Philosophy includes many currents and directions. Each scientist somehow in his own way explained the relevant categories for his time. The theory of monads of Leibniz is part of dialectics - the doctrine of the constant development, movement and variability of the world. The famous philosopher, a representative of the German school, believed that at the heart of the world are God and the mind that he created. It is God's mind that provides the content for matter and becomes the source of its development.
What is a monad?
According to Leibniz, the whole world can be divided into the smallest elements - monads. Monad is a special substance, characterized by simplicity, which is a part of a more complex element. This component of the world does not have an extension, it does not arise and does not perish in a natural way, it simply exists. Leibniz argued that the monad in philosophy is a substance endowed with the principle of activity and power. This principle can be explained from the point of view of teleology (universal subordination to final goals) and theology. In this regard, there is an idea that the Universe, generated by God, is also constantly directed by him towards self-improvement and development of rich forms.
The monad is studied by philosophers as a particle that is connected by unity with the infinite cosmos. Leibniz, as a representative of dialectics, put forward the idea that nature is a combination of everything with everything, since the whole Universe is represented by a monad. The philosophical direction demonstrates the connection of individual individual substances with the great surrounding world.
Characteristics of the substance
All items can be divided into monads. Their existence is confirmed by the complex things that surround us and which we can learn in a practical way, having gained some experience. The philosophical principle states that any complex thing should consist of simple ones. For Leibniz, a monad is a spiritual atom that has no parts and is not material. The fact that these elements are simple means that they are not subject to decay and ceasing to exist, like all other mortal substances.
The gateways of the monads are closed, and in connection with such isolation they do not affect others, and they, in turn, do not affect them. They circulate in space independently of each other. This principle is not characteristic of the highest monad - God, who endows all other elements with life and harmonizes their internal state. The pre-established harmony between simple substances is a living mirror image of the universe. Despite its simplicity, the monad in philosophy is a phenomenon that has its own internal structure and multiplicity of state. Such a state, or perception, cannot exist by itself, unlike particles of complex elements, and this confirms the simplicity of substances. Perceptions are conscious and unconscious. The second condition is possible due to the small size of the monads.
Monad and soul
Leibniz had his anthropological views on this subject. The scientist believed that people's actions can be subjected to unconscious influence. He also argued that monads and their states are constantly changing. The reason for this is the internal activity of such an element.
For Leibniz, the human soul is the most important monad. In philosophy, this direction is called monadology - reflection on the root cause of physical interaction between things. The human soul is just one of the levels of substance.
Basic provisions of monadology
The entire Universe can be divided into a large number of elements that do not have a dualistic nature, as Descartes and Spinoza wrote, but continuously unified.
A monad is one if you look at a translation from Greek. It is simple, indivisible and has no material and substantive basis.
The monad is characterized by four qualities: aspiration, attraction, perception and representation.
The essence of this element is activity, activity. He is one and constantly changing his perception.
The continuity of existence enables the monad to become aware of himself.
This substance is completely closed and dependent on others like her.
Types of monads in Leibniz
Leibniz, summarizing all his thoughts, divides the monads into 4 classes:
- The naked monad is the one that is the basis of the life of inorganic creatures (stones, earth, minerals).
- Monad of animals - from the name it is clear for whom it is peculiar. She has feelings, but self-awareness is completely undeveloped.
- The human monad or soul is a rational substance. Has consciousness, memory and a unique ability - thinking. A person can cognize the world, surrounding things, moral laws, values and eternal truths.
- The highest level of the monad is God.
Leibniz argued that all monads, except the fourth class, have a connection with the body. The life of creatures is associated with two processes - deployment at birth and coagulation at death, which, in principle, the body, as a set of monads, cannot destroy. Under the body, he understood the country of monads, which is ruled by the ideal leader - the soul. Since the philosopher was an idealist, he generally denied the existence of matter, and in this regard, the bodily shell.
