Existential Alphabet

Wrote this several years ago and was reminded of it today: 

Existential Alphabet

A is for Angst, that Dizzying Freedom

B is for Being, its Possibility and its Tedium

C is for the Character of Conscience as Call

D is for Dasein, almost Any Existence at All

E is for Existential, it’s What We Are 

And E is also for Experience –in the World, not as Brains Stuck in Jars 

F is for Flungness and Throwness, experienced by the Knower

And G is for God who just might be the Thrower 

H is for the Actual Historicity of Truth 

And I is for the Immanentizing Ideologies of Untruth

J is for Judgments, we make these by Thinking 

K is for Kenosis, when our own Will starts Shrinking

L is for Logos, we’re talking the Divine Ground 

And M is for Mystery, since it’s not just Lying Around

N is for Nihilism and No Objective Morality 

O is for Ontology and Openness to Reality 

P is for Problematizing, my least favourite Verb 

And Q is for Questioning, which is much less Absurd 

R is for Relationship to the Other Man

And R is also for Recognition that should be Reciprocal, if it can

S is for the Separateness in the Human Condition of Plurality

And T is for Transcendence Beyond Worldly Temporality 

U is for Utopia and All such Prideful Conceits 

V is for this Will replacing Vision Not even being Discreet

W is for World, with a Structure quite Complex 

X is for Xenophon, ’cause his Name starts with ‘X’

Y is for ‘Youth’ and ‘Old Age’, Historical Metaphors that have Misled

And Z is for Zoomorphism, ’cause that starts with ‘Zed’

 

Now I think I know my existential alphabet… Next time will this be a waste of time, in retrospect?