human beings are created as the subject of cognition as well as the subject of dominion (practice) over all things, and that all things are created as the object of cognition and the object of dominion by human beings, and that, therefore, the relationship between human beings and all things is a necessary relationship, similar to the relationship between mind and body.