Pyrrhon philosophy. Philosophical ideas of Pyrrhon
Pirron
He maintained his composure at all times. If during his lecture all the listeners left, he ended the lecture as if people were still listening to him.
Pyrrho (c. 360 BC - 280 BC) - ancient Greek philosopher, founder of ancient skepticism. He was among the philosophers who participated in the eastern campaign of Alexander the Great, during which he met Indian gymnosophists and Persian magicians. Pyrrho's teaching was oral; reconstructions are based on the presentation of his student, the writer Timon of Phlius, in later sources. Nausifan, the teacher of Epicurus, also belongs to Pyrrho's students.
Pyrrho proclaimed epoché (“abstention from judgment”) as the main method of philosophy, the goal of which is to achieve happiness. Pyrrho goes back to the formulation of three methodological questions of philosophical research and the development of the doctrine of the need to refrain from any statements or denials about the world and knowledge, which ultimately leads to silence and serenity (“ataraxia”) - this is the state of mind of a true sage. In the sources, this term in connection with the name of Pyrrho is recorded, however, as a loose metaphor: “On the ship during a storm, when his companions fell into despondency, he (Pyrrho) remained calm and encouraged them, pointing to the ship’s pig, which was eating for itself and ate, and saying that this is the serenity that a sage should abide in.”
Skepticism in Pyrrho's version is of a more moral and ethical nature, in contrast to the logical and epistemological coloring of the neo-skepticism of Aenesidemus and Agrippa, who revived Pyrrhonism in the 1st century. BC.
The three leading questions of Pyrrho's philosophy are: “How are things arranged? How should we treat them? What benefits does proper handling of things bring?” - were, as we know, subsequently reproduced by Kant: “What can I know? What should I do? What can I hope for?
Pyrrho: skeptical philosopher
Four years before the birth of Alexander of Macedonia, in Elis, a provincial town in the north-west of the Peloponnese, known throughout the civilized world as the site of Olympic Games, Pyrrho, the skeptical philosopher, is born. They taught him to be an artist. For several years, a fresco by him could be seen on the wall of one of the gymnasiums - runners carrying torches. He was taught by Stilpon or Bruson, or Stilpon's son Bruson: the biography of Pyrrho that has come down to us is a copy made by a scribe ignorant of the Greek language.
He completed his education by traveling with Anaxarchus to India, where he studied with the Sophists, and to Persia, where he listened to the Magi. He returned to Alice as an agnostic, refraining from expressing his own opinion, no matter what the matter concerned. He denied that anything could be good or bad, right or wrong. He doubted the existence of anything, argued that our actions are dictated by habits and customs, and did not admit that a thing in itself could be more this than that.
Thus he yielded to nothing, leaving everything to chance, and was completely imprudent in his encounters, whether it was a cart in the middle of the street, a cliff to which he was heading, or dogs. He said he had no reason to believe that concern for one's own welfare was any wiser than the result of an accident. Antigonus of Karystos said that his friends followed him everywhere to prevent him from falling into a river, well or ditch. He lived for ninety years.
He lived away from the world, having learned in India that not a single person can achieve goodness if he is forced at the first call to run to his patron or kowtow to the king. He even avoided his relatives.
He maintained his composure at all times. If during his lecture all the listeners left, he ended the lecture as if people were still listening to him. He liked to strike up conversations with strangers and follow them wherever they went. For several days, it happened, his students and friends did not know where he disappeared.
One day, when his mentor Anaxarchus fell into a ditch filled up to his neck with mud and could not get out of there, Pyrrho happened to pass by. He noticed Anaxarchus, but did not attach the slightest importance to it. For such indifference, the unenlightened greatly reproached him, but Anaxarchus praised his disciplined apathy and courageous suppression of affection.
He often talked to himself. When asked about this, he replied that he was teaching himself how to become good. He was an inveterate debater, keen in cross-debate and skilled in logic. The philosopher Epicurus, who admired him from afar, always really wanted to know about Pyrrho's latest deeds and expressions. As for the inhabitants of Elis themselves, they were so proud of Pyrrho that they elected him archpriest of festivities and sacrifices and exempted him, like other philosophers, from paying taxes.
