Pythagoras: biography and teaching. The life of Pythagoras The real name of Pythagoras

Biographical sources

Unfortunately, history has preserved too few facts of the biography of Pythagoras, so we can reconstruct it only from scattered information, and even then very approximately. But, nevertheless, no matter what we use as a source of biographical information, we will always talk about the fact that from birth he had occult abilities and the desire to know the secrets of the world.

Birth of Pythagoras

One of the legends says that when the mother of Pythagoras was already carrying a child under her heart, in an effort to find out his future, she turned to the Delphic oracle (just at that time she accompanied her husband to Delphi on his trading business). The oracle replied that she would give birth to a boy who would surpass the wisdom of all people and become the spiritual light of mankind.

This prophecy impressed the spouses so much that they named the newborn in honor of the soothsayer (“Pythia”), that is, Pythagoras. They thought that the son would grow up to be a prophet.

Although some legends generally claim that Pythagoras was simply a god who descended to earth to bring people the light of knowledge. It always happens when someone becomes so great that it is difficult for the philistine mind to imagine how a simple person could take so much spiritual and physical strength to achieve greatness.

There is, so to speak, an “average” option: according to some legends, Pythagoras’ mother had intercourse with Apollo himself, therefore he himself was born half-man, half-god.

If we adhere to historical chronology, then Pythagoras was born presumably somewhere between 600 and 590 years. before the birth of Christ.

Life and death of Pythagoras

Pythagoras traveled a lot in his youth and in adulthood, and wherever fate threw him, everywhere he tried to gain new knowledge, especially esoteric ones. It is believed that he was initiated into the Egyptian, Babylonian and Chaldean Mysteries. And, quite possibly, he was trained even by Indian mystics.

Upon returning home, he founded his own school, which will be discussed below. Instructing disciples, he spent the rest of his life. But when he was sixty years old, he married one of his students, who later bore him seven children.

By the way, she was a match for him - a wonderful and selfless woman who not only inspired him for the rest of his life, but after his death continued to spread the Teaching

Naturally, like any brilliant and great man, Pythagoras aroused envy and hostility on the part of those who indulged their weaknesses, who lived in envy. And since, in addition to educational activities, Pythagoras also led an active socio-political life, a great many such enemies accumulated over time.

Personality of Pythagoras

Pythagoras was famous not only as a man of vast knowledge and deep wisdom, but also as someone who achieved complete harmony between the external and internal, that is, total integrity. His contemporaries noted that he was impeccable in everything - in science, esotericism, everyday affairs, in morality and magic.

The integrity of Pythagoras is also evidenced by the fact that he was distinguished not only by his mind, but also by his physical development. He instructed his students to definitely engage in physical exercises, seeing this as the basis for deep wisdom. Pythagoras himself, by the way, was an excellent fist fighter and wrestling champion! This is who truly embodied the phrase “a sound mind in a sound body!”

Pythagoras the Philosopher

Some researchers believe that Pythagoras was the first to call himself a philosopher. Therefore, he is credited with the "invention" of this term. The legend says that he was modest and did not want to be called a sage, as was customary in those days. He suggested calling him a philosopher, that is, one who loves wisdom.

Pythagoras the Magician

There were many rumors about the magical abilities of Pythagoras, and those that spoke of his ability to command animals and birds were especially popular. So, according to one legend, during the passage of the next Olympic Games, he called to himself an eagle flying in the sky, and he followed all his instructions.

And another story tells that, by order of Pythagoras, a bear left one settlement, which had previously annoyed the townspeople.

Pythagoras was also credited with the gift of clairvoyance and prediction (that is, in some ways his parents were not mistaken).

In addition, there were rumors that he could control demons and spirits.

Pythagoras the Healer

Pythagoras won no less fame as a gifted healer. He was well versed in medicinal herbs, about which, according to legend, he even wrote a book.

His healing arsenal included poultices, various magical techniques and even music, since he perfectly understood its deeply psychological impact on the human mind. And since he himself was a wonderful musician, he composed special harmonies for various diseases.

In addition, Pythagoras experimented with the effect of color on the human psyche.

Academy of Pythagoras

As mentioned above, after returning from his wanderings, Pythagoras founded his school in Croton, or, as it was also called, the Academy of Pythagoras, which later became known to the whole world.

The discipline at the school was very strict, since Pythagoras believed that only she was able to forge a real Spirit. But under strict discipline in no case should we mean cruel, on the contrary, a lot of attention was paid to the development of the aesthetic side of the students.

