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ERROR IN HISTORY: GREECE IS THE CRADLE OF PHILOSOPHY
1.0. INTRODUCTION
According to Oxford Dictionary, the story is "the study of past events." It is important that the citizens of a country are aware of milestones past that have taken place in the country. In the same way every student of philosophy that is expected not only aware of the history of philosophy, but a knowledge first class of the same, if he or she desires to become an eminent philosopher. As a division of studies, the history of philosophy is to investigate the past of wise men in his company. According to William Turner history of philosophy is "the exposition of philosophical views and systems and schools of philosophy. "The History of Philosophy does not only refer to the positions, systems and schools of philosophy, but also gives consideration to the lives of philosophers, the common bond systems and schools of thought, moreover, also makes an effort to trace the path of progression and regression of philosophy.
The general conception, even among professional philosophers, is that Greece is the birthplace of philosophy. Therefore, almost all histories of philosophy available and philosophers agree that the so-called pre-Socratics were the first or early philosophers, at least in the Western world. Unlike the early thinkers India and China, the pre-Socratics did not think exegetically of ancient writings and poems, but they spoke "as a lack of respect for the greatest poets who made to each other. "The most excellent reason for this popular conception is that first known philosophers in history among the Greeks lived. According to some authors in the history of philosophy, the pre-Socratics were Greek. In fact, nobody has succeeded in writing a complete history of philosophy, because philosophy works art, are intensely personal things. Our goal is to attempt a justification of why Greece can not necessarily be the birthplace of philosophy.
Now to deal with ancient philosophy, which is limited to written records, which are often fragmentary and often unreliable information sequel and doubtful. Apart from the lack of information at first hand, the greatest obstacle we must overcome is the mass of the explanations and scholastic dogmas, which favor the origin Greek philosophy in the history of philosophy available. To clear away is perhaps the greatest service we can render to philosophy. However, all we intend to do is point the way and warn others away from the tracks that have already been confirmed to lead nowhere.
The aim of this work is therefore to determine the origin of philosophy. To achieve this goal, we proceed first by defining the term philosophy. So let's take a examination of the origin of civilization and science. After that, we will remember the positions of some philosophers who hold that philosophy began with the Greeks and those who are of the opinion that philosophy that originated outside Greece. From there, we will evaluate our work and, finally, develop a conclusion.
2.0. THE MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY
The philosophy of this word is believed to be of Greek origin (?), Is precisely a combination from two Greek words that is so, 'Filo', meaning love and "sophia" meaning wisdom. Since it is almost generally accepted that the word philosophy is of Greek origin etymology, then it is easy for beginners in the study of philosophy to the conclusion that philosophy has its origins in Greece and began with the Greeks. In the study of philosophy, the beginners of this study even before knowing what philosophy is, are already familiar with the names of Greek philosophers like Thales, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. While some people maintain that Greece is the birthplace of philosophy, others do not.
First philosophy is not mythology. According to Pythagoras (0), whose scientific studies had an enormous influence on the development of philosophy, the word philosophy means love of wisdom. Philosophize, then, to seek wisdom through a constant effort of reflection, in itself implies ethical requirements set for in truth no one can philosophize and enjoy these life forms are incompatible with philosophical thinking. With the word "Philosophy", we mean to be a critical science in general. This is not only the initial knowledge of existing common to all men and starting from childhood, but a mature knowledge and organic by a method that exceed those of the other sciences (Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology) intensity and understanding. The philosophy is not only limited to the amount of people and math, or mass, and movements of people as in physics, or life and nature as in the biological sciences, but a constant effort to acquire wisdom.
Let us look at some of the many attempts to define Philosophy. Therefore, we will be looking at philosophy in the broad sense and philosophy in the strict sense.
2.1. The philosophy in the sense broad or common
Here, the philosophy can be said that the belief of an individual or approach to the issues of life, therefore, several people have different philosophies of life based on how individuals view things. This definition is quite in keeping with the etymological conception the term.
