At all times there have been truth seekers, sincere, compassionate people interested in understanding the meaning of life and working constructively for the benefit of all living beings. These people can be found in all professions and among all peoples. Many truth seekers worked in small circles, so we know nothing about them today. Others carried their thoughts into the public sphere, and particularly talented ones managed to pass their thoughts on to posterity. I would like to tell about some of these people in my work, especially those whose lives have been an example to me.
It has been said to this day that the Church has given the world God knows what treasures. I would argue that the opposite is largely true, and that I do not need to prove it. The direction in which the Church has moved can easily be seen from the height of its power in the Middle Ages, when the faith took on forms that were no longer acceptable even to many of the clergy.
I think it is necessary to show that long before Christ there were people who acted wisely and taught love for their fellow men. The love of one's fellow man taught by Christ, but only partially practised by the Church, is also full of exaggerations. While an animal naturally defends itself when attacked, a human being should wait patiently for the next blow. These pious sayings about turning the other cheek when one is struck have more to do with stupidity than with humanity and charity. In truth, the faithful should always be open to new kicks, while those with big heads are allowed to strike before anyone has done anything to them. Or did the popes go out into the fields and on the crusades to turn their cheeks?
The Sermon on the Mount, which is often quoted and is said to be one of the most beautiful, is only meant to console the 'poor in spirit', those who cannot help themselves, in an otherworldly world: 'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven'. Those who are sad will be comforted in the hereafter, the meek will receive a piece of land in the hereafter, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will find righteousness before God. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in the heavens.” Such a philosophy only produces good citizens, sheep who will put up with everything in this world! It is highly doubtful that Christ said such nonsense.
It is high time that religious education to be taught in schools and not propaganda for the Church. It is high time that children were taught about people like Confucius, Laotse and Buddha, and shown what it means to seek and understand the meaning of life, to know the truth, to act wisely and to be tolerant.
In the following chapters I will try to give you a sense of what it means to seek the truth, to love wisdom and to prefer knowledge to belief. I will tell you of a conversation between Thales of Miletus, the tireless seeker, and of an illuminating discussion at the University of Alexandria between a sceptic, an Epicurean and a friend of the Stoic school. Finally, I will tell you about the truth-seekers Confucius, Laozi and Buddha.
As sources I have used various works, but in particular the thirty-six-volume historical work of Otto Zierer, who knew how to transform historical data into vivid images and to present them not only relatively historically accurate, but also in a lively and human way.
In this context, I would like to point out explicitly that the interpretation of history does not always have to correspond to the actual events. The sources to which historians refer may be inadequate, embellished, idealised and even partially or completely inaccurate. We cannot assume that everything that is printed is what actually happened. Even if no deliberate falsifiers were at work, there are plenty of other possibilities for conscious and unconscious distortion.
For example, if it is reported that Lao Tzu rode into solitude on a buffalo, it is easy to see that this is a legend. But if, for example, someone who heard the Buddha wrote an account of his teachings, he may have misunderstood the Buddha and remembered him poorly when he wrote it down. If a third party copied the account, there may have been transcription errors. In addition, the transcriber may have added his own thoughts and corrected the translation in good faith.
We all know how someone can be declared dead. One person reports that Mr Smith has had an accident, the next person says it was a serious accident, and the next person sees Mr Smith in intensive care when he has only broken his foot. And a particularly enthusiastic storyteller claims to have heard that he died.
Of course, historical records aren't usually that bad; I just want the reader to be aware that you shouldn't be too attached to the printed words. In our case, it's not so much the accuracy of each sentence as the spirit of the people being reported.
Those who study historical traditions in depth will discover that different books usually report the same thing only in a general sense. For example, I have compared the life of the Buddha in several books and found that not only are the accounts different, but even the names of people, areas or places are not consistent. Sometimes it is more difficult to find the correct spelling for a particular researcher than it is to find the historical data.
