Cambridge Ancient Hi.. - Index of

838 28. philosophy and philosophical schools
What was Proclus teaching? Both at Athens and Alexandria there was by
this time a traditional curriculum. Students would start by studying
Aristotle, as Proclus himself did. Marinus tells us that Proclus studied
Aristotle both in Alexandria and at Athens with Plutarch and Syrianus.
Ammonius refers to lectures on Aristotle by Proclus. Aristotle, however,
was only a beginning. Students would then move on to study selected dialogues
of Plato: the First Alcibiades, the Gorgias, the Phaedo, the Cratylus, the
Theaetetus, the Sophist, the Politicus, the Phaedrus, the Symposium, the Philebus
and finally the Timaeus and the Parmenides. 8 This list of dialogues, read in this
order, would lead the students from ethics to metaphysics; Proclus would
presumably guide them through the interpretations of previous commentators,
as he does in his written commentaries on Plato,offering in the end
either his choice among earlier interpretations or his own, independent
view. In his written commentaries he often opts for the interpretation given
by Syrianus.
Dialogues outside this canon were not neglected. Proclus wrote a series
of essays on the Republic, one of which is written up from a special lecture
delivered at the annual celebration of Plato’s birthday. The Orphic poems
and the Chaldaean Oracles were also studied. 9
Marinus depicts Proclus as a model of pagan piety. He describes how
Proclus went in for sea-bathing as a form of purification, performed
Orphic and Chaldaean purification rites and the rites of the Great Mother,
observed the Egyptian holy days and in general kept the religious holidays
of all peoples and all nations, celebrating them by vigils and hymns rather
than idleness and feasting. Proclus’ surviving Hymns, modelled on the
Homeric Hymns, fit this picture, as does the shrine of Cybele found in the
‘House of Proclus’. Marinus also tells stories of Proclus’ theurgic ability to
work wonders: these included saving Athens from a drought by his rainmaking
and curing the child Asclepigeneia by praying to Asclepius. 10
It is clear from Proclus’ works that his school was conducted in an
atmosphere of enthusiastic paganism. The traditional Greek gods were
revered and knowledge of classical Greek literature was assumed. It might
seem surprising that this was still possible in the fifth century, but archaeology
suggests that Christianity was slower to permeate all sectors of
society in Athens than elsewhere. The removal of cult statues from temples
and the conversion of those temples into churches were slow processes.
Proclus could not just ignore Christianity, however. He does not attack it
explicitly but refers in his works to ‘impiety’, ‘ignorance’ and ‘confusion’,
using ‘code-phrases’ which would be readily understood by a sympathetic
8 Marinus chs. 9, 12, 13. Westerink (1962) xxxvii–xl. (Cf. Westerink and Trouillard (1990) lxvii–lxxiv.)
Festugière (1969). Lamberz (1987) 5 n. 17.
9 Proclus, In Rem Publicam i.69.20–71.17. Marinus chs. 26, 27.
10 Marinus chs. 18, 19, 28, 29, 33. Frantz (1988) 44.
Cambridge Histories Online © Cambridge University Press, 2008