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| Photo: Theodoros Karasavvas |
It is believed that he was the first man who referred to himself as a “philosopher.” He was the founder of Pythagoreanism, a religious and political movement that appeared mainly in the big cities of Magna Grecia (today southern Italy).
The city of Croton was his base, and the great philosopher dedicated his life to the spiritual and moral awakening and reformation of people from all social classes and sexes. This means Pythagoras was one of the most open-minded thinkers of his era.
The Young Pythagoras
Many historians say that Pythagoras was born on the Greek island of Samos in 585 BC - even though the exact date remains uncertain. His parents named him Pythagoras after Pythia, the oracle of Delphi.
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Illustration said to depict a younger Pythagoras teaching women. (Public Domain)
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Like Socrates, Pythagoras didn’t leave behind any texts and this is the main reason we don’t know many details about his life. Some information about Pythagoras’s philosophy and teachings were told by other historical figures from antiquity, such as Plato, Aristotle, Heraclitus, Herodotus, and Isocrates. However, the main sources for his biographical information are Diogenes Laërtius, Iamblichus, and Porphyry.
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- Pythagoras and His Life Beyond the Pythagorean Theorem
“And as he was a young man, and devoted to learning, he quitted his country, and got initiated into all the Grecian and barbarian sacred mysteries. Accordingly, he went to Egypt, on which occasion Polycrates gave him a letter of introduction to Amasis; and he learnt the Egyptian language, as Antipho tells us, in his treatise on those men who have been conspicuous for virtue, and he associated with the Chaldaeans and with the Magi.Mathematical Teachings
Afterwards he went to Crete, and in company with Epimenides, he descended into the Idaean cave, (and in Egypt too, he entered into the holiest parts of their temples), and learned all the most secret mysteries that relate to their Gods. Then he returned back again to Samos, and finding his country reduced under the absolute dominion of Polycrates, he set sail, and fled to Crotona in Italy. And there, having given laws to the Italians, he gained a very high reputation, together with his scholars, who were about three hundred in number, and governed the republic in a most excellent manner; so that the constitution was very nearly an aristocracy.”
Despite his adventurous life as a young man, it’s his teachings, theories, and contributions to science and mathematics that are most important for us today. Pythagoras had very specific goals to achieve through his teachings and he passionately tried to impart his knowledge to his students so they could better understand the laws of nature. His supporters and students, known as Pythagoreans, believed that the essence of everything in life could be found in numbers and mathematics.
Aristotle verifies this in Metaphysics, books 1 through 5, where he mentions among other things:
“The so-called Pythagoreans, who were the first to take up mathematics, not only advanced this subject, but saturated with it, they fancied that the principles of mathematics were the principles of all things.”Pythagoras was also a great inventor and is credited with a series of innovations such as the Pythagorean Theorem, which cemented his legacy. His theory is described mathematically as α2 = β2 + γ2 and says that: “In a right- angled triangle the square of the long side is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.”
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Illustration of the Pythagorean theorem. (CC BY SA 3.0)
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The theorem which now bears his name may have been invented in India by Baudhayana around 800 BC - but only as an empirical observation. All official historical sources concur that Pythagoras is the one who proved and analyzed the theorem on a scientific basis by using theoretical geometry, logical evidence, a ruler, and a compass as his tools.
Pythagoras’s name is also connected with the Tetractys, which is considered by many historians to be the essence of his teaching and the sacred symbol of his followers. It consists of the numbers 1 through 10 arranged in four rows: one in the first row, two in the second, three in the third, and four in the fourth.
- Apeiron, The Source of All Things and The Philosophies of Anaximenes
- The Mystical Pentatonic Scale and Ancient Instruments, Part I: Bone Flutes
- Anaximander of Miletus and His Philosophy on the Origin of All Things
Source: Ancient Origins
