To study about man has an inherent dilemma. This is not because we could not attempt to study man and have a reasonable study about it, be it in any field like its origin, history, as far as archeology and science could offer us, but as far as the studying “subject” and the studied “object” is concerned, i.e., man himself.
Certainly it would be easier to say, we study man in different angles, like for example, anthropological study as far as man is an economic animal, capable of the engaging in work, labor, production and economics. One could also study man as far as has relationship with other man is concerned. How he relates with other man in terms of his social and political nature, and so on and so forth: in his relationship with the absolute as a “religious animal” or as far as his body is concerned, his figure, his health, his diet, his means and ways of improving his physique. One could also study man as far as he is related to his environment, to nature, to creation; or to the historical evolution, devolution or even his beginnings from nature. Others would study man as far as he is able to communicate to other intelligent beings inside or outside the planet earth; how he could establish means of communication with other animals.
The problem however is: in whatever angle we study man, it is man himself who is the object of study and at the same time, he is the subject. One could ask: Would this kind of study lead him to be influenced by his own thinking which is quite subjective and therefore would influence his conclusions? In nature, we observe that it is always the higher species that studies the lower species. Ants do not study themselves, it is rather the ant-eater who does observe and studies the ants to that he could avail himself of its proteins. Maybe the ant-eaters do not study themselves as interestingly as the beast that would also prey these ant-eaters, like the tiger. Cows do not study themselves, but the farmer who learns the kind of grass, the breeding and the care of these cows. In effect, it is always the higher species that studies the lower species.
In man, man himself in the same species that studies him. He is a rational animal and his capable of studying himself, maybe by introspection. However, we ask: could he, by himself, establish the truth about himself without being biased in one way or another by this own way of thinking? Is there a way to escape this kind of dilemma and arrive to the objective truth about himself, which is outside of himself?
This is a kind of question we would like to pose before we proceed to our next lesson.