The etymology of the term philosophy is part of its conception in the broad sense. Most philosophers believe that the word philosophy is of Greek origin, ie, from two Greek words go like this: "edge" which means love and "sophia" meaning wisdom. From this we can infer that philosophy is love of wisdom. According to its classical definition, "wisdom is the knowledge of first principles and first causes. Includes knowledge of many other things as well. But to the extent that one is using their wisdom, a philosopher known everyone else, or at least knowledge of things related to the first principles and first causes. Thus, whenever one is successful in replacing some of the principles and causes of knowledge for knowledge itself, one is already on track to find the wisdom, at least in part. The first known philosophers are philosophers in this sense. Philosophy as love of wisdom is a reflective activity that seeks answers to basic questions that arise in the hearts of men and their reflections on human experience or reality in general. Philosophy, therefore, as Aristotle conceived it, starting from awe, admiration is the feeling of philosophers. When, for example, the man looks at himself or the world we live in, is filled with wonder and many questions arise in your mind. When we reflect on these issues in an attempt to find rational answers to them, which is said to be philosophical. In this sense, we can infer that philosophizing begins with and is inherent in our daily activities or experiences such as eating or drinking, birth or growth, and death or decay, to name a few. An experience like drinking enough to make us philosophize. For example, one may ask the following questions in the course of drinking, what should I take? How much drink should I take? irrational beings are not able to such questions. Perhaps these questions are asked, because what we drink and the amount of the drink that we can affect the pleasure we get from drinking. For example, if you drink up the point of getting intoxicated, the purpose of drinking (happiness) is not fulfilled. Philosophizing as seen in the case of alcohol consumption above is not limited to drink, it is also true of other realities. In the illustration above we can infer that all humans are philosophers in the loose sense as a matter In fact, there is an age without philosophy, even before the development of Greek thought, and that philosophy began with wonder and the man has always wondered about the things around him and the human experience.
2.2. PHILOSOPHY IN THE STRICT (professional sense):
In the strict sense, philosophy has no generally accepted definition. There are many definitions of the term, since many philosophers. A novice can ask the question, "What is philosophy? "for the first time would be affected with surprise to discover that the definition of philosophy is not even agreed upon by those who are specialists in discipline. For example, if one is to choose ten different philosophers from ten different schools of philosophy and ask what philosophy is, one can have a record of ten different answers. These definitions are the conceptions of what philosophy by different philosophers:
Jacques Maritain conceives philosophy as a wisdom that is characterized by knowledge, this knowledge must be known with certainty. He added that, you have to give reasons why one says that something is this and not another. However, these reasons must obtain the assent of the intellect.
Meanwhile, Aristotle refers to the philosophy and awareness of the truth
Epicurus view the term philosophy is that it is an occupation that guarantees happiness through the means of conversation and exchange of points of view.
Although philosophy has no universally accepted definition, but must be "critical, rigorous, open to criticism as a truth that should be temporary and only acceptable on the basis of clear evidence in support. "For a philosopher, and critical media that his position must have a rational basis. A philosopher who mean to be rigorous that its position should be careful and well thought out. No matter how wonderful it is a philosophical thought, as a thought only be held temporarily and only on the basis of clear testimony, that is, that should be maintained only as long as there is no evidence against deny the position. This shows that the criterion of a philosopher particular position is always open to criticism. All criteria listed above necessarily must be met before anything can happen as philosophical in the technical sense of the word.
3.0. Then WHO is a philosopher?
A philosopher then is not necessarily someone who has been able to solve the problems and questions in the universe, but one that is able to reflect critically on them to find solutions for them. So a philosopher can not do anything but to philosophize. It must also be logically consistent, with the capacity rational, critical, rigorous and analytical. And you should use arguments and explanations to provide insightful solutions to a fundamental question for the improvement society and a better understanding of the world.
Many people like to say, from time to time that they are also philosophers. Obviously we know that all world is not a philosopher. Homer and Hesiod, the first mythopoets not even regarded as philosophers, their works are based on stories about the gods and relationship with humans. I hope that does not scare you, or the sound impertinent, scandalous and ridiculous or rebels, saying that even some teachers of philosophy are not philosophers, for the teaching of philosophy and philosophy is far from being the same thing. Today, philosophy is not possible without a critical reflection of the knowledge, ie, a critique whose function is to show that certain experiences and knowledge may not always be tenable. You use these features in our discussion.
