3. Karl Jaspers (1883-1969)

3.1. Jaspers’ View of the Human Being

For Karl Jaspers, existence refers to the state of a human being truly awakened to oneself as an individual. He says, “Existence is the never objectified source of my thoughts and actions…. It is what relates to itself, and thus to its transcendence.” ¹² This way of thinking is basically the same as Kierkegaard’s.

An existence that is in the process of attaining the original existence, having not yet encountered Transcendence, or the Comprehensive (das Umgreifende), is called a “possible existence.” Usually, human beings are only possible existences that live in various circumstances; but by acting upon their given circumstances, they can live positively. Jaspers points out, however, that there exist certain situations beyond which we can not go, and which we can not change, including “death,” “suffering,” “struggle,” and “guilt.” These he calls “boundary situations.” ¹³ Even though people may wish to live eternally, yet not a single person can escape death. Death is the denial of one’s own existence. Also, human life involves various kinds of suffering, such as physical pain, disease, senility, and starvation. As long as people live, such struggles can not be avoided. Moreover, people live with the unavoidable guilt that their own existence can not but reject others. Also, human life involves various kinds of suffering, such as physical pain, disease, senility, and starvation. As long as people live, such struggles can not be avoided. Moreover, people live with the unavoidable guilt that their own existence can not but reject others. In the face of such boundary situations, people can not but despair and eventually become frustrated, becoming aware of their own limitations. At such times, the way people experience and respond to that frustration will determine what will become of them. If they face their frustration head-on, and endure it silently, honestly, and without trying to escape from the situation, then they will come to experience the reality that “originally exists, transcending the world of existence.” ¹⁴

In other words, they will come to realize that behind nature, behind history, behind philosophy, and behind art―all of which seemed meaningless until then―there is Transcendence, or God, who embraces us and speaks to us. On that occasion, Transcendence will appear to us, not directly, but by means of coded messages. In the form of such codes, Transcendence reaches out to us through nature, history, philosophy, art, and so on. Those who have experienced frustration in boundary situations will be able to interpret those coded messages. This he called the “reading of ciphers”(Chiffredeutung). By interpreting or reading such coded messages, a human being, alone, comes to stand face to face with Transcendence. This is what he means by awakening to one’s true self.

After encountering God in this way, a human being engages in the practice of love in their communication with others. The original way of life for human beings is to stand in an equal position with one another, loving one another, while yet recognizing one another’s independence. Through fellowship with others, existence is perfected. Jaspers said, “The purpose of philosophy, which alone gives a final ground to the meaning of all purposes, that is to say, the purpose of perceiving existence internally, elucidating love, and perfecting comfort, is only attained in communication.” ¹⁵ Communication is the relationship of loving struggle. ¹⁶

3.2. A Unification Thought Appraisal of Jaspers’ View of the Human Being

Jaspers said that human beings are normally only possible existences that are unable to perceive Transcendence, but that once they pass through boundary situations, they can become existences that relate to Transcendence, that is, original selves. But why do human beings normally remain only as possible existences, separated from Transcendence? And why do they become connected with Transcendence only after going through such boundary situations? Jaspers is quiet concerning these questions. Yet, unless these questions are answered, we can not understand concretely what the original self is, or how to recover it.

According to the Divine Principle, human beings were created to fulfill the purpose of creation. The fulfillment of the purpose of creation means fulfillment of the three great blessings (Gen. 1:28), that is, perfection of one’s personality, perfection of one’s family, and perfection of one’s dominion. However, Adam and Eve, the first human ancestors, failed to keep the Word of God during their growth period, and while their personalities were still imperfect they fell, becoming separated from God, becoming husband and wife centering on non-principled love and giving birth to sinful children. As a result, all humankind came to be separated from God. Therefore, the true path for recovering the original self is for people to separate themselves from non-principled love and return to God, thereby fulfilling the purpose of creation centering on God’s love.

The original human nature is meant to manifest itself fully once people fulfill their purpose of creation. Like Kierkegaard, Jaspers said that existence is to become a being that relates to Transcendence, while at the same time relating itself to itself. In saying this, Jaspers was referring to the perfection of one’s personality, which is the first among the three great blessings. Among the various different aspects of the original human nature discussed in Unification Thought, Jaspers was concerned only with the “united being of Sungsang and Hyungsang,” while neglecting the others. Jaspers does say that we must practice love in our communication with others, but just as with Kierkegaard, his concept of love is vague.

True love (God’s love) is an emotional impulse, in accord with which one can not help but giving, with a warm heart, what one has to others. This love is manifested divisionally through the family, as different ways of loving one’s object partner: children’s love for their parents, conjugal love for one’s spouse, parental love for one’s children, and siblings’ love for one’s brothers and sisters. Truly harmonious love in one’s communication with others can be realized on the foundation of these four types of love. Jaspers said that communication among existences is a relationship of loving struggle. According to Unification Thought, however, the essence of love is joy. Original love is not something that can be described as any kind of struggle.

Another question is why human beings become connected with Transcendence only by passing through boundary situations. Jaspers said that people encounter God by facing the frustration of a boundary situation head-on and by honestly accepting it. Yet, among those who have, indeed, faced the frustration of the boundary situation head-on and have, indeed, honestly accepted it, there are some who, like Nietzsche, became further separated from God and some who, like Kierkegaard, became even closer to God. Why do such different results come about? The reason for this difference is not clarified in Jaspers’ philosophy.

In contrast, Unification Thought provides a clear rationale behind these different results. In failing to observe God’s Word, human beings became separated from God and fell under the dominion of Satan, the subject of evil. Because of this, they can not go back to God unconditionally. Only by establishing some condition of compensation, that is, some condition of indemnity, can human beings return to God. Accordingly, what Jaspers described as the despair and frustration experienced in boundary situations corresponds to a condition of indemnity. Once that condition is successfully fulfilled, human beings come to be in a position closer to God. To achieve this, however, one must, while enduring the pain inherent in the boundary situation, remain humble and must maintain an attitude of object consciousness in seeking the absolute subject, as is taught in the Bible, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matt. 7:7). Those who maintain an attitude reflecting a self-centered subject consciousness, or who continue to harbor a spirit of revenge, can never encounter God, even though they may experience such boundary situations.

Jaspers believed that we can meet Transcendence through reading the cipher of frustration; but the God we come to know in this manner is merely a symbolic God. We can not comprehend or appreciate the true image of God through such means alone. We must learn about the human fall and God’s purpose of creation, and must endeavor to realize the three great blessings through a life of faith. When we do these things, we will be able to experience the Heart of God and become a true human being with a genuine existence.