Heraclitus Essay, Research Paper

To a certain extent the teaching of Heraclitus the fire priest of Ancient Greece, draw many parallels to modern science and religious beliefs. Heraclitus was to a degree unfocused in his work and somewhat mischievous in his teachings by providing stories, which could be considered slanderous inventions . However, Heraclitus has evidently provided both modern science and religion with a backbone for understanding aspects of both Death and Creation.

Heraclitus clearly fueled the ideology or at least provided a very early understanding of what science today refers to as the particle theory. This theory explains that everything is made up of matter and everything is in constant movement. Heraclitus stated: No one can step twice into the same river, nor touch mortal substance twice in the same condition. By the speed of its change, it scatters and gathers again. Clearly, Heraclitus depicted a basic understanding of what science has discovered to be the particle theory. In addition to this, Heraclitus was known to have wisdom in reference to modern Science s Big Bang Theory 1000 s of years prior to any generated theorems of such type. This miraculous understanding at the time would seem ludicrous to others, whom had their souls tied to polytheism. Perhaps this is why Heraclitus chose to withdraw into the mountains to live off grass and herbs . His theories were derived entirely from his own ideologies and personal thought processes. Today modern science and religion still refer to Heraclitus for his valuable contribution to their fields.

Heraclitus believed that in every object God existed. This belief is quite interesting and coincides well with his beliefs on human origin. If everything were to start from one instance, (Big Bang) and expand from such a point the origin would thus be similar in design to that which exists all around us. Therefore, to an extent his monotheistic beliefs are much in tune with the basis of modern Christian beliefs. They pray to these statues as though one were to chat to houses, not knowing who the gods and who the heroes are. [B5] Clearly in this statement he is ridiculing the polytheistic society which existed around him and thus this statement fortifies the reality of his monotheistic beliefs. He expressed an interest in the ideology of rebirth much in tune with religious beliefs of a modern Christian society. The same thing is present living and dead, awake and asleep, young and old; for latter change and become the former, and again the former change and are the latter. [B88] . In this statement, it becomes evident that he believes powerfully in opposition. For a power of divine purity to exist for example, a power of opposing evil of inverse proportion must also exist otherwise no standard is set and divine purity would be a mere standard instead of an exception. This ideology is present in Ecclesiates passage in the Bible.

In his own time, Heraclitus would have appeared to have ludicrous thoughts and possibly even appear as if he were a mad man to outsiders. Especially when considering his course of action relating to his extraction from society, he was without a doubt a founder of many theories and beliefs we have come to accept or at least consider. Heraclitus was clearly a man far ahead of his time and for his sacrifices should be recognized.