Is the Religious Mind the highest stage of existence?

Question

Kierkegaard said that there are three stages of existence: Aesthetic, Ethical and Religious.

I would summarize them like this: The Aesthetic Mind finds Truth through Beauty. The Ethical Mind finds Truth through Reason. And the Religious Mind finds Truth through Faith.

Kierkegaard argued that the Religious Mind was the highest level of existence, that it redeemed the other two.

Do you think he was right or not? Why?

dog...: you gave a VERY good summary of how Kierkegaard viewed his three stages. I was giving *my* summary; sorry for the confusion. You can probably guess I have a much higher opinion of aestheticism than Kierkegaard did. But I'm mainly interested in what YOU think.... ;-)

Answer 1

The answer to your question is yes. But Kierkegaard's stages aren't quite as you described them. The aesthete is only interested in pleasure of the body and mind. The ethical stage is one of commitment and self-sacrifice. The religious is one of being transparent, losing one's self in God. It should also be noted that these stages are not linear, they can occur at different times back and forth.

Good movies that illustrate the transition from the aesthete to the ethical are "As Good as it Gets" and "High Fidelity."

[edit] I do think he was right. I am a professional artist. I have three degrees. I am single. I move at least once every two years. I resist any and all kinds of commitments, even with my own dealers who make me money. While I do enjoy the aesthetic life, it also has its own vacuity. I regret that I am unable to form mature, intimate relationships, have a family, steady job, and so forth. I am an aging teenager at 30.

The well known developmental psychologist Erik Erickson has charted several stages in life's development. I am at least 10 to 15 years behind in maturity for my age. I am still "playing" and forming my identity which causes me to be more socially isolated as an adult. My long-time friends are now married, some with kids, while I am alone with my books and half-painted canvases wondering if this could have ever been avoided.

Anyway, I think SK was right on the money. From Ecclesiastes:

Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.
Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.

13 Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.

Answer 2

Kierkegaard was also the one who pronounced God dead!
I am still wondering who did the autopsy.

Religion certainly leans toward the highest level of existence, but religion is not the highest level of existence.

The highest level of existence will never exist on this planet because it is other worldly. For a Christian it is dying in this physical body and entering into the presence of God for all eternity in an immortal form.

The aesthetic mind enjoys beauty according to its own concept of beauty.

The ethical mind finds it truth through the things it believes to be ethical which requires a certain amount of reason. This reason is sometimes attended by logic but not always.

The religious mind finds its truth through the acceptance of certain belief systems called doctrine. While religious minds find truth through faith the imperative of the religious mind is finding faith in the right person or belief system. There is justifiable faith and systems that teach us to exercise faith in false systems or false leaders. What religious people believe is to be the choice of those who choose a religious life

Answer 3

Since the first two require something physical to base itself on and the latter requires nothing physical but a more higher form of existence than the physical, I would say he was correct.

But Id rather say that the spiritual mind, is higher than the religious in this spectrum.

Note: atheists should really stop assuming that the religious mind attributes any and all that it does not understand to a creator. Thats not how the mind of a religious man works, but the mind of a man who is ignorant.

Because if your faith in God comes from your surroundings: like an event you cannot fully comprehend, then your faith is not a faith at all, its just a very erroneous rationality on the existence of something.

Answer 4

That's what those who (appear to) have reached the highest stage of existence appear to be pointing to.

The word 'appear' comes from / is related to the word 'apparent'.

Apparent in the way Sherlock Holmes would understand, based on evidence, what a person had been doing in the recent past (from things he said, what he was wearing, body language, mannerisms, etc).

Someone to whom such marks / characteristics of the religious mind are apparent, cannot but help knowing that the Religious Mind is Existence's highest stage.

It's intuitive, as well as based on a lifetime's observation, trial & error...

Answer 5

Yes. Not faith alone, knowledge must be there. And on this platform a man submits himself to God and obeys God totally.
Is the highest level because is the original constitutional position of the spirit soul.
The aesthetical way can be experienced in lower animal forms and the ethical way we can philosophically speculate for many millions of years, without come to the rigth conclution.

Answer 6

Actually, cognitive and behavioral science has shown just the opposite (apologies to Keirkegaard).
Most religious thought is animistic in nature, which is a "pre-operational" type of thinking, generally found in humans between 3 - 7 years of age.
Religion is also founded on morality, rather than ethics. As you are probably aware, morality doesn't require thought, only memorization. Adherence to such thinking is a fine example of concrete thinking, which is a hallmark of low IQ or decreased executive function.
I think it's true to say that, for the most part, no matter how subtle the language in which it's delivered, the concepts that form the basis of most major religions do not require intellectual maturity, and are (in fact) contrary to such thinking.

Answer 7

form of like how the darker their epidermis is, the better apelike they're. What a nonsensical and offensive question. (The very form of question that's sturdy for trolling, of course.) faith is likely in simple terms an aspect results of extreme order summary concept. the skill to imagine counterfactuals and hit upon hypotheticals by some concept of the international will commonly bring about potential conclusions that contain invisible forces, fairly between a lot less state-of-the-artwork thinkers like early people. The questioning might want to likely flow "we gained't see the wind, even though it of course makes issues happen. The rain mysteriously seems, even though it must have a reason. now and again the flowers fail in spite of sufficient rain and seeds. What motives that? possibly there's a sky-individual (or many sky-human beings) who controls all of it and we angered him!" i might want to argue fairly that faith is only a highlighting of a quintessentially human trait, mind's eye, a minimum of technological know-how highlights our interest and cleverness. the version is that the explanatory skill of religion is exhausted, and those who carry to it in simple terms cleave to at least one aspect of the emotional-rational continuum fairly than the different.

Answer 8

Not all religious mind do that,
an Islam religious mind has highest level of existence as it find the truth through not only faith but also reason and beauty of greatness.

Answer 9

The mind that finds Mind is the highest state of understanding, and could be termed existence here and now.

Answer 10

No the height of existence is beyond Mind

Existence uses mind as a tool...