The Greek Cynic philosophers were ancient hippies, the flower children of Athens. The prominent Cynics were Antisthenes, Diogenes of Sinope, Crates, and Hipparchia. The first Cynic Philosopher, Antisthenes was a student of Socrates, walking five miles a day to study under him. The Cynic Philosopher Crates was likewise the teacher of Zeno, the first Stoic philosopher. The Greek Stoic philosophers inherited much of their philosophy from the Cynic philosophers, and the Cynics inherited much of their philosophy from Socrates. The most famous of the Greek Cynic philosophers was Diogenes of Sinope. Once Diogenes noticed a mouse scurrying about in Athens, and he decided that, like the mouse, he would be concerned about where he lived, so he lived in a tub, a large earthenware pot near the public buildings. When he saw a boy drinking water with his hands, he threw away the cup he owned, and later he threw away his bowl. He went barefoot even in the winter, his possessions consisted of a clock and what he could carry in a knapsack. When Alexander the Great sought him out in Corinth, he told Diogenes, “Ask for whatever you desire.” Diogenes replied, “Stand out of my light.” The writings of the Greek Cynic and Stoic philosophers have been mostly lost to the sands of history, with the exception of the excerpts recorded by the ancient biographer and philosopher Diogenese of Laertius in his "Lives of Eminent Philosophers" and other scattered fragments and quotations in other works. Purchase Diogenese Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ervrk2 This video is based on this blog: http://www.seekingvirtueandwisdom.com/diogenes-and-the-greek-cynic-philosophers/ Please support our efforts, be a patron, at: https://www.patreon.com/seekingvirtueandwisdom Patrons can participate in online Zoom discussions of draft presentations we prepare for future YouTube videos.

2. Today we will learn and reflect on the Cynic philosophers, who
were the flower children of ancient Greece. The Cynic
philosophers both taught and lived in the stoa or city square of
Athens, owning only their sandals and the clothes on their
back. The most famous of the Cynics was Diogenes of Sinope,
who lived in a pot in the city square of Athens. When
Alexander the Great visited Athens, he told Diogenes he would
grant him whatever wish he desired. Diogenes simply asked
Alexander the Great if he could step to one side, as he was
blocking the sun.

3. You may ask, how will studying the Cynic philosophers improve my soul?
We can learn how to live simple moral lives like the Cynics.
The Cynics lived simple lives with few possessions, like the later holy monastics
who lived in the deserts of Egypt. Living a simple moral life was their only true
possession, which influenced Stoic philosophy, and both later influenced
Christian thinking.
At the end of our talk we will discuss the main source used for this video, the
Lives of Eminent Philosophers by Diogenese of Laertius, and we will also
speculate on why the works of the Greek Stoic Philosophers have been lost to
the sands of history. Please, share this video with our friends. The Greek moral
philosophers were not merely academics, they were philosophical evangelists
preaching the inner joys of living a godly life! We welcome interesting
questions in the comments, sometimes these will generate short videos of
their own. Let us learn and reflect together!

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Greek Cynic Philosophers
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5. For the Greek Cynic Philosophers and the later Roman Stoics, ethics &
moral philosophy were all that mattered.
Not interested in physics or epistemology, or origins of things
Like early monastics, like St Francis, lived frugally, eating only for
nourishment, wearing only a cloak
Did hold classes, outdoors, our source lists many works, all lost
ANTISTHENESE, 1st Cynic philosopher, did not call himself that
Walked five miles a day to listen to Socrates
Was not eager to accept new students, sometimes tried to chase
them away with his staff, were they committed?

6. We must presume that if given a choice you would choose hearing
from the Cynic philosophers themselves, or from quotes by Diogenes
of Laertius, rather my ramblings about the Cynics, so we will go heavy
on their actual sayings and go a little bit light on the assorted
Bruceisms.

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“I would rather go mad than feel pleasure.”
He counseled humility. “You should learn
from the knowledgeable that the faults you
possess can be avoided.”
It would be better to fall in with crows than
flatterers (in Greek, korokas vs. kolakas), for
you are devoured by crows when dead, but
by flatterers when you are alive.”
“Pay attention to your enemies, for they are
the first to notice your faults.”
SAYINGS OF ANTISTHENESE

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“When reproached one day for associating
with worthless men, he said, ‘Doctors associate
with patients without falling into a fever
themselves.’ “
Similar is the saying of Jesus, “It is not the
healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”
“When asked what advantage he enjoyed
from philosophy, he said, ‘To be able to live in
company with oneself.’ “
When asked what is man’s greatest blessing,
he replied, “To die happy.”
SAYINGS OF ANTISTHENESE

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Antisthenes sought to prove that virtue could
be taught, that to be virtuous is to be noble.
Virtue is all that is needed for happiness,
“since it needs nothing but the strength of
Socrates. Virtue is a matter of deeds and
needs no abundance of words or
learning.” The wise man needs only the law of
virtue to govern his behavior, he does not
need written laws. Virtue is a weapon that
cannot be taken away.
SAYINGS OF ANTISTHENESE

10. DIOGENES of Sinope, who lived in a pot in the stoa, or city square
He saw a little boy cup his hand to take a drink, he threw away his cup
Studied under Antisthenes, beat with staff, shouted:
‘Strike, you will not find wood hard enough to keep me away as long
as you have something worthwhile to say!’
He was also difficult to students, one asked to be his student
Gave him a fish, told him to follow along, insulted, threw away fish
“A fish has destroyed our friendship.”
Once observed, people exert themselves to outdo each other at gym,
But do not take any effort to develop their character.
Liked to bait Plato.

