The known refers to the object of awareness—the specific “thing” we are conscious of. It is the content within awareness, typically grounded in explicit identification or language.
The known is differentiated from the knowing as a noun is from a verb, or a static object from a dynamic process.
A little more…
The known is the objectified result of awareness — the outcome of a dynamic process that has been filtered, named, and stabilised. It is not unfolding, but formed—a mental representation held as “something” in our awareness.
In phenomenological terms, the known rests in interpretation, retrospectively shaped by perception and grounded in sensation. It reflects the end point of our internal sequencing, appearing as a fixed concept or conclusion. It is informed by our physiological condition, psychological narrative, and relational history, yet experienced as a defined element in the stream of consciousness.
Just as a noun signals objecthood, the known is a settled arrival — the apparent thingness we hold within awareness.
The known is to the knowing what product is to process; what being is to becoming.
