MIND OVER MATTER

The philosophical novelties introduced by Anaxagoras are highly significant and unquestionably stimulating for a further development of human thought, the latter being of course the preeminent mark of greatness.

Most of his intellectual achievements are in the field of ontology, which is natural, considering that much of the philosophical discussion at the time focused on matters ontological. The initial composition of the world was still an open question, ever since it had been raised by Anaximander. The most recent answer to it had been the Empedoclean four roots, but Anaxagoras found it definitely unsatisfactory. According to him, in the beginning, the germs of all things were already present:

(1). All things were together, infinite both in number and in smallness; for the small also was infinite. And when they were all together, nothing was clear and distinct because of their smallness; for air and aether comprehended all things, both being infinite; for these are present in everything, and are greatest both as to number and as to greatness. (2). For, air and aether are separated from the surrounding mass; and the surrounding (mass) is infinite in quantity. (3). And since these things are so, it is necessary to think that in all the objects that are compound there existed many things, and germs of all objects, having all sorts of forms and colors and tastes. (4). But, before the separation, when things were together, not even was any color clear and distinct for the mixture of all things prevented it, the mixture of moist and dry, of the warm and the cold and of the bright and the dark (since much earth was present) and of germs infinite in number, in no way like each other; for none of the other things at all resembles the one the other.

When the separation and mixture occur, things that we identify as separate receive their identity according to the preponderance in their constitution of a particular germ, while all of them still retaining a portion of everything. (6) But nothing different is like anything else, but in whatever object there are the most, each single object is and was most distinctly these things. (Thus things are called after the element, or elements (homoeomeries), which predominate in their make-up)… And here Anaxagoras gives his own explanation of the concepts of birth and death:

(17). The Greeks do not rightly use the terms ‘coming into being’ and ‘perishing.’ For nothing comes into being, nor yet does anything perish, but there is mixture and separation of things that are. So, they would do right in calling the coming into being ‘mixture,’ and the perishing ‘separation.’

And now the seminal concept of Mind/Nous enters the picture. Nous creates change by initiating motion that leads to separation and mixture alike. In other words, Nous is in control of nature and in control of birth, life and death. In fact, the living things are distinguished from the dead things by Nous entering in the mixture of the germs, spermata. (5). In all (other) things there is a portion of everything except mind; and there are (living) things in which there is mind also. A more detailed description of Nous is given in Fragments 6&7:

(6). Other things include a portion of everything, but mind is infinite and self-powerful, and it is mixed with nothing, but it exists alone, itself by itself. For, if it were not by itself, but were mixed with anything else, it would include parts of all things, if it were mixed with another thing; for a portion of everything exists in everything, as has been said by me before, and things mingled with it would prevent it from having power over anything, in the same way that it does now that it is alone by itself. For, it is the most rarefied of all things, and the purest, and it has all knowledge in regard to everything, and the greatest power. Over all that has life, both greater and less, mind rules. And mind ruled the rotation of the whole, so that it set it in rotation in the beginning. First it began the rotation from a small beginning, then more and more was included in the motion, and yet more will be included. Both the mixed and the separated and distinct, all things mind recognized. And whatever things were to be, and whatever things were, as many as are now, and whatever things shall be, all these mind arranged in order; and it arranged that rotation, according to which now rotate stars and sun and moon and air and aether, now that they are separated. Rotation itself caused the separation, and the dense is separated from the rare, the warm from the cold, the bright from the dark, the dry from the moist. And there are many portions of many things. Nothing is absolutely separated nor distinct, one thing from another, except mind. All mind is of like character, both the greater and the smaller. (7). And when mind began to set things in motion, there was separation from everything that was in motion, and, however much mind set in motion, all this was made distinct. The rotation of the things that were moved and made distinct caused them to be yet more distinct.

Such is, in essence, the Anaxagorian ontology (or should I say, ontology-plus?). In my opinion, it is quite original, and intellectually fertile, altogether enough to immortalize Anaxagoras as one of history’s greatest thinkers, which judgment we now pronounce as our final verdict.