Ekpyrosis (pronounced eck-pyh-row-sys)
(1) In modern cosmology, a speculative theory
proposing the known universe originated in the collision of two other
three-dimensional universes traveling in a hidden fourth dimension. This
scenario does not require a singularity at the moment of the Big Bang.
(2) In the philosophy of the Stoic school in
Antiquity, the idea that all existence is cyclical in nature and universe is
the result of a recurring conflagration in which the all is destroyed and
reborn in the same process. Among the
Stoics,
1590s (in English): From the Ancient Greek ἐκπύρωσις (ekpúrōsis)
(conflagration, cyclically recurring conflagration in which the
universe is destroyed and reborn according to some factions in Stoic philosophy),
the construct being the Ancient Greek ἐκ (ek) (out of; from) + πύρωσις
(pyrōsis), from πῦρ (pyr)
(fire) + -ōsis (the suffix). While there’s no direct relationship between
the modern “big bang theory” and the Stoic’s notion of periodic cosmic conflagration
(the idea the universe is periodically destroyed by fire and then recreated),
the conceptual similarity is obvious.
The Stoic philosophy reflected the general Greek (and indeed Roman) view
of fire representing both destruction and renewal. In
English, ekpyrosis first appeared in the late sixteenth century translations or
descriptions of ancient Stoic philosophy, particularly in relation to their cosmological
theories and it came to be used either as the Stoics applied it or in some
analogous way. It was one of a number of
words which during the Renaissance came to the attention of scholars in the
West, a period which saw a revival of interest in ancient Greek and Roman
thought, art & architecture and for centuries many of the somewhat idealized
descriptions and visions of the epoch were those constructed (sometimes rather
imaginatively) during the Renaissance. The
alternative spelling was ecpyrosis. Ekpyrosis is a noun and ekpyrotic is an
adjective; the noun plural is ekpyroses.
In stoic philosophy, ekpyrosis was described
sometimes as a recurring, unitary process (the periodic destruction &
rebirth of the universe in a single conflagration) and sometimes and the final
stage of one existence (destruction) which was the source of a palingenesis
(the subsequent rebirth). Palingenesis
was almost certainly a variant of palingenesia
(rebirth; regeneration) with the appending of the suffix
-genesis (used to suggest “origin; production”). Palingenesia was a learned borrowing from the
Late Latin palingenesia (rebirth; regeneration),
from the Koine Greek παλιγγενεσία (palingenesía)
(rebirth), the construct being the Ancient Greek πᾰ́λῐν (pálin) (again, anew, once more), ultimately
from the primitive Indo-European kwel (to
turn (end-over-end); to revolve around; to dwell; a sojourn))
+ γένεσις (genesis) (creation; manner
of birth; origin, source). The construct
of the suffix was from the primitive Indo-European ǵenh- (to beget; to give birth; to produce”) + -ῐ́ᾱ (-íā) (the suffix used to form feminine
abstract nouns).
Lindsay Lohan and her lawyer in court, Los Angeles, December, 2011.
In biology, the word was in the nineteenth
century was adopted to describe “an apparent repetition, during the development
of a single embryo, of changes that occurred previously in the evolution of its
species) came directly from the German Palingenesis
(the first papers published in Berlin).
In geology & vulcanology, it was used to mean “regeneration of magma
by the melting of metamorphic rocks”) and came from the Swedish palingenes (which, like the German, came
from the Greek). In the study of
history, palingenesis could be used to describe (often rather loosely) the recurrence
of historical events in the same order, the implication being that was the
natural pattern of history which would emerge if assessed over a sufficiently
long time. When such things used to be
part of respectable philosophy, it was used to mean “a spiritual rebirth
through the transmigration of the soul”, a notion which exists in some
theological traditions and it has an inevitable attraction for the new-age set.
The Death of Seneca (1773), oil on canvas by Jacques-Louis David (1748–1825), Petit Palais, Musée Des Beaux-Arts, De La Ville De Paris, France. Lucius Annaeus Seneca (Seneca the Younger, (circa 4 BC–65 AD)) was one of the best known of the Roman Stoics and the painting is a classic example of the modern understanding of stoicism, Seneca calmly accepting being compelled to commit suicide, condenmed after being implicated in a conspiracy to assassinate the Nero (37-68; Roman emperor 54-68). The consensus among historians is seems to be Seneca was likely “aware of but not involved in” the plot. There are many paintings depicting the death of Seneca, most showing him affecting the same air of “resigned acceptance” to his fate.
