In Phaedo 102d and 103b, Plato seems to distinguish certain forms or characters immanent in objects as a separate ontological category from transcendent Forms. I argue, following what seems to be the scholarly majority, that this... more
In Phaedo 102d and 103b, Plato seems to distinguish certain forms or characters immanent in objects as a separate ontological category from transcendent Forms. I argue, following what seems to be the scholarly majority, that this distinction does indeed identify immanent characters as a separate ontological category from transcendent Forms.
Mixture of philosophy and religion defines Plato's tradition of spirituality known as Platonism. The view of God as a First Principle or Supreme Good rather than a person is based on platonistic doctrine that anything that have... more
Mixture of philosophy and religion defines Plato's tradition of spirituality known as Platonism. The view of God as a First Principle or Supreme Good rather than a person is based on platonistic doctrine that anything that have personality is changeable and belongs to Lower Realm, while God is an eternal principle who emanates unchangeable untelligible Forms in the Upper Realm. According to Plato, ascent to heaven from the " cave " or world of shadows could happen only after the conversion of inverted soul through "intellectual vision" or "ascetic paradigm". The very concept of spirituality in the West as we know it today comes from Plato and it is still an integral part of all three monotheistic religions today. In the " Republic " we learn about Allegory and finally in " Symposium " we learn about doctrine of Platonic Love. Platonic concept of a God which is not viewed as a "person", rather the eternal First Principle derives also from the fact that God as a principle can be "loved", as is the case with religious tradition where we imagine God as a person whom we love and adore. Plato's first principle, the light that shines on the highest point of the universe that we see when we get out of "the cave" is the Supreme Good that can be the object of love and the target of deepest forms of spirituality. Spiritualty that is emotionally rich and very personal because it involves the engagement of the deepest parts of the "self", mainly our souls. It is useful here to stop and rethink what Plato actually thinks we are, what it means to be a person and to have own personality? Plato's allegory of the cave teaches us that this material world in which we are is the world of cave where there is shadow and illusion, and where all things are mortal. On the other hand, Plato was more interested in the "real" world that is eternal, which is not dissipated and does not disappear, nor is variable. Liberation, or exit from the cave for Plato is abandoning the world that does not last and the ascent to a world that is eternal, making a clear distinction between "this world" (Lower Realm) and the "other (real) world" (Upper Realm). Ascent to heaven above "this world" begins with the conversion, or turning the soul from "dark" to "light", according to Platonic belief that the soul is distorted and inverted when facing the material world.
Sažetak Platonova tradicija duhovnosti poznatija kao Platonizam je najviše određena mješavinom filozofije i religije Gledanje na Boga kao "Prvi Princip" ili "Vrhovno Dobro", a ne kao osobu temelji se na platonističkoj doktrini da sve što... more
Sažetak Platonova tradicija duhovnosti poznatija kao Platonizam je najviše određena mješavinom filozofije i religije Gledanje na Boga kao "Prvi Princip" ili "Vrhovno Dobro", a ne kao osobu temelji se na platonističkoj doktrini da sve što ima osobnost je promjenjivo i pripada Donjim Krajevima, a sam Bog je vječni princip od koga proizilaze nepromjenljive razumljive Forme u Gornjim Krajevima. Prema Platonu, uzdizanje na Nebo iz "pećine" ili svijeta sjena može se dogoditi tek nakon konverzije izvrnute duše putem "intelektualne vizije" ili "asketske paradigme". Sam pojam duhovnosti na Zapadu koji danas poznajemo potječe od Platona i još uvijek je sastavni dio svih triju monoteističkih religija do današnjeg dana. U "Republici" saznajemo više o alegoriji o pećini, u Menonu o teoriji prisjećanja, u Fedonu o teoriji o besmrtnosti duše, u Fedru o teoriji o podjeli i padu duše, te u Gozbi o doktrini platonske ljubavi. Platonistički koncept o Bogu koji nije "osoba" već vječni prvi princip proizilazi također iz činjenice da Bog kao princip može biti "voljen", kao što je slučaj kod vjerskih tradicija gdje zamišljamo Boga kao osobu koju volimo i obožavamo. Platonov Prvi princip, ta svjetlost koja blješti na najvišoj tački univerzuma koju vidimo kada izađemo iz "pećine" predstavlja vrhovno Dobro koje može biti objekt ljubavi i cilj najdubljeg oblika spiritualnosti. Spiritualosti koja je izrazito emocionalno bogata i veoma lična jer uključuje angažovanje najdubljih dijelova "sebe", tj. prvenstveno naše duše. Korisno je ovdje stati i promisliti šta Platon zapravo misli da mi jesmo, odnosno šta je zapravo naše "ja", šta znači biti osoba i imati svoju ličnost. Platonova Alegorija o pećini nas uči kako ovaj materijalni svijet u kome jesmo, tj. svijet opipljivog jeste pećina gdje vladaju sjene i iluzija i gdje su sve stvari smrtne. S druge strane Platon je više zainteresovan za "pravi svijet" koji je vječan koji se ne rasipa i ne nestaje, niti je promjenjiv. Oslobođenje ili izlazak iz pećine, za Platona je napuštanje svijeta koji ne traje i uzdizanje ka svijetu koji je vječan, praveći jasnu razliku između "ovog svijeta" i "onog svijeta". Uzdizanje ka Nebu iznad "ovog svijeta" počinje
, 27-36. For a criticism of Moore's position, see for instance . Pace Moore, Zimmerman contends that the intrinsic value of a whole can equal the sum of the intrinsic values of its parts. I take it that this is true with respect to ILT,... more
, 27-36. For a criticism of Moore's position, see for instance . Pace Moore, Zimmerman contends that the intrinsic value of a whole can equal the sum of the intrinsic values of its parts. I take it that this is true with respect to ILT, but not with respect to the world. It should be noted that Harte (2002), 9-12, comments well on the unclarity of expressions 'just the sum of its parts' and 'more than the sum of its parts' (Harte deals basically with ontology, not axiology). I shall use these expressions while trying to make my meaning clear. This is to spare the reader of the technical developments that would lead far beyond the Timaeus.
