La vida como categoría central de la ontología natural

Abstract

Life as a central category of natural ontology

This article addresses the philosophical and scientific challenges of defining life, centering on the concept of biological autonomy as an alternative to reductionist paradigms. Organicism emerged as a holistic framework that views life as the result of the reciprocal organization of its components. However, the article critiques the reduction of teleology to mere self-maintenance, arguing that life exhibits a tendential dynamism that transcends functional explanations. By revisiting classical teleological principles and integrating them with modern biology, it proposes a renewed understanding of life as a metaphysical category, one that reconciles functional autonomy with an orientation toward self-transcendence. This approach restores life’s ontological depth, addressing its intrinsic richness beyond organicist frameworks.