Existence and identity are indivisible, like two sides of a single coin. A thing cannot exist without being something in particular. Nor can a thing be anything in particular, have any kind of nature or identity or attributes, or even be a thing at all, until it exists. Both ancient and modern thinkers have often failed to grasp the inseparability of existence and identity. On the one hand, Plato and the early Christians contended that a thing is first identified as an idea, in some "higher" dimension, before it exists as a thing. On the other hand, existentialists and many other modern philosophers assert that "existence precedes essence"—i. e., that a thing exists first, then acquires a specific identity. Here we depart from both views, recognizing that an existent must have a specific nature, which is realized only through existence.

When we assert that a thing exists, we say that it is. When we specify its identity, we say that it is. Existence and identity thus represent one fundamental fact; the only difference between them is one of emphasis.

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