Pythagoras tried to comprehensively train his followers. For the development of concentration, attentiveness and memory, he forbade anything to be written down. Therefore, they had no choice but to be extremely concentrated so as not to miss anything from the words of the teacher and remember his science for life. On the one hand, this contributed to their rapid intellectual development, and on the other hand, it helped to keep esoteric knowledge secret.

Also, in addition, Pythagoras insisted that his students talk as little as possible, since he believed that wisdom becomes deeper in silence. That is why his school became famous for the fact that silence was practiced there - as a means of comprehending secret knowledge and as a test.

Another important point of studying at the school of Pythagoras was the requirement to follow a vegetarian diet. He believed that eating meat darkens the mental faculties.

Mathematics was taught at the Academy of Pythagoras (both arithmetic and geometry proper, and the "secret teaching of numbers", that is, their esoteric meaning), astronomy, music and other sciences. Pythagoras believed that the study of geometry, music and astronomy is essential to the understanding of God, man and Nature.

In the secret part of his teaching, Pythagoras expounded to his disciples the doctrine of the immortality of the human soul and how it passes from one body to another after death. As an example, he often talked about his own past lives.

Death of Pythagoras

Pythagoras refused to receive secret occult knowledge to many people, for which they hated him and tried with all their might to take revenge. This is what one of the legends tells about. One of these "rejected" vowed to take revenge - to destroy the school of Pythagoras and him personally. And then one day a gang of killers set fire to all the buildings of the Academy. As a result, saving his students, Pythagoras died.

There is another version of the death of Pythagoras, set out in one of Manly Hall's books: “Another version says that in a burning house the students formed a bridge of bodies, entering the fire alive so that their teacher would pass over it and be saved, and only later did Pythagoras die of a broken heart, grieving over the seeming futility of his efforts to enlighten and serve mankind.

ABSTRACT

"Life and work of Pythagoras"

Performed:

student 8 "A" class.

Nikolaeva Tatiana

Checked:

Kozlova E.A.

Kanash, 2009

Biography of Pythagoras

This strong young man with a stubborn neck and a short nose, a real fighter, the judges of one of the first Olympiads in the history did not want to allow him to compete, they reproached him with his small stature. He made his way and defeated all opponents. If this happened some 2530 years later, the newspapers of the whole world would have been published with a full house: "The unknown Pythagoras (Greece) won a gold medal in fisticuffs." However, in the current Olympic programs there is no fisticuffs. And then there were no newspapers and medals. And even if they were, they would not have survived to this day. Newspapers and medals do not live for millennia. Only legends survive...

His whole life is a legend. Not even a legend, but layers of many legends. Probably, among the most amazing and contradictory conjectures there are nuggets of truth, but the enormous burden of the past time pressed them, dissolved them in this fantastic environment, made them invisible to us too. We know very little about the life of Pythagoras. He was born around 570 BC in Sidon, Phoenicia on the island of Samos. Less than five kilometers of blue water of the Gulf of Kushada separated the island from the shores of Asia Minor.

Pythagoras' mother's name was Pythasis. She received this name from her husband in honor of the Pythia, the priestess of Apollo. The Pythia predicted to Mnesarchus and his wife the birth of a son who would surpass everyone in intelligence and beauty. The son was also named after
Pythia. According to many ancient testimonies, the born boy was fabulously handsome, and soon showed his outstanding abilities. He received his first knowledge from his father Mnesarchus, a jeweler and gemstone carver: in those days, this profession required a multilateral education. He was rich enough to give his son a good upbringing. As a child, Pythagoras traveled a lot with his father, visited Syria, Italy.

Pythagoras strives to learn as much as possible from an early age. Like any father, Mnesarchus dreamed that his son would continue his work - the craft of a goldsmith. Life judged otherwise. The future great mathematician and philosopher already in childhood showed great abilities for the sciences. Among the teachers of the young Pythagoras were Pherekydes of Syros and the elder Germodamant. The first instilled in the boy a love of science,
the second - to the music, painting and poetry of Homer. For memory exercises, Hermodamas forced him to learn songs from the Odyssey and the Iliad, and also instilled in young Pythagoras a love of nature and its secrets.

