What do you think?
Rate this book
The Golden Verses of Pythagoras and Other Pythagorean Fragments
This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.
58 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 496
12 people are currently reading
437 people want to read
About the author
Pythagoras
51Ìýbooks328ÌýfollowersPythagoras, one of the most famous and controversial ancient Greek philosophers, lived from ca. 570 to ca. 490 BCE. He spent his early years on the island of Samos, off the coast of modern Turkey. At the age of forty, however, he emigrated to the city of Croton in southern Italy and most of his philosophical activity occurred there. Pythagoras wrote nothing, nor were there any detailed accounts of his thought written by contemporaries. By the first centuries BCE, moreover, it became fashionable to present Pythagoras in a largely unhistorical fashion as a semi-divine figure, who originated all that was true in the Greek philosophical tradition, including many of Plato's and Aristotle's mature ideas. A number of treatises were forged in the name of Pythagoras and other Pythagoreans in order to support this view.
The Pythagorean question, then, is how to get behind this false glorification of Pythagoras in order to determine what the historical Pythagoras actually thought and did. In order to obtain an accurate appreciation of Pythagoras' achievement, it is important to rely on the earliest evidence before the distortions of the later tradition arose. The popular modern image of Pythagoras is that of a master mathematician and scientist. The early evidence shows, however, that, while Pythagoras was famous in his own day and even 150 years later in the time of Plato and Aristotle, it was not mathematics or science upon which his fame rested. Pythagoras was famous (1) as an expert on the fate of the soul after death, who thought that the soul was immortal and went through a series of reincarnations; (2) as an expert on religious ritual; (3) as a wonder-worker who had a thigh of gold and who could be two places at the same time; (4) as the founder of a strict way of life that emphasized dietary restrictions, religious ritual and rigorous self discipline.
It remains controversial whether he also engaged in the rational cosmology that is typical of the Presocratic philosopher/scientists and whether he was in any sense a mathematician. The early evidence suggests, however, that Pythagoras presented a cosmos that was structured according to moral principles and significant numerical relationships and may have been akin to conceptions of the cosmos found in Platonic myths, such as those at the end of the Phaedo and Republic. In such a cosmos, the planets were seen as instruments of divine vengeance (“the hounds of Persephone�), the sun and moon are the isles of the blessed where we may go, if we live a good life, while thunder functioned to frighten the souls being punished in Tartarus. The heavenly bodies also appear to have moved in accordance with the mathematical ratios that govern the concordant musical intervals in order to produce a music of the heavens, which in the later tradition developed into “the harmony of the spheres.� It is doubtful that Pythagoras himself thought in terms of spheres, and the mathematics of the movements of the heavens was not worked out in detail. There is evidence that he valued relationships between numbers such as those embodied in the so-called Pythagorean theorem, though it is not likely that he proved the theorem.
Pythagoras' cosmos was developed in a more scientific and mathematical direction by his successors in the Pythagorean tradition, Philolaus and Archytas. Pythagoras succeeded in promulgating a new more optimistic view of the fate of the soul after death and in founding a way of life that was attractive for its rigor and discipline and that drew to him numerous devoted followers.
The Pythagorean question, then, is how to get behind this false glorification of Pythagoras in order to determine what the historical Pythagoras actually thought and did. In order to obtain an accurate appreciation of Pythagoras' achievement, it is important to rely on the earliest evidence before the distortions of the later tradition arose. The popular modern image of Pythagoras is that of a master mathematician and scientist. The early evidence shows, however, that, while Pythagoras was famous in his own day and even 150 years later in the time of Plato and Aristotle, it was not mathematics or science upon which his fame rested. Pythagoras was famous (1) as an expert on the fate of the soul after death, who thought that the soul was immortal and went through a series of reincarnations; (2) as an expert on religious ritual; (3) as a wonder-worker who had a thigh of gold and who could be two places at the same time; (4) as the founder of a strict way of life that emphasized dietary restrictions, religious ritual and rigorous self discipline.
It remains controversial whether he also engaged in the rational cosmology that is typical of the Presocratic philosopher/scientists and whether he was in any sense a mathematician. The early evidence suggests, however, that Pythagoras presented a cosmos that was structured according to moral principles and significant numerical relationships and may have been akin to conceptions of the cosmos found in Platonic myths, such as those at the end of the Phaedo and Republic. In such a cosmos, the planets were seen as instruments of divine vengeance (“the hounds of Persephone�), the sun and moon are the isles of the blessed where we may go, if we live a good life, while thunder functioned to frighten the souls being punished in Tartarus. The heavenly bodies also appear to have moved in accordance with the mathematical ratios that govern the concordant musical intervals in order to produce a music of the heavens, which in the later tradition developed into “the harmony of the spheres.� It is doubtful that Pythagoras himself thought in terms of spheres, and the mathematics of the movements of the heavens was not worked out in detail. There is evidence that he valued relationships between numbers such as those embodied in the so-called Pythagorean theorem, though it is not likely that he proved the theorem.