He was made an honorary citizen of Athens. He lived with his sister, a midwife. He did not shy away from taking vegetables or fruits to the market, and you could often see him behind the counter - selling poultry, garlic and honey. It was known that he wiped the dust in the house for his sister and swept the floors, and once he was seen washing a pig.
Once, in a neighbor's dispute, he defended his sister Philista. This seemed inconsistent with his doctrine of apathy, no matter what disorder occurred, but he replied that a noble mind would always come to the defense of a helpless woman. And another time, when he showed concern about a dog that was biting his leg, he replied that it was impossible in its pure form to isolate and discard all human reactions to the world around him.
His great teaching was that we must resist reality with all our might, denying it in action where possible and in words where not.
It is said that when he developed an abscess that had to be treated with burning ointments, and ultimately opened with a white-hot poker, he never winced or frowned.
Pyrrho approved of Homer's comparisons of people with wasps, flies and birds. One day he kicked out a student who flew into a rage and chased the cook outside with a spit on which the meat was still sizzling. Since he never told his students what he was thinking about, never answered questions, they were constantly puzzled, not knowing what they should know. He said that he was like Homer in that he held different opinions in different time.
He liked the poetry of Archilochus because it emphasized that we exist by the grace of God and the tragic brevity of our own lives. His legacy includes the pessimism of Euripides, the agnosticism of Xenophanes, the denial of the movement of Zeno and the refusal of Democritus to examine reality with the senses.
His disciples learned to doubt everything and deny everything - even the fact that they doubt and deny everything. “No more so than not!” They answered everything, even that honey is sweeter than grapes, or that virtue is less harmful than vice. There is nothing true that is not probably both untrue and true.
Guy Davenport
Pyrrho of Elis
Four years before the birth of Alexander of Macedonia, Pyrrho, a skeptical philosopher, was born in Elis, a provincial town in the northwestern Peloponnese, known throughout the civilized world as the site of the Olympic Games. They taught him to be an artist. For several years, a fresco by him could be seen on the wall of one of the gymnasiums - runners carrying torches. He was taught by Stilpon or Bruson, or Stilpon's son Bruson: the biography of Pyrrho that has come down to us is a copy made by a scribe ignorant of the Greek language.
He completed his education by traveling with Anaxarchus to India, where he studied with the naked sophists, and to Persia, where he listened to the Magi. He returned to Elis an agnostic - he refrained from expressing his own opinion, no matter what the matter concerned. Denied that something could be good or bad, right or wrong. He doubted the existence of anything, argued that our actions are dictated by habits and customs, and did not admit that a thing in itself is more one thing than another.
Thus, he yielded to nothing, leaving everything to chance, and was completely imprudent, no matter what came his way - a cart in the middle of the street, a cliff towards which he was heading, or dogs. There is no reason to believe, he argued, that concern for one's own well-being is wiser than the outcome of an accident. Antigonus of Karystos tells us that his friends followed him everywhere to prevent him from falling into a river, well or ditch. He lived for ninety years.
He lived away from the world, having learned in India that not a single person can achieve goodness if he is forced at the first call to run to his patron or kowtow to the king. He even avoided his relatives.
He never lost his composure. If during his lecture all the listeners left, he ended the lecture as if people were still listening to him. He liked to strike up conversations with strangers and follow them wherever they went. For several days, it happened, his students and friends did not know where he disappeared.
One day, his mentor Anaxarchus fell up to his neck in a ditch filled with mud and could not get out of there. Pyrrho happened to pass by. I noticed Anaxarchus, but did not attach the slightest importance to it. For such indifference, the unenlightened greatly reproached him, but Anaxarchus praised his disciplined apathy and courageous suppression of affection.
He often talked to himself. When asked about this, he replied that he was teaching himself how to become good. He was an inveterate debater, keen in cross-debate and skilled in logic. The philosopher Epicurus, who admired him from afar, always really wanted to know about Pyrrho's latest deeds and expressions. As for the inhabitants of Elis themselves, they were so proud of Pyrrho that they elected him archpriest of festivities and sacrifices and exempted him, like other philosophers, from paying taxes.
He was made an honorary citizen of Athens. He lived with his sister, a midwife. He did not shy away from taking vegetables or fruits to the market, and you could often see him behind the counter - selling poultry, garlic and honey. It was known that he wiped the dust in the house for his sister and swept the floors, and once he was seen washing a pig.