Pythagoras saw in the warm haze of clear days yellow roads running across the big earth to the big world. They called him. The imagination of the young Pythagoras very soon became cramped on little Samos, and he goes to Miletus, where he meets with another scientist, Thales. On the advice of Thales, Pythagoras goes to Egypt for knowledge. Pythagoras' father was a fairly influential citizen of the island of Samos, and was quite familiar with the ruler of the island, the tyrant Polycrates. Polycrates provided Pythagoras with a letter of recommendation to Pharaoh Amasis, thanks to which he was admitted to training and initiated into the sacraments forbidden to other strangers. That is, Pythagoras arrived in Egypt in fact as an ambassador or consul of the island of Samos (according to modern ideas). This role of Pythagoras gave him the opportunity to visit many of the temples of Egypt and participate in discussions with the priests on a variety of issues. He walked along the roads of Egypt and lived for 12 years in Babylon, then in Phoenicia, Syria, visited the Euphrates valley and lived with the Chaldeans for several years. After that, through Media and Persia, he passes to Hindustan, where he also spends several years. In Egypt, Pythagoras joins mathematics and creates from it the center of his philosophical system. In Babylon, he studies Eastern religions. Pythagoras introduces the word "philosopher". Before him, scientists called themselves wise men - those who "know". Pythagoras calls himself a philosopher - one who "tries to know." According to Porphyry, the main source of information about Pythagoras, in the temple of Diospolis he was accepted into the clergy after performing all the necessary rites for admission to the temple.

Having learned everything that the priests gave him, he moved to his homeland in Hellas. Returning to Samos, Pythagoras found his homeland in the hands of the dictator Polycrates, who consolidated his power, relying on an alliance with the Persians. At first it might seem that the island has blossomed after difficult years of political upheaval. Polycrates, himself a merchant, encouraged crafts and the arts. Vast buildings were erected everywhere, striking in their splendor. Outstanding poets and artists found shelter at the court of the ruler. But Pythagoras quickly realized the price of this golden cage. The guardianship of the authorities turned out to be a heavy burden on freedom of thought. According to Porphyry, the philosopher "saw that tyranny was too strong for a free man to valiantly endure supervision and despotism." Pythagoras was filled with disgust for the Samos regime and decided to leave the Fatherland forever. “Hating tyranny with his soul, he himself chose exile,” said Ovid, who read one of the ancient biographies of the philosopher. Nothing is known about the details of this resettlement (or exile?). We only know that in 540 Pythagoras boarded a ship sailing to Italy, and after some time arrived in the city of Croton. Many travelers, merchants and craftsmen sought here, in a rich trading port off the coast of the Gulf of Tarentum, in the so-called "Great Greece". In this realm of the colonists, the general atmosphere was much freer than in Samos.

In Croton, Pythagoras plans to create his own philosophical school. She played an important role in the scientific and political life of ancient Greece. One of the features of the school was an almost sacred reverence for the teacher. Only those who have gone through many stages of knowledge, Pythagoras calls his closest students and allows him into the courtyard of his house, where he talks with them. The Pythagoreans are engaged in geometry, mathematics, harmony, astronomy.

It is difficult to say which scientific ideas belonged to Pythagoras, which - to his pupils. And it is still unknown whether he drew a drawing of the Pythagorean theorem, known to every schoolchild today, with a twig in the sand. They often walked and did science on walks, so it is very likely that the theorem was born in the sand. As well as the proof that the sum of the interior angles of any triangle is equal to two right angles. Just like the geometric solutions of quadratic equations. And perhaps, in joyful surprise, they once bowed over their shaky drawing, fearing that the wind would carry away the first ever proof of the incommensurability of the diagonal of a square and its side.

It is Pythagoras who is credited with proving the well-known geometric theorem. Based on the legends spread by famous mathematicians (Proclus, Plutarch, etc.), for a long time it was believed that this theorem was not known before Pythagoras, hence the name - the Pythagorean theorem. It is now known that this theorem was known before him, but it was Pythagoras who first proved it.

Let us recall once again that even before Pythagoras, the ancient Egyptians knew that a triangle with sides 3, 4 and 5 is rectangular, and used this property (i.e., the theorem converse to the Pythagorean theorem) to construct right angles when planning land plots and building structures. And even today, rural builders and carpenters, laying the foundation of the hut, making its details, draw this triangle to get a right angle. The same thing was done thousands of years ago in the construction of magnificent temples in Egypt, Babylon, China, and probably in Mexico. Thus, Pythagoras did not discover this property of a right-angled triangle; he was probably the first to generalize and prove it, thereby transferring it from the field of practice to the field of science. We don't know how he did it.

Since ancient times, mathematicians have found more and more proofs of the Pythagorean theorem, more and more ideas for its proofs. More than five hundred such proofs - more or less rigorous, more or less visual - are known, but the desire to increase their number has been preserved.

