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Post by dragonfly on Jan 8, 2004 1:04:39 GMT -5
I just found this really interesting.Does anybody have any other quotes from antiquity that illustrate atheist beliefs?
Cyrus the Great (601-c. 538 B.C.), founder of the Persian Empire said in his farewell address,recorded by Xenophon: "I can never be persuaded that the soul lives on longer than it dwells in this mortal body and that it dies too on its separation....Remember this as my last and dying words."
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Post by AuntieSocial on Jan 8, 2004 17:34:37 GMT -5
Ohhh, I love quotations! I have a rather sizable collection of atheistic and/or agnostic quotations. I went to my favorite site (as far as quotations go), Positive Atheism's Big List of Quotes and looked for some quotes from "antiquity" ... here's what I found (some were familiar to me, others are new). Aristophanes (ca. 448-380 BCE) Aristotle (ca. 384-322 BCE) Carvaka (6th century B.C.E.)Possibly the founder of the Carvaka school of thought within Hinduism, which was entirely naturalistic in its view of the universe and hedonistic in its ethical outlook; may not have been a real personAulus Cornelius Celsus (C.E. First Century) Cicero [Marcus Tullius] (ca. 106-43 B.C.E.) Confucius [K'ung-fu-tzu or Kongfuzi] (B.C.E. 551-479) Demosthenes (384-322 BCE)Diogenes (d. ca. 320 B.C.E.) Okay, that one is a tongue-in-cheek addition, but it does demonstrate that Diogenes had no great fear or reverence of the gods Epicurus (ca. 341-270 B.C.E.)Heracletus of Ephesus (ca. 500 B.C.E.?)Hippocrates (ca. 460-377 B.C.E.)
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Post by AuntieSocial on Jan 8, 2004 17:46:29 GMT -5
Hsun Tzu (298-238) Omar Khayyám (12th century CE) Titus Lucretius Carus (B.C.E. 94?-55?) Marcus Aurelius Antoninus [Marcus Annius Verus] (121-180) Moschus (fl. ca. B.C.E. 150) Paulus Silentiarius (fl. Sixth Century C.E.) Plato (ca. B.C.E. 428-347) Polybius (B.C.E 200?-118) Protagoras of Abdera (ca. B.C.E. 480-411) Seneca (ca. 5 B.C.E. to C.E. 65) Sextus Empericus (ca. 4th century B.C.E.) Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus (C.E. 25-101)
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Post by AuntieSocial on Jan 8, 2004 17:47:19 GMT -5
Strabo (ca. B.C.E. 58 to C.E. 24) Marcus Terentius Varro (B.C.E. 116-29)
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Post by dragonfly on Jan 8, 2004 22:14:23 GMT -5
Wow THAT was fantastic Auntie Social! That quote from Epicures chilled me to the bone!
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Post by AuntieSocial on Jan 9, 2004 16:43:19 GMT -5
I noticed that Cyrus the Great isn't quoted on that site I posted. Maybe you would like to submit the quote, dragonfly.
I'm glad you liked the quotes. Positive Atheism is a good site to lose yourself on for several hours (or days). If you have some time, you should go sift through their offerings.
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Post by Hilly on Jan 10, 2004 11:34:28 GMT -5
Epicurus quote: ”Why should I fear death? If I am, death is not. If death is, I am not. Why should I fear that which cannot exist when I do?” I quite like that one, although Epicurus was certainly showing a brave face. To not fear death when actually faced with it will probably not be that simple. That being said, I think its a great quote.
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Post by dragonfly on Jan 19, 2004 0:45:28 GMT -5
I love these quotes ! They are so powerful and thought provoking! I will certainly check out the site Auntiesocial ! Thanks. And Hilly that quote by Epicurus is awesome!
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Post by AuntieSocial on Jan 19, 2004 17:29:36 GMT -5
My favourite Epicures quote is the other one ... the one often called "The Riddle of Epicures"
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