Thales of Miletus lived in Greece, was born around 625 BC and died around 545 BC. Thales was a merchant, sailor and philosopher. Otto Zierer describes the meeting with Epimenides from historical data as follows:
A small brown sail rises above the rippling sea that stretches between Cape Zephyrium and the small island of Dia, and gradually the hull of the ship becomes visible, a pot-bellied box as merchant seamen love it. The skipper steers towards the landmark of Dia, behind which opens the gentle bay of Knossos.
The merchant Thales of Miletus is the patron of the arriving ship. He takes care of the formalities at the port, pays the duty, provides information about his goods and orders the ship's captain to unload the cargo. Unconcerned about the burning sun, he walks through the streets, which are deserted at this hour. He is visiting his old friend Epimenides, whom he respects for his wisdom and knowledge.
Epimenides lives in a simple wooden house just outside the city, near the legendary 'Dictaean Cave'. A sense of mystery and magic surrounds him. His long flowing robes, embroidered with enigmatic symbols, are reminiscent of oriental priests, Chaldean magicians or Egyptian scholars.
The two men now sit opposite each other in a somewhat gloomy room filled with strange household objects. In front of them is a large funnel-shaped jug, painted with naive depictions of heroic sagas, in which dark Cretan wine is mixed with water. Thales, who also sells pottery on a large scale, expertly determines that the 'krater' was made in a Corinthian workshop. Although he himself sells pottery from Athens and Miletus, he admits without envy that the Corinthian works are still the more artistic.
“It has been a long time,” says Thales, “since we last saw each other, for the voyage to Crete has become rare for our ships. Miletus' trade shifted to Egypt. Since King Psammetich allowed the Hellenic merchant to found the settlement of Naukratis in the Nile delta, a market of world importance has quickly emerged. We have a common sanctuary there, the 'Hellenion'; Naukratis has become the meeting place for all Greek ships...”.
Epimenides raises his hand in smiling defence.
“Let's talk about the other, the essential thing, my friend! I don't care whether the Hellenic trade in Naukratis is good or bad. Egypt has more to give than wheat, oil and dates.”
“Very well, let's drop it!”
Thales is silent for a moment, then continues.
“I was an attentive listener and student in an Egyptian priest school for a while; by the way, I was not the only Greek there, I also met the young Solon from Athens... do you know him?”
“Of course I've heard of him. But tell me, what have you learned about the cult of Isis, about the secrets of necromancy and the sacred, ancient pictographic writing? Lucky you, you have been able to hear the dark magic of the mysteries from the mouths of men who, like no other mortal, know how to solve the riddles of the underworld!”
Thales has risen and is stepping through the doorway, the sunlight streaming into the dark room.
“What do I care about mysticism and magic! Look at the sun, the sea, the trees and the blue sky, that is reality and true life. What I wanted from the priests was their knowledge of arithmetic, astronomy and meteorology, things that are important to me as a sailor and merchant.”
Epimenides reaches for an amulet around his neck, as if to appease the offended spirits of the afterlife.
“What worries you have, Thales! Your heart is filled with the affairs of this world, but you pay no attention to the only thing that matters, the fate of your soul. You have changed little!”
Thales takes long sips from the wine goblet.
“You should go to sea, Epimenides, and you would understand many things you are unaware of in the company of your gods and demons. The world looks different to one who turns away from it than to one who faces it eye to eye.
When you have sailed for days at the mercy of a nutshell, when there is no beach, no island, no distant mountain peak to catch your eye, and you are standing at the bow of the ship, pondering, or when stormy winds are hissing by, churning up the grey waves, heavy cloudbursts are pouring down rain, you have tied yourself to the mast and you are standing there - a lonely man in the middle of the endless, cruel universe - then, my friend, other thoughts come to you than here on the safe mainland. You have time to ponder, nature and your heart both urging you to do so. Facing the raging sea, I have often wondered: where does it all come from? Then again, you travel as a merchant through foreign lands, you see other people, you hear prayers before the altars of incomprehensible deities, you stand before the gigantic monuments of past millennia, the pyramids on the Nile. The breath of the distance, the breath of the dead land, the cry of the stone for eternity touches you. Then the other question arises: what is all this becoming and passing away, the inescapable cycle that fatally embraces us? This is the thoughtfulness of the sailor and traveller, dear friend, it is different from that of the priest...”.