They say - this is just a legend again - that when Pythagoras proved his famous theorem, he thanked the gods by sacrificing 100 bulls to them. The German poet Chamisso many centuries later wrote poems about this. He said in them that since the time of the Pythagorean sacrifice, all the cattle on earth tremble with fear when they discover something newer. Pythagoras did not write down his teachings. It is known only in the retellings of Aristotle and Plato. Heraclitus claimed that Pythagoras was more learned than all his contemporaries, although he believed that in his genius there was "bad art - magic", contrary to the gods. "They recognized the mathematical principles as the principles of everything that exists," Aristotle explained. Even numbers, for example, allowing for a split, seemed to the Pythagoreans more reasonable, personified some positive phenomenon. So the number acquired character, lost its eternal abstract beginning, just as the abstraction of the number 2 or 5 is lost for a schoolboy who draws "Pythagorean pants" with chalk. The number 4, for example, personified health, harmony, and rationality among the Pythagoreans. The mysticism of numbers turned out to be very tenacious and has survived to this day. Many centuries after the death of Pythagoras, churchmen "invented" the "devil's dozen", declared 12 a sign of happiness and called 666 "the number of the beast." But in worshiping the harmony of numbers, the inviolability of mathematical logic, there was also a great revelation, which Hegel called courage, about which Engels wrote: "Just as a number is subject to certain laws, so is the universe subject to them; this is the first time the idea of ​​the regularity of the universe is expressed" .

Pythagoras studied acoustics. He found that all musical intervals are subject to the simplest rational numerical relations. He studied astronomy, considered the Earth to be a ball, was the first to deduce the inclination of the ecliptic and planetary orbits, and built his own system of the world, again reflecting, in his opinion, the great harmony of numbers. He even mathematized the soul, arguing that "the soul is the sun's dust particles."

Pythagoras is one of the first to declare that the Earth is the center of the Universe and has the shape of a ball, and the Sun, Moon and other planets have their own trajectory
movement.

In general, it can be said with certainty that the study of the cosmos and the comprehension, thanks to this, of the structure of the universe, was one of the most important activities of Pythagoras. The following testimony of Aristotle is noteworthy:
"For what exactly, of all existing things, did nature and God give birth to us? Pythagoras, when asked about this, replied:" To watch the sky "".
A minor planet (asteroid) number 6143 and the lunar crater Pythagoras are named after Pythagoras.

Here are some commandments of Pythagoras and his disciples:
“Do only what will not upset you later and will not force you to repent.
- Never do what you don't know. But learn all there is to know...
Don't neglect the health of your body...
- Learn to live simply and without luxury.
- Do not close your eyes when you want to sleep, not having analyzed all your actions on the previous day.

At the age of about 60, Pythagoras marries Theano, one of his students. At
3 children are born (two sons and a daughter), and they all become followers
my father. Pythagoras takes a great part in the political life of Croton. On his initiative, an aristocratic ruling body is being created - the "Council of Three Hundred".
Pythagoras himself leads it for about 25 years. Gradually, the "Council of Three Hundred" extends its influence to neighboring cities. Around 500 BC, a rebellion breaks out in Sybaris against the rule of an aristocratic party. It is possible that the reason was the refusal of Pythagoras to accept a certain rich but unworthy citizen into his school, and out of revenge, he provoked a riot. After the uprising, the persecution of the Pythagoreans begins.

Little is known about the death of Pythagoras, there are at least three versions of his departure.
great scientist. One thing is certain - it happened because of the persecution
Pythagoreans. According to surviving data, Pythagoras lived for about 100 years.
Memories of Pythagoras have come down to us thanks to those few of his students,
who managed to escape from southern Italy to Greece.

According to one version, at the age of eighty, Pythagoras was killed in a street fight during a popular uprising.

Another version: once Cylon, a rich but evil man, came to Pythagoras, wanting to drunkenly join the brotherhood. Having been refused, Cylon begins a fight with Pythagoras. During the fire, the Pythagoreans saved the life of their teacher at their own cost, after which Pythagoras became homesick and soon committed suicide.

Another version: a conspiracy arose against Pythagoras. It was headed by a rich and noble inhabitant of Croton - Cylon, power-hungry and possessing a heavy disposition. Fleeing from his pursuers, Pythagoras settled in Metapon. But here, too, the hand of the killer overtook him.

So, with all the costs, the famous philosopher from Croton - by the way, the first philosopher who called himself a philosopher - has a lot of great conjectures and fantasies. That is why people remember him for two and a half thousand years. That is why among the famous Olympic champions, he will long remain the most famous, because he was lucky not only to defeat his opponent, but also to defeat time.

Bibliography:

1. http://new-numerology.ru/pifagor.htm

2. http://forum.edunet.uz/lofiversion/index.php/t83.html

3. http://mgudt.com/articles/690.html

4. http://peoplez.ru/res113317.html

5. http://cityclubs.ru/p78.htm

6. http://pifagor.edunet.uz/biografy.htm

7. http://www.wisdoms.ru/avt/b184.html

8. http://schools.keldysh.ru/sch119/Project/2005-2006/9/Mesropian/0101.htm

9. http://biographer.ru/biographies/68.html

10. Encyclopedic dictionary of a young mathematician. - 3rd ed., Rev. and additional - M .: Pedagogy-Press, 1997. - 360 p.: ill.

