Was Pythagoras Ever Really in Sparta?
Did he really go to all of these places in person or did the Pythagorean movement make such claims in order to bolster their own credibility? Did others make similar claims for political and/or propagandistic reasons? Let us consider the sources as we have them.
THE PLATONIC SAGE IN LOVE
How, then, one may ask, can the true philosopher have any truck with the passion of love? It is a basic axiom of Plato’s ethics, after all, that the irrational part, or aspect, of the soul, including the erotic impulse, should be subordinated to the reason, and that the passions, if not entirely eradicated, should at all times be reduced to ‘moderation’ by the exercise of the power of rationality.
Modern States and Ancient Greek History
The problem is that there had already been a certain continuity of knowledge, in part of the Greek language but mostly of Greek history, thanks to historical works of Latin literature in general and along the lines of universal history. These had become the accepted version of history and of the Christian conception of human events; universal history is a model that lends itself perfectly to Christianity and was by then “exemplary”.