Prompt Cast
The Impact of Pythagoras: From Mathematics to Philosophy
TLDR Pythagoras, a philosopher and mathematician, founded a cult-like community where his followers adhered to strict rules and beliefs. His ideas on mathematics and philosophy influenced ancient Greek philosophers, early Christian thinkers, and even modern scientific theories.
Timestamped Summary
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Pythagoras was a philosopher, mathematician, and leader of a cult, known for his mathematical theorem but with a much broader impact on philosophy and education.
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Pythagoras established the first Pythagorean community in Croton, which was essentially a cult where he was worshipped as a demigod and his followers had to adhere to numerous rules, including a vow of silence for five years.
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Pythagoras required his followers to be vegetarians and abstain from eating meat, except for certain animals, and also had various other rules and beliefs, including not eating beans, putting on their right shoe first, and abstaining from certain actions and behaviors.
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Pythagoras believed in the immortality of souls and reincarnation, but his cult also placed a strong emphasis on mathematics, with numbers being represented as dots and having different meanings, such as the number one representing intellect and being, and the number ten being the most important.
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Pythagoreans believed that numbers linked everything in the world together, including the planets and music, and they were credited with discovering the Pythagorean theorem, although evidence suggests it was known by others before Pythagoras.
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The discovery of irrational numbers by one of Pythagoras' followers challenged the Pythagorean worldview, and Pythagoras' death was surrounded by different stories, but his ideas influenced other Greek philosophers.
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Pythagoras' ideas influenced early Christian thinkers, the adoption of heliocentrism in the 17th century, and the theories of music and harmony in the 17th century, but his lack of original writings and the perceived silliness of his beliefs make him less studied than other ancient philosophers.
