Diagoras of Melos
Diagoras "the Atheist" of Melos (
.Life
Diagoras was the son of Telecleides or Teleclytus, and was born in the island of
In his Clouds, the Athenian comic playwright Aristophanes alludes to Diagoras as a well-known figure of the time,[5] whose second, extant version probably falls around 419–17 BC. Diodorus informs us[6] that a few years later, c. 415 BC, he was accused of impiety, and he thought it best to escape Athens to avoid prosecution, and classical sources speak of a reward for either catching or killing him.[7] Religion may have been only the pretext for the accusation, for being a Melian made him an object of suspicion with the people of Athens. In 416 BC, Melos had been conquered and cruelly treated by the Athenians, and it is not at all impossible that Diagoras, indignant at such treatment, may have taken part in the party-strife at Athens, and thus have drawn upon himself the suspicion of the democratic party. Diagoras subsequently went to Corinth, where, as the Suda states, he died.
Philosophy
Little is known for certain concerning his philosophical views or the nature of his alleged atheism. All that is known for certain on the point is that Diagoras was offended by the worship of the Athenian national gods.
Ancient anecdotes
Cicero,[8] writing in the 1st century BC, tells of how a friend of Diagoras tried to convince him of the existence of the gods, by pointing out how many votive pictures tell about people being saved from storms at sea by "dint of vows to the gods", to which Diagoras replied that "there are nowhere any pictures of those who have been shipwrecked and drowned at sea." And Cicero goes on to give another example, where Diagoras was on a ship in hard weather, and the crew thought that they had brought it on themselves by taking this ungodly man on board. He then wondered if the other boats out in the same storm also had a Diagoras on board.[9]
This and similar anecdotes[10] accurately describe the relation in which he stood to the popular religion. That he maintained his own position with great firmness, and perhaps with more freedom, wit, and boldness than was advisable, seems to be attested by the fact that he in particular obtained the epithet of atheist in antiquity. It is possible that he merely denied the direct interference of gods with the world, but that, since he did not believe in the personal existence of the Athenian gods and their human mode of acting, the Athenians could hardly have regarded him as other than an atheist.
The Christian writer Athenagoras of Athens (2nd century AD) writes about Diagoras:
With reason did the Athenians adjudge Diagoras guilty of atheism, in that he not only divulged the Orphic doctrine, and published the mysteries of Eleusis and of the
To return to the accusation against Diagoras which obliged him to quit Athens, the time was one in which
Modern appraisal
J. M. Robertson writes on Diagoras that:
It was about that time [415 BC] that the poet Diagoras of Melos was proscribed for atheism, he having declared that the non-punishment of a certain act of iniquity proved that there were no gods. It has been surmised, with some reason, that the iniquity in question was the slaughter of the
Herakles, telling the god thus to perform his thirteenth labour by cooking turnips, became thenceforth one of the proverbial atheists of the ancient world, and a reward of a silver talent was offered for killing him, and of two talents for his capture alive; despite which he seems to have escaped.[14]
The relation of Diagoras to the popular religion and theology of his age can not be explained without going back to the opinions of the
Jennifer Michael Hecht writes on Diagoras that:
The poet Diagoras of Melos was perhaps the most famous atheist of the fifth century. Although he did not write about atheism, anecdotes about his unbelief suggest he was self-confident, almost teasing, and very public. He revealed the secret rituals of the Eleusinian mystery religion to everyone and "thus made them ordinary," that is, he purposefully demystified a cherished secret rite, apparently to provoke his contemporaries into thought. In another famous story, a friend pointed out an expensive display of votive gifts and said, "You think the gods have no care for man? Why, you can see from all these votive pictures here how many people have escaped the fury of storms at sea by praying to the gods who have brought them safe to harbor." To which Diagoras replied, "Yes, indeed, but where are the pictures of all those who suffered shipwreck and perished in the waves?" A good question. Diagoras was indicted for profaning the mysteries, but escaped. A search was out for him throughout the Athenian empire, which indicated that the charges were serious, but he was not found.[15]
Editions
- Marek Winiarczyk (ed.), Diagorae Melii et Theodori Cyrenaei reliquiae, Leipzig, 1981 (Bibliotheca Scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana).
See also
References
- ^ Suda, Diagoras, delta,523
- ^ Sudas, 68 A 10a
- ^ Aelian, Varia Historia, ii. 23
- ^ Aristotle, Politeia 1318b; Polybius, VI 43,1.
- ^ Aristophanes, Clouds, 830
- ^ Diodorus Siculus, xiii. 6
- .
- ^ Cicero, De Natura Deorum, iii 89 (Text from The Latin Library)
- ^ Cicero, De Natura Deorum, iii 37
- ^ Diogenes Laertius, vi. 59
- ^ "Athenagoras, A Plea for the Christians, Chapter 4". Archived from the original on 2010-11-30. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
- ^ Craterus, ap. Scholium Aristophanes; Tarrhaeus, ap. Suda; Lysias, c. Andocid.; Joseph. c. Apion. ii. 37; Tatian, adv. Graec
- ^ Schol. ad Aristoph. Av. 1013, 1073; Diodorus Siculus, xiii. 6.
- ^ A History of Freethought, Ancient and Modern, to the Period of the French Revolution, J.M. Robertson, Fourth Edition, Revised and Expanded, In Two Volumes, Vol. I, Watts, 1936. p173 - 174
- ISBN 0-06-009795-7.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. {{cite encyclopedia}}
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Further reading
- Vassallo, Christian (2021). The Presocratics at Herculaneum: A Study of Early Greek Philosophy in the Epicurean Tradition. Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter. (s.v. Diagoras Melius)
- Whitmarsh, Tim (2016). "Diagoras, Bellerophon and the Siege of Olympus". The Journal of Hellenic Studies. 136: 182–186.
- Winiarczyk, Marek (2016). Diagoras of Melos: A Contribution to the History of Ancient Atheism. Beiträge zur Altertumskunde. Vol. 350. Translated by Zbirohowski-Kościa, Witold. Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-044377-6.