Epimenides' eyes glowed with the fire of a fanatic.
“You ask questions that have long been answered. The riddle of the origin, purpose and destiny of all existence has been solved. You know the great secret that unites the Orphic League; if only you would come to us, Thales, you would no longer need to ponder or search in vain!”
“I want to think and search, yes,” Thales replied vehemently. “It is not enough for me to be presented with the ready knowledge of priests and seers: Here, accept it! That is the way of the world, and there is no other way! No, when I speak of knowledge, I mean only that which I myself have explored and understood, that which really convinces me.”
“Not everyone can walk the long path to enlightenment, but you should strive for the secret of mystical revelation, Thales, that is the highest human purpose. The eternal things were revealed to us by the Thracian Orpheus. No man will ever learn more than the gods have revealed to him...”
The merchant smiles in disbelief.
“Of whom no one knows for sure if, when and how he lived!”
“That is what our enemies say! Orpheus lived! How else could he have founded the Order and left his teachings?”
“Oh no, my friend! All these mysteries and magic come from Asia, I know the melody of the Babylonian magicians. The cult of Adonis, the secret teachings of Persephone and the message of Dionysus - all this is not Hellenic, it is the thoughts of foreigners who are reaching the hearts of our people. Basically it is a fear of demons, a fear of the abyss of death. Homer did not know the goddess of the dead, Hecate, who is worshipped today by superstitious people. I have attended their celebrations, and they were the same rites as those of the Babylonians, dedicated to their gloomy goddess Labartu.
Look around you among the living, and you will see that everywhere the magic of Babylon is gaining power in their hearts. In the spring they celebrate the Anthesteria, which was completely unknown to our ancestors, in the manner of the Babylonian festival of all the dead. To protect themselves from ghosts, they chew hawthorn leaves and smear the doorposts with pitch. For the dead, they place pots of seeds and earth fruits, and throw honey cakes and delicacies into the abyss. When the festivities are over, these fools, with fear and trembling, call out to the souls of the dead whom they fear: 'Get out, you Keren, the Anthesteria are over!'”
“It is true,” says Epimenides, “but what can you say? Is it not like a silver lining in the sky, heralding a dawn, when people begin to feel that not only the shadowy existence of the underworld is inevitably before them, but that there are powers and forces to overcome death and gain resurrection and new life?”
“You speak of feeling, Epimenides, I speak of knowing! And hope? It has always been considered a deceiver, speaking of things that do not exist. No, friend, I will not succumb to the seduction of these Asian doctrines. I cannot believe in the return of Adonis, the resurrection of Persephone and Dionysus, the conqueror of death. I long for a rational explanation of the world. I build the order of the world out of knowledge”.
The priest stood up.
“Listen to me, O Thales! When you ask: Where does everything come from? Orpheus answers that it was the night and the yawning void, the two-headed dragon, from which the egg of the world was born”.
“Stop,” Thales interrupts the enthusiastic man, “these are all confused, unprovable assertions. Those who believe in these fairy tales will not think seriously about the origin of things. I don't want symbols, I want knowledge. And that's why the Orphic secret doctrine seems to me more an obstacle to research than a tool!”
“But how do you want to fathom the mystery of creation, you, a bound man, subject to chance? Yes, if we were gods, if we possessed Olympian clarity and wisdom! Have you never felt the dichotomy of human nature? The yearning upward striving of the soul and the earthy pulling down by the heaviness of the body? Does not the voice in your own breast tell you that you need the salvation of the supernatural powers?
