The Great Chain of Epistemology; Hierarchical Order of Knowledge
Cornerstones of Realitas
The Great Chain of Knowledge: Why Not All Truths Are Equal
You have been taught that all knowledge is the same; that facts, opinions, scientific models and personal experiences exist on an equal playing field. You have been told that what is true today may not be true tomorrow, that one field of study is just as valid as another and that no fundamental structure underlies knowledge itself.
This is not an accident.
For decades, education, media and public discourse have worked to flatten knowledge, stripping away its natural hierarchy and reducing all forms of understanding to interchangeable data points. You have been trained to believe that science dictates morality, that economics determines ethics and that politics can override truth whenever it is convenient.
This deliberate erosion of epistemic order has one purpose: to make people forget that some truths are foundational while others are derivative.
Once you lose this awareness, you become vulnerable to scientism, ideological engineering, and the weaponization of expertise. You have heard scientists, politicians and economists make sweeping claims about human nature, morality and society; claims that contradict reality itself.
You have been told that humans are just complex machines and that consciousness is an illusion.
You have been told that moral values are “evolving,” as if ethics can be rewritten by the latest social trends.
You have been told that economics can determine justice, that political power can redefine truth and that laws can reshape human nature itself.
Yet when you try to reconcile these claims with what you know to be true about yourself and the world, something does not add up. You sense that there must be a structure to knowledge, that some truths are higher than others, and that scientific, political, or economic theories cannot override the fundamental nature of reality.
“Theories are the Creatures of Men, which Nature seldom mimics!” (Thomas Reid 1710–1796 founder of Scottish Common Sense Realism)
https://thepalmerworm.substack.com/p/human-nature-de-te-fabula-narratur
https://thepalmerworm.substack.com/p/scottish-common-sense-realism
What you are sensing is the Great Chain of Epistemology; the recognition that knowledge has an order, a structure, a hierarchy.
The Hierarchical Order of Knowledge recognizes that not all truths are equal; some are foundational, while others are contingent.
Metaphysical truths; the most fundamental truths, define the nature of reality itself. These cannot be changed by human belief, social consensus, or scientific discovery.
Philosophical truths; including logic, ethics, and human nature, govern how we understand and apply knowledge.
Scientific models; while powerful, must conform to higher truths, rather than dictating them.
Economic and political systems; the most contingent forms of knowledge, should be structured in harmony with what is fundamentally true, not the other way around.
What Happens When Knowledge is Flattened?
When the natural hierarchy of knowledge is erased, the entire order of reality becomes inverted.
Science begins dictating metaphysics. If human nature is just a biological process, then morality is meaningless, and ethical laws become arbitrary.
Politics begins dictating truth. If governments can redefine words and rewrite history, then facts become a function of power.
Economics begins dictating ethics. If profit is the ultimate measure of success, then justice becomes a market calculation rather than a moral principle.
Sound familiar!!??
This is how societies are transformed without resistance (‘The Art Of War’ - Tzun Tzu) by replacing fundamental truths with lower-order constructs that serve power rather than reality. When people forget that metaphysical truth governs scientific models, they fall for technocracy. When people forget that ethics govern economics, they fall for corporate-driven morality. When people forget that truth is independent of political power, they fall for ideological engineering. This is not just an abstract problem; it is shaping the world around you right now.
Have you ever:
Seen politicians and media declare scientific facts that contradict basic logic and common sense?
Noticed that moral debates are increasingly decided by economic interests or political power rather than ethical reasoning?
Heard “experts” justify absurd conclusions because they refuse to acknowledge deeper, universal truths?
These are not mistakes; they are symptoms of epistemic subversion, where lower-order knowledge is used to override higher-order reality. Once you see the inversion, you can never be deceived in the same way again. If you want to resist epistemic manipulation, you must reject the lie that all knowledge is equal. You must reclaim the understanding that some truths are higher than others, and that science, politics, and economics must be guided by reality; not the other way around.
This means:
Refusing to allow science to dictate morality. Scientific discovery must align with ethical principles, not replace them.
Rejecting the idea that economics determines justice. Human dignity is not a market variable.
Insisting that political power cannot redefine truth. No law, policy, or movement can alter what is objectively real.
When the Great Chain of Epistemology is restored, society operates in harmony with truth rather than in opposition to it. When it is ignored, politics, economics and ideology become tools of deception rather than instruments of justice.The only way to restore self-governance, rational order and intellectual sovereignty is to reclaim the truth that knowledge has an order, and that higher truths must always govern lower ones. If you surrender this truth, you become a subject of the very tyrannical forces The Founders warned The People it was their duty to remain Eternally Vigilant to discerning and resisting. That was the Morality necessary for Keeping the Republic; not authoritarian collectivist rule, but rather fulfilment of individual duty of conscience; vigilance, discernment and responsibility - Self Governance.
7th Cornerstone - The Hierarchical Order of Knowledge: The Great Chain of Epistemology
Not all knowledge is of equal validity. Some truths are foundational, shaping the structure of all subsequent knowledge, while others are contingent, dependent on higher principles for their coherence. The recognition of epistemic hierarchy is essential to maintaining intellectual order, ensuring that metaphysical truth governs scientific inquiry, that ethics restrains political theory, and that philosophy serves as the foundation of knowledge rather than being dictated by ideology or utility.
When hierarchy is abandoned, lower-order fields such as economics, political theory, or scientific models begin to override the higher truths that should constrain them. The result is a society where scientism displaces philosophy, financial power dictates morality, and governance becomes a function of efficiency rather than justice. This collapse into epistemic inversion allows technocracy to thrive, where knowledge is no longer integrated but fractured, leaving each discipline to serve its own narrow interests without accountability to higher principles.
The reestablishment of epistemic hierarchy is not about suppressing inquiry but about ensuring that knowledge remains oriented toward truth rather than ideological expediency or power dynamics. Without a structured order of knowledge, civilization loses the ability to differentiate between what is ultimately true and what is merely useful in a given moment. This leaves societies vulnerable to manipulation, where practical sciences and economic theories are elevated above philosophical realism, turning governance into a tool for control rather than a servant of truth.
To restore Realitas, knowledge must be returned to its proper order, where metaphysics governs science, moral law governs political structures, and epistemology remains rooted in objective reality rather than contingent frameworks dictated by power.Without this structure, the ruling system will continue to redefine truth according to its needs, ensuring that resistance remains fragmented, uninformed and ultimately contained.
This 7th Cornerstone of Realitas; The Great Chain of Epistemology: Hierarchical Order of Knowledge is fundamental to comprehend for anyone wanting to learn from the forthcoming Forensic Containment Analysis (FCA) series.