The
Stoics were a group of philosophers whose school of thought was for centuries among
the most influential in Antiquity.
Although the word “stoic” is now most often used to refer to someone indifferent
to pleasure or pain and who is able gracefully to handle the vicissitudes of
life, that’s as misleading as suggesting the Ancient Epicureans were interested
only in feasting. What Stoicism emphasized
was living a virtuous life, humans like any part of the universe created and
governed by Logos and thus it was essential to at all times remain in harmony with
the universe. Interestingly, although
the notion of ekpyrosis was one of the distinctive tenants of the school, there
was a Stoic faction which thought devoting much energy to such thoughts was something
of a waste of energy and that they should devote themselves to the best way to
live, harmony with logos the key to avoiding suffering. Their ideas live on in notions like “virtue
is its own reward” and ultimately more rewarding than indulgence or worldly
goods which are mere transitory vanities.
While
the speculative theory of an ekpyrotic universe in modern cosmology and the ancient
Stoic idea of ekpyrosis both revolve around a cyclical process of destruction
and renewal, they differ significantly in detail and the phenomena they
describe. Most significantly, in modern
cosmology there’s no conception of this having an underlying motivation, something
of great matter in Antiquity. The modern
theory is an alternative to what is now the orthodoxy of the Big Bang theory;
it contends the universe did not with a “big bang” (originally a term of
derision but later adopted by all) begin from a singular point of infinite
density in but rather emerged from the collision of two large, parallel branes
(membranes) in higher-dimensional space.
In the mysterious brane cosmology, the universe is imagined as a three- dimensional
“brane” within a higher-dimensional space (which tends to be called the “bulk”).
It’s the great, cataclysmic collision of
two branes which triggers each defining event in the endless cycle of cosmic
evolution. In common with the Stoics, the
process is described as cyclical and after each collusion, the universe
undergoes a long period of contraction, followed by another collision that
causes a new expansion. Thus, elements
are shared with the “Big Bang” & “Big Crunch” cycles but the critical variations
are (1) there’s no conception of a singularity (2) although this isn’t entirely
clear according to some, time never actually has to “begin” which critics have
called a bit of a “fudge” because it avoids the implications of physical laws
breaking down (inherent in the Big Bang’s singularity) and assumes cosmic
events occur smoothly (in the sense of physics rather than violence) during brane
collisions.
Something in the vein of the “philosopher kings” many imagine they’d like to live under (until finding the actual experience less pleasant than they’d hoped), Marcus Aurelius was a Stoic philosopher who has always been admired for his admirable brevity of expression, the stoic world-view encapsulated in his phases such as “Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”, “The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” and “Our life is what our thoughts make it.” Marcus Aurelius was the last emperor of Pax Romana (Roman peace, 27 BC-180 AD), a golden age of Roman imperial power and prosperity.
To the Stoics of Antiquity, ekpyrosis described the periodic destruction of the universe by a great cosmic fire, followed by its rebirth, fire in the Classical epoch a common symbol both of destruction and creation; the Stoic universe was a deterministic place. In the metaphysics of the ancients, the notion of fire and the central event was not unreasonable because people for millennia had been watching conflagrations which seemed so destructive yet after which life emerged, endured and flourished and the idea was the same conflagration which wrote finis to all was the same primordial fire from which all that was new would be born. More to the point however, it would be re-born, the Stoics idea always that the universe would re-emerge exactly as it had been before. The notion of eternal recurrence doesn’t actually depend on the new being the same as the old but clearly, the Greeks liked things the way they were and didn’t want anything to change. That too was deterministic because it was Logos which didn’t want anything to change. The Stoics knew all that had been, all this is and all that would be were all governed by Logos (rational principle or divine reason) and it was this which ensured the balance, order and harmony of the universe, destruction and re-birth just parts of that. Logos had motivation and that was to maintain the rational, natural order but in modern cosmology there’s no motivation in the laws of physics, stuff just happens by virtue of their operation.
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