Parmenides and Empedocles on Krasis and Knowledge

Making mental phenomena to depend on certain elements or organs of the body is famously recognized as a distinctive feature of physiologia both in the so-called “autobiography” of Socrates in the Phaedo and in a further “doxographic” passage in the dialogue, where Simmias develops the argument that the soul is like “a blending and an attunement” of the bodily elements. While no earlier thinker is mentioned here, one can easily identify Parmenides and Empedocles as two of the main supporters of the notion that thought and perception depend on the various blendings of the physical constituents of the body. That they had such a view is indeed well known thanks to a few fragments, for whose discussion Aristotle’s and Theophrastus’ comments prove to be particularly helpful. What neither Plato nor Aristotle acknowledge, though, is that no such specific bearer of mental functions as psyche is needed in this kind of account. As a matter of fact, both Parmenides and Empedocles share with the epic and lyric tradition the idea of the precariousness of human knowledge, due to the constant exposure of human beings to change. Yet they “translate” the topos of human existence and thought subjected to the divine into a vision where the physical krasis of the body (not by chance, a medical notion) is all that matters

WILLIAM HARVEY, SOUL SEARCHER: TELELOGY AND PHILOSOPHICAL ANATOMY

The goal of this dissertation is to understand the ways in which teleology structures the natural philosophy of William Harvey (1578-1657), who announced the circulation of the blood in his De motu cordis (1628). I shall incorporate new archival research, as well as the study of a number of texts that have not yet received due attention, including the Prelectiones anatomie universalis (1616-1627) and the De generatione animalium (1651). My study is divided into three parts. The first two parts focus upon on the role of two sorts of teleology. I first discuss the teleology of being, which characterizes the functioning and material organization of the parts of the body, what one would call today ‘physiology and anatomy’. I then turn to examine the teleology of becoming, which characterizes the process of the generation of those parts, what one would call today ‘embryological development’. The third section shifts to examining Harvey’s methods in light of this conception of the subject matter. I start by articulating how, in general, Harvey conceives of anatomy not as a body of pre-existing knowledge, but rather as an active ability, combining skills of hand, eye, and mind. I then turn to look in detail at Harvey’s particular methods. Harvey’s methodology was an innovative reinterpretation and extension of Aristotle and Galen, mediated by certain Renaissance trends in medicine and natural philosophy. I focus specifically on how experience and experiment are used to determine final causes

Galeni In Hippocratis Epidemiarum librum VI commentariorum I–VIII versio Arabica

The present volume offers the first critical edition of the medieval Arabic translation of Galen's Commentary on Book 6 of the Hippocratic Epidemics. It is the sequel to the previous editions of Galen's Commentary. The Arabic text is accompanied by an English translation and extensive indices. The introduction outlines the history of the Greek and Arabic text of the commentary and discusses authorship, dating and style of the Arabic translation

Classical Ideas of Physiology and Pathology: Understandings of the Living Body in the Hippocratic Corpus

The medical texts of the Hippocratic Corpus (fifth to third centuries BCE) were composed by different authors, each with their own ideas about how the human body functions and how it changes in illness and due to injury. But despite diverging views on the functions of the body in the Corpus, the treatises also share a number of fundamental concepts on the body’s nature, both in its healthy and diseased or damaged states. This thesis analyses the different ways the authors of the Hippocratic treatises understood the physiology and pathology of the living body, including the body’s composition, components, and processes, and how these often-eclectic medical ideas shape essential aspects of Hippocratic medicine. The project is guided by two important questions: what did the Hippocratic authors know about the body, and how did they know this information. This study aims to contribute to current scholarship on ancient medicine by offering a detailed foundation of physiological and pathological concepts in the Corpus for further studies on the reasoning behind Hippocratic therapies and treatments of diseases and injuries.Thesis (MPhil) -- University of Adelaide, School of Humanities, 202

