Cosmology is the science of the origins and structure of the universe. However, it derives from kosmos, which means world, and this term indicates both the universe and the earth, the celestial sphere and the sphere of human history. Cosmology in the philosophical sense must therefore consider both aspects, although it is not easy to understand their connection. Especially today, because the “universe” side is a highly specialised scientific subject, while the “earth” side is dominated by globalisation, which leads to an exclusive focus on human affairs. With globalisation, a kind of worldless wordliness has taken place. The aim of this issue is therefore to bring Weltfrage back to the centre of philosophy, through a sampling of cosmological thinking in a broad sense. Indeed, such a thinking concerns world models, but these models are not only cosmographies and more or less exact astronomical representations. They are also myths, images, metaphors, symbols, which intersect metaphysics and religion no less than ethics and politics. A world is only given within a vision, halfway between reason and imagination, as it is rooted in the primordial layers of experience while pushing towards the most daring speculations on the origin, connection and end of all things. This issue therefore presents some material for exploring the concept of the world and seeing anew the threads that bind, even in a conflicting form, heaven and earth.
Towards a Philosophical Cosmology
Marco Russo
2022-01-01
Abstract
Cosmology is the science of the origins and structure of the universe. However, it derives from kosmos, which means world, and this term indicates both the universe and the earth, the celestial sphere and the sphere of human history. Cosmology in the philosophical sense must therefore consider both aspects, although it is not easy to understand their connection. Especially today, because the “universe” side is a highly specialised scientific subject, while the “earth” side is dominated by globalisation, which leads to an exclusive focus on human affairs. With globalisation, a kind of worldless wordliness has taken place. The aim of this issue is therefore to bring Weltfrage back to the centre of philosophy, through a sampling of cosmological thinking in a broad sense. Indeed, such a thinking concerns world models, but these models are not only cosmographies and more or less exact astronomical representations. They are also myths, images, metaphors, symbols, which intersect metaphysics and religion no less than ethics and politics. A world is only given within a vision, halfway between reason and imagination, as it is rooted in the primordial layers of experience while pushing towards the most daring speculations on the origin, connection and end of all things. This issue therefore presents some material for exploring the concept of the world and seeing anew the threads that bind, even in a conflicting form, heaven and earth.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