With these preliminary notes have represented the early Greek philosophical thought, which is the last product of civilization ancient Ionian. But we can not fail to recall that Ionia was the meeting place of the west and east, so the question can be asked whether or not Greek philosophy was due to Eastern influences, if, for example, is taken from the Babylonians and Egyptians. This vision has been maintained, but we can not leave as suggested by Frederick Copleston and his colleagues. Secondly, we tried to explain what we mean by philosophy and philosophers in order to avoid misunderstandings.
Without doubt, the many questions that have been generated at we have been discussing: Are Tales, Anaximander and Anaximenes philosophers in the true sense of the word? And if not, what is the use of words that philosophy was born in Greece. Even if a philosopher in the sense we now use the term "philosopher", which are the first to philosophize on the whole universe? Are these early Greek philosophers known Greeks truly indigenous or foreign?
Since philosophy is associated with civilization, Greece was the first city in the world to be civilized? If there is no positive answers to the questions will go a long way to show that the popular conception that philosophy its origin in Greece is mendacious. Finally, since, as we have noted that all the first generation of Greek philosophers from Thales (which measures the pyramid) Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, Plato traveled to Egypt to expand their knowledge 13IN mathematics, geometry, surgery and ethics, how could then the so-called "Greek philosophy" that originally Greek? In other words, was not due to the East influences? In order to reach a clear and reasonable response that is capable of addressing this misnomer, we delve into the pages of history, chronology world and the history of civilization while at the same time trying to reflect on our question.
3.1. Can we say that Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes are philosophers?
Composting Darius in his History of Ancient Philosophy (1988), says: "The three Ionian philosophers were, without doubt, "given the fact that Aristotle, who although not a reliable historian of pre-Socratic philosophy, Thales called an initiator" of the Philosophy "in the following of his metaphysics.
Most of those who previously believed philosophically that the principles of all things were just materials … However, these philosophers do not agree on the number and species of these principles (goalkeeper). Tales, initiator (archegos) of this kind of philosophy, states that the principle is water.
This school of philosophy must have originated from Thales. Activated for about fifty years, about 7-5 century BC, at Miletus, and not devoid of religious influences. This religion does not imply a strict adherence to myth in Orphic Homeric sense, but a rational interpretation and criticism of myth, which arises from a historical analysis of reality. This analysis is transformed into cosmogony theogony either through scientific explanations.Their philosophy or philosophical grew up in prosperous times in the history of Miletus.
Although some contemporary philosophers and historians consider the "Milesians" as the first "thinkers who argue that matter (hyle) live (zoe), or that the universe (bread) is encouraged (psyche)" and Sargis Aristotle called "physiologoi" or students of nature, ie the physical, the nature of the understanding that here in the sense as the sum total of being, our belief that they are philosophers rely on the fact that prevalence interested in scientific research and their desire for God reveals a philosophical intent.The credibility of the testimony of Aristotle with the support of other arguments. First and foremost, Thales was first included as one of the Seven Sages of the "father of history" Herodotus, when he referred to Solon as a lover of wisdom. "Another fact confirms is that although Phoenician Thales had blood from his mother, according to Diogenes Laertius in his Lives of the philosophers. And if he was inclined to marine research and adventures empirical, meaning that their response does not come from theogonies as in the case of Hesiod, but finding a key element that lies at the foundation of every being.However, originator of the phrase "of this kind of philosophy", in reference to Tales of Aristotle as a philosopher, at least indicates that some other forms of philosophical thoughts may have existed before that of these first "known" philosophers of Miletus. It is true and undeniable that the "left an enduring legacy of Greek literature and European art to the world "due to the sudden rise of civilization in Greece, and of course philosophical speculations gave rise to philosophy.
Our question now is, even if these "known" Greek philosophers are, as has been justified by some scholars, are really the first philosopher in the universe whole? And if not, why consider Greece as the birthplace of philosophy? We will examine this issue critically.
4.0. CIVILIZATION AND SCIENNCE:
After studying philosophy and different meanings, we will try to critically distinguished from civilization science. "Civilization is social order promoting cultural creation."
