Podcast episode

October 16, 2024

Episode 195: Contested Esotericisms at the End of Antiquity: Simplicius, Philoponus, and Olympiodorus

Continuing our exsposé of late-antique Alexandria and her final polytheist Platonists, we focus in on three crucial thinkers: Simplicius of Kilikia, John Philoponus, and Olympiodorus, final scholarch to teach in the Golden Chain of Platonic tradition (or at least the last one to do so openly). Many side-issues are broached, including Simplicius’ esotericism, Philoponus’ anti-esotericism, and Olympiodorus and the question of a Platonist alchemy.

Works Cited in this Episode:

Primary:

Agathias, Histories II 30.3-31, Keydell. We quote the translation of Joseph D. Frendo, editor. Agathias: The Histories. Translated with an introduction and short explanatory notes by Joseph D. Frendo. De Gruyter, Berlin/New York, NY, 1975.

Damascius on Isidore’s ‘honourary professorship’ at Athens: Damascius, Philosophic History fr. 148C Athanassiadi.

Elias Prefect of Illyricum: see Justianian’s Novella CLIII (Dec. 541).

Olympiodorus:

• ‘Life of Plato’ passage cited: In Alc. 2,14–3,2.
• On artisanal glass: In Mete. 331.1.
• On cupelation: Ibid. 292.6.
• Complaints about money: In Gorg. 43.2; In Alc. 141.1-3.
• Daimonion passage: In Alc. 21, 15-22, 5.

John Philoponus:

• On the “Philoponoi” as a thing in Alexandria at the time, see the testimony of Zaccharias the Scholastic in his Life of Severus, a Syriac history which can be found in M.A. Kugener, editor. Zacharie le Scholastique, Vie de Sévère. Number II.1.6 in Patrologia Orientalis. Brepols, Turnhout, 1993, p. 12, ll. 7-9.
• Philoponus’ commentaries on Aristotle’s On Generation and Corruption, On the Soul, Prior Analytics and Posterior Analytics explicitly state in their titles that they are based on Ammonius’ seminars (ek tōn synousiōn Ammōniou).
• Action of a vacuum in sucking up liquids: In Phys. 571 f.
• The theoretical importance of positing a void in physics: In Phys. 675–94.
• Experimentally verifies that objects of the same resistance-profile fall at the same speed, regardless of weight: In Phys. 682–84.

Simplicius

• Damascius dead: In Phys. I.795, 11-17.
• The ancient philosophy (palaia philosophia) remains unrefuted: In Phys. 77.11.
• Everyone agrees with Proclus except Asclepiodorus and Damascius: In Phys. 795.11–17.
• On the ‘good exegete’ and the necessity of ‘harmonisation’: In Cat. 7.23–32.
• Has never met Philoponus: In Cael. 26.18–19.

Secondary:

A lot of use has been made of the three relevant Stanford Encyclopædia of Philosophy entries, the one on Simplicius by Christoph Helmig and Philoponus and Olympiodorus by Christian Wildberg.

Polymnia Athanassiadi. The Creation of Orthodoxy in Neoplatonism. In G. Clark and T. Rajak, editors, Philosophy and Power in the Graeco-Roman World: Essays in Honour of Miriam Griffin, pages 27-92. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2002.

Ilsetraut Hadot. Le néoplatonicien Simplicius à la lumière des recherches contemporaines: Un bilan critique. Academia Verlag, Sankt Augustin, 2014.

In Cael. 26.18–19, translated by C. Wildberg.

Richard Sorabji and Michæl Griffin, editors. Olympiodorus: Life of Plato and On Plato First Alcibiades 1-9. Ancient Commentators on Aristotle. Bloomsbury, London/New Delhi/New York, NY/Sydney, 2015, we quote pp. 91-92 of Griffin’s translation.

Cristina Viano. Olympiodorus and Greco-Alexandrian Alchemy. In Albert Joosse, editor, Olympiodorus of Alexandria: Exegete, Teacher, Platonic Philosopher, number 159 in Philosophia antiqua, pages 1430. Brill, Leiden/Boston, MA, 2021; we quote p. 20.

Leendert Gerrit Westerink. Introduction. In Anonymous Prolegomena to Platonic Philosophy, number 5 in Platonic Texts and Translations, pages ix-lii. The Prometheus Trust, King’s Lynn, 2011.

Recommended Reading:

SHWEP Episode 194 and 195 Recommended Reading

A chart of the Athenian and Alexandrian schools in late antiquity.

Themes

Alchemy, Ammonios Hermeiou, Aristotle, Christianity, Esoteric Tradition, Henads, John Philoponus, Late Platonism, Olympiodorus, Parmenides, Plato, Polytheism, Proclus, Simplicius, Theurgy