2023-07-15 04:36:25
The historian and philosopher Posidoniomore than popular in the second century, told in his writings a curious story about Elis Pyrrhon. He was sailing his friend through the seas when a storm raged that shook the crew. The weight of the cargo was such that the vessel seemed doomed; sad fate of drowning. But “he, keeping calm, raised his spirits by showing a piglet that continued to eat on the ship.” He raised his voice and convinced everyone not to lose their sanity and to stay the same as that pig; after all, worrying wasn’t going to stop the rains. His maxim was “that the sage should remain in a state of imperturbability” and calm to reach the pinnacle of existence.
That imperturbability that Pyrrho, the highest representative of the current of skepticism, was referring to was ataraxia. The concept was later replicated by many other philosophers such as Sixth Empirical in the second century AD. C.: «Skepticism is the ability to establish antitheses in phenomena and in theoretical considerations, thanks to which we head, first towards suspension of judgment, and then towards ataraxia». In his words, the first state consisted of reaching a “balance of the mind in which we do not reject or put anything”; while the second, the culmination, was the “well-being and security of the spirit.”
So far, ataraxia could be defined as one more theory. Key in philosophical thought, of course, but far from the borders of a section of pure History. However, historian Steven Gambardella states in his article ‘Stoicism: What is Ataraxia?’ that this state of mind and mind was so appreciated by the Greeks that the hoplites trained it: “It was often used in a military context because it was the perfect state of mind for a soldier to go into battle.” The key, argues the expert, was for the combatants “not to be scared before fighting”, but also “not to be too fierce or bloodthirsty” so as not to break the famous and compact formations of the hoplites.
Hoplites in action
Gambardella’s vision fits from start to finish. Pyrrho of Elis himself forged his philosophical theories after accompanying the army of Alexander the Great to India as a disciple of the democritan Anaxarco. Although it is difficult to be sure of his experiences since he left no writings to base it on. It was his student Timon who compiled the maxims of his teacher and defended his position as a leading figure in skepticism and ataraxia. This is corroborated by the Professor of Ancient History Marco García Quintela in his ‘Dictionary of History of the ancient world’: «He came to the conclusion that it was necessary to reach a state of imperturbability, which was the goal in the life of the human being».
Gambardella further believes that ataraxia was a key factor in preventing soldiers from breaking the famous Hellenic order of battle when facing the enemy. The historian Carlos Ventura i Santasusana affirms in ‘Introduction to the military history of the Greek world’ that the hoplitic phalanx was based on the collective action of a group of men with the same discipline. It worked like a chain in which each combatant protected part of the flank of his partner with his shield. The historian and philosopher Thucydides, born in the V century BC. C., made it clear in his description of the battle of Mantinea: “The men in line tried to stay under the protection of the shield of their companion on the right.”
The destruction of a part of that chain was lethal for the Greek army. In fact, Ventura corroborates that the hoplitic battles were won by a break in the opposing line. Normally, thanks to the pressure exerted on a specific point. Gambardella, of course, is of the same opinion: «Working in such formations required iron mental discipline. The ‘pezhetairoi’ or ‘companions on foot’, as they were known, had to avoid letting their passions dominate them when arrows rained down or enemy cavalry charged them. In return, this type of combat – which became generalized from the 8th century B.C. C.– allowed that the war could be carried out by peasants and fans.
train ataraxia
Although there are no sources that directly corroborate ataraxia training, there are dozens of examples that demonstrate the importance that the Greeks attached to imperturbability. When Socrates asked General Laches to define the perfect brave man, he replied simply: “Anyone who is willing to stand firm in line, to resist the enemy and not run away.” The signs of tension and nervousness in the formation were, in fact, evident to the trained eye. In 422 B.C. C., general Brásidas appreciated that the Athenians were not going to attack them. “Those men will not stand up to us; it is evident by the movement of the spears and heads. They were agitated, or so he thought.
How reliable is the theory that the Greeks trained ataraxia? At first, it seems difficult to happen. The historian Gonzalo Ollero de Landáburu admits in ‘Brief history of daily life in Classical Greece’ that hoplites received very rudimentary training. Logical, since they were not professional soldiers, but citizens who took up arms in specific moments and of need. “The non-professionalism of the army also affected the frequency and intensity of the fighting, since each one practiced it according to their own judgment,” he reveals. In his words, except for the specific cases of the Spartans and the Theban sacred cohort, the “level of the rest left much to be desired.”
The only training that existed in Archaic Greece in this sense was the ephebia. Back in the IV century BC. C. became a two-year educational system in which – as confirmed by Aristotle in his ‘Constitution of the Athenians’ – the young soldier underwent a two-year compulsory military service. The young people, who had to be at least twelve to access, trained their bodies through sports. “His preparation was based almost exclusively on athletic exercises, specifically wrestling, running, jumping, discus and javelin exercises,” Ollero explains in his work. Whoever wanted to know how to use a weapon had to pay for it out of his own pocket.
The most popular and widespread exercise was a competition called ‘hoplitodromes’. The 2nd century philosopher Pausanias states in his writings that it was created at the 65th Olympiad as “preparation for war”. And it does not seem strange, since the young people participated in it equipped with all the panoply of the combatant. From here, there are as many minor exercises as authors have dared to investigate this topic. The historian JE Lendon, for example, states in ‘Soldiers and ghosts: a history of battle in classical antiquity’ that a competitive dance –pyrrhic– was devised in which the actors participated with their entire team and recreated some movements of the phalanxes on the battlefield.
The only field training future hoplites received was when the 18- to 19-year-olds were sent out on patrol in rural areas shortly before joining the Greek army. And that did not guarantee that they would experience a single skirmish. That, together with a factor as determining as age, made participating in a battle something not as common as one might think at first. «Depending on how old you were at the time of a mobilization in Athens, you could have one function or another. Males between the ages of 20 and 49 could be mobilized en masse. If you were a little older, between 50 and 59, it was your turn to serve as a garnish. From the age of 60 you were freed from all military obligations, “adds the Spanish expert.
In any case, one must not fall into the error of believing that the Greek city-states did not attach importance to war. Although it is true that in Sparta it was a way of life and they turned battle into an art, it is also true that it was a key element of life for the rest of the ‘poleis’. An example is the oath that the ephebes had to pronounce during their training:
“I will not dishonor these sacred weapons, nor will I abandon my companion in the line of battle to his fate. I will defend both sacred and profane places, and to my offspring I will not deliver a diminished homeland but an enlarged and more powerful one, to the extent that my companions and I are capable, and I will obey those who hold power at all times, as well as the laws that have been promulgated and those that are promulgated, and if someone wanted to abolish them, I will not allow it, to the extent that my companions and I are capable, and I will honor the ancestral cults. My witnesses are the gods Aglauro, Hestia, Enio, Enialio, Ares, Athena Areia, Zeus, Talos, Auxo, Hegémone, Heracles, the borders of the country and its wheat, barley, vineyards, olive trees and fig trees.
The rest, as they say, is history. Old, but history…
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