What is Philosophy?
Philosophy is a sadly abused word in modern times. It has come to mean rational thinking and theorizing. This however could not be further from the ancient meaning of the word. Literally, it means Love of Wisdom, but in practice it is a spiritual path that leads us back to God.
For Pythagoras, philosophy, associated with the way of Apollo, consists in a purification, in becoming aware of the divine principles and in assimilation to God
Algis Uzdavinys, Philosophy as a Rite of Rebirth
Philosophy is a pathway for us to move beyond the limited range of rational thinking and achieve a likeness to God.
The Golden Chain
Our spiritual lineage comes from the Platonic Golden Chain. This is a line of philosophers that started with the earliest western sages and continued into the middle ages. At some point, the line was lost to history but we have hundreds of works from the members of the Golden Chain which we use as the core of our teachings and guidance.
Pre-socratics
- Orpheus
- Pythagoras
- Seven sages
- Heraclitus
- Parmenides
- Empedocles
- Philolaus
Socrates
Platonic succession:
- Plato (Student of Socrates, “founder of the Old Academy”)
- Speusippus
- Xenocrates
- Polemo
- Crantor
- Crates
- Arcesilaus (“founder of the Middle Academy”, who introduced an emphasis on skepticism)
- Lacydes (“founder of the New Academy”)
- Evander and Telecles
- Hegesinus of Pergamon
- Carneades
- Clitomachus
- Philo of Larissa
- Antiochus of Ascalon (founder of middle platonism) 5th academy – academy destroyed
- Plutarch
- Theon of Smyrna
- Albinus
- Alcinous
- Apuleius
- Maximus of Tyre
- Numenius of Apamea
- Ammonium Saccas
- Plotinus
- Porphyry
- Iamblichus
- Emporer Julian
- Plutarch of Athens – Academy re-established
- Syrianus
- Proclus
- Marinus of Neapolis
- Damascius – academy closed by Justinian
- Simplicius of cilcicia – continues academy in secret in Harran until 9th century
Lineage goes into hiding to prevent persecution by Christians.
Why the chain matters
Too many spiritual traditions today have no grounding whatsoever. People pick up random ideas and weave them into personal spiritual systems. The chain protects us against impiety and making mistakes on our spiritual path. If you could consult the greatest spiritual masters from history, why would you avoid them?
The tradition that we follow stretches back to the earliest recorded history in western civilization. Their continued input and guidance is a central pillar of our spiritual path. Without them, we are liable to drift into false ideologies and be attracted to false gurus and sages.
Incorporation
One of the best traits of the Platonic tradition is that it integrated and corrected other spiritual and philosophic paths over the centuries. The best wisdom of the Stoics, Pythagoreans, Hermetics and others were harmonized into the Platonic tradition.