Ancient Philosophy

• 1000 BC to 500 AD
• Three (3) Periods: pre-socrates, ancient triumvirate, post-aristotelians
• Pre-Socratics(The Milesians) - How do you answer the question, “Who am I”?
• Ancient Triumvirate - In what ways do I get to know myself?
• Cosmo-centric: It means that there is a fundamental principle/ thing that underlies everything else, including the human self:
• Thales: Water
• Anaximander: Apeiron – “Boundless Something”
• Anaximenes: Air
• Others: It also includes Democritus (atom), Heraclitus (fire), Anaxagoras (nous/mind), Pythagoras (numbers)
• Socrates - Didn’t write anything, but his ideas were echoed by his student, Plato, in his Dialogues.
• “Know thyself.” –“An unexamined life is not worth living.”
• Each person has an immortal soul that surpasses the death of the body (dualistic reality=body & soul).
• Two aspects of reality: physical world and spiritual world
• Physical world: changeable, transient, and imperfect; World of Senses/Matter
• Spiritual world: unchanging, eternal, perfect; The World of Ideas/ Form
• Plato said that there are three parts soul/self (psyche): reason, physical appetite, and spirit/passion
• Reason: the divine essence that lets us think deeply (wisdom), make wise choices and achieve a true understanding of eternal truths.
• Physical Appetite: accounts for the basic biological needs such as hunger, thirst and sexual desire.
• Spirit/Passion: accounts for the basic emotions such as love, anger, ambition, aggressiveness, empathy.
• Harmony: Justice in the individual, social and political levels.