Name: Pythagoras of Samos

Years of life: 569 BC - 495 BC

State: Ancient Greece

Field of activity: Mathematician, Philosopher

Greatest Achievement: One of the greatest mathematicians who proved many theorems. Founder of the Pythagorean school.

He was born on the island of Samos (Greece), in 569 BC. According to various sources, the death of Pythagoras is recorded between 500 BC. and 475 BC in Metaponte (Italy).

Personal life of Pythagoras

His father, Mnesarchus, was a gemstone merchant. His mother's name was Pythaida. Pythagoras had two or three brothers.

Some historians say that Pythagoras was married to a woman named Theano and had a daughter, Miya, as well as a son named Telavgus, who excelled as a mathematics teacher and may have taught Empedocles.

Others say that Theano was one of Pythagoras' students and not his wife, and it is possible that Pythagoras never married or had children.

Pythagoras was well educated, he played the lyre throughout his life, knew poetry and read Homer. He was interested in mathematics, philosophy, astronomy and music and was strongly influenced by Pherecydes (philosophy), (mathematics and astronomy) and Anaximander (philosophy, geometry).

Pythagoras left Samos around 535 BC. and went to Egypt to study with the priests in the temples. Many of the beliefs that Pythagoras pursued later in Italy were borrowed from the Egyptian priests, such as secret signs, the desire for purity, the refusal to eat legumes or wear animal skins for clothing.

Ten years later, when Persia invaded, Pythagoras was captured and sent to Babylon (now the territory of Iraq), where he met priests who taught him the sacred rites. Iamblichus (250-330 AD), a Syrian philosopher, wrote of Pythagoras: "He also achieved perfection in arithmetic, music and other mathematical sciences taught by the Babylonians ...".

In 520 BC Pythagoras, now a free man, left Babylon and returned to Samos, and after some time opened a school called "The Semicircle". However, his teachings were not popular with the rulers of the island of Samos, and their desire to get Pythagoras involved in politics failed, so Pythagoras left and settled in Croton, a Greek colony in southern Italy, around 518 BC.

There he founded a philosophical and religious school, where his numerous followers lived and worked.

School of Pythagoras

The Pythagoreans lived according to special rules of conduct, including when it was necessary to say what to wear and what to eat. Pythagoras was the head of the society, and his followers, both men and women, who also lived there, were known as mathematicians. They had no personal belongings and were vegetarians.

• Another group of followers who lived apart from the school had the right to own personal property and not be vegetarians. They all worked together. Pythagoras believed:
  All things are numbers. Mathematics is the basis of everything, and geometry is the highest form of mathematical research. The physical world can be understood through mathematics.
• The soul resides in the brain and is immortal. He passes from one being to another, sometimes from man to animal, through a series of reincarnations called transmigrations until the soul is pure. Pythagoras believed that mathematics and music could purify.
• Numbers have personality, characteristics, strengths and weaknesses.
• The world depends on the interaction of opposites, such as man and woman, light and darkness, heat and cold, dryness and moisture, lightness and heaviness, speed and slowness.
• Certain symbols have a mystical meaning.

Pythagorean theorems

All members of society were required to observe strict loyalty and secrecy. Due to the strict secrecy among the members of the Pythagorean society and the fact that they shared ideas and intellectual discoveries within the group and were closed to society, it is difficult to be sure whether all the theorems attributed to Pythagoras originally belonged to him, or they were the property of the entire Pythagorean community. .

Some of Pythagoras' students eventually wrote their theories, teachings, and discoveries, but the Pythagoreans always saluted Pythagoras as a Teacher:

• The sum of the angles of a triangle is equal to two right angles.
• The Pythagorean Theorem - For a right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides. The Babylonians understood this even 1000 years before the discovery, but Pythagoras proved it.
• Construction of figures geometric algebra. For example, they solved various equations by geometric means.
• The discovery of irrational numbers is attributed to the Pythagoreans, but it was hardly the idea of ​​Pythagoras, because it is not consistent with his philosophy, all things are numbers, since the number for him meant the ratio of two whole numbers.
• Five regular solids (tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, icosahedron, dodecahedron). It is believed that Pythagoras only knew how to build the first three, not the last two.
• Pythagoras taught that the Earth was a sphere at the center of the Cosmos (Universe); that the planets, the stars, and the universe were spherical, because the sphere was the most perfect figure. He also taught that the paths of the planets were circular. Pythagoras discovered that the morning star was the same as the evening star Venus.

