II

PYTHAGORAS AND HIS PHILOSOPHY

IT is a matter for enduring regret that so little is known to us
concerning PYTHAGORAS. What little we do know serves but to enhance
for us the interest of the man and his philosophy, to make him,
in many ways, the most attractive of Greek thinkers; and, basing our
estimate on the extent of his influence on the thought of succeeding ages,
we recognise in him one of the world's master-minds.

PYTHAGORAS was born about 582 B.C. at Samos, one of the Grecian isles.
In his youth he came in contact with THALES--the Father of Geometry,
as he is well called,--and though he did not become a member of THALES'
school, his contact with the latter no doubt helped to turn his mind
towards the study of geometry. This interest found the right ground
for its development in Egypt, which he visited when still young.
Egypt is generally regarded as the birthplace of geometry,
the subject having, it is supposed, been forced on the minds
of the Egyptians by the necessity of fixing the boundaries of lands
against the annual overflowing of the Nile. But the Egyptians
were what is called an essentially practical people, and their
geometrical knowledge did not extend beyond a few empirical rules
useful for fixing these boundaries and in constructing their temples.
Striking evidence of this fact is supplied by the AHMES papyrus,
compiled some little time before 1700 B.C. from an older work dating
from about 3400 B.C.,[1] a papyrus which almost certainly represents