--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Human existence can relate to beings only…" description: "\"“Human existence can relate to beings only if it holds itself out into the nothing. Going beyond beings occurs in the essence of Dasein. But this going..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/martin-heidegger-2144_existentialism_human-existence-can-relate-to-beings-onl_2894574.jpg" --- # Human existence can relate to beings only if it holds… ![“Human existence can relate to beings only if it holds itself out into the nothing. Going beyond beings occurs in the essence of Dasein. But this going beyond is metaphysics itself. This implies that metaphysics belongs to the "nature of man." It is neither a division of academic philosophy nor a…” quote by Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/martin-heidegger-2144_existentialism_human-existence-can-relate-to-beings-onl_2894574.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/martin-heidegger-2144_existentialism_human-existence-can-relate-to-beings-onl_2894574.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/martin-heidegger-2144_existentialism_human-existence-can-relate-to-beings-onl_2894574.jpg) > ““Human existence can relate to beings only if it holds itself out into the nothing. Going beyond beings occurs in the essence of Dasein. But this going beyond is metaphysics itself. This implies that metaphysics belongs to the "nature of man." It is neither a division of academic philosophy nor a field of arbitrary notions. Metaphysics is the basic occurrence of Dasein. It is Dasein itself. Because the truth of metaphysics dwells in this groundless ground it stands in closest proximity to the constantly lurking possibility of deepest error. For this reason no amount of scientific rigor attains to the seriousness of metaphysics. Philosophy can never be measured by the standard of the idea of science. If the question of the nothing unfolded here has actually questioned us, then we have not simply brought metaphysics before us in an extrinsic manner. Nor have we merely been "transposed" to it. We cannot be transposed there at all, because insofar as we exist we are always there already. "For by nature, my friend, man's mind dwells in philosophy" (Plato, Phaedrus, 279a). So long as man exists, philosophizing of some sort occurs. Philosophy―what we call philosophy―is metaphysics getting under way, in which philosophy comes to itself and to its explicit tasks. Philosophy gets under way only by a peculiar insertion of our own existence into the fundamental possibilities of Dasein as a whole. For this insertion it is of decisive importance, first, that we allow space for beings as a whole; second, that we release ourselves into the nothing, which is to say, that we liberate ourselves from those idols everyone has and to which he is wont to go cringing; and finally, that we let the sweep of our suspense take its full course, so that it swings back into the basic question of metaphysics which the nothing itself compels: 'Why are there beings at all, and why not rather nothing?" ―from\_What is Metaphysics?\_”” [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Metaphysics is the fundamental inquiry into existence, arising from human beings confronting the void and questioning why anything exists at all. **In simple terms:** Philosophy explores why we exist. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty to deepen understanding. Themes existence philosophy metaphysics Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - academic study - personal reflection - existential crisis - creative writing - spiritual practice Key Concepts Being nothingness Dasein ontology Questions to Reflect On - What does “the nothing” mean for you? - How can confronting emptiness inspire action? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on abstraction can detach from practical life. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Existentialism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existentialism/) [Human existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Metaphysics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphysics/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Ontology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ontology/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) ## Related quotes > [“A biblical metaphysics implies a biblical theory of knowledge and a biblical ethic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-r-van-til/a-biblical-metaphysics-implies-a-biblical-theory-of-knowledge-and-a/) [Henry R. Van Til](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-r-van-til/) > [The role of metaphysics in relation to other disciplines, whether philosophical or not and including the natural sciences, is thus a foundational role. 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Going beyond beings occurs in the essence of Dasein. But this going beyond is metaphysics itself. This implies that metaphysics belongs to the \"nature of man.\" It is neither a division of academic philosophy nor a field of arbitrary notions. Metaphysics is the basic occurrence of Dasein. It is Dasein itself. Because the truth of metaphysics dwells in this groundless ground it stands in closest proximity to the constantly lurking possibility of deepest error. For this reason no amount of scientific rigor attains to the seriousness of metaphysics. Philosophy can never be measured by the standard of the idea of science. If the question of the nothing unfolded here has actually questioned us, then we have not simply brought metaphysics before us in an extrinsic manner. Nor have we merely been \"transposed\" to it. 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