1 My purpose in this essay is to set forth something of the philosophical discussion among Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, and Aquinas concerning Forms and First Principles and to add to that discussion which is continued in my own... more
1
My purpose in this essay is to set forth something of the philosophical discussion among
Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, and Aquinas concerning Forms and First Principles and to add to that
discussion which is continued in my own thought and, here, to the purpose of supplying supporting
argument in favor of the Platonic theory of Forms and against the refutations and attacks upon it
of Aristotle and my beloved brother, Saint Thomas Aquinas. To this end, what is required is a
sufficient theory of act and potency so as to apply, in a metaphysics of pure act esse, analogically
to both Uncreated Being and created being which is new ontology of universal pure act esse.
In Plato's Sophist (247e), the Eleatic Stranger seems to propose to define being by means of the notion of dynamis. Although some recent papers have claimed that his dynamis-proposal should be taken seriously (at least as an explication... more
In Plato's Sophist (247e), the Eleatic Stranger seems to propose to define being by means of the notion of dynamis. Although some recent papers have claimed that his dynamis-proposal should be taken seriously (at least as an explication of Plato's concept of being, if not as a definition in the strict sense) it is still far from clear what this claim amounts to-especially in the case of the being of the forms. This paper shows that, regarding forms, a modal and a formal interpretation of the dynamis-proposal is possible. While the latter interpretation is preferable on philosophical and hermeneutical grounds, it seems to conflict with the principle that a form is a being by participating in the form of being. By distinguishing between direct and indirect participation in the form of being, the paper resolves this conflict, concluding that the formal interpretation of the dynamis-proposal can indeed be read as a philosophically attractive holistic explication of Plato's concept of the being of forms.
Abstract Frank Thomas Sautter: In this paper Chateaubriand's approach to solve some problems related to the nature of logic is confronted with the traditional approaches. It is shown that his hierarchy of logical types opens up new... more
Abstract Frank Thomas Sautter:
In this paper Chateaubriand's approach to solve some problems related to the nature of logic is confronted with the traditional approaches. It is shown that his hierarchy of logical types opens up new possibilities to characterize logical properties and logical truths and that it also sheds some new light on the foundations of mathematics. The order in which a system is exhibited almost always does not correspond to the order in which it has been elaborated. The system proposed by Oswaldo Chateaubriand is no exception (see Chateaubriand 2001). Since it contains many original ideas and original interpretations of traditional ideas which were initially developed to refute the slingshot-argument, especially the variant formulated by Gödel, the first chapter of the book with regard to the order of elaboration is the fourth chapter with regard to the order of exhibition. The diverse parts of the system form an organic whole making it difficult to apprehend them in isolation; this explains also the recurrence of some ideas.
Abstract response:
In §1 I examine the connections between my account of logical properties and Tarski’s account of logical notions. In §2 I briefly present some of my views on modality and the basis for my claim that there are intensional as well as extensional relations between properties. In §3 I compare my views on the nature of logic and of mathematics with Gödel’s views.
Renatus Ziegler. "Geometric Crystal Morphology on a Projective Basis - Towards the Complementarity of Morphology and Structure Theory", translated from the original German by David W. Wood. The text contains a lengthy appendix: "Rudolf... more
Renatus Ziegler. "Geometric Crystal Morphology on a Projective Basis - Towards the Complementarity of Morphology and Structure Theory", translated from the original German by David W. Wood. The text contains a lengthy appendix: "Rudolf Steiner on Crystals".
This paper first appeared in German under the title “Geometrische Kristallmorphologie auf projektive Grundlage. Zur Komplementarität von Morphologie und Strukturtheorie” , in the journal "Elemente der Naturwissenschaft" 71 (2), 1999, pp. 1-45.
The English translation appeared in Archetype, the Journal of the Science Group of the Anthroposophical Society in Great Britain (ed. Dr. David. J. Heaf), no. 6, September 2000, pp. 1-45.
