Is there a word that describes the idea of an entity in its entirety

Question

I specifically use the word entity so as not to imply human necessarily.

By "the idea of an entity" I mean aspects such as the intellect, physical form, historical and current experiences, spirituality etc. (where such things apply).

The closest I have come is "entire being", as it is used in some literature. For example, "The dog hated the vacuum cleaner with its entire being".

I've also considered persona but I think this focuses too heavily on an intellectual aspect.

Individual seems more like a description of the disticntion between entities rather than an entity itself.

As you can probably tell, I’m having trouble even describing what I want.

Answer 1

Essence is my answer.

According to Google definitions, when used as a philosophical term essence means:

a property or group of properties of something without which it would not exist or be what it is.

Answer 2

I've always liked the world Gestalt and it might work here.

Gestalt

NOUN

Psychology

An organized whole that is perceived as more than the sum of its parts.

It doesn't necessarily apply just to an entity, but could be used for anything. For an entity, however, when you add body parts, intellect, experience, etc. together, you do get more than just the sum of those parts.

Hope this helps!

Answer 3

This might sound weird but I think empty or emptiness might be the right word. Empty is complete in the sense its got space and depth. Its like a Zero which has no corners or borders. The person was xxx(Notsure of the word) that she was empty, but so full.