The concept of being refers to one of the backbones in philosophy. Different scientists in different historical periods interpreted this concept in their own way. However, they all agreed that it was being, the forms of being, that are the characteristics, analyzing and comprehending which, a person finds answers to such fundamental questions as the creation and development of the world around him. At present, the most complete philosophical definition of being should be considered the philosophical category, which covers and includes absolutely the whole set of directly created by man, as well as natural and cosmic things and phenomena.
The concept of being as a philosophical problem includes a number of components. Firstly, this is a consideration of nature and the cosmos as a whole as a holistic system, subject to certain laws. Secondly, being does not remain unchanged, it is constantly evolving and changing, in accordance with its internal logic. Thirdly, in its development, being goes through the process of overcoming numerous contradictions that affect its main manifestations and forms.
The main forms of being can be represented as follows:
- Material being, which includes all the manifestations of certain natural phenomena, things, processes. The main feature of this form of being is its absolutely objective nature, as well as the fact that it is primary in relation to any other form. The main evidence of the inviolability and objectivity of material natural life is the fact that, despite the fairly active and destructive activity of man, the latter continues to depend in large part on his environment.
- The material existence of man, which includes such components as the physical existence of man as a subject of the animal world, as well as the social existence of man in various socio-historical conditions. It is worth emphasizing here that the material being of a person manifests itself as if in two ways: on the one hand, it acts as part of wildlife, “primary being,” but on the other, it not only exists in these conditions, but also actively changes them , being the main creator of the so-called "secondary being." These two forms, which are largely in competition with each other, have a decisive influence on a person's awareness of himself and society in a given historical period.
- Spiritual being, which can also be represented as two interconnected, and often opposing, components - individual spirituality and spirituality inherent in all of humanity. First of all, it should be noted here that this term itself means the interaction of the conscious and unconscious in human life, creativity, morality, the process of cognition, finally. In this case, individual spirituality is a person’s knowledge of himself, consciousness of himself as a creative person, having the ability to change the surrounding reality. The main manifestation of human spirituality is the huge cultural heritage accumulated by mankind throughout its history. This is literature, and painting, and music, and architecture with sculpture. But in addition to these material manifestations of universal spirituality, there are also moral principles, and various philosophical ideas, and social-state theories. Both of these forms of being not only complement each other, but also contribute to the mutual development and spiritual improvement of mankind. It should be recognized that spiritual being today plays no less important role than natural and material.