hylozoism

hy·lo·zo·ism

noun \ˌhī-lə-ˈzō-ˌi-zəm\

Definition of HYLOZOISM

: a doctrine held especially by early Greek philosophers that all matter has life

— hy·lo·zo·ist \-ˈzō-ist\ noun

— hy·lo·zo·is·tic \-zō-ˈis-tik\ adjective

Origin of HYLOZOISM

Greek hylē matter, literally, wood + zōos alive, living; akin to Greek zōē life — more at quick

First Known Use: 1678

hylozoism

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

View that all matter is alive, either in itself or by participation in the operation of a world soul or some similar principle. Hylozoism is logically distinct both from early forms of animism, which personify nature, and from panpsychism, which attributes some form of consciousness or sensation to all matter. The word was coined in the 17th century by Ralph Cudworth, who with Henry More (1614–1687) spoke of “plastic nature,” an unconscious, incorporeal substance that controls and organizes matter and thus produces natural events as a divine instrument of change.