Once, in a neighbor's dispute, he came to the defense of his sister Philista. This seemed inconsistent with his doctrine of apathy, no matter what disorder occurred, but he replied that a noble thinker would always come to the defense of a helpless woman. And another time, when he showed alarm - at that moment a dog was biting him on the leg - he replied that it was impossible to isolate and discard in their pure form all human reactions to the world around them.
His great teaching was that we must resist reality with all our might, denying it in action where possible and in words where not.
They say that when he developed an abscess that had to be treated with burning ointments, and ultimately opened with a white-hot poker, he never winced or frowned.
Philo the Athenian, a friend, records that of all the thinkers he most admired Democritus the Atomist, and his favorite poetic line was Homer’s:
As generations of foliage, so generations of people.
He approved of Homer's comparisons of people with wasps, flies and birds. When a storm arose and the ship on which he was traveling was in trouble, all the passengers were horrified - except Pyrrho, who pointed to a pig calmly chewing in a box. One day he kicked out a student who flew into a rage and chased the cook outside with a spit on which the meat was still sizzling. Since he never told his students what he was thinking about, never answered questions, they were constantly puzzled, not knowing what they should know. He said that he was like Homer in that he held different opinions at different times. He shared the sayings:
Nothing is too much.
A promise is a curse standing over your shoulder.
He liked the poetry of Archilochus because it emphasized that we exist by the grace of God and the tragic brevity of our own lives. His teaching is united by the pessimism of Euripides, the agnosticism of Xenophanes, the denial of the movement of Zeno and the refusal of Democritus to examine reality with the senses. His followers agree with Democritus that we know nothing, for the truth is at the bottom of the well.
His followers learned to doubt everything and deny everything - even what they doubt and deny everything. No more so than not!- they answered everything, even to the fact that honey is sweeter than grapes, or that virtue is less harmful than vice. There is nothing true that is not probably both untrue and true.
There are only ten intricacies arising from the teachings of Pyrrho, and here are the exits from each:
I. That there are things useful or harmful to our lives. However, every creature considers different things useful or harmful. Quail feed on hemlock, which is deadly to humans.
II. That nature is the same for all creatures. However, Demophon, the cupbearer of Alexander the Great, kept warm in the shade and shivered from the cold in the sun. Aristotle tells us that Andron of Argos crossed the Libyan desert without water.
III. That perception is whole. However, we see the yellowness of the apple, we smell the aroma, we taste the sweetness, we feel the smoothness, we weigh the heaviness in our hand.
IV. That life is smooth and the world is always the same. However, the world of a sick person is different from the world of a healthy person. In a dream, we differ in mind from our waking selves. Joy and sadness change everything for us. A young person moves in a world that is different from the world of an older person. Courage knows the paths that timidity knows not. The hungry sees a world unfamiliar to the well-fed. Pericles had a slave who walked on rooftops in his sleep and never fell. In what world do madmen, greedy people, ulcers live?
Bibliographic description:
Lebedev A.V. Pyrrho from Elis // Ancient philosophy: Encyclopedic Dictionary. M.: Progress-Tradition, 2008. pp. 552-553.
PIRRHO (Πύρρων) from Elis(approximately 365–275 BC), ancient Greek. philosopher, founder of ancient history skepticism. Studied with the sophist Brison from Heraclea (close to the Megara school), then with the Democritus Anaxarcha from Abder, with whom he participated in the eastern campaign of Alexander the Great and “communicated” with Indian gymnosophists and Persian magicians (D. L. IX 61). He was the first Greek thinker to proclaim epoché (“abstention from judgment”) as the main method of philosophy. He did not write philosophical “treatises”; the terms “Pyrrhonian” and “skeptical” were used by skeptics of the Roman era as synonyms (Sext. Pyrrh. I 7), hence the difficulties in reconstructing the original teaching of Pyrrhon and its differentiation from the neo-skeptical tradition Aenesidema – Sexta Empirica. In general, the latter is more characterized by a logical-epistemological orientation, while P. is more characterized by a moral-psychological orientation.