Pythagoras studied odd and even numbers, triangular numbers, and perfect numbers. The Pythagoreans contributed to the understanding of angles, triangles, areas, proportions, polygons and polyhedra.
Pythagoras also attributed music to mathematics. He played the seven-stringed lyre for a long time and discovered how harmonious the vibrating strings are when the lengths of the strings are proportional to integers such as 2:1, 3:2, 4:3.

The Pythagoreans also realized that this knowledge could be applied to other musical instruments.

Death of Pythagoras

It is said that he was killed by an angry mob, the Syracusans, during. It is also said that the school of Pythagoras in Croton was burned down, as a result of which he went to Metapont, where he died of starvation.

At least both stories include a scene in which Pythagoras refuses to trample on a crop of leguminous plants in the field in order to escape and save him, because of which he was caught along with other Pythagoreans, and in the course of an unequal battle, the students and Pythagoras himself died.

The Pythagorean theorem is a cornerstone of mathematics and is still of such interest to mathematicians that there are over 400 different proofs for its solution, including the original proof of the 20th American president, Garfield.

Pythagoras Biography

Pythagoras Pythagoras was an ancient Greek philosopher, mathematician and mystic, the creator of the religious and philosophical school of the Pythagoreans. The life story of Pythagoras is difficult to separate from the legends that represent him as a perfect sage and a great initiate into all the mysteries of the Greeks and barbarians. Even Herodotus called him " the greatest Hellenic sage".

Pythagoras The main sources on the life and teachings of Pythagoras are the works of the Neoplatonist philosopher Iamblichus (242-306) "On the Pythagorean Life"; Porfiry (234-305) "Life of Pythagoras"; Diogenes Laertes (200-250), "Pythagoras". These authors relied on the writings of earlier authors, of which Aristoxenus (370-300 BC) should be noted, a student of Aristotle, originally from Tarentum, where the positions of the Pythagoreans were strong.

Pythagoras Thus, the earliest known sources about the teachings of Pythagoras appeared only 200 years after his death. Pythagoras himself did not leave any writings, and all information about him and his teachings is based on the works of his followers, who are not always impartial.

Biography The parents of Pythagoras were Mnesarchus and Partenida from the island of Samos. The birth of a child was predicted by the Pythia in Delphi, therefore Pythagoras got his name, which means "the one whom the Pythia announced." In particular, the Pythia informed Mnesarchus that Pythagoras would bring as much benefit and good to people as no one else had and would bring in the future. Therefore, to celebrate, Mnesarchus gave his wife a new name Pythaida and gave the name of the child Pythagoras. Pythaida accompanied her husband on his travels, and Pythagoras was born in Sidon of Phoenicia (according to Iamblichus) in about 570 BC. e.

Youth of Pythagoras According to ancient authors, Pythagoras met almost all the famous sages of that era, Greeks, Persians, Chaldeans, Egyptians, absorbed all the knowledge accumulated by mankind. At a young age, Pythagoras went to Egypt to gain wisdom and secret knowledge from the Egyptian priests. Diogenes and Porphyry write that the Samian tyrant Polycrates supplied Pythagoras with a letter of recommendation to Pharaoh Amasis, thanks to which he was admitted to training and initiated into the sacraments forbidden to other strangers.

The life of Pythagoras Iamblichus writes that Pythagoras left his native island at the age of 18 and, having traveled around the wise men in different parts of the world, reached Egypt, where he stayed for 22 years, until he was taken to Babylon among the captives by the Persian king Cambyses, who conquered Egypt in 525 BC e. Pythagoras stayed in Babylon for another 12 years, communicating with magicians, until he was finally able to return to Samos at the age of 56, where his compatriots recognized him as a wise man.

Family of Pythagoras Pythagoras had a wife named Theano, son Telavg and daughter Mnia (according to another version, son Arimnest and daughter Arignot).

Pythagoras settled in the Greek colony of Crotone in southern Italy, where he found many followers. They were attracted not only by the mystical philosophy, which he convincingly expounded, but also by the way of life prescribed by him with elements of healthy asceticism and strict morality. Pythagoras preached the moral ennoblement of an ignorant people, which can be achieved where power belongs to a caste of wise and knowledgeable people, and to which the people obey unconditionally in some ways, like children to parents, and in the rest consciously, obeying moral authority.

The disciples of Pythagoras formed a kind of religious order, or a brotherhood of initiates, consisting of a caste of selected like-minded people who literally deify their teacher, the founder of the order. This order actually came to power in Croton, however, due to anti-Pythagorean sentiments at the end of the 6th century. BC e. Pythagoras had to retire to another Greek colony, Metapont, where he died. Almost 450 years later, during the time of Cicero (1st century BC), the tomb of Pythagoras was shown as one of the attractions in Metapontus.