Pythagoras' cosmos was developed in a more scientific and mathematical direction by his successors in the Pythagorean tradition, Philolaus and Archytas. Pythagoras succeeded in promulgating a new more optimistic view of the fate of the soul after death and in founding a way of life that was attractive for its rigor and discipline and that drew to him numerous devoted followers.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 7, 2023
I'd not heard of these 71 verses until a trip to Greece where I saw this book. I'm not sure these basic aphorisms for living a good life can be attributed to Pythagoras as we're constantly told he never wrote anything down - a bit like Socrates - but then we're asked to believe in the veracity of these verses dating from the 5th Century AD, almost 1000 years after Pythagoras's death.
If you follow the principles outlined, you won't go far wrong, although there are elements of Stoicism and Buddhism in the words.
If you follow the principles outlined, you won't go far wrong, although there are elements of Stoicism and Buddhism in the words.
May 6, 2017
I think it's a great work.
Some of the parts of the sections from other pythagoreans are quite patchy and a tad too religious. The Golden verses are pretty great, it's kind of a how to guide for living a good and wise life. You'll find some are similar to common sayings or christian preachings, they are probably things that people have been repeating to each other since language began.
The best part for me is the symbols of pythagoras which are cryptic sayings that are alternately baffling, mad as a box of frogs, truly thought provoking and maybe even genuinely useful. For example -
cut not fire with a sword
departing from your house turn not back for the furies will be your attendants
walk in unfrequented paths
eat not beans
Sacrifice and adore unshod
Each saying has an explanation after it, which is usually quite wordy but tends to throw light onto even the most bizarre instruction these are by Iamblichus, though this edition doesn't really make this clear. The main failing of this book is that it seems like something that was just grabbed when it went public domain and printed off with little care to properly format or explain what it is. A better book in this regard is the Pythagorean Sourcebook by Guthrie, which I read after this, even though it still has pretty much the same golden verses. That one is more expensive but well worth it, more symbols, some biographies, a nice essay, some various pythagorean fragments.
This one is still worth reading, if you just want the verses and the main symbols, quick and easy, but then so is just checking wikipedia.
Some of the parts of the sections from other pythagoreans are quite patchy and a tad too religious. The Golden verses are pretty great, it's kind of a how to guide for living a good and wise life. You'll find some are similar to common sayings or christian preachings, they are probably things that people have been repeating to each other since language began.
The best part for me is the symbols of pythagoras which are cryptic sayings that are alternately baffling, mad as a box of frogs, truly thought provoking and maybe even genuinely useful. For example -
cut not fire with a sword
departing from your house turn not back for the furies will be your attendants
walk in unfrequented paths
eat not beans
Sacrifice and adore unshod
Each saying has an explanation after it, which is usually quite wordy but tends to throw light onto even the most bizarre instruction these are by Iamblichus, though this edition doesn't really make this clear. The main failing of this book is that it seems like something that was just grabbed when it went public domain and printed off with little care to properly format or explain what it is. A better book in this regard is the Pythagorean Sourcebook by Guthrie, which I read after this, even though it still has pretty much the same golden verses. That one is more expensive but well worth it, more symbols, some biographies, a nice essay, some various pythagorean fragments.
This one is still worth reading, if you just want the verses and the main symbols, quick and easy, but then so is just checking wikipedia.
February 10, 2017
A masterpiece!
March 27, 2021
This book contains short aphorisms by Pythagoras and some selected disciples of his. It is interesting to see how some of these thoughts seemed to influence later philosophies like Plato's and the Stoics. Some very good aphorisms are in here.
April 25, 2015
I loved the aphorisms in this shorter book. I have to admit that I thought that the translator was reaching a bit when interpreting the "Symbols" in the last chapter.
January 21, 2025
A lot of weighty ideas to consider. Most of the verses are the height of wisdom, but a few sound like nonsense, at least today.
Many of the ideas are a portent of things to come because the bulk of the advice lined up squarely with Christianity. The only time it strays far is when it recommends that you not talk to just anybody about God because not everybody GETS it and you can't waste your wisdom on them.
Many of the ideas are a portent of things to come because the bulk of the advice lined up squarely with Christianity. The only time it strays far is when it recommends that you not talk to just anybody about God because not everybody GETS it and you can't waste your wisdom on them.
April 7, 2024
The Pure Wishdom..
February 16, 2015
I don't have much context for this; as far as I can tell, a lot of the material arguably consists of Neoplatonic shout-outs to Pythagoras rather than truly Pythagorean writings. Anyway, it all makes for fairly compelling reading, but the Golden Verses are a real standout.
August 19, 2023
Bella introduzione alla figura di Pitagora basata su una attenta analisi delle fonti. Buoni i riferimenti ad altri testi utili per approfondire.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.