The most authentic presentation of the foundations of Pyrrhonian skepticism is the testimony of Aristocles (in Eusebius, Pr. Ev. XVI 18, 1–4 = Pyrrho, test. 53 Decleva Caizzi), quoting Timon of Phlius. To achieve happiness (eudaimonia), you need to ask three questions: What are things by nature? How should we treat them? What does this mean for us? Answers: 1) Things are non- or indifferent (ἀδιάφορα), unstable and do not allow a definite judgment about themselves (ἀνεπίκριτα); our sensations and ideas about them can be considered neither true nor false. 2) Therefore, one must free oneself from all subjective ideas, “not incline” to either affirmation or denial, remain “unshakable” and reason about everything: “this is no more so than not so,” or “this is both so and it’s not like that,” or “it’s neither like that nor like that.” 3) From such an attitude towards things arise first aphasia (a state in which there is “nothing more to say” about things), and then ataraxia– serenity; in some testimonies also apathy and “silence” (γαλήνη, proper “calm”, complete absence of excitement). For P., skeptical doubt is not an end in itself, but a means of gaining peace of mind. Indifferentism and devaluation of all conventional values of human existence, understood as getting rid of “delusional obsession” (τῦφος), do not lead either to hermitism, or (like the Cynics) to social outsidership or shocking ordinary people (P. accepts the position of high priest and is awarded bronze statue for services to the city). Absolute autonomy of the individual and complete renunciation of desires, “the first of all evils” (test. 65), suppression of all emotions (especially fear and pain) leads to the overcoming of the instinct of self-preservation: death is “no more” terrible than life.
P.'s closest students were Timon of Phlius, Hecataeus of Abdera, and Epicurus's teacher Nausifanus. P. had a formal influence on the skepticism of the Secondary Academy (Arkesilaus).
Evidence: Pirrone. Testimonianze. A cura di F. Decleva Caizzi. Nap., 1981 (bib. pp. 17–26) (texts, Italian translation and commentary); Long A. A., Sedley D. N. The Hellenistic Philosophers. Camb., 1987. Vol. 1, p. 13–24. Vol. 2, p. 1–17.
Lit.: Robin L. Pyrrhon et le scepticisme grec. P., 1944 (repr. N. Y., 1980); Flintoff E. Pyrrho and India, – Phronesis 25, 1980, p. 88–108; Stopper M. R. Schizzi Pirroniani, – Ibid. 28, 1983, p. 265–297; Reale G. Ipotesi per una rilettura della fi losofi a di Pirrone di Elide, – Giannantoni G. (ed.). Lo scetticismo antico. Vol. 1. Nap., 1981, p. 243–336; Ausland H.W. On the Moral Origin of the Pyrrhonian Philosophy, – Elenchos 10, 1989, p. 359–434; Bett R. Aristocles on Timon on Pyrrho: the text, its logic, and its credibility, – OSAPh 12, 1994, p. 137–181; Brunschwig J. Once Again on Eusebius on Aristocles on Timon on Pyrrho, – Papers in Hellenistic Philosophy. Camb., 1994, p. 190–211; Hankinson RJ. The Skeptics. L.; N.Y., 1995; Bett R. Pyrrho, His Antecedents, and His Legacy. Oxf., 2000.
Ancient Greek philosopher, founder of ancient skepticism. P.’s teaching is known from op. his student Timon. P.'s focus is on ethics, issues of happiness and its achievement. P. understands happiness as equanimity (Ataraxia) and as the absence of suffering (Apathy), and the means of achieving it is skepticism. According to P.'s teachings, we cannot know anything about things, therefore it is best to refrain from any judgments about them: the moral value of such abstinence is in achieving peace of mind. P.'s teaching influenced the New Academy and Roman skepticism.
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Pyrrho of Elis
OK. 360-ok. 270 BC) - ancient Greek philosopher, founder of skepticism.
The main concepts of skepticism boiled down to the requirement of abstinence from judgment in reasoning and equanimity in life. Skepticism arose on the basis of ideas expressed by previous philosophers about the fluidity of things, phenomena, and the insufficiency of grounds for choosing one of the contradictory positions. These and similar ideas were developed in the teachings of the Eleatics, Sophists, and others. However, it is believed that sophistry was the direct source of skepticism.
