Metaphysical Foundations of War in the Philosophy of Heraclitus of Ephesus

Abstract

Relevance. The article presents a philosophical-ontological analysis of the concept of war through the lens of the thought of Heraclitus of Ephesus. It is shown that, despite the fragmentary nature of the sources and the polyvalence of his sayings, his doctrine articulates an original ontological model in which war and conflict appear not as historical contingencies but as fundamental principles of worldly being. The purpose of this study is to draw attention to the fact that Heraclitus himself brought to the surface of his philosophical doctrine of war. Methods. The study demonstrates that the key idea of Heraclitus’s philosophy – the struggle of opposites, which determines the structure and dynamics of the world-opens the possibility of interpreting war as a universal ontological law. Heraclitus asserts that it is precisely the tension between opposing principles that gives rise to order, harmony, and motion. Such an interpretation goes far beyond the traditional historical or moral analysis of war, granting it the status of a cosmic principle of becoming. Novelty. The research further shows that this ontological perspective radically transforms the view of history. Rather than treating histori­cal conflicts as deviations or malfunctions within the world order, Heraclitus’s model regards them as lawful manifestations of ontological dynamics, where de­struction serves as the precondition for the emergence of the new. Thus, struggle appears not as an anomaly but as a necessary condition of the ontological process. Conclusion. It is demonstrated that ancient philosophy, despite its temporal dis­tance, retains the capacity to illuminate contemporary socio-historical processes at the level of the fundamental structures of being. Heraclitus’s conception of con­flict as a universal principle offers an alternative to the psychological, political, or ethical models of war analysis prevalent today, redirecting philosophical atten­tion to the deeper mechanisms of the world’s becoming. It is precisely Heracli­tus’s ontology of struggle that offers a return to the original task of philosophy – the comprehension of being as such – and makes it possible to see in conflict not only the tragedy of human history but also its necessity.