Alterity and Repetition. Phenomenological Interpretation of the Divinity in the Later Heidegger

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is phe-nomenological interpretation of the various faces of divinity in the later Heidegger and elucidation of the human comportment corresponding to this divinity. In the first chapter, I will make clear the relation between ontological difference in the sense of the later Heidegger and the primordial dimension of divinity which is called the last god (der letzte Gott) and the sacred (das Heilige). Further, the relation between such divinity and entity as a whole (das Seiende im Ganzen) will be clarified. In the second chapter, I will elucidate the place of the divinities in the manifestation of entity as a whole by considering the role of the godlikes (die Göttlichen) in the fourfold (das Geviert). When the primordial alterity of the last god should be experienced in entity as whole, which leads to the notion of the godlikes, it must confront human subject in totally asymmetrical manner. Such asymmetrical communication can be structurally made explicit by taking the concept of “discourse” in Being and Time into account. Finally, I will consider the character of human comportment called preservation (Bergung) with focusing on its relation to the later Heidegger’s conceptions of divinity. This will shed light on how human beings could properly appreciate the experience of what is beyond our understanding and nevertheless supporting our existence.