Know Yourself: Echoes and Interpretations of the Delphic Maxim in Ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Philosophy

Book

Know Yourself

Echoes and Interpretations of the Delphic Maxim in Ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Philosophy

Edited by: Ole Jakob Filtvedt and Jens Schröter

Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2024

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This book is in the series

Volume 260 | Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft

About this book

The book explores ancient interpretations and usages of the famous Delphic maxim “know yourself”. The primary emphasis is on Jewish, Christian and Greco-Roman sources from the first four centuries CE. The individual contributions examine both direct quotations of the maxim as well as more distant echoes. Most of the sources included in the book have never previously been studied in any detail with a view to their use and interpretation of the Delphic maxim. Thus, the book contributes significantly to the origin and different interpretations of the maxim in antiquity as well as to its reception history in ancient philosophical and theological discourses. The chapters of the book are linked to each other by numerous cross-references which makes it possible to compare the different views of the maxim with each other. It also helps readers to notice relationships and trajectories within the material. The explorations of the relevant sources are also set in the context of ongoing debates about the shape and nature of ancient conceptions of self and self-knowledge. The book thus demonstrates the wide variety of philosophical and theological approaches in that the injunction to know oneself could be viewed and how these interpretations provide windows into ancient discourses about self and self-knowledge.

Author / Editor information

J. O. Filtvedt, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion, and Society, Oslo, J. Schröter, Humboldt University Berlin.

Reviews

"In conclusion, it can be affirmed that the volume certainly achieves the programmatic objectives set by the editors. It distinguishes itself from the classical studies of Pépin 1971 and Courcelle 1974 by paying attention to the echoes and interpretations of the Delphic precept in Christian and pagan sources that have been scarcely explored until now [...] Overall, the contributions are all well-edited and the reading is facilitated by the final Indices of Authors and Biblical and Classical Sources." Maria Carmen De Vita in: BMCR 2024.08.49

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	I
Foreword Publicly Available Download PDF	V
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	VII
Part 1: Introductory Chapters
The Delphic Maxim Interpreted: Aims, Scope, and Significance of the Present Study Ole Jakob Filtvedt and Jens Schröter Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	1
Ancient Self-Knowledge: Exploring Some of the Scholarly Debates Ole Jakob Filtvedt Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	21
Interpretations and Echoes of the Delphic Maxim in Pre-Christian Greek Philosophy Ellisif Wasmuth Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	55
“Know Your Text”: the Integrity and Interpretation of Alcibiades m. 133c8–17 Tommy Wasserman Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	85
Part 2: Main Chapters
Philo of Alexandria and the Transitory and Apophatic Dimensions of Knowing Oneself Beatrice Wyss Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	125
Seneca: Knowledge of Self and Nature Gudrun Holtz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	159
Plutarch: Know God and Know Yourself Rainer Hirsch-Luipold Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	211
Know Your Exceptionality. The Delphic Maxim Know Yourself in Epictetus Glenn Wehus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	231
Between Self-Knowledge and Self-Enjoyment: ΓΝѠθΙ ϹAYTON in the Skeleton Mosaic from beneath the Monastery of San Gregorio Wally V. Cirafesi Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	269
Self-Knowledge as Alienation and Unification in the Hermetica Christian H. Bull Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	293
Self-Knowledge and the Hidden Kingdom: The Delphic Maxim in the Manuscripts of Gos. Thom. 3 Matthew P. Monger Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	319
What does it Mean to be Human? The Delphic Maxim in Irenaeus John Kaufman Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	337
Know Yourself in Clement of Alexandria: Self-Knowledge, God-Knowledge and the Transformation of Self Henny Fiskå Hägg Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	365
When Mortals Become Sinners: Tertullian Grappling with the Delphic Maxim Karl Olav Sandnes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	385
A Maxim of Greek Philosophy Found in Scripture: “Know Yourself” in Origen and Reflections in Gregory of Nyssa Ilaria L. E. Ramelli Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	423
Jesus Knowing Himself: Origen and the Gospel of John Ole Jakob Filtvedt Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	473
Plotinus on the Delphic Maxim: Knowing and Being One’s True Self Eyjólfur Kjalar Emilsson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	505
Knowing Yourself as an Essential Part of Origen’s Teaching According to Gregory Thaumaturgus Hanne Birgitte Sødal Tveito Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	527
Forged in the Community of Divine Love: Augustine’s Quest through the Maxim of Self-Knowledge for Finite Wholeness within the Infinite God Matthew Drever Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	569
Author Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	595
Index of biblical and classical sources Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed	603

Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

December 31, 2023

eBook ISBN:

9783111083858

Hardcover published on:

December 31, 2023

Hardcover ISBN:

9783111083544

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

Front matter:

9

Main content:

634

Coloured Illustrations:

9

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111083858

eBook ISBN: 9783111083858

Hardcover ISBN: 9783111083544

Keywords for this book

Self-knowledge; Self; reception history; anthropology

Audience(s) for this book

Forschende zum frühen Christentum und zur antiken Geschichte, Theolog/-innen.

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Walter de Gruyter GmbH
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Know Yourself

Overview

About this book

Author / Editor information

Reviews

Topics

Table of contents

Bibliographic data