Synopses & Reviews
This bright, deep, meditative jewel-like study brings Heraclitus to life in a new way, and shows him to be one of the principal sources of Western mystical thinking. From Geldard's point of view, the study of Heraclitus is not just an academic matter but, on the contrary, presents us with very real existential and phenomenological challenges. The book includes new translations of all the essential fragments. Geldard, through his exploration of Heraclitus, shows us, "The more that human beings openly and humbly seek higher knowledge, the more they develop the power to perceive it, until finally they penetrate to the hidden universal order. The result of this penetration is knowledge of the Logos, that 'which directs all things through all things.' The acquisition of this knowledge is not an event; it is a stance in the world. It is Being in its fullness."
Review
"It will surely become the book on Heraclitus" Colin Wilson
Review
"This is no academic re-entombment with an up-to-date headstone. Geldard has a scholar's knowledge and skills, but he has the heart and brains of a poet or a prophet. Heraclitus, he observes, 'intoduced to the West the notion of Mind as the driving controlling force of the cosmos.' Contrasting Heraclitus with the nineteenth-century philosophical system builders, Geldard says, 'Heraclitus succeeded in his enterprise by denying logic, by surprising us with astonishing paradoxes, and by avoiding the monumental.' Geldard has done something similar, and, as a result, Heraclitus is not a long-ago moment in the historical record; he is a living teacher....Richard Geldard's new translation of and commentary on the great fragments of Heraclitus is an exciting event." Robert D. Richardson, Jr. author of Henry Thoreau: A Life of the Mind, and Emerson: The Mind on Fire
Synopsis
Fragments of Heraclitus: "To be wise is one thing:
to know the thought that directs all things through all things."
"We should not act like the children of our parents." This bright, deep, meditative jewel-like study brings Heraclitus to life in a new way, and shows him to be one of the principal sources of Western mystical thinking. From Geldard's point of view, the study of Heraclitus is not just an academic matter but, on the contrary, presents us with very real existential and phenomenological challenges.
The book includes new translations of all the essential fragments. Geldard, through his exploration of Heraclitus, shows us, "The more that human beings openly and humbly seek higher knowledge, the more they develop the power to perceive it, until finally they penetrate to the hidden universal order. The result of this penetration is knowledge of the Logos, that 'which directs all things through all things.' The acquisition of this knowledge is not an event; it is a stance in the world. It is Being in its fullness."
About the Author
Richard Geldard writes for serious readers seeking entry into the mysteries of existence and being. Some of his previous titles include The Esoteric Emerson (Lindisfarne, 1993), Traveler's Key to Ancient Greece (Knopf 1989, Quest 2,000) and God in Concord (Larsen Publications, 1999). He previously held the post of adjunct professor of philosophy at Yeshiva University and holds his doctorate in Dramatic Literature and Classics from Stanford University.