Would you share with us, just once, our nocturnal Dionysian celebrations, this growing and rising through rhythmic song, wine and dance and incense! And then, when the wings of the soul begin to stir, when you feel that you are stepping over the heaviness of the mind, but always with the insurmountable awareness that you are mortal and remain bound to the earth - that is intoxication and exaltation, uplift and downfall at the same time!”
“I desire neither intoxication nor liberation. I have learnt sobriety, courage and defiance. Whether it is useful or not, I have learned the secrets of the world with clear thinking. This does not lead to intoxication, but it also protects against sobering crashes, does not disappoint and leads to real results...”.
“By denying the world of shadows, you also deny the light, you presumptuously oppose the realm of demons and gods, a madman who wants to be equal to the eternal!”
Thales is not deterred.
“Let me explain my opinion. The dull masses regard the eclipse of the sun as a terrible sign of supernatural powers. But Egyptian scholars have shown me the causes of such eclipses and how they can be predicted decades in advance. With this insight, the phenomenon has lost all its horror for me and has become something understandable. It seems to me that it is similar with many, if not all, of the mysteries of existence. If we could explore, explain and control the universe, the world would be simpler, more natural and free of fear. The gods and demigods that Homer and Hesiod so childishly endowed with human characteristics set no limits for my eternally questioning mind. I must know and understand, or I shall never find peace.”
“And for what?” cries Epimenides. “What is at the end of your journey? What god awaits you when you fall from existence into the abyss of the underworld?”
“No god or demon awaits me, my friend. It is the selfless love of wisdom, of philosophy, that drives me...”
A man who lived in Greece in the third century B.C. and taught as a mathematician and physicist has come down to us under the name of Archimedes, 'the arch thinker'. He discovered the square root, solved cubic equations, found the laws of the center of gravity, the inclined plane, the lever, and the elevator. He built burning mirrors and catapults, mechanical irrigation systems and block and tackle. When he realized the power his block and tackle could develop, he is said to have been so excited by his discovery that he made the statement, “Give me a firm footing and I will lift the earth off its hinges!”
While investigating a difficult legal case, he had a far-reaching insight: King Hieron's goldsmith was suspected of not using all the gold he was given to make a crown, but of adding silver to keep the weight down, but making the metal worse. Archimedes said to himself: 'If silver, which is lighter than gold, has been added, then the volume of the crown must be greater for the same weight than if it had been made of pure gold. But how could the volume of the ornate crown be measured?'
He pondered the problem for a long time. One day he took a bath in a bathtub filled to the brim. The overflowing water gave him the answer.
All that was needed to solve the case was to place an identical bar of gold, like the one the goldsmith had received, in a full tub of water and measure the amount of water that overflowed. If the experiment were then repeated with the crown, more water would overflow than with the gold bar, assuming that silver had been added to the jewellery. Archimedes' suspicions were confirmed and the impostor was exposed.
Otto Zierer tells how Archimedes travelled to Alexandria and met Eratosthenes of Cyrene, the director of the library and academy. The students and teachers of the Museion reverently call him 'Mr Beta', after the second letter of the Greek alphabet. They say that Eratosthenes deserves to be named after the intellectual heroes Homer, Heraclitus, Plato and Aristotle.
Eratosthenes was a master of all the sciences, and Archimedes, who worked almost exclusively in mathematics and physics, admired him for his versatility. The director of the Museion wrote an important work on ancient comedy and continued Euclid's mathematics; he discovered the formulas for doubling cubes and indivisible numbers and calculated the inclination of the ecliptic. His geographical and astronomical researches bordered on the miraculous. To measure the earth, he led an expedition to Syene, 5,000 stadia up the Nile. By determining the angle of the zenith at the same position of the sun, he achieved the incredible: using the difference in the arc of a degree between Alexandria and Syene, he calculated the circumference of the Earth to be 252,000 stadia!
