You might find these links helpful:

• https://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith/
• https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=009360030052302497583%3Artduxllq7gs&q=knowledge&sa=Search+this+site

Thanks for sharing these valuable resources.

I'd suggest that ontological knowledge represents something quite different from traditional epistemological approaches. Rather than knowledge "about" being, I think we're looking at knowledge "as" being's self-creative process. Traditional epistemology assumes we can cleanly separate knower from known—that we acquire knowledge by representing reality from some outside perspective. But what if ontological knowledge operates through participatory recursion, where the very act of knowing participates in constituting the reality being known? In my framework "From Reaction to Reflection," I argue that intelligence evolves through recursive depth: reaction → reflection → meta-reflection → meta-meta-reflection, and so on. What's fascinating is that each level doesn't just understand reality differently—it actually constitutes reality differently. When consciousness studies consciousness, or intelligence reflects on intelligence, the traditional epistemological/ontological distinction seems to collapse entirely. The observer becomes part of what's being observed, the process of knowing modifies what's being known, and understanding becomes constitutive rather than merely representative. This suggests ontological knowledge might be the universe coming to know itself through recursive intelligence—not as passive discovery of pre-existing facts, but as active self-creation through recursive self-reflection. This also explains why ontological questions seem perpetually mysterious. It's not because we're cognitively limited in accessing fixed truths, but because recursive systems generate endless novelty through self-reflection. Each level of ontological depth opens creative territories that couldn't be anticipated from below. This isn't a bug in our theories—it's the signature of reality's creative edge encountering its own novel productions. If this is right, then ontological knowledge becomes reality's recursive self-becoming—the process by which the universe develops increasingly sophisticated forms of self-understanding that simultaneously create new forms of being. If knowledge itself has a recursive structure, then the "essence of knowledge" becomes not a fixed property but an evolving, self-creative process.

Amalya Sukiasyan Ontological knowledge is basically understanding what things exist and how they exist. For example, imagine you hear a rumor that someone saw a ghost. Ontologically, you're asking: Does the ghost actually exist in the world? What kind of "thing" is a ghost? Is it real or just something made up in people's minds? So, ontological knowledge is about figuring out the nature of existence, what's real and how things are structured in the world.

Aftab Haider, thank you for your insights. I agree that ontological knowledge reflects the essence of reality and the complex nature of existential truth. However, it should guide humanity toward individual and societal transformation: ontological knowledge should help not only to understand the essence of things, but also to change them for the better, turning boredom into meaning, challenges into opportunities, and defeats into transcendental victories.