The Law of Identity

The Identity Principle states that a=a

The Origin of the Identity Principle lies in the facticity of Being, which is permeated by existentiality (negativity). Only Being can be self-identical.

The facticity of the Law of Identity makes it a tauto-logy.

by endomorphosis January 9, 2021

Law of Non-Identity

The principle that things are not identical to themselves over time, challenging Aristotle's law of identity (A = A). The law of non-identity observes that everything changes constantly—the you of this moment is not the you of a moment ago, a river is never the same water twice, and your favorite coffee mug, after years of use, is physically, chemically, and sentimentally different from the one you bought. Identity is an illusion we impose on flux. The law of non-identity explains why you can't step in the same river twice, why returning to a childhood home feels strange (it's not the same home, and you're not the same you), and why "I'm just not myself today" is literally true every day.

Example: "She invoked the law of non-identity when her partner said 'you've changed.' 'Of course I have,' she said. 'The law of non-identity says I'm not the same person I was yesterday, let alone five years ago. If I were identical to my past self, that would be the problem.' Her partner missed the person she used to be. She was busy becoming the person she was going to be."

by Dumu The Void February 15, 2026

Law of Spectral Identity

The principle that entities (concepts, arguments, people) are defined not by fixed properties but by their position on multiple intersecting spectra. Your identity isn't "logical person" or "illogical person"; it's a point in spectral space defined by your position on spectra of rigor, intuition, evidence-use, emotional reasoning, and countless others. The law of spectral identity means that no one is simply anything—we're all complex coordinates in multidimensional logical space. This explains why you can be brilliant in some contexts and hopeless in others, why someone can be a genius in their field and an idiot in daily life, and why "knowing someone" means understanding their spectral coordinates, not just slapping a label on them.

Example: "He tried to apply the law of spectral identity to his own thinking. He wasn't 'smart' or 'dumb'—he was high on the analytical spectrum, low on the emotional-intelligence spectrum, medium on the practical-reasoning spectrum. The coordinates explained why he could solve complex equations but couldn't read a room. Understanding his spectral identity didn't fix the room-reading problem, but it helped him stop calling himself stupid."

by AbzuInExile February 16, 2026

Law of Spectral Identity

The principle that identity itself is spectral—that entities (people, concepts, arguments) are defined not by fixed essences but by their positions on multiple intersecting spectra that shift over time. You are not a fixed self but a constantly moving point in spectral space, defined by your coordinates on spectra of personality, belief, emotion, relationship, and countless others. The law of spectral identity explains why you can feel like a different person in different contexts, why someone can be both kind and cruel, why a statement can be true in one framework and false in another. It's the logic of fluidity, of becoming rather than being, of the recognition that "who you are" is always a temporary answer to an ongoing question.

Example: "He tried to define himself for a dating profile—'adventurous,' 'laid-back,' 'foodie.' The law of spectral identity laughed at him. He was adventurous sometimes, cautious others; laid-back in some contexts, anxious in others; a foodie on weekends, a microwave-dinner person on weeknights. His identity wasn't a list of traits; it was a constantly shifting spectral coordinate. He wrote 'it's complicated' and hoped someone understood."

by AbzuInExile February 16, 2026

Law of Fluid Identity

The principle that identity is not merely spectral but fluid—constantly flowing, changing, re-forming, with no fixed position at all. Under this law, you don't have a stable set of spectral coordinates; you're a river of selfhood, never the same from moment to moment. The law of fluid identity challenges even the spectral view, which still imagines fixed points on continua. Fluid identity says there are no points—only flow, only process, only continuous transformation. It's the logic of radical impermanence, of the self as verb rather than noun, of the recognition that the person who started reading this sentence is already different from the person finishing it.

Example: "She embraced the law of fluid identity after her divorce. She wasn't the same person she'd been married as; that person was gone, replaced by someone new, who would also be replaced. Her ex wanted closure with the person he'd married, but that person didn't exist anymore. The law of fluid identity explained why closure was impossible—you can't close the book on a story that's still being written."

by AbzuInExile February 16, 2026