When Archimedes first entered the library, accompanied by Eratosthenes, he was overwhelmed by the size and splendour of the halls and rooms. The light from the newly lit lamps illuminates the richly carved ceilings and reflects off the polished marble of the columns. The abundance of wooden scaffolding on which hundreds of thousands of rolls of papyrus are stored in bookcases is impossible to miss. “We are proud to have all the writings written in the inhabited world, without exception,” Eratosthenes tells his guest.
On the eve of Archimedes' departure, Eratosthenes takes his guest to the roof garden of the Mouseion. The most prestigious scholars of the High School were waiting for the Syracusan at a farewell banquet. Chrysippus of Soli, head of the Stoic School in Athens since the death of Cleanthes, was also invited to the celebration.
After the excellent meal, which was a testimony to the ancient culinary art of the Egyptians, the conversation around the table turned to a fundamental question of philosophy, the problem of how to live.
Ephialtes, one of the philosophers at the Museion and a follower of the teachings of Epicurus, passionately defends the sensible, grateful enjoyment of the things that the day brings.
“According to the tradition of our school,” he tells us, “Epicurus used to gather his friends from time to time in the park of Athens for beautiful feasts. He loved wine, song, Lydian dancers, spring and the beauty of the Attic countryside. Pleasure is the greatest good, said Epicurus, but it does not consist in the gratification of base desires, but in the liberation of the soul from pain, fear and lack of self-control, and in the affirmation and acceptance of the natural as it presents itself to the mind in perception.”
Chrysippus nods at the scholar. “We Stoics also teach self-control and equanimity in accepting what fate brings. The insight that fate is predetermined and a virtuous life based on reason are the fruits of philosophical reflection on the meaning of life.”
“As the Master says,” the Epicurean continues, “philosophy gives its disciples irrefutable certainty and, in this certainty, happiness.”
Epimenides, one of the teachers at the Museion, protests that no human being has this capacity. “Pyrrho of Elis teaches that true happiness depends on the conviction that it is impossible to attain ultimate knowledge. There is only probability, not certainty.”
Ephialtes passionately defends the validity of the Epicurean view.
“Why shouldn't Epicurus' path lead to certainty and happiness? His system is complete: logic leads the mind to a certain knowledge of the world and its relations - it reveals nature to us in its methodical and sober order. It is only through the intellectual penetration and clarification of all natural interrelationships that the horrors of superstition, the fear of life and the restlessness of eternal doubt are dispelled. Once you have realised that the world was not created by gods and demons, but is the work of forces and materials acting according to natural laws, once you have followed the advice of Epicurus and accepted the teaching of Democritus that everything that exists has arisen from the diverse structure of ultimate and indivisible small particles of matter - the atoms - then every mystery is solved for you.
Only brooding creates restlessness in the soul; the discerning will never be unhappy. They will enjoy life with joy”.
When Chrysippus objects and contrasts the Epicurean enjoyment of life with the principle of virtue as the only true and worthwhile thing, Ephialtes raises his wine cup to the guest from Tarsus with a conciliatory smile.
“Don't misunderstand me, Chrysippus: Epicurus has nothing in common with the school of Aristippus of Cyrene, who carelessly teaches that physical pleasure - eating, drinking, feasting and enjoying - is the purpose of a wisely spent life, since after death everything is uncertain! Epicurus means the subtle, intellectual pleasure, the balanced tranquillity of the soul and mind in which all suffering and pain are overcome”.
The calm, dispassionate voice of Epimenides interrupted the speaker.
“I think,” he says, “that the basic theses of the Epicurean and Stoic systems are debatable. Pyrrho of Elis, who founded the system of sceptical philosophy, agrees with Epicurus that the goal of life is happiness, but he does not make certain knowledge of the world and its interrelations a condition for this goal; I repeat: there is no absolute certainty. I am always concerned when judgments based on reason are presented as unassailable. One should be more modest and not claim to be able to say anything with absolute certainty. Because we humans, our reason, and our senses are subject to error, every statement must begin with 'maybe' or 'it seems so'.”
Eratosthenes, who, like all Greeks, loves a lively debate, sometimes lightened by a joke, turns to Epimenides.
