"When I look upon seamen, men of science and philosophers, man is the wisest of all beings; when I look upon priests and prophets nothing is as contemptible as man"
- Diogenes
About this Quote
Diogenes' quote is a reflection on the duality of human nature. On one hand, he sees human beings as sensible and efficient in terrific tasks of science and viewpoint. On the other hand, he sees them as contemptible and absurd when it concerns matters of faith and religion. This quote speaks with the idea that human beings are capable of both terrific and awful things, and that it depends on us to choose which course we take. It likewise speaks with the concept that human beings are capable of fantastic knowledge, but that this knowledge can be easily damaged by religious dogma and superstitious notion. Ultimately, Diogenes' quote is a tip that we need to make every effort to utilize our knowledge and understanding to make the world a better location, instead of allowing ourselves to be swayed by spiritual and political ideologies.
"But in Christianity, by contrast, the freedom of the children of God was also freedom from all important worldly interests, from all art and science, etc"
"I think philosophers can do things akin to theoretical scientists, in that, having read about empirical data, they too can think of what hypotheses and theories might account for that data. So there's a continuity between philosophy and science in that way"