The first civilization grew in the valleys of some large rivers, large rivers, the Nile, Euphrates, Tigris, Indus and Yellow rivers … Europe has most of those around the Nile and Tigris and the Euphrates … these two civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia were developed almost simultaneously.
Scholars may disagree on the location of the cradle of the human race, but in the cradle of their civilization, there is no disagreement. It is in the area, in this study, called the Near East and is composed of the Fertile Crescent – With its two horns of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), Syria and Palestine – Egypt, Anatolia (Asia Minor, Turkey), Persia or Iran. The "Near East", originally European geographical term loosely used to designate the part of southwest Asia to Europe, was taken by the United States, parts of which are closer the Far East. This was the prevalent use until the Second World War when the British government created a military province extends from Iran to Libya and called the Middle East, a term hitherto traditionally applied to India and adjacent territory. A supply center for the Middle East was then established in Cairo and later became an Anglo-American project, thus giving sanction to the new terminology.
Meanwhile, Egypt is often described as the gift of the Nile The Nile floods with its principles of land along the left bank to reach behind alluvial soil. Areas near flood pain became attractive as a source of food and water. Over time, climate change, including periods of aridity also served to confine human habitation in the Nile Valley, although this was not always true.
4.1. SCIENCE
The plant and animal domestication, metallurgy, ceramics, and other material objects are not the only gifts the Near East. Our seven-day weeks derived from the creation story as recorded in Genesis and Semitic system of numbering principles which featured the number seven. The Babylonians examined seven heavenly bodies to be planets. For the first of them spent the first day of the week, hence our Sunday at the second, the moon, the second day has worked, hence our Monday. The seventh, Saturn gave us on Saturday. In the Mesopotamian myself have inherited the hexadecimal system is represented today by our division of the hour into sixty minutes, the minute into sixty seconds and the circle into three hundred and sixty (a multiple of sixty) degrees. The division of the day in twelve hours from Egypt. From Egypt also came the solar calendar introduced by Julius Caesar and reformed by Pope Gregory.
"Perhaps science, as civilization usually starts with Agriculture. "If science and civilization in general begins with agriculture as conjectured by Will Durant, then we can infer that science has its origin in Egypt since Egypt was described as a gift of the Nile This illustrated that Egypt can not ignore when conducting a discussion on origin of science. Therefore of great importance for us in that we at this point to talk briefly about Egypt science.
Egypt, as history shows, was a place favored by God. It has reached a level of civilization at least two thousand years before even Crete, which is the first Greek to exist. During this time, Greece was a colony of Egypt for centuries. At this time also, Egypt already had a university called "Mystery System" where all disciplines were taught by Egyptian priests. As in the reign of "Mystery System", the different types of disciplines such as mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and so on, that were taught were fused together under the umbrella of a well-known as science. Only in recent times that philosophy was reduced through its separation from other disciplines that are merging.
The wise men of Egypt were mostly priests, enjoying, far from agitation of life, comfort and safety of the temples, and it was these priests who, despite all their superstitions, laid the foundations of Egyptian science. According to their own science legends had been invented about 1800 BC C. by Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom, during his reign of three thousand years of life on earth, and books each science oldest were among the two thousand volumes composed of this deity learned … In this first moment of recorded Egyptian history we find highly developed mathematics, design and construction of the pyramids, involving a measurement accuracy impossible without mathematical tradition considerable. The dependence of Egyptian life from the fluctuations of the Nile led to a careful records and calculations of the rise and the recession of the river, experts and scribes were continually re-measure the land whose boundaries had been destroyed by the flood, the measurement of the land was clear that the origin of geometry. Almost all the former agreed to grant the invention of this science to the Egyptians.
"Zoser, who ruled from 3000 BC, was the first pharaoh to be famous as the builder of the pyramid. In Saqqara, south of Memphis, built the first great pyramid known in history. It is "pass" or "terraces" training …. "As medicine was the glory of Egyptian science. It began with the priests and in it are the proof of his magical origin.Meanwhile, many people of Greece, Asia Minor and other parts of Africa became students of these priests. Among these students were Thales, Pythagoras, Heraclitus, Plato, Philosophers Aristotle and other notables, some of them are classified some historians as the first Western philosophers.
