The formula panta rhei (

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

πάντα ῥεῖ 'everything flows') is an aphorism to describe

Heraclitus Heraclitus (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek Pre-Socratic philosophy, pre-Socratic philosopher from the city of Ephesus, which was then part of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Empire. He exerts a wide influence on Western philosophy, ...

' doctrine.

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

attributes this teaching to Heraclitus in the dialogue '' Cratylus'' but the formula first appears in the work of the late antique Neoplatonist Simplicius. This formulaic summary of Heraclitus' thought was already in use in Augustan times. Its Latin translation () can be found in the 15th book of ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' (, , ) is a Latin Narrative poetry, narrative poem from 8 Common Era, CE by the Ancient Rome, Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''Masterpiece, magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the world from its Cre ...

'' in the "Speech of

Pythagoras Pythagoras of Samos (; BC) was an ancient Ionian Greek philosopher, polymath, and the eponymous founder of Pythagoreanism. His political and religious teachings were well known in Magna Graecia and influenced the philosophies of P ...

", in which

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

sets out the natural philosophical foundation of his Metamorphoses.

Origin

In his characterization of Heraclitus'

cosmological Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...

theory, Plato combines some of his best-known theorems: "", "everything moves and nothing stays." – with "all kinds of ancient wisdom, of course about

Cronus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Cronus, Cronos, or Kronos ( or ; ) was the leader and youngest of the Titans, the children of Gaia (Earth) and Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Sky). He overthrew his father and ruled dur ...

and Rhea, which Homer already said". He assumes that the name of the

Titan Titan most often refers to: * Titan (moon), the largest moon of Saturn * Titans, a race of deities in Greek mythology Titan or Titans may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities Fictional locations * Titan in fiction, fictiona ...

Rhea can be traced back to the meaning of “to flow”. The phrase is first found in literal form in Simplicius (born 490 – 560), a late antique commentator on the writings of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

Flux doctrine

The fact that the phrase in the flux doctrine is an interpretation of Heraclitus' statements is not inaccurate, but nonetheless abbreviated. It is supported by the so-called “flux fragments”, in which Heraclitus compares

being Existence is the state of having being or reality in contrast to nonexistence and nonbeing. Existence is often contrasted with essence: the essence of an entity is its essential features or qualities, which can be understood even if one do ...

with a river: Fragment 1: Fragment 2: Fragment 3:

Philosophical interpretations

The flux doctrine is to be understood in the context of Heraclitus' doctrine of the unity of all things: Plato's quote ''Pánta chorei kaì oudèn ménei'' is the most concise formulation of Heraclitus' theory of flux, which states: “Everything flows and nothing remains; there is only an eternal becoming and changing.” Unlike Heraclitus himself, the focus here is on the aspect of becoming and passing away. In the tradition of the Platonic school, but also in numerous more recent interpretations (e.g. Hölderlin and Hegel), Heraclitus' teaching appears only as one of becoming and passing away. According to Nietzsche, it is essentially a concept of the “affirmation of passing away” (Bejahung des Vergehens). In contrast, according to the theory of flux, the primary experience of the world lies in the continuous change of matter and form. It is a metaphor for the processuality of the world. Being is the becoming of the whole. Being is therefore not static, but is to be understood dynamically as eternal change. However, behind and at the same time in the incessant flux is unity: unity in multiplicity and multiplicity in unity. Karl-Martin Dietz nevertheless interprets the flux theory as Heraclitus' reference to the world of the unchangingly common.

Reception by Goethe

Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

referred directly to Heraclitus in the poem ''Dauer im Wechsel'': Gleich mit jedem Regengusse Ändert sich dein holdes Tal, Ach, und in demselben Flusse, Schwimmst du nicht zum zweitenmal. Eternal change is also the subject of his poem ''Eins und Alles'':

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

: ''Sämtliche Werke in 18 Bänden'', Band 1: ''Sämtliche Gedichte''. Artemis, Zürich 1950, S. 514.; siehe . Es soll sich regen, schaffend handeln, Erst sich gestalten, dann verwandeln; Nur scheinbar stehts Momente still. Das Ewige regt sich fort in allen: Denn alles muß in Nichts zerfallen, Wenn es im Sein beharren will.

Literature

* Wilhelm Capelle: ''Die Vorsokratiker''. Kröner, Stuttgart, 9. Auflage 2008, * Hans Joachim Störig: ''Kleine Weltgeschichte der Philosophie''. Fischer, Frankfurt a. M. 1996, * Ute Seiderer (Hrsg.): ''Panta rhei. Der Fluß und seine Bilder. Ein kulturgeschichtliches Lesebuch.'' Reclam, Leipzig 1999,

References

External links

* {{cite web, access-date=2023-09-02 , archive-date=2023-09-01 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230901074927/https://podcast.orf.at/podcast/oe1/oe1_geschichte/items/di_oe1_geschichte_clk_e750542f8c4d41488474fce250b1026a.mp3 , author=Wolfgang Hameter , date=2023-08-31 , format=mp3-Audio; 6,6 MB; 4:49 Minuten , title=Antike Redewendungen und ihre Geschichte, Teil 1 , url=https://podcast.orf.at/podcast/oe1/oe1_geschichte/items/di_oe1_geschichte_clk_e750542f8c4d41488474fce250b1026a.mp3 , website= Ö1 Betrifft: Geschichte Natural philosophy Catchphrases Greek words and phrases Heraclitus Concepts in ancient Greek metaphysics