![]() Some fragments give the impression that this is in fact the case: However, even if Heraclitus in fragment 129 is not in fact criticizing Pythagoras for compiling the opinions of others, in view of getting a better understanding of his notion of wisdom it is worth considering whether he does reject considering the opinions of others in favor of considering the things themselves by oneself. The ƒstor…a of Pythagoras may simply correspond to the investigations he made into different branches of learning (mathematics, astronomy, etc.), in which case Heraclitus is criticizing him for selecting writings out of which he made for himself a hodge-podge liberal arts program. The word seems to have a similar ambiguity in Greek, meaning a learning by inquiry (Heraclitus uses the same word when he says that we must be inquirers into many things), and a historical narration of what one has learnt from others. The modern senses of ‘research’ are two: first, it can mean investigating a question by going through what others have said on it secondly, it can mean investigating by experiment. The word Heraclitus uses in DK 129 * (“Pythagoras, the son of Mnesarchos, cultivated research more than any other person, and having chosen these writings, he made of them his own wisdom-which was only much learning and bad art”) which has been translated as ‘research’ is ƒstor…a. Now let us consider the second question concerning polymathy: Does Heraclitus mean to criticize any research into the sayings of others as being bad art? First of all we must point out that that Heraclitus does not necessarily mean by polymathy collecting opinions of others. ![]() At any rate another fragment speaks in rather plain terms about wisdom having an objective basis in reality: Thus when Heraclitus says that “what opposes unites, ,” (DK 8*) this can reasonably be taken to mean that the truth is only arrived at by examining opposing points of view. This is the case of the river fragments discussed above it would also seem to be the case of DK 60: “The road up down one and the same,” inasmuch the implicit paradox stimulated Aristotle to make the distinctions which he makes in the Physics. Heraclitus had a propensity for formulating paradoxes, and while certain authors take this as amounting to a denial of the principle of contradiction (or in other words as an affirmation of the coincidence of opposites), there is nothing in Heraclitus which prevents us from taking him to intend them to be legitimate and provocative dialectical problems which can be solved by making the proper distinctions. In fact in the latter fragment he explicitly points out the difference of respect: for fish water is drinkable, and for people undrinkable. Heraclitus need not be taken as saying that things are and are not in the same respect. ![]() įragments such as DK 61: “Seawater is very pure and very foul water: for fish drinkable and life-sustaining, for people undrinkable and lethal” are also taken to be expressions of relativism, but here too another interpretation could reasonable be given. I do not intend to address all the arguments advanced by those who maintain that he is a relativist, but rather, I aim at the more modest goal of showing how an alternate reading is plausible. Indeed the two goals are not unrelated inasmuch as the Heraclitus' reputation as a relativist prevents a certain number of people from examining and profiting from his doctrine. ![]() My intention here is to examine these fragments, first and foremost because the insights they contain about the nature of wisdom generally do not receive the attention they deserve, and secondly because they reveal a Heraclitus who is a humble pursuer of wisdom, rather than a skeptic and relativist. Doubtless there are fragments which seem to clearly express a relativistic position, for instance, DK 102 reads: “To god all things are fair and just, whereas humans have supposed that some things are unjust, other things just.” However, there are numerous fragments concerning the nature of wisdom which give quite the opposite impression.
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