Post 10 – Contemplating the Authentic Sense of Being

Describing the Authentic Sense of Being

How may we describe the authentic sense of Being? It is not a “sense” in the conventional understanding of the term, yet sensing, feeling, knowing, and awareness are words often employed to gesture toward it. Here, language falters—words become mere symbols pointing to that which they cannot fully contain, like a finger weakly gesturing toward a distant moon.

This sense is approached through various disciplines: philosophy, drawing on ontology and phenomenology; psychology and neuroscience; and transcendental traditions, including religion and spirituality. Each offers a perspective, yet in its most immediate awareness, the authentic sense of Being remains elusive and mysterious.

Some describe it as contemplation, deep knowing, or remembering—as seeing “face to face.” Meister Eckhart expressed it as: “The eye with which I see God is the same eye with which God sees me.” Spinoza declared, “We feel and know that we are eternal.” Others recognize it in phrases such as “I am that I am,” “You are that,” or simply, “It is what it is.”

This authentic sense of Being does not correspond to bodily senses, which are attuned to external perception. Instead, it reveals something far more foundational—an original, unmediated awareness that transcends thought and sensory experience. It is the ground of who we are, often referred to as the “hidden observer.”

A Forgotten Sense

Philosopher Emanuele Severino noted:
“Thought sees being but does not see itself. An altered sense imposes itself… an inauthentic sense of being… the forgetfulness of the authentic sense of being.”

This inauthentic sense of Being is akin to forgetfulness—our empirical self losing sight of the transcendental reality. As Boethius wrote:
“Now I know… the main cause of your misfortune: you have ceased to know what you yourself are.”

Yet the authentic sense of Being is never lost. It is obscured, yet remains ever-present. Its reawakening feels like something always known, inseparable from who we are. This realization affirms the transcendental reality upon which all appearances unfold.

Methods, Techniques, and Paths of Development

Can specific practices help us recognize the authentic sense of Being? Many traditions propose that they can. Religious, spiritual, and meditative practices, alongside philosophical inquiry, are commonly associated with awakening this awareness.

However, these practices are not causes of awakening but appear alongside it, as part of the same eternal structure. When the authentic sense of Being becomes apparent, it may do so in the context of philosophical reflection, meditative silence, or the contemplation of beauty, love, nature, or proximity to death. Such contexts are expressions of Being’s immutable unity, rather than paths leading to it.

As noted in Post 4, reality is total, eternal, and unchanging. What appears as a sequence of events in time is simply the configuration through which Being reveals itself. One does not contemplate because they engage in practices like meditation, prayer or philosophical reflection; rather, these activities appear alongside the contemplation of Being, inseparably united in the eternal structure.

The Authentic Sense of Being vs. Nihilistic Forgetfulness

The authentic sense of Being is timeless because Being itself is eternal. Nothing truly comes into existence or lapses into nothingness. The essence of Being is immutable and ever-present.

The perception of things transitioning in or out of existence is the fundamental error of nihilism. Nihilism, which underpins much of Western metaphysics, assumes that beings are contingent and subject to change. This perspective forgets the eternal essence of Being, fostering metaphysical, ethical, and existential alienation.

Overcoming nihilism involves the reawakening of the authentic sense of Being, restoring the foundational truth that all is eternal and unchanging.

Conclusion

The authentic sense of Being transcends all disciplines, whether philosophical, scientific, or spiritual. Its recognition is not the product of will, method, or effort but the inevitable unveiling of the eternal structure of Being. As the veil of distractions momentarily thins or falls away, the true sense of Being is perceived—not as something gained, but as something that has always been present, hidden in plain sight.