Leucippus of Miletus was a Greek philosopher whose main contribution was the theory of atomism. Despite the importance of this contribution, Leucippus's life is practically unknown. It is known that he was born in the 5th century BC. C., possibly in Mileto, and that his main disciple was Democritus.
The lack of data on the life of Leucippus led to doubts that he was a real person. Most of his works were attributed to Democritus, so today only two writings are attributed to him. The rest of his theories are known thanks to the mentions of other later philosophers.
Leucippus was the first to develop the atomistic doctrine, which would later be completed by Democritus and reworked by Epicurus. According to his work, matter would be composed of an infinity of indivisible particles, atoms. These are kept in a constant movement within the void.
This theory was openly in conflict with the beliefs of the Greeks of the time. While Leucippus claimed that all natural phenomena, including human existence, were determined by atoms, most of his compatriots thought that it was the participation of the gods that determined the world..
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Although some sources affirm that Leucipo was born towards 460 a. C., the truth is that there is no evidence to confirm that date. Experts limit themselves to pointing out that it came into the world in the 5th century BC. C. Something similar happens with his hometown, with opinions that indicate that it was Miletus, Elea or Abdera.
That lack of data about his life comes in part from theories that claimed that Leucippus was not a real person. Epicurus affirmed that "there has never been a philosopher Leucippus", although this phrase has been interpreted as a criticism of his philosophical postulates.
Another factor that has caused Leucippus's life to be so little known is that most of his work was published anonymously within the group of atomist theories. Later, the theory itself was attributed to his disciple, Democritus..
Only the references of some authors have allowed us to recognize Leucipo's contributions. Among them, those of Aristotle stand out, who openly attributed to him the fatherhood of the atomist theory.
One of the hypotheses that has more followers affirms that Leucippus belonged to the Eleatic school during his youth. In this phase of his life it seems that he was a disciple of Zeno of Elea, who illustrated Parmenides' theories on immobility..
Leucippus, according to the biographers, was Democritus's teacher. Both participated in the formulation of the theory of mechanistic atomism, which was in many respects opposed to the writings of Parmenides..
According to Leucippus's thesis, reality is made up of infinite particles, so small that they cannot be divided. These particles, the atoms, would always be in motion.
Contradicting Parmenides, Leucippus affirmed that both being and non-being existed. The first would be made up of atoms, while the second corresponds to the vacuum. This would be essential for the movement to occur.
As noted, some philosophers claimed that Leucippus had never existed. This theory has been largely discarded and attributed to an attempt to discredit their theories..
Against what Epicurus affirmed ("there has never been a philosopher Leucippus"), Aristotle or Theophrastos confirmed the real existence of Leucippus. Both, in addition, confirmed that he had been the author of the theory of atomism.
The arche, also called arché, is a philosophical concept that appeared in classical Greece. This term is related to the beginning of the universe and the creation of all existing things. Its meaning in ancient Greek is precisely "origin" or "beginning".
The Greek philosophers of the Miletus school, such as Thales or Anaximander, had already assumed that there was an original principle, which they called arche. It would be a constitutive element common to all the beings that make up nature.
Other authors, such as Aristotle, contributed new ideas about the arche. For this philosopher, the concept encompassed all self-sufficient, that is, what does not need anything else to exist other than itself.
Thales of Miletus identified the arche as the apeiron, the beginning of all things. This author identified this apeiron with water.
Anaximander, a disciple of Thales, made some variations in the definition of the arche. Like his teacher, this philosopher related it to the apeiron and used the concept to refer to the indeterminate and infinite matter that was the beginning and end of everything..
Later, Pythagoras and the rest of the authors of his current related the arche with mathematics and with numbers.
Heraclitus, on the other hand, re-linked it with nature. The main difference with the Miletus philosophers is that he proposed that the arche was fire, while the previous ones had pointed to other elements such as air or water..
The main contribution of Leucippus and his student Democritus was to introduce the atom to the concept of arche.