Pyrrho was the first thinker who proclaimed the principle of “abstention from judgment” (epoch) as the main method of philosophy, philosophizing. The subject of philosophy in skepticism is ethical issues. The problems of previous philosophy related to natural philosophy, cosmology, etc., fade into the background. Philosophers are asking more questions about how to live in this unstable world than about how it came to be. The philosopher believes that philosophy should help in life to fight dangers, free a person from all worries, and help overcome difficulties. In this sense, the philosopher becomes not a theorist, but a sage, capable of giving wise answers to any life questions.
According to Pyrrho, a philosopher is a person striving for happiness, which consists of equanimity and the absence of suffering. In order to achieve this state, it is necessary to answer a number of questions: what things are, how we relate to them, what is the benefit of this attitude towards things. According to Pyrrho, nothing definite can be said about things: neither that they are beautiful, nor that they are ugly, nor both. Any statement can be made about anything, even a contradictory one. Therefore, there can be only one attitude towards things: one should refrain from any categorical judgments about them.
But for Pyrrho this does not mean that nothing reliable exists. He believes that the sensory impressions of a particular person cannot be doubted. If a person believes that something or other seems bitter or sweet to him, then it is so, but one cannot conclude from this that it really exists. This is where man’s equanimity arises, in which his highest happiness lies.
However, the stated way of reasoning and attitude to life does not mean that the philosopher should be inactive, no, he should live the same way as other people in a given country. But he should not consider the way of life of a given country to be true.
Skepticism as a philosophical trend has made a great contribution to the development of philosophical thought. In this regard, ancient skepticism had an advantage over subsequent skepticism, since it was of a deeper nature. According to Hegel, the ancient skeptics sought the truth, and their philosophy was directed against rational thinking. Hegel also emphasized that the statement of skepticism about the appearance of everything that exists is not subjective idealism, since it, pointing out contradictions in the same subject, emphasizes its objectivity, and this is a characteristic point of philosophy itself.
Excellent definition
Incomplete definition ↓
from book Blinnikov L.V. - A brief dictionary of philosophical personalitiesPyrrho of Elis (c. 360-270 BC) - ancient Greek philosopher, the founder of skepticism. The main concepts of skepticism boiled down to the requirement of abstinence from judgment in reasoning and equanimity in life. Skepticism arose on the basis of ideas expressed by previous philosophers about the fluidity of things, phenomena, and the insufficiency of grounds for choosing one of the contradictory positions. These and similar ideas were developed in the teachings of the Eleatics, Sophists, and others. However, it is believed that sophistry was the direct source of skepticism. Pyrrho was the first thinker who proclaimed the principle of “abstinence from judgment” (epoch) as the main method of philosophy and philosophizing. The subject of philosophy in skepticism is ethical issues. The problems of previous philosophy related to natural philosophy, cosmology, etc., fade into the background. Philosophers are asking more questions about how to live in this unstable world, rather than about how it came to be. The philosopher believes that philosophy should help in life to fight dangers, free a person from any worries, and help overcome difficulties. In this sense, the philosopher becomes not a theorist, but a sage, capable of giving wise answers to any life problems. According to Pyrrho, a philosopher is a person striving for happiness, which consists of equanimity and the absence of suffering. In order to achieve this state, it is necessary to answer a number of questions: what things are, how we relate to them, what is the benefit of our attitude towards these things. According to Pyrrho, nothing definite can be said about things: neither that they are beautiful, nor that they are ugly, neither one nor the other. Any statement can be made about anything, even a contradictory one. Therefore, there can only be one attitude towards things: one should refrain from making any categorical judgments about things. But for Pyrrho this does not mean that nothing reliable exists. He believes that the sensory impressions of a particular person cannot cause skepticism. If a person believes that something or other seems bitter or sweet to him, then it is so, but one cannot conclude from this that it really exists. This is where man’s equanimity arises, in which his highest happiness lies. However, the stated way of reasoning and attitude to life does not mean that the philosopher should be inactive, no, he should live the same way as other people in a given country. But he should not consider the way of life of a given country to be true. Skepticism as a philosophical trend has made a great contribution to the development of philosophical thought. In this regard, ancient skepticism had a great advantage over subsequent skepticism, since it was of a deeper nature. According to Hegel, ancient skeptics were looking for truth and their philosophy was directed against rational thinking. Hegel also emphasized that the statement of skepticism about the appearance of everything that exists is not subjective idealism, since it, pointing out contradictions in the same subject, emphasizes its objectivity, and this is a characteristic point of philosophy itself.