askesis, religion, science

In both ancient tradition and modern research Pythagoreanism has been understood as a religious sect or as a philosophical and scientific community. Numerous attempts have been made to reconcile these pictures as well as to analyze them separately. The most recent scholarship compartmentalizes different facets of Pythagorean knowledge, but this offers no context for exploring their origins, development, and interdependence. This collection aims to reverse this trend, addressing connections between the different fields of Pythagorean knowledge, such as eschatology, metempsychosis, metaphysics, epistemology, arithmology and numerology, music, dietetics and medicine as well as politics. In particular, the contributions discuss how the Pythagorean way of life related to more doctrinal aspects of knowledge, such as Pythagorean religion and science. The volume explores the effects of this interdependence between different kinds of knowledge both within the Pythagorean corpus and in its later reception. Chapters cover historical periods from the Archaic Period (6th century BC) to Neoplatonism, Early Christianity, the European and Arabic Middle Ages, and the Renaissance through to the Early Modern Period (17th century AD). Contributions by E. Afonasin, L. Arcari, D. Baltzly, A. Barker, H. Bartoš, A. Bernabé, J. Bremmer, L. Brisson, F. Casadesús, M. Catarzi, S. Chrysakopoulou, G. Cornelli, E. Cottrell, S. Galson, M. Giangiulio, T. Iremadze, A. Izdebska, C. L. Joost-Gaugier, S. Kouloumentas, B. La Sala, R. McKirahan, C. Montepaone, H.-P. Neumann, A. Palmer, A. Provenza, I. Ramelli, D. Robichaud, B. Roling, W. Schmidt-Biggemann, E. Spinelli, I. F. Viltanioti, and L. Zhmud

Becoming Isis: Myth, Magic, Medicine, and Reproduction in Ancient Egypt

In ancient Egypt, sexuality, fertility, and the conception of children was of central importance not just to personal identity, but also to family and social structure. Because of the significance of birth in both the physical world and in the spiritual realm, references to reproduction, including fertility, conception, pregnancy, and childbirth, can be found in a wide variety of textual sources. Specifically, mythic events and scenarios, including those in magical spells, medico-magical spells, and funerary texts, reflected Egyptian reproductive conceptions and practices. Further, the Egyptians employed and called on these mythic episodes and archetypes to create divinely charged myth-mirroring space, spells, and remedies to manage reproductive events. Investigating this complex matrix of cultural ideas and practices reflected in text, augmented by data from select iconography, material culture, and human remains, this study resituates Egyptian reproductive lives within their own cultural context, through the Egyptians\u27 own terms and reproductive timeline. From conception to the child\u27s first breath, this study attempts to access the beliefs that would have informed and shaped the Egyptians reproductive experiences

Pythagorean Knowledge from the Ancient to the Modern World: Askesis \u2013 Religion \u2013 Science

In both ancient tradition and modern research Pythagoreanism has been understood as a religious sect or as a philosophical and scientific community. Numerous attempts have been made to reconcile these pictures as well as to analyze them separately. The most recent scholarship compartmentalizes different facets of Pythagorean knowledge, but this offers no context for exploring their origins, development, and interdependence. This collection aims to reverse this trend, addressing connections between the different fields of Pythagorean knowledge, such as eschatology, metempsychosis, metaphysics, epistemology, arithmology and numerology, music, dietetics and medicine as well as politics. In particular, the contributions discuss how the Pythagorean way of life related to more doctrinal aspects of knowledge, such as Pythagorean religion and science. The volume explores the effects of this interdependence between different kinds of knowledge both within the Pythagorean corpus and in its later reception. Chapters cover historical periods from the Archaic Period (6th century BC) to Neoplatonism, Early Christianity, the European and Arabic Middle Ages, and the Renaissance through to the Early Modern Period (17th century AD)

Galeni in Hippocratis Epidemiarum librum II commentariorum I-III versio arabica. Vol. 1 : Commentaria I-III

The present volume offers the first critical edition of the medieval Arabic translation of Galen's Commentary on Book 2 of the Hippocratic Epidemics produced by Hunayn ibn Ishaq (d. ca. 870). The edition is based on all extant Arabic textual witnesses, including the Arabic secondary transmission. The Greek original of this text is lost; the Arabic translation is therefore the only intact witness to this important work. The number and extent of quotations from this commentary in medieval Arabic medical writings, which are documented in the introduction to the volume, demonstrate that it became a crucial source for the development of medicine in the Islamic world. It also gave rise to a wide range of didactic writings which illustrate its importance for medical teaching. The English translation aims to convey some of the flavour of the Arabic text. The volume also contains comprehensive indices that map out the terminology and style of the translation