Pansensism
Pansensism is the belief that all matter which constitutes the natural world is conscious. More simply put, "everything is sentient" (Copenhaver 2015, 510). This term can also be understood as panpsychism or Vitalism – the belief that "everything is alive" (2015, 510). Pansensism is a term originated by the Italian philosophers Giordano Bruno and Tommaso Campanella.
Bruno was of the belief that all matter was divine in nature – "There is a divine force in all things – Love himself, the Father, source and Amphitrite of bonds … Matter is something divine" (2015, 434-436). While Bruno's view encourages the belief that everything in nature is under the command of God and all moves accordingly due to Him, Campanella's naturalist view concedes to the belief of all matter being God's creation, however all matter moves with its own agency. Campanella's view asserts that everything from stone, animals and even hot/cold have sentience.
While it is evident that Bruno and Campanella disagree in certain respects, each have a philosophy that exemplifies pansensism – the belief that all matter is sentient.
Key Words: vitalism, panspychism
Bibliography:
Bruno, Giordano. 2015. "Love is the Great Demon: Bruno, A General Theory of Bonds, 3.12-15 9.12" In The Book of Magic: From Antiquity to Enlightenment, Translated by Brian Copenhaver. Penguin Classics.
Campanella, Tomasso. 2015. "Cold Slain by Heat: Campanella, On Sense and Magic, 2.26 11.5" In The Book of Magic: From Antiquity to Enlightenment, Translated by Brian Copenhaver. Penguin Classics.
Copenhaver, Brian. 2015. The Book of Magic: From Antiquity to Enlightenment. Penguin Classics.
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