A brilliant way to keep Plato’s philosophies alive and relevant! Your perspective on motion is especially fascinating—as the foundation of action, it becomes a means to gather or share knowledge, whether about ourselves or the world around us. In many ways, motion feels like the very pulse of life itself. Thank you for sharing this with us, Doug!
This is quite interesting! His idea of exercise has truth to it. I also want to share the modern idea that reconnecting with your body through motion releases trauma in the body, as said in "The Body Keeps The Score," by Bessel van der Kolk.
I also find it interesting that the concept of drugs as being deemed 'useless' is, maybe it was the drugs available at the time, but in modern day, I would say that antidepressants have helped me a lot. It reminds me of when my mom was against me using such drugs, but 'waiting it out' is not a viable option, as I tried it to no avail. Ancient philosophy always has a great variety of perspectives, although debatable.
Certainly, as you cited, Plato saw great value in terms of health through physical exercise. This was the norm for his day for which I believe support can be found in Hippocrates (although I don't have a specific citation). In Republic Book 3 however we see a somewhat different approach to the idea of health. Socrates proposed that "a good soul by its own virtue makes the body as good as possible. . . . if we have devoted sufficient care to the mind we would be right . . . to entrust it with the detailed supervision of the body" (403d Grube/Reeve trans.). Subsequently he explains what the mind tells us about maintaining bodily health: "avoid drunkenness," "be like sleepless hounds," avoid "sweet deserts . . . Syracusan cuisine or Sicilian style dishes [sophisticated recipes] . . . Corinthian girlfriends . . . Attic pastries . . . [because] embellishment . . . gives rise to illness . . ." (403e-405a). "Doesn't it seem shameful to you to need medical help, not for wounds or because of some seasonal illness, but because, through idleness and the lifestyle we've described [above] one is full of gas and phlegm like a stagnant swamp . . .?" (405c-d)
A brilliant way to keep Plato’s philosophies alive and relevant! Your perspective on motion is especially fascinating—as the foundation of action, it becomes a means to gather or share knowledge, whether about ourselves or the world around us. In many ways, motion feels like the very pulse of life itself. Thank you for sharing this with us, Doug!
Never disappoints reading those that came before us.
This is quite interesting! His idea of exercise has truth to it. I also want to share the modern idea that reconnecting with your body through motion releases trauma in the body, as said in "The Body Keeps The Score," by Bessel van der Kolk.
I also find it interesting that the concept of drugs as being deemed 'useless' is, maybe it was the drugs available at the time, but in modern day, I would say that antidepressants have helped me a lot. It reminds me of when my mom was against me using such drugs, but 'waiting it out' is not a viable option, as I tried it to no avail. Ancient philosophy always has a great variety of perspectives, although debatable.
Great topic for discussion!
Certainly, as you cited, Plato saw great value in terms of health through physical exercise. This was the norm for his day for which I believe support can be found in Hippocrates (although I don't have a specific citation). In Republic Book 3 however we see a somewhat different approach to the idea of health. Socrates proposed that "a good soul by its own virtue makes the body as good as possible. . . . if we have devoted sufficient care to the mind we would be right . . . to entrust it with the detailed supervision of the body" (403d Grube/Reeve trans.). Subsequently he explains what the mind tells us about maintaining bodily health: "avoid drunkenness," "be like sleepless hounds," avoid "sweet deserts . . . Syracusan cuisine or Sicilian style dishes [sophisticated recipes] . . . Corinthian girlfriends . . . Attic pastries . . . [because] embellishment . . . gives rise to illness . . ." (403e-405a). "Doesn't it seem shameful to you to need medical help, not for wounds or because of some seasonal illness, but because, through idleness and the lifestyle we've described [above] one is full of gas and phlegm like a stagnant swamp . . .?" (405c-d)
That's an interesting read Doug. As Rodney Dangerfield once said to Eddie Murphy "Who knew". Way ahead of his time.