Pythagoras led his secret society for thirty-nine years, then the approximate date of the death of Pythagoras can be attributed to 491 BC. e., to the beginning of the era of the Greco-Persian wars. Diogenes, referring to Heraclid (4th century BC), says that Pythagoras died peacefully at the age of 80, or at 90 (according to unnamed other sources). From this follows the date of death 490 BC. e. (or 480 BC, which is unlikely). Eusebius of Caesarea in his chronography indicated 497 BC. e. as the year of the death of Pythagoras.

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The biography of Pythagoras of Samos takes readers into the world of ancient Greek culture. This man can safely be called a legendary person. Pythagoras was a great mathematician, mystic, philosopher, founded a religious and philosophical trend (Pythagoreanism), was a political figure who left his works as a legacy to posterity.

Childhood and youth

It is difficult to determine the exact date of birth of Pythagoras. Historians have established the approximate period of his birth - 580 BC. Place of birth - the Greek island of Samos.

The philosopher's mother's name was Parthenia (Partenida, Pythiades), and his father's name was Mnesarchus. According to legend, one day a young couple visited the city of Delphi as a honeymoon trip. There, the newlyweds met an oracle who prophesied to the lovers that their son would soon appear. The legend said that the child would become a difficult person, famous for his wisdom, appearance, great deeds.

Soon the prophecy began to come true, the girl gave birth to a boy and, in accordance with ancient tradition, received the name Pythiades. The baby is named Pythagoras in honor of the priestess of Apollo Pythia. The father of the future mathematician tried in every possible way to fulfill the divine tradition. Happy Mnesarchus erects an altar to Apollo, and surrounds the child with care and love.

Some sources also say that two more boys were brought up in the family - the older brothers of the Greek philosopher: Evnost and Tyrrhenus.

Pythagoras' father was a master in the processing of gold stones, there was prosperity in the family. Even as a child, the boy showed curiosity in various sciences, and was distinguished by unusual abilities.

The first teacher of the future philosopher was Germodamant. He taught Pythagoras the basics of music, the technologies of painting, reading, rhetoric, and grammar. To help Pythagoras develop his memory, the teacher made him read the Odyssey and the Iliad and memorize songs from poems.

A few years later, an 18-year-old guy with a ready baggage of knowledge went to Egypt to continue his education with wise priests, but in those years it was difficult to get there: it was closed to the Greeks. Then Pythagoras temporarily stopped on the island of Lesbos and here he studied physics, dialectics, theogony, astrology, and medicine with Pherekides of Syros.

Pythagoras lived on the island for several years, and then went to Miletus, the city where the famous Thales lived, who was noted in history as the founder of the first philosophical school in Greece.

The Milesian school allowed Pythagoras to acquire knowledge, but, following the advice of Thales, the young man goes to Egypt to continue the path of education.

Here Pythagoras meets the priests, visits Egyptian temples that are closed to foreigners, joins their secrets and traditions, and soon he himself receives the rank of priest. Studying in a culturally developed city made Pythagoras the most educated person of those times.

Mysticism and Homecoming

Ancient legends say that in Babylon a talented philosopher and a divinely beautiful person (confirmation of this is a photo of a mathematician made on the basis of paintings by ancient artists, sculptures) met with Persian magicians. Pythagoras joined the study of mystical events, learned the wisdom and peculiarities of astronomy, arithmetic, medicine of the eastern peoples.

The Chaldeans tied supernatural ideas to the emergence of these sciences, and this approach was reflected in the subsequent sounds of Pythagoras's knowledge in the field of mathematics and philosophy.

12 years after the forced stay of Pythagoras in Babylon, the sage is freed by the Persian king, who has already heard about the famous teachings of the Greek. Pythagoras returns to his homeland, where he begins to impart knowledge to his own people.

The philosopher quickly gained wide popularity among the inhabitants. Even women who were forbidden to attend mass gatherings came to hear him speak. At one of these events, Pythagoras met his future wife.

A person with a high level of knowledge had to work as a teacher with people of low morality. He became for the people the personification of purity, a kind of deity. Pythagoras mastered the methods of Egyptian priests, knew how to purify the souls of listeners, filled their minds with knowledge.

The sage performed mainly on the streets, in temples, but after that he began to teach everyone in his own house. This is a special training system, characterized by complexity. The probationary period for students was 3-5 years. Listeners were forbidden to speak during the lessons, to ask questions, which trained them in modesty and patience.

