change

clinamen

contentment

death

desire

eternity

evolution

fear

infinity

life

love

nature

nothing

omnipotence

openmindedness

origin of language

persistence

piety

relativity

religion

senses

space

stone

success

taste

universe

victory

wealth

wind

winning

nationality

Roman

occupation / innovator as

philosopher

poet

innovator in the field of

philosophy

cause of death

suicide

atheism

On the Nature of Things

Air, I should explain, becomes wind when it is agitated. Lucretius

is a silent, gradual, persistent thing. The drops of rain make a hole in the stone not by violence but by oft falling.

The drops of rain make a hole in the stone not by violence but by oft falling. Lucretius

is also accomplished through slow and steady persistence. The water hollows out the stone, not by force but drop by drop.

The water hollows out the stone, not by force but drop by drop. Lucretius

is the small, unpredictable move that atoms make when falling otherwise straight through the void (like rain) leading to collisions and thus to nature.

When atoms move straight down through the void by their own weight, they deflect a bit in space at a quite uncertain time and in uncertain places, just enough that you could say that their motion has changed. But if they were not in the habit of swerving, they would all fall straight down through the depths of the void, like drops of rain, and no collision would occur, nor would any blow be produced among the atoms. In that case, nature would never have produced anything.[1]'

is a singular event, not the production of new species from existing ones. Land dwelling animals could not have arisen from marine animals.

But Lucretius did not believe in the production of new species from previously existing ones, the 'other side of the coin' of true evolutionary theories. He denied that land-dwelling animals could ever have evolved from marine animals. Like Empedocles, he taught that plants and animals had been born from the Earth, and that the formation of new species was finished (NET)

is the chance combination of elements in earth out of which creatures formed. Natural selection led to the extinction of once-living 'monstrous' organisms. Those organisms that survived either survived because of their strength, speed, or cunning, or because of their usefulness to people.

Much later, the Roman poet and philosopher Titus Lucretius Carus (99-55 B.C.E.) wrote his long philosophical poem De Rerum Natura ('On the Nature of Things'). In this poem Lucretius proposed, among other things, an 'evolutionary' theory similar to that of Empedocles (which is ironic, because he attacks Empedocles rather vehemently in other parts of the poem). Here again, species were born out of the Earth, formed by the chance combination of elements. Natural selection led to the extinction of once-living 'monstrous' organisms. Those organisms that survived either survived because of their strength, speed, or cunning, or because of their usefulness to people.

Fear is the mother of all gods. Lucretius

There can be no centre in infinity. Lucretius

is founded on two things. There are bodies and there is a void in which these bodies are placed and through which they move about.

All nature then, as it exist, by itself, is founded on two things: there are bodies and there is a void in which these bodies are placed and through which they move about' (42). Lucretius's image of space abstracts the hitherto intuitive relation of body and place. Space is that which frames and distinguishes objects in the world, where space (the void) is the ground and objects are situated as figures within that ground. The contrast between a body and the space it occupies is necessarily more subtle in Lucretius's formulation. The body does not merely stand on a place and move from one place to another... rather, space is defined by the gaps between bodies. Space is the absented presence of (mobile) bodies. (Strung Together: The Cultural Currency of String Theory as a Scientific . . . By Sean Miller)

is, in all things spontaneous. She acts by herself without the meddling of the Gods.

Fear is the mother of all gods . . . Nature does all things spontaneously, by herself, without the meddling of the gods. Lucretius

Nothing can be created out of nothing. Lucretius

is not a quality of God. For if He can do anything he can make a stone so heavy that even he can't lift it. Then there is something God cannot do, he cannot lift the stone. Therefore God does not exist. (misattributed).

If God can do anything he can make a stone so heavy that even he can't lift it. Then there is something God cannot do, he cannot lift the stone. Therefore God does not exist. Lucretius

is to be discovered in the fact that nature impelled men to make sounds with their tongues and they found it useful to give names to things.

Nature impelled men to make sounds with their tongues And they found it useful to give names to things Much for the same reason that we see children now Have recourse to gestures because they cannot speak And point their fingers at things which appear before them. Lucretius

is in the power to contemplate the universe with a quiet mind, not bustling to bow one's veiled head before a graven image, deluging of vow on vow.

Poor humanity, to saddle the gods with such a responsibility and throw in a vindictive temper. What griefs they hatch for themselves, what festering sores for us, what tears for our prosperity! This is not piety, this oft-repeated show of bowing a veiled head before a graven image... this bustling to every altar... this kow-towing and prostration on the ground with palms outspread before the shrines of the gods... this deluging of vow on vow. True piety lies rather in the power to contemplate the universe with a quiet mind. Lucretius

is subjectivity. What is food to one man may be fierce poison to others.

What is food to one man may be fierce poison to others Lucretius

is sublime to the ignorant, useful to the politician, and ridiculous to the philosopher.

All religions are equally sublime to the ignorant, useful to the politician, and ridiculous to the philosopher. Lucretius

is a domain whose questions have often led to wicked and impious actions.

Religious questions have often led to wicked and impious actions. Lucretius

is that which frames and distinguishes objects in the world, where space (the void) is the ground and objects are situated as figures within that ground.

is worn away by the fall of dropping water.

The fall of dropping water wears away the Stone. Lucretius

 was created not by a design whereby all the particles fell into order, but because many of them by many chances struck one another in the course of infinite time and encountered every possible form and movement, that they found at last the disposition they have.

It was certainly not by design that the particles fell into order, they did not work out what they were going to do, but because many of them by many chances struck one another in the course of infinite time and encountered every possible form and movement, that they found at last the disposition they have, and that is how the universe was created. Lucretius

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