Eleatic difficulty: * see EndNote<A>

The Eleatics were a pre-Socratic school of philosophy founded by Parmenides early 5th century BC in the ancient town of Elea. Other members of the school included Zeno of Elea (490–430 BC).   Zeno is famous for his paradoxes, a set of 9 philosophical problems.  He devised them to support the doctrine of Parmenides, that contrary to the evidence of one's senses, the belief in plurality & change is mistaken & in particular, that motion is nothing but an illusion.  His 9 paradoxes were a rebuttal to philosophers who had created paradoxes against Parmenides' view.  Zeno states that if one accepted the idea of plurality (existences are many) it leads to more absurd results than the counter hypothesis (existences are singular or one). 

 

Schoolmen:

aka Scholastics; medieval school of philosophy that employed a critical method of analysis presupposed upon a Latin Christian theistic paradigm which dominated the universities of Europe 1100 to 1700. Originated within the Christian monastic schools that were the basis of the earliest European universities.  Its rise was closely associated with the rise of these 12th & 13th century schools that flourished in Italy, France, Spain and England.

 

Baroque physics:

The Baroque Age (1600-1740 AD) witnessed the Scientific Revolution.  Physics became a separate science. Europeans began using experimental & quantitative methods to discover the laws of physics.  The geocentric model of the Solar System was replaced with the heliocentric Copernican model & the laws governing the motion of planetary bodies was determined by Kepler  (1571-1630).  Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was pioneering work on telescopes & observational astronomy.  Most notable was Newton (1642-1727) & his discovery & unification of the laws of motion & universal gravitation.  He also developed calculus (along with Leibniz, 1646-1716), the mathematical study of change, which provided new mathematical methods for solving physical problems.

 

Baroque physics (flawed):

The laws of classical physics are approximately valid when dealing with objects larger than atoms and molecules, to objects in the macroscopic and astronomical realm.  However when dealing with objects at the atomic level & lower, these laws break down.  The predictions of general & special relativity are significantly different from classical physics, when dealing with passage of time, the geometry of space, the motion of bodies in free fall & the propagation of light. Light was reconciled with classical mechanics by assuming the existence of a stationary medium through which light propagated, the luminiferous aether.  This was discredited in the 1887 Michelson–Morley experiment.

 

Classical…Indian (soul image):

The soul of the Apollonian & Indian Cultures, responsible for the Macrocosm of the Apollonian & Indian Cultures.

 

Faustian…Egyptian (soul image):

The soul of the Faustian & Egyptian Cultures, responsible for the Macrocosm of the Faustian & Egyptian Cultures.

 

Homer's idiom (Hades):

In book 11 of The Odyssey, Odysseus confers with the dead, and recognizes Elpenor, a companion for the expedition, his mother Anticleia, Tiresias a blind prophet; and his old comrades Agamemnon and Achilles.

 

Pre-Socratic philosophy:

philosophy in Greece before Socrates & schools contemporary to Socrates but not influenced by him. They were known as the physiologoi (physical or natural philosophers). Their inquiries spanned the workings of the natural world as well as human society, ethics & religion, seeking explanations based on natural principles NOT the actions of supernatural gods. They introduced the notion of the world as a kosmos, an ordered arrangement that could be understood via rational inquiry.  Significant figures include: the Milesians, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Empedocles, Zeno of Elea & Democritus.

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λογιστικόν, έπιθυμήτικον, Θυμοειδές:

Greek, probably a reference to Heraclitus, a pre-Socratic philosopher.  Although enigmatic he seems to treat the soul as the seat of emotion, movement & intellect.  However the tripartite soul is also referred to by Plato in the Republic.  The 3 word phrase means:

λογιστικόν: skilled or skill

έπιθυμήτικον: desiring, coveting, lusting after

Θυμοειδές: high-spirited, courageous

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impress:

noun, a mark made by or as by pressure; stamp; imprint.

 

sonata: * see EndNote<B>

aka sonata form, musical structure consisting of 3 main sections: exposition, development & recapitulation.  As a formal model it is best exemplified in the first movements of multi-movement works from the Classical period (1750-1810).  The first movement of sonata form has 3 main sections: Exposition, Development and Recapitulation.  It is considered the most important principle of musical form from the Classical period & was principal structure well into the 20th century. 

 

first & second subjects (sonata): * see EndNote<C>

Most of the musical ideas in sonata form is based on 2 main themes or melodies known as the first & second subject.  These are developed through the 3 sections: exposition, Development & Recapitulation.

 

stereometric:

having a readily measurable solid form or volume

 

σωϕροσύνη:

Ancient Greek, meaning moderation, soundness of mind, discretion

 

άταραξία:

Ancient Greek, meaning steady, not disturbed, without confusion

 

biga-team:

Latin, noun, Roman history; a chariot drawn by two horses

 

νοὖs:

Ancient Greek, noun, reason

 

Stoa:

Ancient Greek architecture, covered walkway or portico, for public use; early stoas were open at the entrance with columns (usually the Doric order), lining the side of the building; they created a safe, enveloping, protective atmosphere.  Spengler’s reference is less about the architecture, more about the philosophy often associated with it.  'Stoicism' derives from the Stoa Poikile (Painted Porch), a colonnade decorated with mythic & historical battle scenes, north side, Agora in Athens.  Here Zeno (334-262 BC) & followers gathered to discuss their ideas.  Initially Zeno could not afford a building such as Plato's Academy or Aristotle's Lyceum, so he and his followers gathered under the shade of the Stoa Poikile in the marketplace, where anyone could listen and join in the debate.

 

principle teachers (Stoa): * see EndNote<D>

The first 7 heads of the Stoic school of Athens were scholars born outside Athens and outside Greece itself.  They were from Asia Minor or isles of the eastern Mediterranean.  This particular area, east of Greece, was the Aramaic heartlands.

 

Aramaic East: * see EndNote<E>

reference to the regions where Aramaic was spoken; this group of languages belonged to the Semitic subfamily of the Afroasiatic language family, part of the NW Semitic group (which includes Canaanite, Hebrew & Phoenician languages). Its alphabet was widely adopted for other languages and is ancestral to the Hebrew, Syrian & Arabic alphabets.  

 

Early Roman Empire:

In 27 BC the Senate & People of Rome made Octavian princeps ("first citizen") with proconsular imperium; this initiated the Principate, the first epoch of Roman imperial history (27 BC to 284 AD).  .  It was characterised by the reign of a single emperor.  The old constitutional machinery remained, the republic stood in name, but contemporaries knew it was just a veil, Augustus had all meaningful authority.  This epoch ended in 284 AD (Crisis of the Third Century) when the Dominate began to evolve.