The concepts of physis, kosmos and to pan in Empedocles

Definition of a concept is an important task of any science, and philosophy is no exception here. Many discussions and heated arguments arise from the fact that different authors imply different meanings for the same word. This is probably an inevitable part of scientific enquiry, because it is not always possible to define a concept quickly and reliably, or its meaning changes over time and acquires new content in a new context. This is a characteristic feature of the entire history of science, the origins of which lie in antiquity. Not many ancient philosophers were as fortunate as Empedocles, whose fragments of poem reflect the process of formation of various complex concepts. It cannot be said that he defined the basic notions precisely. Unlike modern scientists, ancient thinkers before Aristotle had no such task. The meaning of different words in Empedocles' poem can often be guessed only from the relevant textual, historical or religious context. Nevertheless, thanks to the rather large volume of fragments and testimonies, we can benefit greatly by looking at the origins of scientific thinking in Empedocles' philosophy. In the surviving fragments of his poem we find such words as physis, kosmos and to pan. These important concepts for physics and cosmology would be reinterpreted by many later thinkers, and new pictures of the world would be built from them. I propose to turn to these words and to present their semantic content on the basis of surviving fragments and testimonies about Empedocles. The question is whether they are interchangeable or each has its own meaning? If the former, the variety of words with the same meaning can be justified by metrical constraints. If the latter, then it is necessary to identify their differences

Physis · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classical Philosophy and Thought · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · Medicine · Philosophy · Surgery