These thinkers came to the conclusion that small particles of diverse nature existed. These particles, the atoms, were neither created nor destroyed. In addition, they claimed that matter was created when these atoms were grouped together.
Leucippus's conclusion was that the arche were the atoms. The entire universe, including humans, was made up of these particles. As a defender of determinism, he also claimed that everything was determined by the movement of these atoms.
Atomism appeared as a doctrine at the end of the so-called cosmological period of philosophy in Ancient Greece. Shortly after, Socrates inaugurated the anthropological period, with the human being as the center of his philosophy.
In this way, the atomic model represented the last attempt to solve the arche question. Likewise, this theory tried to respond to what was stated by Parmenides and Heraclitus, two authors who had developed opposite ideas about reality. The first spoke of the immutable being, while the second was based on the concept of continuous fluidity..
Leucippus proposed a theory of atomism based on the idea that the universe is composed of two fundamental elements. These are emptiness and matter, and from the relationship between the two, everything that the human being perceives with his five senses arises..
Aristotle pointed out that this idea of Leucippus was a response to Parmenides, who denied that there was a vacuum. This philosopher considered it impossible that new matter could be created from a vacuum, which also led him to deny all possibility of movement and change.
Leucippus showed his opposition to Parmenides' theory. In his argumentation, the Miletus philosopher assured that everything he affirmed could be empirically verified using only the senses. For him, anyone could observe how matter moves and transforms.
Leucippus's atomic model considered the existence of a vacuum essential. The atoms that make up all matter needed that vacuum to be able to move.
Matter, according to Leucippus, is made up of atoms. His theory stated that these were very small particles, invisible to the naked eye and that they could not be divided. However, he thought that there were atoms of several different sizes that, when combined with each other, gave rise to the appearance of material objects.
The existence of atoms of different shapes and sizes, according to atomists, is one of the most important in determining their behavior. The most irregular, for example, ended up entangling each other and forming other atoms with a lesser capacity for movement..
Others, smaller and rounded, are more likely to move and, when grouped together, make up elements such as fire. The same human soul would be composed of atoms even more spherical than the previous ones.
This theory denied some of the postulates most commonly accepted by pre-Socratic philosophers, such as genesis or corruption: atoms are neither created nor destroyed.
Democritus, a disciple of Leucippus and co-author of the atomist theory, pointed out that the atoms of the soul had a movement similar to that of the particles of the solar rays. Thus, despite not being visible, they unfold in all directions.
The atomic model of Leucippus contradicted many of the beliefs held by the Greeks of the time.
His concept of a universe made up of atoms moving through a void following their own rules contradicted the belief in divine intervention. Leucippus thought that it was the movement of atoms, and not the decisions of the gods, that conditioned all natural phenomena, including human life..
The consequences of this theory went beyond philosophy. Thus, if the atomistic theory was accepted and the punishments and rewards of the gods had nothing to do with what happened to a person, the whole concept of existing moral norms would be discredited..
On the other hand, the statement that everything happened as the atoms moved meant that human free will was also in question..
One of the great problems when studying the work of Leucippus is the lack of written data about it. His work has only reached our days thanks to the comments of other authors, such as Aristotle or Simplicio de Cilicia..
Apart from his atomistic theory, experts point out that the great contribution of Leucippus was the introduction of scientific observation against religious dogmas.
Leucippus relied on the observation of life to create his theories. He also did it with a scientific methodology that left behind the belief in the gods and destiny..
As has been pointed out, there is hardly any information on the possible works written by Leucipo. In general, only two works are attributed to him, although it is known that part of the content attributed to Democritus was prepared by his teacher.
The first of the works directly attributed to the philosopher is The Great Cosmic Order, in which he presented his idea of the atom. The second is titled On the mind and focuses on criticizing the thought of Anaxagoras.
Many experts believe that both writings were just a kind of notes for the classes he taught.
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