Why is there something rather than nothing? And why does that something——the universe, with all its galaxies, stars, and living beings——keep producing difference rather than settling into a dead, uniform stillness? This paper argues that answering this question requires two distinct things: a formal structure and a dynamical source. The formal structure is the Meta-State——a dual-symbiotic relation between two inseparable poles. One pole is Ji-Kong, which serves as the indeterminate, receptive ground where beings can appear. The other is Ji-You, which serves as the determinate, replete origin of content that gives beings their specific character. Together they constitute the simplest irreducible form that Being can take. The dynamical source is what the paper calls the Nameless Third——a spontaneous impulse toward manifestation (the Manifestation-Impulse) that has no purpose, no direction, and no determination of its own. Taken together, these elements form a single chain: the Impulse flows through the dual structure, generates tension, produces an intermediate field of chaos and potential, and finally gives rise to the emergence of beings——the open universe. This framework resolves a persistent impasse in traditional ontology, where form and force are either collapsed into one another or treated in isolation. It shows that keeping form and force distinct but mutually dependent yields a coherent picture of how Being can both possess order and sustain ongoing change. The framework is presented as a self-consistent ontological proposal, not as a final metaphysical truth. (This is not a digital ontology.)
zhijun li (2026) studied this question.