What is biomorality

Biomorality is a living philosophy that reorients human understanding by placing life itself, rather than human consciousness, at the center of explanation. It can be understood in several complementary ways:

A Biocentric Philosophical Theory

At its core, biomorality is a biocentric philosophical theory that identifies a fundamental structure common to all living beings. This structure, which we call syncropy, serves as the foundation for understanding the nature of being, knowledge, and morality.

Syncropy represents a special configuration of matter-energy that characterizes all life. Unlike most physical systems that tend toward increasing entropy (disorder), living beings are syncropic systems that temporarily create and maintain order within their boundaries while increasing entropy in their surroundings. This pattern is observed from single-celled organisms to complex mammals.

To learn more about syncropy's key features and how it relates to scientific concepts like autopoiesis, homeostasis, and negentropy, explore Syncropy and Related Concepts.

A Meta-Theory with Built-in Revision

Biomorality is also a meta-theory, as its method provides boundaries and criteria for variations, revisions, and modes of failure of the theory itself. Unlike philosophical systems that claim eternal, unchanging truths, biomorality builds its own revision and adaptation into its core principles.

The method of biomorality establishes five fundamental principles that guide how we develop and evaluate explanations: ontological continuity, permanent revision, primacy of the external, contingent conditions of knowledge, and rejection of satisfaction. These principles themselves reflect the adaptive nature of living systems, creating a framework that can evolve while maintaining its integrity.

Unlike traditional philosophy's focus on human-specific concepts, biomorality treats all thought as an extension of biological prediction systems. Our theories must prove their viability through their capacity to enhance real-world understanding and flourishing.

A Philosophical Mythology

Biomorality functions as a philosophical mythology—a narrative that tells an interpretive story about the relationship between living beings and the universe. This doesn't mean it's fictional or arbitrary; rather, it acknowledges that humans understand reality partly through narrative structures that give meaning to empirical observations.

This philosophical mythology differs from traditional myths in crucial ways:

As a mythology, biomorality offers several key elements:

The Cosmic Story: A 13.8 billion year tale of increasing complexity, where stardust becomes storytellers through syncropy's patient work

The Developmental Narrative: Humanity's journey from childhood (religious frameworks) through adolescence (anthropocentric philosophy) to maturity (biocentric understanding)

The Moral Framework: Ethics grounded in the shared nature of all living beings, avoiding both human exceptionalism and nihilistic relativism

The Integrative Vision: A worldview where culture, technology, and consciousness are natural extensions of biological processes

This narrative aspect addresses our need for meaning and context while remaining open to revision based on empirical evidence—avoiding both the rigidity of traditional mythologies and the fragmentation of purely analytical approaches.

An Alternative Interpretive Framework

Building on these foundations, biomorality offers alternative interpretations of history, science, metaphysics, ethics, and political theory. It doesn't reject empirical evidence but provides a different lens for understanding its significance.

For example, biomorality:

• Reinterprets human history as part of the broader history of life's adaptation
• Views consciousness not as a mysterious addition to physical reality but as a sophisticated implementation of integration processes common to all life
• Grounds ethics in the self-maintaining nature of living processes rather than in abstract principles
• Approaches political systems as collective adaptive mechanisms for navigating environmental challenges

Unlike static philosophies, biomorality embraces its temporary nature—it is a thinking tool for our current evolutionary stage, meant to be refined and potentially even outgrown as our understanding develops.

To understand the philosophical approach that guides biomorality, explore the method of biomorality, which outlines the five fundamental principles that form its methodological foundation.