5.0. WHERE IS THE ORIGIN OF THE PHILOSOPHY?
Long before the curtain rises on the written records, the Middle East had developed life ordered urban governments, religions, and social and economic institutions. Even earlier, those who occupied the arc of the Fertile Crescent and the area was discovered metal fence, he realized his potential, and ran into tools and weapons that replaced the more primitive stone tools of earlier generations. In these crude tools of flint and copper had a dim vision of the gigantic machines and engines so vital to our modern life. Even before then, and probably the same area, primitive man learned by long and sustained experience, which started by chance, that certain wild plants could be grown and animals wild could be domesticated. Then he rose from the status of a food gatherer – wandering from one place to another in search of livelihood – that of a food producer, with a reliable supply of food that made possible a sedentary lifestyle, with its accumulation of wealth, a growing population and some free time which could be spent the cultivation of the higher things of life. Civilization first developed in that he or she was the only region that provides the climate, vegetation, fauna and necessary for the transition from a life of nomadic herders and settled a fighter.
For most people, philosophy began in Miletus, Greece and the Greeks were the first philosophers. To give a justification of their arguments quickly recite litanies of the Greek philosophers, such as above and their exact periods of existence, hence, are able to defeat the spirit shallow fellows, you can try to involve them in the debate about the basis of philosophy. The question is: Why the Greeks? What was so special that led to the origin of Greek philosophy with them? For many years, the simple answer to this question is that the Greeks were not the same as they had a special genius that enabled them to think about things new and different ways. This answer, of course, is unsatisfactory because it does not know that the Greeks were blessed with this genetic endowment, but only some of them as the Milesians and the Athenians, while the Spartans were excluded. Some philosophers and historians have tried to trace the birthplace of philosophy and for them, especially Westerners in their writings have shown that the birthplace of philosophy is Greece.
Samuel Enoch Stumpf is of the view that "The birthplace of philosophy was the port city of Miletus on the other side of the Aegean Sea from Athens on the western coasts of any Milesian or Ionian.
Giovanni Reale, in his book entitled From the origins of Socrates is of the opinion that:
"Philosophy" in both its semantic meaning and as conceptual content itself is a creation of the Greeks. In fact, everything else almost all other components of Greek civilization found in other Eastern peoples, which reached a certain level of achievement before the Greeks. When, with respect to philosophy, have not achieved the same kind or anything even resembling it found in … the question of philosophy, we find that a new phenomenon that no identical counterpart in the Orient, or anything that could be compared with the philosophy of the Greeks or the philosophy that prefigures an unmistakable way.
Hegel, a German historian and philosopher, associated with the philosophy of freedom and self-knowledge. For him, the Greeks were the first to find freedom, hence the strict sense philosophy began in Greece.He insisted on this despite the fact that this freedom was limited because slavery still existed at this time somewhere in Greece.
Bertrand Russell, traces the birth place of philosophy in Greece. According to him, "Philosophy begins with Thales, which, fortunately, can be dated by the fact that predicted an eclipse, astronomers said, occurred in the year 585 a. C. "
George Henry Lewes (1817-1878), a renowned philosopher, published his History of Philosophy in 1845. In his book mentioned above, Lewes was the view that philosophy began in Greece because of the following reasons:
What is more likely to Thales, both by birth and education, would be induced to stay there (Miletus), who traveled to Egypt and Crete the prosecution of their studies, as some maintain, although no sufficient authority. The only basis for the conjecture is the fact Thales have acquired the mathematical knowledge, and since ancient times, as we see in Herodotus, was the fashion to derive. So little is there is consistency however in this account of his travels, said that astonished the Egyptians, showing them how to measure the heights of the pyramids by their shadow. A nation so easily surprised by one of the simplest math problems could have had little to teach. Perhaps the strongest evidence that he never traveled to Egypt – or if he traveled to the area, had never learned of the priests – is the absence any trace, however slight, of any Egyptian doctrine in philosophy About the Author
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