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When Plato defined a man as an animal
with two legs and no feathers, Diogenes
plucked a cock and brought it to Plato’s
school, saying “This is Plato’s man.” Once,
when invited to Plato’s house, when
trampling on his carpets, he said, “I trample
on Plato’s pomposity.” To which Plato
replied, “How much vanity you expose,
Diogenes, by not appearing to be vain.”
DIOGENES OF SINOPE AND PLATO

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Plato gave Diogenes his nickname, “the
Dog.” Diogenes said that “though he was a
dog of the kind that men admire, none
dared to take him along on a hunt.”
“Once when Alexander the Great came to
him and said, ‘I am Alexander, the Great
King,’ he replied, ‘And I am Diogenes, the
Dog.’ When asked what he had done to be
nicknamed the Dog, he said, ‘I fawn on
those who give me something, bark at
those who don’t, and bite the wicked.’ “
DIOGENES OF SINOPE AND PLATO

13. Diogenese of Sinope lived first in Athens, then in Corinth
When he was travelling, captured by pirates, sold as a slave in Corinth
When the slave auctioneer asked him what was his talent,
He said, “I am good at ruling men, so whoever purchases me as a
slave is really purchasing their master.”
Bought by Xenaides to help raise his teenage sons, teaching them
how to ride and hunt.
He also taught them their most important lesson, how to live the lives
with the moral values of a Cynic philosopher.

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Diogenese taught the sons of Xenaides how
to “live on plain food and water, wear their
hair short and unadorned, to go barefoot
without a tunic, and to be silent and keep
their eyes lowered when walking in the
streets.” Xenaides was so grateful for his
services that he told his neighbors, “A kindly
deity has entered my house.”
DIOGENES OF SINOPE AND XENAIDES

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When his friends offered to ransom him from
his servitude to Xenaides, Diogenes refused,
saying that “lions are not the slaves of those
who feed them; it is the feeders, rather, who
are the lions’ slaves. For fear is the mark of a
slave, and wild beasts make men fearful.”
DIOGENES OF SINOPE AND XENAIDES

16. He was like Epictetus, the later Roman Stoic philosopher,
Who was a former slave of a former slave, who also lived frugally
Epictetus taught us that tyrants can take away all our possessions,
and also enslave us, but they can never take away our soul.
Possessions can own you, but living a moral life will make your truly
free and truly happy.
Diogenes of Sinope lived a happy life and was buried next to the sons
of Xenaides, he was treated as part of the family.
Crates and Hipparchia were later Cynic philosophers, they were
probably the only married philosopher couple.
Zeno, the Greek stoic philosopher, studied under Crates.

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Crates said that “his native land was obscurity
and poverty.” Crates also said that “we should
study philosophy to the point where we discern
that our generals are mere donkey drivers.”
His sayings include: “Those who surround
themselves with flatterers are as friendless as
calves among wolves; for neither the former nor
the latter have anyone to protect them, but only
the sort who plot against them.”
“It is impossible to find anyone who has no flaw;
for just as in a pomegranate, there is always a
rotten seed.”
SAYINGS OF CRATES

18. This is the story of how Crates married
Hipparchia. “Hipparchia fell in love with
Crates and with his discourses and his
life. She paid no attention to any of her
other suitors, nor to their wealth, nor to
their noble birth, nor to their beauty.
Instead, Crates and his teachings were
everything to her. And what is more, she
even threatened her parents that she
would commit suicide unless she were
given to Crates in marriage.”
CRATES AND
HIPPARCHIA

19. “Crates, therefore, when entreated by her
parents to dissuade their daughter from
marrying him, did all he could to dissuade
her; but when he failed, he stood up, took off
his clothes in front of her, and said, ‘This is
your bridegroom, and this is his property;
think it over! For you will be no companion
for me unless you adopt my way of life.’”
“Hipparchia accepted and, after adopting the
same dress, went about with her husband
and consorted with him in public, and
attended dinners with him.”
CRATES AND
HIPPARCHIA

20. Scholars have many unanswered questions:
Did they live in separate pots in the stoa, or did they share a pot?
To show he had nothing to hide, the sources say that Diogenese of
Sinope masturbated in public. Did Crates and Hipparchia also consort
in public? Maybe after dark?
Did Hipparchia ever relent, as newlywed wives often relent,
And insist that Crates quit being a philosopher and go get a real job?
Scholars are pretty certain that this last point did not happen, as they
say that Crates lived a happy phiolosphical life to a ripe old age,
Perhaps further scholarship will provide answers to our other
questions.

21. Our SOURCES:
Most of what we know about the Greek Cynic and Stoic philosophers
comes from Lives of Eminent Philosophers, by Diogenes of Laertius.
Their original writings are lost, in addition to the Lives we only have
fragments and snippets quoted by other Greek authors.
NOT Diogenes of Sinope
Weakness: He prefers to describe them with many pithy anecdotes
from their lives, which works quite well for the Greek Cynic
philosophers, who were so idiosyncratic.
ALSO: EXCELLENT ESSAYS BY leading scholars.

23. YouTube Video:
Greek Cynic Philosophers
https://youtu.be/zAAal5p8AX8
Blog:
http://www.seekingvirtueandwisdom.com/
NOTE: YouTube video corrections may not be reflected on the
slides, and the blog may differ somewhat in content.
© Copyright 2021
Purchase from Amazon:
https://amzn.to/3ervrk2
YouTube Channel (please subscribe):
Reflections on Morality, Philosophy, and History:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLqDkfFbWhXOnzdjp__YZtg

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