Status Updates From Leibniz: A Very Short Intro...

I distinguish therefore (1) the primitive Entelechy or Soul, (2) Matter, i.e. primary matter, or primitive passive power, (3) the Monad completed by these two, (4) the Mass [Massa] or secondary matter, or organic machine, for which countless subordinate Monads come together, (5) the Animal or corporeal substance, which is made One by the Monad dominating the Machine. (GP II, 252)

So far, learning about Leibniz has been a joy. His journey as one full of adventure and his purpose: of synthesis and reconciliation which brought about his dreams, conceiving of the universalis characteristica …

Well, Johnny, it's really quite simple. A corporeal substance is constituted by an infinite aggregate of monads (secondary matter), unified by a dominant monad fulfilling the role of substantial form. Each monad of the aggregate which constitutes the organic body of the dominant monad, however, is in turn the dominant monad of an organic body, and so on to infinity! Got that?

Trying to get our heads around monads

I cant make up my mind whether Leibniz's notions of logic are trivial, childishly undeveloped, fantastical or centuries ahead of their time. And I don't think MRA will be able to help me out here.

Uh...

In brief, happiness is the lasting pleasure of the mind grasping the intelligible order of reality. The tension between, on the one hand, metaphysical perfection, and on the other hand, the happiness of rational beings as (apparently competing) aims of creation, is resolved in a system in which the rational apprehension of metaphysical perfection is identified with happiness...

From very early on, Leibniz nurtured the dream of developing an alphabet of human thoughts leading to the creation of a characteristica universalis, that is, a universal system of signs designed to eliminate the ambiguity of natural language.

Doubleplusgood!!