Current mood:

thoughtful

Define It: Existence

Existence

            Existence is an ambiguous term, for what does it mean to exist? It is said that it is simply so—you exist, it is a fact—but how can one truly deem one’s self as existing? Could we not each be but a figment of imagination? A illusion in some whimsical mind?

            Thus it is that humanity as a whole relies upon the presence of other forces—such as their fellow men—in order to define themselves, for it is only through the presence of an influence and a subject upon which the influence can act that existence can become defined, as without it there is no measure by which to decide where one thing might end or begin. The perception of those around us give us a shape, a purpose, a place, and—to a certain degree—a fate as well. After all, one may call another ‘friend’ but there would be no ‘friendship’ without that reciprocating label placed upon the giver—and yet to give the view of friendship is in itself a mark by which one defines another or is defined by another (“Oh he is my friend” is in effect “Oh so he is your friend” for every mind to which the thought is presented). This intricate web is something that cannot be escaped, and thus in every human being there can be found a desire, varying in degree depending upon the soul in question, to seek the higher opinion of one’s self through the eyes of another. It is, after all, the only way most people can find to give themselves that sense of accomplishment and higher standing—it is a thing that must be given.

            And yet we still have those who believe firmly in judging one’s self only according to one’s own standards, codes, and goals—personally, I am more inclined to be of this ilk—but is this truly a separation of one’s being from the influence of others? After some contemplation I have come to find that this must not be so. After all, is not the very wish to not define one’s self through others a mark of the influence of others?

            In the end, there is no such thing as a separation of one’s being from that of others, for even the absence of a presence in one’s immediate vicinity is an effect enacted by said presence. Existence is, after all, only a collection of perceptions, and without the presence of more than one force there can be no such perception as there is no measurement. We are only what the world makes of us, and the world is only what we make of it—like how existence is only as real as we make it out to be and we are only as real as those who exist around us see us as being. Thus we have created fate, a web of expectations, beliefs, labels, duties, and desires all given to us by the world and that we too give back to that very world in an impossible yet undeniable balance.