Iamblichus' Life of Pythagoras, or Pythagoric Life: Accompanied by Fragments of the Ethical Writings of certain Pythagoreans in the Doric dialect; and a collection of Pythagoric Sentences from Stobaeus and others, which are omitted by Gale in his Opuscula Mythologica, and have not been noticed by any editorIamblichus
Philosophy
Iamblichus' Life of Pythagoras, or Pythagoric Life: Accompanied by Fragments of the Ethical Writings of certain Pythagoreans in the Doric dialect; and a collection of Pythagoric Sentences from Stobaeus and others, which are omitted by Gale in his Opuscula Mythologica, and have not been noticed by any editor
Iamblichus
Ethics, Ancient; Philosophers -- Greece -- Biography; Philosophy, Ancient; Pythagoras; Pythagoras and Pythagorean school
The temperance also of those men, and how Pythagoras taught this virtue,
may be learnt from what Hippobotus and Neanthes narrate of Myllias and
Timycha who were Pythagoreans. For they say that Dionysius the tyrant
could not obtain the friendship of any one of the Pythagoreans, though
he did every thing to accomplish his purpose; for they had observed, and
carefully avoided his monarchical disposition. He sent therefore to the
Pythagoreans, a troop of thirty soldiers, under the command of Eurymenes
the Syracusan, who was the brother of Dion, in order that by treachery
their accustomed migration from Tarentum to Metapontum, might be
opportunely effected for his purpose. For it was usual with them to
change their abode at different seasons of the year, and they chose such
places as were adapted to this migration. In Phalæ therefore, a craggy
part of Tarentum, through which the Pythagoreans must necessarily pass
in their journey, Eurymenes insidiously concealed his troop, and when
the Pythagoreans, expecting no such thing, came to that place about the
middle of the day, the soldiers rushed upon them with shouts, after the
manner of robbers. But the Pythagoreans being disturbed and terrified at
an attack so unexpected, and at the superior number of their enemies
(for the whole number of the Pythagoreans was but ten), and considering
also that they must be taken captive, as they were without arms, and had
to contend with men who were variously armed,—they found that their only
safety was in flight, and they did not conceive that this was foreign to
virtue. For they knew that fortitude, according to the decision of right
reason, is the science of things which are to be avoided and endured.
And this they now obtained. For those who were with Eurymenes, being
heavy-armed, would have abandoned the pursuit of the Pythagoreans, if
the latter in their flight had not arrived at a certain field sown with
beans, and which were in a sufficiently florishing condition. Not being
willing therefore to violate the dogma which ordered them not to touch
beans, they stood still, and from necessity attacked their pursuers with
stones and sticks, and whatever else they happened to meet with, till
they had slain some, and wounded many of them. All the Pythagoreans
however, were at length slain by the spearmen, nor would any one of them
suffer himself to be taken captive, but preferred death to this,
conformably to the mandates of their sect.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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