4. Method of Cognition
Give and Receive Action
In the Divine Principle it is stated that when subject and object elements of an entity are engaged in give and receive action, forming a common base, this action generates “all the forces the entity needs for existence, multiplication and action” (DP, 22). Here “multiplication,” in a broader sense of the term, means coming into being, generation, increase, and development. “Action” means movement, change, reaction, and so on. Since cognition means the acquisition or increase of knowledge, it can be included in the concept of “multiplication” through give and receive action. Accordingly, the proposition can be established that cognition takes place through give and receive action between subject and object.
“Subject” in cognition refers to a person with certain conditions, namely, an interest in the object and appropriate prototypes; “object,” on the other hand, refers to all things having content (attributes) and form (forms of existence). Cognition takes place through the give and receive action between these two parties.
Formation of Four Position Foundation
Give and receive action between subject and object always takes place centering on a purpose, and cognition occurs as a result of give and receive action. Therefore, cognition is accomplished through the formation of a four position foundation (fig. 9.1).
The four position foundation is composed of four positions, namely, the center, subject, object, and result. Each of these will be explained next.
(1) Center
It is purpose that becomes the center of give and receive action. In purpose one can find the principle purpose and the daily, more ordinary purpose. The principle purpose refers to the purpose of creation for which God created humankind and all things. From the perspective of created beings, this is the purpose for which they were created. In God’s purpose of creation, Heart (love) was the motivation for creation. Therefore, the original way of cognition for human beings is, also, to cognize all things with love as the motivation. The purpose of creation (purpose of being created) consists of the Sungsang purpose and Hyungsang purpose, each of which consists of the purpose for the whole and the purpose for the individual. For human beings, the purpose for the whole in cognition is to acquire knowledge for the sake of serving one’s neighbors, society, nation, and the world, while the purpose for the individual is to acquire knowledge for the sake of the individual’s life of food, clothing, shelter, and cultural life. On the other hand, the purpose for the whole of all things, which are the objects of cognition, is to give knowledge and beauty to human beings and to give them joy by receiving dominion from them, whereas the purpose for the individual of all things is to be recognized and loved by human beings, as well as to maintain their existence and growth. However, due to the human fall, things can not fully fulfill their purpose of creation (the purpose for being created), and have been “groaning in travail together until now” (Rom. 8:22).
The daily (or actual) purpose refers to the individual purpose based on the principle purpose, namely, the purpose of each person in his or her daily life. For example, a botanist observing nature will acquire knowledge from the perspective of occupying an academic position; a painter observing this same nature will probably acquire knowledge from the position of pursuing beauty. Also, an economist may try to acquire knowledge about nature from the viewpoint of conducting business by developing nature. All of them do so in order to obtain joy. In this way, even though the principle purpose may be the same, the daily purpose for each individual person differs from person to person.
(2) Subject
In cognition, the subject’s interest in the object is one of the requisites for the subject. Without interest, no common base can be established, and no give and receive action can take place.
Consider, for instance, the case of a person walking down the street who happens to cross the path of a friend. If the person’s mind is deeply absorbed in thought, the friend may pass by totally unnoticed. Also, the wife of a lighthouse attendant may not be awakened by the noise of the waves, but she can easily be awakened by the sound of a crying child, which may actually be much softer than the sound of the waves. The reason the noise of the waves is not perceived is that the wife has no real interest in that; in contrast, the sound of the crying child is more easily perceived because she is always concerned about it.
On the other hand, it is also often the case that we recognize things by chance. An obvious example is that, even though we may not expect it, we may suddenly see lightning and hear the sound of thunder. In such a case, it might seem that cognition takes place even if the subject has no interest. Even in this case, however, interest is always at work, though perhaps only unconsciously (or subconsciously).
All of us remember, in the years of childhood, when we faced everything with a fresh sense of wonder and curiosity. This wonder and curiosity derive from our interest. When we visit a new place for the first time, we usually look at everything with a great deal of interest. As time goes by, however, we become familiar with the place, and our interest recedes to the subconscious mind. Yet, even then, interest is not gone completely, but is at work in the subconscious mind.
(3) Object
According to the Divine Principle, all things were created as objects to the human being, and the human being was created as the subject (the ruler) over all things. The human being, who is the subject, exerts dominion with love over all things, the objects, whereby he or she engages in appreciation and cognition of them. Therefore, all things are equipped with elements that enable them to become objects of beauty and objects of cognition. Those elements are the attributes of all things (which are the content) and the forms of existence of all things (which are the form). Such “content” and “form” are requisites that all things must have. They are not something that all things have acquired by themselves; rather, they have been endowed by God with these elements.
The human being is the integration of all things and a miniature of the universe (or microcosm); therefore, as a microcosm, the human being is equipped with the content and form that corresponds to the content and form of all things. As objects of cognition, there are all things in nature, as well as things, events, and persons in human society.
(4) Result
When a subject and an object engage in give and receive action, centering on a purpose, a result comes into being. In order to understand the nature of this result, we need to understand the nature of the four position foundation. As is explained in the Theory of the Original Image, the four position foundation can be classified into four kinds: inner identity-maintaining four position foundation, outer identity-maintaining four position foundation, inner developmental four position foundation, and outer developmental four position foundation.
Cognition is basically the process of collating and uniting, through give and receive action, the “content and form” of the subject and the “content and form” of the object. When that happens, an identity-maintaining four position foundation is formed. On the other hand, a developmental four position foundation is formed in the case of the human activity of dominion. Cognition is closely associated with dominion. There is no dominion without cognition, and there is no cognition without dominion. Cognition and dominion form reciprocal circuits of give and receive action between human beings and all things. That is to say, the process of cognition is one circuit (from the object to the subject), and the process of dominion is the other circuit (from the subject to the object). Then, let us examine the relationship between the developmental four position foundation in dominion and the identity-maintaining four position foundation in co-gnition. Dominion here refers to the exercise of one’s creativity; therefore, the four position foundation in dominion is the same as the four position foundation in creation.
As explained in the Theory of the Original Image, God created all things through the two stages of creation, namely, the formation of the inner developmental four position foundation (i.e., the formation of Logos) and the formation of the outer developmental four position foundation. In this sequential process, first the inner developmental four position foundation was formed, and then the outer developmental four position foundation was formed. Thus, all things were created in sequence, “from the inner to the outer four position foundations.” In contrast, in the formation of the identity-maintaining four position foundation for cognition, first, the outer identity-maintaining four position foundation is formed, and then the inner identity-maintaining four position foundation is formed. Thus, cognition takes place in sequence, “from the outer to the inner four position foundations.” Hence, cognition is accomplished as the result of the formation of the inner identity-maintaining four position foundation, whereby the external element and the internal element are collated. Then, more concretely, what is cognition? This will be clarified next.