Pythagoras

Pythagoras was an ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician, born on the island of Samos around 570 BCE. He is primarily known for establishing a philosophical and religious movement called Pythagoreanism, which significantly shaped subsequent philosophical traditions.

The Pythagorean school, based in Croton (Magna Graecia), functioned as a communal society with strict rules and a focus on intellectual and spiritual development. Members dedicated themselves to the study of mathematics, music, astronomy, and philosophy, seeking a deeper understanding of reality.

A central tenet of Pythagorean philosophy was the belief that "all is number." They posited that numerical relationships constituted the fundamental essence of the universe, explaining everything from the harmony of musical scales to the order of the cosmos.

This numerical worldview extended to their cosmology, where the universe was conceived as a perfectly ordered and harmonious system governed by mathematical principles. They believed in a spherical Earth and celestial bodies moving in perfect, numerically defined orbits.

Pythagorean philosophy also encompassed ethical and metaphysical doctrines, most notably the concept of metempsychosis, or the transmigration of the soul. This belief held that the soul is immortal and undergoes a cycle of rebirths into different bodies, human or animal.

To achieve liberation from this cycle of rebirth and purify the soul, Pythagoreans practiced an ascetic and disciplined lifestyle. This often included vegetarianism, periods of silence, and rigorous intellectual pursuits designed to cultivate wisdom and virtue.

Pythagoras's ideas exerted a profound influence on later Greek philosophers, especially Plato, whose metaphysics, cosmology, and theory of the soul show clear Pythagorean inspiration. Plato's emphasis on mathematical forms and the immortality of the soul directly reflects this legacy.

Beyond Plato, Pythagoreanism continued to influence Neoplatonism, early Christian thought, and even the development of modern science through its insistence on mathematical reasoning. Its enduring legacy highlights the foundational role of mathematics in understanding the philosophical nature of reality.