Chapter 17 Classical Greek Philosophers (Part 1): Plato

Classical Greek Philosophers: Plato. Click "more" to see topic links. Click the following to see the playlist to date for Humanity's Spiritual History    • Explore the Playlist for the Spiritual His...   0:00 Introduction: The confusing lexicon of Greek philosophers 0:44 The term "Classical Greek philosophers" and when Plato was born 1:11 Plato's reluctance to talk about God 1:32 Plato's theory of forms: perfect ideals, essences, in an unseen world. Existence an appearance in the world we know 2:10 The Good, the highest form, which contains all virtues unified--like God. Our job: Become like the Good. Emanating from the Good, virtues become separate ideals. Emanating from the virtues are the archetypes (forms) of all things we know. What we see are imperfect copies of ideal forms. 3:52 Plato's prisoner and cave analogy 4:46 Plato's "The Republic" and the difference between knowledge (being awake) and opinion (a dream state). 6:29 Reason is superior to sense data. 6:54 Plato and the Buddha agree on distrust of sense data and how both used the term "form." 7:49 The problem of how the Good causes change--the Demiurge works with preexisting material. 8:50 Plato's theory of the Universal Soul. The Demiurge creates the universe as a single living creature, with soul, reason, and agency using existing but imperfect material. The Universal Soul is midway between the never-changing Good and existing transient things. The Universal Soul is made of existence, sameness and difference in divine proportions. The body of the Universal Soul is visible but the soul is not. Panpsychism. 12:43 The Universal Soul drives all things by its own motions (intentions, beliefs, and emotions). The Soul can align with divine understanding (nous) and prosper or not. Similarities with other religions. 14:39 Demiurge creates the rest of the universe, the planets, the lesser gods who create animals.. 15:30 The Demiurge creates men, the superior sex, which are initially stars in heaven and then when the proper time comes implants this god-fearing soul into a human body. 16:50 Plato on reincarnation. If men master the challenges of life they will return to their native stars upon death. If not they become women at a second incarnation. If after that, a beast. 19:11 Greeks during Plato's time did not believe in immortality. Plato gives three proofs of immortality and pre-existing knowledge. Religious parallels. 23:08 Plato distinguishes three parts of the human soul and parallels with other religions and modern science.