“Well, my dear fellow, when I observe, for example, that your wise head is as bald as one of the model balls in the Hall of Mathematics, I can assert this fact without qualification and without a 'perhaps'! Or can I?”
Laughter erupts, but the sceptic's face remains unmoved.
“I doubt that too,” he replies, “it may appear that I have no hair, but who can claim that as an undeniable certainty? Everyone sees only what their senses reflect, everyone is trapped by the inadequacy of the earthly. Even with the best instruments and tools, our knowledge always comes back to the use of the five senses - and thus to five uncertainties. Timon of Phleion, a disciple of the great Pyrrhon, says: At the beginning of every quest for knowledge there are three questions. First: What are things like? Second: How do we relate to them? Third: What are the consequences of our behaviour? He also gave the answers: to the first question, all things are impermanent and uncertain; to the second question, we must not trust our perceptions and ideas; and to the third question, because there is an ocean of insecurity, fluctuation, change and uncertainty around us, the soul should reflect upon itself, strive for inner silence and achieve the happiness of non-decision, of surrender!”
“That would make all scientific research pointless,” Archimedes objected. “All searches for absolute truth, especially in the fields of physics, mathematics, astronomy, medicine and law, would be doomed from the outset. And I think I can say that Hellenic science has made considerable progress since Aristotle and has been of great service to mankind!”
“That is doubtful,” cries Epimenides across the table, “very doubtful! Have people become happier, calmer, more peaceful or better? Have they stopped dying, stopped making war?”
“You doubt everything,” says Archimedes, raising his voice, now also showing agitation. “But I, Archimedes of Syracuse, answer you: We have helped humanity! Since Herophilos, here at my side, our great physician, discovered a new method of curing eye diseases, many people have retained their sight and are happier than if they had been condemned to blindness! Since Eratosthenes discovered his formulas for body content, Egyptian officials no longer have to measure bushel by bushel when they want to determine the amount of wheat stored in a village. By measuring the height and circumference of the filled granary, the contents can be easily calculated. Since I discovered the law of the proportions of the weight of bodies, it has been possible to calculate the exact weight of any block of stone, however large, from its contents; this gives the bridge-builders, the architects of temples and houses, certainty in their static calculations. It is no longer necessary to take up all the thrust and pressure with multiple safety measures; it is possible to calculate in advance how strong a supporting wall, column or vault must be to withstand the pressure and thrust of the masses resting on it. These are just a few examples of what science has done for mankind!”
“You have not refuted my actual objection, Archimedes,” Epimenides insists. “I ask again: has mankind as a whole been made happier, greater, better by the insignificant inventions of chance which you arrogantly call knowledge? On the contrary, it seems to me that people are increasingly losing their footing, that they have become more hungry for life, more unstable, more cruel! Exact science cannot make people happy; it gropes along like a blind man on a road that leads nowhere!”
Contradictions are heard everywhere, but only Chrysippus agrees with the sceptic.
“Perfection is given only to the gods. Our existence is governed by laws that we will never know, everything is predetermined. Perhaps the day is not far off when the great world fire will be ignited and destroy all existence.”
“O Hellas,” cries Archimedes in mocking despair, “where have you ended up? In what chaos does your world of thought end? Doubters and those who have given up on destiny give us the goals to strive for! If the Greek world follows this path, then Hellas will perish, then it is time for a younger, more vigorous nation to rekindle the fire that has been extinguished among the Greeks”.
Eratosthenes went over to the wine crater and filled the Syracusan's bowl to the brim.
“Drink, Archimedes, and don't take things more seriously than they are. The time has not yet come, and the ancient wells of Plato and Aristotle are still flowing. And even those of us who, like Pyrrho of Elis and his sceptical school, believe that nothing is infallible, are pioneers of new ideas because we dare to keep working, to keep exploring, despite all the uncertainties, and to reach, if not the truth, then a high degree of probability.”