Oldal 21 [21]
Einheitslehre). In Kantian philosophy, because of the lack of a first
principle, there is no ultimate foundation, which is to say, a unity
of principle. However, the unity of the self with the same is the
starting point of all further processes, though as we shall see it is
not sufficient for self-determination. It might not be sufficient,
but identity as a fundamental theorem is necessary.
And it looks like this: this is precisely the moment when Narcis¬
sus stands there lonely and alone, without any reflection, as Ovid
writes, "being consulted as to whether the child would live a long
life, to a ripe old age, the seer with prophetic vision replied: ‘If he
does not discover himself’. (Ovid 2000. III.pp.339-366) This is the
state of contentless identity. Narcissus’s loneliness is a perfect lack
of thought. He feels but does not think, the wonderful childhood
of perception with no potential for apperception. The unity of this
principle reveals two things: the starting point and the end point
can be none other than sameness. How we get there is the question.
And how these two identities differ is also a separate question.
Schelling, despite the shift in emphasis in his later philosophy, thinks
the same: The fundamentals of individual sciences cannot be derived
in these sciences, but must be unconditional in relation to them. ¬
That’s why the ‘Grundsazt’ can only be one. (SW.I.1. pp.85-112.)
According to him, in Kant the idea of unity, the unity of the first
principle (Einheit des Grundsatzes), is missing, and if it is missing,
it becomes impossible to lay the foundations for any further steps.
Everyone agrees with this at the time—with the exception, per¬
haps, of Kant himself. All this may seem completely uninteresting
compared to what was said in the introduction, but when we think
about it, thinking in general cannot be coherent without a basis for
coherence itself, that is, a certain first principle. Clarification of
the concept of “the same” certainly requires this, even if it seems
either unnecessary or overcomplicated. That is why I try to clarify
these with examples that can be easily understood.Finding and
applying the first principle (as the basis of our thinking) and the