Miquel, Paul-Antoine

Becoming and spirituality in Bergson’s metaphysics - 2025.


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In the opening of Creative Evolution, Bergson develops an analogy between human consciousness and the universe’s spiritual life. This article argues that such an analogy is only possible under two conditions. First, the philosopher must draw on science to move beyond the confines of consciousness. Consequently, a strict separation between metaphysical and scientific experience is no longer tenable. Second, the mind is defined by the difference between its being and its acting. As such, “it draws from itself more than it has.” This is why it is always both spirituality and materiality, according to a non-standard logic of internal polarization.