Mathematics

A skillful orator and a wise teacher taught people various sciences: medicine, political activity, music, mathematics, etc. Subsequently, well-known figures, historians, government officials, astronomers, and researchers emerged from the school of Pythagoras.

Pythagoras made a significant contribution to geometry. Today, the name of a popular ancient figure is known based on the study of the famous Pythagorean theorem in schools through mathematical problems. Here is how the formula for solving some Pythagorean problems looks like: a2 + b2 = c2. In this case, a and b are the lengths of the legs, and c is the length of the hypotenuse of the right triangle.

At the same time, there is also an inverse Pythagorean theorem, developed by other equally competent mathematicians, but today in science there are only 367 proofs of the Pythagorean theorem, which indicates its fundamental importance for geometry in general.

The Pythagorean table is today known as the multiplication table.

Another invention of the great Greek scientist was the "table of Pythagoras". Now it is customary to call it the multiplication table, according to which the students of the philosopher's school studied in those years.

An interesting finding of the past years was the mathematical dependence of the vibrating strings of the lyre on their length in musical performance. This approach can be safely applied to other tools.

Numerology

The philosopher paid close attention to numbers, trying to understand their nature, the meaning of things and phenomena. He tied numerical properties to the life categories of being: humanity, death, illness, suffering, etc.

It was the Pythagoreans who divided the numbers into even and odd. Something important (justice and equality) for life on the planet was seen by Pythagoras in the square of a number. Nine characterized constancy, number eight - death.

Even numbers were assigned to the female sex, odd numbers to the male representation, and the symbol of marriage among the followers of the teachings of Pythagoras was five (3 + 2).

Numerological squares of Pythagoras

Thanks to the knowledge of Pythagoras, even today people have the opportunity to find out the level of compatibility with their future half, to look under the curtain of the future. To do this, you can use the numerological system of the square of Pythagoras. "Game" with certain numbers (date, day, month of birth) will allow you to build a graph that clearly shows the picture of a person's fate.

The followers of Pythagoras believed that numbers could incredibly affect the surrounding world of society. The main thing is to understand their chain meaning. There are positive and bad numbers, like thirteen or seventeen. Numerology, as a science, is not recognized as official, it is considered a system of beliefs and knowledge, but no more.

Philosophical doctrine

The teachings of the philosophy of Pythagoras should be divided into two parts:

1. Scientific approach to world knowledge.
2. Religiosity and mysticism.

Not all of Pythagoras' works have been preserved. The great master and sage wrote practically nothing, but was mainly engaged in oral teaching of those who wished to learn the intricacies of a particular science. Information about the knowledge of the philosopher was transmitted later by his followers - the Pythagoreans.

It is known that Pythagoras was a religious innovator, created a secret society, and preached acoustic principles. He forbade his students to eat food of animal origin, and especially the heart, which is primarily a symbol of life. It was not allowed to touch the beans, according to legend, obtained from the blood of Dionysus-Zagreus. Pythagoras condemned the use of alcohol, foul language and other ignorant behavior.

The philosopher believed that a person can save and free his soul through physical and moral purification. His teachings can be compared with the ancient Vedic knowledge, based on the quantitative transmigration of the soul from heaven into the body of an animal or human until it earns the right to return to God in heaven.

Pythagoras did not impose his philosophy on ordinary people who were only trying to comprehend the basics of the exact sciences. His special teachings were intended for truly "enlightened", chosen individuals.

Personal life

Returning from Babylonian captivity to his homeland in Greece, Pythagoras met an unusually beautiful girl named Theana, who secretly attended his meetings. The ancient philosopher was then already in adulthood (56-60 years). The lovers got married, in marriage they had two children: a boy and a girl (names unknown).

Some historical sources claim that Theana was the daughter of Brontin, a philosopher, friend and student of Pythagoras.

Death

The school of Pythagoras was located in the Greek colony of the city of Croton (Southern Italy). A democratic uprising took place here, as a result of which Pythagoras was forced to leave the place. He went to Metapont, but military clashes reached this town as well.

On this bank was the school of Pythagoras

The famous philosopher had many enemies who did not share his principles of life. There are three versions of the death of Pythagoras. According to the first, the killer was a man whom a mathematician once refused to teach secret occult techniques. Being in feelings of hatred, the rejected set fire to the building of the Academy of Pythagoras, and the philosopher died, saving the students.

The second legend says that in the burning house the followers of the scientist created a bridge from their own bodies, wanting to save their teacher. And Pythagoras died of a broken heart, underestimating his efforts in the development of mankind.

A common version of the death of a sage is considered to be his death under random circumstances during a skirmish in Metapontum. At the time of his death, Pythagoras was 80-90 years old.